(EnergyAsia, July 18, Friday) --- IBC Asia’s ‘Maritime Risk 2008’ will be held at the Orchard Hotel in Singapore from September 9 to 11.

Delegates will learn from a panel of experts on maritime and shipping risks, and how to turn investments in risk management strategies into competitive advantages.

(EnergyAsia, July 18, Friday) --- Federal International (2000) Ltd, a Singapore-based engineering and procurement specialist supporting the energy and utility industries in Southeast Asia, said it has secured a ‘build, operate and own’ project through its business associate, PT Geolink Nusantara. The project calls for an oil pipeline installation in east and central Java, Indonesia.

The company said it will be involved in the project management and procurement of materials for the project, which entails the engineering, procurement, construction and installation of a six-inch by 40-km oil pipeline from Banyu Urip to Mudi and two oil storage tanks for customer PT Pertamina EP Cebu.

(EnergyAsia, July 17, Thursday) --- The ‘FPSO Summit 2008’ will be held at the Amara Sanctuary Resort Sentosa in Singapore from September 16 to 17.

Delegates will be able to assess the latest designs of floating vessels and evaluate the generic or specific design for the FPSO based on operating conditions and commerciality of fields.

Topics addressed include the impact of regulatory changes in the Gulf of Mexico, current projects in Asia Pacific, implications of moving LNG business offshore, design of FPSO to minimise tanker deflections, technology, people and processes for enhanced project integration and communications using wireless technology.

Speakers at the event include Martin Hruska, (ABS Pacific), Tom Arne Kristiansen (Bergsen Worldwide Offshore), Sateesh Dev (MODEC) and Hassan Basma (BUMI ARMADA).

The event will feature two technical masterclasses.

The first, ‘Building the roadmap to extend FPSO lifecycles’, will be conducted by John Mastrocinque from  Australian FPSO Management  while the second, ‘Understanding the A-Zs of your deepwater mooring and riser systems’, will be conducted by Cedric Morandini from AMOG Consulting.

 ‘FPSO Summit 2008’ is organised by Strategic Business Networks Pte Ltd. For more information, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

(EnergyAsia, June 17, Thursday) --- The Oxford Princeton Programme will be holding a one-day workshop on the ‘Overview of the Petroleum Industry’ in Singapore on October 13.

Participants will learn about the oil supply chain starting with exploration and production to downstream trading, marketing and retailing. The basics of petroleum refining, transportation, refined product marketing and trading of physical crude oil and refined products will be addressed.

As part of Oxford Princeton’s blended learning package, ‘An introduction to the oil industry’ is recommended as a pre-classroom study. Delegates are advised to take the appropriate online study as close to the classroom date as possible to optimise the classroom experience. is recommended as a pre-classroom study.

For more information on ‘Overview of the Petroleum Industry’, please contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

(EnergyAsia, July 16, Wednesday) --- The ‘China Power Oil and Gas’ conference will be held in Guangzhou city, China from September 2 to 4.

Jointly organised by PennWell Corporation and the China Chamber of Commerce for Import and Export of Machinery and Electronic Products (CCCME), the conference aims to bring together power, oil and gas companies, government agencies, engineering firms, traders and service providers.

(EnergyAsia, July 14, Monday) --- Offshore oil and gas event SEAAOC to be held in Australia’s northernmost city, Darwin, this week will take place at a time of unprecedented interest from domestic and international companies in the country’s mining and energy prospects.

With oil last week reaching a new record high of more than $147 a barrel and experts predicting it could reach $200 or falling back to under $100, interest is likely to intensify.

Along with escalating oil and gas prices, there is cause for optimism for the future of Australia’s energy sector.

More than $100 billion worth of petroleum projects are under development or in planning in Australia, said industry lobby APPEA’s CEO, Belinda Robinson, who will chair the first day of SEAAOC.

The UN has agreed to extend Australia’s territory by an area five times the size of France, providing more area to explore for new oil and gas reserves.

The Federal Government recently awarded nine exploration permits representing a A$425 million investment in offshore petroleum. (US$1=A$1.05). The authorities have agreed to reduce barriers to exploration.

High oil prices cause pain, but they can also create opportunities for gain. As Paul Henderson, chief minister of the Northern Territory government, said:

“We’re the furthest removed capital city from the rest of Australia so high oil prices do affect our economy.

“But the development of oil and gas fields in the Timor Sea and the Bonaparte Gulf in the region makes these very interesting and exciting times for the Northern Territory.

“The (Inpex) Ichthys Field has just been re-evaluated to have 500 million barrels of condensate along with 13 trillion cubic feet of gas, so getting this type of project to Darwin is very important to my government and that’s why we’re going after the Inpex Project as hard as we possibly can.”

At SEAAOC, Mr Henderson will welcome delegates and outline his government’s vision for Darwin as an oil and gas service and supply industry hub, building on the ConocoPhilips LNG plant at Darwin’s Wickham Point.

Inpex is known to be seriously considering setting up a plant to process Ichthys Field gas in Darwin, which Mr Henderson describes as ‘gas ready’. Gas is seen as a part solution to high oil prices, with Australia ideally located to supply clean and plentiful natural gas to the Asia-Pacific region.

(EnergyAsia, July 14, Monday) --- Frederique Mutel, President and CEO of the JEC Group, spoke with EnergyAsia’s Rasheedah Mahfuz on its plans to organise a composite materials event in Singapore on October 22 to 24. The “JEC Show” will be supported by various agencies from the Singapore government.

1. Tell us something about the JEC Group, and composites.

Mrs Mutel: JEC was established in 1963 in Paris, France. It is a society for the dissemination of information on composite materials. JEC is a simplified joint stock company established under French law that was created by the Composites Promotion Center (CPC), a non-profit association.

Composite materials are polymers/resins combined with other materials to form a single material (i.e. carbon fibre, glass fibre). Composite materials can be found everywhere. Composite materials have thermic insulation which is protected from the heat and cold. They are water-resistant and unlike metals, composite materials cannot corrode.

The new Airbus 380 is made up of 40% -45 % composite materials. It is lighter therefore reduces fuel consumption. Only composite materials are used for deepwater drilling as no other material is able to go deeper than 2,000 metres. All the new pipes for underwater applications are made up of composite materials.

2. The JEC Group organises the ‘JEC Show’, an exhibition for the composite industry, in Europe every year. For the first time you will be holding the ‘JEC show’ in Asia Pacific from October 22 to 24 in Singapore. What is the ‘JEC Asia show’ all about?

Mrs Mutel: The show aims to bring suppliers of composite materials and customers together on a single commercial platform to share knowledge. This will enable Asia to improve its manufacturing processes.

Currently, Asia is using the manual manufacturing processes which are less efficient, and damaging to both workers and the environment. Europe is using the automatic process which saves time, money and yields bigger profit margins.

3. How many people are you expecting for this show?

200 exhibitors and 6,000 visitors.

4. Who are some of the Singapore exhibiting companies?

The Economic Development Board (EDB), which is endorsing this show, National University of Singapore, A*Star, and the Land Transport Authority

5. What can participants expect from your first show in Asia Pacific?

It will provide updates on the latest technologies and machinery, and lots of networking opportunities.

6. Do companies inform JEC Group of deals clinched at the exhibition?

Yes, as JEC acts a middleman for suppliers and customers, we are informed of deals clinched at the show. JEC makes it a point to have a close-knit relationship with the composite companies.

7. What new technology has the industry developed that will benefit the energy industry? How will this improve energy efficiency and reduce fuel consumption?

It is not a new technology. It is a technology which European countries have adopted to manufacture these composite materials. As mentioned, Asia is currently using the manual manufacturing process which is less efficient. With the automated process, the composite materials are lighter. It is more efficient and reduces fuel consumption.

JEC Group is working closely with A*Star on the R&D of nano composites. We are unable to disclose the details at the moment. The use of nano compsites will enable us to save on materials because these require fewer molecules to build a product. A*Star is conducting advanced research on nano composites. It would have a huge impact on the energy industry.

8. How has high energy cost affected the composite industry?

With oil prices increasing, the prices of raw materials are rising. The composite industry has to switch to using automated technology and processes. With automation, the industry will use less energy and save money. The second solution is innovation. Maufacturers have to be creative and invent new processes to counter this problem.

9. The impact of rising cost of composites on the oil, gas, power and petrochemical industries. Is the rising cost of composites causing a sharp hike in construction costs and delaying the implementation of oil and gas projects?

Composite material producers (e.g. carbon fibre producers) are opening more plants to increase supplies. Five years ago, there was a supply shortage of carbon fibre. Producers sold the materials to the airlines industry and ignored demands from other industries. Now, with more plants there will be no supply shortage so the prices for materials will not increase. It will be stable.

(EnergyAsia, July 11, Friday) --- ‘Sustainable Development Policy Directory’ is a desk-top reference providing essential information on the legal, fiscal and planning frameworks governing the global and local sustainability agenda.

Authored by Alan Strong and Lesley Hemphill, the directory is relevant to a range of organisations and individuals from national and local authorities, professional bodies, environmental groups, academia, consultancies, non-governmental organisations to the media.

(EnergyAsia, July 10, Thursday) --- Solarfun Power, a vertically integrated manufacturer of silicon ingots and photovoltaic cells and modules in China, said it has signed a polysilicon agreement and, separately, has purchased the remaining 48% stake in Jiangsu Yangguang Solar.

The agreement states that GCL Silicon Technology will immediately begin supplying Solarfun with virgin polysilicon to produce approximately 1.2 gigawatts of solar modules over a total of eight years. Thes agreement provides further security for Solarfun’s polysilicon needs, reaching its target of 160 to 180 MW of module shipments this year.

Hunter Jiang, CEO of GCL Silicon Technology, said: “We are very happy to sign this contract with Solarfun. We already have a good relationship with them and we look forward to building on this in the coming years. We plan to continue to expand our production capacity in order to meet the growing demands of our customers.”

Separately, Linyang Solarfun also signed an agreement to acquire the remaining 48% equity interest in Jiangsu Yangguang Solar Technology Co Ltd from Nantong Linyang Electric Power Investment Co Ltd, Jiangsu Qitian Group Co Ltd and Jiangsu Guangyi Technology Co Ltd for a total sum of RMB355 million to be paid in instalments. (US$1=RMB6.86).

As Linyang Electric is 70% owned by Solarfun’s founding chairman Yonghua Lu, the transaction was separately approved by the company’s audit committee. Linyang Solarfun had previously acquired a 52% equity interest in Yangguang Solar Linyang Electric in August 2007. The latest agreement will allow Linyang Solarfun to acquire the remaining stake and take full control of the company.

(EnergyAsia, July 7, Monday) --- ‘Clean Energy and Power Generation 2008’ will be held in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia on August 14 to 15.

Asia is racing to meet its growing energy demand while faced with the threats of global warming and the global depletion of natural resources. The region is exploring alternative energy options to ensure it has a sustainable energy supply to both reduce carbon emissions and its dependence on fossil fuels. The conference will also address the threat of rising energy costs.