EUROPE GAS prices in tight range due to strong LNG flow and warmer weather forecast
The Dutch and British wholesale prices of gas traded in a narrow band on Thursday morning. Market participants expect further declines due to forecasts of warmer weather and high flows of LNG. LSEG data shows that the benchmark front-month contract for the Dutch TTF Hub was down 0.50 euro at 44.90 Euro per megawatt hour, or $13.80 /mmBtu by 0919 GMT. The Dutch March contract is down by 0.54 Euros at 45.46 euro/MWh. The month-ahead contract in Britain rose by 0.15 pence, to 113.5 p/therm. The prices have fallen over the past week, after reaching a 14-month peak above 50 euros/MWh in early January.
Equinor's Hammerfest liquefied natural gas plant closed for a week due to compressor failure
Equinor announced on Thursday that its Hammerfest LNG facility in Arctic Northern Norway suffered an unexpected outage because of a compressor failure. The company said the plant's output was halted for a week. The Hammerfest plant (also known as Melkoeya LNG) has the ability to deliver approximately 6.5 billion cubic meters of gas each year. This is enough to provide about 6.5 millions European homes and accounts for about 5% of Norwegian gas exports. A spokesperson for Equinor said that an Equinor compressor…
Woodside's North West Shelf Project Extension approved by Western Australia
Woodside Energy, Australia's largest oil and gas producer in terms of market value, announced on Thursday that the state of Western Australia had granted Woodside Energy approval to extend the project life of its North West Shelf LNG (liquefied Natural Gas) until 2070. You can also find out more about the decision-making process by clicking here. Woodside announced Thursday that the approval marks the end to a six-year waiting period and restarts the federal approval process for environmental protection, which was halted because of pending appeals.
Philippines communities challenge dash for fossil gas
The government claims that LNG is an alternative to coal, and the capacity to generate it is required to meet the energy demands of Luzon Island, which is also home to Manila, the capital city, located 110 km (68 mi) north. Many people in Santa Clara, an area adjacent to the port's terminal, claim that respiratory illness has increased dramatically, even among children as young five years old. They attribute this to the LNG plants. Welita Abanil is a 69-year-old Santa Clara healthcare worker. Gas plants in the area have also reduced our fishing income. We have nowhere to go. "It's as if we're waiting to die," she said.
Woodside Energy closes Pluto LNG due to an 'unplanned' event
A spokesperson for Woodside Energy in Australia said that the shutdown of Pluto LNG was safe and effective on Monday, due to an unexpected event. The cause is still under investigation. The spokesperson stated that operations at the Karratha Gas Plant are normal. Pluto LNG is connected by a pipeline. Woodside, Australia’s largest independent oil and natural gas company, lowered its estimate for full-year production to a range between 189 million and 195 millions barrels of oil equal (boe), down from its previous forecast of 185 to 195 boe.
BP and its partners invest $7 billion into a carbon capture project in Indonesian Papua
BP and its partners announced that they will invest $7 billion into a carbon-capture project and the development of gas fields in Indonesia's easternmost Papua Region, which could unlock an additional 3 trillion cubic feet in gas resources. The British oil producer announced its investment in London on Thursday during a meeting between President Prabowo Subito, who was visiting London. The company said that production at Ubadari is expected to begin in 2028. Gas from the field will be processed in the Tangguh liquefied gas plant in West Papua.
Nigeria signs $1.2 Billion deal to upgrade gas plant for aluminum smelter
The Nigerian Petroleum Ministry announced that the country has signed a contract worth $1.2 billion with CNCEC, a state-owned Chinese engineering firm. This project is crucial to the production of aluminium in Nigeria. The agreement between CNCEC, the main investor in Aluminum Smelter Company of Nigeria (ASCN), and BFI Group is the first step in reviving this dormant facility that has lain idle for years due to financial and legal issues. The Petroleum Ministry announced late Monday that CNCEC would resurrect the 135 million standard cubic feet per day gas-processing plant at the dormant aluminum smelter.
YPF, the Argentine oil company, is focusing on Vaca Muerta and a production boost by 2025.
The CEO of Argentina's state-owned oil company YPF, Horacio Martin, said that the firm expects shale production to rise by 30 to 40 percent next year. Marin said that YPF, during a conference call to discuss its financial results, will concentrate its capital investments in its main shale resources, specifically the massive Vaca Muerta Formation. Vaca Muerta has the second largest shale-oil reserve in the world and is also home to one of the largest shale-gas reserves. YPF has been leading the activity in this area with hopes of making it a major exporter of energy.
TotalEnergies denies knowing about alleged torture and killings at Mozambique Liquefied Natural Gas site
PARIS, September 26 - French oil giant TotalEnergies responded to a report in the media by saying that it was unaware of the torture and killings allegedly committed on site of the future Mozambique Liquefied Natural Gas plant. Politico reported earlier Thursday that Mozambican soldiers working out of this site, which has not been completed, had rounded up 180 to 250 local men and locked them inside shipping containers. They then tortured them and killed the majority of them from July through September 2021.
Texas gas plant rejected from state funding program
Texas energy regulators denied funding requests for an electric power plant project, despite the fact that it was named as a finalist in a state program to build out natural gas-fired generation of electricity. The Public Utility Commission of Texas rejected late Wednesday the application by Aegle Power for funding from the state for a 1.3 Gigawatt natural-gas plant. Aegle Power was not available for immediate comment. In the application, it was stated that this project is a joint venture between Aegle Power Inc. and NextEra Energy Resources.
Linde UK assets frozen by Russian court for $1.2 billion
In a dispute over the ownership of a gas plant, a Russian court ordered assets of a British Linde subsidiary worth $1.15 billion to be frozen. RusChemAlliance is a joint-venture 50% owned by Russia’s Gazprom. RusChemAlliance filed other lawsuits against European banks for the construction of a German-owned gas processing plant with Russia's Linde that was halted by Western sanctions. RusChemAlliance asked the Court of Arbitration of St Petersburg & Leningrad Region for interim measures, including the freezing of assets owned by the subsidiary Linde Russia UK Limited.
Beach Energy's profit drops to a 2-1/2-year low due to a downgrade of reserves
Beach Energy, an Australian oil and natural gas company backed by billionaire Kerry Stokes fell to its lowest level in more than two-and-a half years on Monday, after reporting a drop in profits and downgrading reserves for a major gas field in Victoria. The shares of the company closed at A$1.245 on Friday, a 12.6% decline. This was their lowest closing price since December 29, 2021. It was also its worst session since April 1. The stock fell by as much as 132% in the morning. The stock was the biggest loser on the benchmark ASX 200 benchmark.
Freeport LNG Plant Suffers Explosion
A explosion occurred on Wednesday at the Freeport LNG liquefied natural gas plant on the Texas Gulf Coast, according to police, and prompting an evacuation of nearby residents in Quintana, Texas.The plant can process up to 2.1 billion cubic feet of natural gas per day into a supercooled liquid for export.Freeport LNG acknowledged an incident occurred around 11:40 a.m. local time with providing further details. There were no injuries and all employees had been accounted for, a company spokesperson said. There currently is no risk to the surrounding community, she added.(Reuters - Reporting by Liz Hampton and Sabrina Valle)
Robotics: Autobots Transform in the Offshore Energy Sector
Robots and robotics have slowly been entering our lives, in various shapes and forms (and fictional characters), from self-driving household vacuum cleaners to highly automated manufacturing systems. Now they’re heading for the offshore world – in just as many shapes and forms.There could be a lot to gain from robotics, but platforms and offshore wind turbine structures are also very challenging places to put them on. For oil and gas, key drivers are around safety and cost . For the offshore wind sector…
Yamal LNG Exceeds Nameplate Capacity
Yamal LNG, a liquefied natural gas plant located in Sabetta at the north-east of the Yamal Peninsula, Russia, announced that since the beginning of 2019, the LNG plant produced more than 16.5 million tons of LNG.The Project exceeded its annual nameplate production capacity during the first eleven months of the year, when all three LNG trains were in operation, as the third LNG train was launched at the end of 2018.Yamal LNG has reached 25 million tons of LNG shipped since the start-up of Train 1 in December 2017…
West of Shetlands Ups Offshore Production
West of Shetland production likely to overtake North Sea for Shell and BP’s UK portfolios by 2020, said a report.Over the last four years oil and gas production in the West of Shetlands has risen and with that, a growing relevance for the biggest players still active in the UK continental shelf (UKCS), says GlobalData.The company’s latest research reveals that the West of Shetland (WoS) area retains the attention of major Exploration and Production (E&P) players in the region; however infrastructure restraints could hinder future growth potential in the basin.Despite the US based E&P majors…
Woodside Plans Maintenance at Karratha Gas Plant
Australia's Woodside Petroleum has planned maintenance at its Karratha gas plant, part of the North West Shelf liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project, in the third quarter of the year, according to a notice on the company website.The first scheduled maintenance will affect one unidentified LNG train at the Woodside-operated plant in Western Australia from July 26 to Aug. 13, according to the notice.The second maintenance will be carried out on multiple LNG trains from Sept. 5 to Oct.
U.S. Energy Hits Records in 2018: EIA
U.S. energy consumption, production, and exports have reached record highs in 2018, said U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA).The United States produced a record amount of energy from various sources in 2018, reaching 96 quadrillion British thermal units (quads), an 8% increase from 2017. This increase in production outpaced the 4% increase in U.S. energy consumption, which also reached a record high of 101 quads.At the same time, U.S. energy exports increased 18% to a record high of 21 quads in 2018, reducing net energy imports into the United States to a 54-year low of 4 quads, or less than 4% of U.S.
Santos Finds Gas Off Western Australia
Santos announced Tuesday it has confirmed significant gas resource in the Corvus-2 appraisal in the Carnarvon Basin, offshore Western Australia.Corvus-2 is located in 63 meters water depth, approximately 90 kilometers northwest of Dampier in Commonwealth waters within petroleum permit WA-45-R, in which Santos has a 100% interest.The well was drilled approximately 3 kilometers southwest of Corvus-1 (drilled in 2000) using the jack-up mobile offshore drilling unit Noble Tom Prosser and reached a total depth of 3,998 meters.
Sole Offshore Construction Phase Completed
Installation and testing of the 67 km control umbilical connecting the Sole gas field with the Orbost Gas Plant has been completed, marking the conclusion of the offshore construction phase of the Sole Gas Project, operator Cooper Energy said in an update on Monday.The offshore project, which was 93% complete at the end of February, is expected to be fully completed, ready and available to deliver gas from the Gippsland Basin offshore Victoria to APA Group’s Orbost Gas Plant by end-May 2019. The only work remaining on the offshore project is repair of the damaged pipe section which is expected to commence in late April…
