Paul Connell

Our 'people profile' this month features one of RP's contract placements, Paul Connell, a young Australian reservoir engineer who is currently working for Brunei Shell Petroleum in Kuala Belait, Brunei.

Paul, who holds an Honours degree from Swinburne University and a Masters degree from the University of Western Australia, is enjoying his new experience out in the Far East with his wife and young family.

      
Paul and his family enjoying life in the Far East

Paul Connell talks about his life as an expatriate in Brunei:

1) What are some of the issues you face as an 'expat'?

Working as an 'expat' in a Muslim country means understanding the local customs and being sensitive to the needs and requirements of the people around you.  There is also the responsibility of keeping all the family happy because at times you can feel very isolated from family and friends back home.  However it's fun watching the wildlife that frequents our backyard; monkeys, monitor lizards and the occasional snake.  Any difficulties faced as an 'expat' in Brunei are far outweighed by the fantastic experience we are having living and working overseas.

2) What advice would you give someone else who is planning to work in Brunei?

Go with an open mind, embrace the local culture, try to learn a little about the history of the country you are living in to really understand the people and their customs.  Take the opportunity to travel to many wonderful nearby places and keep yourself busy, both socially and physically.  Don't be afraid to move out of your comfort zone, whether at work or after work, and of course you must try the spicy local food. 

3) From a career development perspective, how do you view your stint in BSP?

From a technical view I have worked on large mature fields and have had the chance to work closely with operations staff in well and reservoir management.  My team has also managed to drill many successful development wells.  As a reservoir engineer I have been exposed to Shell's rigorous reserves reporting.  The access to great resources, both technical and the knowledge of people I work with has been invaluable for my development. 

4) How long have you been in Brunei?  Your previous experience? How long will you be in Brunei?

I have been in Brunei for two and a half years and plan to stay until my current contract ends in 18 months time.  Previously I enjoyed 4 years with OMV, Perth in petroleum and reservoir engineering jobs across exploration, development and operations covering the Gippsland Basin, Timor Sea and Bonaparte Basin.  I also worked with Fekete Australia for two years and was fortunate to be placed in Santos, Adelaide as a Reservoir Engineer in a large multi-disciplinary "Integrated Reservoir Study" of major Cooper Basin gas fields.

5) Can you tell me about your family? Are they enjoying themselves out there?

I am married with two young boys.  Jack is eight years old and David is six years old.  The boys love living in Brunei and attend the international school with children from over 20 different countries.  They are active in football (soccer), tennis and swimming with Dad helping as a coach.  My wife Alison is also enjoying our time here and keeps very busy with volunteer work in the local library, teaching swimming & organising Santa's annual visit to Brunei. 

 

Where is Brunei?

Brunei is an independent sultanate on the northwest coast of the island of Borneo in the South China Sea, wedged between the Malaysian states of Sabah and Sarawak. A country of dense forests and mangrove swamps, it was the only Malay state in 1963 to choose to remain a British dependency rather than join the Malaysian Federation.

Brunei became independent in 1984 and, thanks to its large reserves of oil and gas, now has one of the highest standards of living in the world. The country's ruling royals, led by the head of state Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, possess a huge private fortune and its people enjoy high subsidies and pay no taxes. Brunei is highly dependent on imports and despite its immense wealth; most of the country outside the capital remains undeveloped and unexploited.

Kuala Belait is the seat of the nation's oil and gas industry, producing the country's main export commodity.

Bandar Seri Begawan, Brunei's capital city is about 120km to the north-east of Kuala Belait and the Malaysian city of Miri is located about the same distance to the south-west.

Oil was first discovered in Seria, a town about 16 kms east, in 1929. Rows of the affectionately named "nodding donkeys" which pump the lifeblood of Brunei's economy from the oil-rich earth of Belait, can be seen in Seria. 

 

French Wine Night

It was a rainy evening, but many guests still ventured out and enjoyed a Parisian evening at the RP office.  French tunes floated around the warmly lit office and there were six different wines for guests to choose from.  The favourites were Domaine Coteau de la biche a Chenin Blanc described as displaying apple and pear flavours and the Domain de la Renjarde Cote du Rhone a Grenach Shiraz.  Guests enjoyed the ripe smoky cherry taste of this wine.    

Faith Narey and Craig Martin enjoying some French Wine and cheese

Crude Oil Prices

Oil prices rose to US$83 a barrel at the close of trade in the last week of September as supply fears and a lower dollar encouraged buying from financial investors. WTI closed at US$82.88 after a high of US$83.90 while Brent closed at US$80.30 at the end of trade on Sept 26.

Prices have been on a roller coaster moving from highs to lows and back to a high again over the past month as a threat of bad weather in the US Gulf and the impending cold season came together with an already robust demand from the US and other consumer countries.

Prices also reacted to news from OPEC that production would be increased by a further 500,000 barrels per day and news from the US' Energy Information Administration that crude oil inventories fell by 1.8 million barrels during the week ended Sept 21 and refinery utilization had fallen by 2.7 per cent to 86.9 per cent.

Prices of Brent and WTI crudes have recorded a year on year increase of some 32 per cent with Brent at US$61 and WTI at US$62 at the same time last year.

 

Market Commentary

Strong gains in mining giants BHP-Billiton (BHP) and Rio Tinto (RIO) has helped propel the Australian share market to record highs by late September 2007. Surging oil and gold prices, a recovery in base metals prices and expectations of strong increases in bulk commodity prices (iron ore & coal) has supported bullish sentiment towards resource equities.

The outlook for iron ore appears particularly strong with Chinese spot market prices having surged about 50% since the beginning of July and almost 100% since the start of the year. Market analysts now predict the benchmark iron-ore price to increase by at least 25% and possibly as much as 50% in the coming round of annual price talks (new prices effective 1/4/08).

Leading Australian gold producer, Newcrest Mining (NCM) is raising A$2 bn to help fund the closure of its 4 million ounce hedge book, which had a negative mark-to-market value of A$1.6 bn. The move is designed to provide NCM with full upside to the gold price, improve its credit profile and improve its flexibility to fund growth projects and take advantage of new opportunities. The A$2 bn is being raised from a 7-for-20 renounceable entitlement offer at $17.40 per share. Earlier this year, Lihir Gold (LGL) raised A$1.2bn to help close out its hedge book and retire debt.  Both companies share prices have rallied more than 20% in the past month in response to the surge in gold price to 23 year highs of more than US$730/oz.

5 year gold price ($US/oz)

 

 

S&P/ASX 100 Companies - Selected Upcoming Events

S&P/ASX 100 Companies - Expected Event Calendar
Last updated:25th September 2007
Week 1	Mon 24th Sep	Tues 25th	Wed 26th	Thurs 27th	Fri 28th
				Option Expriy Day
	OSH:XD 4c uf		SIP:XD 3c ff
	PBL:XD 25c ff
	BSL XD 26c ff
	GFF:XD 7.5c pf
	STO:15% share cap review
	(Govt decision late Sep)
Week 2	Mon 1st Oct	Tues 2nd	Wed 3rd	Thurs 4th	Fri 5th
		FCL:XD 5.5c ff		TEL: AGM
Week 3	Mon 8th Oct	Tues 9th	Wed 10th	Thurs 11th	Fri 12th
	TCL:Qtr traffic		UGL:AGM		WOR:AGM
					CGJ:XD 25c ff
Week 4	Mon 15th Oct	Tues 16th	Wed 17th	Thurs 18th	Fri 19th
				XJO Option Expiry Day
	OXR: Qtr rep (this wk)		RIO:Qtr rep	WPL:Qtr rep
			CSL:AGM
Week 5	Mon 22nd Oct	Tues 23rd	Wed 24th	Thurs 25th	Fri 26th
				Option Expiry Day
	WOW:Qtr sales	OSH:Qtr rep	AMC:AGM	STO:Qtr rep
		BHP:Qrt rep		PPX:AGM
		NCM Qtr rep		ZFX:Qtr rep
		COH:AGM		TOL:AGM
		SGP:AGM		ANZ:P

Important Notes

This information is based on company announcements, web sites and other sources.

These dates and details are indicative only and subject to change without notice.

Data covered represents a selection of the market only and should not be considered to be complete.

Ex-dividend (XD) dates are included only where information is obtainable

Additional XD dates and dividended amounts will be added as dividends are declared

Sentinel Financial Group accepts no responsibility for the accuracy of completeness of this informaion

Abbreviations

P = Profit Result

XD = Ex-devidend )ff = fully franked, pf = partly franked, uf = unfranked)

AGM = Annual General Meeting

Qtr = Quarterly sales

Qrt rep = Quarterly Report

TCB = to be confirmed

 

Upcoming ASX Floats

Company Name	Date	Time	Code	Price	# of Shares
ACTINOGEN LTD	OCT 15		ACW	0.50	20M
ALCHEMY RESOURCES LTD	NOV 22		ALY	0.25	24M
ALPHA URANIUM LTD	OCT 1		AHM	0.20	50M
ANAECO LTD	NOV 16		ANQ	0.25	20M
APOLLO MINERALS LTD	OCT 16		AON	0.25	32m
ATTICUS RESOURCES LTD	OCT 18		ACZ	0.20	15M
AUGUR RESOURCES LTD	TBA		AUK	0.20	25M
BACKREEF RESOURCES LTD	SEP 27		BKF	0.20	40M
BAUXITE RESOURCES LTD	NOV 07		BAU	0.20	25M
BEADELL RESOURCESLTD	SEP 26	12:30	BDR	0.25	60M
BLACKGRANGE LTD	TBA		UNO	0.20	50M
BUCHANAN RESOURCES LTD	TBA		BUC	0.20	15M
BUXTON RESOURCES LTD	TBA		BUX	0.20	25M
CARPENTARIA EXPLORATION LTD	NOV 12		CAP	0.25	30M
CHINA CENTURY CAPITAL LTD	TBA		CCY	0.35	42.8M
CHINA YUNNAN COPPER AUST	NOV 16		CYU	0.25	16M
CLONCURRY METALS LTD	OCT 05		CLU	0.25	40M
DATASQUIRT LTD	TBA		DSQ	0.90	12M
EMPIRED LTD	OCT 04		EPD	0.30	1M
GBM RESOURCES LTD	TBA		GBZ	0.20	25M
GLOBAL IRON LTD	TBA		GFE	0.20	12.5M
GLOBALNET ASIA PACIFIC LTD	TBA		GNE	0.20	15M
GREENPOWER ENERGY LTD	OCT 22		GPP	0.20	40M
HELICON GROUP LTD	TBA		HCG	0.20	20M
IMPEDIMED LTD	OCT 24		IPD	0.72	25M
LASERBOND LTD	NOV 01		LBL	0.20	12.6M
LEASE COMPANY OF AUST LTD	TBA		LCA	100.00	4M
METMINCO LTD	SEP 27		MNC	0.20	6.75M
NEW GUINEA ENERGY	TBA		NGE	0.50	13.5M
ONCAIDIA LTD	TBA		ONA	0.20	30M
RESOURCES BASE LTD	TBA		RBX	0.20	35M
SINOVUS MINING LTD	TBA		SNV	0.20	40M
SUPERIOR RESOURCES LTD	OCT 19		SPQ	0.20	25M
URANIUM INTERNATIONAL LTD	TBA		URI	0.20	30M