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Key Figure in Libya’s Revolution Leads Attack on Islamists

A former general who was a central figure in Libya ’s revolution led a full-scale ground and air assault on several Islamist militia bases in and around the city of Benghazi on Friday, declaring war against the groups that have been accused of conducting a campaign of lawlessness and assassinations. Two dozen people were reported killed in the fighting and dozens more wounded, according to news agencies. The former general, Khalifa Heftar , seemed to be acting on his own initiative, but gained support from members of the army in eastern Libya. A column of personnel and armored vehicles moved against three militia bases around the city early Friday. Jet fighters from the Benghazi air base flew low over the city and helicopters fired on at least one militia position. Libya’s caretaker prime minister, Abdullah al-Thinni, went on television to deny that the attack had been […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Libya closes Benghazi airport due to fighting – director

Libyan authorities closed the airport in the eastern city of Benghazi on Friday because of fighting between irregular forces of the self-declared Libyan National Army and Islamist militants, the airport’s director said. "We have closed the airport for the safety of passengers as there were clashes in the city. The airport will be reopened depending on the security situation," Ibrahim Farkash, director of Benghazi’s Benina airport, told Reuters. (Reporting by Ahmed Elumami and Ayman al-Warfalli; Editing by Mark Trevelyan )

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Petrobras sets daily production record in Brazil’s offshore presalt

Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) has surpassed 470,000 b/d in the presalt layer of the Santos and Campos basins offshore Brazil, a new daily production record according to the company. The milestone was reached with production from 24 wells, including 7-LL-22D-RJS, which was brought on stream on May 9 and is now contributing 31,000 b/d. Petrobras attributes a portion of its success in the Santos and Campos presalt to the use of a buoyancy supported riser (BSR) that connects 7-LL-22D-RJS to the Cidade de Paraty floating production, storage, and offloading vessel in Lula field. This ascending production pipeline is suspended from a submerged buoy and has led to above-average production from the new well and two other wells that attach to the Cidade de Sao Paulo FPSO via BSRs in Sapinhoa field, the company said. Petrobras expects to connect several new wells to both FPSOs with BSRs by this year’s […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Argentine Provinces Said to Unite Against YPF License Bid

The three provinces holding Argentina’s largest shale oil and gas deposits will jointly challenge a push by federally owned YPF SA (YPF) to take control of the auction and renewal of licenses, three officials said. Jorge Sapag, Francisco Perez and Martin Buzzi — governors of Neuquen, Mendoza and Chubut, respectively — met in Buenos Aires on May 13 and agreed to impel their congressional representatives to oppose any move to federalize licensing processes, the provincial officials briefed on the matter said. They asked not to be identified because the talks were private. The three governors weren’t available to comment, their assistants said by telephone. Alejandro Di Lazzaro, a YPF spokesman in Buenos Aires, declined to comment. The fight underscores political tensions derived from unclear rules governing Argentina’s nascent shale boom. For prospective license holders, a single federal system would remove the need to negotiate with two levels of government. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Cars Drive China's Oil Demand as Industry Slows

Rising incomes in China are offsetting the impact of its industrial deceleration and propping up global oil prices. China is using more gasoline, which is making up for its declining demand for diesel used in industry and the trucking sector. The increase is being driven by a growing consumer class with higher disposable incomes, which is translating into more car ownership. That, in turn, has helped underpin Chinese oil demand and has kept the country on track to overtake the U.S. this year and become the No. 1 oil importer. Chinese imports of crude oil, more than half of which are used to make gasoline and diesel, are an important element of support for oil prices as the U.S. relies more on domestic shale oil. China’s January-April crude imports increased 11.5% on a year-to-year basis, with April imports soaring 21% to a record 6.8 million barrels a day. Over […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Cars Drive China’s Oil Demand as Industry Slows

Rising incomes in China are offsetting the impact of its industrial deceleration and propping up global oil prices. China is using more gasoline, which is making up for its declining demand for diesel used in industry and the trucking sector. The increase is being driven by a growing consumer class with higher disposable incomes, which is translating into more car ownership. That, in turn, has helped underpin Chinese oil demand and has kept the country on track to overtake the U.S. this year and become the No. 1 oil importer. Chinese imports of crude oil, more than half of which are used to make gasoline and diesel, are an important element of support for oil prices as the U.S. relies more on domestic shale oil. China’s January-April crude imports increased 11.5% on a year-to-year basis, with April imports soaring 21% to a record 6.8 million barrels a day. Over […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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White House Says China's Oil-Rig Deployment 'Provocative,' Dangerous

WASHINGTON—The White House on Friday stepped up criticism of China’s deployment of an , saying the move had complicated relations in the region and made peaceful resolution of territorial disputes more difficult. "This is a provocative act, and it raises tensions in the region," White House spokesman Jay Carney said. China and Vietnam are locked in a dispute over contested waters that both claim as part of their territory. The standoff, which escalated after a state-run Chinese oil company positioned an oil rig in the area, has sparked and raised fears of a military conflict. The U.S. hasn’t taken a position on the nations’ competing sovereignty claims in the region, Mr. Carney said, but said no country should resort to intimidation and threats. "We’re very concerned about dangerous conduct and intimidation by government-controlled assets operating in this area, and we call on all parties to conduct themselves in a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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White House Says China’s Oil-Rig Deployment ‘Provocative,’ Dangerous

WASHINGTON—The White House on Friday stepped up criticism of China’s deployment of an , saying the move had complicated relations in the region and made peaceful resolution of territorial disputes more difficult. "This is a provocative act, and it raises tensions in the region," White House spokesman Jay Carney said. China and Vietnam are locked in a dispute over contested waters that both claim as part of their territory. The standoff, which escalated after a state-run Chinese oil company positioned an oil rig in the area, has sparked and raised fears of a military conflict. The U.S. hasn’t taken a position on the nations’ competing sovereignty claims in the region, Mr. Carney said, but said no country should resort to intimidation and threats. "We’re very concerned about dangerous conduct and intimidation by government-controlled assets operating in this area, and we call on all parties to conduct themselves in a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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The Meat Crisis Is Here: Price Of Shrimp Up 61% – 7 Million Pigs Dead – Beef At All-Time High

As the price of meat continues to skyrocket, will it soon be considered a “luxury item” for most American families?  This week we learned that the price of meat in the United States rose at the fastest pace  in more than 10 years  last month. Leading the way is the price of shrimp.  According to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, the price of shrimp has jumped an astounding 61 percent compared to a year ago.  The price of pork is also moving upward aggressively thanks to a disease which has already killed about 10 percent of all of the pigs in the entire country.  And the endless drought in the western half of the country has caused the size of the U.S. cattle herd to shrink to a 63 year low and has pushed the price of beef to an all-time high.  This is really bad news if […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Eagle Ford Update, Texas Condensate and Natural Gas

This is a brief update on Eagle Ford Crude plus Condensate (C+C) output through February 2014.  It can also be found at Peak Oil Climate and Sustainability.  Figure 1- RRC Data provided by Kevin Carter  I have used my usual method of estimation where I find the percentage of total Texas(TX) C+C output that is from the Eagle Ford(EF) play (I call this %EF/TX ) and multiply this by the EIA’s estimate of TX C+C output. The chart shows the Railroad Commission of Texas (RRC) Eagle Ford estimate (EF RRC) in thousands of barrels per day (kb/d), the EF est (kb/d) as described above, the percentage of EF C+C that is condensate (EF %cond/C+C), and the %EF/TX also described above. As before I would like to thank Kevin Carter who created a method to simplify gathering the Eagle Ford data. I have done estimates of Eagle Ford output several times before […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple