Drill, baby, drill in Argentina's Vaca Muerta shale lands!
Argentina's new, market-friendly government, and concerns about oil supplies from the Middle East, and elsewhere, are driving a boom in drilling and production in the Patagonian South, which is home to the giant Vaca Muerta shale, Spanish for "Dead Cow". In the flat, arid terrain, the production of shale oil and gas is surging.
Dallas Fed: Regional oil activity declines but electrification gains.
The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas reported on Wednesday that oil and gas activity in Texas and Louisiana, as well as New Mexico, decreased in the third quarter. According to executives surveyed, third-quarter oil and natural gas production is mixed. Data suggests that oil production has increased, while gas production has decreased.
Investors on Board as U.S. Oil Majors Dismiss Wind and Solar Projects
Top U.S. oil firms are doubling down on drilling, deepening a divide with European rivals on the outlook for renewables, and winning support from big investors who do not expect the stateside companies to invest in wind and solar. Among a dozen U.S. fund managers contacted by Reuters from companies overseeing about $7 trillion in assets…
Top Citgo Executives Removed as PDVSA Chaos Continues
Citgo Petroleum Corp has removed at least three top executives close to Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro, people familiar with the matter said on Monday, in a move to cement management control under a new board of directors.The U.S. refining arm of Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA has been thrust in recent…
Oil Exports from Iraqi Southern Ports Slide
Iraq's oil exports from southern ports on the Gulf averaged 3.469 million barrels per day (bpd) in October, lower than the September average, the oil ministry said on Thursday.Iraq exported 3.560 million bpd of crude oil in September.Iraqi oil executives told Reuters on Wednesday exports were down from the September average owing to bad weather, which slowed shipments down on some days.T
Pope Warns Energy Bosses of Global Destruction without Fuel Shift
Pope Francis warned that climate change risked destroying humanity on Saturday and called on energy leaders to help the world to convert to clean fuels to avert catastrophe."Civilisation requires energy but energy use must not destroy civilisation," the pope told top oil company executives at the end of a two-day…
Kuwait Energy Starts Producing Natural Gas in Southern Iraq
Kuwait Energy PLC <IPO-KEC.L> started producing natural gas from Siba on Wednesday, the first gas field to be brought on stream in the south of Iraq, an Iraqi oil executive told Reuters.Siba began producing gas at an initial rate of 25 million cubic feet a day (mcf/d), which should rise gradually to 100 mcf/d by the end of the year…
Venezuela Arrests Two Chevron Execs
Chevron Corp said on Tuesday two of its executives were arrested in Venezuela, a rare move likely to spook foreign energy firms still operating in the OPEC nation stricken by hyperinflation, shortages and crime.Venezuelan Sebin intelligence agents burst into the Petropiar joint venture's office in the coastal city…
Shell Targets Former Senior Executive in Nigeria Graft Complaint
Royal Dutch Shell has filed a criminal complaint against a former senior employee over suspected bribes in the $390 million sale of an oilfield in Nigeria, where the company is already under investigation over a separate deal. Dutch prosecutors confirmed they had received the complaint against Peter Robinson, a former vice president for sub-Saharan Africa.
Ex-PDVSA oil czar Ramirez Probed in $4.8B Scandal
Venezuela is investigating Rafael Ramirez, a once powerful oil minister and former head of state oil company PDVSA, in connection with an alleged $4.8 billion Vienna-based corruption scheme, the state prosecutor's office announced on Friday. Prosecutor Tarek Saab said Ramirez and at least four other oil executives…
NAFTA Doubts Impact Mexico Oil Tenders
Uncertainty about the fate of the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) and investor protections it guarantees could crimp future investment in Mexico's oil industry, including a high-stakes January deepwater auction. Ahead of a fifth round of NAFTA talks in Mexico City in mid-November, Washington's tough…
Most US Oil Execs See Prices below $60/Barrel through 2018
Nearly two-thirds of U.S. oil executives see crude oil prices remaining below $60 per barrel through 2018 and not hitting $70 until at least the next decade, according to a survey published on Wednesday by consultancy Deloitte Services LP. The survey, based on a poll of 250 executives at companies that produce, transport and refine oil and natural gas…
Matrix Global Plans U.S. Crude Storage Deal
Matrix plans sweet crude storage futures at LOOP. Matrix Global Holdings is planning to start up an oil storage futures contract for low-sulphur crude oil that will enable companies to build up supplies for export cargoes, as Asia looks for more crude imports from the United States. The contract will give holders access to low-sulphur…
Oil Near 26-month High on Turkey-Kurdistan Tensions
Brent hits highest since July 2015; oil market rebalancing continues, inventories falling. Brent oil prices hovered near 26-month highs on Tuesday, supported by Turkey's threat to cut crude exports from Iraq's Kurdistan region and signs of quicker market rebalancing. Turkish President Tayyip Erdogan repeated a threat to cut off the pipeline that carries 500…
Tariff Fight Roils Argentina’s Shale Patch
Argentina needs oil rigs to develop its vast shale oil and gas resources. The United States has plenty of idle equipment laying around after its own unconventional drilling boom cooled. But moving that machinery from the plains of Texas to the windswept Patagonian desert is proving complex and costly for global…
Venezuela Court Move May Spook Non-Russian Oil Majors
The sight of Venezuela's National Assembly president tearing up a Supreme Court ruling and warning foreign firms against making deals with the leftist government will no doubt resonate in international boardrooms. The ruling ripped up by Congress head Julio Borges on Thursday was designed to allow President Nicolas Maduro to create oil ventures without congressional approval…
OPEC, Shale Industry Seek Truce: Kemp
The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and shale producers have fought each other to a draw over the last two years, with neither able to achieve a decisive victory. Now both want a truce. There have been no winners from the oil producers’ civil war of 2014-2016, except for consumers, who have enjoyed two years of cheaper fuel prices.
Iraq's Southern Exports Lower after OPEC Cut
Oil exports from Iraq's southern terminals have edged lower so far in February, according to loading data and an industry source, a sign that OPEC's second-largest producer is keeping a lid on shipments following a commitment to cut output. During negotiations on the supply cut by OPEC and non-OPEC producers, Iraq…
Oil Exports From Southern Iraq Down in January
Crude oil exports from southern Iraq in January fell to 3.275 million barrels per day (bpd) from 3.51 million bpd in December, as the country complied with an agreement with other producers to reduce output, two oil executives said on Tuesday. December's exports from the southern region, where Iraq produces most of its oil, set a record high.
Big Oil Frets About China-U.S. Trade Tensions
Saudis say tensions make many countries anxious; China a key engine for global oil demand growth. Oil executives and Middle East producers are concerned that trade tensions between the United States and China risk clouding the outlook for global energy demand growth and a recovery in the price of oil. "It is not unique to our country to feel a certain level of anxiety (about tensions).
