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OPEC’s Family Feud

Photo illustration: 731; Photographs: Alamy When Venezuelan Oil Minister Juan Pablo Pérez Alfonso resigned in 1963, he blasted the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, at the time torn by internal rivalries, for failing to produce any benefits for his country. Half a century later, OPEC is still split and Venezuela is again unhappy, this time at the unwillingness of the organization’s top producer, Saudi Arabia, to rescue oil prices from a six-year low that’s dragging the battered Venezuelan economy into an even deeper crisis. On Sept. 10, Venezuela’s oil minister, Eulogio del Pino, tweeted appeals for OPEC and non-OPEC countries “to have a discussion on fair prices, minimum prices to ensure sustainability” and to “overcome our differences of opinion.” Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro said on Sept. 16 that he was making progress on organizing a summit of petroleum exporting countries to have that discussion. OPEC member Algeria is backing […]

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U.S., China to Announce Steps to Fight Climate Change

U.S. President Barack Obama with Chinese President Xi Jinping on the White House grounds Thursday. The U.S. and China on Friday will announce significant steps in their efforts to combat climate change, including a pledge by China to launch a program by 2017 to cap some emissions and put a price on carbon, senior Obama administration officials said Thursday. The announcements will detail the two countries’ strategies for reaching emissions targets and aim to bolster efforts to complete an international accord to reduce global carbon-dioxide emissions, which is meant to be wrapped up in December. The Obama administration officials, touting a new era of U.S.-China climate diplomacy, said the statement would demonstrate to the world the countries’ commitment to reaching agreed-upon targets. Chinese President Xi Jinping ’s decision to put a price on CO2 emissions with a cap-and-trade system marks the first time China has launched such an initiative. […]

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Transocean Cited in Petrobras Carwash Corruption Investigation

Transocean Ltd., the world’s largest offshore rig contractor, is being linked for the first time to the corruption probe of Petroleo Brasileiro SA, the state-owned energy giant at the center of Brazil’s biggest corporate scandal. A former executive at Brazil’s state-run oil company has testified to receiving what he says were payments made by someone claiming to be a Transocean agent in exchange for a rig-operation contract from Petrobras. “Transocean has a long-standing commitment to and upholds the highest standards for corporate ethics and compliance,” the company said in an e-mailed response. “Our employees — and everyone conducting business on our behalf — are required to adhere to our high standards for integrity, honesty, financial discipline and legal and regulatory compliance.” As a result of the probe into the alleged pay-to-play scheme, known as Carwash, Petrobras has temporarily blocked more than 20 suppliers from future work with the oil […]

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Engie Executive Says Nobody Is Making Money off U.S. Gas Exports

Just as gas export-terminals are preparing to start up along America’s Gulf Coast, the oil-price crash has made it unprofitable to send the U.S. fuel abroad, according to the North America head of power and natural gas supplier Engie. It costs about $2 to liquefy gas and another $3 to take it from the U.S. to Asia, said Zin Smati, president and chief executive officer of Engie’s GDF Suez Energy North America. Engie changed its name from GDF Suez SA in April. Those costs used to leave plenty of profit margin when the gap between LNG prices in Asia and natural gas in the U.S. was more than $14 per million British thermal units. Now, the spread is less than $5, according to data compiled by Bloomberg. “You cannot ship gas from the United States anymore,” Smati said at the Council of the Americas energy conference at Rice University […]

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North Dakota panel approves plan to delay gas flaring limits

The North Dakota Industrial Commission approved Thursday an industry proposal to delay further cuts to associated gas flaring until at least October 2016. The proposal, from the North Dakota Petroleum Council, is needed due to the lack of new gas capture and pipeline infrastructure, which have been delayed for a variety of reasons, including low oil and gas prices, right-of-way disputes and pad size limitations, the council argued. Under a state mandate the commission approved in 2014, operators were required to reach a set of benchmarks to limit flaring over time, including 15% by 2016 and 10% by 2020. Producers would face production curtailment penalties if they fail to meet those flaring reduction benchmarks. But according to the industry group, operators are unable to reach the upcoming 15% benchmark and want it pushed back to at least October 2016. The three-member commission, which includes North Dakota Governor Jack Dalrymple, […]

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Can Part-Time Work Minimize the Number of Layoffs in Oil, Gas?

The latter part of 2014’s plummeting oil prices set the stage for a challenging 2015 and remaining uncertainty for 2016. Companies large and small, independent and integrated, have been affected by the downturn. It seemed like there were layoffs abound in 2015 – more than 150,000 were reported in June . No company was immune. But, despite the downturn, companies have to remain operational. Somewhere in between continual mass layoffs and companies becoming insolvent has to be a middle ground that both companies and workers will accept. Is part-time work the answer? Rigzone explores the possibility. Weighing Options When the industry peaks and exploration and production is up, companies may feel like they have plenty of employees, but once they start trimming employees during a downturn, there’s significantly less people to do the work or any new work that comes about. With the amount of layoffs already reported this […]

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TransCanada Says Cutting 20% Of Senior Management Positions

CALGARY, Alberta, Sept 24 (Reuters) – Pipeline company TransCanada Corp is cutting 20 percent of its senior management positions as a result of the continuing slump in oil prices, a company spokesman said on Thursday. TransCanada is the company behind the controversial and long-delayed Keystone XL pipeline to the United States, and the cross-Canada Energy East project. (Reporting by Nia Williams; Editing by Chris Reese)

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Salt caverns to prevent oil storage shortage: VTTI

Birds fly over storage tanks on a Continental Resources oil production site near Williston, North Dakota January 23, 2015. The world’s oil storage tanks are brimming but there is plenty more space to hand in natural salt caverns and elsewhere, said the head VTTI, a leading player in the sector. The crude price collapse has hit energy companies hard, but oil storage is booming with producers and traders renting tanks and investors snapping up assets. "There is a lot of capacity but there is also a lot of demand," said Rob Nijst, chief executive officer of VTTI, which is half owned by the world’s largest oil trader Vitol. "Everyone wants more storage volumes at the moment." The high volatility in oil prices has offered trading houses such as Vitol, Trafigura, Mercuria, Royal Dutch Shell and BP many opportunities to make money through storage. "The price volatility has been a […]

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The Connection Between Cleaner Air and Longer Lives

Continue reading the main story Slide Show Slide Show|12 Photos A Look Back at the Smog A Look Back at the Smog CreditNeal Boenzi/The New York Times Back in 1970, Los Angeles was known as the smog capital of the world — a notorious example of industrialization largely unfettered by regard for health or the environment. Heavy pollution drove up respiratory and heart problems and shortened lives. But 1970 was also the year the environmental movement held the first Earth Day and when, 45 years ago this month, Congress passed a powerful update of the Clean Air Act . (Soon after, it was signed by President Richard Nixon , and it was followed by the formation of the Environmental Protection Agency and passage of the Clean Water Act, making him one of the most important, though underappreciated, environmentalists in American history.) Since that time, the Clean Air Act has […]

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Native Women Shut Down Pipeline “Consultation”

Montreal — First Nations women and supporters sent a clear message to TransCanada this Wednesday evening that the Energy East pipeline is not welcome through First Nations lands. “What we want TransCanada to understand is that no means no. This is Kanien’ke, this is Mohawk Land and we are tired of occupation, we are tired of environmental disaster.” said Lickers at Wednesday night’s hearing. “This is our land and we are going to protect it.” Amanda Lickers and Vanessa Gray were 2 of several First Nations opponents to the Energy East present to express their outrage at the public hearings hosted by the Communauté métropolitaine de Montréal. The purpose of the hearings is to establish a community report to submit to Office of Public Hearings on the Environment (BAPE) and the National Energy Board (NEB). “But the consultation process does not work”, states Lickers, whose family is from Six […]

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