ExxonMobil Drops USD 25 bln Canadian LNG Project
U.S. oil major Exxon Mobil Corp. has withdrawn its environmental assessment application for a $25-billion LNG export facility on the B.C. coast it proposed in 2015. No reasons given for withdrawing from environmental review process.“After careful review, ExxonMobil Canada and Imperial Oil Resources have withdrawn the WCC LNG project from the B.C. Environmental Assessment process,” a notice on WCC LNG website says. It also says that its websie…
Canada Crude Differential Seen Staying High as Refiners Take Downtime
The discount on Canada's heavy crude, which reached a nearly five-year high this week, looks to remain elevated with pipelines strained and the refiners who buy it going offline for maintenance, industry officials say.Western Canada Select (WCS) oil traded on Tuesday for $34.15 per barrel less than West Texas Intermediate light oil, the biggest differential since November 2013, according to Shorcan Energy Brokers. The differential reduces the…
Imperial Oil Posts Lower-than-expected Adj. Profit
Canada's Imperial Oil Ltd on Friday reported a lower-than-expected adjusted quarterly profit, hurt by a 22 percent rise in expenses. The Calgary-based company reported a net loss of C$137 million ($111.23 million), or 16 Canadian cents per share, for the fourth quarter as it booked charges of C$566 million related to its Horn River and Mackenzie projects. The company, majority owned by Exxon Mobil Corp, posted a C$1.44 billion profit in the year-ago quarter on a C$988 million gain from the sale of its retail stations.
Exxon Mobil profit disappoints Wall Street, Chevron shines
Exxon Mobil Corp posted a rare earnings miss on Friday, the only international oil producer to do so last quarter, as production slipped in its African and Canadian operations. Exxon's results were overshadowed by rival Chevron Corp , which easily exceeded Wall Street's expectations with a double-digit percentage increase in production. Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Total SA and Statoil ASA this week delivered profits that topped expectations also. Chevron for years has downplayed profits to spend heavily on megaprojects in Australia, the U.S.
Alberta Crude Oil Leak Came from Inter Pipeline System
A crude oil leak in central Alberta's Strathcona County on Friday afternoon came from Inter Pipeline Ltd's Cold Lake regional pipeline system, the company said in a statement on Monday. Calgary-based Inter Pipeline has isolated a segment of the pipeline near its Strathcona Terminal in Edmonton for repairs, and said it is working with regulators to investigate the cause of the incident. There were no details on how much crude was released but the company said the spill was contained on Friday and clean-up efforts were ongoing.
ConocoPhillips: Syncrude Outage Affecting Output
A production shutdown at the Syncrude oil sands facility in northern Alberta has impacted output from ConocoPhillips' Surmont thermal plant, helping push heavy Canadian crude prices to their narrowest discount in nearly two years. The 350,000 barrel-per-day Syncrude project cut production for all of April to zero, according to market sources, following a fire last month that damaged the facility and forced the operator to bring forward planned maintenance.
ConocoPhillips: Oil Sands Reserves Revised Down
ConocoPhillips has revised down over a billion barrels of oil sands reserves because of low global crude prices, a company filing showed on Tuesday, the latest sign that some of Canada's vast hydrocarbon potential may be left untapped. The U.S. oil major said developed and undeveloped reserves of bitumen - the heavy viscous oil found in northern Alberta's remote oil sands - totalled 1.2 billion barrels at the end of 2016, down from 2.4 billion barrels at the end of 2015.
Imperial Oil Profit Boosted by Asset-Sale Gain
Imperial Oil Ltd, majority owned by Exxon Mobil Corp, reported a sharp rise in fourth-quarter profit, helped by a gain from the sale of its service stations. Canada's No.2 integrated oil producer and refiner sold its remaining company-owned Esso retail stations to five fuel distributors for about C$2.8 billion ($2.15 billion), resulting in a C$988 million gain in the quarter. The company's oil and gas business posted net income of C$103 million, compared with a loss of C$289 million a year earlier, helped by a recovery in oil prices.
Arctic Drilling Ban Gives Canada Leg Up -US Lawmakers
U.S. lawmakers on Wednesday slammed an agreement made with Canada to ban offshore Arctic drilling, saying Ottawa's plan to review its ban every five years gives Canada a leg up on energy exploration. U.S. President Barack Obama on Tuesday announced a ban on new oil and gas drilling federal waters in the Atlantic and Arctic Oceans, while Canada instituted a similar ban in its Arctic waters. Unlike the United States, where the ban is indefinite, Canada said it will review its restrictions every five years.
Imperial Oil Posts Loss Due to Impact of Alberta Wildfires
Imperial Oil Ltd, Canada's No.2 integrated oil producer and refiner, reported a quarterly loss due to the impact of wildfires in Fort McMurray, Alberta. Imperial, in which Exxon Mobil Corp holds a 69.6 percent stake, said its gross production averaged 329,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd) in the second quarter, compared with 344,000 boepd, a year ago. The Alberta wildfires reduced output by about 60,000 barrels per day and net income by an estimated C$170 million, Imperial said on Friday.
Canadian Minister Rejected Arctic Drilling Review Warning
Canada's Conservative government rejected advice from its bureaucrats warning it was "inappropriate" to use a sole-source contract to hire a consultant to review the country's Arctic drilling legislation, according to a memo obtained by Reuters. The memo, released under Canada's Access to Information Act, was prepared for Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister Bernard Valcourt by his department. He is running again in Canada's Oct. 19 election.
Canada Arctic Drilling Rules May Stifle Development
Canada's offshore Arctic drilling rules could "stifle" development since they do not provide incentives for companies to proceed with production after discovering oil, the government was told in a newly-released internal briefing note. The advice was prepared for the government's point man on the issue, Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development Minister Bernard Valcourt, before Imperial Oil Ltd lobbied him privately in June, seeking concessions on existing legislation.
Canadian Oil Sands Halts Syncrude Production After Fire
Canadian Oil Sands Ltd, the biggest shareholder in the Syncrude oil sands project, said it halted crude oil production after a fire damaged equipment at its processing facility in northern Alberta on Saturday, causing traders to scramble to secure temporarily short supply. The company said the main coker conversion units were not damaged and Syncrude continues to operate. However, it suspended synthetic crude oil production and is developing a recovery plan, Canadian Oil Sands said late on Sunday.
Fire Halts Production at Canadian Oil Sands Syncrude
Canadian Oil Sands Ltd, the biggest shareholder in the Syncrude oil sands project, said it has halted crude oil production after a fire damaged equipment at its processing facility in northern Alberta on Saturday. The company said the main coker conversion units were not damaged and Syncrude continues to operate. However, it suspended synthetic crude oil production and is currently developing a recovery plan, Canadian Oil Sands said late on Sunday.
Imperial Oil's Profit Disappoints on Weak Prices
Imperial Oil Ltd , Canada's No.2 integrated oil producer and refiner, reported a lower-than-expected quarterly profit, hurt by the slump in crude prices. Global oil prices have nearly halved in the past year, hurting oil and gas companies and forcing them to cut expenditure and jobs. Imperial, majority owned by Exxon Mobil Corp, said on Friday that its capital expenditure fell about 41 percent to C$819 million in the second quarter. Its synthetic crude selling prices fell 33 percent to an average of C$75.20 per barrel…
Imperial Oil/Exxon/BP Gr defer drilling in Canada's Arctic
Imperial Oil Ltd said on Friday it and partners Exxon Mobil Corp and BP Plc need more time before they can drill an exploratory well in Canadian Arctic waters and are seeking an extension to their exploration license in the region. Pius Rolheiser, a spokesman for Imperial, said the license for the group's exploration parcel in the Beaufort Sea, a section of the Arctic Ocean, expires in 2020. He said the group is asking the Canadian government…
Imperial Oil Defers Drilling in Canada's Beaufort Sea
Imperial Oil Ltd said on Friday it is deferring plans to drill an exploratory well in the Beaufort Sea in Canada's Arctic as it seeks an extension to the length of its exploration license in the region. Pius Rolheiser, a spokesman for the company, said the license, which it shares with Exxon Mobil Corp and BP Plc, expires in 2020 and it is asking the Canadian government for a nine-year extension so it can complete the regulatory process and have adequate time to make a decision on how or when it will drill a well in the region.
Imperial Readies Production from Oil Sands Expansion
Imperial Oil Ltd , Canada's No.2 integrated oil producer and refiner, said on Monday it has begun injecting steam at the 40,000 barrel per day Nabiye expansion of its Cold Lake oil sands project in northern Alberta and expects first oil from the project by the end of March. Pius Rolheiser, a spokesman for the company, said the project's facilities were commissioned on schedule at the beginning of the month and steam injection, used to liquefy the tarry bitumen deposits so they can flow to the surface, has begun.
Chevron Cancels Canadian Arctic Drilling
Chevron Corp is putting a plan to drill for oil in the Beaufort Sea in Canada's Arctic on hold indefinitely because of what it called "economic uncertainty in the industry" as oil prices fall. In a letter to Canada's National Energy Board on Wednesday, the company withdrew from a hearing on Arctic drilling rules because it has walked away from plans to drill in the EL 481 block, 250 kilometers (155 miles) northwest of Tuktoyaktuk, Northwest Territories.
Imperial Oil Exploration Plans in Arctic Unchanged
Imperial Oil Ltd's plans to drill for oil in the Beaufort Sea in Canada's Arctic have not changed despite the recent slide in oil prices, spokesman Pius Rolheiser said on Wednesday. Imperial and its partners Exxon Mobil Corp and BP Plc have not yet made an investment decision and are in the process of applying for regulatory approval from Canada's National Energy Board. Pending approval, the earliest the companies would be able to start drilling would be the summer of 2020. "Imperial and (its) partners have not changed any of our plans.
