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Truckers Gain From Diesel’s Drop After Gasoline Plunge: Freight

Chris Bortz has seen the cost of gasoline for his car drop by almost half since June. The price of diesel used by his construction business has lagged behind. That’s about to change as sliding farm demand after the U.S. harvest and milder weather brings diesel, nearly identical to heating oil, more in line with gasoline. Government forecasts show the fuel dropping to $2.73 a gallon by June. The average retail price slipped below $3 this week for the first time in four years. Diesel’s drop will aid everyone from truckers to industrial users such as Bortz, chief executive officer of Towne Construction Services in Batavia, Ohio , which uses 300,000 gallons of diesel a year. Haulers have cut fuel surcharges to shippers, lowering the cost of delivering two-thirds of retail goods in the U.S. “Truckers are going to love this,” Phil Flynn, senior market analyst at Price Futures […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Clean Power to Shrug Off Oil Slump, Goldman, Deutsche Bank Say

Spending on renewable energy, which surged 16 percent in 2014, will remain strong this year, largely unaffected by the slumping oil prices that have artificially depressed their shares. That’s the message from Stuart Bernstein, Goldman Sachs Group Inc.’s global head of clean technology and renewables, and Vishal Shah, Deutsche Bank AG’s renewable-energy analyst. Because oil produces only 1 percent of U.S. electricity, the crude plunge that’s roiling markets should have only a “modest” effect on clean-energy developers or the companies that equip them, Bernstein said in a telephone interview. “I don’t want to be dismissive of the impact of declining oil and gas commodity prices on renewable energy,” Bernstein said. “But they will have a very small impact on the long-term cost of electricity.” Clean energy attracted a total of $310 billion in investment last year, up from $268 billion in 2013 and the first increase in three years, […]

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Schlumberger latest casualty of oil price decline

Oil services company Schlumberger forced to revise its plans moving forward in low oil price environment. (UPI/Shutterstock/Lilac Mountain) "In this uncertain environment, we continue to focus on what we can control," Chief Executive Paal Kibsgaard said in a statement. "We have already taken a number of actions to restructure and resize our organization that has led us to record a number of charges in the fourth quarter." Low oil prices are forcing international energy companies to trim their spending plans for 2015. The pull back is spilling over to secondary sectors, with U.S. Steel, which makes pipe for the energy industry, and oil services company Halliburton already announcing layoffs . Kibsgaard said full-year revenue of $48.6 billion was a 7 percent increase from 2013 and marked the fifth straight year of growth. Performance was driven in large part by operations in North America, and marginally by work in the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Gas exports down for Canada

Canadian energy sector getting pinched by low commodity prices and the U.S. shale boom. Photo by Kodda/Shutterstock The Canadian government said exports of natural gas to the United States were 5 percent lower year-on-year thanks in part to the U.S. shale boom. Pipeline exports to the United States averaged 7.3 billion cubic feet per day during the first 10 months of last year, a 5 percent decline from the same period in 2013. "Exports have declined steadily since 2008," the National Energy Board said in a Thursday release. "A combination of factors contributed to this, the largest being the emergence of highly productive shale gas plays in the U.S. located close to markets traditionally served in part by Canadian exports." Canadian leaders have said that, with the United States relying more and more on its own energy reserves, it’s time to start courting potential Asian consumers. Analysis published last […]

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Range Resources makes most of low price climate

Shale company Range Resources trims budget, but maintains optimism on success in Marcellus shale. Photo by photostock77/Shutterstock U.S. shale leader Range Resources said it trimmed 2015 spending plans by more than 30 percent, but was betting on Marcellus shale for continued success. Low commodity prices are forcing major energy companies to revisit their spending plans for 2015. Range, which has headquarters in Texas, said it was trimming its capital budget from $1.3 billion to $870 million in response to "the continuing erosion in commodity prices." Last year, the company said it added nearly 2.4 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves , driven largely by developments in the Marcellus shale play near Pennsylvania. "Concentration of its operations in the Marcellus, coupled with continuing operating efficiencies and now anticipated cost reductions, allows Range to target 20 percent production growth for 2015 with this revised capital budget," the company said. Energy consultant […]

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Cheaper Heating Oil Fuels Billions in Savings in Northeast

ENLARGE A sharp drop in the price of crude oil has also brought down heating oil costs, potentially saving billions of dollars this winter for the estimated 6.2 million homes that use the fuel for warmth. Here, a heating-oil delivery to a home in Westwood, Mass., this past week. Gretchen Ertl for The Wall Street Journal On top of the broad savings Americans are reaping from cheaper gasoline, plummeting oil prices stand to bring residents in the Northeast billions more in savings this winter when they fill up their home heating-oil tanks. An estimated 6.2 million U.S. homes rely on heating oil for seasonal warmth, the vast majority in the Northeast. The region—stretching from Maryland to Maine—accounts for about 87% of the heating fuel’s use, according to federal data. The fuel is delivered by truck and pumped into storage tanks, which are often in the basement. Heating a house […]

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U.S. Lobbyists Turning Down Heat on Oil Exports

ENLARGE U.S. Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas) addresses the second annual Conservative Policy Summit at the Heritage Foundation Jan. 12 in Washington, DC. Getty Images For months, the nation’s oil and natural-gas industry has been urging Congress and the Obama administration to lift the decades-old ban on oil exports, arguing that doing so would bring jobs and geopolitical leverage to the U.S. Now, however, with an energy bill being debated in Congress for the first time in years, industry officials are urging lawmakers to wait, saying they want more time to lobby before senators cast votes. The issue is arising now because the Senate is debating the Keystone XL pipeline under a process in which senators are being allowed to offer a wide range of amendments on various energy issues. Sen. Ted Cruz (R., Texas), whose home state produces nearly 40% of all U.S. oil, is sponsoring an amendment […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Low crude prices could tamp down Seaway pipeline shipments: Enterprise exec

Freeport, Texas (Platts)–16Jan2015/446 pm EST/2146 GMT Current low crude oil prices could tamp down shipments on the new 450,000 b/d Seaway "twin" pipeline to the US Gulf Coast, which came online in December and is now running at about half that capacity, Jim Teague, chief operating officer for Seaway operator Enterprise Products Partners, said Friday. The "twin" pipeline parallels and augments the original 400,000 b/d Seaway pipeline, which was reversed and put into service in 2012, connecting the oil storage hub at Cushing, Oklahoma, with US Gulf Coast refining markets. "I wouldn’t be surprised to see [Seaway] run at current capacity" because of lower prices, Teague told reporters during a commemorative event at the Jones Creek terminal near Freeport, Texas. Even though oil prices have dropped 50% from the mid-2014 recent peak of $107/barrel in the US, "I think [shippers] want" pipe capacity, for the options it provides to […]

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Amid US Oil Price Crash, Cost Cutting Ripples Through Industry

URL: http://www.rigzone.com/news/oil_gas/a/136796/Amid_US_Oil_Price_Crash_Cost_Cutting_Ripples_Through_Industry NEW YORK, Jan 16 (Reuters) – Any lingering doubt about the depth of the crisis facing the U.S. energy industry is quickly evaporating as even the biggest firms slash spending amid the steepest oil price crash since the recession, sending ripples across the vast sector. In a stark sign of how a sudden, 60 percent drop in oil prices is biting, oil services giant Schlumberger Ltd on Thursday said it will reduce spending this year by 25 percent and fire 9,000 workers worldwide, surprising investors with the size of the cuts. As activity slows and drillers idle rigs at the fastest pace in more than 20 years, the magnitude and speed of the changes are surprising firms that provide some of the raw materials and equipment essential to drilling that even two months ago hoped to dodge the ill effects of the slowdown. "There is total chaos […]

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Bulgaria: We’re here to serve EU energy

With Russia’s role in the European energy community questioned, Bulgaria presents itself as an important energy security cog. (UPI/Shutterstock/Igor Golovniov) Bulgaria can serve as an important energy bridge for members of the European Union, Bulgarian Foreign Minister Daniel Mitov said. Bulgaria’s decision in August to back away from the South Stream natural gas pipeline, envisioned by Russian energy company Gazprom, led in part to a derailment of the project. This week, the country’s prime minister told European leaders Bulgaria could become a common gas distribution center for EU member states in the region. Meeting in Washington, the Bulgarian foreign minister told U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry energy security for Europe was a top concern for the government in Sofia. "Our common goal is to attract investments to guarantee supply and distribution, as well as to build interconnectivity with neighboring countries," he said Thursday. South Stream was meant to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple