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Volume 70 (2005)
- Issue 6 Pages 515-
- Issue 5 Pages 410-
- Issue 4 Pages 287-
- Issue 3 Pages 241-
- Issue 2 Pages 125-
- Issue 1 Pages 6-
Volume 70, Issue 2
Displaying 1-11 of 11 articles from this issue
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Autumn Meeting “Energy sources in the new age”
—Diversity of regional sources, Diversity of gas utilization—
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Kouichi Iwama2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 125-131
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSI will give you the speech regarding “The diversification of energy source in the new era”. I teach natural resource & energy and industrial organization in Wako University. Both lectures are deeply related to the energy industry. In the present international oil market situations, WTI crude oil prices reached to 50US/bbl in September 2004 and 55US/bbl on October 22 2004, making historical record. The reason is divided to two factors. One is supply side factor which means Middle East unstable situations. Second is demand side factor which is the rapid growth of oil consumption in United States and China. Especially, China's oil consumption made the historical record and became the second largest oil consuming country.
However, Japan is still the second largest country in GDP base and has great responsibility to international oil situations. Therefore, we Japanese have to consider the diversification of energy. The diversification of energy includes two factors. One means the utilization of fossil fuel other than conventional oil such as natural gas, Canadian oil sand, methan hydrate and gas to liquid. Second means the diversification of areas such as oil and gas fields of East Siberia, Sakhalin and Azelbaijan. In conclusion, the Japanese contribution regarding the diversification of energy is the improvement of energy security in Japan and Asian countries such as China and India which have carried out the remarkable economic growth using more and more conventional oil.View full abstractDownload PDF (249K) -
Keishi Nakashima2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 132-141
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSA future pipeline project that will transport crude oils from East Siberian fields to Nakhodka, shipping port along the coast of the Japan Sea, is under discussion and gradually revealing its main framework. One of the major concerns is if significant potential of petroleum is expected in the East Siberian region. In this paper, the total of the original oil resources in the region is estimated ranging from 18.9BBO (billion barrel of crude oil) to 67.2BBO.
The Siberian platform is consisted of largely uplifted Archean crystalline basement and the overlaid sediments consisted of the Proterozoic and the Lowest Paleozoic formations. Most of the known oil reserves (85%) in the East Siberian region concentrate on the crest of the highest basement uplift on the two arch structures ; Baykit and Nepa-Botuoba. Petroleum source rocks are not concluded yet. Although the Riphean is expected to contain source rocks, it is entirely absent on the most prolific Nepa-Botuoba Arch area. Moreover, most fields have extremely high helium content (ranging 0.2-0.6 percent) with hydrocarbon gases. Based on several unique characteristics of oil and gas fields on the Nepa-Botuoba Arch, the author proposes in this paper that the theory of abiogenic origin can not be ignored ; hydrocarbons associated with helium gases may have migrated upward through the fractures from the depth of the earth.
Upon completion of the pipeline linking the supply area (East Siberia) to the market in the Pacific region, oil exploration activities will be accelerated in the East Siberian region. Subsequently, the additional oils derived from the new discoveries in the East Siberian region will fulfill the new pipeline.View full abstractDownload PDF (5379K) -
Kenichi Naito2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 142-148
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe ACG Oil Field is situated offshore Azerbaijan, about 100-140 kilometers ESE of Baku, in water depth between 150 and 450 meters.
The ACG megastructure is comprised of three culminations, namely the Deep Water Gunashli, Chirag and Azeri field. On 12 December 1994, the Azeri Government awarded the Production Sharing Agreement (“PSA”) to the Azerbaijan International Operating Company (“AIOC”). AIOC consists of nine international oil companies, including ITOCHU. The ACG PSA is for a period of thirty years and will expire in December, 2024.
The ACG area is estimated to contain in excess of 5 billion barrels of recoverable reserves. The first production from Chirag platform started in November 1997. The start-up of production in Central Azeri, East and West Azeri and Deep Water Gunashli will be phased in from the beginning of Q1 2005 to 2008 across 4 producing platforms, 3 in Azeri (Phase 1 and Phase 2), and 1 in Deep Water Gunashli (Phase 3).
The structure of the giant ACG Oil Field is a WNW to ESE trending, steep-dipping thrusted anticline. The main ACG reservoir is composed of Pliocene large river dominated lacustrine delta sandstone named as Pereriv and Balakhany sandstones.
Currently, AIOC has drilled 18 wells on the Chirag 1 platform, of which 14 are producing wells and 4 are water injection wells. The production from the Pereriv sandstone is over 140,000 b/d crude oil.
Phase 1 and 2 developments have been in the execution stages since September 2001 and September 2002, respectively. Phase 3 development starts in September 2004 and the total ACG field peak production rate is expected to exceed 1 million barrels a day. One of the export routes for such production will be the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (“BTC”) pipeline that is 1,768 kilometers in length and will be completed in early 2005.View full abstractDownload PDF (3451K) -
Nobuyuki Sakata2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 149-156
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSNippon Oil Exploration Ltd. entered SK10 block Production Sharing Contract as an operator in offshore Sarawak, the State of Malaysia in 1987. During the first phase exploration campaign, Helang gas field was discovered in 1990.
Nippon Oil Exploration also farmed-in to SK8 block which is adjoining SK10 block in 1991, and found Jintan gas field and several other gas fields in 1992 through 1993.
As gas reserves discovered in both blocks was enough to plan a grass root LNG project, the operators of both blocks (Nippon Oil Exploration and Occidental) started a feasibility study of the new LNG project (later named MLNG-3) with support of the national oil company ‘Petronas’.
From the feasibility study stage to realization of the project, however, there were various obstacles or disputes among the parties. As the result it took longer time than expected.
The LNG plant was completed in 1992 and feed gas production from Helang gas field to the MLNG-3 plant was started in 2003.
This report introduces overall activities to the realization of the LNG project.View full abstractDownload PDF (1257K) -
Akihisa Takahashi, Kiyoshi Ogino2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 157-163
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThe amount of the proved remaining reserves of crude oil in Canada is estimated to be 179 billion barrels including oil sands, which takes the second place in the world after Saudi Arabia. As more than one third of the crude oil production in Canada are from oil sands, it can be considered that oil sands are no longer mere unconventional resources. It is worth noting oil sands industries in Canada, which plan to expand or start commercial in-situ production projects and seek the opportunity of its exporting diversity.
Natural gas in Canada, which controls the operating cost of the oil sands projects, is also the key of the Canadian oil companies. Remaining reserves of natural gas in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin is still abundant and there are several additional opportunities such as the coal bed methane and the northern pipelines.
With oil sands and conventional petroleum resources, Canadian oil business can be a part of the portfolio of the foreign companies now and in the future with its uniqueness in lower country risk, developed infrastructures, and stable markets.View full abstractDownload PDF (2117K) -
—LNG, P/L Gas—Michio Hikari2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 164-176
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis presentation focuses on current status and future possibility regarding the commercialization of Indonesian and Oceania natural gas projects. The topics cover both LNG projects and pipeline gas projects.
With respect to the LNG business, Indonesia and Australia play a vital role for supplying LNG to the Asian core markets (Japan, South Korea, Taiwan). Indonesia has 2 existing supply sources (Bontang / Arun). Tangguh is under development for Indonesia's 3rd LNG production center. INPEX's Masela and Pertamina's Donggi are under investigation for future LNG projects.
In Australia, the existing NorthWest Shelf project continues to grow and Bayu-Undan (Darwin LNG) is under constructing. For future projects, Greater Sunrise, Gorgon and INPEX Browse are under consideration.
Regarding the LNG markets, LNG suppliers are widely interested in the China and North America West Coast as emerging markets, but have some subjects to be resolved. And while the globalization of LNG market is ongoing, a wave of changing the business model and the terms of the sales / purchase contracts is required for our LNG projects to compete with other projects. INPEX have interests in Bontang / Tangguh/Bayu-Undan as non-operator and Masela/Browse as operator. INPEX would like to expand LNG business in this region for our future growth.
For pipeline gas business in these two regions, it is immature compared with Europe / North American markets. However, to catch up with domestic gas demand, expansion of the gas pipeline network is necessary.
Furthermore, INPEX has interests in NorthWest Java / SouthEast Sumatra projects etc. in Indonesia and Griffin project etc. in Australia.View full abstractDownload PDF (2059K) -
Shinichi Suzuki2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 177-186
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSGTL as a new tool to develop the gas reserves is a very important means for upstream companies because it has a possibility to lessen the hurdles to explore the gas fields. This is derived from that the GTL technologies can change a gas into petroleum products near well head and it can make alter gas business into oil business despite gas field development. In this sense, GTL has the different value for upstream companies from such other advanced gas field development technologies as CNG, NGH, DME, GTW and so forth, in which technologies the chain from upstream and downstream has to be constructed before the field development in order to apply them to gas reservoirs, like in such conventional gas field development technologies as pipeline, LNG.
GTL project will be carried out for the coming 10 years in the following ;
> GTL project will be led by upstream companies not by downstream companies because the needs on the GTL products in the market are low.
> Application of GTL process will be limited in large gas reservoirs, fields with associated gas and high wet gas because the CAPEX is relatively high and it requires a gas with low cost to acquire reasonable economics.
> GTL project players will be confined to such four groups as Shell, Sasol/Chevron Texaco, ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips because GTL is an emerging technology and has a high risk.
> Countries for GTL projects to be developed will be mainly in the Middle East area centering on Qatar.
On these basis, the amounts of GTL products from new plants are anticipated to be 140,000 bbl/day by 2010 and 580-860 000bbl/day by 2020.View full abstractDownload PDF (1368K) -
Yotaro Ohno2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 187-195
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSDimethyl Ether (DME) is a clean and economical alternative fuel which can be produced from various resources as natural gas, coal or biomass through synthesis gas. The properties of DME are similar to those of LPG and it can be used for various fields ; power generation fuel, transportation fuel, home fuel, etc.
An innovative process of direct synthesis of DME from synthesis gas has been developed. Newly developed catalyst in a slurry phase reactor gave a high conversion and high selectivity of DME. After pilot scale plant (5 tons/day) testing, demonstration plant (100 tons/day) testing has been successfully carried out since 2002 with the Japanese government support. Various utilization technologies for DME have been developed and feasibility studies of DME Fuel Chain (Production, transportation and utilization) indicate that DME is competitive to conventional fuels. Commercialization projects of DME fuel are underway.View full abstractDownload PDF (1405K)
ARTICLES
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Hiroto Ohira, Susumu Okubo, Akira Takasu, Koichiro Watanabe, Takahisa ...2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 196-206
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSFission track (FT) annealing has been examined in apatites from the MITI-Tomikura well, which was drilled in the axis of the Tomikura anticline in the Kubiki district of NE Japan. Fission track densities were too low to measure confined fission tracks, and consequently direct measurements of semi-track lengths were made instead. Mean lengths, frequency distributions and measurable numbers of semi-tracks decrease below 3,300m depth. The apatite FT annealing zone in the MITI-Tomikura borehole is shallower than that previously reported from the Shin Yahiko-1 well, 4,600 m, which suggests a relatively simple subsidence on its burial history. Large scale uplift and denudation associated with formation of the Tomikura anticline probably caused the apatite FT annealing in the shallower levels of the MITI-Tomikura borehole. Sudden decrease in the numbers of semi-tracks observed at around 3,400m depth may be correlated with complex denudation events and overprinting of present-day and fossil annealing. Clay mineral transitions and homogenization temperature of fluid inclusions suggest an approximate paleo-geothermal gradient of 3.0 °C/100 m and 1,300m of denudation. This result is concordant with the uplift inferred from apatite FT annealing.View full abstractDownload PDF (5371K) -
Takeshi Ohguchi, Teiji Yamazaki, Hiroshi Noda, Kiyotaka Sasaki, Kazuhi ...2005 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 207-215
Published: 2005
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSThis paper describes occurrence of marine sediments and associated trace fossils at Shiose-no-Misaki (Cape), Oga Peninsula, NE Japan. The marine sediments constitute an upward-fining succession from sandstone to mudstone, and contain many trace fossils characteristic of the Skolithos ichnofacies. They are sorted well, and the sandstone bed at the middle of the upward-fining succession shows wavy stratification indicative of a high wave-energy. Though the stratigraphic position remains ambiguous, the Shiose-no-Misaki sediments are intruded by a dolerite of 20 Ma and most likely correlated with the late Eocene to Oligocene Monzen Formation. They represent the Oligocene to early Miocene marine sediments that occur along the eastern margin of the Japan Sea from southern Sakhalin Island to Kyushu Island, and likely support the presence of an incipient back-arc rift basin produced precedent to the early to middle Miocene rapid spreading of the Japan Sea.View full abstractDownload PDF (2825K)
Errata
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9999 Volume 70 Issue 2 Pages 221
Published: 9999
Released on J-STAGE: June 01, 2007
JOURNAL FREE ACCESSDownload PDF (65K)
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