US LNG Exports at 20-month Low
Natural gas flows to U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants plunged this month after falling to a 20-month low in June as coronavirus lockdowns cut global demand for the fuel.Before the pandemic slashed energy demand, U.S. producers counted on LNG exports to keep growing fast as an outlet for their record gas output. But after soaring 68% in 2019 and 53% in 2018, U.S. LNG exports were only expected to rise about 7% in 2020.Gas pipeline flows to U.S. LNG export plants dropped to an average of 3.1 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in July from a 20-month low of 4.1 bcfd in June and a record high of 8.7 bcfd in February…
Oil Giants Set Health Checks, Work-from-home Rules
Major energy companies in the United States imposed work-from-home rules for office staff and began health checks for remote or critical workers as coronavirus spread and threatened an industry reeling from falling demand and profits.BP, Exxon Mobil, Kinder Morgan, Motiva Enterprises and Royal Dutch Shell told most office staff to work from home starting Monday. Federal regulators on Friday were pressed by companies to ease work rules for pipeline operators and to limit visits to some sites. Shell and Chevron began health checks of workers and visitors at some key U.S.
GA LNG Terminal Evacuated Ahead of Dorian
Kinder Morgan Inc has halted the startup process of its liquefaction facility at Elba Island near Savannah, Georgia, following mandatory evacuation orders as Hurricane Dorian approached, Chief Executive Officer Steven Kean said on Wednesday.The Houston pipeline operator began construction on the $2 billion facility in late 2016, underpinned by a 20-year contract with Royal Dutch Shell Plc for exports of U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG).The company will resume startup operations at the LNG plant when workers can safely return to the island…
Kinder Morgan: Bankrupt Refiner Owes $1.5 mln
Kinder Morgan Liquids Terminals LLC says Philadelphia Energy Solutions failed to make payments for fuel storage and other services totaling nearly $1.5 million since December, roughly seven months before the Pennsylvania refiner filed for bankruptcy.In a Wednesday filing, Kinder asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to allow it to sell fuel stored by PES at its Carteret, New Jersey, facility to pay itself back for the missed payments.PES, which shut its last crude unit this week, currently has 27…
Kinder Morgan's $1.75 bln Gas Pipeline Hit with Steel Tariff
U.S. pipeline operator Kinder Morgan Inc will pay a tariff on imported steel used in a $1.75 billion natural gas pipeline project, the U.S. Department of Commerce ruled on Monday, dealing a setback to energy industry efforts to avoid the penalties.The tariff could add up to $80 million to the construction cost of Kinder Morgan's Gulf Coast Express Pipeline, analysts estimated, because about half the project employs some Turkish pipe subject to a 50 percent tariff. It filed for an exemption nearly a year ago, citing the lack of domestic steel and the economic benefits to natural gas exports.
Phillips 66, Kinder Announce Gray Oak Pipeline Deliveries to Houston
Phillips 66 and Kinder Morgan Inc began on Monday soliciting shipper commitments for crude deliveries on the 900,000 barrel per day (bpd) Gray Oak Pipeline from the Permian Basin to delivery points at or near the Houston Ship Channel, the companies said.The Gray Oak Pipeline would deliver crude to the Houston area through a connection in South Texas. The pipeline is one analysts believe could help alleviate a crude oil transportation bottleneck in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico. (Reuters, Reporting by Collin Eaton in Houston)
US Oil Export Boom Sparks Battle to Build Texas Ports
Booming U.S. oil exports have set off a scramble to build Gulf Coast ports to handle more than 3 million barrels per day in new supplies expected over the next five years.Of seven proposed oil-export projects, nowhere is the opportunity greater or the competition more fierce than in Corpus Christi, Texas, where three firms are vying to open the state's first deepwater port.Commodities trader Trafigura has taken an early lead with a planned offshore facility that has an easier path to regulatory approval and faces…
Kinder Morgan says Louisiana Natgas Pipe in Service for LNG Terminal
U.S. energy company Kinder Morgan Inc told federal regulators on Tuesday that it put part of the Louisiana natural gas pipeline in Louisiana into service:* The $122 million pipeline is designed to deliver up to 0.6 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) to Cheniere Energy Inc's Sabine Pass liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal in Louisiana as Cheniere adds a fifth liquefaction train at the facility.* One billion cubic feet of gas is enough to fuel about 5 million U.S. homes for a day.* Cheniere said Sabine Pass 5 is undergoing commissioning and is expected to enter commercial service in the first quarter of 2019.
Texas Waha Natgas Prices Dive 60 pct to Record Low on Pipeline Constraints
Next-day natural gas prices for Thursday at the Waha hub in the Permian basin tumbled 60 percent to their lowest on record due to pipeline constraints limiting the amount of gas that can move out of the region.Prices for Thursday at the Waha hub <NG-WAH-WTX-SNL> fell almost a dollar to 66 cents per million British thermal units (mmBtu), according to SNL data going back to 1991.That compares with an average of $2.25/mmBtu so far this year, $2.71 in 2017 and a five-year (2013-2017) average of $3.11.The Permian is the biggest U.S.
US Energy Companies Fume over Rejected Steel Tariff Exemptions
The U.S. Commerce Department recently granted a tariff exemption to oil major Chevron for its imports of 4.5-inch Japanese steel tubes for oil exploration.But the department rejected a similar request from Borusan Mannesmann Pipe to exclude 4.5-inch steel pipes imported from Turkey for casing used to line new oil wells.The reason: multiple U.S. steelmakers objected to Borusan's application, arguing they could supply the product, according to the department. Chevron drew no such objections.When U.S. President Donald Trump slapped a 25 percent tariff on imported steel this spring…
Texas Pipeline Blast Injures 7, Explosions Probed
Authorities on Thursday morning were investigating what caused a fire and a series of natural gas pipeline explosions on Wednesday in Midland County, Texas, which sent seven people to the hospital and shut down five lines before being extinguished late in the evening.Workers and firefighters were responding to a leak when the blast occurred, Midland County Fire Marshal Dale Little said on Thursday.Five workers with critical injuries were airlifted to University Medical Center in Lubbock, Texas, and were being treated at the center's burn unit…
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…
Canada to Buy Kinder Morgan's Trans Mountain Pipeline
The Canadian government said on Tuesday it will buy Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd's Trans Mountain pipeline project for C$4.5 billion but does not intend to be the long-term owner of the project, which has faced fierce environmental opposition.Canada will also offer federal loan guarantees to ensure construction continues through the 2018 season as part of the deal with the company, a unit of Houston-based Kinder Morgan Inc ."The federal government has reached an agreement with Kinder Morgan to purchase the existing Trans Mountain pipeline, and infrastructure related to the Trans Mountain expansion project," Finance Minister Bill Morneau told
Trump's Steel Import Tariffs May Hurt US LNG Exports
U.S. natural gas trade groups said on Thursday they are concerned that new U.S. steel import tariffs could delay or reduce new pipeline projects as well as dent exports of liquefied natural gas. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Thursday the United States will impose tariffs of 25 percent on steel imports and 10 percent on imported aluminum next week. The type of pipe and the steel used to make large diameter, thick-walled pipe used for interstate natural gas pipeline projects are niche products that are not available off the shelf or even from a wide variety of manufacturers…
NuStar, Other Energy Partnerships Simplify Business Models
Some publicly-traded U.S. energy pipeline and oil-storage partnerships are restructuring into simpler business models to help attract new investors and spur growth. Rising oil and gas production has spawned billions of dollars of new transport, gathering and storage projects. But the companies most responsible for these projects can allocate up to 50 percent of their income to the general partner, leaving less for other holders or to invest in new projects. Historically, these firms have passed most of their income along to holders and sold equity or debt to finance new projects or acquisitions.
Kinder Morgan wins Trans Mountain Appeal
Canada's energy regulator ruled on Thursday in favor of Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd's appeal to sidestep some municipal permits for its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion, a major victory for the C$7.4 billion ($5.8 billion) project. The ruling, which came just three days after the regulator heard the case, could offset some of the construction delays afflicting the company, which said on Monday the project could be further set back if it could not get clarity about the permits. The fight for Kinder Morgan is not over…
Kinder Morgan: Pipeline Expansion Delays Possible
Kinder Morgan Canada Ltd said on Monday the start-up of its Trans Mountain pipeline expansion could be delayed past September 2020 if it is unable to get more clarity around permitting and the judicial process by early next year. The company's appeal to Canada's energy regulator over municipal permits for the C$7.4 billion ($5.8 billion) expansion was heard on Monday. The company said in a statement that it needs certainty by early 2018 to move ahead with construction. "Unfortunately, the scope and pace of the permits and approvals received does not allow for significant additional construction to begin at this time…
Rising US LNG Exports Boost Interest in Natgas Futures
A surge in speculative interest in the U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export boom has pushed open interest in natural gas futures to an all-time high, traders said on Thursday. Open interest, which measures the number of contracts outstanding, in the Henry Hub front-month hit 386,826 on the New York Mercantile Exchange on Wednesday, topping the previous high of 366,383 set in May 2016, according to Reuters data going back to 1990. "There has been a narrative around the market that the LNG exports are going to be the difference maker this winter…
USCG, EPA Cleaning up a Dozen Texas Chemical Spills after Harvey
The U.S. Coast Guard and the Environmental Protection Agency are working with Texas state regulators to clean up oil and chemicals spilled from a dozen industrial facilities after flooding from Hurricane Harvey, authorities said. The spills came from oil refineries, fuel terminals and other businesses, but EPA spokeswoman Terri White said it was not possible to provide an estimate for the amounts spilled. "Initial reports were based on observation," White said. Refineries owned by Valero Energy Corp in Houston, Motiva Inc in Port Arthur…
Kinder Morgan Q3 Revenue Dips on Harvey Impact
Pipeline operator Kinder Morgan Inc reported a 1.5 percent fall in quarterly revenue, partly due to the impact of Hurricane Harvey. In August, Harvey hit the Texas shore as a fierce Category 4 hurricane, causing massive flooding, which knocked out 11 percent of U.S. refining capacity, a quarter of oil production from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, and closed ports all along the Texas coast. Kinder Morgan had shut down parts of its KMCC pipeline system for crude and condensate, its Double Eagle pipeline, several gas storage facilities and compressor stations due to Harvey.
