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.
Exxon Secures Lead in top US Oilfield with $60B Buy of Shale Rival Pioneer
Exxon Mobil agreed to buy U.S. rival Pioneer Natural Resources in an all-stock deal valued at $59.5 billion that would make it the biggest producer in the largest U.S. oilfield and secure a decade of low-cost production.The deal, valued at $253 a share, combines the largest U.S. oil company with one of the most successful names to emerge from the shale revolution that turned the U.S. into the world's largest oil producer in little more than a decade.Exxon Chief Executive…
Chevron Eyes Houston Ship Channel for 2nd US Gulf Refinery
Chevron Corp wants to build or buy a refinery along the U.S. Gulf Coast to process crude oil from its rapidly growing Permian Basin operations, a senior executive said on Tuesday.The company would like to have refining operations on the Houston Ship Channel, in the western part of the U.S. Gulf, to complement an existing eastern Gulf refinery in Mississippi that makes lubricants and other materials, Pierre Breber, Chevron's head of downstream and chemicals, said."Something on the ship channel side could make a lot of sense for our company…
U.S. Shale Producer Magnolia Looks to Triple Market Footprint
U.S. oil producer Magnolia Oil & Gas Corp aims to at least triple in market valuation in coming years as it develops shale acreage across eastern and southern Texas, Chief Executive Steve Chazen said on Wednesday.Magnolia's shares have rallied about 33 percent this year alongside a rise in crude prices and as the company has focused on shareholder returns amidst rising pressure from Wall Street on the sector.The company, formed earlier this year by private equity firm TPG Capital and Chazen…
How BP Found Shale Profits With 'Crystal Ball' Oilfield Technology
In the pine forests of eastern Texas, oilfield workers equipped with virtual-reality goggles are helping BP's shale business turn a profit for the first time.Thousands of automated wells feed data on their performance into the firm's supercomputers each evening. If they show a need for maintenance, an Uber-style system summons a subcontracted repair firm to keep the shale wells flowing at optimal output and minimal cost.Such technology has helped slash BP's shale oil and natural gas production costs by 34 percent over five years.
A Promising Future for U.S. Shale
Natural gas production from U.S. shale fields can keep growing for decades, giving Washington a powerful diplomatic tool to counter the geopolitical influence of other energy exporters such as Russia, according to industry executives and government officials. The United States can expand shale gas output another 60 percent in the coming decades, according to at least one estimate. So far, liquefied natural gas (LNG) has been spared from retaliatory tariffs in U.S. President Donald Trump's intensifying trade conflicts with China and other countries.
Chevron, Exxon CEOs Worry Global Trade Conflict Could Harm Economy
The leaders of two of the world's largest energy companies said on Tuesday they worry a global trade conflict between the United States and other nations could destabilize the world's economy."The risk of trade wars starts to weigh on people's perception of economic growth in the future," Chevron Corp Chief Executive Mike Wirth said at the World Gas Conference in Washington.Darren Woods, CEO of Exxon Mobil Corp, echoed those sentiments. "The world has been very well served with low tariffs and free trade," Woods said.Reporting by Ernest Scheyder
OPEC Agrees to Modest Oil Supply Hike
OPEC agreed on Friday on a modest increase in oil production from next month after its leader Saudi Arabia persuaded arch-rival Iran to cooperate, following calls from major consumers to help reduce the price of crude and avoid a supply shortage.However, the decision confused some in the market as OPEC gave opaque targets for the increase, making it difficult to understand how much more it will pump. Oil prices rose as much as 3 percent."Hope OPEC will increase output substantially. Need to keep prices down!" U.S.
Hess Warns Focus on Returns Now Will Hurt US Shale Long-term
Investor pressure on oil producers to focus more attention on shareholder returns and less on output will drive down vital industry investment in the long term, a leading U.S. shale executive said on Thursday.Shareholders have been pushing for more dividends and buybacks from U.S. shale companies, whose heavy investment in production has helped the United States overtake Saudi Arabia to become the world's second biggest oil producer after Russia."Investor sentiment in the last year has really, markedly changed.
Iraq, Exxon End Talks on Water Treatment Project
Iraq is no longer in talks with Exxon Mobil Corp for the oil major to build a giant water treatment facility vital for the OPEC member to grow its oil production capacity, the director general of the Basrah Oil Co (BOC) told reporters on Wednesday.Instead, the BOC will award the contract to build the Common Seawater Supply Project (CSSP) through a tender process, which it expects to complete at the end of July, Ihsan Ismaael said on the sidelines of the OPEC seminar in Vienna.BOC has already shortlisted three companies for the contract, which will be awarded on an Engineering Pr
US Oil Pipeline Companies, Producers Seek Relief from Steel Tariffs
Major U.S. energy companies including Plains All American Pipeline, Hess Corp and Kinder Morgan Inc are among many seeking exemptions from steel-import tariffs as the United States ratchets up trade tensions with exporters including China, Canada and Mexico.There have been nearly 21,000 requests overall for exclusions submitted to the U.S. Commerce Department since the Trump administration imposed levies this year. Of those, more than 500 petitions involve pipes and related materials.Initial decisions are expected this month…
OPEC Sees Strong Oil Market, Possible Need for More Output
Global oil demand is set to stay strong in the second half of 2018, an OPEC technical panel forecast this week, suggesting the market could absorb extra production from the group.The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries meets on Friday to decide output policy amid calls from major consumers such as the United States and China to cool down oil prices and support the global economy by producing more crude.OPEC's de facto leader, Saudi Arabia, and non-member…
Exxon Shareholders Reject Proposal to Split CEO, Chair Roles
Exxon Mobil Corp shareholders rejected a proposal on Wednesday that would have split the roles of chairman and chief executive, securing CEO Darren Woods's role as he looks to improve results at the world's largest publicly traded oil producer.Woods, who became chairman and CEO in January 2017, has struggled to recover from failed bets taken by his predecessor Rex Tillerson https://www.reuters.com/article/us-exxon-mobil-wall-street/exxon-ceo-struggles-to-reverse-tillersons-legacy-of-failed-bets-idUSKCN1GJ0IE, the former U.S.
ConocoPhillips Not Close to Recouping $2 bln From PDVSA
U.S. oil producer ConocoPhillips is nowhere close to recouping the value of a $2 billion arbitration award against Venezuelan state oil company PDVSA , its chief executive said on Tuesday.Conoco has won court orders allowing it to begin seizing PDVSA assets in efforts to collect on the award linked to the 2007 nationalization of the company's assets under late Venezuelan leader Hugo Chavez."It's not close to the $2 billion today, but over time we expect to be able to recover it," CEO Ryan Lance said at the company's annual shareholder meeting in Houston.
ConocoPhillips Shareholders Reject Executive Pay Proposal
Shareholders of oil producer ConocoPhillips rejected a proposal at their annual meeting on Tuesday that would have linked executive compensation with U.S. accounting standards.Shareholders of the company, who met in a Houston hotel, also approved a slate of 10 for the board of directors and voted in favor of the existing executive compensation program.Reporting by Ernest Scheyder
US Shale CEOs Meet with Saudi Aramco Board
Two of the U.S. shale industry's most prominent executives met with the Saudi Aramco board of directors in Houston on Wednesday.Mark Papa, chief executive of Centennial Resource Development Inc, and Harold Hamm, CEO of Continental Resources Inc, spoke at a regularly scheduled meeting of the directors of the world's largest oil producer.They declined to comment on the meeting.(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; editing by Jonathan Oatis)
Occidental Q1 Profit Spikes above Estimates on Oil Price Rise
U.S. oil producer Occidental Petroleum Corp posted better-than-expected quarterly results on Tuesday, with profit jumping more than six-fold on rising crude prices, cost cuts and improving chemical sales.Oxy, the largest oil producer in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico, posted net income of $708 million, or 92 cents per share, compared to $117 million, or 15 cents per share, in the year-ago quarter.Analysts expected earnings of 70 cents per share, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.Oxy's U.S.
Exxon Profit Disappoints as Refining Sector Weighs
Exxon Mobil Corp, the world's largest publicly traded oil producer, posted a lower-than-expected quarterly profit on Friday as weakness in its chemical and refining operations offset a boost from higher crude prices. It was the second consecutive quarter of weakness in Exxon units that make gasoline, plastics and related products. Exxon blamed weak margins for the income drop in those segments. Shares of Irving, Texas-based Exxon fell 1.5 percent to $79.64 in premarket trading.
ConocoPhillips Profit Tops Estimates on Rising Oil Prices, Cost Cuts
ConocoPhillips, the world's largest independent oil and natural gas exploration and production company, posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday, helped by rising crude prices and cost cuts.Results at Conoco, like many of its peers, have steadily improved in recent quarters alongside commodity prices and as better technology makes operations more efficient.Also, Conoco's stock has risen as the company has prioritized cost cuts and asset sales over production increases.
ConocoPhillips Beats Street on Oil Prices, Cost Cuts
U.S. oil producer ConocoPhillips posted a bigger-than-expected quarterly profit on Thursday, on rising crude prices and cost cuts. Conoco, like many of its peers, has seen results steadily improve in recent quarters alongside commodity prices and as better technology makes operations more efficient. The company's stock has also risen as it has prioritized shareholder returns over production increases, an approach increasingly favored by Wall Street. Conoco reported a profit of $888 million…
