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BHI: US rig count decline slows; production increases

HOUSTON, Apr. 2 By Matt Zborowski OGJ Staff Writer The US drilling rig count dropped 20 units—with just slightly more than half targeting oil—to settle at 1,028 rigs working during the shortened week ended Apr. 2, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. The rig count decline has noticeably slowed during the last 2 weeks, losing a combined 41 units compared with 56 units over a one-week period 3 weeks ago. The count still has fallen in 17 consecutive weeks, during which time it has plunged 892 units ( OGJ Online, Dec. 5, 2014 ). The total of 1,028 is the lowest count since Oct. 2, 2009, and 790 fewer units compared with this week a year ago. Despite the continued declines, Rystad Energy estimates US annual oil production —crude oil plus lease condensate—will peak at 9.7 million b/d in September assuming WTI stays at $55/bbl on average for […]

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NRDC: Oil, gas violations largely unreported

A report from environmental advocacy group finds enforcement not keeping pace with shale oil and natural gas production in the United States. Photo by Christopher Halloran/Shutterstock NEW YORK, April 2 (UPI) — A report from the Natural Resources Defense Council finds "it is virtually certain" oil and gas violations are never reported because of inadequate enforcement. NRDC published a report Thursday that says not all violations of oil and natural gas safeguards are detected. "It is virtually certain that some violations are never detected due to inadequate enforcement resources," the report read. "These violations remain unknown to regulators and the public." Colorado, one of the states with an emerging shale oil and gas sector, had fewer than 40 inspection staff on hand to survey more than 52,000 wells. The state’s crude oil production from 2007-13 rose 146 percent thanks in part to the Niobrara shale reserve area, which holds […]

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AAA: Gas prices moving lower

Gas prices should move lower in the months ahead, with households each saving about $100 per month, motor club AAA says. File Photo by hxdbzxy/Shutterstock. WASHINGTON, April 2 (UPI) — If crude oil prices remain low as expected, the national average price for a gallon of gasoline in the United States will drift back toward $2, AAA said. The national average retail price of $2.40 per gallon has stayed relatively unchanged for a month. The price on this date in 2014 was $3.56 per gallon. AAA said it doesn’t expect the price to move above the $3 mark this year. "There is a real hope that gas prices could drop significantly in time for the busy summer driving season," AAA spokesman Avery Ash said in a statement. "The overall outlook looks good for drivers, and with any luck we will avoid the types of problems that often lead to […]

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Permian shale gas pipeline to Mexico announced

ONOEK Partners announces plans to build pipeline to carry gas from the Permian shale basin in Texas to the Mexican market. UPI/Hamid Forotan/ISNA TULSA, Okla., April 2 (UPI) — A new 200-mile long pipeline will carry natural gas from a shale basin in Texas to an international connection at the Mexican border, ONEOK Partners announced. The company, which has headquarters in Oklahoma, said it formed a joint venture with Mexican gas transmission company Fermaca Infrastructure to build the Roadrunner pipeline that would transport gas from the Permian shale basin in Texas to the Mexican market. "We see Roadrunner as a gateway asset that will connect Mexico’s rapidly growing natural gas markets with U.S. producers in the developing Permian basin," ONEOK President and Chief Executive Officer Terry Spencer said in a statement. Roadrunner will extend 200 miles from ONEOK’s existing WesTex gas transmission system in Texas to an international connection […]

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Shell responds to federal decision on Alaskan waters

Shell reviews next steps offshore Alaska after federal government weighs in on 2008 lease sale. Photo by Kyle Waters/Shutterstock ANCHORAGE, Alaska, April 2 (UPI) — Shell said there are a series of contingencies to consider after a U.S. federal decision to reaffirm a lease for the arctic waters off the coast of Alaska. The Department of Interior this week affirmed a 2008 lease sale for exploration in the Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska. The decision clears the way for a formal review of exploration plans in the region, which will include an environmental analysis. The lease was tied in up the court system amid complaints about the extent of environmental vetting. Shell, which devoted about $5 billion and more than eight years of work for its arctic oil exploration off Alaska’s coast in the Chukchi and Beaufort seas, said the decision clears the way for a review […]

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Goldman Sachs: US needs to cut, not OPEC

The onus for restoring the oil price back to an equilibrium lies squarely on the shoulders of countries like the U.S. and not on the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), a top Goldman Sachs analyst told CNBC. Michele Della Vigna, head of European energy research at Goldman Sachs, said non-OPEC oil producers had created the oversupply in the market which has weighed on prices. “I think the market has realized that where we need to find the adjustment is onshore U.S. and that’s where the market is focused,” he told CNBC Thursday. “The adjustment is starting to happen there. Clearly an OPEC cut would help getting to the equilibrium faster, but at the end of the day, it is non-OPEC that needs to sort out the oversupply that it has created.” Getty Images Weak global demand and booming U.S. shale oil production are seen as two key […]

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Oil retreats from large jump as focus returns to Iran talks

SINGAPORE (Reuters) – Oil futures fell on Thursday, retreating from big gains in the previous session, as the prospect that any deal in nuclear talks with Tehran and a possible increase in its crude exports helped to keep pressure on prices. Major powers and Iran have stretched talks on Tehran’s nuclear program into a second day past an end-March deadline, with diplomats saying the chances for a preliminary deal were balanced between success and collapse. Both Brent and U.S crude prices snapped three-session losing streaks on Wednesday, gaining $2 or more after data from the Energy Information Administration (EIA) showed a fall in rigs drilling for oil resulted in a drop in U.S. output last week for the first time since late-December. Brent crude for May delivery LCOc1 was down 46 cents at $56.64 a barrel by 3.06 a.m. ET. The contract had settled $1.99 higher on Wednesday. U.S. […]

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EIA: OPEC’s net oil export revenues declined 11% in 2014

Members of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, excluding Iran, earned $730 billion in net oil export revenues during 2014, according to estimates from the US Energy Information Administration . The total—the lowest earnings for the group since 2010—is an 11% decline from $824 billion in 2013, primarily due to the decline in average annual crude oil prices , and to a lesser extent from decreases in the amount of OPEC net oil exports, EIA says. Saudi Arabia earned the largest share of the earnings—$246 billion in 2014—representing one third of total OPEC oil revenues. Iran’s revenues are excluded from the total because of difficulties associated with estimating that country’s earnings, including its inability to receive payments and possible price discounts offered to existing customers. OPEC net oil export revenues, excluding Iran, could fall further to $380 billion in 2015 as a result of the much lower annual oil […]

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Iran talks stretch into another day; deal seen close, but elusive

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (Reuters) – Major powers and Iran negotiated into the early hours of Thursday on Tehran’s nuclear program two days past their deadline, with diplomats saying prospects for a preliminary agreement were finely balanced between success and collapse. The negotiations, aimed at blocking Iran’s capacity to build a nuclear bomb in exchange for lifting sanctions, have become bogged down over crucial details of the accord, even as the broad outlines of an agreement have been reached. After negotiators passed an original self-imposed deadline of midnight on Tuesday, they remained locked in talks through to the early hours of Thursday in the Swiss city of Lausanne. "It is going to be long," said a senior diplomat. "That was truly an all-nighter," Marie Harf, spokeswoman for U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry, said on her Twitter account, noting negotiators broke up at 6.00 a.m local time (0400 GMT) and would […]

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Iran sees progress; talks to resume after all-night session

LAUSANNE, Switzerland (AP) — Iran’s foreign minister says his country and six others have made "significant progress" at marathon all-night nuclear talk sessions meant to reach a preliminary understanding on the curbs Tehran must accept on atomic activities in exchange for a lifting of sanctions. But Mohammad Javad Zarif said Thursday that agreement still remains to be written, adding there is not yet a "final result." Asked if that would be possible during the day, Iranian nuclear chief Ali Akbar Salehi said "the sunrise is just ahead." The negotiators want to issue a joint statement outlining general political commitments to resolve concerns about Iran’s nuclear program, and the pace of lifting sanctions. They are also trying to fashion more detailed documents on the steps they must take by June 30 to meet those goals.

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