Indonesia is looking for new technologies to improve oil drilling
Officials said that Indonesia issued a new regulation on Tuesday to encourage investment by oil drilling technology providers to increase production at existing wells. Yuliot Tajung, the deputy energy minister, told reporters that this policy aims to reactivate idle wells as part of an effort to increase oil production to one million barrels per daily (bpd) by 2029-2030, from less than 600,000.
Norway Oil Drilling Workers agree wage agreement, averting a strike
Norwegian unions reached a wage agreement, which prevented a strike on floating offshore drilling rigs, which would have disrupted exploration. Unions and company representatives announced the agreement Friday evening. The unions said 438 workers from three rigs would strike if talks did not succeed, but that no immediate disruption in oil and gas production is expected. The Norwegian Shipowners' Association and Styrke…
The ethnic groups are angry about Tinubu's pardoning of the 'Ogoni Nine" by Nigerian President Tinubu
Nigerian Ogoni activists rejected on Friday a posthumous forgiveness for nine members of their community who were executed by the military dictatorship three decades earlier. They criticized President Bola Tinubu’s decision as insufficient and perpetuating injustice. Tinubu, in honor of Nigeria's Democracy Day, on the 12th June, pardoned nine men known as "Ogoni Nine", among them the writer Ken Saro Wiwa.
US terminal operator warns that its ethane and butane exports could fall
Enterprise Products Partners said on Thursday that the U.S. Department of Commerce's requirement for it to apply for a licence to export to China could hurt its ethane-and-butane exports. Reports on Wednesday said that the United States had ordered a wide range of companies to cease shipping products, such as ethane or butane, without a permit to China and revoked permits already granted to some suppliers.
Norway's oil-drilling unions are seeking wage mediation in order to avoid a strike
Employers and three unions reported that wage talks with 7,500 oil drilling employees in Norway failed on Wednesday. This could lead to a strike later this year. The Norwegian Shipowners' Association's (NSA) talks with the Safe, Styrke, and DSO unions are to resume at a future date, which is yet to be determined, under the mediation of a state appointed mediator. Geir Sjoeberg, the NSA's lead negotiator…
Norway Oil Drilling Unions Seek Mediation to Avoid Strike
Two unions have said that wage negotiations involving 7,000 oil drilling employees in Norway failed early on Wednesday. This could lead to strike action later in the year, which would disrupt exploration. The unions have announced that the talks between the Norwegian Shipowners' Association and the Safe and Styrke unions will be resumed at a future date, under the direction of a mediator appointed by the state.
Brazil's Petrobras to simulate emergency plan for Foz do Amazonas basin
The Brazilian Environmental Agency Ibama approved on Monday the state-run Petrobras concept for an emergency plan that would assist local fauna if there was an oil spillage in the Foz do Amazonas Basin. This move allows Petrobras a simulation of their plan. It could be the final step before Ibama decides on a drilling license for the company in the northernmost part of Brazil’s Equatorial Margin. Petrobras considers this area to be the most promising oil frontier.
Texas oil drilling applications at 4-year low as producers consider OPEC+ increase, trade war
Enverus, a consultancy, said that oil and gas drilling permits in Texas, which is the leading U.S. state for oil production, dropped to their lowest level since February 2021. This was due to concerns about rising OPEC+ supply and a trade conflict continuing to impact crude prices. Enverus reports that operators in Texas filed 570 new drilling permits in April, down from the 795 applications submitted in March, and the lowest number of new permits since February 2021.
Norway Parliament orders restart of frontier oil and Gas Exploration Licensing
The Norwegian Parliament on Tuesday directed the Labour Minority Government to launch a round of new oil and gas exploration licenses in frontier areas, setting the stage towards increased oil drilling. Norway is now Europe's biggest natural gas supplier following the Russian invasion of Ukraine, 2022. It provides about 30% of all gas imported to the European Union. The Centre Party, who quit the government last January…
Baker Hughes reports that US drillers added oil and gas rigs in the US for a second consecutive week.
Baker Hughes, a leading energy services company, said that U.S. firms added oil and gas rigs this week for the second consecutive week for the first since February. The number of oil and gas drilling rigs, a good indicator of future production, increased by two in the week ending April 25. Baker Hughes reported that despite this week's increase in rigs, the total count is still 26 or 4% lower than this time last year.
US wants to increase offshore oil drilling through easing of pressure rules
The U.S. Interior Department announced on Thursday that it had implemented new guidelines regarding pressure differentials allowed in certain types of oil drilling, in part of Gulf of Mexico. The department expects the changes to boost U.S. output of oil. The Energy Dominance Council, led by Doug Burgum, Interior Secretary to President Donald Trump, is seeking ways to reduce costs for oil and natural gas producers…
Trump Administration kicks off plan to expand offshore drilling
The U.S. The U.S. Donald Trump ordered the government to find ways to increase U.S. oil production. He argued that previous administrations had curtailed drilling unnecessarily to combat climate changes. He also rescinded the efforts of former president Joe Biden to stop oil drilling in the Arctic, and large areas along the U.S. Atlantic Coast and Pacific Coast. In a recent press release, Interior Secretary Doug Burgum stated that "Under the leadership of President Donald J.
Executives say that AI will lead to cheaper and faster oil production. CORRECTED.
Executives at the CERAWeek Conference in Houston explained that artificial intelligence has accelerated oil and gas drilling, and has prompted companies to reconsider areas they previously deemed too expensive or difficult to develop. AI was a major topic in several sessions of the largest energy conference. Oil producers are looking for ways to stay profitable amid a plummeting price of oil and concerns that U.S. president Donald Trump's tariffs may slow down global energy demand.
Staff of Brazil's Ibama recommend against Petrobras drilling Amazon region
Two sources with knowledge of the matter said that the technical staff at Brazil's environment agency Ibama recommended to the body that it deny Petrobras permission to drill in the environmentally sensitive Foz do Amazonas area. Rodrigo Agostinho, Ibama’s president, will make the final decision. Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva has put pressure on the agency by saying earlier this month…
Guyana and Dominican Republic make progress on oil drilling, refining
Dominican President Luis Abinader announced on Tuesday that Guyana and Dominican Republic have made progress in negotiating agreements for offshore oil exploration, a fertilizer factory and possibly a refinery to be built in South America. In 2023, the countries signed a Memorandum of Understanding to work on projects in energy. The Caribbean country has expressed interest in exploring Guyana’s Berbice off-shore block.
US Judge rejects Republican challenge to Biden's ESG investment rule
A federal judge in Texas upheld a rule that was adopted by Democratic former president Joe Biden that allowed socially conscious investments by employee retirement plans. The judge said it remained valid after a U.S. Supreme Court decision that curbed the regulatory powers of agencies. U.S. District Court Judge Matthew Kacsmaryk, in Amarillo Texas, has rejected the arguments of 26 Republican-led States…
Brazil's Lula will meet with the Environment Agency to discuss Petrobras' bid for drilling near the mouth of Amazon river
Brazil's president Luiz Inacio Lula Da Silva will meet with the environmental agency Ibama this week or next to discuss Petrobras bid to drill near the mouth the Amazon river for oil, he said to a local station on Wednesday. Lula, who defended Petrobras’ bid to explore the area, said in the interview that “Ibama appears to be a government agency which is against the government” as a escalation to recent criticisms against the regulator.
Can Trump reverse Biden's offshore oil drilling ban?
In an executive order issued on Monday, President Donald Trump revoked the ban placed by former Democratic president Joe Biden against new offshore oil-and-gas development along most of America's coasts. Trump will face legal challenges regarding his authority. What did BIDEN and Trump do? Biden used his authority, granted by the Outer Continental Shelf Lands Act of 1970, to stop oil and gas…
What is known about Trump's Executive Orders after the swearing-in?
Donald Trump, the U.S. president, issued a series of executive orders on Monday to stamp his mark on his administration. These included directives on immigration and criminal pardons to energy. Trump pardoned around 1,500 people on Jan. 6, 2020, who stormed into the U.S. Capitol. This was a massive gesture of support for those who attacked police officers as they attempted to stop lawmakers from certifying Trump's defeat in the 2020 elections.
Bloomberg News: Biden will ban new oil drilling in vast areas of US Atlantic and Pacific waters
Bloomberg News reported that President Joe Biden will ban any new offshore oil and natural gas development on 625 million acres of U.S. coast territory (250 million hectares), effective immediately. According to the report, which cited unidentified sources familiar with the issue, the ban will be announced on Monday and prevent the sale of drilling licenses in certain areas of the Atlantic, Pacific and eastern Gulf of Mexico oceans.
