Daily Archives: August 14, 2021

Southern California anglers have a lot to choose from in targeting species on the offshore fishing grounds and deciding what species you want to target will likely dictate where you choose to go fishing. If you choose to target bluefin tuna, your likely destination will be at an offshore bank in U.S. waters between the 9 Mile Bank and the Catalina area. Offshore banks in this sector are mostly holding big numbers of bluefin tuna and that might also produce yellowtail, dorado, or yellowfin tuna.

Your other choice for a day of offshore fishing is to head into Mexican waters and fish offshore banks between the Ensenada and Punta Colnett regions. If you head down this way, you are heading into a prime kelp paddy yellowtail fishing zone that might also produce a few dorado, yellowfin tuna, or bluefin tuna. Last week you could get into the good yellowtail fishing at some of the local offshore banks outside of Los Coronado Islands but at the time of this writing, boats are having to travel further down the line to fish the waters outside of Ensenada and below to get into the good yellowtail fishing.

The yellowtail under the kelp paddies has included fish up to 30 pounds with most of the yellowtail falling within the 14 to 20-pound range. A recent catch included large yellowtail posted by Condor out of Fishermans Landing that had 37 anglers on a 1.5-day trip catch 1 dorado and 185 yellowtail that went up to 30 pounds. Productive yellowtail areas have been in the zone ranging from 5 to 10 miles southwest of the Banda Bank on down to where you are fishing to the southwest of the Peanut Bank. This has you fishing from 60 to 90 miles 155 to 160 degrees from Point Loma.

Bluefin tuna have ranged in size from 15 to 270-plus pounds with most falling within the 30 to 140-pound range. Much of the bluefin action originates from stopping alongside spots of breaking fish and trying to cast poppers, Colt Snipers, or surface iron to the breaking fish before they sound. There has also been some action that originates from stopping on sonar marks or meter marks. When fishing fish found with the electronics there have been some bluefin biting on sardines and mackerel while slow trolling, flylining, or fishing with rubber band rigged sinker rigs. There have also been bluefin biting while drifting over marks and using kite-fished frozen flying fish, kite-fished live sardines, kite-fished live mackerel, knife jigs, or Flat Fall jigs. There are occasional bluefin caught on the troll while using kite trolled Yummy Flyers, trolled cedar plugs, and trolled spreader bar rigs. There are some bluefin biting during non-daylight hours and Flat Fall jigs and knife jigs have been working best when dropped down to marks found in the dark.

Generally listed from north to south, areas, where good numbers of bluefin are currently being found, are the region of the 14 Mile Bank, the end of the Steamer Lane below the 14 Mile Bank, the 277 Spot, the area 3 to 5 miles off Dana Point, the 267 Spot, the 289 Spot, the 209 Spot, the 312 Spot, the 181 Spot, the 138 Spot, the 182 Spot, the area 12 to 20 miles west to southwest of La Jolla, the 178 Spot and the upper end of the 9 Mile Bank.

As talked about in the paragraph above, the bluefin are widespread and you never know when and where you might encounter an area of bluefin. A prime example was a recent day of fishing that saw the bluefin appear out of nowhere in the Carlsbad and Oceanside area. Captain Joe Cacciola of the Sea Star with Sea Star Sportfishing and the Oceanside Sea Center reported that Oceanside Sea Center boats unexpectedly had a day of fishing where they got into good bluefin action on local half and three-quarter day trips. Cacciola said that the area of fish was holding about 3 miles off the coast and was first found in the morning in the area above the Carlsbad Power Plant. Cacciola said that the fish moved steadily up the coast during the day to where boats were fishing them off Box Canyon at the end of the day.

Oceanside Sea Center boats took advantage of the sudden appearance of bluefin and they had Chubasco II out on a morning half-day trip with 20 anglers catch 10 bluefin tuna. Pronto was also out on a morning half-day trip with 7 anglers who caught 3 bluefin tuna. Southern Cal was out on a three-quarter day trip and had a catch of 2 bluefin tuna and 25 rockfish. The bluefin was reported to be good sized fish that included fish that were up over 60 pounds.

There has been a bit of striped marlin activity in both the Catalina and San Diego regions. The past Saturday saw 3 marlin bites being reported up by Catalina in the area of the 14 Mile Bank, the area off Avalon, and in the region of the 152 Spot. Private boater Captain Louie Zimm of the Shearwater reported doing some kelp paddy hopping for yellowtail on a recent trip to the 425 Bank below Los Coronado Islands. Zimm said that while fishing a kelp paddy that he unexpectedly hooked a striped marlin on a sardine that was being fished with a 40-pound test and no leader. Zimm got the marlin alongside the boat and was reaching for his gloves to be able to grab the bill and release the fish when the line wore through where it had been rubbing against the marlins bill. That was an easy release!

The surface fishing at Los Coronado Islands has been good for a mix of calico bass, barracuda, bonito, and yellowtail along with a chance at a bluefin tuna. The best areas for mixed bag surface fishing have been the Middle Grounds, the north end of South Island, the Ribbon Kelp, and the South Kelp. Yellowtail has been located by finding sonar marks, meter marks, spots of fish up on the surface, trolling strikes on deep diving Rapalas, and trolling strikes on slow trolled sardines. Good choices for surface iron that work well for yellowtail and barracuda include Salas 7X lights and Tady 45s in blue and white, mint and sardine colors.

Private boater John Carroll of Huachinango reported about his friend Mark Scott taking Huachinango to Los Coronado Islands and finding very good mixed bag fishing for yellowtail, bonito, barracuda, and calico bass. Carroll reported that Scott first started getting action on slow trolled sardines while fishing the Ribbon Kelp area in the lee of South Island. The Ribbon Kelp produced 2 yellowtail and Carroll said that Scott ended up finding his best fishing further up the inside of South Island while slow trolling sardines in the area between the Cove and the north end of South Island. Carroll said that Scott caught yellowtail, bonito, barracuda, and calico bass in that zone and that it was non-stop action.

Carroll said that Scott ended up with 4 yellowtail and lost another 3 or 4 yellowtail hookups. The water conditions were nice and the water was at 69 degrees. The fish were readily biting the slow trolled sardines that were being fished on a 25-pound test line.

The fishing along the San Diego County coast has been steady for a mixed bag of calico bass, sand bass, barracuda, bonito, reds, rockfish, whitefish, sculpin, and sheephead along with a chance at yellowtail or halibut.

Calico bass have been providing the best surface fishing along the San Diego County coast and productive kelp bed and hard bottom areas for calico bass have been the hard bottom to the northwest of Buoy #3 at Point Loma, the Dropoff at Point Loma, the 5 Tanks at Point Loma, the Green Tank at Point Loma, Point Loma College, the upper end of La Jolla, Del Mar, Solana Beach, Leucadia, South Carlsbad, and the Barn.

Sand bass fishing in the Imperial Beach area continues to be inconsistent but has shown an overall improvement in recent days. The best sand bass fishing has been coming from meter marks found over hard bottom areas with sand bass also biting at the Imperial Beach Pipeline and from an occasional meter mark found over sandy bottom.

The yellowtail fishing along the San Diego area coast continues to be difficult with the upper end of La Jolla providing the best chance at coastal yellowtail. The yellowtail activity at La Jolla has shown some improvement in recent days so anglers have reason to be optimistic that better yellowtail fishing could soon be coming to coastal waters. The barracuda and bonito fishing along the coast has been hit or miss but there have been occasional flurries of barracuda and bonito at the upper end of La Jolla. One of the better recent fish counts from La Jolla was aboard New Seaforth out of Seaforth Sportfishing that had 38 anglers on a half-day trip catch 15 bonito, 62 calico bass, 3 rockfish, and 3 yellowtail.

Productive hard bottom and structure areas for the reds, rockfish, whitefish, and lingcod are the Imperial Beach Pipeline, the International Reef, the Whistler Buoy and the Dropoff outside of Point Loma, the Green Tank at Point Loma, The 270 out to the west of Mission Bay, the upper end of La Jolla, the ridge outside of Del Mar and at hard bottom areas off South Carlsbad, Leucadia and Box Canyon.

The summer fishing season has a lot to offer, be it offshore, at the local islands, or along the coast. Anglers are hoping to see better numbers of warm water offshore species such as yellowfin tuna, dorado, and striped marlin move into local offshore waters during the months of August and September and time will tell if those hopes will ring true. Enjoy the summer fishing season while it is here! Keep on fishing and I hope to see you out on the water sometime soon!

Bob Vanian is the voice, writer, and researcher of the San Diego-based internet fish report service called 976-Bite which can be found at http://www.976bite.com. Vanian also provides anglers with a personal fish report service over the telephone at (619) 226-8218. He always welcomes your fish reports at that same phone number or at bob976bite@aol.com.

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Bluefin, Yellowfin, Yellowtail, Dorado and Marlin on the Offshore Menu! The Log - The Log Newspaper

HOUSTON, Aug. 12, 2021 /PRNewswire/ --Apex-Brasil (The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency) is organizing a press meeting during this year's Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) to highlight the impressive growth in Brazilian oil and gas production and development, including in natural gas. The press meeting is taking place Monday, August 16th, CST 3:45 pm and will feature remarks from Brazil's top oil and gas experts, including Petrobras CEO Joaquim Silva e Luna, Brazilian Minister of Mines and Energy Bento Albuquerque, Brazil's National Petroleum Agency (ANP) General Director Rodolfo Saboia, and Roberto Escoto, Managing Director at Apex-Brasil.

During the press meeting session, the industry leaders and the subject matter experts will cover many opportunities for investors interested in Brazil. Those opportunities include energy and oil and gas areas, including the upcoming October 2021 auction of 92 blocks that comprise Campos, Pelotas, Potiguar, and Santos Basins, and the December 2021 auction of the Brazil-based Atapu and Spia pre-salt fields. The December auction alone, which is estimated to be one of the largest in history, is expected to drive investments of USD 38.3 billion by 2050 and account for 15% of the national oil output in the country by 2030. The speakers will explain why Brazil is a key growth market for investors to watch in this sector. Consider that the total production of 3.1 million barrels per day (or 2.8% of the world total) is expected to reach 5.3 million barrels a day by 2030 due to a full calendar of competitive auctions, which would position Brazil as a top-five oil producer in the world.

"Brazil is ready to grow production and take a leading position in the oil and gas sector. This will be made possible by new investments in mature fields, development of pre-salt fields, offshore blocks in the exploratory phase, and a calendar of new auctions," said Escoto, Managing Director at Apex-Brasil. "We are the leading oil producer in Latin America, the 10th producer globally, and the seventh largest consumer market for oil products and service. The opportunities for investors continue exponentially increasing. I'm excited to be joined next week by the top officials from Brazil to discuss how our country is offering unparalleled opportunities for international investors in this sector and how we're looking to expand our leadership even further this year."

"In Brazil, opportunities in onshore and offshore exploration and production (E&P), including pre-salt areas, are set to catapult our energy sector to new heights over the next decade," continued Bento Albuquerque Minister of Mines and Energy. "There is an abundance of natural resources in Brazil, and we have a government-level strategy in place to privatize the entire sector to drive demand and production upwards, from the pre-salt fields to natural gas to electric infrastructure. I'm personally looking forward to discussing some of the upcoming opportunities for investors in this capacity during OTC."

OTC is an annual event held at NRG Park in Houston, Texas, convening international leaders in the energy and oil and gas sector to highlight the latest in technology and knowledge of offshore resources. In addition to hosting this press meeting on the opening day of OTC, with a virtual and in-person element, representatives from Apex-Brasil will be present at the Brazilian Pavilion on the OTC trade show floor. Apex-Brasils representatives will facilitate meaningful discussions and forge partnerships that further solidify this promising sector in the country. Apex-Brasil is also offering a free online business platform where international companies can meet the 33 Brazilian companies that will be participating in the event this year. Of these companies, 23 of them will be showcasing sample machinery and equipment at the Brazilian Pavilion, located at booth 718.

Journalists interested in attending the press meeting should contact Apex-Brasil's U.S. PR agency at ApexBrasilUSTeam@ruderfinn.com to register. To learn more about Brazil's oil and gas sector, please visit https://investinbrasil.com.br/en/oil-gas. For more information on Apex-Brasil, please visit http://www.apexbrasil.com.br/en/home.

About Apex-Brasil

The Brazilian Trade and Investment Promotion Agency (Apex-Brasil) works to promote Brazilian products and services abroad and attract foreign investment to strategic sectors of the Brazilian economy. Apex-Brasil organizes several initiatives aiming to promote Brazilian exports abroad. The Agency's efforts comprise trade and approaching missions, business rounds, support for the participation of Brazilian companies in major international trade fairs, arrangement of technical visits of foreign buyers and opinion makers to learn about the productive Brazilian structure, and other select activities designed to strengthen the country's branding abroad. Apex-Brasil also plays a leading role in attracting foreign direct investment (FDI) to Brazil, identifying business opportunities, and promoting strategic events. Apex-Brasil also lends support to foreign investors willing to allocate resources in Brazil. Apex-Brasil is an agency linked to the Brazilian Foreign Ministry (Itamaraty).

Media Contact

Emily Steates

Ruder Finn PR on behalf of Apex-Brasil in the U.S.

Emily.Steates@ruderfinn.com

+1 212-583-2759

View original content:https://www.prnewswire.com/news-releases/apex-brasil-press-meeting-at-2021-offshore-technology-conference-to-spotlight-opportunities-for-foreign-direct-investors-in-brazils-oil-and-gas-sector-including-upcoming-pre-salt-oil-auctions-301354035.html

SOURCE Apex-Brasil

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Apex-Brasil Press Meeting at 2021 Offshore Technology Conference to Spotlight Opportunities for Foreign Direct Investors in Brazil's Oil and Gas...

BERKELEY, Calif. A federal district court judge ruled today in favor of a coalition of individuals and environmental groups and ordered the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency to update its decades-old regulations on the use of toxic chemical dispersants in oil spill responses.

The lawsuit was filed in early 2020 in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California by Earth Island Institutes ALERT Project, Alaska Community Action on Toxics, Cook Inletkeeper, the Center for Biological Diversity, an Alaskan Native health aide and a Gulf Coast commercial fisher. The lawsuit sought to require the EPA to update its regulations governing offshore oil spill planning and response to take into account current science on the use of chemical dispersants in response to oil spills.

Instead of mitigating environmental harm, chemical dispersants have proven when mixed with oil to be more toxic to humans and the environment than the oil alone. In the 2010 BP Deepwater Horizon disaster, coastal communities along the Gulf of Mexico, many of which were communities of color and/or low income, suffered from serious dispersant-induced health effects.

First responders to the spill, including many Coast Guard workers, suffered negative health impacts. Their ailments included respiratory problems, severe skin blistering and other debilitating conditions, some of which persist to this day. Judge William Orrick has now ruled that the EPA has violated the Clean Water Act in failing to update dispersant regulations issued in 1994 that are demonstrably inadequate. Todays ruling also notes that the agency violated the Administrative Procedure Act in failing for years to finalize draft regulations issued in 2015.

Dr. Riki Ott, director of Earth Island Institutes ALERT Project, the lead plaintiff in the case, was a commercial fisher and marine toxicologist who witnessed firsthand the health and environmental impacts of the dispersants in the nations two largest maritime oil disasters.

In 1989, Exxon Valdez response workers called the ubiquitous cold- and flu-like symptoms among frontline workers the Valdez Crud. Two decades later, the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster response workers called the same symptoms the BP Syndrome. It turned out that these symptoms were early warnings of chemical illnesses that often led to disabling diseases, cancers and early deaths, Dr. Ott said. Exposed children were among the victims. This ruling means we just might be able to prevent a similar human health tragedy during the next big oil spill.

Kindra Arnesen, a plaintiff and community activist in Louisiana, likewise was hopeful about todays ruling.

Dispersant use in the wake of the BP spill took a huge toll on my community. From 2005 to 2010, my community was healthy. There were a couple of families that had a family member fighting cancer of some sort, but things really changed after the spill, Arnesen said. Ive witnessed my community experience an explosion of cancer cases. I know I went to 22 funerals in 18 months. Then, I stopped counting.

Plaintiff Rosemary Ahtuangaruak is an Iupiat tribal leader and activist who lives in the now oil-industrialized zone of the North Slope in Alaska. Ahtuangaruak has worked with tribal councils to pass resolutions banning dispersant use in Arctic waters where Alaskan Natives hunt and fish.

The protection of life, health and safety is important, Ahtuangaruak said. My Elders have asked that we protect our tradition and culture. We depend on our food for our strength in the cold. I worry for the generations to come because some of our traditional foods live for centuries, meaning they may migrate through many oil spills during their lifespan. That's why standing up against dispersants was important. We cant allow toxic chemicals to be added to a toxic oil spill for the benefit of the spillers.

Existing and expanding oil and gas operations in U.S. waters run the ongoing risk of an oil spill. This is particularly concerning in the Arctic, where ice cold water may further reduce the effectiveness of dispersants, and where geographic remoteness makes manual removal of oil difficult.

Oil corporations and shipping companies cant clean up oil with traditional tools in the dark, cold and unforgiving waters of the Alaska Arctic, said Bob Shavelson, executive director of Cook Inletkeeper. Thats why they want free rein to spray toxic dispersants, to keep the oil out of sight, out of mind.

This ruling sets us on a path toward protecting the health and wellbeing of our waters, wildlife and people from exposure to dangerous dispersant chemicals that exacerbate the toxicity of oil, said Pamela Miller, executive director of plaintiff Alaska Community Action on Toxics. Oil corporations have a vested interest in perpetuating the massive use of dispersant chemicals without consideration of the long-term harm they cause. This decision marks the end of the collusion of EPA with the oil industry in allowing this destructive practice to continue without consideration of our understanding of the science and adverse health consequences. Hopefully this will also inspire our society toward prevention and an end to oil dependence.

This is a great win in the fight to protect people and marine life from toxic oil dispersants, said Kristen Monsell, oceans program legal director at the Center. Were thrilled to have the court recognize that the EPAs ongoing failure to update its offshore oil-spill response plan is unreasonable and unlawful. Offshore drilling is inherently dirty and dangerous, and it should be phased out. But while it continues, we need smart spill responses that use the best available science. Oil spills are bad enough. We cant have the EPA adding insult to injury by allowing the use of harmful chemicals afterward that put wildlife and people at even more risk.

We are delighted, although not really surprised, with the courts finding that oil spill response regulations enacted more than 15 years before the BP Deepwater Horizon disaster are no longer aligned with current science and technology and are overdue for an update, said Sumona Majumdar, general counsel for Earth Island Institute. We urge the EPA to quickly issue a final rule that properly regulates these dangerous chemicals.

In June 2020, U.S. District Court Judge William H. Orrick ruled, as part of this case, that the Clean Water Act imposes on the EPA a mandatory duty to maintain an up-to-date oil spill response plan that reflects current science and technology. This includes science demonstrating that dispersant chemicals are far more toxic to humans and more ecologically damaging than their manufacturers admit.

Todays further ruling by Judge Orrick declares that the EPA violated that duty by failing to update the regulations in more than 25 years, despite significant advancements in both scientific and technological knowledge. The ruling also finds that the EPA violated the Administrative Procedure Act by failing to finalize its 2015 draft regulations in a timely manner despite two long-pending petitions by plaintiffs requesting this update.

The EPA must now update and finalize its regulations by May 31, 2023. In light of the agencys past dereliction, the court further ordered the EPA to file status reports every 180 days.

UC Berkeley Environmental Law Clinic (ELC) served as lead counsel in this matter and represented most plaintiffs; the Center for Biological Diversity served as co-counsel and represented itself.

The use of toxic chemicals to address marine oil spills is a largely unrecognized societal cost of Americas ongoing oil dependence, said Claudia Polsky, ELC director and lead counsel. The human health toll of dispersant-intensive spill responses is a story that needs to be told alongside stories of marine creatures harmed by spilled oil. We hope the EPAs final rule regarding chemical dispersants will reflect the agencys mission, which is to prevent human and environmental harm.

Individuals whose health and lives have been severely impacted by chemical dispersants are available for interview upon request.

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Court Orders EPA to Address Use of Oil Dispersants on Offshore Spills - Center for Biological Diversity

For an industry in trouble, the oil and gas industry is doing pretty well in terms of discoveries and final investment decisions. So far this year, 21 new offshore projects received a final investment decision, according to Westwood Global Energy Group. At the same time, a number of discoveries were made, tapping billions in new oil reserves.

The Middle East and Latin America are the leaders in final investment decisions, to the tune of a $20 billion, Offshore magazine reports, citing Westwood analyst Joe Killen.

In the Middle East, one of the highlights is the Farzad B natural gas field offshore Iran. Initially discovered by Indian state major ONGC Videsh, the field will now be developed by Iranian Petropars as U.S. sanctions made international participation in Irans oil and gas industry problematic.

Farzad B is estimated to hold some 22 trillion cubic feet of natural gas, with 16 trillion cubic feet of recoverable gas. It should produce about 1 billion cubic feet daily five years from now, according to the developer. The contract Irans government has signed with Petropars for Farzad B is worth $1.78 billion.

The other big project in the Middle East that got its FID this year is also a gas one: Karish North in Israeli waters. Earlier this month, developer Energean said it planned to drill five more wells in the Karish field, aiming to tap an additional 1 billion barrels of oil equivalent in reserves. Karish North holds an estimated 1.2 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 31 million barrels of natural gas liquids.

Related: Shell Reports $5.5 Billion Net Profit And Hikes Dividends

In Latin America, Brazil rules the new oil project ranking. Despite the energy transition push, despite the devastation that the pandemic wrought on the industry, Brazils pre-salt zone remains an attractive investment destination.

The Bacalhau project is one that got its final investment decision this year. The $8-billion project in the Santos Basin has Norways Equinor as its leader. When Equinor made the final investment decision in June this year, executive VP Arne Sigve Nylund told media that Bacalhau had a breakeven level of just $35 per barrel and estimated recoverable reserves of over 1 billion barrels. Commercial production should start in 2024.

Story continues

Another pre-salt project that got its final investment decision this year was an expansion of production at the Mero field, also in the Santos Basin, which is turning into a focal point for pre-salt oil development in Brazil.

The Mero field is operated by a consortium led by local Petrobras and involving Shell, TotalEnergies, CNPC, and CNOOC. The consortium already operates the Libra field, also in the Santos Basin. At Mero, the consortium already has three floating production, storage, and offloading vessels in operation at the field, each with a daily capacity of 180,000 bpd.

Meanwhile, further to the north, BHP recently announced plans to spend $544 million on developing the Shenzi North oil field in the Gulf of Mexico, eyeing daily production of 30,000 barrels of crude. The company also said it would move forward with the Trion project, also in Mexican waters, to the design and engineering phase. BHPs partner in Shenzi North, Repsol, is set to make the final investment decision on the project later this year.

Shell is also doubling down on the Gulf of Mexico. In July, the Anglo-Dutch supermajor announced the final investment decision on the Whale deepwater project. The company boasted projected internal rates of return of over 25 percent thanks to what the company calls a simplified, cost-efficient host design.

The Whale fieldShells 12th deepwater project in the Gulf of Mexicohas estimated recoverable reserves of some 490 million barrels of oil equivalent. Peak production is seen at 100,000 bpd, with commercial production set to begin in 2024.

Related: Why Big Oil And Environmentalists Need To Support This Climate Tech

As companies made FID after FID on new oil and gas projects, noting their low-carbon footprint and low cost, Exxon continued discovering oil offshore Guyana. The Whiptail-1 well produced oil last month, and a second well is currently being drilled in the area. Exxon expects to have t least six operating wells in the Stabroek Block by 2027, with a potential for another four.

In Africa, meanwhile, Namibia has emerged as a new hot spot in oil, with a discovery made earlier this year by a junior energy company. Soon after beginning exploratory drilling, the company, ReconAfrica, announced the discovery could hold as much as 31 billion barrels of crude. It is still early days, but theres already talk about the latest country to join the oil club.

Namibia is also a rare case these days, with its discovery made onshore. Offshore seems to rule right now, with most of the new oil being found or developed across the world lying underwater. According to Westwood, offshore activity during the first half of the year was up by 60 percent on the year - a clear sign oil and gas were on a strong rebound despite the clouds looming on the horizon from the energy transition.

By Irina Slav for Oilprice.com

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2021 Has Been A Blockbuster Year For Offshore Oil And Gas - Yahoo Finance

Introduction

On 14 July 2021, Ofgem published the firstconsultation(the Consultation) in a series that will be launched as part of theOffshore Transmission Network Review(the OTNR). The OTNR aims to bring about greater co-ordination in the design and delivery of offshore energy network infrastructure (our commentary on the launch of OTNR can be foundhere), in support of the UK governments wider ambitions to procure 40GW of offshore wind capacity by 2030, and reach net-zero carbon emissions by 2050.

The Consultation covers three key components of the OTNR as follows:

Early opportunitiesthe objective of this area is to identify and facilitate opportunities for increased coordination in the near term, with a focus on in-flight offshore wind projects;

Pathway to 2030 the objective of this workstream is to drive coordination of offshore projects that will connect before 2030, including projects that were successful in the ScotWind and Crown Estate Round 4 leasing rounds; and

Multi-purpose interconnectors(MPIs) the objective here is to make tactical changes to facilitate early opportunity MPIs and develop an enduring MPI regime for 2030 onwards.

This article is the second in a series of three articles looking at the above areas of consultation. We set out in further detail below Ofgems proposed delivery models under its Pathway to 2030 framework.

Proposed delivery models under the Pathway to 2030 framework

The Pathway to 2030 workstream covers offshore projects that aim to be operational by 2030, but which are not currently in-flight. Under this workstream, Ofgem are considering moving away substantially from the existing model for design and delivery of offshore transmission and have focused work in this regard on three areas:

Developing a generation map showing where offshore wind projects (in particular projects from Round 4 and ScotWind) are expected to be located and when they are expected to connect to the system;

Producing a design for network infrastructure which is based on the generation map and other relevant information this design work may also include work detailing where changes might be required to industry codes; and

Considering options for the efficient delivery of the coordinated infrastructure required to connect offshore generation. This workstream comprise three elements:

a holistic network design (HND), proposed to be delivered by ESO

detailed designs (DNDs) for the offshore network assets. The responsibility for the offshore DND will depend on the delivery model (set out below) that will be employed; and

DNDs for the onshore assets, which will be delivered by the electricity network transmission owners (TOs) under their existing price controls and the DND for offshore network assets.

The Consultation specifically seeks stakeholder views on the network design and delivery of offshore elements as well as the delivery of HND and offshore DND.

Where the HND indicates that a traditional radial connection would be the most economic and efficient solution, the Consultation proposes continuing with the existing OFTO regime. However, where the HND indicates a non-radial connection, the Consultation sets out six potential models for delivery of offshore network infrastructure:

Option 1: TO to build and operate

The TO would undertake the offshore DND, develop, construct and operate all shared connection infrastructure in their licence area. Infrastructure and delivery can be co-ordinated easily as the same parties will be responsible for the whole chain of development potentially increasing the speed at which the connection infrastructure could be taken from design and delivery. However, this approach would be a significant move away from the existing independent OFTO regime and would require substantial further legislative reform, including consideration of how these assets are categorised and how they would be licensed for operation.

Option 2: TO to build and OFTO to operate

The TO undertakes the offshore DND, develops and constructs the shared connection infrastructure, but an OFTO would acquire the assets for the operation phase. At or near asset completion, a tender process would be run to transfer ownership of the assets built by the TO to the OFTO. As it stands, this would be a tender process. If this model is adopted, consideration will need to be given to the appropriate transfer value of any offshore transmission assets in a similar way to the assessment of the transfer value in the current generator-build OFTO model.

As Options 1 and 2 would involve amendments to the incumbent TOs licences and funding arrangements, this would impact the timing of delivery of these models.

Option 3: TO to design and OFTO to build and operate

The ESO would undertake the HND, the TO would undertake the detailed design and consent work on the shared infrastructure with an OFTO being appointed to construct and operate the infrastructure. This model has many similarities with the Late OFTO Build model under the current regime, however this model has not been pursued by offshore generators for any project to date.

Option 4: Early OFTO competition

The TO or ESO would carry out the offshore DND for any shared infrastructure before a competitive tender process to appoint an OFTO to consent, build and operate the transmission assets. The ESO would however need to develop competence in the detailed technical design of network assets.

Option 5: Very Early OFTO Competition

A competitive tender process for the appointment of an OFTO would be implemented after the HND has been completed, with the appointed OFTO responsible for undertaking the DND, consenting, financing, construction, and operation of infrastructure. This option brings maximum scope for competition including a greater role for innovation at the detailed design phase.

Options 4 and 5 are similar to the early CATO model. However, the existing regulatory framework does not allow for a tender process to be held this early in a projects development. Significant work would therefore be required to apply these options within the offshore transmission frameworks.

Option 6: Developer to design and build, OFTO to operate

This is equivalent to the generator-build OFTO option currently used in the GB offshore wind sector. For shared infrastructure, HND would be carried out by the ESO with the offshore generator undertaking DND, consenting and construction of shared infrastructure and a competitive tender process. This is the simplest option in terms of implementation, however there is a perception that this option provides less scope for early-stage innovation or to exert competitive pressure.

All of the above approaches will require changes to the regulatory regime (with option 6 being the closest to the current system) as well as accounting for the competence and incentives of the party designing and building the assets. The Consultation states that the time likely to be required to implement changes to regulatory frameworks will be a factor informing which delivery model is selected as the preferred model.

The responsibilities in each of the proposed delivery models are summarised visually as follows:

Following feedback on the above models, Ofgem will issue its minded-to decision on the delivery model before the end of the year and will then run a further consultation on the detailed implementation of the preferred delivery model.

Charging arrangements and code changes

The Consultation notes that subject to the complexity of the network design outputs, this workstream might require fundamental changes to existing charging arrangements given that the Pathway to 2030 may result in offshore transmission infrastructure that is increasingly shared, resembling the onshore network. While this is likely to be an area of further consultation, Ofgem have set out some high level principles to be considered in this regard:

Charging arrangements should be reviewed to enable the locational differences in charges for offshore users to better reflect the differences in costs that different offshore users confer on the system;

Network users should face cost-reflective charges for network access; and

Charging arrangements should ensure that charge avoidance isnt enabled or incentivised.

In addition, wider changes to the industry codes are also anticipated as part of this workstream in order to support the implementation of network design and delivery options. The Consultation notes that the identification of changes to codes for the Pathway to 2030 workstream will take place in parallel to the development of the HND.

Comment

The existing approach to the connection of offshore wind has had to evolve alongside the UKs current ambitions and targets for offshore wind. Some stakeholders have expressed concerns as to whether the UK, quite simply, has enough space to accommodate all the infrastructure required to deliver on its ambitions. In particular, a key challenge in respect of offshore transmission networks is managing the environmental and physical impacts of existing offshore radial point-to-point connections at their landfall, which are only anticipated to become further congested with the expected scale up in offshore transmission infrastructure being deployed to support the construction of new offshore wind farms.

On the other hand, while it is recognised that greater coordination and collaboration could have a range of benefits, the implementation of the Pathway to 2030 delivery models needs to be carefully managed to avoid it becoming a cause for concern for the industry. It is anticipated that NGESO will publish its HND by the end of January 2022 with implementation of the Pathway to 2030 reforms taking place during 2022. However, as the Consultation recognises, depending on the delivery model selected, substantial amendments to legislation and industry codes could be required. As a result, the process will need to think carefully about how it can proceed without creating delay or hiatus impacts on projects looking to connect in the mid to late 2020s. To keep the projects on track will require such projects to progress consenting and project design in parallel over the next 18 months or so.

Further, if a delivery model utilising a competitive tender is selected, we have seen with the current OFTO tender processes that the timing of such tenders can slip for reasons outside of the control of the offshore developer. Any timing risks in the project development cycle are problematic for developers, but even more so in the current environment as development programmes are compressed to mitigate the substantial costs of any delay.

We also note that the majority of the delivery model options under consideration would require the generator to be reliant on another party to deliver transmission assets in a timely and effective manner, creating new interfaces that would need to be considered from (among other things) a risk allocation perspective. Whilst mechanisms for mitigating this risk e.g. appropriate penalties for late delivery will be consulted upon, this structure has not yet been utilised in the UK offshore wind market, and we anticipate will be scrutinised closely as the first tranche of these projects look to achieve financial close.

Next steps

The deadline for responses to the Consultation is 8 September 2021. In addition to the previous industry consultation, Ofgem intends to hold structured engagement with stakeholders throughout the course of the consultation window and beyond.

In respect of the Pathway to 2030 workstream, further policy consultation is expected in December 2021 January 2022 with decisions and implementing consultations issued in May/June 2022. Changes to facilitate the Pathways to 2030 delivery model are expected to be in place by July-September 2022.

See more here:

Delivering 40GW of offshore wind: Offshore Transmission Network Review Consultation - proposals for the Pathway to 2030 - Lexology

Norwegian shipbuilder Vard has signed contracts for the design and construction of two Construction Service Operations (CSV) vessels for Rem Offshore, also of Norway.

The VARD 4 19 design, developed by Vard Design in lesund, serves as a versatile offshore windfarm operations support vessel, focusing on onboard logistics, security, comfort, and operability.

The two vessels come with a price tag of 100 million euros. The contracts include an option for two additional vessels.

The first vessel will be delivered from Vard in Norway in first half of 2023, while the hull will be built at Vard Braila in Romania. The second vessel will be built and delivered by Vard Vung Tau in Vietnam, scheduled for delivery in 2024.

With a length of 85 meters and a beam of 19.5 meters, the vessels will have a height-adjustable motion-compensated gangway with elevator system, a height-adjustable boat landing system, and a 3D-compensated crane. The CSOVs will also come with accommodations for 120 persons on board.

Rem Offshore has during the last few years increasingly focused attention on building a sustainable platform for growth in offshore wind, said Rem Offshores Chairman, Aage Remy. Our shareholders are driving this development together with our Rem colleagues onshore and offshore. We are proud to continue our newbuild programme in Norway and support the local maritime industry.

We are proud to be chosen as the preferred partner for Rem Offshore in this exciting project, and we are looking forward to working together with their team. These contracts confirm VARDs leadership in the CSOV market, both in terms of innovative ship design, breakthrough technologies and shipbuilding quality, added Vard CEO Alberto Maestrini commented.

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Vard to Construct Two Offshore Wind Operations Vessels for Rem Offshore - gcaptain.com