All posts by Turflinger

Cxense to Acquire Media Business from Boston-based Ramp

Technology

Cxense, the global leader in real-time data management and personalization solutions, today announced it has entered into an agreement to purchase Ramp’s media business. The acquisition addresses the fast-growing video publishing, personalization, and recommendation sector, and drives Cxense forward into the billion-dollar, North American market.

Delivering personalized experiences online has become the new imperative for businesses to effectively engage consumers and increase their brand value, relevance, and digital revenue. The power of video is an essential element to engagement in today’s mobile- and online-driven world, and through this acquisition Cxense dramatically expands its market opportunity, with a strong focus on servicing the billion-dollar digital video advertising market in the United States.

Ramp’s SaaS-based video platform delivers a patented and comprehensive solution for indexing, tagging, search, and publishing of online video content. The platform features unique capabilities, which drive increased discovery, engagement, and monetization of premium video assets across hundreds of tier-one media sites in North America. Cxense will also make the Ramp video technology available globally, both to its existing customer base and to new clients.

NPD Sends Assesment of Gullfaks Development Plan to Government

Energy

STAVANGER, Norway — Gullfaks field, one of the major cash cows on the Norwegian Continental Shelf, which has been producing for nearly 30 years, is facing further investments to boost production and extend its productive life.

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) has now submitted its assessment of the amended Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for Gullfaks, including Shetland/Lista Phase 1, to Norway’s Ministry of Petroleum and Energy.

Statoil Awards FMC Subsea Contract for Johan Sverdrup

Energy

HOUSTON — FMC Technologies announced Friday the award of a new EPC contract with Statoil where Phase 1 of Johan Sverdrup field is the first call-off.

The contract has an estimated value of $172 million in revenue and includes subsea trees, subsea wellheads, manifolds and control systems integration.

A frame agreement for add-on systems and a frame agreement for subsea service offerings have also been signed.

Statoil’s Johan Sverdrup field will be the largest offshore oil find in Norway in 30 years, and it is estimated to hold between 1.7 Bboe and 3.0 Bboe. The field is expected to produce between 550,000 boed and 650,000 boed when it is fully developed, equal to about 25% of Norway’s current domestic output. Production is slated to start in late 2019.

“FMC Technologies’ long history of working with Statoil and proven track record for delivering leading-edge technologies made us a strong candidate for this award,” said Tore Halvorsen, senior V.P., Subsea Technologies, FMC. “We are excited to play a large role in what will most certainly be one of the most important developments in the region for generations to come.”

First Norwegian F-35 Rolls Off Production Line

Defense / Security

FORT WORTH, Texas — The first of four F-35 Lightening II fighters currently in production for Norway has rolled off the Lockheed Martin production line in Texas.

The jet, designated as AM-1 by Lockheed Martin, is now undergoing coating with low-observable finishes, followed by functional fuel system checks, operational ground checks, and first flight.

Lockheed Martin said the aircraft will later be delivered to Luke AFB, Ariz., where it will join the U.S. Air Force’s F-35 international pilot training program fleet.

In other F-35 news, the U.S. Department of Defense has announced the award of a contract modification for F-35 conventional takeoff and aircraft for Israel.

The $89.265 million modification includes the development and demonstration, integration and sustainment planning for the Israel F-35A CTOL Air System.

The Naval Air Systems Command, Patuxent River, Md., is the contracting activity for the modification to a Foreign Military Sales contract.

More specific details of the modification were not disclosed.

Praxair Signs Agreement to Acquire Yara European Carbon Dioxide Business

Chemicals / Metals

Praxair, Inc. (NYSE:PX), a leading global supplier of carbon dioxide (CO2) and other industrial gases, has signed an agreement to acquire Yara International ASA’s (Yara) European CO2 business. The proposed transaction also includes Praxair’s acquisition of Yara’s remaining 34% stake in the Yara Praxair Holding AS industrial gas joint venture in Scandinavia. The investment for both transactions is expected to be 312 million euros.

In 2014, Yara’s European CO2 business sold approximately 850,000 metric tons of liquid CO2 and 50,000 metric tons of dry ice primarily to the food and beverage industries, and generated revenues of 112 million euros. The business operates five CO2 liquefaction plants, three large CO2 shipping vessels, seven shipping terminals and six dry ice production facilities across the UK, Ireland, Scandinavia, Northern Europe and Italy.

The Yara Praxair Holding AS joint venture, operating in Scandinavia and formed in 2007, had 2014 revenues of 145 million euros.

“Praxair is committed to growth and this proposed acquisition aligns with our core business strategy of building density in targeted geographies where we can achieve synergies. Additionally, this business will be a positive addition to our portfolio by enhancing our presence in non-cyclical segments such as food and beverage,” said Steve Angel, chairman and chief executive officer of Praxair. “Yara’s European CO2 business has high-quality assets that will complement Praxair’s industrial gases business in Europe.”

“The acquisition of Yara’s remaining share of the joint venture in Scandinavia concludes a successful partnership,” added Angel. “Praxair continues its strong collaboration with Yara on this transaction and other projects such as the one recently announced in Freeport, TX. We look forward to welcoming Yara’s European CO2 business employees to Praxair and working with the customers and suppliers of the business.”

The proposed transaction is conditional upon completion of definitive agreements, obtaining necessary regulatory approvals and clearances, and other customary conditions. The transaction is currently expected to close during the first quarter of 2016.

About Praxair

Praxair, Inc., a Fortune 250 company with 2014 sales of $12.3 billion, is the largest industrial gases company in North and South America and one of the largest worldwide.

Amerikanske selskap på vei til Mongstad

Energy

Tre av disse har TCM som teststed hvis alt går etter planen. Dette betyr at både GE, Alstom og University of Kentucky (UoK) kan være på vei til TCM for å teste sine CO2-teknologier.

Det amerikanske energidepartementet planlegger å teste teknologier for ca. 130 millioner dollar. Fase 2 tildeling for bygging av anlegg og gjennomføring av selve testene er forventet å komme i midten av 2016.

Skulle både GE, UoK og Alstom komme videre fra fase 1, vil testing bli gjennomført på TCM både i aminanlegget og CAP-anlegget fra 2017/2018.

I USA passer denne NETL finansierte teknologiutviklingen med President Obamas nylig annonserte Clean Power Plan, som setter mål for utslippsreduksjon fra kraftsektoren fram mot 2022.

Samarbeidet mellom Norge og USA på CO2-området har pågått siden 2004 og materialiserer seg nå i felles finansierte testprosjekter der amerikansk teknologiindustri benytter det verdensledende testsenteret på Mongstad; TCM. Den norske regjeringen lanserte høsten 2014 sin CCS-strategi, der internasjonalt teknologisamarbeid står helt sentralt.

Pressemelding fra DOE/NETL – DOE Selects Eight Projects to Receive Funding for Reducing the Cost of CO2 Capture and Compression

Rainy Day Draws a Little Nearer for Norway’s Economy

Statistics

Norway’s oil-driven economy, until recently among Europe’s top performers, faces years of slower growth as energy industry gloom infects other sectors, challenging policymakers who want to create jobs but fear stoking a red-hot housing market.

Having outpaced the euro zone in each of the last three years, European Union outsider Norway now expects its economy to slow by almost half compared to last year, to just 1.4 percent in 2015, and lag behind its neighbours.

Among those facing unemployment is Lars, a computer engineer in his late 50s who was told last week that his job in the technology industry had been axed. He spoke on condition his full name would not be published, reflecting unease about being out of work in a country which has long prided itself on economic success.

“The biggest consequence for me is that I could end up earning a smaller pension. It’s certainly a setback for my retirement plan,” Lars told Reuters. “I will of course try to apply for jobs elsewhere but it’s difficult to find a permanent job when you’re approaching 60.”

SLOWER GROWTH, FEWER JOBS

Unemployment hit a 10-year high in July, embarrassing the government even though at 4.5 percent of the workforce it is still less than half the 10.9 percent rate across the euro zone.

On Tuesday, engineering giant Aker Solutions announced 500 job cuts, taking its total for the year to around 1,400 out of around 16,000 as demand from oil firms falls.

“We need to protect the company and the rest of the employees by making such a choice,” Chief Executive Luis Araujo told Reuters.

“Uncertainty is there, projects are not being sanctioned, and while this happens we need to adjust our size to the market.”

Norway’s Labour and Welfare Administration (NAV) said unemployment will rise further in the coming months.

“We expect nationwide unemployment to continue to rise just as quickly as it has done so far this year, not least because we believe it will spread to other regions of the country,” Senior Adviser Johannes Sorbo said.

Unlike many other economies, which have yet to recover the ground lost in the financial crisis, Norway’s gross domestic product is now 5.7 percent above its pre-crisis 2007 peak.

Norway and Dual Citizenship: Change in the Air

Government

Norway has long had restrictive rules on dual citizenship. That situation may change after the Storting (Parliament) reconvenes this autumn. Venstre (literally “Left”), the Liberal Party of Norway, is preparing a parliamentary motion that will ease the restrictive rules and make dual citizenship readily available for immigrants resident in Norway as well as for Norwegians resident abroad. In July, Venstre released a position paper on the motion, based on an interview of Sveinung Rotevatn, a member of the Storting and the leader of Young Venstre.

Parliamentarian Rotevatn remarked that “Venstre believes that it’s about time that Norway does as about half the world’s countries have done and broadly accepts dual citizenship. This will strengthen the democratic rights and potential for integration of resident immigrants as well as Norwegians resident abroad.

“More than 10 years have passed since the Equality Committee of the Council of Europe stated in 2004 that immigrants integrate far better when they can obtain citizenship in their new home without having to relinquish citizenship in their country of origin. So changing the Norwegian law on citizenship contributes to improving integration.

“Venstre views this as a democratic problem, as in Norway today, we marginalize newcomers from other countries, in many cases depriving them of their democratic rights, such as voting in national elections. This should not happen in a modern liberal democracy, such as Norway.

Economic Trends for Norway: Unemployment to Peak in 2016

Statistics

For the past year, the Norwegian economy has been experiencing an oil-driven economic downturn, which is expected to be followed by a modest recovery in the second half of 2016. Unemployment is expected to peak in 2016 at 4.6% as an annual average.

Reduced demand from the petroleum industry is contributing to the weak activity growth that the Norwegian economy is now facing, but this is offset by the strong depreciation of the krone and the expansionary fiscal policy.

Continued fall in investments in petroleum industry until end of 2018

Oil prices fell sharply after summer 2014, and at the end of August 2015 were more than halved. We expect oil prices to remain low going forward, but gradually increasing to around 60 USD per barrel in 2018. High cost growth meant that petroleum investments started to decline before the fall in oil prices, falling by 15 per cent from the peak in the third quarter of 2013 to the second quarter of 2015. The low oil prices mean that few potential new development projects are profitable, while investment projects related to existing fields can help to curb the fall in investment. As an annual average, we now assume that the investments will fall by almost 12 per cent this year, and that the decline will gradually decrease in the years ahead to 5.5 per cent in 2018. This implies a drop of almost 33 per cent from 2013 to 2018.

Trimble Acquires Norway’s Vianova Systems

Technology

Sunnyvale, CA — Trimble (NASDAQ: TRMB) announced that it has acquired Vianova Systems AS, a Norwegian company specializing in Building Information Modeling (BIM) software for infrastructure design software solutions across the European region. Financial terms were not disclosed.

Vianova Systems is a pioneer in the development of software leveraging advanced BIM technology for the civil engineering market and infrastructure lifecycle management across road, rail, sea and air infrastructure design. The company offers a portfolio of solutions for civil engineers, civil contractors and project owners. These solutions include specialist tools for road, rail, utility, site, bridge and tunnel civil design, advanced geotechnical analysis and sophisticated model-based multiuser collaboration tools. In addition, the tools include civil design project tracking, design model traceability and automated design change monitoring. Vianova Systems has a strong record of delivering infrastructure management solutions for national road and rail authorities, with the goal of bridging the gaps between design, construction and maintenance.

Trimble is focused on leveraging the Constructible Model to maximize efficiencies across the Design-Construct-Maintain project lifecycle with the goal of achieving a leaner asset ownership lifecycle. The Constructible Model enables stakeholders to visualize, sequence, clash-detect, collaborate and optimize processes—significantly reducing the number of design errors and conflicts while also increasing the accuracy and quality of the work performed.