Europe

AIM-listed oil and gas exploration and development company Europa Oil & Gas has announced a significant improvement in UK production and revenues generated during the six month period ending 31 January 2012.

The company has a combination of producing and exploration assets in Europe, including three producing assets in the UK, all located onshore in the East Midlands. It has a 100 per cent working interest in the West Firsby and Crosby Warren fields and a 65 per cent working interest in the Whisby 4 well.

Morrison Utility Services is behind much that UK citizens take for granted: its core business is the provision, replacement, repair and maintenance of utility network infrastructure; and water supply is one of its specialisations.

Commodities trader Glencore and mining giant Xstrata have confirmed they will merge to create a major natural resources group with a combined equity market value of $90 billion.

The companies said that to combine was the logical next step in a changing industry environment.

The combined entity will have production growth of 11 per cent on a compound annual basis to 2015, with positions in the next major regions for mining investment, including the African copper-belt, Kazakhstan and South America.

Tullow Oil has signed two new production sharing agreements (PSAs) with the government of Uganda, paving the way for completion of its asset sale to France’s Total and China’s CNOOC.

The new PSAs cover the EA-1 and Kanywataba licences in the Lake Albert Rift Basin. Tullow has also been awarded the production licence for the Kingfisher field, which is estimated to hold around 300 million barrels of oil.

UK-based Subsea 7 has been awarded a $100 million contract by BP Exploration for work on the Clair Ridge Project, West of Shetland.

The Clair Ridge development will comprise two new bridge-linked platforms to be sited to the north-east of Clair Phase 1.

The contract scope includes the project management, engineering, procurement, fabrication and installation of a six kilometre, 22 inch oil export pipeline and a 14 kilometre, 6 inch gas export pipeline connected to the new production facilities and existing Clair Phase 1 export systems.

Logistics company Lynden International has extended its reach with the opening of a new service centre in Belgium, Lynden International (BE).

The new facility will see the company entering the transport and logistics services market catering for Belgium-based medical, pharmaceutical and other growth industries.

The centre will serve the medical and pharmaceutical industries with temperature-controlled shipping and single-point entry departure in and out of Europe, the company said.

Finnish stainless steel maker Outokumpu has agreed to acquire Inoxum, the stainless steel unit of Germany’s ThyssenKrupp.

The €2.7 billion deal is set to make Outokumpu a market leader in European stainless steel, with almost €12 billion in revenues, more than 19,000 employees and an approximate 50 per cent market share.

Outokumpu already employs around 8,000 people in more than 30 countries and is headquartered in Espoo, Finland.

Westinghouse Electric Company today announced the signing of an exclusive memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Czech construction company Metrostav, in preparation for the potential construction of nuclear power plants in the Czech Republic.

Alan Swaby looks at one of the largest crane manufacturers in the world—which ironically comes from one of the smallest countries in the world.

Watch any strong man competition and the odds are there will be a Finn in the final. For a country with a population of far less than Greater London, Finland manages to create some of the biggest and strongest specimens in the world.

UK-based Centrica, the parent company of British Gas, has reached an agreement with ConocoPhillips to acquire its non-operated interests in the gas and oil producing Statfjord field for £142 million.