Experience

Zeus has assisted numerous clients - ranging in size from $130 billion in assets to one-person enterprises with a bright idea - in assessing opportunities within the world gas industry. Our clients include oil companies, process licensors, engineering & construction firms, manufacturers, banks, equity funds, etc. Some of our recent consulting assignments are described below.

• Marine CNG project sponsor – Zeus is assisting the client in all aspects of CNG project advancement, which entails providing development advisory services and program management services. Development advisory services include gas supply acquisition and negotiation support, transportation services, market assessment, benchmarking, feasibility analysis, project configuration, business plan development, project financing, due-diligence and documentation support. Program management encompasses all developmental steps leading to commercial operation, including contract negotiations, selection of process licensors, conceptual CNG terminal design, cost estimating and high level scheduling, managing the bidding processes for pre-FEED, FEED and lump-sum turnkey EPCC contracts and overseeing consulting, engineering, procurement and construction tasks from the feasibility and environmental assessment stages onward, through start-up and into commercial operation.
  
  
• Major international oil company – Zeus completed a definitive investigation of trends and innovation in gas monetization routes and technologies, including gas transport (e.g., pipeline, LNG, CNG, etc.), gas conversion, including both synthesis gas routes (e.g., GTL, ammonia and hydrogen separation, etc.) and direct routes (e.g., direct methane oxidation to methanol and downstream conversion to DME and olefins, etc.), gas-by-wire and others.
  
  
• Major cryogenic equipment manufacturer - Through a three-phased project, Zeus helped management understand (1) where and when demand for their products would arise in LNG, FT GTL, methanol, IGCC, ethylene, cryogenic gas plant and DME markets, (2) customer priorities and (3) competitor moves and strategies.
  
  
• Major chemical company - Zeus surveyed all North American LNG peakshaving facilities to determine their satisfaction with pipe insulation.
  
  
• Technology startup - In a two-phased project, Zeus helped management compare the economics of their new offshore LNG terminals to competitors' economics.
  
  
• Major process licensor - Through a three-phased project, Zeus helped management assess markets for all major products and services being used to build the world LNG industry and identify points of technology innovation, especially those where the client could add value. Then, Zeus compared the needs of the licensees to the licensors' technology and capabilities to recommend points of entry.
  
  
• Major pipeline operator - Zeus helped management assess the likelihood of success of proposed LNG terminals.
  
  
• Major manufacturer of industrial turbines & drives - Zeus helped management forecast demand for their equipment on two fronts: (1) turbines and compressors used to build LNG, GTL, methanol, DME and IGCC-supply infrastructure and (2) turbines used to generate power from these fuels.
  
  
• Major manufacturer of medium-scale turbines - Zeus helped management understand demand for their turbines to provide power to North American LNG receiving terminals.
  
  
• Major offshore engineering firm - Zeus assisted management prioritize offshore LNG terminal projects to develop engineering solutions and target their services.
  
  
• National research laboratory - In a two-phased project, Zeus assisted management examine the market and economics for small-scale liquefiers.
  
  
• Major trade association - Through nine phases, Zeus assisted members understand LNG demand around the world.
  
  
• Technology startup - Zeus helped management understand the value of their unique CO2 removal system relative to conventional systems and then prepared a business plan and offering document to raise capital.
  
  
• Major gas utility - Zeus helped management quantify the amount and destination of imported LNG for the next 20 years.
  
  
• Asset management fund - Zeus helped analysts understand opportunities for LNG-related investments in companies ranging from EPC contractors to foreign E&P companies.
  
  
• Major energy company - Through a 14-phased project Zeus helped management formulate an alternative fuels division and marketing plan.
  
  
• Major trade association - Zeus assisted members understand opportunities to use aviation-grade ethanol as a replacement for 100 low-lead aviation fuel.
  
  
• Railroad consortium - Zeus assisted a consortium of major railroads evaluate the economics of switching from diesel to natural gas.
  
  

The following is a partial list of additional management consulting assignments completed by members of the Zeus team:

• Assistance in privatization of the energy industries of Romania and Argentina, working in conjunction with major international banking institutions in the area of asset appraisal.
  
  
• Management of the study for privatization of the Barbados natural gas sector.
  
  
• Major pipeline system economic/technical reviews for the Special Committee to the Peruvian Government, the Ministry of National Infrastructures, Israel, and British Gas for the Office of Gas Supply.
  
  
• Pipeline contracting assistance for ENDESA in connection with the Argentina-Chile pipeline.
  
  
• Determination of non-monopolistic sectors of the energy industry for Gas Del Estado, Argentina.
  
  
• Economic optimization of the exploitation of indigenous hydrocarbon resources for the Ministry of Petroleum & Minerals, Oman.
  
  
• Business/economic/technical reviews for: AIG (power generation from 31 LFG sites nationwide), OPIC (Cuiaba power plant in Brazil, and oil and gas reserves in Yemen), Chase Securities (Gas Atacama pipeline Argentina/Chile), Credit Lyonnais (pipeline project, US), CIT/Newcourt (underground natural gas storage project and separate sugar refining facility, US), Bank Santander (Electrogas pipeline, Chile), National Westminster Bank (Alliance Pipeline, Canada/US), Inter-American Development Bank (Transmetano pipeline and gas reserves, Columbia), Salomon Brothers (Marquita to Cali pipeline and offshore reserves, Colombia), Credit Suisse and Kansallis-Osake-Pankki (warranted reserves and risk assessment), Banque Paribas (reserves and pipeline, Italy), Enron/Lehman Brothers (Hainan power plant, China), Bank of Nova Scotia (power generation, US), Sumitomo Bank (Bakersfield enhanced oil recovery analysis for power plant supply and natural gas supply review for Libby-Owens-Ford gas plant), EPRC (El Paso Refining, appraisal of competitive and earnings capability, US); Coastal Corp (refinery managerial assessment, Germany).
  
  
• Expert witness testimony for independent electric system operators (NE ISO, PJM ISO).
  
  
• Northeast Regional Gas Pipeline Simulation - direction of pipeline optimization work and construction of simulation models for the Northeast Power-Grid Regions of The PJM Connection, NY-ISO, New England ISO and Ontario's IMO. This family of interconnected models is used to analyze postulated contingencies on the gas pipelines to determine their potential effect on power generation.
  
  
• Oil Refineries - development of least-cost monthly operating schedules for all major processing units at a number of Midwestern US refineries.
  
  
• Argentine Natural Gas Pipeline Simulation - design, development and implementation of a transmission pipeline model of the Southern Pipeline in Argentina for the largest distribution companies in the country (Pampeana and Sur). The model encompassed more than two hundred and fifty delivery points along the pipeline and is used for daily nominations, dispatch and balancing of supplies.
  
  
• Gas Supply - development of all natural gas optimization models for a leading international management consulting practice. These formal LP optimization tools are used to plan, purchase, schedule, and transport gas in the most efficient manner.
  
  
• Rationalization of energy resource development and optimized transportation of energy products through creation of an LP model for a Middle Eastern country.
  
  
• Analysis of the economics of various processing proposals prior to deciding on a joint venture to construct a Middle Eastern petrochemical complex.
  
  
• Ammonia Producers - simulation of the production economics for each US manufacturer based on forecasts of natural gas purchase costs and processing costs for various size plants.
  
  
• Large Western US Coal Producer - blending of chemical and physical properties of different coal seams to match contract specifications of purchasers through use of a new LP model.
  
  
• Canadian Gas Distributor - economic analysis and process selection for remote island methanol-to-gas production facility.
  
  
• Specialty Chemical Producer - analysis of kinetics for better reactor design for a high-volume product using reaction rate equation simulation.
  
  
• CNG - work on behalf of local distribution companies (LDCs) in preparing plans to fuel fleets with CNG.
  
  

Lastly, and more generally speaking, consulting assignments have included the following work as well:

• Global market research and broad-based value-chain analysis of the markets for natural gas via LNG, pipeline, CNG, GTL, gas-by-wire, etc.
  
  
• Economic studies of super-critical pulverized coal and integrated gasification combined-cycle power generation.
  
  
• Comparative economic studies of competing major gas pipeline projects.
  
  
• Linear programming model construction for gas-utility planning purposes.
  
  
• Electric generation expansion planning.
  
  
• Reservoir simulation, estimation of proved hydrocarbon deposits and forecasting of field deliverabilities.
  
  
• Economic studies of liquefaction, LNG peakshaving and regasification.
  
  
• Due-diligence on behalf of lenders and developers in connection with non-recourse project financing.