Noble scores another deepwater discovery 06/17/2007
Exploration and production independent Noble Energy has scored what looks like another commercial discovery in deepwater Gulf of Mexico. The BP-operated Isabela discovery well, located beneath 6,500...

Noble plans fast-track development 01/28/2007
Raton startup expected in 2008 from subsea development of natural gas interval, Pony sidetrack recovers record drilling core
Exploration and production independent Noble Energy is currently planning a fast-track subsea development of a natural gas interval discovered at the company's Raton prospect on Mississippi Canyon blo...

Noble Energy JV scores again 06/25/2006
Raton discovery well said to encounter 90 feet of pay across three zones; appraisal work planned for 2006 fourth quarter
Noble Energy and Gulf of Mexico deepwater partners Samson Offshore and Energy Partners continue to play their cards right, scoring what looks like a second commercial discovery in a row on an eight-bl...

Noble sells GOM shelf assets to Coldren 05/21/2006
Noble Energy has jumped on the bandwagon of producers ridding themselves of aging oil and gas properties on the Gulf of Mexico's continental shelf. The Houston-based EandP independent said May 16 that...

Support builds for U.S. offshore drilling 05/07/2006
Two-thirds of comments on MMS' 5-year plan favor opening more of U.S. OCS to drilling; eastern Gulf of most interest to industry
Opening more of the U.S. offshore to exploration and development is clearly gaining momentum across America, according to recent opinion surveys and thousands of public comments submitted in response...

Redrock discovery unveiled 04/23/2006
Three independents lock up U.S. Gulf leases in pursuit of deepwater play
An exploration alliance consisting of three EandP independents has locked up at least four contiguous federal leases in the Gulf of Mexico, strongly indicating the trio could be pursuing a significant d...

Best Gulf sale in 8 years 03/19/2006
Central Gulf Lease Sale 198 draws $588.3 million in high bids on 405 blocks
Amerada Hess and a slew of other deep-pocket bidders evidently came to Central Gulf of Mexico Lease Sale 198 March 15 armed with three fundamental winning strategies - spend, spend and spend. And spen...

Platts: Big oil dominates global energy 12/11/2005
Platts survey shows dominance of big oil, with leaders amassing $1.9 trillion in 2004 revenues; Devon tops EandP independents
U.S.-based ExxonMobil, Chevron and ConocoPhillips and other large integrated oil and gas companies, feeding off the unprecedented rise in commodity prices, blew away the field in a Platts global surve...

Noble finds both condensate, natural gas on prospect offshore Guinea 10/23/2005
Texas-based Noble Energy discovered both condensate and natural gas on its Block O prospect offshore Equatorial Guinea, but appraisal work will be required to gauge the field's size, the company said...

Alaska independents rise above peers 07/03/2005
As earnings season approaches, oil and gas companies doing business in the northernmost state beat average; outside Alaska only Apache expected to see an increase over second quarter
Profits for seven of the largest U.S-based exploration and production independents that do business in Alaska should handily beat on average other sector-leading companies tracked by Petroleum News, a...

Noble poised for huge production gain 05/22/2005
As new U.S. Gulf of Mexico deepwater fields come on line independent anticipates dramatic turnaround in domestic production
Exploration and production independent Noble Energy, helped by Gulf of Mexico deepwater production and a growing U.S. onshore presence, is anticipating a dramatic turnaround in its overall domestic pr...

Noble, Patina shareholders OK merger 05/15/2005
Shareholders of exploration and production independents Noble Energy and Patina Oil and Gas approved the proposed merger of the two companies in special meetings held May 11. In the merger, Patina stock...

EXPLORERS USA 2005: Mergers and acquisitions activity surges 05/08/2005
EandP independents ride MandA market on strong commodity prices, desire to build production on shrinking U.S oil and gas reserves
Merger and acquisition activity in the United States, supported by exceptionally strong commodity prices, increased dramatically over the past year and a half, particularly among exploration and produ...

Big independents weigh in 05/08/2005
Strong prices ignite profits for Anadarko, Kerr-McGee, Burlington, Unocal, others
Anadarko Petroleum, despite losing 25 percent of its asset base last year to property sales, managed to boost revenues by 5 percent to $1.53 billion in the 2005 first quarter vs. the year-ago period,...

U.S. independents still riding high on prices 04/17/2005
Petroleum News survey shows first-quarter profits to rise 6 percent from previous quarter, up 28 percent from year ago
Profits for U.S.-based exploration and production independents, supported by an exceptionally strong oil and gas price environment, continued to rise on average in the 2005 first quarter, according to...

Lifting the ban on U.S. offshore drilling 04/10/2005
Legislation aimed at lowering natural gas prices would allow governors to open offshore areas under federal drilling moratorium
Two U.S. senators introduced federal legislation April 6 that would take "bold and aggressive steps" to ease runaway natural gas prices that are weakening the competitiveness of U.S. industry. Among o...

Thirteen companies, including Exxon, named MMS safety award finalists 03/20/2005
Thirteen offshore companies who showed "outstanding commitment to safety in 2004" are being recognized as finalists in the U.S. Minerals Management Service's Safety Awards for Excellence competition,...

Companies team up on 'ultra-deep' Gulf wildcat 02/27/2005
Cadillac prospect said to hold several hundred billion cubic feet of gas
Six companies have pooled their resources to drill a rare and no doubt expensive "ultra-deep" exploration well in the relatively shallow waters of the Gulf of Mexico's continental shelf, according to...

Kerr-McGee secures drilling, development with VAULT 02/13/2005
Visualization center had role in decision to drill Constitution,Ticonderoga
Like many major oil companies and large independents, Kerr-McGee Oil and Gas Corp. uses computer-based visualization technology as a tool for its geoscientists and engineers to help choose where to dril...

Independents bask in strong crude oil and gas prices 01/02/2005
Fourth-quarter profits jump 12% from prior quarter, rocket 74% from 2003
U.S.-based exploration and production independents continued to benefit from the unprecedented staying power of oil and gas prices during the 2004 fourth quarter, according to a Petroleum News survey...

$3.4 billion merger brings balance to Noble's portfolio 12/26/2004
Patina Oil and Gas active in U.S. onshore, with more than half of production from Colorado, with rest in Oklahoma, Texas and New Mexico
Exploration and production independents Noble Energy and Patina Oil and Gas, which had been quietly talking merger since July, finally tied the knot on a $3.4 billion agreement touted by the management...

Gulf suffers Ivan hangover 10/17/2004
Hurricane Ivan, which swept through the Gulf of Mexico with a vengeance a month ago, is contributing to a worldwide oil shortfall that has pushed crude prices well over $50 per barrel and caused U.S....

Independents' Q3 profits plateau, still ahead of 2003 10/03/2004
U.S.-based exploration and production independents, whose balance sheets continue to ride high on strong oil and gas prices, seem to have reached an earnings plateau in the 2004 third quarter. Conclu...