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Libya Sends Army to End Blockade

Libyan Prime Minister Ali Zeidan said Monday he had ordered the army to end the blockade imposed by armed protesters on oil terminals in the east of the country. The country’s oil production has fallen sharply after rebels blocked the terminals in the summer last year, bringing the government on the brink of a financial crisis. But in a news conference posted on his website, Mr. Zeidan said he asked "the minister of defense to order the chief of staff to move toward oil ports." Mr. Zeidan has frequently warned he would use force to end the blockade by an armed group seeking autonomy for the eastern region of Cyrenaica. But though the Libyan navy has shot at tankers trying to enter the rebel-held ports, no concrete action has been taken to retake the terminals. The blockade of the terminals has cut the country’s production to nearly a third […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Russia says Syria to remove chemical weapons this month

– Syria plans to send a large shipment of toxic agents out of the country this month and can complete the removal process by March 1, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Gennady Gatilov was quoted as saying on Tuesday. "Literally yesterday the Syrians announced that the removal of a large shipment of chemical substances is planned in February. They are ready to complete this process by March 1," state-run Russia news agency RIA quoted Gatilov as saying. The operation to dispose of Syria’s chemical stockpile under a deal brokered by Russia and the United States is far behind schedule and a deadline for sending all toxic agents out of Syria this week will be missed, Reuters reported last week. U.S. officials accused Damascus of dragging its feet and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry asked Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov last Friday to put pressure on Assad’s government […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Chevron Chooses Seplat-Led Bid for Nigerian Oil Blocks

Chevron Corp. has notified the Nigerian government it has selected a preferred bidder—a group led by Lagos-based Seplat Petroleum Development Co.–as the buyer of onshore oil assets the U.S. major has been seeking to sell for eight months, according to people familiar with the matter. Chevron is planning to sell the assets for $800 million to a group led by Seplat, according to these people. Seplat is part owned by French independent oil company Maurel & Prom . The onshore blocks, in the eastern part of the Niger Delta, are still at an exploration stage and aren’t yet producing oil. The government has the last word on whether the sale will go forward. A spokeswoman for Chevron declined to comment. "I can confirm we [made] a bid," said Seplat Chief Executive Austin Avuru. He declined to say if he has been notified that Seplat was the favored bidder […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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In China’s war on bad air, government decision to release data gives fresh hope

BEIJING — China’s Communist state is hardly known for its transparency. So when environmental groups appealed to the government last year to disclose official data on air pollution, they were not expecting much. “Way beyond our expectations, the government actually said yes,” said Ma Jun, head of the Institute of Public and Environmental Affairs in Beijing. “I am quite amazed.” Since Jan. 1, the central government has required 15,000 factories — including influential state-run enterprises — to publicly report details on their air emissions and water discharges in real time, an unprecedented degree of disclosure that is shedding light on the who, what, when and where of China’s devastating environmental problems. The reporting requirement is part of a striking turnaround by China’s government, which is also publishing data on the sootiest cities and trying to limit the use of coal. The country’s appalling air is blamed for more than a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Fukushima Wash-Up Fears in U.S. Belie Radiation Risks: Energy

Seaborne radiation from Japan ’s wrecked Fukushima nuclear plant will wash up on the West Coast of the U.S. this year. That’s raising concerns among some Americans including the residents of the San Francisco Bay Area city of Fairfax, which passed a resolution on Dec. 6 calling for more testing of coastal seafood. At the same time, oceanographers and radiological scientists say such concerns are unwarranted given existing levels of radiation in the ocean. The runoff from the Japanese plant will mingle with radiation released by other atomic stations, such as Diablo Canyon in California . Under normal operations, Diablo Canyon discharges more radiation into the sea, albeit of a less dangerous isotope, than the Fukushima station, which suffered the worst nuclear accident since Chernobyl. “There’s a point to be made that we live in a radioactive world and the ocean just has radioactive isotopes in […]

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New study suggests reported PAH emissions in oil sands region greatly underestimated

« New study suggests reported PAH emissions in oil sands region greatly underestimated Results from a new modeling assessment of contamination in the Athabasca Oil Sands Region (AOSR) suggest that officially reported emissions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in that region have been greatly underestimated. The study, which was carried out by University of Toronto Scarborough Environmental Chemistry professor Frank Wania and his PhD candidate Abha Parajulee, is published as an open access paper in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science . We sought to use a dynamic multimedia environmental fate model to reconcile the emissions and residue levels reported for three representative PAHs in the AOSR. Data describing emissions to air compiled from two […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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ExxonMobil expands Permian acreage, enters Utica agreement

XTO Energy Inc. , a subsidiary of ExxonMobil Corp., has agreed to fund development to gain operating equity in 34,000 gross acres in the liquids-rich Wolfcamp in Texas’s Midland and Upton counties, increasing the company’s holdings in the Permian basin to just more than 1.5 million net acres. XTO also has signed an agreement with American Energy–Utica LLC (AEU) that will enable AEU to earn 30,000 net acres of XTO’s Utica basin leasehold in Ohio’s Harrison, Jefferson, and Belmont counties. In the Wolfcamp, Endeavor will continue to operate shallow production while XTO will drill and operate horizontal wells in the deeper intervals. “The Wolfcamp shale is a vast, tight oil resource with tremendous potential,” said XTO Pres. Randy Cleveland. “The presence of multiple, stacked pay zones creates the potential for capital-efficient horizontal development, and the proximity to XTO’s ongoing Wolfcamp operations will offer operating cost efficiencies.” In the Utica, […]

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Chu: Decision to build Keystone XL pipeline a political one

The decision on whether to permit the construction of the Keystone XL crude oil pipeline is a political one and not one of that is scientific in nature, according to former US Energy Sec. Steven Chu. Speaking at a news conference in Port of Spain Chu said, “I don’t have a position on whether the Keystone Pipeline should be built. That is for the secretary of State and the president. But I will say that the decision on whether the construction should happen was a political one and not a scientific one.” Chu then told OGJ that he wanted to expand his statement to say that the studies commissioned by the administration were, in fact, scientific. Late last week, the US State Department said in its long-awaited final supplemental environmental impact statement that the 1,700-mile proposed construction and operations of the Keystone XL line would not have significant environmental […]

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California governor slams GOP water proposal

California Gov. Jerry Brown, whose state is facing its worst drought in decades, harshly criticized on Monday an effort by congressional Republicans to roll back environmental rules limiting how much water agencies can pump out of the fragile San Joaquin-Sacramento River delta in dry years. The emergency legislation would allow state and federal water managers to send water to farms and communities in California’s parched breadbasket during the summer, when the impact of the drought begins to hit hardest. The legislation is scheduled for a vote in the U.S. House of Representatives on Wednesday. It would roll back pumping restrictions imposed over the past two decades that required officials to keep a certain amount of water flowing through the delta to protect fish. In wet years, restrictions decreased – but for the past three dry years, little pumping has been allowed, and barring an onslaught of rain, none is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Gas leak stopped in Gulf of Mexico

The U.S. Bureau of Safety and Environmental Enforcement said a gas leak was stopped in the Gulf of Mexico but work was needed to prevent more gas from leaking. The bureau confirmed Saturday the flow of natural gas from the so-called A-7 well in the gulf was stopped by pumping in what it described as weighted drilling fluids. "While the natural gas flow has stopped, there is additional work required to secure the well that includes setting barriers to ensure that no natural gas is released," the safety agency said in a statement. The bureau said all of the people working on the drilling rig were evacuated as a security precaution. No injuries were reported. It said it was notified of the leak Thursday by EnVen, a Kenyan energy company. The rig was leased by Rowan. an offshore drilling company with headquarters in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple