Agreement Paves Way for South African Offshore Supply Base
South Africa’s first dedicated and customized facility supporting offshore oil and gas activities will be introduced at the Port of Saldanha. This follows the conclusion of an agreement between Transnet National Ports Authority (TNPA) and Saldehco Pty Ltd, which was signed off at an official ceremony at the port on Monday, 23 April 2018.Saldehco is a privately owned South African company…
Glencore Sees Record Oil Trading Volumes as Margins Shrink
Glencore looks set to cement its position as the world's second-largest oil trader as it tries to offset low volatility and tight margins with record volumes this year, its global head of oil, Alex Beard, told Reuters. The London-listed commodities trader and miner will shift around 6 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude and refined product this year, up 25 percent from last year.
Mission Accomplished? OPEC Banishes Contango
“There is no doubt that the oil market is moving in the right direction,” the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries noted with satisfaction in its most recent bulletin published on Wednesday. “The rebalancing process was never going to happen overnight; it was never going to happen in a linear fashion; and it was always going to require a concerted effort,” OPEC observed.
Full Tanks & Tankers: A Stubborn Oil Glut Despite OPEC Cuts
After the first OPEC oil production cut in eight years took effect in January, oil traders from Houston to Singapore started emptying millions of barrels of crude from storage tanks. Investors hailed the drawdowns as the beginning of the end of a two-year supply glut - raising hopes for steadily rising per-barrel prices. It hasn't worked out that way.
AMSOL Bags New Contracts
AMSOL has been awarded a five-year contract by the South African Department of Transport to operate the standby tug utilized as part of state driven proactive marine pollution prevention measures. And in another development, AMSOL has been appointed by the Sunrise Energy Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Import Terminal as the preferred…
Murky Inventory Estimates Leaves Oil Markets Guessing
Oil supplies remain plentiful despite OPEC-led cut; measuring stored oil globally is notoriously difficult. The jury is still out over whether an OPEC-led production cut aimed at tightening oil markets is working, or if the producer club has simply enabled higher prices without making much of a dent in the global fuel supply overhang.
OPEC's War On Oil Overhang Starts to Bear Fruit
OPEC appears to be slowly winning the battle against a global overhang of crude and oil products as inventories in onshore and floating storage decline. The price of oil may not reflect this just yet, as Brent crude futures are struggling to recover its losses for the year to date and break above $55 a barrel. But there is no doubt that stocks are falling around the world…
Saldanha Bay Could be S.Africa's First LNG Import Terminal
Gas seen as key to help resolve power crisis; gas could be sourced from Nigeria, Angola, Mozambique. South Africa could build its first 20 billion rand ($1.4 billion) liquefied natural gas (LNG) import facility at the west coast port of Saldanha Bay to feed gas-to-power projects aimed at easing chronic supply shortages, an official said on Tuesday.
South Africa Refurbishes Crude Storage Tanks
South Africa plans to refurbish more crude oil storage to bring into use to take advantage of new finds in Africa and add to already brimming stocks. Its Strategic Fuel Fund Association (SFF), which manages the country's emergency crude stocks, wants to refurbish its 7.5 million barrels storage tanks near Cape Town, a document showed.
S.African Crude Blending Terminal up by 2017
New 13.2 mln barrel crude blending terminal for S.Africa; Oil majors and global oil traders sign on. Using the world's first dedicated crude oil blending terminal, South Africa will by 2017 mix different grades of crude oil for export to refineries across Asia, enabling them to produce cleaner fuels more cheaply, an official said on Thursday.
New S. African Crude Blending Terminal to Supply Asia from 2017
Using the world's first dedicated crude oil blending terminal, South Africa will by 2017 mix different grades of crude oil for export to refineries across Asia, enabling them to produce cleaner fuels more cheaply, an official said on Thursday. Construction of the 2 billion rand ($161 million) fuel blending farm, which consists of 12 massive concrete bunkers…
How Do You Lose 100 Million Barrels of Oil?
Oil-market watchers are struggling to reconcile the large estimated oversupply in the market with the much smaller buildup of reported inventories and narrowing contango in futures prices. Some blame the barrel counters who compile official statistics on supply, demand and stocks. But the truth is that information on the world oil…
Floating Storage at Sea Stalls Despite Falling Oil Prices
Despite falling oil prices, traders in recent weeks have booked just a few tankers to store cargoes at sea as higher freight costs outweigh any profit play for now. This is partly due to expectation among tanker owners for higher rates in the final quarter of the year. That means oil traders will have to pay a premium to lease vessels…
Brent Crude Hits 16-month Low Under US$99
Brent crude dropped to a 16-month low under $99 per barrel on Wednesday, stretching its losses into a fifth session amid continued worries about rising supplies and weak global demand. While a larger-than-expected fall in weekly U.S. crude stocks kept a floor under oil prices, gains were curbed by a firmer U.S. dollar that makes commodities priced in the greenback more expensive for holders of other currencies.
EnerMech Acquisitions Extend its Presence in US, Africa
Oil and gas engineering specialist, EnerMech, has extended its international presence in the cranes and lifting and valves sectors with two acquisitions in the USA and Africa. The combined value of the deals is said to be approximately £4 million and are forecast to add an extra £25 million to group revenues over the next three years.
