Coronavirus, Consolidation Taking Toll On Energy Jobs
Oil and gas companies worldwide are taking an axe to their employment rolls, shedding workers to survive what is expected to be a prolonged stretch of weak demand.Exxon Mobil Corp said it will cut its workforce by 15%, or about 14,000 people, along with oil majors Chevron Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc.All told, more than 400,000 oil and gas sector jobs have been cut this year, according to Rystad Energy, with about half of those in the United States, where several big exploration companies and most large oil service companies are headquartered.Coronavirus has devastated swathes of the global economy…
PetroChina's oil and gas trade turnover up 5% in 2019
PetroChina Co Ltd, China's leading energy firm, expanded its oil and gas trade in 2019, recording a rise of nearly 5% from prior year to exceed 500 million tonnes oil equivalent, according to a statement posted on the website of parent firm China National Petroleum Co on Thursday.PetroChina International, better known as Chinaoil, the trading arm under the state-run PetroChina, achieved "significant" growth in pre-tax profit last year, the report stated, without providing any numbers.Exports of refined fuel hit a record of more than 18 million tonnes, with first shipments of gasoline to Nigeria and India and first diesel shipment in larger 90,000-
PetroChina Strikes Large Flows in Tarim Exploration Well
PetroChina Co Ltd struck sizeable oil and gas flows in an exploration well in the Tarim basin of the remote northwestern region of Xinjiang, marking a breakthrough in exploring an earlier untapped region, parent CNPC said on Thursday.Zhongqiu-1 well tested a daily natural gas flow of 330,000 cubic metres and 21.4 cubic metres of condensate, a super light crude oil, CNPC said on its news portal news.cnpc.com.cn.The well is located in the southern part of Kuche trough in the Tarim basin and part of an exploration zone with a size of 5,200 square kilometers.PetroChina aims to build by 2020 an annual output of 30 million tonnes of oil equivalent in th
Mitsubishi Signs on $31 Bln LNG Canada Project
Japanese trading house Mitsubishi Corp said on Tuesday it will join in developing the LNG Canada project in British Columbia led by Royal Dutch Shell, which has taken a final investment decision to go ahead with the development.The C$40 billion ($31 billion) project, on the west coast of Canada, will consist of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) production facilities, known as trains, that are expected to export about 14 million tonnes per year of the fuel.LNG Canada is a joint venture between Shell, Malaysia's Petronas, PetroChina Co Ltd, Mitsubishi and Korea Gas Corp.Mitsubishi said it share of the project is 15 percent and it will take delivery of
Firms Complain of Contaminated Crude Lifted From U.S. SPR
Three firms that bought crude oil last year from U.S. emergency stockpiles raised concerns about dangerous levels of a poisonous chemical in the cargoes, according to internal Energy Department emails and shipping documents reviewed by Reuters. Problems with crude quality would make the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) less useful in an emergency because refiners would need to spend time and money removing contamination before producing fuel. The reserve is the world's largest government stockpile, currently holding 665 million barrels.
North American Exodus at PetroChina Sparks Speculation
A flurry of departures across the U.S. and Canadian units of Chinese state energy firm PetroChina Co Ltd have sparked speculation that the oil trader is reducing its presence in North America, even though the company says it is committed to the region. More than 30 people in its Houston and Calgary offices have left PetroChina since 2016, including heads of desks in crude, financial, natural gas and chemical trading, the company confirmed to Reuters. Sources say that PetroChina had approximately 150 to 200 people at its peak two to three years ago, and now has between 100 and 150.
Shell pushes back investment decision on Canadian LNG project
British Columbia's ambitions to become North America's next major liquefied natural gas exporter took another hit on Thursday, as Royal Dutch Shell pushed back a final investment decision (FID) on its LNG Canada project to late 2016. The delay came as Europe's largest oil company reported its lowest annual income in over a decade and said it would take further steps to cut costs to cope with weak oil prices if needed. LNG Canada, located on British Columbia's rugged northern coastline, is one of the frontrunners in a now slowing race to build Canada's first LNG export terminal. It has already been granted its key environmental permits.
BP, China's CNPC to Unveil Oil Alliance
BP Plc and China's CNPC will next week unveil a strategic alliance to develop oil resources in Iraq and other regions, industry sources said on Friday. The deal, one of several high profile deals to be signed during a visit by Chinese President Xi Jinping to London, will aim to bolster cooperation between the two companies in Iraq, where they are developing the giant Rumaila oilfield. Rumaila, in southern Iraq, is the world's second largest oilfield and produced 1.34 million barrels per day in 2014, according to BP's website. The two companies will also seek to expand into new joint ventures in other parts of the world, according to the sources.
PetroChina Processes Imported Crude Oil
China's Huabei Petrochemical Corp, a subsidiary of PetroChina Co Ltd, processed this month imported crude oil for the first time and plans annual imports of five million tonnes once an expansion is completed, China Petroleum News reported on Tuesday. The plant, located in the northern province of Hebei, near Beijing, received its first shipment of foreign crude oil in late August, a 730,000-barrel vessel of Sahara Blend from Algeria. A 189-km crude oil pipeline has also been newly built to supply to the Huabei refinery. It starts at the Tianjin port and can carry 140,000 barrels of crude oil per day, the paper said.
Shell-led LNG Project Gets Environmental Nod in Canada
Canada's environment ministry said on Wednesday it has approved a Royal Dutch Shell-led liquefied natural gas export terminal proposed for British Columbia's Pacific Coast, contingent on the project meeting 50 conditions on monitoring its impact. In her decision, federal Environment Minister Leona Aglukkaq concluded that the environmental effects of the proposed LNG Canada project "are justified in the circumstances". She said the project would create thousands of jobs and contribute billions of dollars to the economy.
CNPC Makes Tight Oil Find over 100 mln tonnes
Chinese state-owned energy giant China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) has discovered more than 100 million tonnes of tight oil geological reserves in its Changqing field, a company-run newspaper said on Tuesday. The discovery, located in the western province of Shaanxi, is the first Chinese tight oil find to surpass 100 million tonnes, the China Petroleum Daily said. Technically recoverable reserves may be considerably lower. Tight oil production capacity in the Ordos basin, where Changqing is located, is more than 1 million tonnes, the paper said. CNPC is Asia's largest oil producer and the parent of PetroChina Co Ltd.
Greenhouse Gas Emissions Rise, Despite Call for Cuts
Greenhouse gas emissions by the world's top 500 companies rose 3.1 percent from 2010 to 2013, far off the cuts urged by the United Nations to limit global warming, a study showed on Monday. The top 500 firms by capitalisation accounted for 13.8 percent of world greenhouse gas emissions and 28 percent of gross domestic product in 2013, according to the report, drawn up by the information provider Thomson Reuters and BSD Consulting, a global sustainability consultancy. "Almost all of us use products from these companies," said Tim Nixon, Director of Sustainability at Thomson Reuters. "This is about transparency. A path set out last month by the U.N.
Korea Gas to Sell Down Part of Stake in Canadian LNG Project
Korea Gas Corp, one of the world's top liquefied natural gas buyers, is looking to sell down some of its stake in the up to C$40 billion ($35.6 billion) LNG Canada project, a spokeswoman for the project said. "We are aware that KOGAS is investigating divesting some of its share interest in LNG Canada," Katharine Birtwistle said in an email to Reuters late on Thursday. Korea Gas currently owns a 15 percent stake in the project, which is expected to cost between C$25 billion and C$40 billion to build to its full capacity, making it one of the costliest projects ever proposed in Canada.
Shell: Canada LNG Project Could Cost up to $35.2b
Royal Dutch Shell Plc , the lead partner in the consortium planning the LNG Canada facility on British Columbia's remote northern coast, said on Friday the project to liquefy natural gas for export to Asia could cost as much as C$40 billion ($35.3 billion) when fully complete. Shell's cost estimate for the LNG Canada facility near Kitimat, British Columbia, was included in the environmental assessment filed with provincial regulators on Friday. The filing begins a 180-day review of the proposal but the company cautioned it and its partners have not yet decided whether to build the plant.
Athabasca Sets Target Deadline for PetroChina Deal
Canada's Athabasca Oil Corp said on Wednesday a target closing deadline has been set on the C$1.23 billion takeover of the Dover oil sands project in northern Alberta by PetroChina Co Ltd's unit Phoenix Energy Holdings Ltd. In a second-quarter earnings call Athabasca said to avoid unnecessary focus on specific dates it would not provide further details on the timing, but a deadline had been set. Athabasca exercised a put option earlier in April to sell its 40 percent stake in the planned Dover oil sands project to partner Phoenix Energy.
China State Shipbuilding, CNPC Among 11 Caught in Auditor Snare
China's National Audit Office has found irregularities at 11 state-owned conglomerates ranging from misrepresentation of assets to illegal property development, highlighting the challenges the government faces in overhauling the public sector. China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC), the parent of PetroChina Co Ltd , China Resources (Holdings) Co Ltd, the parent of 10 companies listed in Shanghai and Hong Kong, and defence contractor China South Industries Group Corp, were among the firms whose 2012 audit reports were released on Friday.
LNG Canada Awards Export Terminal Contract
LNG Canada, a joint venture led by Royal Dutch Shell, said on Tuesday that it had awarded the design and eventual construction of its planned liquefied natural gas (LNG) export project on Canada's west coast to CFSW LNG Constructors. The contract covers the front end engineering and design work, as well as the execution of the multi-billion dollar project, pending a final investment decision. That final go or no-go call is not expected until mid-decade. LNG Canada is just one of more than a dozen export terminals planned for British Columbia's rugged Pacific coast, as energy companies look to ship cheap Canadian gas to Asia.
