Skanska Constructs New Building For Offices And Retail In Stockholm, Sweden, For SEK 1.2 Billion
Skanska has signed a contract with AMF Fastigheter to construct a new building for commercial and office premises in central Stockholm, Sweden. The contract is worth about SEK 1.2 billion, which will be included in order bookings for Skanska Sweden for the first quarter of 2017.
The project includes demolition of the existing building, ground improvement and new construction of twelve floors totaling 44,000 square meters. The new building will meet high sustainability standards and aiming for Platinum certification, the highest level, according to the environmental certification system LEED C&S. Great emphasis will be placed on logistics, security and the adjacent mall will be kept open during the entire construction period.
The assignment is part of AMF Fastigheter's development Urban Escape. The project includes an entire block of five buildings on 130,000 square meters in the center of Stockholm, and the adjoining street environment. The goal is to create an urban space with international appeal. Skanska and AMF Fastigheter have for several years worked in a number of projects, the latest in an ongoing office project in the same block.
Construction will start immediately and the building will be completed in the spring 2019.
Skanska is one of the leading development and construction companies in the Nordics, with operations in building construction and civil engineering in Sweden, Norway and Finland, and developing residential and commercial property projects in select home markets. The commercial development stream is also active in Denmark. Skanska also offers services in public-private partnerships. Skanska had sales of about 67 billion SEK and 10,600 employees in its Nordic operations during 2016.
Kalpataru Power wins new orders worth Rs 823 crore
New Delhi: Power and infrastructure company Kalpataru Power Transmission today said it has secured new orders worth Rs 823 cores.
The company said it has won an order worth Rs 737 crores which involves setting up transmission lines in West Africa and another order worth Rs 86 crore for construction of 220 kv GIS substation project for Haryana Vidyut prasaran Nigam Ltd.
“We have announced orders in excess of Rs 5,000 crores in this year till date, which will help us achieving healthy growth for future,” Manish Mohnot, Managing Director, KPTL said.
Engineering, procurement and construction company KPTL is engaged in power transmission and distribution, oil and gas pipeline, railways, infrastructure development, civil contracting and warehousing and logistics business.
The company is currently executing several contracts in India, Africa, Middle East, Australia, CIS, SAARC, North America and Far East.
Exxon to Start 5 Projects by 2018
US giant ExxonMobil announced it will start five major offshore projects in 2017-2018, in addition to a Q4 2016 earnings of US$3.7 billion, which took a $2 billion impairment charge from its upstream sector.
The company said in its Q4 report that it plans to start five major projects this year and next year, which include Hebron, offshore Canada; Sakhalin-1 Odoptu Stage 2, offshore Russia; Upper Zakum 750, offshore Abu Dhabi; Kaombo Split Hub, offshore Angola; and Barzan, offshore Qatar.
Exxon’s total Q4 earnings came in at almost $1.7 billion, a 40% drop, when compared to Q4 2015’s nearly $2.8 billion. For full-year, Exxon reported earnings of $7.8 billion, a significant decrease of 51%, from 2015’s $16 billion.
“ExxonMobil demonstrated solid operating performance in 2016. Financial results for the year were negatively impacted by the prolonged downturn in commodity prices and the impairment charge,” said Darren W. Woods, Exxon chairman and CEO. “The company’s continued focus on fundamentals and our ability to leverage an attractive global portfolio through our integrated business ensures we are well positioned to generate long-term shareholder value.”
Exxon’s Q4 numbers included capital and exploration expenditures of $4.8 billion, a 35% drop from Q4 2015.
Production came in at 4.1 MMboe/d, with liquids down 3.9%, and natural gas down 1.7%, when compared to the same period last year.
For full-year 2016, Exxon’s capital and exploration expenditures were $19.3 billion, representing a 38% fall when compared to 2015.
Production was also slightly down at 4.1 MMboe, with liquids up 0.9%,and natural gas down 3.7%.
In 2016, Exxon added 250,000 boe/d to its upstream sector. The company continued progress in Guyana at its giant Liza project that included the successful Liza-3 appraisal well; in addition to the Payara discovery. Offshore Nigeria, Exxon made a 1 billion bbl discovery at the deepwater Owowo-3 well.
7 Russian oil and gas projects to watch in 2017
Despite its shaky economic performance over the past two years, Russia is pushing ahead with a wealth of multi-billion dollar oil and gas projects. Featuring pan-Baltic pipelines, enhanced oil and gas trading platforms, and massive transportation deals, Russia’s energy ambitions are not to be ignored.
Sometimes controversial, but always attention-commanding, here is a cross-section of Russian oil and gas projects to monitor in 2017.
European Russian oil & gas projects
Nord Stream 2
Cost: $11 billion
Timeframe: 2016-2019
Germany, which already sources 38% of its natural gas supplies from Russia, is stepping up its demand. The solution, according to Russia, is to build a brand new pipeline to boost supplies to Europe while bypassing Ukraine.
Gazprom’s $11 billion project will pump liquid natural gas from Vyborg in Russia to a terminal in Greifswald on Germany’s northern coast – an undersea journey of some 1,200 kilometres. At peak production, Nord Stream 2 will deliver an annual total of 55 billion cubic metres of gas to Europe.
Despite the controversial nature of this project, earning condemnation from US and Polish government officials, Gazprom is determined to push ahead. October 2016 saw delivery of the project’s first pipes, including units from Germany’s Europipe GmBH in preparation for 2019’s first gas deliveries.
A collection of international partners, including the Shell, French company Engie and Austria’s OMV AG, have been involved in Nord Stream 2 since its inception. Reports of crucial partners withdrawing under Polish pressure have been circulated. However, Nord Stream 2’s partners met in St. Petersburg in October 2016 to reaffirm their support for the pipeline.
Whatever the view of international commentators, Gazprom and Nord Stream 2 are more determined than ever to push on with Nord Stream 2’s construction.
LNG hub in St. Petersburg
Cost: Variable
Timeframe: 2018 onwards
The Baltic Sea is already a hotbed of LNG activity. Terminals, such as Lithuania’s Klaipeda, Poland’s Swinoujscie and a site under development in Gothenburg, Sweden, make it one of the most competitive environments in oil and gas.
Coupled with an increased demand for LNG stemming from regional ferry operators, who are employing more LNG-powered vessels in their fleets, it is easy to see why Russia wants its own piece of the Baltic action.
Russia, therefore, will also develop storage and processing facilities around St. Petersburg and the Baltic ports. LNG-Gorskaya, a Russian investment firm specialising in natural gas projects, was given the go ahead to construct a new LNG terminal at the port of St. Petersburg.
Comprised of a plant assembled on three non-self-propelled barges, gas pipeline, loading rack, jetty and three bunkering barges, LNG-Gorskaya’s proposed plan is ambitious. The company hopes to begin production, which would amount to 1.26 million tons of gas annually, in 2018.
Russia’s drive to establish itself as a major LNG player in the Baltic region will likely result in further facilities. As such, a big demand for machinery, equipment and knowhow will be emanating from the St. Petersburg region in the near future.
SPIMEX integration
Cost: N/A at the time of writing
Timeframe: Ongoing
The St. Petersburg International Mercantile Exchange was once a point of contention for international firms interested in Russian gas, thanks to opaque pricing and a lack of cooperation when it came to disclosing trading volumes.
Now, SPIMEX is opening up to the world to boost St. Petersburg’s gas hub potential – going on a charm offensive around Europe, and taking steps to make its pricing of Russian gas much more transparent for the international spot market.
September 2015 saw SPIMEX, state-owned pipeline company Transneft and Russia’s Federal Antimonopoly Service, sign an agreement to optimise exchange trading of oil and petroleum products. They will be streamlining procedures and updating SPIMEX’s electronic trading platform to make transparency a non-issue.
SPIMEX’s global integration will ensure Russia has a world-class trading platform to match its new transportation and storage infrastructure. Russian resources at Russian prices has long been a goal of the Putin administration. With SPIMEX, it looks closer than ever.
Central Russian oil & gas projects
Yamal LNG Plant
Cost: $27 Billion
Yamal in the far north is one of Russia’s most prominent oil & gas projects.
Timeframe: 2016-2018
Yamal is another vital part of Russia’s LNG strategy. With waves of international investment, including a $12 billion loan courtesy of a consortium of Chinese banks, the facility’s funding has been fully secured. Construction is now set to start in earnest.
A range of foreign companies are supplying Yamal, and main stakeholder Novatek, with vital construction components. Take Norway’s Teekay LNG Partners. The company stated in September 2016 it was supplying the Yamal development with one of its unchartered 174,000 cubic metre MEGI LNG carrier new builds on a 15-year fixed rate charter deal.
French company Technip pre-empted Teekay’s activity by outfitting the $27 billion plant with necessary technological modules. Technip had delivered all its Yamal-bound modules by the end of 2015.
Novatek, despite being hit by US sanctions just after announcing the Yamal facility’s development, is feeling confident. Its first gas lines were reported as 76% ready in September 2016. Overall construction is said to be 60% complete at the time of writing. Once operational, with first gas cargos expected in 2017, the Yamal LNG plant will produce up to 5.5 million tons of LNG annually.
Caspian exploration and transportation
Cost: N/A at the time of writing
Timeframe: Ongoing
Most Caspian production is in non-Russian acreages, so transportation is the key concern for Russia’s energy operators in the region. While some companies such as Lukoil, which announced in September 2016 it was to start producing oil at its Vladimir Fillanovsky Field development, are actively exploring the Sea, others are focusing on inking transportation deals.
Azerbaijan’s SOCAR and Russia’s Transneft, for example, signed a new oil transportation deal in February 2016. Utilising the Baku-Novorossiysk pipeline, and collecting oil from the Azeri Sangachal terminal, SOCAR will transport 1.3 million tons of oil monthly from the Caspian Sea.
Transneft has a history of activity in the Caspian region. Since 2008, it has held a 31% share of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) – making Transneft the group’s majority shareholder. Not just a consortium, the CPC is also a vital pipeline linking the Caspian Tengiz Field to Russia’s Black Sea coast.
Russia is intent on securing not only its own supply lines, but also those to Europe and beyond. Expect to see a flurry of transportation deals and negotiations underway in 2017 and beyond.
Russian Far East oil & gas projects
Sakhalin-2 gas hub
Cost: N/A at the time of writing
Timeframe: 2015 - 2021
Russia is planning to add a third production facility at the existing Sakhalin-2 plant, which currently produces 10 million tons of gas annually. Gazprom will be spearheading the project, in collaboration with Shell, plus Japan’s Mitsui and Mitsubishi. Mitsui’s CIS Managing Officer, Hiroshi Meguro, expects the site’s planned third LNG liquefaction train will add an additional 5.4 million tons of gas to the supply each year.
2015 saw the Sakhalin-2 site extract around 10.8 million tons of natural gas, alongside 5.15 million tons of oil, making it one of the world’s foremost LNG facilities. Shell, which owns a 27.5% stake in the project, has stated Sakhalin-2 supplies 4% of global LNG, with South Korea and Japan as its key markets.
Preparation for the design and front-end engineering documentation for Sakhalin-2’s expansion was nearing completion at the start of October 2016. Gazprom hopes the third train will come online in 2021. Once complete, this expansion could promote Russia’s first offshore LNG facility to the status of a world leader in natural gas production.
Power of Siberia China Pipeline
Cost: $20 billion total ($1.17 in 2016)
Timeframe: 2016-2019
A voracious energy appetite, coupled with a gigantic population, imposes some tough demands on China’s energy grid. Electricity generation in the north of the country is a particularly hot topic. Now, China hopes to draw on Siberia’s vast natural resource stores to satiate its massive energy demands.
Gazprom and the China National Petroleum Company (CNPC) signed a contract in September 2016 to build a cross-border section of the Power of Siberia pipeline, which will pass under the Amur River. Gazprom’s Western Siberian fields will be the source for its Chinese supplies.
Such is China’s need for steady energy supplies that CNPC and Gazprom inked an agreement for Gazprom to supply 38 billion cubic metres of gas over a 30-year period. Over this period, China will purchase $400 billion worth of gas from Gazprom.
Despite this energy agreement, the Power of Siberia pipeline has endured funding woes in recent years. Gazprom slashed budgets again in February 2016. The state-owned energy monopoly will subsequently be spending $1.17 billion on the pipeline this year – less than half of 2015’s budget of $2.6 billion. Gazprom Chairman Alexei Miller, however, has stated first supplies to China will commence in 2019.