Weatherford to repurchase shares
HOUSTON: Weatherford International Limited has announced that its Board of Directors has approved a share repurchase program that authorizes Weatherford to repurchase up to $1 billion of Weatherford's outstanding common shares, as market conditions warrant.
Weatherford may conduct its share repurchases in the open market and in privately negotiated transactions. The repurchase program does not require Weatherford to acquire any specific number of shares and may be terminated or suspended at any time.
Weatherford is one of the largest global providers of innovative mechanical solutions, technology and services for the drilling and production sectors of the oil and gas industry. Weatherford operates in over 100 countries and employs approximately 24,500 people worldwide.
Enterprise Products on expansion spree
HOUSTON: Energy company Enterprise Products Partners LP said Wednesday it is expanding its processing hub and pipeline system in the Gulf of Mexico after finding three new fields, in a project expected to cost $28 million. The company said it plans to increase both the processing capacity of the hub, known as Independence Hub, and the transportation capacity of a related pipeline system.
Enterprise is expanding the operations in an agreement with its partner in the hub project, the Atwater Valley Producers, which includes energy companies such as Anadarko Petroleum Corp., Dominion Resources Inc. and Kerr-McGee Corp. The expansion will accommodate an anticipated increase in natural gas production from three new field discoveries in the area, the company said. Enterprise said the Atwater group will pay higher fixed fees during the first five years of the Independence Hub's operations to help support the costs of the expansion. Enterprise, which owns 80 percent of the hub through affiliates, is building the hub and expects production to begin in 2007.
Daewoo finds gas reserves in Myanmar
SEOUL: South Korean trading firm Daewoo International Corp. has stated that it has discovered a gas reserve off the coast of northeastern Myanmar. Daewoo International has been exploring a 6,780 square kilometer-wide oil field since it obtained the right to operate there from the government of Myanmar in 2004, the company said in a regulatory filing.
The company said it will conduct test drilling in the 32-meter-thick reserve in March. Daewoo International holds a 60 per cent stake in the gas field while India's state-run Oil & Natural Gas Corp. has 20 per cent. The Gas Authority of India and Korea Gas Corp. each hold a 10 per cent stake. Last month, Daewoo International and the same investors found a different oil field holding approximately 600 million barrels of crude off the coast of the Southeast Asian country. Daewoo International, the former trading arm of now defunct Daewoo Group, is involved in energy exploration and development projects in Vietnam, Peru and Oman.