BP and Iraq agree on technical terms for redeveloping Kirkuk oilfields
The British oil giant BP announced on Thursday that it had reached an agreement with the Iraqi Government on the technical conditions for redeveloping the Kirkuk Oil and Gas Fields. In August, the company signed an agreement to explore and develop the Kirkuk oilfield located in the north of Iraq. This will include the construction of solar power plants and other energy infrastructure. Sources have said that unlike historic contracts, which offer foreign companies razor thin margins, new agreements will include a generous profit sharing model. Iraq is the second largest oil producer after Saudi Arabia in the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries.
North Dakota oil plants slow to return online after wildfires in October
The state's Industrial Commission reported on Wednesday that oil operators in North Dakota are still working to bring some of their facilities online after wildfires in October swept through counties with significant oil production. According to Justin Kringstad of the North Dakota Pipeline Authority, the outages were limited to isolated production sites such as well pads that experienced local equipment damage, or a loss in electricity due to damaged electrical lines. Mark Bohrer is the assistant director of North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources' oil and gas division.
North Dakota oil operators are still bringing back some facilities online after wildfires in October
The state's Industrial Commission reported on Wednesday that oil operators in North Dakota are still working to bring some of their facilities online after wildfires in October ravaged key oil-producing counties. Mark Bohrer is the assistant director of North Dakota Department of Mineral Resources' oil and gas division. He said that the October production in the state was down by 520,000 bbls. This was primarily due to operators closing in wells in order to prevent damage from wildfires. Bohrer said that the (drop in production) number is significant.
US graphite miners ask Washington to impose tariffs of 920% on Chinese competitors
On Wednesday, North American miners of graphite asked the U.S. Government to impose tariffs as high as 92% on Chinese suppliers for the battery metal to combat what they call Beijing's "malicious" trade practices. This is the latest effort by Western suppliers of critical minerals to counter China's control over the extraction and processing of building blocks used in electric vehicles and electronic devices. Graphite can be produced synthetically or from natural sources. China is the world's largest producer of both types of graphite and has tightened its exports to the U.S. earlier this month.
Oil Climbs After US Crude Stocks Fall
Oil edged up on Wednesday after a drop in U.S. crude inventories, and as investors eyed a potential interest rate cut by the U.S. Federal Reserve while weighing its projections for 2025.Brent futures were up 62 cents, or 0.85%, to $73.81 a barrel at 10:40 a.m. ET, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude was up 86 cents, or 1.23%, to $70.94.U.S. crude stocks and distillate inventories fell while gasoline inventories rose in the week ending Dec. 13, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) said on Wednesday.Crude inventories fell by 934,000 barrels to 421 million barrels in the week…
ADNOC Drilling partners with SLB and Patterson-UTI to form a 'unconventional energy venture'
ADNOC Drilling, a division of the state oil company in the United Arab Emirates, announced on Tuesday that it had signed an agreement for Turnwell Industries - a joint venture between oilfield service firms SLB, Patterson-UTI, and ADNOC Drilling. ADNOC Drilling owns 55% of the company, which was created to access unconventional energy resources such as oil and gas requiring advanced extraction techniques. SLB owns 30% of the company, while Patterson-UTI holds 15%. ADNOC Drilling reported that Abu Dhabi is estimated to have 220 billion barrels unconventional oil and 460 trillion cubic feet of unconventional natural gas.
Oil Falls as Chinese Demand Sags, Fed Ponders Rate Cut
Oil futures slipped from the highest levels in several weeks on Monday on weakness in consumer spending in China, which is the world's largest oil importer, and as investors paused buying ahead of the U.S. Federal Reserve's interest rate decision.Brent crude futures fell 39 cents to $74.10 a barrel by 1:10 p.m EST, after settling on Friday at their highest since Nov. 22.U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude shed 35 cents to $70.94 after registering its highest close since Nov. 7 in the previous session.Last week, oil benefited from the expectation that supply would tighten with additional sanctions on crude producers Russia and Iran, while possible lower interest rates in the U.S.
Sources say that the US study is likely to refrain from concluding that LNG exports are not in the public interest.
Two industry sources familiar with the matter said that the administration of President Joe Biden will release a report on Tuesday regarding the export of liquefied gas. The study is not expected to conclude that the trade does not serve the public's interest. Biden halted in January the Department of Energy’s approvals of U.S. LNG imports to major consumers in Asia, Europe and the Middle East in order to allow his administration to study the economic and environmental impacts of this booming industry. Donald Trump, the president-elect, has stated that he is against this pause and will act quickly to reverse it.
Phillips 66 sells stake in Texas pipeline to $865 million
Phillips 66 announced on Monday that it will sell its 25% stake of the Gulf Coast Express pipeline, located in Texas, to an ArcLight Capital Partners affiliate for $865 millions. This puts the U.S. refiner in a position to surpass its asset sale goal. Phillips 66, despite a decline in refinery profits, has chosen to maintain stable payouts for investors by reducing costs and setting a target of $3 billion via non-core assets sales. Before Monday's announcement, the company had already sold fuel stations, pipelines and a share in a joint venture retailing in Switzerland to raise $2.7billion.
Arcius Energy, a joint venture between BP and ADNOC’s XRG, will supply Egypt's gas.
BP and Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s international investment arm XRG announced on Monday that they had closed a deal to create a natural gas joint-venture in Egypt. ADNOC is expanding its efforts abroad. Arcius Energy is a joint venture owned by BP (51%), and XRG (49%). The joint venture will initially operate in Egypt. Naser Saif Al Yafei is a former ADNOC executive who was appointed as Arcius CEO. Most recently, he was responsible for strategy, sustainability, and transformation in ADNOC Gas. Katerina papalexandri was named chief financial officer. She is BP's vice president for gas and low-carbon energy growth.
Kansai electric, a Japanese company, has invested in Iberdrola’s offshore wind project worth 1.3 billion euros.
The company announced on Friday that Japan's Kansai electric power Co had agreed to purchase a 49 percent stake in Iberdrola’s Windanker offshore project in Germany. This agreement expands a partnership between the Spanish renewable energy giant and the Japanese firm. The wind farm, located in the German portion of the Baltic Sea will have a capacity installed of 315 Megawatts. It is expected to begin operating at the end of 2026. Kansai has not disclosed the amount it paid for its share. Iberdrola will retain 51% of the project and values it at 1.3 billion euro. This is Kansai's fifth offshore wind project, bringing the total offshore wind capacity to 3 gigawatts.
Shell to Add Two Wells at GoM Perdido Platform
Shell said on Thursday its unit has made a final investment decision to add two wells at the Perdido platform in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico to boost production.The Shell unit, which operates the Perdido platform, said the two wells are expected to produce up to 6,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day at peak rates.The wells will be located in the Silvertip Frio reservoir, where Shell is the operator with a 40% stake and Chevron holds the remaining 60%. First production from the wells is expected in 2026.
Exxon CEO: We want to extract value from Hess Guyana's assets
Two of Exxon Mobil's top executives stated on Wednesday that they wanted to "participate in" Hess Corp. selling its Guyana oil assets and extract value from its work developing the country offshore fields. In May, a three-person panel will decide whether Hess can proceed with its deal to sell to Chevron on the original terms. Exxon and CNOOC Ltd have challenged the deal, which is the second largest in recent oil megamergers. "We calculated the value of this asset." Exxon CEO Darren Woods said to Wall Street analysts that we have the right, in this transaction to take into consideration the value of the asset and then to exercise an option on it.
Equinor, BP and TotalEnergies invest in Britain's carbon-capture projects
They announced on Tuesday that Equinor, BP, and TotalEnergies have made the final investment decisions for two of Britain's first projects to capture and store carbon in the north. The Northern Endurance Partnership Project, which is a joint venture between the three companies, will store carbon dioxide permanently for an initial amount of 4 million tonnes per year. Equinor holds 45% of NEP. BP has 45%, and TotalEnergies 10%. Equinor, BP and BP are also partners on the Net Zero Teeside Power Project. This project is a 742 megawatts (MW), gas-fired plant with carbon capture. BP owns 75% of this project and Equinor 25%. However, the companies did not reveal their final investment figures.
British Business – Dec 10,
These are the most popular stories in the British business pages. These stories have not been verified and we cannot vouch for the accuracy of these reports. BP will spin off its offshore wind business and form a joint venture worth $5,8 billion with Jera, a Japanese energy company. Vivendi's shareholders approved the separation of Canal+ and Vivendi, with the aim to list the Paris-based firm in London on Monday. Sky UK has signed a multi-year agreement with Warner Bros Discovery. Under the deal, Sky's parent Comcast will bundle WBD's Max service and Discovery+ for Sky subscribers starting April 2026.
BP's offshore Wind Head to Step Down
A spokesperson for BP announced on Monday that Matthias Bausenwein, the head of offshore winds, is leaving the firm. This comes after the oil giant announced its intention to spin off its offshore operations into a JERA-JERA joint venture. Bausenwein, who joined BP in August 2022 from the Danish renewables giant Orsted, will lead BP's expansion of offshore wind project. Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath - a former CEO at RWE Renewables - left the company last April after less than two years on the job. The spokesperson confirmed that Richard Sandford will be taking on the interim role of offshore wind. He also joined BP from RWE Renewables in 2022.
TWMA Appoints Group Commercial Director
Drilling waste management specialist, TWMA, has announced the appointment of Jonathan Parkes as its new Group Commercial Director. This strategic hire comes as the Aberdeen-based company continues to build on a period of rapid international growth and expansion.Joining the company in October 2024, Jonathan brings 20 years of commercial and strategic expertise across the energy market. His new role follows seven years at an energy, maritime and defence company where he held the position of Divisional Director.His extensive experience and proven track record…
Oil Rises as Syria's Assad Departs, China eases Monetary Policy
Oil prices rose by nearly 2% on Monday on increased geopolitical risk after the fall of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad, and as top importer China flagged its first move towards a loosened monetary policy stance since 2010.Brent crude futures were up $1.34, or 1.9%, to $72.46 per barrel at 11:25 a.m. ET (1625 GMT). U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were up $1.5, or 2.23%, to $68.70."Events in Syria over the weekend could impact the crude market and increase the geopolitical risk premium on oil prices in the weeks and months to come amid yet more instability in the Middle East region…
Petrobras Slashes Platform Decommissioning Budget
Brazil's state-run oil firm Petrobras PETR4.SA cut $1.1 billion in planned investments in decommissioning oil and gas platforms in its strategic plan for the 2025-2029 period, compared to what was earmarked in its 2024-2028 plan, the company told Reuters.Petrobras expects to invest $9.9 billion in platform decommissioning through 2029, compared with more than $11 billion previously estimated for the 2024-2028 period.The plan now is to decommission 10 floating platforms, down from 23 originally. Seven of the platforms are located in Brazil's Campos basin…
Oil Slips, Weekly Loss Looms
Oil prices fell 1% on Friday and were headed for a weekly loss as analysts projected a supply surplus next year despite an OPEC+ decision to delay output hikes and extend deep production cuts to the end of 2026.Brent crude futures were down 85 cents, or 1%, to $71.24 per barrel at 11:04 a.m. EST. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures CLc1 were down 92 cents, or 1%, to $67.38 per barrel.For the week, Brent was on track to fall by more than 2%, while WTI was on course for a nearly 1% drop.On Thursday, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries…
