ONGC seeks rig from global oil firms for KG block work

India’s biggest oil explorer Oil and Natural Gas Corporation is believed to have approached global oil firms seeking an ultra deepwater rig for drilling well UD-1 in the Krishna Godavari basin block KG-DWN/98-2.

The global major is believed to have even offered a stake in the block, where it claims to have discovered huge natural gas reserves, in return for the rig. ONGC is in talks with global oil firms StatOil, Norway’s Norsk Hydro among others to secure an ultra deepwater rig for drilling in well UD-1. It has so far been unable to secure an ultra deepwater rig in the international market even after willing to pay higher prices. ONGC now plans to develop other discoveries in the block. The firm claims that these discoveries hold a potential of over 6 tcf of gas. The cost of developing this discovery is about $5 billion. The commercial production of this is likely to begin in 2011.
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Kidd's ship found off Dominican island

A U.S. underwater archaeology team announced that it has likely discovered the shattered remnants of a ship once captained by the notorious buccaneer William Kidd off a tiny Dominican Republic island.

The barnacled cannons and anchors found stacked beneath just 10 feet of crystalline coastal waters off Catalina Island are believed to be the wreckage of the Quedagh Merchant, a ship abandoned by the Scottish privateer in 1699, Indiana University researchers say. Treasure hunters, including a group with a permit from the Dominican government to scour Catalina for remnants of the ship, which historians believe was scavenged of treasure and burned shortly after Kidd abandoned it, have aggressively sought the wreckage. The Dominican government has licensed the U.S. University to study the wreckage. The find will likely reveal key information about piracy in the Caribbean and about the elusive Captain Kidd.
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Free whale-watching offered to Japanese

A Sydney company will offer free whale-watching trips to visiting Japanese as part of a campaign against their country's whale slaughter.

Whale Watching Sydney says it hopes to raise Japanese people's awareness of the importance of protecting whales through close encounters with the giant mammals.
The tour operator will give free cruises next year to anyone with a Japanese passport. The company's manager, Will Ford, said Japanese who used the offer would be educated about Australians' love of whales and their objections to the whaling industry. He also said that very few tourists favored whale hunting once they saw the mammals in the wild. He hope other whale-watching cruise companies to introduce similar deals. Whale Watching Sydney cruises usually cost $80 for an adult.
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Two Somali Pirates Arrested in Hijacking

Two Somali pirates accused of hijacking a Japanese tanker have been arrested in northeastern Somalia, but up to a dozen more were still on the run.

The chemical tanker Golden Nori, seized off the Somali coast six weeks ago, was released Wednesday along with its 22 crew, who apparently were unharmed. The U.S. Navy, which has led international patrols to try to combat piracy in the region, said the release meant that Somali pirates were holding no ships for the first time in more than a year. The police have arrested two of the pirates with their guns and they are tracking down the rest. Somali pirates, who have hijacked more than two dozen ships this year, are trained fighters and in some cases linked to the powerful Somali clans. They are outfitted with sophisticated arms and GPS devices that lead them to merchant ships, vessels carrying aid, and once even a cruise ship.
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Ocean cargo freight rates calm down, after months of turbulence

US economic slowdown, surging oil prices and increasing supply of shipping vessels combine to trigger critical correction.

After months of showing a relentless surge, ocean freight rates for cargo being traded from the country finally seem to be easing up. While freight rates for container and bulk cargo to a number of destinations had as much as doubled over the last six months, the market has now largely stabilized and may even witness a downward correction over the next few months. Slowing North American demand, a sharp uptake in crude oil prices and increased supply of shipping vessels are the major reasons for this stabilization. The drop in tanker demand has translated into a significant plunge in revenues for shipping companies. For the government owned SCI, earnings from tanker operations have fallen by 40 per cent over the last six months.
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Five killed in cruise boat fire at Egyptian tourist site

Five Egyptians have been killed and two wounded when a fire broke out on a Nile cruise ship moored near the ancient Egyptian ruins of Luxor.

Security officials say 43 French tourists were evacuated. The fire began in the engine room of the 'Aurora' cruise ship and rapidly spread throughout the rest of the ship causing extensive damage. An investigation into the causes of the fire was underway. The tourists were evacuated to a second ship and continued on their trip. The five star 'Aurora' features 42 suites and is one of many cruise ships taking tourists on weeklong trips up and down the Nile to visit the Pharaonic-era ruins found between the temple city of Luxor and Aswan.
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