Sarawak State Govt Seeks Stake in LNG Train
Malaysia's Sarawak state government said it is negotiating with Petroliam Nasional Berhad to acquire a 10 percent equity stake in a liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facility at Petronas' LNG complex in Bintulu, Sarawak. The government is looking to buy a stake in the LNG Train 9 facility, the site's ninth liquefaction unit, which can produce 3.6 million tonnes of LNG per year. It began its commercial operations in January, boosting production capacity at the Petronas LNG complex to 30 million tonnes per year.
Idemitsu, Showa Shell Ink Alliance Deal
Japanese oil refiners Idemitsu Kosan Co Ltd and Showa Shell Sekiyu KK said on Tuesday that they have signed a deal to form a business alliance ahead of Idemitsu's stalled merger with Showa Shell. Under the deal, the companies will cooperate more closely on crude purchases and transportation as well as production plans, they said in a statement. Idemitsu Kosan completed the purchase of just under a third of Showa Shell last December, but the goal of a full merger of the two companies has been delayed due to opposition from Idemitsu's founding family.
Idemitsu Delays Showa Shell Deal on Family Opposition
Idemitsu family may block takeover, veto board decisions. Japanese refiner Idemitsu Kosan Co Ltd has put on hold its plan for a full takeover of smaller rival Showa Shell Sekiyu indefinitely after running into fierce opposition from the Idemitsu founding family. The postponement raises fresh questions over whether the two firms will ever be able to combine businesses given that the founding family, which owns just over a third of Idemitsu, could either block a full deal outright or even if it was not blocked, could veto board decisions.
Asia oil refiners hungrily eye 300-item global oil smorgasbord
Asia's oil refiners can choose from a sprawling buffet of over 300 crudes from every continent except Antarctica as a combination of cheap freight and rising supplies leaves buyers overwhelmed by the variety of oil grades on offer. The lifting of the 40-year-old U.S. crude export ban in December 2015 means North American supplies are now competing for Asian buyers along with the barrels sent from the Middle East, Russia and elsewhere. As the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries prepares to meet next week to discuss a potential output freeze, the possibility of U.S.
Refiners Struggle as Asia Drowns in Gasoline
Singapore light distillate stocks near record; refiners see no quick improvements in profit margins. Asia's refined product markets are being swamped by a wave of gasoline as a long-lasting crude oil glut spills into the one fuel market refiners had hoped would save them, ruining margins and dragging down share prices across the region. Singapore's benchmark gasoline margins - long the bright spot for Asia's oil processors amid rock-bottom profits earned on diesel, jet and shipping fuel - have more than halved since the beginning of 2016…
JX Nippon Renews Iran Crude Contracts
JX Nippon Oil & Energy Corp, one of Japan's biggest lifters of Iranian crude, has renewed its annual term oil purchase volumes from Tehran for 2016, senior company officials said on Tuesday. JX Nippon Oil, a core unit of JX Holdings, kept its volume "unchanged" in the new term contract starting this month, one of the officials said. Sources have said JX had a contract to buy 53,000 barrels per day (bpd) of Iranian crude in 2015. JX Holdings Chairman Yasushi Kimura said on the sidelines of an industry gathering the refiner's annual term crude contract with Iran had been renewed…
Japan Refineries May See Margin Recovery
Margins hit six-month low in July; return to profit after heavy losses. Oil refining margins at Japanese refiners are likely to rise from a six-month low in July, as the decline in oil prices is expected to slow amid a seasonal recovery in demand for products, industry sources and executives said. The nearly $10 dive in global oil prices last month sent pot product prices sharply lower while costs for refiners were little changed, squeezing margins. But the drop should prove short-lived to help them continue a recovery from heavy annual losses in the last financial year.
Japanese Refining Merger Talks Could Spur Consolidation
Japan facing refining sector overhaul; Idemitsu-Showa talks may spark more mergers. Falling oil demand pressuring sector. Japan is facing a refining sector overhaul as its population ages and shrinks and the economy shifts from oil to gas, resulting in oil demand falling 2-3 percent a year. Consolidation looks to have kicked off with Japan's No. 2 refiner Idemitsu seeking to buy No. 5 Showa Shell in a 500 billion yen ($4.2 billion) deal that would bring them close to industry leader JX Holdings.
JX halts Marine Shipments at Several Refineries
Japan's top oil refiner JX Holdings has suspended marine shipments at several of its plants, as a strong typhoon hit the nation, but crude oil refining operations were unaffected, a company spokeswoman said on Monday. Marine shipments from JX's Sendai refinery and its Oita plant were stopped earlier on Monday, while the Kashima, Negishi and Mizushima refineries halted sea shipments on Sunday. Hundreds of flights were cancelled and thousands of people advised to evacuate as a Typhoon Phanfone lashed Japan on Monday with heavy rains and high winds…
Japan's JX to Develop Offshore Malaysia Gas Field
JX Nippon Oil & Gas Exploration Corp said on Monday it had decided to develop Layang gas field off the coast of the Malaysian state of Sarawak on Borneo island for an undisclosed sum, aiming to start production in April-June 2016. Layang field, which is located about 8 km (5 miles) east of Helan gas field, now under production, in the same SK10 block, will have a floating production, storage andoffloading system (FPSO) installed, the company, a wholly-owned unit of JX Holdings, said in a statement.
