RICHARDSON, Texas, U.S.A. (17 January 2003)-Girassol, TotalFinaElf's landmark deepwater development, and noted geologist Albert W. Bally have been selected to receive Distinguished Achievement Awards at the 2003 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC).

Both awards will be presented at the annual OTC Awards Luncheon on Tuesday, 6 May, at the Reliant Center in Houston. Walter van de Vijver, Group Manager and Director of the Royal Dutch/Shell Group of Companies and CEO of Shell Exploration and Production, will deliver the Keynote Address at the event. The 35th OTC, 5-8 May, is expected to draw more than 45,000 participants.

The OTC Distinguished Achievement Award for Companies, Organizations, and Institutions will be presented to TotalFinaElf for its Girassol project in Offshore Angola, the largest deepwater subsea development ever brought into production. Located in 1,400 meters of water depth, Girassol first produced oil in December 2001.

The project, with an estimated investment of U.S. $2.8 billion, is recognized for its technical innovations, its demanding project schedule, and its ability to overcome major challenges. The project, sanctioned on 8 July 1998, required the qualification of highly reliable equipment in deep water. Technical innovations include application of unique free-standing towers, deepest adaptation of the hinge-over subsea template, the largest FPSO in the water depth including the largest module for sulfate removal, industry-first midwater flowlines, largest catenary leg mooring buoy, to name a few.

Bally, considered one of the industry's most influential geologists, will receive the OTC Distinguished Achievement Award for Individuals. Bally is recognized for his work in onshore and offshore basins focusing on the structural interpretation of seismic reflection profiles. His work led to better understanding of the upper crust's complex geology. Bally skillfully integrates geology and geophysic, and his research and teachings were especially beneficial to the oil and gas industry in the onshore and offshore basins of Canada, the U.S., Venezuela, Mexico, the Caribbean, Italy, Morocco, and Nigeria. Bally earned a PhD in geology from the University of Zurich and worked as a geologist for Shell for 27 years. In 1981, Bally was appointed the Harry Carothers Wiess Professor of Geology at Rice University, where he served as the department chairman until 1986. He is now Professor Emeritus at Rice University and very active in research on basins.

In addition to the Distinguished Achievement Awards, OTC will recognize Atlantia Offshore Ltd. with a Special Citation for Innovative Technology. The citation is presented for the successful development, construction, and installation of the Morpeth SeaStar Platform in 1,670 feet of water in the Gulf of Mexico. The project, operated by British-Borneo Exploration Inc. (now AGIP Petroleum), achieved such technological milestones as the first use of mono-column TLP; first commercial TLP hull built in the U.S.; and first TLP meeting classification society guidelines.

Founded in 1969, the Offshore Technology Conference is the world's foremost event for the development of offshore resources in the fields of drilling, exploration, production and environmental protection. OTC is held annually in May at Reliant Center at Reliant Park, Houston. For more information, visit the OTC Web site at www.OTCnet.org.

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