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High depletion rates in Bakken

If you can, you could term it delusion, the theory that Shale gas is the answer to all problems in terms of energy. Just extract the gas, ship it across the pipeline and export the excess, or so goes the popular theory (boom. How easy!). Let’s call this ‘Sale for Energy Security Theory’ or SEST) If you believe in SEST, here’s a simple task for you: Take a towel or cloth soaked in water. Wring it. Note the amount of water that comes out. Now, wring it again. Okay, once more. How many drops of water did you get in the third time? Two, three? This is precisely what’s happening in the Bakken. Imagine that there aren’t buckets of oil underneath the Bakken but towels soaked with oil. And it is only recently that we figured out the technique called “fracking”: how to wring a towel full of oil. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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US House subcommittee passes bill to facilitate LNG exports

A US House Energy and Commerce Committee subcommittee voted to forward a bill aimed at facilitating approvals of US LNG exports to the full committee. The Energy and Power Subcommittee’s action by 15 to 11 votes was along party lines, with Republicans favoring the move and Democrats opposing it. The subcommittee also approved an amendment to HR 6 by Rep. Bobby L. Rush (D-Ill.), the subcommittee’s ranking minority member, which would require applicants seeking US Department of Energy certification that their exports are in the US national interest to publicly disclose specific destinations of their proposed LNG sales. The votes came hours before the Ways and Means Committee’s Trade Subcommittee was scheduled to hold a hearing on the trade implications of removing barriers to LNG exports and other US energy policy questions. American Petroleum Institute Pres. Jack N. Gerard applauded the subcommittee’s action. “Today’s vote is just the latest […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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California drought gives boost to anti-fracking movement

California is known for the twin threat of natural disasters from drought and earthquakes, with both phenomena certain to give many residents serious concern. But there is one group that is starting to reap serendipitous marketing ammunition from the state’s current historic drought and the ever-present worry of ground-shaking tremors: the anti-fracking movement . “California faces two interlinked crises, a water crisis and a climate crisis, and fracking makes both of these problems worse,” said Kassie Siegel, senior counsel for the Center for Biological Diversity, a nonprofit conservation group. Fracking, or hydraulic fracturing — a method of high-pressure injection of substances to extract oil from rock formations — has become a hugely controversial subject across the United States . Defenders of the process, especially the oil and gas industry, hail it as a solution to America’s energy woes. Critics say it is highly pollutive and contributes to climate change […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Summer average gasoline price expected to be close to last year's level

Drivers are expected to pay an average $3.57 per gallon for regular gasoline this summer, close to last year’s level, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s April Short-Term Energy and Summer Fuels Outlook . The price for Brent crude oil—which typically accounts for about two-thirds of the retail price of gasoline—is expected to average $105 per barrel this summer driving season (April through September), which is about $2 below its level last summer. However, the benefit of lower crude oil prices is expected to be almost fully offset by higher wholesale margins compared to last summer, although expected wholesale margins remain below their levels during the 2011 and 2012 summers. This summer’s monthly average gasoline price is expected to peak at $3.66 per gallon in May and then steadily decline to $3.46 in September. Gasoline prices vary by region, with the West Coast average price expected to be […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Summer average gasoline price expected to be close to last year’s level

Drivers are expected to pay an average $3.57 per gallon for regular gasoline this summer, close to last year’s level, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s April Short-Term Energy and Summer Fuels Outlook . The price for Brent crude oil—which typically accounts for about two-thirds of the retail price of gasoline—is expected to average $105 per barrel this summer driving season (April through September), which is about $2 below its level last summer. However, the benefit of lower crude oil prices is expected to be almost fully offset by higher wholesale margins compared to last summer, although expected wholesale margins remain below their levels during the 2011 and 2012 summers. This summer’s monthly average gasoline price is expected to peak at $3.66 per gallon in May and then steadily decline to $3.46 in September. Gasoline prices vary by region, with the West Coast average price expected to be […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Crude oil reserves at start of 2013 reach highest level since 1976

U.S. crude oil proved reserves rose for the fourth consecutive year in 2012, increasing by 15% to 33 billion barrels, according to the U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves (2012) report released April 10 by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. U.S. crude oil and lease condensate proved reserves were the highest since 1976, and the 2012 increase of 4.5 billion barrels was the largest annual increase since 1970, when 10 billion barrels of Alaskan crude oil were added to U.S. proved reserves. Contributing factors to higher crude oil reserves include increased exploration for liquid hydrocarbons, improved technology for developing tight oil plays, and sustained high historical crude oil prices. Proved reserves are volumes of oil that geological and engineering data demonstrate with reasonable certainty to be recoverable in future years from known reservoirs under existing economic and operating conditions. Tight oil plays, which contain conventional oil in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Eagle Ford’s Exports Spur Boom at Port of Corpus Christi

America’s newest energy hub just got a little busier. NuStar Energy LP (NS) officially opened its third petroleum dock at the Port of Corpus Christi, Texas, as Chairman Bill Greehey smashed a bottle of champagne against a loading arm that was filling a barge with crude. NuStar and other companies are building docks, storage tanks and other facilities in Corpus Christi to take advantage of the oil boom in the Eagle Ford shale formation 100 miles away. The port shipped out 350,000 barrels of crude a day in November, up from under 10,000 at the start of 2012, according to port data. “It’s a historic time right now for our port,” said Frank Brogan, managing director for the city’s port authority. “I’ve been here 27 years, and we’ve had more activity in the last two years than in the previous 25 combined.” The new activity is putting pressure on […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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U.S. Proved Crude Reserves Reach 36-Year High

U.S. crude oil reserves increased 4.5 billion barrels to 33.4 billion, the highest level since 1976 and the biggest annual gain since 1970, the Energy Information Administration said today in its annual U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves report. Close Close Open Photographer: Ty Wright/Bloomberg U.S. crude oil reserves increased 4.5 billion barrels to 33.4 billion, the highest level since 1976 and the biggest annual gain since 1970, the Energy Information Administration said today in its annual U.S. Crude Oil and Natural Gas Proved Reserves report. U.S. proved reserves of crude oil and lease condensate reached the highest level in 36 years as new technology and high prices made supplies locked in shale formations available. Reserves increased 4.5 billion barrels to 33.4 billion in 2012, the most since 1976 and the biggest annual gain since 1970, the Energy Information Administration said today in its […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report

Working gas in storage was 826 Bcf as of Friday, April 4, 2014, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 4 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 849 Bcf less than last year at this time and 997 Bcf below the 5-year average of 1,823 Bcf. In the East Region, stocks were 448 Bcf below the 5-year average following net withdrawals of 5 Bcf. Stocks in the Producing Region were 411 Bcf below the 5-year average of 772 Bcf after a net injection of 9 Bcf. Stocks in the West Region were 137 Bcf below the 5-year average after no net change. At 826 Bcf, total working gas is below the 5-year historical range. The shaded area indicates the range between the historical minimum and maximum values for the weekly series from 2009 through 2013. Source: Form EIA-912, "Weekly Underground Natural Gas Storage Report." The […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Satellites Show Russia Mobilizing Near Ukraine, NATO Says

NATO released satellite photographs on Thursday showing Russian military equipment, including fighter jets and tanks, that it described as part of a deployment of as many as 40,000 troops near the border with Ukraine . The release came the same day that President Vladimir V. Putin reiterated a threat to curtail gas sales to Ukraine. The photographs , taken by a commercial satellite imaging company called DigitalGlobe, offered some of the first documentary evidence of a military buildup that the West says Russia could use to invade Ukraine at any moment. They were released at a news conference in Belgium by Brig. Gary Deakin, the director of NATO’s Comprehensive Crisis and Operations Management Center. The Kremlin has accused the West of exaggerating Russia’s military presence along the Ukrainian border and has insisted that it has no plans for a second military incursion after its lightning-quick occupation […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple