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Plug Pulled on Venezuela’s Sale of Citgo

ENLARGE Citgo-branded gas stations weren’t part of the sales process. Reuters A sale process for Venezuela’s Citgo Petroleum Corp. has been called off, and the U.S.-based oil refiner instead plans a debt sale that would raise funds for the cash-strapped country. The auction was scrapped in recent days after several suitors submitted bids in early December, people familiar with the matter said. Citgo is now planning to raise $2.5 billion in debt instead, one of the people said. The sales process could be restarted later. Corporate auctions are rare in the immediate aftermath of such recapitalization deals, however, and the added debt could make the company less attractive to suitors too. Citgo, which operates three U.S. oil refineries and related assets from its Houston headquarters, was expected to fetch between $8 billion and $11 billion should it have been sold, analysts and people close to the sales process have […]

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Libya’s OPEC Governor Kidnapped

ENLARGE Libya’s El Sharara oil field. The country’s OPEC governor was kidnapped last week in the militia-held capital of Tripoli. Reuters DUBAI—Libya’s OPEC Governor Samir Kamal was kidnapped last week in the militia-held capital of Tripoli, two officials familiar with the matter said Tuesday, as turmoil continues to ravage the north African country almost four years after the collapse of its central government. Mr. Kamal, who is also the head of the planning department at the Tripoli-based government’s oil ministry, was last seen Thursday, said one official at the National Oil Corp., or NOC. “Nobody knows why [he was kidnapped],” the official said. “Some people know where he is,” he added. Another NOC official confirmed that Mr. Kamal was missing, but declined to give further details. No one has claimed responsibility for his kidnapping. Kidnappings have become common in Libya, where oil fields have been seized by armed groups […]

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China denies being world’s No.1 economy

BEIJING, Jan. 20 (Xinhua) — Claims that China has overtaken the United States as the world’s largest economy were denied by the head of China’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Tuesday. "The NBS does not countenance these claims by some scholars and media organizations," said bureau head Ma Jiantang at a press conference in Beijing. A study last year by the International Comparison Program (ICP) projected that China would overtake the U.S. in 2014 based on purchasing power parity (PPP), which measures GDP in terms of prices of the same goods between nations. PPP takes into account the purchasing power of a currency rather than market exchange rates. Roughly, how many family cars, Big Mac’s, units of electricity or university educations can one person’s salary buy in one nation, as opposed to another person’s salary in a different country. "The NBS also took part in the study, which […]

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Halliburton, Baker Hughes to lay off thousands as oil slumps

(Reuters) – Oilfield service providers Baker Hughes Inc and Halliburton Co plan to cut thousands of jobs as drilling activity slows further due to a steep fall in crude oil prices. Global oil prices have tumbled almost 60 percent since June, hitting five-year lows as growing production and tepid global demand has caused a supply glut and prompted oil producers to scale back spending. "We expect our headcount adjustments to be in line with our primary competitors," Halliburton’s Chief Operating Officer Jeffrey Miller said on a post-earnings call on Tuesday, without giving a specific number. The company, which employees more than 80,000 people, said it cut 1,000 jobs in its operations in the eastern hemisphere in the fourth quarter. Baker Hughes, which is being acquired by Halliburton in a near-$35 billion deal, said earlier in the day it would lay off 7,000 employees. Shares of Halliburton and Baker Hughes […]

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Democrats Push Back With Keystone Export and Steel Amendments

“The project now would simply pump American oil across the American heartland — not to… Read More Photographer: Andrew Harrer/Bloomberg Senate Democrats said Tuesday they’ll push amendments to legislation approving the Keystone XL pipeline requiring that it’s built with domestically produced steel and that the oil it carries is used in the U.S. “The project now would simply pump American oil across the American heartland — not to be used here — but to be shipped overseas,” Senator Charles Schumer of New York , the Senate’s third-ranking Democrat, said at a news conference. With polls showing a majority of voters supporting Keystone, Democrats have sought to undermine its purported benefits to the U.S. They argue that the oil from Alberta is destined for overseas markets — an assertion disputed by pipeline builder TransCanada Corp. (TRP) Republicans have made circumventing President Barack Obama ’s review of the Keystone project, by […]

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Schlumberger to Pay $1.7 Billion for Stake in Russia Driller

Schlumberger Ltd. (SLB) will pay $1.7 billion for a stake in Eurasia Drilling Co. (EDCL) , a bet by the world’s largest oilfield services provider that economic sanctions won’t hold back Russia’s energy industry. Schlumberger, based in Houston and Paris, will pay $22 a share for a 46.45 percent holding in London-traded Eurasia Drilling, according to a statement today. Schlumberger has an option to buy the rest of the company’s shares three years after the deal closes. By buying into Russia’s largest driller, Schlumberger is putting aside concerns about economic sanctions and the state of the country’s economy. The deal comes as the slide in the crude price to less than $50 a barrel spurs consolidation in the services industry as demand for rigs drops and oil producers lean on suppliers to drive down costs. “Schlumberger believes that the sanctions will be lifted sooner or later, and the company […]

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Historic slide for U.S. gasoline nearing its end

Gasoline prices for U.S. consumers may reverse a long decline by mid-February as refiners switch to summer grades. File Photo by A.J. Sisco/UPI WASHINGTON, Jan. 20 (UPI) — Though gasoline prices continue to fall nation-wide, a fuels analyst said Tuesday the trend may reverse as U.S. refineries start entering a maintenance phase. Motor club AAA reports a national average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline at $2.05, a slight decline from Monday but $1.23 less than this date in 2014. Half of all states are reporting averages below the $2 mark, with Missouri posting the lowest price at $1.76 per gallon. The low price at the pump is a reflection of crude oil prices, which are off more than 50 percent from their June values. While the low price of oil is leaving producers and those in secondary energy industries struggling, low gasoline prices are seen as […]

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Baker Hughes predicts rough 2015

Oil services company Baker Hughes expects challenges in 2015 as oil prices continue trading in bear market. (UPI/Shutterstock/Lilac Mountain) HOUSTON, Jan. 20 (UPI) — Lower oil prices since mid-2014 are expected to damage this year’s finances, though progress is steady, U.S. oil services company Baker Hughes said Tuesday. Baker Hughes said it had a record year, with full-year revenues of $24.6 billion coming in 10 percent above 2013 levels. Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Martin Craighead said fourth quarter results only punctuated the full-year performance. With oil prices off more than half of their June values, however, Craighead said to expect challenges ahead. While demand is holding steady, the number of rigs exploring for or producing oil is declining as company’s pull back in the bear mark. Craighhead said that would "clearly" impact the revenue stream for 2015. "We are taking proactive steps to manage the business through these […]

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Total to cut capital spending by 10% amid oil price rout

A Total SA petrol station is seen in Paris, France Total , the French oil and gas giant, plans to reduce group-wide capital spending by 10 per cent this year and speed up billions of dollars in asset disposals, under an accelerated cost-cutting plan led by new chief executive Patrick Pouyanné . The move comes as thousands more job cuts were announced in the energy industry on Tuesday, with Baker Hughes , the oilfield services provider being acquired by Halliburton in a $26.8bn deal, saying that it would lay off 7,000 employees. Global crude prices have tumbled nearly 60 per cent since June to trade at less than $49 a barrel, as a result of weaker growth in demand for oil, booming US shale production and Opec’s decision in November not to cut output. In a Financial Times interview, Mr Pouyanné — appointed to the top role at Total […]

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Texas RRC oil and Gas Production Data

The Texas Railroad Comission  has released their oil and gas production data for November. As most of you know, the Texas RRC data is always incomplete. Some data is updated immediately but the rest trickles in slowly, sometimes taking many months to years to complete. Nevertheless we can glean some indication of what is happening from what data is reported. That is, if production is increasing, then the incomplete month to month data should be increasing. And it is, but very slowly. The last data point in all charts below is November 2014 and the oil is in barrels per day. Texas crude only is still increasing but the increase rate seems to be slowing down. Texas RRC Condensate It is rather hard to tell what condensate is doing but the rate if increase, if any, seems to be slowing. Texas RRC C+C Combining the two we see a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple