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Production Resumes at Libya's Largest Oil Field

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has resumed production, a top oil official said Wednesday, the latest sign of an improvement in the country’s troubled oil sector. The move follows the lifting of a force majeure on two Eastern terminals that account for nearly half of Libya’s oil export capacity, following a deal with militants who had occupied them. The 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spanish oil company Repsol SA is a partner, has resumed output after protests ended there, a spokesman for the state-run National Oil Co. said. He confirmed that exports could still take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s oil industry has been disrupted frequently by strikes and armed occupations since a civil war toppled former leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Together with the reopening of the two oil ports, Sharara’s resumption could bring oil production […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Production Resumes at Libya’s Largest Oil Field

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has resumed production, a top oil official said Wednesday, the latest sign of an improvement in the country’s troubled oil sector. The move follows the lifting of a force majeure on two Eastern terminals that account for nearly half of Libya’s oil export capacity, following a deal with militants who had occupied them. The 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spanish oil company Repsol SA is a partner, has resumed output after protests ended there, a spokesman for the state-run National Oil Co. said. He confirmed that exports could still take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s oil industry has been disrupted frequently by strikes and armed occupations since a civil war toppled former leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Together with the reopening of the two oil ports, Sharara’s resumption could bring oil production […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Libya Seeks to Avoid Oil-Market Mess as Supplies Rebound

Libya, the north African country whose crude exports collapsed last year amid protests and political feuding, will seek to revive shipments in a way that avoids oil-market disruption, its governor for OPEC said. Protesters in the east of the country with Africa ’s largest oil reserves reopened two ports at the start of this month, ending a yearlong blockade that helped decimate the nation’s supplies. Brent crude , the global benchmark, slid about 3.3 percent since the rebels said the terminals would restart. “Our return to the market will be gradual and in coordination with our fellow member countries,” Samir Kamal, the nation’s governor for the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, said by e-mail yesterday. Libya will take the same gradual approach toward sales of oil it has stored at the two terminals, he said. Crude surged last year when the protesters halted four Libyan ports in an attempt […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Indian Energy Companies Anticipate a Budget Recharge

Employees worked on a 132kv overhead electricity line along the Sarkhej-Gandhinagar Highway in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. Agence France-Presse/Getty Images Fuel and power companies want India ’s new government to use this week’s budget to prove it is ready to start dismantling the system of government pricing and subsidies which has hobbled the energy industry. India’s convoluted system of taxes and fuel subsidies not only cost the country tens of billions of dollars every year, but it also discourages and delays expansion in the companies that provide fuel and power to the public. Oil and gas retailers and exploration companies are hoping the government of Prime Minister Narendra Modi will use the momentum following a landslide victory in May elections to deregulate the price of diesel fuel and push through other unpopular policy changes.  With companies often forced to sell at a loss, there are few incentives to explore […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Production in Libya's Sharara oilfield resumes

A Libyan oil official says production at one of the country’s largest oilfield has restarted, pumping at more than 90 percent of its capacity in a boost to the troubled North African nation. Mohammed al-Harari, spokesman for the National Oil Corporation, said Wednesday that 325,000 barrels were pumped from the southwestern Sharara oilfield, one of Libya’s largest at 340,000 barrels per day. Production resumed a day earlier, following repeated halts because of protests in the area. In a boost to the country’s troubled sector, the government reached an agreement last weekend with eastern rebels to regain control of two oil ports there. The rebels had seized the ports for nearly a year, halting exports and demanding a share of the revenues and political autonomy. Production there has not resumed yet.

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Production in Libya’s Sharara oilfield resumes

A Libyan oil official says production at one of the country’s largest oilfield has restarted, pumping at more than 90 percent of its capacity in a boost to the troubled North African nation. Mohammed al-Harari, spokesman for the National Oil Corporation, said Wednesday that 325,000 barrels were pumped from the southwestern Sharara oilfield, one of Libya’s largest at 340,000 barrels per day. Production resumed a day earlier, following repeated halts because of protests in the area. In a boost to the country’s troubled sector, the government reached an agreement last weekend with eastern rebels to regain control of two oil ports there. The rebels had seized the ports for nearly a year, halting exports and demanding a share of the revenues and political autonomy. Production there has not resumed yet.

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Nigeria Comes Tops in Global Crude Theft

Nigeria has been listed as the country with the highest incidents of crude oil theft in the world, according to data released by Oilprice.com. According to the website, with as much as 400,000 barrels of crude oil stolen daily, Nigeria is ranked worse than Mexico, Iraq, Russia and Indonesia on the top five countries most plagued by oil theft. The report put Nigeria’s losses to crude theft at $1.7 billion, about N272 billion per month, representing 7.7 percent of Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product, GDP. The report said: “This represents 7.7 percent of Nigeria’s GDP vanishing, or more than the country spends on education and healthcare. “These numbers paint a harsh picture about the inability of the Nigerian government and the multinational oil companies in Niger Delta, to do anything about this rampant theft. “With oil theft hitting record levels in 2013, the G8 has been reminded of its 2000 […]

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U.S., China review joint climate commitments

The United States and China must work together to combat climate change, but the fight is a global one, U.S. Secretary of State said Wednesday. Kerry met in Beijing with Chinese Vice Premier Wang Yang to discuss bilateral issues ranging from security to energy. On climate issues , Kerry said that, as the top emitters of greenhouse gas emissions, joint work on climate issues was imperative. "But I have to emphasize [that] nothing that the United States does alone, nothing that Europe does alone, nothing that any country does alone will be able to do the job." he said . With his "all-of-the-above" energy policy, Kerry said President Barack Obama is committed to ensuring fuel efficiency improves and power plants are cleaner. Wang, for his part, said Beijing has readjusted its economic structure in a way that promotes green energy and a low-carbon economy in an […]

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China June trade data misses forecasts, doubts over economy linger

China’s trade performance improved in June but still missed market forecasts, reinforcing expectations that Beijing will have to unveil more stimulus measures to stabilize the economy and meet its 2014 growth target. Exports rose 7.2 percent in June from a year earlier, the best pace in five months, but well below a median forecast in a Reuters poll for a rise of 10.6 percent. Imports also missed expectations, growing by 5.5 percent versus forecasts of 5.8 percent, although they returned to positive territory after a small drop in May. China’s combined exports and imports edged up just 1.2 percent in first six months of the year, data showed on Thursday. "For the economy to rebound in the second half of this year, we believe more policy support is necessary due to the unsteady recovery base," said Wang Jun, economist at the China Centre for International Economic […]

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China to Exempt Electric Cars From 10% Purchase Tax

China will waive a 10 percent purchase tax on electric cars as part of expanded measures to combat pollution and cut energy dependence. New-energy autos — China’s term for electric cars, plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell vehicles — will be excluded from the levy from Sept. 1 to the end of 2017, according to a statement posted on the central government’s website yesterday, citing a State Council meeting led by Premier Li Keqiang . Electric carmaker BYD Co. (1211) climbed as much as 4.5 percent in Hong Kong trading. The tax break is China’s latest attempt to spur demand for electric vehicles, whose sales have lagged behind a government target, as state subsidies failed to overcome consumer concerns over price, convenience and reliability. China has identified EVs as a strategic industry that can help it gain global leadership, reduce energy dependence and cut emissions that have contributed to worsening air […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple