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Foreign suppliers maintain ties as crude sales to US fall, study says

WASHINGTON, DC, Apr. 28 International producers are keeping relations with the US strong despite its plunging crude oil imports as production from domestic tight shales climbs, research by 16 University of Texas at Austin master’s degree candidates found. Overseas crude producers are quickly finding new customers in China and elsewhere, said Peter Marton, one of the participants in a year-long graduate course examining implications of unconventional oil and gas production technologies for US national security at UT-Austin’s Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law. “Common concerns about security implications are somewhat overstated,” Marton said during an Apr. 30 briefing at the UT system office in Washington, DC. “There’s a cherished idea by some that oil specially permeates US foreign policy. But even under the most optimistic domestic shale production forecast, the US still will import oil.” During the public policy study , students worked on-campus and abroad […]

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Canada’s crude oil exports reached record high in January

Canada’s crude oil exports set a monthly record with an average of 3.11 million b/d in January, the country’s National Energy Board reported. The total was 12.8% higher than a year earlier and 80% higher than January 2010. Volumes exported to the Gulf Coast “increased significantly” in 2014, in part due to commissioning of several pipeline projects. NEB said the Gulf Coast holds significant long-term potential as a market for western Canadian crude oil, particularly heavy grades. Conventional oil production has seen “moderate growth” in recent years, but is expected to decline this year due to lower oil prices, NEB said. Increased demand for domestic crude in Canadian refineries since 2011 indicates that oil sands production is driving crude oil export increases ( OGJ Online, Mar. 31, 2015 ). Related Articles

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Shell Pushes on with Arctic Exploration as it Awaits US Permit

LONDON, April 30 (Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell is pushing ahead with plans to explore for oil in the Arctic Ocean near Alaska this summer despite opposition from environmental groups. The Anglo-Dutch oil major is preparing "an armada of 25 vessels" to begin a two-year programme to explore two to three wells in the Chukchi Sea off the coast of Alaska, Chief Financial Officer Simon Henry said on Thursday. "We are currently on track. Some of the permits are issued at the last moment," he told reporters. Although Shell had to pull out of the region in 2012 after an oil rig ran aground, the Arctic oil reserve "remains a massive value opportunity," Simon said. Shell has submitted plans to explore the Arctic to the U.S. Interior Department after the Obama administration last month upheld a 2008 Arctic lease sale, clearing an important hurdle for Shell. The Department of […]

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Whiting Would Add Rigs If Oil Prices Hit $70 Per Barrel

WILLISTON, N.D., April 30 (Reuters) – Whiting Petroleum Corp., the top oil producer in North Dakota, plans to keep 11 drilling rigs operating through 2016, though it would add "a couple of rigs" if crude prices rise to $70 a barrel, its chief executive said on Thursday. The comments from CEO Jim Volker were among the most definitive yet from a leader of a big crude producer on what threshold is needed to start fresh drilling and curb recent pullbacks that have rocked the oil sector since prices started to drop last summer. Thus far this quarter, executives at industry peers have sent mixed messages on adding new rigs. Hess Corp, for example, does not plan to add any rigs this year, while Pioneer Natural Resources Co told Reuters last week that it was considering adding rigs in the near future. Oil prices have gained more than 15 percent […]

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U.S. shale firms revive hedging as oil rebounds, may vex OPEC

NEW YORK (Reuters) – U.S. oil producers are rushing to take advantage of the rebound in oil markets by locking in prices for next year and beyond, safeguarding future supplies and possibly paving the way for a rebound in production. The flurry of hedging activity in the past month will help sustain producers’ revenues even if oil markets tumble again, which is bad news for OPEC nations, such as Saudi Arabia, that are counting on low prices to stunt the rapid rise of U.S. shale and other competitors. Oil drillers are racing to buy protection for 2016 and 2017 in the form of three-way collars and other options, according to four market sources familiar with the money flows. In some cases, that means guaranteeing a price of no less than $45 a barrel while capping potential revenues at $70. U.S. crude futures traded just below $60 a barrel on […]

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Exxon profit slips but beats forecasts on refining, output

(Reuters) – Exxon Mobil Corp’s first-quarter profit dropped less than expected in results posted on Thursday as margins at the refining unit of the world’s largest publicly traded oil company surged on tumbling crude prices. While pure exploration and production companies have been stung by low prices, integrated companies such as Exxon and Royal Dutch Shell are relying on their refining units to bolster their bottom lines. A 50 percent drop in crude prices since June has slashed the costs of feedstock for refiners. "It was a strong quarter (for Exxon)," said Brian Youngberg, analyst at Edward Jones in Saint Louis. "Their diversified model tends to hold up better in a weaker oil market and that is seen in this quarter." Shares of Exxon rose 0.2 percent to $88.05 early Thursday afternoon. The Irving, Texas-based company earned a first-quarter profit of $4.9 billion, or $1.17 per share, down 46 […]

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North Dakota Overhauls Tax on Oil Producers

Oil pumps in McKenzie County, in western North Dakota, earlier this year. Photo: Matthew Brown/Associated Press North Dakota is revamping the way it taxes the oil industry amid the recent slump in oil prices, aiming to tone down big fluctuations in tax revenue. The state, the second-largest oil producer after Texas, is already experiencing lower revenue because of falling oil prices. Republican Gov. Jack Dalrymple late Wednesday signed a tax-overhaul bill that was passed in the final days of the legislative session, as concern grew that the state could miss out further on oil-tax collections because of a provision that drops a tax rate to zero for most wells when prices stay below a certain threshold. North Dakota’s tax system was designed more than two decades ago to give oil producers an incentive to keep pumping during price slumps. But the boom of recent years means that changes in […]

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US, Canada to jointly announce crude-by-rail regulations Friday

US and Canadian officials on Friday will jointly announce new tank car safety standards for trains carrying crude oil, ethanol and other flammable liquids, the US Department of Transportation said Thursday. The announcement came as seven Democratic US senators introduced a bill that would impose a $175/car fee on shippers using older DOT-111 tank cars, adding to the chorus of lawmakers pressuring the Obama administration to finalize its long-anticipated crude-by-rail regulations. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx and Canadian Transport Minister Lisa Raitt will be meeting Friday in Washington to harmonize standards between the two countries, according to sources. US regulators have been criticized for how long it has taken to finalize crude-by-rail safety rules first proposed in July, as oil train derailments continue to make headlines. Article continues below… Oilgram News brings you fast-breaking global petroleum and gas news on and including: Industry players, upstream and downstream markets, refineries, midstream […]

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Tesla launches line of Li-ion stationary storage systems for homes and businesses: POWERWALL and POWERPACK

« ITF report finds self-driving shared vehicles could take up to 90% of cars off city streets; total kilometers travelled increases | Main As widely expected, Tesla CEO Elon Musk unveiled the company’s new product line: scalable stationary battery systems for homes, businesses and beyond. Available for immediate order on the Tesla Web site (teslaenergy.com or teslamotors.com/powerwall) is the modular wall-mounted POWERWALL system, which is targeted at homes and perhaps some small commercial applications, Musk said. Delivery is projected for sometime later this summer (3-4 months from now.) The sleek, sculpture-like Li-ion packs come in 7 kWh ($3,000) and 10 kWh ($3,500) configurations. Both are guaranteed for 10 years (with an optional 10-year extension), and can be combined to up to 9 units—i.e., up to 90 kWh of storage. The packs contain all the integrated safety systems, the liquid thermal control and the DC/DC converter, and work with solar […]

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Tesla CEO Elon Musk Unveils Line of Home and Industrial Battery Packs

ENLARGE CEO Elon Musk unveils a suite of batteries at Tesla’s design studios in Hawthorne, Calif., on Thursday. Photo: Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images HAWTHORNE, Calif.— Tesla Motors Inc. TSLA -2.75 % Chief Executive Elon Musk unveiled a line of home and industrial battery packs late Thursday, representing a strategic shift as his money-losing electric car company tries to break into a crowded energy storage market. More than just a splashy evening party in a giant hangar at Tesla’s Southern California design studios, the event was the 43-year-old billionaire’s attempt to bring attention to an alternative business unit that has long been under development. Mr. Musk says “power wall” batteries—ranging from a $3,000 7 kilowatt-hour wall-mounted unit to a $3,500 10 kwh unit—cost far less than the going rate for large-scale batteries and can be easier to install. Tesla aims to begin delivering units by the summer from its car factory […]

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