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…
US Steps Up Heavy Crude Imports
U.S. refiners last month imported the most heavy crude in nearly two years, customs data showed, as they cranked up motor fuel production and sought to replace sanctioned Russian oil.Higher heavy-crude imports are common in summer-driving months, but this year's increase comes as the Biden administration is calling on for refiners to ramp up output and shave profit margins to ease soaring prices. The administration has asked for a parley to explore further efforts.Heavy…
NYK to Build Two LPG Dual-Fuel Very Large LPG / NH3 Gas Carriers
NYK ordered its first two liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) dual-fuel very large LPG / ammonia (NH3) gas carriers (VLGCs) from Kawasaki Heavy Industries, Ltd., both to be built at the KHI Sakaide Works shipyard and are set delivery in 2024.Both ships will be equipped with separate cargo tanks designed to carry LPG and ammonia at the same time to flexibly respond to various trade patterns. Ammonia is attracting attention not only as a raw material for chemicals and…
Meet the World's First Digital Smart Ship, the Japanese Built LNG-Fueled PCTC Sakura Leader
The run up to 2050 and dramatic reductions in emissions from ships will, by most expert’s thinking, be an evolution of small steps premised on melding new fuels and digitalization technologies. The recent delivery of the LNG-fueled PCTC Sakura Leader to NYK can be considered a sizable leap in this regard, as the ship has been designated as the world’s first digital smart ship.A Big Step Toward CO2 Reduction TargetsOn October 28, NYK took delivery of Sakura Leader, a pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) capable of navigating oceans with only LNG as the ship’s main fuel.
Japan Trio Begins Work on an Ammonia-Fueled Tugboat
As the marine industry works to find the ‘fuel of the future’ to address increasingly stringent emission regulations, an interesting development from a trio of marine powers in Japan seeks to develop the world’s first ammonia-fueled tugboat. The joint research and development agreement was signed by NYK, IHI Power Systems Co., Ltd., and ClassNK recently to put the world's first ammonia-fueled tugboat into practical use.With the entry into force of the Paris Agreement in 2016…
Offshore Accounts for 60% of Oil Discoveries
Offshore discoveries accounted for more than 60% of global discoveries in 2019, up significantly on previous years, according to a study by GlobalData.GlobalData report reveals that while Colombia and Norway saw the highest number of discoveries drilled in 2019, Guyana, Mauritania and Russia hosted the most significant finds.In Guyana, ExxonMobil drilled five discoveries in the deepwater Stabroek Block. Following the additional well drilled in January 2020 (Uaru-1)…
US Extends License for Chevron's Operations in Venezuela
The U.S. Treasury Department on Saturday renewed a license allowing Chevron, the last U.S. energy company operating in Venezuela, to continue working in the country until April 22.In January, the United States imposed sanctions on Venezuela's state-run oil company PDVSA in an effort to oust President Nicolas Maduro, though he remains in power. The Treasury issued Chevron a six-month license to operate, however, which has been renewed in three-month periods.Chevron has been in Venezuela for nearly 100 years and has about 300 direct employees there.
Equinor, Rosneft to develop Arctic oilfield
Russia's Rosneft and Norway's Equinor have agreed details on how to develop an Arctic Siberian onshore oilfield, they said on Monday, their first joint investment since agreeing a strategic partnership in 2012.The firms expect to extract about 250 million barrels of oil and 23 billion cubic metres of gas in the first stage of developing the Severo-Komsomolskoye oilfield, Equinor said, without giving a value for the investment.Rosneft has a 66.67% stake and Equinor holds the remaining shares in SevKomNeftegaz…
NYK Joins DecarbonICE Project
Japanese shipping giant Nippon Yusen Kaisha (NYK Line) has joined the international DecarbonICE project that will be conducting a feasibility study to capture onboard carbon as dry ice and store it in seafloor sediments.The shipping industry is looking for carbon-free solutions to achieve the IMO 2050 target of a 50% CO2 emissions reduction (compared to the 2008 level). In response, new zero-carbon solutions are being developed around the globe, including alternative…
Heavy Crude Demand Boosts Mitsui Profits
Higher demand in low-sulphur heavy crude ahead of new rules on shipping fuel is helping to boost the profit of Mitsui & Co as the Greater Enfield project in Australia began production in August as scheduled, the Japanese trading house's CEO said on Thursday."The timely start of production of fine-quality low-sulphur heavy crude at the upstream project had also a ripple effect to our energy trading unit in Singapore," Mitsui Chief Executive Officer Tatsuo Yasunaga…
38 Oil and Gas Discoveries Made in Q3
GlobalData revealed that a total of 38 oil and gas discoveries were made globally in Q3 2019.South America and Europe led globally with the highest number of oil and gas discoveries during the third quarter (Q3) of 2019, with eight discoveries each during the quarter, according to GlobalData.Out of eight discoveries in South America, six are conventional oil discoveries, one is a conventional gas discovery and the remaining is a heavy oil discovery, said the report.Europe…
US Gives Chevron More Time in Venezuela
The U.S. Treasury Department on Monday renewed a license allowing Chevron, the last U.S. operating energy company in Venezuela, to continue drilling in the country for another three months through Jan. 22.The license has been a subject of intense debate within the Trump administration as it pursues a campaign to oust socialist President Nicolas Maduro. Its renewal represented a win by some in the administration, such as Secretary of State Mike Pompeo, who see keeping a U.S.
Kawasaki Wins AiP for LNG Floating Power Plant
Japanese manufacturer of transportation equipment and machinery announced that it has obtained Approval in Principle (AiP) for its liquefied natural gas (LNG) floating power plant equipped with its own gas turbine (combined cycle power plant (CCPP) model).This approval was obtained from world-leading ship classification organization DNV GL based on its latest “Gas Power Plant” rules, which were introduced in 2018.An LNG floating power plant is an integrated system in which LNG fuel tanks…
US Buyers Turn to Offshore Crude
U.S. sanctions on Venezuela's oil industry have made winners out of Royal Dutch Shell Plc and BP Plc, Gulf of Mexico offshore heavyweights, as refiners in need of substitutes are scooping up oil produced in the region.Those two companies produce notable amounts of crude oil that refiners have settled on as the immediate replacement for the heavy Venezuelan crude that U.S. refiners relied on for years. Trading volumes in these grades of oil have surged to the highest in months, and prices touched five-year peaks after sanctions were imposed.U.S.
Ven's Blackout Halts Oil Exports From Primary Port
Venezuela's state-run oil firm PDVSA has been unable to resume crude exports from its primary port since last week's massive power outage, essentially crippling the OPEC nation's principal industry, people familiar with the matter said on Monday.Power remained patchy in most of the country after a blackout on Thursday that the government of President Nicolas Maduro claimed was a U.S.-backed act of "sabotage" on the country's principal hydroelectric dam.His critics…
US to Overtake Saudi in Oil Exports
United States will soon export more oil and liquids than Saudi Arabia, thanks to the continued rise in oil production from US shale plays and the increased oil export capacity from the Gulf Coast.According to Rystad Energy, energy research and business intelligence company, it is a a pivotal geopolitical shift. The US has for decades relied on large-scale imports to satisfy its thirst for oil, but this is about to change.The Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported last week that the United States exported more crude and petroleum products than it imported.
LNG Only Fills Niches in Europe
Although LNG (Liquid Natural Gas) provides a solid supplement to European gas supplies, the EU is and will remain a pipeline market – for good reasons, said Wintershall's new position paper.The report from Germany's largest crude oil and natural gas producer on the importance of liquid gas for Europe said that the liquefaction is highly energy-intensive – the energy consumption corresponds to about 13% of the gas transported.With an energy loss of less than five percent, pipelines are much more energy-efficient. Another argument for pipeline gas lay in its lower costs.
Canada-US Pipelines Restart After Weather Disruptions
Two major pipelines carrying oil from Canada to the United States resumed operations on Wednesday after brief disruptions due to power outages from severe weather in Saskatchewan, Canada, a day earlier.A number of lines on Enbridge Inc's Mainline system, which carries about 1.2 million barrels per day of crude and other liquids, and TransCanada Corp's 590,000 bpd Keystone crude pipeline were hit by power outages on Tuesday in the western Canadian province.TransCanada's…
Madagascar Opens Fresh Offshore Licensing Round
Island nation Madagascar puts 44 blocks in the Morondava Basin up for grabs, detailing exploration and exploitation periods under production sharing contracts.In the framework of the development of Madagascar's oil and gas potential, the Malagasy State through OMNIS continues to promote projects that attract new private investment in the short, medium and long term.The state regulator OMNIS, together with TGS and BGP, has worked to create an attractive environment…
Venezuela's Crude Sales to U.S. Fall in July
Venezuela's crude exports to the United States declined to 494,400 barrels per day (bpd) in July after rising the prior three months, showing the impact of asset seizures against state-run oil firm PDVSA, according to Thomson Reuters data.July was the first month crude exports fell below 500,000 bpd since the months of January through March.U.S. oil producer ConocoPhillips in May began seizing PDVSA's overseas assets in an attempt to collect on a $2 billion arbitration award.
