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World Oil: Equinor increases share in deepwater Gulf of Mexico from Shell

Business News, Energy, ,

STAVANGER — Equinor has exercised its preferential rights to acquire an additional 22.45% interest in the Caesar Tonga oil field from Shell Offshore Inc for a total consideration of $965 million in cash. This will increase Equinor’s interest from 23.55% to 46.00%. Anadarko remains the operator with a 33.75% interest, and Chevron retains its 20.25% interest.

The Caesar Tonga field is located 180 mi (290 km) south-southwest of New Orleans in the Green Canyon area and is one of the largest deepwater resources in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico.  Equinor’s current share of production from Caesar Tonga is 18,600 boepd (net to Equinor).

“We are pleased to increase our presence in the U.S., one of our core areas. This is an asset we understand well, and our larger interest will deliver significant additional free cash flow from day one”, says Christopher Golden, Equinor’s senior vice president for Development and Production International, North America Offshore.

Read entire article HERE.

Bloomberg: Oil-Rich Norway to Stress Test Its Finances Amid Climate Risk

Business News, Government

Norway, western Europe’s biggest oil and gas producer, plans to stress-test its public finances with different price scenarios to better understand risks related to climate change.

The government’s decision follows recommendations from an expert report last year on climate risk, and comes amid an intensifying public debate in the Nordic nation about the future of the petroleum industry that has made it one of the world’s richest countries.

Read entire article HERE.

Reuters: Norsk Hydro looks to master magnetism to keep carbon promise

Business News, Chemicals / Metals

KARMOEY, Norway/LONDON (Reuters) – In the cavernous chamber of Norsk Hydro’s aluminum smelter on the Norwegian island of Karmoey, the magnetic forces are so strong they make heavy iron wrenches float out of the hands of workers.

The company is piloting a technology that tames the effects of that powerful magnetic field, which is a consequence of the electrolysis process to make aluminum and leaches away energy.

Norsk Hydro told Reuters it was using mathematical models to mitigate the effect of the magnetism and other energy waste. The pilot project can cut the amount of energy used in production by 15% compared to the industry average, the company said, but declined to disclose further details, citing commercial sensitivity.   

The technique is one of the drives that Hydro is banking on to make good on its ambitious pledge to become carbon neutral from next year – meaning it can balance out its emissions with carbon savings elsewhere.

Read entire article HERE.

TechCrunch: Educational gaming platform Kahoot! acquires math app maker DragonBox for $18M

Business News, Education / Research, Technology,

Kahoot, the popular e-learning platform that provides a range of games to teach subjects (it has described itself as the “Netflix of education”), has made its first acquisition: it has acquired DragonBox, a startup that builds math apps, for $18 million in a combination of cash and shares.

Åsmund Furuseth, Kahoot’s CEO and co-founder, said in an interview that the deal was being done at an uptick to Kahoot’s previous valuation of $376 millon; the bigger company is now creeping up to $400 million.

Read entire article HERE.

gCaptain: Contract Signed for First Classed Offshore Wind Vessel in US by DNV GL

Business News, Energy, Shipping & Offshore,

Classification DNV GL on Wednesday announced it has been awarded a contract to class a purpose-built offshore wind vessel built in the United States.

The contract was awarded by WindServe Marine, LLC covering for offshore Crew Transfer Vessel for Ørsted North America. The contract covers the construction of the vessel, which will be the first offshore wind vessel built in the United States to class requirements.

The high-speed aluminum catamaran is a custom design from the U.K.-based BMT Group, who has extensive offshore wind experience and a large portfolio of offshore wind vessels, including 49 CTVs currently operating in Europe. DNV GL says the new state-of-the-art design from BMT will built specifically for U.S. East Coast sea conditions and will be used by Ørsted in their expanding operations in the region.

Read entire article HERE.

World Oil: ExxonMobil to invest up to $100 million on lower-emissions R&D with U.S. national labs

Business News, Energy, ,

IRVING — ExxonMobil has said it will invest up to $100 million over 10 years to research and develop advanced lower-emissions technologies with the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Renewable Energy Laboratory and National Energy Technology Laboratory. 

The agreement – among the largest between the department’s laboratories and the private sector – will support research and collaboration into ways to bring biofuels and carbon capture and storage to commercial scale across the transportation, power generation and industrial sectors.

“We’re focusing on advancing fundamental science to develop breakthrough solutions that can make a difference on a global basis in emissions reduction,” said Darren W. Woods, chairman and CEO of ExxonMobil. “We’re doing that with our in-house scientists and with corporate partners, through relationships with 80 universities and now with the intellectual and computing capacity of the renowned national labs.”

World Oil: The future is in the north, according to the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate

Business News, Energy,

STAVANGER — Our estimates indicate that more than half of the oil and gas that has not yet been discovered is located in the Barents Sea. The rest is distributed between the Norwegian Sea and the North Sea. The opportunities are greatest in the Barents Sea, where vast areas have not yet been explored. 

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate presented the report titled Petroleum activity in the High North on 2 April (in Norwegian only). The report places the petroleum activity in the High North into a historical, international and technological framework.

“We hope that the report can contribute in a knowledge-based approach to the debate,” said director general Bente Nyland when she presented the report at the Barents Sea Conference 2019.

Read entire article HERE.

2019-2020 AmCham Mentorship Program Kickoff Event

AmCham News

Mentorship Program Kickoff

Participants in the 2019-2020 edition of AmCham’s Mentorship Program gathered at Gambit Hill+Knowlton’s Oslo headquarters to learn how to get the most out of their mentor-mentee relationships and find out who their program partners would be for the next nine months.

The session began with participants introducing themselves, discussing what they hoped to get out of the program, and previous experiences with mentorship – a process that underscored the broad diversity of experiences, perspectives, and industries in the room.

Mentorship Program at a Glance

15

Participating organizations

36

Total Particpants

7

Industries Represented

Building Trust in Client and Mentorship Relationships

Jan Ottesen, Director of Public Affairs for Gambit, followed with a presentation highlighting the art of building trust in professional relationships.

Noting the tremendous value one can bring to the table when transitioning from being merely a service provider to a trusted advisor, Ottesen delved into how to build credibility and reliability in a relationship. He also warned participants about a common danger – focusing too much on oneself during a conversation.

It was a sentiment that resonated with his colleague, Simen Johannessen.

“When you’ve built that trust – it makes your job, and the relationships you have, much more interesting. It’s a process though – one that’s engaging, challenging, and inspiring, all at the same time.”

Ottesen then discussed the importance of listening and diving below the surface to better understand other people’s needs, thoughts, feelings, values, beliefs, and fears.

“When you’ve built that trust – it makes your job, and the relationships you have, much more interesting. It’s a process though – one that’s engaging, challenging, and inspiring, all at the same time.”

Simen Johannessen

Gambit Hill+Knowlton

The Mentee-Mentor Relationship

Following Ottesen’s presentation, Gambit’s Karen Romer and Nora Callander took the stage for a panel discussion exploring how mentors and mentees can develop the ideal mentee-mentor relationship.

Romer, Gambit’s Director of Corporate Communication, noted that in an ideal mentee-mentor relationship, the mentor learns as much as the mentee. She discussed how one mentee sharpened her knowledge of digital tools, allowing her to better understand how younger generations, often called digital natives, interact with digital content and platforms.

It was an experience that taught Romer something particularly valuable – companies must be careful to avoid burying such expertise in corporate hierarchies, and instead create platforms for young leaders to get involved and share their perspectives.

Callander took participants through her experience as a mentee in the previous cycle of AmCham’s Mentorship Program, which she described as “one of the best learning programs I’ve ever participated in.”

Paired with Roche Norway General Manager and AmCham Board Member Rajji Mehdwan, Callander described how Mehdwan helped her develop the confidence to take more initiative in her career and widen her international perspective.

“I was going to spend a few days in Barcelona for vacation, and Rajji challenged me to take a few extra days and spend some time at our office there to make connections outside of Norway. She said that I should even book meetings with key people there. Although a little scary, I did it. And it was great! These people were so friendly and eager to open up their network to me. Being challenged to do this led me to think in even bigger terms about my career opportunities in Gambit Hill+Knowlton. In fact, my next move is a year exchange to our London office, which I am really excited about.”

Callander concluded by highlighting the importance of developing a two-way mentorship relationship. One in which the mentee, with help from their mentor, has the courage to speak up and share their perspectives, and where the mentor is well prepared and genuinely interested in helping their mentee develop in their career – something also touched upon by Romer, but from the mentor perspective.

“It’s been fun to watch people I’ve mentored progress,” she noted, “I’m truly interested in seeing where they have gone, and will go, with their careers.”

“AmCham’s mentorship program is one of the best learning programs I’ve ever participated in.”

Nora Callander

Gambit Hill+Knowlton

Mentorship Pairs Revealed!

After the panel discussion, AmCham’s Katja Dahl Murphy revealed the mentorship pairs for the 2019-2020 cycle, with thirty-six mentor and mentee representatives from fifteen different companies and organizations, including AmCham, divided into eighteen pairs – the largest participation to date.

Participating AmCham Patron companies are Pfizer, Jotun, Bristol-Myers Squibb, British American Tobacco, Janssen, Roche, AIG, Philip Morris International, Coca-Cola, MSD, Gambit Hill+Knowlton, KPMG, and Radisson, with the US Embassy also participating.

The pairs then broke off to introduce themselves to their new mentor or mentee.

About the AmCham Mentorship Program

With its unique cross-industry orientation and global approach, the AmCham Mentorship Program offers a dynamic, internationally-minded arena for leadership development. 

The program, entering its fourth year, pairs emerging corporate talent with seasoned executives from Patron-level AmCham member companies. The end result: a collaborative arena that fosters innovation, prepares young leaders for the challenges of today’s international business environment, and forges strong bonds between AmCham member companies.

Press Release: Raytheon providing US Marines With Naval Strike Missile Produced in Partnership with Kongsberg

Business News, Defense / Security, , ,

Raytheon Company announced today that they will integrate the Naval Strike Missile (NSM) into the US Marine Corps existing force structure under a $47.59 million Other Transaction Authority agreement with Marine Corps Systems Command.

A USMC NSM supports the 2018 National Defense Strategy and Commandant of the Marine Corps modernization efforts.

NSM is a long-range, precision strike missile that can detect and destroy heavily defended land and sea targets at long distances. Naval Strike Missiles can be launched from land or sea.

In 2018, the U.S. Navy awarded Raytheon a contract to manufacture and deliver NSM as the Navy’s over-the-horizon weapon system for littoral combat ships and future frigates. The Marine Corps’ selection of the Navy’s anti-ship missile enhances joint interoperability and reduces costs and logistical burdens.

 “We are very pleased to expand the user community. The NSM is now selected by the US Navy and Marine Corps, Norwegian, Polish and Malaysian Navies from both ships and land based coastal defence. It is an off-the-shelf and non-developmental 5th generation strike missile system that can be rapidly deployed for operational use”, says Eirik Lie, President Kongsberg Defence & Aerospace AS.

 For further information:

Ronny Lie, Chief Communication Officer, Kongsberg Gruppen ASA, Tel.: +47 916 10 798

KONGSBERG (OSE-ticker: KOG) is an international, knowledge-based group delivering high technology systems and solutions to clients within the oil and gas industry, merchant marine, defence and aerospace. KONGSBERG has close to 11,000 employees located in 40 countries. Follow us on Twitter: @kongsbergasa.

See the original press release HERE.