CNOOC in Cooperation Pact with Nine Oil Majors
China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), has signed Strategic Cooperation Agreements with 9 international oil companies including: Chevron, ConocoPhillips, Equinor, Husky, KUFPEC, Roc Oil, Shell, SK Innovation, and Total.According to the agreements, the Strategic Cooperation Areas are located in the Pearl River Mouth Basin offshore China, including Area A and Area B (existing mining license areas and the contract areas are not included).Area A is approximately 15,300 square kilometers, with a water depth of 80-120 meters and only open for the deep layers below Enping Formation of Paleogene.
China Sets Sights on Oil Benchmark
China has opened more than 6,000 trading accounts for its long-awaited crude futures contract - with three-quarters coming from individual traders - as it pushes ahead with plans to compete with global pricing benchmarks. China's oil majors and about 150 brokerages have also registered, but the strong interest by 'mom-and-pop' investors looks set to mark out China's crude futures from western counterparts, which are dominated by institutional investors. Shanghai International Energy Exchange (INE), which will run China's contract, says it is finalising technical issues.
ABB wins $40 mln South China Power Link Deal
ABB has won an order of over $40 million to provide advanced power equipment to the 800 kilovolt (kV) Dianxibei-Guangdong ultra-high-voltage direct current (UHVDC) transmission link. The project, operated by China Southern Power Grid Company Limited, one of the country’s two major grid operators, is expected to transmit 5,000 megawatts (MW) of power over a distance of more than 1,950 kilometers. The order was booked in the third quarter of 2016. The link will transmit clean hydro-power from Yunnan province in southwestern China to the Pearl River Delta region in Guangdong…
China to Expand Coal Ban to Suburbs
China will expand its bans on coal burning to include suburban areas as well as city centres in efforts to tackle air pollution, the top energy agency said on Tuesday. Detailing its clean coal action plan 2015-2020, the National Energy Administration (NEA) said it would promote centralised heating and power supply by natural gas and renewables, replacing scattered heat and power engines fuelled by low quality coal. The world's biggest coal consumer will ban sale and burning of high-ash and high-sulphur coal in the worst affected regions including city clusters surrounding Beijing.
Brightoil Reports Steady Growth in Interim Results
Brightoil Petroleum (Holdings) Limited announced its interim results for the six months ended December 31, 2014, reporting steady growth over the period. During the period, profit attributable to the owners of the group increased 3% year-on-year to HK$561 million. Basic earnings per share amounted to 6.41 HK cents, up 3% from a year ago. Total revenue climbed 11% from HK$40.3 billion in 1HFY2014 toHK$44.9 billion for the period as the twin-engines business model (upstream and mid-downstream businesses) enabled the group to secure steady growth amid volatile oil prices.
Impact of China Coal Restrictions Questioned
Who to believe? The traders and analysts who say China's new regulations on coal quality is a body blow to Australian exports, or the companies and their association who say the impact will be insignificant. In this case, it seems far more likely that the impact will be minimal, but not non-existent, as the new rules will lead to changes in the composition of coal China imports. A far bigger impact may come from the curbs on transporting low-quality domestic coal, which may actually boost imports.
Coal Prices Drop in Reaction to China Import Ban
Thermal coal prices fell on Tuesday in reaction to a Chinese ban on the import and local sale of heavy-polluting coal types from January next year. European coal cargoes for delivery in October to Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Antwerp (ARA) traded at $73.95 a tonne at 1427 GMT on the GLOBALcoal platform, down $1.55 from the previous settlement, while December cargoes inched down 25 cents to $74.85 per tonne. Australian cargoes for delivery in October from the port of Newcastle, an Asian benchmark, edged down by 20 cents to $66.00 a tonne, while December cargoes were 15 cents lower at $66.10.
China to Ban Imports of High Ash, High Sulphur Coal
China will restrict imports and the sale of coal with high ash and high sulphur content starting from January 2015 in a bid to tackle air pollution, the National Development and Reform Commission said on Monday. Coal with ash and sulphur content exceeding 40 percent and 3 percent respectively will not be allowed to be transported for more than 600 kilometres from their production sites or receiving terminals. Coastal cities in the Yangtze River Delta, the Pearl River as well as Beijing…
CNOOC Puts 33 Licences on the Block
China National Offshore Oil Corporation has issued a tender inviting foreign oil companies to bid on 33 offshore blocks off east and southern China. The 33 blocks open for co-operation between foreign players and CNOOC cover an area of 126,108 square kilometres altogether. The tender has boosted the number of blocks compared to previous years, with 25 licences offered last year 2013 and 26 blocks in 2012. While most of the blocks lie in the South China Sea, many of them lie close to the Chinese border or in waters not held in dispute by other countries.
East and South China Sea Disputes Need Creative Diplomacy
China and the United States appear headed for a damaging confrontation over the extent of China's territorial claims in the South and East China Seas. Now that China has become the world's largest importer of oil, and energy more generally, the country's need to develop more indigenous energy supplies has become urgent. Expecting China to put the South and East China Seas off limits to exploration and production until disputes over sovereignty can be resolved through some undefined legal or diplomatic process is unrealistic.
China's Shift To Cleaner Fuel Puts $21 Bln Investment At Risk
China's increasing efforts to shift away from coal to cleaner fuels could put annual investments of around $21 billion at risk of being stranded, a research report estimated on Thursday. China has relied heavily on coal to fuel its economic growth over the past three decades, and it now burns half the coal that the world consumes each year. But a nationwide pollution crisis, increasing water scarcity and growing concerns over climate change mean Beijing wants to shift to cleaner energy sources. Analysts expect China's coal consumption to peak sometime between 2020 and 2030.
China Oil Major to Step Up 2014 Offshore Exploration Plans
The company says it has an extensive exploration program and plans to drill roughly 155 exploration wells and acquire approximately 26.7 thousand kilometers of 2-Dimensional (2D) seismic data as well as approximately 19.4 thousand square kilometers of 3-Dimensional (3D) seismic data. Within the year, the company will continue to strengthen the deepwater exploration. In 2014, the company is targeted to a reserve replacement ratio (RRR) of over 100%. The company's net production target of 2014 is in the range of 422 to 435 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE)…
CNOOC Starts Pearl River Gas Production, Lists Board
Market listed Chinese offshore energy company CNOOC reports start of South China Sea natural gas production at Liuhua field in the Pearl River and in related news has released names and functions of its directors. CNOOC says that the Liuhua natural gas field located in the Pearl River Mouth Basin of the South China Sea with an average water depth of about 185 meters has started production. They explain that this project was designed to share the existing producing facility of Panyu 30-1 gas field. Liuhua 19-5 is expected to hit its peak production of 29 million cubic feet per day in year 2014.
CNOOC: Two New Oil Fields Start Production
Hong Kong - CNOOC Limited (NYSE: CEO, SEHK: 00883) announced that, Wenchang 19-1 North and Weizhou 12-8 West oil fields have recently commenced production. Wenchang 19-1 North oil field is located in the western Pearl River Mouth Basin with an average water depth of about 120-130 meters. This oil field has 3 producing wells and is expected to reach its peak production within the year. Wenchang 19-1 North is an independent oil field in which the Company holds 100% interest and acts as the Operator.
CNOOC, BP Sign Production Sharing Contract
CNOOC Limited said that its parent company, China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC) has signed production sharing contract (PSC) with BP for deepwater Block 54/11 in Pearl River Mouth Basin in the South China Sea. Block 54/11 is located in Pearl River Mouth Basin in the east part of the South China Sea. It covers a total area of 4,586 square kilometers with water depths of 370- 2,300 meters. According to the terms of the contract, all expenditures incurred during the exploration period will be borne by BP.
South China Sea Energy Exploration by Chevron
Chevron Corporation's China subsidiary signs production sharing contracts for exploration blocks in the Pearl River Estuary, South China Sea. Chevron's agreement is with China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC). Under the PSC agreements, Chevron China Energy Company will hold a 100 percent interest in blocks 15/10 and 15/28 in the Pearl River Mouth Basin. During the exploration phase Chevron China Energy Company will be the operator of the two shallow water blocks, which in total cover an area of approximately 2,233 square miles (5,782 square km).
