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Security Message to U.S. Citizens

Security Message to U.S. Citizens The U.S. Embassy reminds U.S. citizens that Iraq remains at high risk for kidnapping and terrorist violence. Recent reports indicate that militant groups may be surveilling U.S. citizens for possible kidnapping operations, particularly oil company employees working in Basrah Province, Iraq. The groups may be focused on U.S. citizens at hotels in the Basrah area. We encourage all U.S. citizens to review the existing travel warning for Iraq and take appropriate measures to ensure their safety if travel to Iraq is necessary. U.S. citizens traveling and residing abroad should enroll in the Smart Traveler Enrollment Program (STEP). U.S. citizens without internet access may enroll directly at the U.S. Embassy or U.S. Consulate General Erbil. By enrolling, U.S. citizens make it easier for the Embassy to contact them in case of emergency. U.S. citizens may contact the U.S. Embassy, located in the IZ, via e-mail […]

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Exxon finds oil, gas in Argentina's shale

BUENOS AIRES, May 22 (UPI) –U.S. energy company Exxon Mobil said its affiliate in Argentina discovered oil and natural gas in the Vaca Muerta shale play in the country’s Neuquen province. ExxonMobil Exploration Argentina, alongside its regional partner, said it was carrying out additional analysis at the Bajo del Choique X-2 well after confirming an oil and gas discovery. Appraisal wells will need to be drilled before Exxon makes a commercial decision on the area, but the company expressed optimism about the potential. "Not all shales are alike, so our first Exxon Mobil-operated discovery in the Vaca Muerta play is a very positive sign that the shale in this area of Neuquen province holds great promise as a liquids-rich unconventional resource for Argentina," Stephen Greenlee, president of Exxon Mobil Exploration Co. said in a statement Wednesday. The U.S. Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration estimates Argentina has 774 trillion cubic […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Exxon finds oil, gas in Argentina’s shale

BUENOS AIRES, May 22 (UPI) –U.S. energy company Exxon Mobil said its affiliate in Argentina discovered oil and natural gas in the Vaca Muerta shale play in the country’s Neuquen province. ExxonMobil Exploration Argentina, alongside its regional partner, said it was carrying out additional analysis at the Bajo del Choique X-2 well after confirming an oil and gas discovery. Appraisal wells will need to be drilled before Exxon makes a commercial decision on the area, but the company expressed optimism about the potential. "Not all shales are alike, so our first Exxon Mobil-operated discovery in the Vaca Muerta play is a very positive sign that the shale in this area of Neuquen province holds great promise as a liquids-rich unconventional resource for Argentina," Stephen Greenlee, president of Exxon Mobil Exploration Co. said in a statement Wednesday. The U.S. Energy Department’s Energy Information Administration estimates Argentina has 774 trillion cubic […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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TransCanada Explores Oil by Rail on Keystone Permit Wait

TransCanada Corp. (TRP) is considering ways to deliver Canadian crude oil by rail to the U.S. as customers of its proposed Keystone XL seek an alternative to the delayed pipeline, Chief Executive Officer Russ Girling said. The pipeline company is exploring how to modify existing contracts with Keystone XL customers to allow for rail shipments as it awaits U.S. permits for the pipe, Girling said in an interview yesterday at Bloomberg headquarters in New York . A rail option, which may cost twice as much as sending the crude via Keystone, would be an inefficient way of transporting the oil, he said. The trigger for pushing ahead with rail was the Obama administration’s April 18 announcement that it was delaying a decision on the $5.4 billion project because of a court battle in , Girling said. A rail option would have much lower upfront costs than the pipeline — […]

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Weekly Natural Gas Storage Report

Historical Comparisons Stocks billion cubic feet (Bcf) Year ago (05/16/13) 5-Year average (2009-2013) Region 05/16/14 05/09/14 net change implied flow (Bcf) % change (Bcf) % change East -38.6 -46.2 West -36.9 -33.2 Producing -37.7 892 -42.5     Salt 140 126 237 -40.9 188 -25.5     Nonsalt 373 358 586 -36.3 704 -47.0 Working gas in storage was 1,266 Bcf as of Friday, May 16, 2014, according to EIA estimates. This represents a net increase of 106 Bcf from the previous week. Stocks were 774 Bcf less than last year at this time and 943 Bcf below the 5-year average of 2,209 Bcf. In the East Region, stocks were 449 Bcf below the 5-year average following net injections of 65 Bcf. Stocks in the Producing Region were 379 Bcf below the 5-year average of 892 Bcf after a net injection of 29 Bcf. Stocks in the West Region were 115 […]

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Forecasters predict slow Atlantic hurricane season

NEW YORK (AP) — A slower-than-usual hurricane season is expected this year because of an expected El Nino, federal forecasters said Thursday, but they warned that it takes only one storm to wreak havoc and urged Americans to be prepared. The El Nino, which warms part of the Pacific every few years and changes rain and temperature patterns around the world, will likely reduce the number and intensity of tropical storms and hurricanes, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration said in New York City. Cooler temperatures on the surface of the Atlantic Ocean compared with recent years will also lower the probability of hurricane formation. "El Nino helps to reduce the ability of storm systems coming off Africa to strengthen into tropical storms and hurricanes," said Dr. Gerry Bell, NOAA’s top hurricane season forecaster. Bell cautioned that El Nino has not yet developed and officials have not yet issued […]

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U.S. taking on less foreign crude oil, EIA says

WASHINGTON, May 22 (UPI) –U.S. crude oil imports from African producers are declining because of domestic production and China is taking up the slack, the Energy Department said. The rapid increase in the amount of crude oil produced in the United States is squeezing African producers out of the market. The Energy Information Administration, the statistical arm of the Energy Department, said crude oil imports in general for the week ending May 16 were 6.4 million barrels per day, down nearly 10 percent from the previous report. In its weekly report , published Wednesday, EIA said African crude oil exports to the United States were declining. "African crude that until recently flowed to the United States has been diverted to serve European markets that have historically been served by Libya and to supply increased demand in Asian markets where, despite Libyan disruptions, deliveries of African crude have increased Libyan […]

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Canadian crude oil exports increased in March

Total crude oil exports from Canada in March were 5 percent higher than the previous month, the National Energy Board said. NEB, the nation’s energy regulator, published data Wednesday for March showing total crude exports of 2.85 million barrels was a monthly record for the year and 5 percent more than February figures. NEB provided no data on export destination. Typically, nearly all of Canada’s oil exports head to the United States. More of that crude oil is headed across the border by rail as increased production strains existing pipeline capacity. In January, the Transportation Safety Board of Canada said 500 railcars delivered oil in 2009, but increased to 160,000 in 2013. Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper has sought to add a layer of diversity to an energy export economy that depends almost exclusively on the United States. Canada and Saudi Arabia were the […]

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Natural Gas Weekly Update

Industrial natural gas consumption growth continues rising Providing another sign of continued growth in industrial demand for natural gas, two European companies announced earlier this month that they would form a joint venture to build an ammonia plant on the Gulf Coast. BASF, a German chemicals company, and Yara, a Norwegian agricultural company, plan to build the plant on an existing BASF site in Freeport, Texas. The plant would have a capacity to produce 750,000 metric tons of ammonia per year and could use up to 77 million cubic feet per day (MMcf/d) of natural gas as a feedstock. BASF and Yara announced in October that they were planning an ammonia plant, and cited relatively low natural gas prices over the past several years as a reason for locating the plant in the United States. After industrial natural gas consumption bottomed out in 2009 at 16.9 Bcf/d, it has […]

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BP to appeal Deepwater Horizon claims to Supreme Court

No reasonable judgment would force a company to pay for damages it didn’t cause, BP said as it takes its Deepwater Horizon claims case to the Supreme Court . The British energy company said it would ask the Supreme Court to review a decision from the U.S. 5th Circuit Court, which ruled a "compromise" deal means the company may have to write checks to businesses for claims BP says have nothing to do with the 2010 oil spill off the coast of Louisiana. "No company would agree to pay for losses that it did not cause, and BP certainly did not when it entered into this settlement," the company said in a Wednesday statement . "BP will continue to fight to return the settlement to its original, explicit, and lawful purpose — the compensation of claimants who suffered actual losses due to the spill." If […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple