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Minister: Gazprom Gas Deal with China Nearly Ready

Russian Deputy Energy Minister Anatoly Yanovsky said on Monday a long-awaited deal for natural gas producer Gazprom to supply China with gas was close to completion. "We hope that the negotiations will be completed as scheduled," Yanovsky told reporters, a little more than a week before President Vladimir Putin visits China. "The contract is, I would say, 98 percent ready." Gazprom, Russia’s top natural gas producer, has been in talks on gas supplies to China for over a decade. In April, it said it was aiming to finalise the deal this month. (Reporting by Katya Golubkova, Writing by Lidia Kelly, Editing by Timothy Heriatge) WHAT DO YOU THINK?

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OPEC, Naimi See Output Flat Amid Rising Supply Elsewhere

OPEC should keep pumping crude at about 30 million barrels a day in the near term amid rising global supply, according to the group’s Secretary General and Saudi Arabia , its largest member. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has no reason to change the current output ceiling of 30 million barrels a day at its next meeting on June 11 because oil markets are stable, Saudi Arabia’s Petroleum Minister Ali Al-Naimi told reporters in Seoul today. Supply and demand will remain “fairly balanced” throughout the year, according to comments from OPEC’s Secretary General Abdalla El-Badri, posted on website of the International Energy Forum. “In the near term, OPEC production will remain steady around the 29-30 million barrels of oil per day level,” El-Badri said. “At present we are seeing growth in non-OPEC supply” and other producers in the group are making up for the supply shortfall from Libya, […]

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OPEC Should Maintain Output as Market Is Stable, Says Al-Naimi

The oil market is stable and supply shortages can be covered, so the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries has no reason to change its production levels, according to Saudi Arabia’s oil minister. OPEC’s current output of about 30 million barrels a day is the right level and global oil demand is “great,” Ali Al-Naimi told reporters in Seoul today. Saudi Arabia, the biggest producer in the 12-member group, is pumping about 9.6 million barrels a day and has 12.5 million of capacity, he said. Oil at about $100 a barrel is a “fair price for all,” said Al-Naimi, who is attending ministerial meetings on clean energy in South Korea’s capital. Brent futures are above $108 in London today, rising for the first time in three days amid concern that the crisis in Ukraine may disrupt energy supplies from Russia . West Texas Intermediate, the U.S. benchmark crude, was near […]

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China to set up nuclear emergency team

BEIJING, May 12 (Xinhua) — China is working to form a 300-member state-level rescue team specialized in nuclear emergencies, said a senior official here Monday. This team will respond to "serious nuclear accidents in complicated circumstances", said Yao Bin, head of the nuclear emergency and security division under the State Administration of Science, Technology and Industry for National Defence (SASTIND). They will be tasked to support operators of nuclear facilities to handle contingencies, such as cordoning the radioactive source in nuclear accidents, rescuing trapped people, controling the spread of contamination and minimizing the damage, said Yao, also deputy head of a national nuclear emergency response office. The fast-response team will be equipped with the latest devices, and the country will also build a training base for the team. The SASTIND and the General Staff Headquarters of the People’s Liberation Army (PLA) are jointly working on this program, which is […]

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Antarctica 'stealing' Australia's rain: study

Antarctica is "stealing" Australia ‘s rainfall, explaining why the former is not warming as much as other continents and why southern Australia is recording more droughts, the Australian National University (ANU) reported on Monday. Researchers in Australia have found rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are strengthening the stormy Southern Ocean winds. These would normally deliver rain to southern Australia but are instead pushing further south towards Antarctica. "With greenhouse warming, Antarctica is actually stealing more of Australia’s rainfall," said Dr Nerilie Abram, lead researcher from the ANU Research School of Earth Sciences. "As the westerly winds are getting tighter they’re actually trapping more of the cold air over Antarctica," she said. "As greenhouse gases continue to rise we’ll get fewer storms chased up into Australia." Until this study, published in Nature Climate Change, Antarctic climate observations were available only from the […]

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Antarctica ‘stealing’ Australia’s rain: study

Antarctica is "stealing" Australia ‘s rainfall, explaining why the former is not warming as much as other continents and why southern Australia is recording more droughts, the Australian National University (ANU) reported on Monday. Researchers in Australia have found rising levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere are strengthening the stormy Southern Ocean winds. These would normally deliver rain to southern Australia but are instead pushing further south towards Antarctica. "With greenhouse warming, Antarctica is actually stealing more of Australia’s rainfall," said Dr Nerilie Abram, lead researcher from the ANU Research School of Earth Sciences. "As the westerly winds are getting tighter they’re actually trapping more of the cold air over Antarctica," she said. "As greenhouse gases continue to rise we’ll get fewer storms chased up into Australia." Until this study, published in Nature Climate Change, Antarctic climate observations were available only from the […]

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Reliance, BP, Niko Seek Arbitration With India Over Gas Prices

Reliance Industries Ltd. , the operator of India’s biggest natural-gas find, and its partners BP PLC and Niko Resources Ltd. said Saturday that they have sought arbitration with the Indian government in an effort to force implementation of a planned price increase for natural gas. India’s government sets gas prices in the domestic market. India’s cabinet last year approved a plan to increase the price of natural gas to around $8 per million metric British Thermal units from $4.20 now. The oil ministry in January said the new price would come into effect from April 1 and would be revised quarterly. India’s election watchdog in March, however, deferred the implementation of the federal-government decision, saying it could affect the outcome of national elections which began in May and end on Monday. Results are set to be announced Friday. "We have received the arbitration notice. We will take […]

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How 'Big Corn' lost the ethanol battle to Philadelphia refiners

Six months ago the U.S. oil industry scored a surprise win against farm groups when the Obama administration proposed slashing the amount of ethanol refiners must blend into gasoline, a move that could save them billions of dollars. Stunned by the reversal, producers of the corn-based biofuel and their supporters are now fighting back ahead of a June deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make a final decision on the cut. The clash has been portrayed as a battle between "Big Oil" and "Big Corn," two powerful and deep-pocketed lobbies. But a Reuters review of public records and interviews with lawmakers, lobbyists and executives reveals a more complex picture. A private equity firm and an airline helped convince the Obama administration to backtrack, at least temporarily, on a policy it has supported for years: requiring steadily-rising volumes of ethanol to be blended into […]

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How ‘Big Corn’ lost the ethanol battle to Philadelphia refiners

Six months ago the U.S. oil industry scored a surprise win against farm groups when the Obama administration proposed slashing the amount of ethanol refiners must blend into gasoline, a move that could save them billions of dollars. Stunned by the reversal, producers of the corn-based biofuel and their supporters are now fighting back ahead of a June deadline for the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to make a final decision on the cut. The clash has been portrayed as a battle between "Big Oil" and "Big Corn," two powerful and deep-pocketed lobbies. But a Reuters review of public records and interviews with lawmakers, lobbyists and executives reveals a more complex picture. A private equity firm and an airline helped convince the Obama administration to backtrack, at least temporarily, on a policy it has supported for years: requiring steadily-rising volumes of ethanol to be blended into […]

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Spring snows hit Rockies; Plains face high winds

Dozens of snowplows were taking to the streets of Denver early Monday, after a powerful spring storm dropped heavy snow across parts of Colorado and Wyoming, even as stormy weather moved into the plains states and drew warnings about conditions ripe for severe thunderstorm and tornadoes. The Mother’s Day storm dropped more than a foot of sloppy, wet snow on parts of the two states. The National Weather Service issued a winter storm warning for most of northern Colorado and parts of southern Wyoming for all of Sunday and for Monday morning. Forecasters warned that instability ahead of the cold front created conditions for damaging winds as thunderstorms and tornadoes developed in Nebraska Sunday and threatened to push south. The storm also created high winds across the West. Powerful thunderstorms produced tornadoes as they moved across Nebraska on Sunday caused damage in several towns and rural […]

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Fed govt failed to inspect higher risk oil wells

The government has failed to inspect thousands of oil and gas wells it considers potentially high risks for water contamination and other environmental damage, congressional investigators say. The report, obtained by The Associated Press before its public release, highlights substantial gaps in oversight by the agency that manages oil and gas development on federal and Indian lands. Investigators said weak control by the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management resulted from policies based on outdated science and from incomplete monitoring data. The findings from the Government Accountability Office come amid an energy boom in the country and the increasing use of hydraulic fracturing, or fracking. That process involves pumping huge volumes of water, sand and chemicals underground to split open rocks to allow oil and gas to flow. It has produced major economic benefits, but also raised fears that the chemicals could spread to water supplies. […]

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6 Cars of Oil Crude Train Derail in Colorado

Crews from Union Pacific Railroad worked to clear a six-car oil train derailment that leaked some crude into a ditch Friday in northern Colorado. State and local emergency officials determined that one car of the 100-car train was leaking after the 8 a.m. derailment near LaSalle, about 45 miles north of Denver. The cause of the derailment was under investigation, said Micki Trost, a spokeswoman for the Colorado Division of Emergency Management. Crews had contained the spill to a ditch away from any waterways, Trost said. The amount of oil spilled wasn’t immediately known, but a vacuum truck was brought in to suck up the spill. Tanker trucks lined up nearby to transfer the oil. According to The Greeley Tribune ( http://tinyurl.com/m96ows9 ), the train was loaded in nearby Windsor with Niobrara crude and was bound for New York. Niobrara oil comes from the Niobrara shale formation in Colorado, […]

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Russia Revisits Its History to Nail Down Its Future

As many Russians spent a holiday weekend reveling in the annual display of military might that marks their victory over Nazi Germany, the tension in Ukraine has fueled a passionate debate over how to exalt the country’s history without distorting it. The issue took on greater urgency with a new law, signed last week by President Vladimir V. Putin , that mandates up to five years in jail and heavy fines for anyone who tries to rehabilitate Nazism or denigrate Russia ’s World War II record. The Kremlin has long enshrined the history of the war against Hitler as a heroic, collective victory. But skeptics argue that the victory itself is too often used to promote what they consider an excessive obsession with fascism abroad — vividly played out over the past two months in lurid coverage on Russian state television of the Ukraine crisis. Some argue […]

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Ukraine Authorities Dismiss Referendums as ‘Farce’

Ukraine’s interim president, Oleksandr V. Turchynov, on Monday dismissed weekend referendums in the country’s restive, Russian-speaking eastern region as a farce with no legal basis, as the European Union prepared to announce a relatively modest tightening of sanctions against Moscow and its allies. The Kremlin said Russia “respects the will of the population” in two provinces in eastern Ukraine that participated on Sunday in chaotic ballots offering them a question about self-rule. But a statement from Moscow left open the possibility of dialogue and mediation to resolve the crisis. The ballots left the destiny of the east — Ukraine’s industrial heartland — unclear, as armed forces loyal to the interim government in Kiev and pro-Russian militants remained locked in a tense standoff that sometimes overflowed into gunfire. According to early results cited by The Associated Press, 89 percent of voters in the Donetsk region and 96 percent in neighboring […]

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Ukraine crisis: Pro-Russia separatists claim referendum victory

Pro-Russia separatists in eastern Ukraine who organised referendums on two regions’ links with Kiev claimed resounding victories on Monday, saying about 90 per cent of voters backed greater self-rule. Organisers of Sunday’s ballots , which were widely condemned by Kiev and the west as a “farce”, said 89 per cent of voters in Donetsk and up to 98 per cent in Luhansk backed greater autonomy. Turnout was about 75 per cent, the organisers said, but myriad irregularities were reported in many areas and there was no independent scrutiny of the process. Oleksandr Turchynov, acting president of Ukraine , told parliament on Monday that turnout was 24 per cent in Luhansk and 32 per cent in Donetsk. The separatists, who held the vote despite Russia calling for it to be postponed, have yet to decide how much self-determination they want. Voters backing greater self-rule in Donetsk said they wanted different […]

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Threat of Further Sanctions Against Russia Intensifies

Brent crude ticked higher Monday following the weekend’s contentious referendum in Ukraine, but gains were limited by indications of ample supply. The unofficial referendum in one Ukrainian province raised the prospect of deteriorating relations between Russia and the West, but Saudi Arabia said it would increase output should there be any disruption to supply from Russia. Brent June crude is up 0.5% at $108.41 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. June crude is up 0.3% at $100.31 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. "Further price strength in Brent crude oil may be limited given a big rebound in non-OPEC output, improved prospects for OPEC supplies and no acceleration in global oil demand growth," Bank of America Merrill Lynch wrote in a note to clients. The bank sees Brent prices averaging $106 a barrel in 2014. Recently, ICE Gasoil was up $2 at $903.75 a metric ton. Gasoline […]

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Russia Calls for 'Civilized Implementation' of East Ukraine Referendum Results

The Kremlin said Monday it respects the secession referendum in eastern Ukraine and hopes for a "civilized implementation" of the results through talks between Kiev and representatives in the east. , ratcheting up tensions between the West and Moscow. In its first comments since the referendum, the Kremlin appears to challenge the West and Kiev’s standpoint that it was illegitimate. The Kremlin statement said that Moscow welcomes all possible efforts to start negotiations between Kiev and separatist regions with the involvement of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. "Moscow views with respect the expression of the will of the people of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and expects that the practical implementation of the outcome of the referendums will be carried […]

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Russia Calls for ‘Civilized Implementation’ of East Ukraine Referendum Results

The Kremlin said Monday it respects the secession referendum in eastern Ukraine and hopes for a "civilized implementation" of the results through talks between Kiev and representatives in the east. , ratcheting up tensions between the West and Moscow. In its first comments since the referendum, the Kremlin appears to challenge the West and Kiev’s standpoint that it was illegitimate. The Kremlin statement said that Moscow welcomes all possible efforts to start negotiations between Kiev and separatist regions with the involvement of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development. "Moscow views with respect the expression of the will of the people of the Donetsk and Luhansk regions and expects that the practical implementation of the outcome of the referendums will be carried […]

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Putin's Export Machine Rolls Right Over Sanctions, Outcry

incursion into Ukraine and the international condemnation that followed haven’t put a dent in Russia ’s exports of gas and raw materials. The world’s largest energy producer shipped 2 percent more gas to Europe in the first three months of 2014 than it did in the same period last year, government data show. Diesel output for export increased, while cargoes of grains, palladium and nickel either climbed or were about the same. Russia’s crude oil exports fell 0.2 percent from last year. Economic sanctions from the U.S. and European Union haven’t dimmed demand for what Russia can sell even as price increases betray investors’ anxiety over future supplies. Any plan to pinch the country’s trade to punish Putin for his March annexation of Ukraine ’s Crimea peninsula would have to overcome Europe’s dependence on Russian gas and China ’s appetite for the country’s metals. “Investors are paying more […]

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Putin’s Export Machine Rolls Right Over Sanctions, Outcry

incursion into Ukraine and the international condemnation that followed haven’t put a dent in Russia ’s exports of gas and raw materials. The world’s largest energy producer shipped 2 percent more gas to Europe in the first three months of 2014 than it did in the same period last year, government data show. Diesel output for export increased, while cargoes of grains, palladium and nickel either climbed or were about the same. Russia’s crude oil exports fell 0.2 percent from last year. Economic sanctions from the U.S. and European Union haven’t dimmed demand for what Russia can sell even as price increases betray investors’ anxiety over future supplies. Any plan to pinch the country’s trade to punish Putin for his March annexation of Ukraine ’s Crimea peninsula would have to overcome Europe’s dependence on Russian gas and China ’s appetite for the country’s metals. “Investors are paying more […]

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Ukraine Separatists Say Referendums Support Independence

Pro-Russian groups said large majorities voted in favor of secession in referendums they organized in eastern Ukraine that were dismissed as illegitimate by the government in Kiev and its U.S. and European allies. In Donetsk, 90 percent of voters backed the breakaway plan, RIA Novosti reported late yesterday, citing Roman Liagin, head of the local election committee. In Luhansk, the other region voting, 94 percent to 98 percent supported autonomy with turnout at 75 percent, RIA said. Final results are due later today. The votes went ahead amid violent clashes between government troops and pro-Russian rebels. Ukraine’s acting president called them a “farce.” Russian President Vladimir Putin has been accused by Kiev and its allies of stoking the separatist unrest. He hasn’t decided his position on the referendums, the Kommersant newspaper reported. The referendums are “inspired by Russia ’s leaders to completely destabilize Ukraine, undermine presidential elections and overthrow […]

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Climate change: We have no solution yet

It would be healthy — in the sense of promoting honesty — if every report warning of global warming and climate change (the two terms are interchangeable) came with the following disclaimer: Despite our belief that global warming poses catastrophic threats to many of the world’s 7 billion inhabitants, we acknowledge that we now lack the technologies to stop it. The purpose of our analysis and policy proposals is to create the political and economic conditions that foster the needed technologies. But there is no assurance that this will happen, and much time and money may be invested in futile and wasteful efforts. I am not optimistic. Our climate-change debates confuse more than they clarify. They follow a ritualistic script that is now playing out again. First came a downbeat report from the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC), an international group of scientists set up by the United […]

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Oil Prices End Lower

On the New York Mercantile Exchange light, sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at $100.37 a barrel at 0517 GMT, up $0.11 in the Globex electronic session. June Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.01 to $108.05 a barrel. Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine on Thursday ignored Russian President ‘s call to postpone a referendum on secession scheduled for Sunday. Ukraine’s government also rejected Moscow’s demands to end its military offensive against separatists–setting the stage for further unrest. Despite the retreat in Brent prices from more than $110 there should be strong support for it in the recent trading range in the near term and the Ukraine crisis should help blunt any downward momentum, Eurasia Group director of global oil Greg Priddy said in a report. "The pace of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tapering of asset purchases will be a major variable affecting oil market […]

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WTI Crude Falls With U.S. Stockpiles Near Record High

West Texas Intermediate crude dropped for a second day on speculation that near-record U.S. crude inventories will be ample to meet demand from refineries. Brent also declined. WTI fell 0.3 percent. U.S. oil supplies slipped 1.78 million barrels from a record 399.4 million last week, the Energy Information Administration said May 7. Futures climbed earlier today as Russian President Vladimir Putin visited Crimea for the first time since annexing the peninsula from Ukraine and the European Union considered expanding sanctions on his country. “The fundamentals are reasserting themselves as the week comes to an end,” said Gene McGillian , an analyst and broker at Tradition Energy in Stamford , Connecticut . “Even though there was a supply drop last week, they remain close to 400 million barrels, which is more than ample.” WTI for June delivery decreased 27 cents to settle at $99.99 a barrel on the New York […]

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Natural-Gas Drops to Lowest Close in Three Weeks as Supply Picks Up Pace

Natural gas prices dropped to their lowest closing price in more than three weeks on signals that record supply may be surging in time to catch up with demand. Prices for the front-month June contract fell 4.1 cents, or 0.9%, to $4.531 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The losses piled on to Thursday’s decline–the biggest percentage loss in 10 weeks–to push gas to its lowest closing price since it landed at $4.53 on April 16. It lost 3% on the week, its worst week since mid-March. Traders have been reacting to the federal government’s Thursday report on gas storage levels, which showed larger-than-expected gains for the third straight week. Coal prices have also shown recent gains, a further sign to gas traders that power plants are switching back to coal and cutting the demand for natural gas, analysts said. […]

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Exclusive: Iraq, in a Major Shift, Might Want Some U.S. Troops Back

The Iraqi government is actively seeking armed drones from the U.S. to combat al Qaeda in its increasingly violent Anbar province, and in a significant reversal, would welcome American military drone operators back into the country to target those militants on its behalf, according to people with knowledge of the matter. Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki’s Shiite government has for the last several months struggled to stem the violence in Iraq’s western reaches, particularly in the Sunni-dominated Anbar province, site of some of the heaviest and bloodiest fighting of the decade-long Iraq War. Some of the instability in western Iraq is attributed to fighters arriving from Iraq’s war-torn neighbor, Syria. Iraq has long sought drones for surveillance and reconnaissance purposes and has begun to receive some from the U.S. in limited numbers. But the nature of the fight the Maliki government confronts in western Iraq is such that officials say […]

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A Pulverized Prize Changes Hands, Peacefully, in Syria

The last busloads of insurgents left the battered Old City of Homs in central Syria on Friday, under a deal handing over the longtime bastion of rebellion to the government after nearly two years of blockade and bombardment. Residents trickled in to gaze in shock at blocks of bomb-bitten homes. Some wheeled bicycles or carried gawking children on their shoulders, while others wept and fled in grief from camera operators, in scenes captured on state television and in snapshots that flooded social media. Soldiers giving the victory sign planted government flags in a square at the edge of the district. Across the country, in Aleppo Province in the north, rebels allowed a convoy of trucks delivering humanitarian aid into villages they had long blockaded, fulfilling their end of the deal so that the government would allow the last fighters out of Homs. In carrying out the […]

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Chinese capital ranks 41 for livability as air pollution worsens

Beijing ranked the 41st out of 294 Chinese cities in terms of their livability due to worsening air pollution in and around the city, a latest research report said. The report, issued by the National Academy of Economic Strategy of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, was based on evaluations of nine factors including living conditions, city harmony and cultural competitiveness, said Saturday’s China Daily. Zhuhai, Hong Kong and Haikou, all located in southern coastal areas, ranked on the top of the list, the report said. Air pollution has been troubling China’s big cities. Last year, more than 100 cities saw an average of 29.9 smoggy days, a 52-year high. According to the Ministry of Environmental Protection, several of the ten worst cities in terms of monthly air quality last year were in Hebei Province surrounding Beijing. High housing price is another unfavorable factor […]

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China defends oil rig position in disputed waters

BEIJING, May 9 (UPI) –Chinese drilling operations near the Xisha Islands in the South China Sea are normal and within Beijing’s territorial waters, the Chinese Foreign Ministry said. Yi Xianliang, deputy director-general of ocean affairs at the Chinese Foreign Ministry, challenged claims from Vietnam that a drilling rig was operating in Vietnamese waters. PetroVietnam, the country’s state-owned energy company, said last weekend drilling rig HD-981, deployed by the China National Offshore Oil Corp. about 120 miles off the coast of Vietnam, was encroaching on its sovereignty . The Vietnamese government said it would take "all the proper and necessary measures" to protect its interests. Yi said Thursday said the Chinese government, however, was "deeply surprised" by Vietnam’s reaction. The rig, he said, was operating completely within Chinese territorial waters. U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki said during her regular press briefing Thursday the Chinese side was taking "provocative" actions […]

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Obama Scores Third Court Victory in Air Pollution Fight

The Obama administration scored a third legal victory in less than a month in its fight to cut air pollution as regulators prepare rules to reduce emissions from power plants. In a unanimous decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals in Washington said the Environmental Protection Agency was within its discretion to tighten standards on fine particulate matter, or soot, from coal power plants, refineries, manufacturers and vehicles. The court struck down a challenge by the National Association of Manufacturers , which said the rule overreached. The administration has now defeated challenges to pollution rules three times since mid-April, as the Supreme Court and the U.S. Court of Appeals tossed aside industry objections and gave the EPA broad leeway to set standards. “Time after time, courts have found that EPA’s clean air standards are solidly based in science and the law,” Peter Zalzal, an attorney with the Environmental Defense Fund, […]

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EPA Takes First Step Toward Regulating Fracking Chemicals

The Obama administration began a process that may result in the first federal regulation of chemicals used in fracking, a drilling technique that has transformed energy production while eluding oversight sought by environmentalists. After three years of delay, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency said today it’s considering rules requiring oilfield service companies such as Halliburton (HAL) Co. to send it details on the health and safety of the chemicals used. The agency said it may decide to stop short of rules, and use incentives or voluntary steps. “It’s unfortunate that this process has taken so long, as it addresses a critical need to ensure the safety of chemicals used in fracking,” Richard Denison, the lead scientist of the Environmental Defense Fund, said in a blog post. “This is only the first baby step toward initiating the rulemaking process EPA said it would undertake.” Environmental groups have been pressing the […]

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Parnell signs off on gas infrastructure bill

Alaska Gov. Sean Parnell signed a bill that aims to facilitate the construction of a natural gas pipeline and put that state in co-ownership of the project. Parnell signed Senate Bill 138, which moves plans for a large-diameter natural gas pipeline forward. Under the legislation, the state would become an owner in the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas Project and put local Alaskans to work. "Alaskans’ dream of a natural gas pipeline is now closer to becoming reality," he said in a statement Thursday. "For the first time, we have alignment among the necessary parties, authorization from the Legislature, and the beginning of engineering and design work on a project that will create thousands of Alaska jobs, and fuel Alaska homes and businesses for decades to come." Parnell’s signature moves the project to the preliminary engineering and design phase. Construction of the project could begin […]

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North Dakota plans LNG processing facility

North Dakota Gov. Jack Dalrymple announced startup company North Dakota LNG will build a gas processing plant in Tioga, the first of its kind for the state. North Dakota LNG said they’d start construction at the Tioga liquefied natural gas processing plant this summer. First phase operations will produce 10,000 gallons of LNG per day. Phase two operations, scheduled for 2015, will bring production levels to more than 76,000 gallons per day. The company has a contract with Hess. Corp. to receive residual gas for the Tioga feedstock. Dalrymple said LNG from the facility will be used for commercial fuel. "This is an exciting day for North Dakota," he said in a statement Wednesday. The company’s chief executive officer, Patrick Hughes, said the facility will give oil and gas operators in the Bakken oil region of the state access to a reliable alternative […]

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Obama to Lay Out Proposals on Cutting Carbon Pollution

President Barack Obama on Friday will trumpet new executive actions and public- and private-sector commitments aimed at cutting carbon pollution and improving energy efficiency as he continues to make the pitch that the impacts of climate change must be addressed. In a speech in California, the president will focus on clean-energy objectives he can accomplish without Congress’s help, laying out a list of modest proposals, as well as pledges to expand the deployment of solar power. The initiatives are wide-ranging but small-bore—from training workers for jobs in the solar industry to strengthening commercial energy building codes and from making federal buildings more energy efficient to setting new efficiency standards for walk-in coolers and freezers. But administration officials argue that cumulatively, the efforts could have a significant impact. Dan Utech, special assistant to the president on energy and climate change, said the initiatives would help cut pollution, save businesses money […]

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Recycling is the primary energy efficiency technology for aluminum and steel manufacturing

The production of iron, steel, and aluminum is a highly energy-intensive process, accounting for 10% of total manufacturing energy use . The use of recycling in the manufacturing process of these metals has been a main driver of improvements in energy efficiency within the industry. Primary production, in which steel is made from iron ore and aluminum from bauxite ore, is energy intensive. However, secondary production, which involves the use of recycling scrap to make steel and aluminum, is much more energy efficient. The Environmental Protection Agency estimates that secondary steel production uses about 74% less energy than the production of steel from iron ore, while the U.S. Department of Energy reports that secondary aluminum production requires 90% less energy than primary production. Secondary production accounts for nearly 60% of U.S. aluminum production (counting both old and new scrap), while primary production accounts for almost 40%. Similarly, recycling is […]

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Shift from rail drops Bakken pipeline differentials to 2014 low

The two main Bakken pipeline markets weakened for the seventh time since April 30, bringing differentials to their lowest levels of the year. Bakken crude oil prices fell across the board on Friday, as high stocks in Canada drove down differentials for both heavy and light grades. Williston Basin Bakken fell 10 cents/barrel, while Bakken at Guernsey and at Clearbrook were assessed down $1.05/b at the calendar month average of NYMEX light sweet crude (WTI CMA 1st month) minus $5/b and WTI CMA minus $7/b, respectively. After rising slightly on April 29, the pipeline markets have fallen by $3.50/b over the past week and a half, bringing each to their largest discount since December 31 when Guernsey hit minus $7.10 and Clearbrook hit minus $9/b. "Bakken weakness at Clearbrook is a reflection of train disruptions causing oil to tend back to the more reliable markets (pipelines), parity in pricing, […]

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California prepared for summer electricity demand: ISO

While California should have sufficient electricity demand this summer, unforeseen circumstances such as heat waves, power plant outages or wildfires that threaten transmission could test the southern part of the state, the California Independent System Operator said Friday in a statement. The ISO is expecting peak demand this summer at about 47,351 MW, about 646 MW above 2013, but below an all-time peak of 50,270 MW set in 2006. The grid operator is expecting to have 53,950 MW of power capacity available this summer, up about 3,243 MW compared with last summer. Article continues below… Megawatt Daily provides detailed coverage of power prices in major US and Canadian electricity markets, up-to-date information about solicitations and supply deals, and information about complex state and federal power regulations. In-state hydroelectric generation is predicted to be around 1,370 MW to 1,669 MW for the summer because of well-below-normal water conditions across the […]

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Baker Hughes: US drilling rig count edges up to 1,855

The US drilling rig count edged up a unit to 1,855 rigs working during the week ended May 9, Baker Hughes Inc. reported. A 5-unit gain in offshore rigs to 59 more than offset a 4-unit decline in land rigs to 1,782. Rigs drilling in inland waters were unchanged from a week ago at 14. Oil rigs increased a unit to 1,528. Unchanged were gas rigs at 323 and rigs considered unclassified at 4. Horizontal drilling rigs fell 4 units to 1,243 while directional drilling rigs lost 3 units to 208. Canada’s rig count relinquished 18 units to settle at 145 total, which is 27 more than this week a year ago. Oil rigs lost 13 units to 54 and gas rigs subtracted 5 units to 91. Major states, basins Several of the major oil- and gas-producing states reported modest gains during the week. Texas, adding 3 units, now […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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EIA estimates average Eagle Ford EUR at 168,000 bbl/well

The average estimated ultimate recovery (EUR) of wells drilled during 2008-13 in the Eagle Ford shale in South Texas was 168,000 bbl/well, according to the US Energy Information Administration . But the estimates vary greatly among regions within the play and even well to well, especially wells of different ages. The median EUR across all 32 Eagle Ford counties over the study period was 103,000 bbl/well. The Eagle Ford analysis, by Dana Van Wagener, appears as part of EIA’s Annual Energy Outlook 2014 in a report illustrating assumptions for shale and tight oil plays in forecasts of total US production of crude oil. For each tight or shale well with initial production in 2008 or later and for which at least 4 months of production data are available, the analysis fits monthly production to a decline curve that begins hyperbolic but shifts to exponential after the decline rate reaches […]

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Is the US Tight Oil Market 'Too Robust to Bust'?

The current crude oil price environment – in the vicinity of $100 per barrel (bbl) – comfortably exceeds the break-even economics of U.S. Light Tight Oil (LTO) production from the Bakken, Eagle Ford and other shale formations. But what proportion of LTO reserves would remain economic at, say, $75/bbl? According to Wood Mackenzie, the answer is a significant majority – at least 70 percent. "There is not much U.S. producers can do to influence global oil prices," Harold York, Wood Mackenzie’s principal downstream research analyst, said in a late-March communique from the consultancy. "Supply and demand fundamentals and non-market dynamics around the globe keep the price environment well above the break-even economics levels of several U.S. tight oil plays." "With Brent crude oil pricing in the late-2013 range of $108 per barrel of oil … in early 2014, almost all tight oil proven reserves are commercially viable, even if […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Is the US Tight Oil Market ‘Too Robust to Bust’?

The current crude oil price environment – in the vicinity of $100 per barrel (bbl) – comfortably exceeds the break-even economics of U.S. Light Tight Oil (LTO) production from the Bakken, Eagle Ford and other shale formations. But what proportion of LTO reserves would remain economic at, say, $75/bbl? According to Wood Mackenzie, the answer is a significant majority – at least 70 percent. "There is not much U.S. producers can do to influence global oil prices," Harold York, Wood Mackenzie’s principal downstream research analyst, said in a late-March communique from the consultancy. "Supply and demand fundamentals and non-market dynamics around the globe keep the price environment well above the break-even economics levels of several U.S. tight oil plays." "With Brent crude oil pricing in the late-2013 range of $108 per barrel of oil … in early 2014, almost all tight oil proven reserves are commercially viable, even if […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Shale Gas Plagued By Unusual Methane Leaks

A Feb. 2013 scientific study found an unexpectedly high methane leakage rate in the well-fractured Utah basin. Photo of Utah gas field   credit According to a spate of recent scientific studies from the United States and Australia, the shale gas industry has generated another formidable challenge: methane and radon leakage three times greater than expected. In some cases the volume of seeping methane, a greenhouse gas that traps heat 25 times more effectively than carbon dioxide, is so high it challenges the notion that shale gas can be a bridge to a cleaner energy future, as promoted by the government of British Columbia and other shale gas jurisdictions. "If natural gas is to be a ‘bridge’ to a more sustainable energy future, it is a bridge that must be traversed carefully," warned one 2014 study published in Science. "Diligence will be required to ensure that leakage rates are […]

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Estonia becomes IEA member

Estonia on Friday became the 29th member of the International Energy Agency, IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven announced. "The country has made remarkable progress in transforming its energy sector, and there is every reason to expect that this successful process will continue and be reinforced through IEA membership," she said in a statement . To become a full member, Estonia was required to set aside enough oil stocks to satisfy the equivalent of 90 days worth of imports from 2013. Estonian Minister of Economic Affairs Urve Palo said accession is a milestone for the Baltic nation. Estonia, Van der Hoeven said, is welcomed to the IEA as a member country that prioritizes energy security and economic sustainability. The International Monetary Fund said in its latest assessment the Estonian economy was doing well, but there may be issues with high levels of unemployment in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Peak Oil: $ome Number$

[The] increased oil expenditure is drawing money away from the rest of the economy. Overall, were it not for the price increase [from the historical average of $25.00 per barrel], the US would have an extra $1.5 billion per day to spend in the broader economy, or $543 billion per year. Instead, all that money is being spent on expensive oil, which is distorting the economy. Is it any wonder oil-dependent economies are struggling to grow their economies? Could it be that expensive oil signifies the twilight of industrial growth, as we have known it…? At the current price of $105 …, the world spends $9.45 billion per day on oil, or $3.5 trillion per year. This is a difference of $7.2 billion every day, an extra cost to the global economy which is largely a result of crude oil having peaked. It lacks credibility to pronounce the death […]

Posted On : Published By : ASPO-USA
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Supply or demand? Peak oil with Richard Heinberg and James Hamilton

Our lead story: This week Stanford said that it would divest all of its investments in coal mining companies, becoming the wealthiest US university to pledge divestment from sectors of the fossil fuel industry. Erin gives you her take on the situation. For our interviews today, we look at peak oil theory with Richard Heinberg and James Hamilton. Heinberg argues that we have reached peak oil supply and that will have major economic consequences for our future prospects of economic growth. Hamilton on the other hand sees this as more of a demand issue. Take a look. Finally in today’s Big Deal, Edward Harrison and Erin take a look at the return of the subprime auto loan market. Is this another example of perverse incentives in the search for yield? Edward gives you his take.

Posted On : Published By : ASPO-USA
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Americans Will Burn Less Oil 25 Years From Now

The most lasting change in the U.S. energy landscape may not be that we’re producing more oil — but that we’re using less. Demand for oil has fallen in recent years, as Americans drive less and buy more fuel-efficient cars. Daily consumption is down nearly 2 million barrels since 2005, a 9 percent decline. The drop is small in percentage terms, but it represents a remarkable shift, one that few people saw coming. For most of the post-World War II era, Americans burned more oil each year, a trend broken only briefly by the price shocks of the late 1970s. This time, the shift appears to be more lasting: In a new report released this week , the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said the U.S. will burn slightly less oil in 2040 than it did in 2010. Overall energy consumption per person is set to fall even more steeply, to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Peak Oil: $ome Number$

[The] increased oil expenditure is drawing money away from the rest of the economy. Overall, were it not for the price increase [from the historical average of $25.00 per barrel], the US would have an extra $1.5 billion per day to spend in the broader economy, or $543 billion per year. Instead, all that money is being spent on expensive oil, which is distorting the economy. Is it any wonder oil-dependent economies are struggling to grow their economies? Could it be that expensive oil signifies the twilight of industrial growth, as we have known it…? At the current price of $105 …, the world spends $9.45 billion per day on oil, or $3.5 trillion per year. This is a difference of $7.2 billion every day, an extra cost to the global economy which is largely a result of crude oil having peaked. It lacks credibility to pronounce the death […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Why Oil Prices Haven’t Gone Crazy

Why Oil Prices Haven’t Gone Crazy By Matthew Philips Bloomberg Businessweek Illustration by 731 The oil markets have plenty of reasons to be spooked. In Libya, home to Africa’s largest reserves, production has fallen more than 80 percent since militias seized control of the country’s biggest ports last summer. Most of Iran’s oil remains trapped as well. Sanctions aimed at punishing Iran for its nuclear weapons program have crippled its crude exports by 1.5 million barrels a day. Nigeria is in the midst of its worst oil crisis in years: Rising violence, plus rampant sabotage and theft, have knocked out about 300,000 barrels of oil output a day. In Venezuela, which has the world’s largest oil reserves, production has remained unchanged after years of underinvestment. Political chaos and violence are keeping 3.5 million barrels of daily oil production off the market, according to estimates by Citigroup (C). With tensions […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Oil Futures Edge Upwards

On the New York Mercantile Exchange light, sweet crude futures for delivery in June traded at $100.37 a barrel at 0517 GMT, up $0.11 in the Globex electronic session. June Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.01 to $108.05 a barrel. Pro-Russian separatists in eastern Ukraine on Thursday ignored Russian President ‘s call to postpone a referendum on secession scheduled for Sunday. Ukraine’s government also rejected Moscow’s demands to end its military offensive against separatists–setting the stage for further unrest. Despite the retreat in Brent prices from more than $110 there should be strong support for it in the recent trading range in the near term and the Ukraine crisis should help blunt any downward momentum, Eurasia Group director of global oil Greg Priddy said in a report. "The pace of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s tapering of asset purchases will be a major variable affecting oil market […]

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Oil prices rise on renewed Ukraine worries

Benchmark U.S. crude for June delivery was up 51 cents at $100.76 a barrel at 0800 GMT in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract fell 51 cents Thursday to close at $100.26 a barrel. Brent crude, a benchmark for international varieties of oil, gained 76 cents to $108.80. Pro-Russian insurgents in eastern Ukraine are planning a referendum on independence over the weekend, in apparent defiance of a call by Russian President Vladimir Putin to put off the vote. Traders worry Russian crude exports could be interrupted if further instability in Ukraine results in stronger Western sanctions against Russia. – Heating oil added 2 cents to $2.94 a gallon

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple