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DOE approves LNG exports to non-FTA countries from Oregon project

The US Department of Energy conditionally approved Jordan Cove Energy Project LP’s application to export LNG through its proposed terminal on Oregon’s coast to countries that do not have a free-trade agreement with the US. The project near Coos Bay will be permitted to ship overseas as much as the 800 MMcfd of gas equivalent for 20 years subject to environmental review and final regulatory approvals, DOE’s Fossil Energy Office said in its Mar. 24 order . Federal law assumes that gas exports to countries having an FTA with the US are in the national interest. For those that don’t have an FTA, DOE must make a determination before they are permitted. DOE also said it has decided that the Jordan Cover project’s request for LNG export authorization to non-FTA countries was in the US national interest after considering possible economic, energy security, and environmental impacts, and reviewing more […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Russia Is Slowly Turning The NatGas Tap Off To Europe

While Naftogaz (Ukraine’s gas pipeline operator) states that all gas transportation from Russia to Europe is running normally, Bloomberg reports that Russian natgas exports to Europe are declining. Shipments are down over 4% from the prior week and also lower to Ukraine . This ‘adjustment’ follows increased sanctions by the West as Medvedev’s notable statement this morning that Ukraine owes Russia $16bn. NatGas output is tumbling The good news: Gazprom today said natgas transit to Europe via Ukraine, supplies for Ukrainian consumption   But Pay Up… Ukraine owes Russia $11b after collapse of 2010 deal, Russian Prime Minsiter Dmitry Medvedev says to President Vladimir Putin at Security Council meeting, according to transcript on Kremlin website.   Medvedev adds $3b Ukraine bonds bought in Dec., ~$2b debt to Gazprom for natgas supplies   NOTE: In 2010, Russia agreed to sell natgas at discount in exchange for extending lease to Black […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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London sees energy security through shale

British Energy Secretary Michael Fallon said the British economy needs to rely more on domestic energy reserves like shale gas for national security’s sake. "We have to develop more home grown energy like shale," Fallon said in an interview with the Sunday Telegraph. The British Geological Survey in June estimated the Bowland shale formation in the north of the country contains 1.3 quadrillion cubic feet of natural gas. The government says shale could ensure energy security for a country where net natural gas imports are on pace to increase from 45 percent of demand in 2011 to 76 percent by 2030. Protesters last year staged several demonstrations to protest shale operations. The practice is seen as a threat to the environment. The newspaper reported the British economy has relied on imported natural gas since output from the North Sea began its decline in 2005. Fallon said Russia’s grip on […]

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Sinopec Is in Talks to Buy Up to 15% Stake in Petronas LNG Project

Sinopec’s logo at its headquarters in Beijing. The Chinese company is in talks to buy a stake in a LNG project in Canada. Corp. is in talks with Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd. to buy up to 15% of a liquefied-natural-gas project on Canada’s western coast, people familiar with the matter said Wednesday. The Pacific Northwest LNG project is an export terminal planned for an undeveloped island in northern British Columbia, which was acquired by Petronas in 2012 as part of its 5.5 billion Canadian dollar (US$4.9 billion) purchase of Canada’s Progress Energy Resources Corp. The terminal could begin operating as soon as 2018 and will have the capacity to export 12 million metric tons of LNG a year. Petronas has been selling stakes in Pacific Northwest LNG’s reserves and output to raise funds for its development, which could cost as much as C$11 billion. The company has sold 10% […]

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CNPC JV Starts Shale Gas Development in Sichuan

A joint venture of China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and domestic companies has started drilling its first shale gas well in the southwest Sichuan province, CNPC said on Wednesday. Sichuan Changning Natural Gas Development Co last week started drilling the Changning H3-6 well in Changning block and is expected to finish drilling in 70 days, CNPC said on its website (news.cnpc.com.cn). Sichuan Changning Natural Gas Development Co was founded in Dec 2013 by CNPC, Sichuan Energy Investment Co, Yibin State Assets Operation Co and a Beijing investment fund. The company is China’s first joint venture by an oil major and domestic companies dedicated for shale gas development, it said. CNPC, parent of PetroChina , plans to drill some 50 shale gas wells in Changning block this year. Shale gas production in Changning block is expected to be 1.0 billion cubic metres in 2015, it […]

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China’s Shale Gas Development Potential

; China’s potential in shale gas production is nearly as staggering as its potential growth in demand  for natural gas. The U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that China possesses by far the world’s largest reserves of technically recoverable shale gas. Although China’s shale gas industry is not as advanced  as the United States’, it could be the most advanced outside of North America. China’s target is to produce 60 billion to 100 billion cubic meters of shale gas by 2020, but there are severe limitations to hitting the target. China is more likely to produce somewhere around 25 billion cubic meters of shale gas by then. In total, China will realistically be able to access 275 billion cubic meters to perhaps 300 […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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U.S. Gas Exports Unlikely to Ease Tensions Over Ukraine

LONDON—Natural gas exports from the U.S. are unlikely to help ease the tensions between Europe and Russia over Ukraine as the first such shipments are about two years away, a senior executive from oil and gas company BG Group PLC said Tuesday. The U.S. has vast supplies of cheap natural gas thanks to the fracking boom and could become one of the world’s top three exporters of liquefied natural gas by 2025, BG said. Over the past week, some U.S. politicians have urged the Obama administration to speed up oil and natural gas exports to weaken Russia’s hand over Ukraine. Russia supplies about 30% of Europe’s gas requirements, half of which transit via Ukraine, a factor some believe has stifled European opposition to Russia’s annexation of Crimea. Federal law places heavy restrictions on U.S. companies from exporting natural gas to countries, like those in Europe, that aren’t among its […]

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China Could Lose Deal in Iran’s South Pars Gas Field

China could lose a $4.7 billion contract to develop Iran’s giant South Pars gas field if delays on the project persist, an Iranian deputy oil minister said. The warning comes as Iran’s oil minister, Bijan Zanganeh, has vowed to shake up the country’s largest industry, which has suffered years of decline thanks to mismanagement and the effect of international sanctions. State-owned China National Petroleum Corp. was awarded a $4.7 billion project in South Pars in 2009, after international pressure forced France’s SA to pull out. The South Pars field is the largest gas reservoir in the world not mixed with oil. But in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Mansour Moazami, Iran’s deputy oil minister for planning, said there had been "many, many, many delays for the contract in South Pars." "We are giving a first warning, a second warning. Maybe in the end, we will terminate the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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China Could Lose Deal in Iran's South Pars Gas Field

China could lose a $4.7 billion contract to develop Iran’s giant South Pars gas field if delays on the project persist, an Iranian deputy oil minister said. The warning comes as Iran’s oil minister, Bijan Zanganeh, has vowed to shake up the country’s largest industry, which has suffered years of decline thanks to mismanagement and the effect of international sanctions. State-owned China National Petroleum Corp. was awarded a $4.7 billion project in South Pars in 2009, after international pressure forced France’s SA to pull out. The South Pars field is the largest gas reservoir in the world not mixed with oil. But in an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Mansour Moazami, Iran’s deputy oil minister for planning, said there had been "many, many, many delays for the contract in South Pars." "We are giving a first warning, a second warning. Maybe in the end, we will terminate the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple