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PM2.5 density in Chinese cities drops

BEIJING, Oct. 29 (Xinhua) — PM2.5 density, a main measure of air pollution, dropped by 7.9 percent in 74 major Chinese cities in the first half of 2014 compared with the same period last year. The density of PM10, particles under 10 microns in diameter, was down by 6.5 percent, according to a report on the enforcement of the Law on the Prevention and Control of Atmospheric Pollution, which was submitted to the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee, China’s top legislature, for deliberation on Wednesday. China has vowed to strengthen air pollution control. Smog-prone Beijing will adopt a special air pollution control plan for the upcoming APEC meetings, featuring temporary closure of factories in the event of a pollution warning. Shen Yueyue, NPC Standing Committee vice-chairwoman, told lawmakers that China has continuously increased charges for emissions of major pollutants, with charges in key cities such as Beijing and […]

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Five-Year Outlook: North Dakota Oil Production to Grow Steadily

On average, North Dakota oil production, which surged past the 1 million b/d mark earlier this year, will continue to grow steadily at a rate of about 18,000 b/d each month through 2019, according to a study completed in September for the state legislature. Commissioned last year by state lawmakers (see Shale Daily , Oct. 14, 2013 ), Bismarck-based engineering/planning firm Kadrmas, Lee & Jackson (KLJ) completed the work in partnership with North Dakota State University, concluding that daily production could hit the 2 million b/d level during the period. KLJ and the university used three approaches to forecast the sustainability of oil and gas production: economic analysis of the Bakken/Three Forks shale formation; projections on population, employment and housing needs; and potential for enhanced oil recovery (EOR). The study showed that even at $70/bbl oil prices, economic payback times can be kept relatively short (four years and under) […]

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Petrofac goes ultra-deep for Nova Scotia

British oil services company Petrofac to study ultra-deep water reserves off the coast of Nova Scotia. UPI/A.J. Sisco. Nova Scotia tap into potential oil prospects offshore. The provincial government awarded Petrofac with a contract to examine the prospects of oil trapped in the deep waters off the eastern Canadian coast. Nova Scotia’s government estimates there may be as much as 120 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 8 billion barrels of oil offshore. Petrofac said the region is geologically similar to oil basins off the northwest coast of Africa, though reserves offshore Nova Scotia are thought to lie nearly 2 miles below the sea bed in mile-deep waters. Craig Muir, a engineering consultant for Petrofac, said the contract could provide significant returns for the provincial government. "The potential outcomes of this study are of strategic importance for the Nova Scotia government and a great step forward for Petrofac […]

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ONEOK lays foundation in Permian shale

ONEOK buys shale pipeline assets from Chevron affiliates to lay foundation in Texas basin. (UPI/Shutterstock/smereka) Oklahoma-based shale company ONEOK Partners said it gained a solid footprint in the Permian shale basin after buying pipeline and other assets from Chevron. ONEOK Partners paid around $800 million to acquire roughly 2,600 miles of gas pipelines extending from the Permian basin in southeastern New Mexico and East Texas from Chevron Corp. affiliates. ONEOK President and Chief Executive Officer Terry Spencer said the acquisition establishes his company as one of the prime players in the Permian shale . "We are adding another rapidly growing producing region to our operating footprint," he said in a Monday statement. ONEOK describes the Permian basin as the largest shale oil and natural gas basin of its kind in the United States, three times larger than the Bakken formation in North Dakota.

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AAA: High oil production means low gas prices

More than a dozen U.S. states reporting gasoline prices below the $3 mark, motor club AAA reports. (UPI Photo/Ismael Mohamad) WASHINGTON, Oct. 28 (UPI) — Retail gasoline prices have moved steadily lower despite geopolitical tensions thanks in part to high U.S. oil production, motor club AAA reports. AAA reports a national average price of $3.03 per gallon, the lowest national average price in nearly four years and more than 30 cents less than one month ago . Crude oil prices represent about 60 percent of the price at the pump. Both prices would typically rise because of heightened tensions overseas. "Continuing unrest in Iraq and geopolitical tensions in Eastern Europe have taken a backseat to an emerging belief by many market watchers that global supply, including significantly higher oil production in the United States, is outpacing global demand growth," the motor club said in a Monday report. The United […]

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Continental Resource’s Harold Hamm on Falling Oil Prices – Videos

Continental Resources, the Bakken’s second largest producer, will not change its course on new drilling immediately due to falling oil prices, according to its CEO Harold Hamm. In a Platt’s Energy Week interview on Sunday, Hamm said prices would have to fall another 20% before Continental would significantly cut back its operations. Hamm has been making the rounds on TV, also appearing on CNBC, talking about what he believes are some of the reasons behind the drop in oil prices. Hamm points the finger sharply at OPEC, accusing the Saudi’s of using rhetoric to dictate price. Since June of this year, oil prices have been falling, and the reasons why have to do with supply v. demand. The shale oil boom, for instance, has increased the supply of oil worldwide, and demand has gone down in China, the world’s second largest oil consumer. But the main reason oil prices have dropped can […]

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Kerry Wants Keystone Pipeline Decision ‘Sooner Rather Than Later’

OTTAWA, Oct 28 (Reuters) – U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry said on Tuesday during a visit to Canada that he would like to make a decision soon on TransCanada Corp’s Keystone XL crude oil pipeline. TransCanada has waited more than six years for the Obama administration to make a decision on the line, which would take as much as 830,000 barrels per day of Alberta tar sands crude to refineries on Texas’ Gulf Coast. The State Department is now awaiting the results of a court challenge on the line’s routing through Nebraska and completing its own study on the need for the line before it makes a final recommendation to President Barack Obama on whether to grant the project a presidential permit. The permit would allow the line, which faces critcism from environmentalists, to cross from Canada into the United States. While Kerry said he would like a […]

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Kemp: Divided By Shale, Only Some US States Win

John Kemp is a Reuters market analyst. The views expressed are his own LONDON, Oct 27 (Reuters) – Thanks to shale, energy-producing states have been the strongest economic performers in the United States over the past decade, sharply improving their position compared with the energy-consuming states. Only 13 of the 50 states produced more energy than they consumed in 2010, the latest year for which comprehensive data is available, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). The other 37 were all net energy consumers, relying on some combination of interstate commerce or imports to meet the shortfall. The shale revolution and the renaissance in U.S. oil and gas production have resulted in a stark contrast between the fortunes of the two groups. Eight of the 13 energy-producing states improved their relative position between 2003 and 2013 when ranked by per capita gross domestic product. They accounted for almost […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple