DAVOS: Oil Majors Huddle in DAVOS to Mull Future
When the global oil industry held its biggest annual gathering this week in the Swiss town of Davos, it invited banking bosses and fund managers to discuss two key topics - climate change and pressure from investors.The conclusion of the discussions was worrying for those present - pressure is rising and the industry is losing a battle not to be seen as one of the world's biggest evils.The answer? Lure investors with higher returns and raise the PR game."There…
UAE's Stanford Marine in Talks to Restructure $325 mln in Debt
Stanford Marine Group <IPO-SFMG.L>, majority owned by a fund managed by private equity firm Abraaj Group, is in talks with banks to restructure a $325 million Islamic loan, banking sources said. The Dubai-based oil and gas services firm, which has struggled as a result of a downturn in the hydrocarbons market, has asked banks to consider extending the maturity of its debt and restructuring repayments, the sources said. Although the company, which operates a fleet of offshore supply vessels that service the oil and gas industry…
Petrobras to Settle U.S. Class Action over Corruption
Brazil's state-controlled oil company, Petroleo Brasileiro SA, said on Wednesday that it has agreed to pay $2.95 billion to settle a U.S. class action brought by investors who claim they lost money as a result of a corruption scandal. Petrobras, as the company is known, denied any wrongdoing under the deal, which is one of the largest securities class action settlements in the United States. U.S. District Judge Jed Rakoff in Manhattan must approve the settlement.
Dirty Water in U.S. Shale Patch Drives Investment in Water Handlers
Huge volumes of dirty water produced by U.S. shale firms are driving up investment in water-handling specialists, as cash-conscious oil and gas companies try to trim costs. For every barrel of crude, drillers generate up to six barrels of brackish water containing chemicals used to release oil and gas from shale rock. The water is trucked or piped to disposal wells, or recycled. Transporting and disposing of water is costly for energy producers who are cash-strapped after more than two years of slumping oil prices…
Brent Spreads Become Battleground Amid Doubts Over Oil Rebalancing
Global oil markets are gradually rebalancing, but progress has been slower and more uneven than the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and bullish hedge funds expected. OPEC as well as most commentators, crude traders and hedge funds have assumed the rebalancing of the oil market will be accompanied by a shift from contango towards backwardation in oil futures prices. Officials at the producer group have focused on the shift to backwardation as a key indicator of whether their policies are working.
Dakota Pipeline Gets Regulatory Approvals
Army cancels environmental study on pipeline impact and will grant permit to complete $3.8 bln line. The U.S. Army will grant the final permit for the controversial Dakota Access oil pipeline after an order from President Donald Trump to expedite the project despite opposition from Native American tribes and climate activists. In a court filing on Tuesday, the Army said that it would allow the final section of the line to tunnel under North Dakota's Lake Oahe, part of the Missouri River system.
Richards Takes over for Bennett as Chevron VP
Chevron Corporation today announced that Randolph S. Richards has been named corporate vice president and treasurer, effective May 1, 2016. Richards replaces Paul V. Bennett, who is retiring from the position after 36 years of service with the company. "Paul has demonstrated a tremendous capability to both assess and manage risk, and has played an important role in helping to guide our financing strategies for the last several years," said Patricia E. Yarrington, Chevron's chief financial officer. Richards is currently vice president of Finance for Upstream.
Possible Scalia Replacement Previously Represented Exxon, Rio Tinto
One possible contender to replace Justice Antonin Scalia on the U.S. Supreme Court is an Indian-American appeals court judge, Sri Srinivasan, who has pro-business credentials and a stellar resume. If he was nominated his background may make it more politically challenging for Republicans as they plan to block anyone put forward by President Barack Obama. Srinivasan, 48, has served on the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit since he was confirmed on a 97-0 bipartisan vote in the U.S. Senate in May 2013.
Renewable Energy: Wind, Sun Could Dominate by 2030
NOAA, CIRES study: Wind, sun could eclipse fossil fuels for electric power by 2030. The United States could slash greenhouse gas emissions from power production by up to 78 percent below 1990 levels within 15 years while meeting increased demand, according to a new study by NOAA and University of Colorado Boulder researchers. The study used a sophisticated mathematical model to evaluate future cost, demand, generation and transmission scenarios. It found that with improvements in transmission infrastructure…
Moeller Joins LNGL Board
Liquefied Natural Gas Limited appointed Philip D Moeller as a Non‐Executive Director of LNGL with effect from 7 December 2015. Philip is the Company’s third US‐based Non‐Executive Director following the appointments of Paul Cavicchi in October 2014 and Mike Steuert in February 2015. Former Commissioner Philip Moeller left the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) in October 2015 as the second‐longest serving member in the history of FERC. by both President George W. Bush and President Barack Obama.
Citi Accelerates Pullback From Exposure to Coal Mining
Citigroup has joined the retreat by investors and lenders in the coal sector by further tightening its policy on its credit exposure to coal miners. A spokesman for Citi confirmed the U.S. bank was broadening its guidelines for reducing its credit exposure to encompass all types of coal mines. Since 2011 Citi had already limited its credit exposure to the more controversial mountain top mining, used on a limited basis by the U.S. coal industry, whereby tops of mountains are blown up with explosives to mine underlying coal.
Pirates and Hold-ups: Crime Strikes Venezuela's Oil Industry
When night falls over western Venezuela, armed gangs known as "pirates" sometimes ride boats into muggy Lake Maracaibo to steal equipment from oil wells. In the country's Paraguana peninsula, opposite the Caribbean island of Aruba, slum dwellers at times break through a perimeter wall into Venezuela's biggest refinery and rob machinery, construction tools, and cables to sell as scrap. On the other side of the OPEC country in Monagas state, around 26,000 potential…
OK Regulator: Quake Increase a "Game Changer"
From June 17 to 24, there have been 35 earthquakes of magnitude 3.0 or greater in the state, according to the Oklahoma Geological Survey. Particularly worrying for regulators, some of the recent quakes occurred in the Oklahoma City metropolitan area, where there are no high-volume wastewater injection wells. The spike in quakes comes roughly two months after new rules governing the disposal of briny wastewater from drilling took full effect. Drillers were ordered by the Oklahoma Corporation Commission (OCC)…
Crime Paralyzes Venezuela's oil industry
When night falls over western Venezuela, armed gangs known as "pirates" sometimes ride boats into muggy Lake Maracaibo to steal equipment from oil wells. In the country's Paraguana peninsula, opposite the Caribbean island of Aruba, slum dwellers at times break through a perimeter wall into Venezuela's biggest refinery and rob machinery, construction tools, and cables to sell as scrap. On the other side of the OPEC country in Monagas state, around 26,000 potential…
CA Coal Divestment Bill Clears Committee Vote
A bill to require California's state pension funds Calpers and CalSTRS to sell their investments in companies that generate at least half their revenue from coal mining passed an Assembly committee by a vote of 5-1 on Wednesday. Pension funds are under pressure from activists to halt investing in fossil fuel for environmental reasons and the vote could increase the momentum for other funds to sell such assets. Investing in fossil fuels has been a hot-button issue both domestically and internationally.
Oxford University Says Will Not Invest in Coal, Tar Sands Companies
The University of Oxford will continue to avoid investments in companies involved in coal extraction and tar sands, the university's highest decision-making body said on Monday. The university's funds - the Oxford Endowment Fund and the Oxford Capital Fund - have 2 billion pounds ($3.1 billion) of assets under management, and none of it is currently invested in coal or tar sands, the university said in a statement. "Our investment managers take a long-term view and take into account global risks…
Caterpillar Forms New Analytics & Innovation Division
To better capitalize on the growing importance and excitement of data analytics and to drive innovation to support customers, Caterpillar Inc. today announced the formation of a new division, Analytics & Innovation (AI), which will be led by Caterpillar Vice President Greg Folley. The division will bring together the people and resources that will foster a culture with innovation at the core, form a broad and connected analytics ecosystem and manage strategic third party relationships with providers like Chicago…
SunEdison Appoints SVP and Chief Strategy Officer
Renewable energy development company SunEdison, Inc. announced that Julie Blunden has been appointed senior vice president and chief strategy officer of SunEdison, including responsibility for marketing, communications, investor relations and public policy. "Julie brings a rare depth of industry experience from the early days of competitive power generation through the development of global wholesale and retail electricity markets and has been instrumental over the last decade in leading solar into mainstream power and consumer markets…
Financial Pressure Forces PDVSA to Embraces Pragmatism
CARACAS/HOUSTON, March 13 (Reuters) - A subtle change in office attire may be the most telling symbol of a quiet revolution taking place inside Venezuela's troubled economic engine, giant oil firm PDVSA. For years, PDVSA employees were encouraged to wear red shirts in support of late President Hugo Chavez's socialist movement. Rafael Ramirez, the former oil czar famously vowed the state-owned firm would be "redder than red" and sent workers to state rallies.
Interview: Oil Spill Repsonse Insights from MSRC's Benze: Steven T. Benz, President and CEO, Marine Spill Response Corporation (MSRC)
As President and CEO of MSRC, Steve Benz presides over the largest oil spill response company in the United States (and worldwide). In that position since January 1996, he has during that tenure, overseen several critical phases in the Company’s evolution. These include a major restructuring in the late 1990s to make it more competitive; growth throughout the 2000-2009 period, including acquisition of several companies; leadership in overseeing MSRC’s role in responding to the 2010 BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico…
