Category:

Brent rises in response to Chinese data

Cut in Chinese interest rates gives lift to crude oil prices in early Friday trading. UPI/Brian Kersey Brent for January delivery increased nearly $1.50 early Friday to trade near the $81 mark, recovering from last week’s first yearly slump below the psychological threshold of $80 per barrel. Crude oil prices this week rose amid tensions over the status of multilateral talks over Iran’s nuclear program and in expectation of production talks next week by members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. The surprise slip into recession for the Japanese economy put a further dent on oil prices to start the week, though Chinese inflation moves pushed Brent prices higher. The Central Bank in Beijing said it was lowering its benchmark interest rate for one-year deposits by 25 points and for lending by 40 points, starting Saturday. It’s the first such move since July 2012 and comes at a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Confused OPEC Watchers Are More Divided Than Ever

To understand just how contentious next week’s OPEC meeting will be, take a look at the confusion it’s created among professionals paid to predict the outcome. The 20 analysts surveyed this week by Bloomberg are perfectly divided, with half forecasting the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will cut supply on Nov. 27 in Vienna to stem a plunge in prices while the other half expect no change. In the seven years since the surveys began, it’s the first time participants were evenly split. The only episode that created a similar debate was the OPEC meeting in late 2007, when crude was soaring to a record. The split now reflects the difficult choice OPEC nations have to make. They could cut output to revive crude prices from a four-year low, at the risk of losing more market share to rival suppliers, including U.S. shale drillers. Or they could do nothing […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Natural Gas Futures Retreat on Warmer Forecasts

By Timothy Puko NEW YORK–Natural gas prices have given back nearly two days of gains Friday in a strong response to slightly warmer weather forecasts. Natural gas for December delivery fell 14.6 cents, or 3.3%, to $4.343 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Losses had been as much as 4% Friday. Natural gas prices have had one-day losses larger than 4% only twice in four months. Weather forecasts have pulled back from predictions for a fiercely cold start to December. While the change hasn’t been dramatic, small changes can make a big difference, said Kyle Cooper, managing director of research at IAF Advisors, a Houston consulting firm. Slightly warmer temperatures can both lessen demand for home heating and ensure gas drillers can keep working outside, increasing production, he said. "You really do have this exponentially impactful (supply-and-demand) implication," Mr. Cooper said. Gas had hit […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

TAPI to get project developer by early 2015

Parties to a gas pipeline from Turkmenistan agree to set wheels in motion by early 2015. UPI/Hamid Forotan/ISNA The four parties to the Turkmenistan- Afghanistan -Pakistan-India natural gas pipeline want to have a credible operator in place for the $10 billion project by the time members of the steering committee meet again in Islamabad in February. "All sides agreed that steps will be taken to start the project by 2015," project leaders said in a statement. French energy company Total was mentioned as a possible consortium leader, though it balked after Turkmenistan refused to offer it a stake in the Galkynysh natural gas field near the border of Afghanistan. It’s one of the largest gas fields in the world, with an estimated 925 trillion cubic feet of reserves, and is designated to feed the multilateral pipeline . None of the state-led companies in either of the countries involved have […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

China, in Surprise Move to Prop Up Economy, Cuts Interest Rates

HONG KONG — China’s central bank on Friday announced a surprise cut to interest rates, in the clearest sign yet that policy makers are growing increasingly concerned the country’s economic slowdown. Despite numerous signs that growth has been flagging, China’s leadership for months has refrained from any broad-based economic stimulus measures as policy makers tried to push through a package of ambitious financial overhauls. Instead, they opted for piecemeal efforts like injecting money into big banks. The overarching message was that Beijing was willing to tolerate slower growth to make way for more sustainable development. But China is now rethinking that message. China’s action comes at a time of growing worries over the global growth. Japan is now in a recession. Growth in Europe has stagnated. The global weakness has raised concerns that the ongoing recovery in the United States could falter. The rate cut helped buoy stocks around […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

China Opens Up on Oil Reserves

4728 Votes China Opens Up on Oil Reserves China is lifting some of the secrecy around its stockpiling of oil reserves, as it disclosed for the first time that the first phase of its strategic petroleum reserves contains about 91 million barrels. The disclosure on Thursday follows a pledge by President Xi Jinping to provide regular updates on the size of its emergency stockpile. China’s National Bureau of Statistics said that phase one of its strategic petroleum reserves contained 12.43 million metric tons of oil, or about 91 million barrels, across four sites. The statement didn’t disclose the size of its second or third phases of reserves. By contrast, the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve has a capacity of 727 million barrels. China consumes about 10 million barrels a day. China intends to construct facilities that can hold up to 500 million barrels of oil by 2020, according to the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Getting in on the Water Rush

4728 Votes Getting in on the Water Rush Scramble for groundwater lures driller back into business Among critics of our society’s reliance on petrochemicals, there’s long been talk that we are nearing “peak oil” — the beginning of the end of oil reserves. Then came the fracking bonanza, and — bam! — U.S. oil supplies gained a new lease on life. The peak oil buzz died down. Maybe the critics should be talking about “peak water” in the San Joaquin Valley instead. Growers pumped out huge amounts this past summer to keep their productivity up amid drought, and they’re likely to do so again in 2015 — if they can afford it. Everybody paying attention to the situation senses that the game will be up for the Valley’s powerhouse agricultural machine if extreme drought continues, but few know it as clearly as Hanford resident Robert Carvalho. The wily 75-year-old businessman has worn a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

The 153-Year-Old Oil Well That Produces Nonstop in Boom and Bust

About 70 miles north of Pittsburgh, a pothole-pocked dirt road along the side of a warehouse leads to a solitary oil well, undisturbed by the recent plunge in crude prices. McClintock No. 1, the world’s oldest continually producing oil well, is still going after 153 years, quietly churning out about 1/10 of a barrel each day from a small spot in a clearing of trees. Crude bubbles up from this 625-foot chasm regardless of the swings in oil prices, which have slid 30 percent in the past five months amid a glut in global supply. On its best days, McClintock yielded about 175 barrels. It’s survived through all the industry’s highs and lows, from busts that sent prices below $1 per barrel during the Great Depression to booms that sent them over $140 in 2008. The well’s output today is sold to a fuel company to make motor oil, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Obama’s Punt on Renewable Fuel Sets Up Fights in Court, Congress

The Obama administration’s decision to put off issuing quotas for the use of renewable fuels this year sets up fights in Congress and the courts over a program that’s been bitterly contested for nearly a decade. The delay, announced today by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, follows months of fighting between refiners and ethanol producers over a proposal by the agency to lower the quotas for ethanol, biodiesel and cellulosic fuels. With the EPA nearly a year late in setting the mandates for 2014 under a Bush-era law, fuel blenders were left scratching their heads all year over how much of the additive they were supposed to be using. “The powers that be in Washington always tend to procrastinate, but this has been getting ridiculous,” Pavel Molchanov , an analyst at Raymond James & Associates, said in a research note. “There is no precedent for this.” The 2005 law […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

WTI price no shale threat

Crude oil prices not yet leading to severe downturn in shale oil production from the United States. (UPI/Shutterstock/Lilac Mountain) HOUSTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) — The slump in crude oil prices hasn’t yet resulted in a slowdown in production from shale basins in the United States, analysis finds. Crude oil prices have fallen to the point that some major companies have trimmed their investment forecasts . It’s more expensive to drill into shale basins in the United States than elsewhere in the world and the price may be approaching a point where explorers need to cut back . "While current lower crude oil prices do present challenges for new investment, IHS analysis shows that the vast majority of potential U.S. supply growth in 2015 remain economical at $70 for West Texas Intermediate [the U.S. benchmark price]," Jim Burkhard, vice president at IHS Energy, said in a Thursday statement sent to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

EIA reviewing crude oil export ban

U.S. federal energy agency says a new oil import tracking tool is part of an assessment on policies restricting exports. (UPI/Shutterstock/ekina) WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) — The U.S. Energy Information Administration said an oil import tracking tool is meant to assess the impact of a "possible relaxation" of export restrictions. U.S. crude oil imports have declined steadily since 2010, as output from domestic shale basins increase. In a weekly petroleum report, EIA said U.S. oil production was around 9 million barrels per day. EIA said in a brief announcing the oil import tool it’s meant highlight the internal market response to growing domestic crude oil production. "It is one part of EIA’s ongoing effort to assess the effects of a possible relaxation of current limitations on U.S. crude oil exports, which is another avenue to accommodate domestic production growth," the administration said in its Thursday brief. "EIA is undertaking […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

AAA: Much of holiday travel expense goes to fuel

Low gasoline prices means most Americans will have something to be thankful for this coming holiday travel season, AAA finds. UPI/Bill Greenblatt WASHINGTON, Nov. 21 (UPI) — Though most traveling Americans will give thanks this year to low gas prices, much of the expense of holiday travel goes to fuel costs, motor club AAA said. AAA expects more than 46 million people will travel more than 50 miles from home this upcoming Thanksgiving, a 4.2 percent increase from last year and the highest level since 2007. Of those, nearly 90 percent of those will drive and find something to be thankful for with low gasoline prices. "Holiday joy has come early this year with Americans likely to pay the lowest Thanksgiving gas prices since 2009," AAA President and Chief Operating Officer Marshall Doney said in a statement Thursday. "Lower prices are increasing disposable income and enabling families to carve […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

NERC highlights power generation fuel concerns in winter assessment

Home | News & Analysis | Latest News Headlines | NERC highlights power generation fuel concerns in winter assessment Washington (Platts)–21Nov2014/415 pm EST/2115 GMT With more natural gas-fired generation being used by the power industry and fuel delivery concerns for generators heading into winter, the North American Electric Reliability Corp. on Friday made several recommendations for improving power grid reliability. The recommendations are part of NERC’s annual winter reliability assessment, which finds that coal delivery issues and interruptible gas supplies for generators can lead to reliability concerns, even during winter, which is not a peak electricity demand season in most of the US and Canada. The report points out that NERC ran extreme weather scenarios based on conditions similar to the polar vortex event in January, finding that existing resources can meet electricity demand under those scenarios. However, reserve margins decrease significantly and such events could potentially impact bulk […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

EPA won’t finalize RFS’s 2014 biofuel quotas before yearend

WASHINGTON, DC, Nov. 21 11/21/2014 By Nick Snow OGJ Washington Editor The US Environmental Protection Agency announced it will not finalize 2014 biofuel quotas under the federal Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) before yearend. The American Petroleum Institute and American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers each said EPA’s Nov. 21 announcement demonstrates again that it’s time for Congress to repeal or dramatically reform the RFS. “In light of this delay in issuing the 2014 RFS standards, the compliance demonstration deadline for the 2013 RFS standards will take place in 2015,” EPA said in its notice. “EPA will be making modifications to the EPA-Moderated Transaction System (EMTS) to ensure that Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) generated in 2012 are valid for demonstrating compliance with the 2013 applicable standard,” it said. The quotas were established under the 2007 Energy Independence and Security Act. API and AFPM have each argued the standards are no longer […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Pennsylvania Benefits from Oil, Gas Extraction in the State

Fracking for oil and natural gas in Pennsylvania is creating a significant amount of economic stimulus for the state in the form of new jobs and funding that will help pay for infrastructure, according to the Pennsylvania Business Daily. And while there is some resistance from activists, Pennsylvania communities are becoming more open to drilling in the state, according to the Pennsylvania Independent Oil and Natural Gas Association Director of Public Outreach, Dan Weaver. The broader acceptance is a relatively new occurrence, Weaver said. “Four or five years ago, everyone was using scare tactics, saying that there was going to be mass, widespread devastation and everything was going to just go downhill. We’re four or five years later, and there is no mass, widespread devastation,” Weaver said. While devastation has not found its way to the area, employment opportunities have: the drilling is creating thousands of good jobs in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Falling oil prices cloud the forecast for Houston economy

4728 Votes Falling oil prices cloud the forecast for Houston economy The recent sharp drop in oil prices is clouding the region’s economic forecast, potentially threatening to curtail employment growth across industries and perhaps even slow down the multifamily real estate segment, a prominent local economist said Thursday. The sudden change in winds caught Bill Gilmer, director of the Institute for Regional Forecasting at the University of Houston, off-guard. Gilmer said during his semi-annual report on the state of the local economy that he had to alter the presentation he’d had ready several weeks ago as the price of crude tumbled into the mid-$70s. “Things have changed in Houston,” Gilmer told a crowd of more than 900 at the Hyatt Regency downtown. “And they changed fast.” Gilmer didn’t declare doom and gloom and he doesn’t see the region losing a substantial number of jobs any time soon. But he […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Moscow working to save oil face

Kremlin assessing health of oil sector in the face of mounting external economic pressure. UPI/Ivan Vakolenko "Our budget depends very strongly on revenues from the oil industry," he said. "We don’t have such technologies as Saudi Arabia to cut or boost output quickly, but, in general, we’re working inside the government from the viewpoint of the expediency of such methods." Exports of crude oil, petroleum products and natural gas accounted for 68 percent of all export revenues for Russia in 2013. Western powers have sanctioned the Russian energy sector in response to Moscow’s reaction to political upheaval in Ukraine last November, which resulted in the former Soviet republic drawing closer to the European Union. Novak said Russian oil output might be curbed by market mechanisms outside the Western sanction regime. All major oil producers, not just Russia, are feeling some impacts from the bear market for crude oil, he […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Ukraine’s Oct transit of Russian natural gas to Europe down 47.5% on year

Home | News & Analysis | Latest News Headlines | Ukraine’s Oct transit of Russian natural gas to Europe down 47.5% on year Kiev (Platts)–21Nov2014/845 am EST/1345 GMT Ukraine’s transit of natural gas from Russia to Europe fell by 3.5 billion cubic meters in October to 3.87 billion cu m, down 47.5% from 7.37 Bcm in October 2013, an energy and coal industry ministry official said Friday. Gas transit in October also fell 1% from September, when Ukraine moved 3.91 Bcm of gas from Russia to Europe. In January through October, Ukraine’s transit of gas from Russia to Europe dropped by 15.8 Bcm to 54.1 Bcm, down 22.6% from 69.9 Bcm in the same period a year ago, the official said, citing preliminary figures. Ukraine, the main supplier of gas from Russia, is capable of shipping up to 120 Bcm/year of gas to Europe through its pipelines. Russia supplies […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Here’s What The New Era Of Cheap Oil Means For The World’s Major Economies

4728 Votes Here’s What The New Era Of Cheap Oil Means For The World’s Major Economies Brent crude oil prices hit a four-year low in November of $77.83, and Credit Suisse believes sub-$100 prices are  here to stay  for at least the next three years. What does the sudden and sharp decline portend for the world economy? Generally speaking, falling crude oil prices are an importing economy’s paradise and an exporter’s inferno. But the macroeconomic ripple effects are a bit more complicated. The United States and Malaysia, for example, are both importers  and  exporters, meaning that the same macroeconomic trend that benefits ordinary consumers and retailers can be a headwind for energy production and have mixed effects on overall GDP. In emerging markets, countries that subsidize fuel are affected differently than those that do not. To sort it all out, Credit Suisse has detailed what low oil prices mean […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Oil Futures Edge Higher, Brent Pushes Toward $80 a Barrel

By Eric Yep Crude-oil futures extended overnight gains in Asian trade Friday on growing confidence that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries will take action to cut some supply at next week’s meeting. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in January traded at $76.28 a barrel at 0508 GMT, up $0.43 in the Globex electronic session. January Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.29 to $79.62 a barrel. Brent crude has been pushing towards the $80 mark since the last trading session despite weak economic data from China and Europe. However, moderate trading volumes suggest traders are reluctant to make new commitments ahead of the OPEC summit on Nov. 27, analyst Tim Evans at Citi Futures said. Another key event on next week’s calendar is the Nov. 24 deadline for the expiry of Iran’s nuclear agreement. "Although the market has […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

WTI Poised for Weekly Gain as Analysts Divided on OPEC Policy

West Texas Intermediate crude headed for its first weekly advance since September as analysts remain divided on whether OPEC will cut production to support prices that are in a bear market . Brent rose in London . Futures gained as much as 1.3 percent in New York and are up 0.3 percent this week. Half of the 20 analysts surveyed by Bloomberg News predict the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will reduce output, while the rest expect no change. An OPEC sub-committee affirmed the 12-member group’s estimate that demand for its crude will be lower next year, officials who attended the meeting said. Oil has dropped about 30 percent from a June peak as the U.S. pumps at the fastest rate in more than three decades amid signs of weakening demand. Leading OPEC members such as Saudi Arabia are resisting calls to decrease supply while Venezuela and others seek […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

NYMEX December gas closes 11.8 cents higher at $4.489/MMBtu

Knoxville, Tennessee (Platts)–20Nov2014/415 pm EST/2115 GMT The NYMEX December natural gas futures contract rose 11.8 cents to a $4.489/MMBtu settlement Thursday as the market reacted to continued cold weather and the first storage withdrawal of the season, which also came in slightly above expectations. It was a volatile day for the front month. The contract spiked immediately after the US Energy Information Administration reported a storage withdrawal of 17 Bcf — the first net draw of the season. The pull was higher than the 9-13 Bcf most analysts had predicted as well as the 10 Bcf five-year average draw, and left stocks at 3.594 Tcf for the week ended November 14. But the contract later dipped to the day low before rising again in the last hour of trading. "There are still a lot of day traders in the market. I’m guessing that pullback was no more than long […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Oil and currency markets reflect expectations for lower global economic growth

Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration, based on Bloomberg Note: The U.S. dollar index measures the value of the U.S. dollar against a basket of six currencies’ exchange rates: the euro, Japanese yen, British pound, Canadian dollar, Swiss franc, and Swedish krona. An increase in the index means the dollar is appreciating against these currencies. March 1973=100. Front month = the near-month contract for Brent crude oil energy futures prices. Since August, both crude oil and currency markets have been influenced by lower economic growth expectations in countries outside the United States . Prices in both markets recently broke out of established trading ranges, driven by concerns about weaker future global demand. The current situation, with the dollar index and oil prices moving in opposite directions, presents a sharp contrast to one in which crude oil supply disruptions or geopolitical risks would cause both the dollar index and crude prices […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Confused OPEC Watchers Are More Divided Than Ever

To understand just how contentious next week’s OPEC meeting will be, take a look at the confusion it’s created among professionals paid to predict the outcome. The 20 analysts surveyed this week by Bloomberg are perfectly divided, with half forecasting the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will cut supply on Nov. 27 in Vienna to stem a plunge in prices while the other half expect no change. In the seven years since the surveys began, it’s the first time participants were evenly split. The only episode that created a similar debate was the OPEC meeting in late 2007, when crude was soaring to a record. The split now reflects the difficult choice OPEC nations have to make. They could cut output to revive crude prices from a four-year low, at the risk of losing more market share to rival suppliers, including U.S. shale drillers. Or they could do nothing […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Iran Vows to Guard Oil-Market Share as OPEC to Review Output

Iran will protect its share of global crude sales under all circumstances, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said, as OPEC members prepare to meet next week to review production levels. The Persian Gulf nation can double oil exports in two months if sanctions against are removed, Zanganeh said, according to the ministry’s news website Shana. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries will gather on Nov. 27 in Vienna to assess its collective output amid a supply glut and a 30 percent drop in prices this year. Iran’s crude output has languished under international economic sanctions that deter foreign energy investors and limit its exports to approximately 1 million barrels a day. “Under no circumstance will Iran decrease its share of the global market, not even by one barrel,” Shana cited him as saying. OPEC producers are stepping up diplomatic visits before their meeting, discussing how to react to the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

A Nuclear Deal Is Likely to Hit Hurdles in Iran

TEHRAN — Far from the flashing cameras and microphones in Vienna, where Secretary of State John Kerry is joining Iranian and United States diplomats in a final push to reach a compromise on Tehran’s nuclear program , a different sort of political drama unfolded in the Iranian capital this week: Hard-liners got together to criticize the objects of their “worries,” as they put it, the moderates advocating a deal. “My brothers, we are in danger,” one of the conference organizers, Ali Hassanzadeh, told the audience, as a video portrayed the moderate president, Hassan Rouhani, and his negotiators as gullible tools of the United States. In Iran , the final decision on a nuclear deal lies with Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , the supreme leader. And if history is an accurate guide, the real debate over an accord, should one be reached, will not begin to unfold until after it is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Iraq’s oil leaders signal cooperation

Iraqi Oil Minister Adil Abdulmahdi (third from left) and KRG Minister of Natural Resources Ashti Hawrami (second from right) on a panel with U.S. diplomats and oil industry leaders at the Atlantic Council’s Energy and Economic Summit on Nov. 20, 2014. (Source: Adil Abdulmahdi) Iraqi leaders are implementing a temporary oil export deal, sparking unusually conciliatory dialogue and rare optimism among the country’s top oil policymakers.Iraqi Oil Minister Adil Abdulmahdi and Ashti Hawrami, the minister of natural resources of Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), made a joint appearance Thursday at the Atlantic Council Summit in Istanbul, expressing willingness to find solutions to the country’s decade-long disputes over oil."Oil since the founda… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription or sign up for a free trial .

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Israel pitches ‘massive’ natural gas pipeline plan to Europe

4727 Votes Israel pitches ‘massive’ natural gas pipeline plan to Europe Israel has proposed that EU countries invest in a multi-billion euro pipeline to carry its natural gas to the continent, noting that the supply from Israel would reduce Europe’s current dependence on natural gas from Russia. A proposal for the “massive” project was introduced by Israel’s Energy Minister Silvan Shalom to energy ministers from Euro-Mediterranean countries who met in Rome earlier this week, Israel’s Channel 2 reported on Thursday. It said the project would require a multi-billion euro investment from Europe to build a pipeline from Israel’s Mediterranean cost to Cyprus, from where the gas would be carried on to Greece and Italy. The TV report said Cyprus, Greece and Italy were all supportive of the idea, and that Israel would make a formal presentation of the project to European representatives in Brussels in three weeks’ time. Gas rigs in the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

BP closer to bringing Azeri natural gas to Europe

BP continues with development contracts for Azeri gas field meant to break Russia’s grips on the European energy sector. UPI/Maryam Rahmanian TORONTO, Nov. 20 (UPI) — A Canadian pipeline company said it secured a $200 million contract from BP to help develop the second phase of the Shah Deniz gas field off the Azeri coast. ShawCor Ltd., which has headquarters in Toronto, said its pipe coating division secured the contract for work at a plant in Baku , the capital of Azerbaijan. The contract is the second development contract awarded by BP for work in Azerbaijan this month. Energy services company Emerson Process Management secured a $40 million contract from BP to provide control and safety systems for an onshore terminal associated with Shah Deniz BP has awarded more than $1 billion in development contracts since selecting the Trans-Adriatic pipeline as its option for Shah Deniz last year. TAP […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

U.S. lauds TAPI natural gas pipeline progress

U.S. welcomes creating of joint venture entity to steer development of a gas pipeline stretching east from Turkmenistan. UPI/Hamid Forotan The governments of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan , India and Pakistan last week created a joint venture project to steer a pipeline that would send natural gas eastward from Turkmenistan. "The United States government welcomes the establishment of TAPI Ltd. and the ongoing commitment all four countries have made to the project," an unnamed State Department official was quoted by the Press Trust of India as saying Wednesday. Twice during press conferences this week, State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke sidestepped questions on the project , saying he did not have the information on hand. Pakistani and Afghan leaders met separately this week to discuss implementation of the project, with Afghan President Ashraf Ghani saying it would ensure multilateral economic development . The government of Turkmenistan is hosting its Afghan, Pakistan and […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

China discloses status of strategic oil reserves

China unveils data on fledgling strategic petroleum reserve program. (UPI/Shutterstock/sakhorn) The National Bureau of Statistics said Thursday the first phase of an oil reserve project was completed and in service with enough oil on hand for nine days of energy needs. The first phase consists of four basins and is part of an oil reserve program launched in 2004 . The government said the program is part of a way to offset oil supply risks and reduce the impact to fluctuating energy prices globally. The petroleum reserve is modeled after the U.S. strategic petroleum reserve, which holds more than 700 million barrels in spare capacity in salt caverns along the southern Gulf Coast. In October, the Wall Street Journal reported state-run China National Petroleum Corp. was taking advantage of the bear market for crude oil by buying up dozens of cargoes of crude oil to stock its fledgling strategic […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

In Step to Lower Carbon Emissions, China Will Place a Limit on Coal Use in 2020

BEIJING — China plans to set a cap on coal consumption in 2020, an important step for the country in trying to achieve a recently announced goa l of having carbon dioxide emissions peak by around 2030. The State Council, China’s cabinet, released details of an energy strategy late Wednesday that includes capping coal consumption at 4.2 billion tons in 2020 and having coal be no more than 62 percent of the primary energy mix by that year. Worldwide, coal burning for industrial use is the largest source of carbon dioxide emissions, which are the biggest catalyst of global climate change. China is the biggest emitter of greenhouses gases in the world, and it uses as much coal each year as the rest of the world combined. In theory, coal consumption might increase beyond 2020, but some researchers say economic trends show the rate of growth in coal use […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Shots fired in U.S. oil export row

Upstream and downstream leaders spar over U.S. oil export policies. UPI/A.J. Sisco.. Claims that easing U.S. oil export restrictions won’t have economic benefits go against peer-reviewed studies, the head of an oil producers coalition said. An increase in U.S. oil production has led to calls from industry leaders and their supporters to ease restrictions placed on exports. Crude oil exports are restricted under legislation enacted in response to the oil embargo from Arab members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries in the 1970s. George Baker, executive director of the Producers for American Crude Oil Exports, said multiple studies have shown lifting the ban would have widespread economic benefits. "Any claim to the contrary goes against the findings of, among others, the Brookings Institution , IHS Energy, the Dallas Federal Reserve Bank, and the U.S. Government Accountability Office," he said in a statement sent Wednesday to UPI. "Moreover, such […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Shale revolutionary for United Kingdom, company boss says

Momentum is building behind fledgling British shale natural gas industry. UPI/Gary C. Caskey Ineos Chairman Jim Ratcliffe unveiled preliminary plans to give momentum to the fledgling British shale natural gas industry. At a Thursday conference, the chairman said substantial investments could follow developments in shale . "I believe shale gas could revolutionize U.K. manufacturing, and I know Ineos has the resources to make it happen, the skills to extract the gas safely and the vision to realize that everyone must share in the rewards," he said. Ineos acquired shale exploration and development licenses near a power plant a few hundred miles from the Scottish capital, Edinburgh. The British Geological Survey said the available reserves there are "modest." The emerging shale industry in the country has been met with opposition from environmental activists concerned about the fallout from the controversial drilling practice known as hydraulic fracturing, or fracking, as well […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

North Dakota Breaks Records for Oil & Gas Activity – Sep. 2014

Bakken Oil Workers | Click to Enlarge The State of North Dakota hit 1,184,635 b/d oil in September 2014, setting a new record, according to the Department of Mineral Resources’ (DMR) November  Director’s Cut . That’s 50,000 more b/d than August. During the same month, North Dakota also had record monthly gas production (1,403,448 mcf/d), and reported the highest number of producing wells to date (11,741). But this month, the state’s record breaking oil and gas activity is overshadowed by falling crude oil prices. September was a relatively good month for oil at ~93.00 on average for a barrel of West Texas Intermediate (WTI), but prices have dropped nearly ~$20 in the last two months. According to the DMR’s report, released on November 14, 2014, the current rig count is down 15% in the states five most active counties: Divide – down 54% Dunn – down 29% McKenzie – down 4% Mountrail […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

BBVA Compass: The Texas Economy Can Handle $70-80/bbl Crude Oil Prices

Crude oil prices have weakened considerably in recent months, generating jitters about how far they might fall, and what lower crude oil prices could do to the overall economy, particularly in energy states like Texas. However, even a protracted period with prices at current levels is unlikely to put the Texas economy in a major tailspin the way it would have in the past, according to a new report by BBVA Compass. The reason, BBVA Compass said, is that urban areas in the state, like Houston, have become more diversified than they once were, and generally depend on more than one sector of the economy for support.   The oil and gas industry remains a vital part of the Texas economy, and worries began to surface as West Texas Intermediate (WTI) slid from over $100/bbl in June to the mid-$70s/bbl in October, about where it has remained. However, because […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Apache to Sell $1.4B in Non-Core US Assets

Apache will sell non-core assets in southern Louisiana and the Anadarko Basin for $1.4 billion as part of its strategic focus on its growing liquids production. Apache Corp. will sell non-core oil and gas assets in southern Louisiana and the Anadarko Basin in two transactions valued at approximately $1.4 billion as the company focuses on growing its North American onshore liquids production. The Houston-based company will sell its working interest in approximately 90,000 net acres of mature fields in southern Louisiana. Production from these fields, which have high decline rates and short reserve lives, produced around 21,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day – of which 62 percent was natural gas and natural gas liquids (NGL) – net to Apache during this year’s third quarter. Apache will retain its 275,000 mineral acres in southern Louisiana. In the Anadarko Basin, Apache will sell approximately 115,000 net acres in part of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

A cleaner way to get petroleum out of oil sands

4727 Votes The secret to business is buy low and sell high. Canadian holding company MCW Energy Group hopes to do that by economically separating the petroleum from oil sands and then selling it at market rates of double to triple the processing costs. The company uses a patented closed-loop technology that treats the sands with a solvent that helps remove the oil. The oil and solvent are separated, with the latter recycled for the next batch of production. According to CEO Gerald Bailey, the finished sand is 99.9 percent clean and can be put back on the ground. The company currently has 1,000 acres in Vernal, Utah, about a 173-mile drive east of Salt Lake City. “Those sands run about 12 percent oil,” said Bailey, who has a doctorate in chemical engineering. “It looks like black sand. You can pick it up and it’s dry, but it’s dirty […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Russia-China Gas Deals Could Kill America’s Dream Of Natural Gas Exports

4727 Votes Russia and China have signed  two large natural gas deals  in the last six months as Russia turns its attention to China, in reaction to sanctions and souring relations with Europe, currently Russia’s largest energy export market. But the move has implications beyond Europe. In the department of everything is connected, U.S. natural gas producers may be seeing their dream of substantial liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports suffer fatal injury because of Russian exports to the Chinese market, a market that was expected to be the largest and most profitable for LNG exporters. Petroleum geologist and consultant  Art Berman –who has been consistently skeptical of the viability of U.S. LNG exports–communicated in an email that Russian supply will force the price of LNG delivered to Asia down to between $10 and $11, too low for American LNG exports to be profitable. Now, let’s back up a little. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Russia has little to offer in oil price war

* Russia needs oil price of $100 to balance budget * Oil prices at four-year low of $78 * Rosneft CEO, Energy Minister to Vienna before OPEC meeting * Russia can’t cut output, has no storage to limit exports By Katya Golubkova, Gleb Gorodyankin and Gleb Stolyarov MOSCOW, Nov 20 (Reuters) – Russia can do little to shore up slumping global prices even if OPEC wants it to. Russian wells will freeze if they stop pumping oil, and the country cannot store the output it would otherwise export. Before next week’s meeting of OPEC, Russia has already spoken to group member Venezuela about the need to "coordinate actions in defence" of oil prices and it plans to send a high-ranking delegation to press the message. But despite needing oil prices of $100 a barrel to balance its budget, Russia has changed little since 2008 when the Organization of the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Shell May Close Norway Field a Decade Before Target on Oil Slump

Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) may close its Draugen oil field in the Norwegian Sea a decade earlier than in a prior assessment of the area’s potential lifespan because of rising costs and a slump in oil prices . Europe’s biggest oil company expects production in the field to extend until 2024 to 2027 after previously estimating a potential of as long as 2036, Odin Estensen, an asset manager at its Norway unit, said yesterday in an interview in Stavanger. “It’s becoming more and more difficult to keep these tail-end fields going,” he said. The cost of operations and upgrades has risen and “when you put the oil-price on top of that, the picture is clear: we’re under pressure,” Estensen said. Shell is among oil companies reining in spending as higher costs in the past decade eroded returns, delaying projects. Oil prices, down by about a third since June, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

WTI Trades Below $75 as U.S. Crude Stockpiles Gain; Brent Steady

West Texas Intermediate traded below $75 a barrel as U.S. crude inventories increased and investors weighed the likelihood of OPEC reducing its production. Brent was steady in London . Futures were little changed in New York after three days of losses. Stockpiles in the U.S., the world’s biggest oil consumer, expanded by 2.6 million barrels to 381.1 million last week, the Energy Information Administration reported yesterday. A decline of 1.5 million was projected in a Bloomberg News survey of analysts. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries should trim excess supply and cut its output target, said Samir Kamal, Libya’s governor to the group. Oil has slumped into a bear market as the U.S. pumps at the fastest rate in more than three decades amid signs of weakening demand. Leading OPEC members are resisting calls to reduce output while others including Venezuela seek action to support prices before a Nov. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Middle East violence pushes oil prices up

Middle East violence pushes Brent crude oil prices up in Wednesday trading. Pictured, volunteer Kurdish Peshmerga fighters take up position against Islamic State militants. UPI/Mohammed al Jumaily Brent crude oil prices for January delivery moved closer to the $80 per barrel mark in early Wednesday trading. At least five people died as the result of a suicide bombing Wednesday in Erbil, the capital of the semiautonomous Kurdish north of Iraq. While no group had issued a claim of responsibility, the region has seen an uptick of violence associated with the group calling itself the Islamic State. The attack comes less than a week after a breakthrough interim agreement reached between the Kurdish and Iraqi governments on oil. Baghdad under the terms of the deal pays $500 million to the Kurdish government, which places 150,000 barrels of oil produced from its territory per day at the disposal of the federal […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Bomb hits Iraqi Kurdish capital

Security forces stand guard outside the Erbil governorate building on Nov. 19, 2014, after a vehicle-borne bomb exploded at a nearby checkpoint. (DANIEL W. SMITH/Iraq Oil Report/Metrography) Iraq Oil Report Recommend 627 people recommend this. Sign Up to see what your friends recommend. A vehicle detonated in downtown Erbil on Wednesday, killing at least four people and injuring at least 29 – the first such attack to hit Iraq’s autonomous Kurdistan region in more than a year.Eyewitnesses to Wednesday’s attack said a Mercedes Benz pulled up to a checkpoint in front of the Erbil governorate building, near the ancient citadel at the center of the city, where the car was halted by guards. The bomb went off at 11:55 a.m.The attack could cause the Kurdistan Regional Governmen… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

IEA Gets Budapest Offer With Paris Lease Expiring in Two Years

The International Energy Agency , the adviser to 29 governments, got an offer to move to Budapest. The lease on its premises in Paris, home since 1974, is due to expire within two years. Hungary is willing to house the IEA for free, according to the official government gazette. The agency employs 240 people, including analysts who produce reports, compile statistics and make policy recommendations on energy issues. The lease on the IEA’s current secretariat expires in 2017, Greg Frost, a spokesman for the organization said by e-mail today. “The IEA and its 29 Members are therefore considering several options for our future accommodation,” he said, without mentioning Budapest. “Any decision on accommodation rests with the IEA Governing Board, and a decision is expected to be taken within the next year.” The IEA was formed in response to the 1970s oil crisis. Its members, including the U.S., Germany and […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Cheap Electricity for Poor Squeezing Out Solar in India

Print Back to story The villagers of Dharnai in northern India had been living without electricity for more than 30 years when Greenpeace installed a microgrid to supply reliable, low-cost solar power. Then, within weeks of the lights flickering on in Dharnai’s mud huts, the government utility hooked up the grid — flooding the community with cheap power that undercut the fledgling solar network. While Greenpeace had come to Dharnai at Bihar’s invitation, the unannounced arrival of the state’s utility threatened to put it out of business. “We wanted to set this up as a business model,” said Abhishek Pratap, a Greenpeace campaigner overseeing the project. “Now we’re in course correction.” It’s a scenario playing out at dozens of ventures across India’s hinterlands. Competition from state utilities, with their erratic yet unbeatably cheap subsidized power, is scuppering efforts to supply clean, modern energy in a country where more people […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Bakken tight oil forecasts

I’ve collected a variety of forecasts for production from the Bakken oil formation, which is mostly in the state of North Dakota, but also stretches west into Montana and north into Canada. These forecasts are all for the U.S. side of the formation. To download the underlying data, go to my  page on Github . As you can see, there are wildly different forecasts from various sources. Some of the lowest I’ve seen come from geologist David Hughes, in two reports he wrote for the Post Carbon Institute. The higher forecasts generally come from what can loosely be called the “industry,” including producers, consultancies, and banks. In between are forecasts from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and the North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources (ND DMR). There are also a few other forecasts that were in documents I found online, but which said they could not be used […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple