AIEN announces 2022 award winners

J Scott Porter, President AIEN, comments, “It is important to recognise outstanding achievements. Nominated by AIEN members with winners selected by an independent committee, the awards provide a ground-up view of where projects have impacted people in the various categories. While there is still emphasis on traditional oil and gas, and Deal of the year remains the most acclaimed award, we are also reflecting the change in focus in our membership with two new awards covering CSR and Energy Innovation to recognise their work and interest in these important areas.”

Deal of the year

The 2022 winner is the BHP Petroleum and Woodside Petroleum merger. In 2021, BHP Group (BHP) and Woodside Petroleum Ltd (Woodside) signed a binding share sale agreement for the merger of BHP’s oil and gas portfolio with Woodside, whereby Woodside would acquire the entire share capital of BHP Petroleum International Pty Ltd in exchange for new Woodside shares. The merger looked to create ‘a global energy company with the scale and opportunity to help supply the energy needed for global growth and development in a rapidly decarbonising world’.

Venture of the year

This year’s winner is Qatar Energy Farm into Shell Namibia Exploration Blocks. In April 2021, Qatar Energy (QE) farmed into two exploration blocks offshore Namibia through an agreement with Shell. Under the agreement, QE will hold a 45% participating interest in the PEL 39 exploration licence pertaining to Block 2913A and Block 2914B, while Shell will hold a 45% interest, and the National Petroleum Corporation of Namibia will hold the remaining 10% interest.

Discovery of the year

This award is given to a company who has made a highly significant oil or gas discovery, or an addition to discovered resources through exploration and appraisal activities. This year, the award has been given to ExxonMobil, Hess and CNOOC Whiptail Discovery, Guyana. In July 2021, two Whiptail wells being drilled simultaneously encountered 246 ft and 167 ft of net pay in high-quality, oil-bearing sandstone reservoirs. This is a significant new oil discovery that could form the basis of future development in the Stabroek Block, adding to the previous recoverable resource estimate of approximately 9 billion boe.

Energy Innovation

The recipients of this award are those who are demonstrating true leadership in innovative ways in the transition to a low-carbon, sustainable future. The 2022 winner is Petronas for its first carbon neutral LNG cargo delivery to Shikoku Electric. The maiden carbon neutral LNG cargo was delivered from the PETRONAS LNG complex (PLC) in Bintulu and was received at the Sakaide LNG terminal in Shikoku Island, Japan. PETRONAS has offset the estimated life cycle carbon footprint of the LNG cargo through renewables-based carbon credits for the emissions generated from upstream gas exploration and productions, transportation, liquefaction, and shipping of the cargo.

CSR Campaign of the year

The Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) Campaign of the year Award illuminates the ever-important convergence of profitability and company values. This year the award has been given to TotalEnergies, CNOOC, Uganda National Oil Company & Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation for the Lake Albert resources development project in Uganda and Tanzania. In accordance with its guiding principle of transparency in engaging with civil society, TotalEnergies published studies, independent third-party reviews, and social and environmental action plans related to the Tilenga project in Uganda and the East African Crude Oil Pipeline project in Uganda and Tanzania.

Environmental and social impacts assessment studies have been conducted and approved by the Ugandan and Tanzanian authorities, which incorporate the stringent performance standards of the International Finance Corporation. In line with TotalEnergies’ ‘Avoid – Reduce – Compensate’ principles that underpin its Biodiversity Policy, it voluntarily limited the Tilenga project’s footprint in Uganda’s Murchison Falls park.

“AIEN is expanding its scope to reflect the need for energy transition, moving from being petroleum negotiators to energy negotiators. Oil and gas will remain part of the energy mix for years to come and is a critical to supporting the energy transition, but we have evolved because our membership has evolved,” says John Bridges, Executive Director, AIEN. “Our members are from 110 different countries, many of whom are working on active energy transition initiatives, such as carbon capture and hydrogen projects. We are providing the bridge between them, bringing them together and facilitating open and honest discussion on the way forward. The awards are from our members, for our members.”

Read the article online at: https://www.worldpipelines.com/business-news/03102022/aien-announces-2022-award-winners/