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…
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.
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.
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.
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…
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…
President Energy's Update on Lapacho Well
President Energy gave a mid-November update on the progress of the Lapacho well, Chaco Region, Paraguay. The well has been drilled to 4,490m since setting casing at 4,125m. President has previously announced that a light oil/condensate discovery had been made higher up the well in the Icla Formation and that drilling would continue to penetrate the main Santa Rosa target. President has now drilled the upper section of the Santa Rosa Formation and considers it is drilling a series of gas or gas/condensate sands.
Mary A. Francis is CS & CGO of Chevron
Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) today named Mary A. Francis corporate secretary and chief governance officer effective May 1, 2015. In her new role, Francis, 50, will counsel the board of directors and senior management of Chevron on corporate governance matters, manage the Corporate Governance Department and serve on the Law Function Executive Committee. She succeeds Lydia I. Beebe, who is retiring from Chevron on April 30 after 37 years with the company.
Philanthropies, Investors pledge $50bln Fossil Fuel Divestment
The Rockefellers, who made their vast fortune on oil, and other philanthropies and high-wealth individuals on Monday will announce pledges to divest a total of $50 billion from fossil fuel investments. The Global Divest-Invest coalition will announce new pledges and members one day before 120 heads of state address the United Nations on how their countries will contribute to a global effort to halt a dangerous rise in temperatures. Since the divestment movement launched three years ago…
University of California Not to Divest from Fossil Fuels
The University of California voted on Friday to maintain its investments in fossil fuels, frustrating a student-led effort to divest its portfolio in oil, natural gas and coal. UC is among the major college endowments have been reluctant to shake up their portfolios by pulling out of fossil fuels after Stanford University, one of the most prestigious and wealthiest in America, took that step in May. Jagdeep Bachher, UC Regent's Chief Investment Officer…
President Energy Spuds 1st Well In Paraguay
President announced the spudding of the Jacaranda 1 well, the first deep exploration well drilled in Paraguayan Chaco for almost 30 years. The Jacaranda prospect will test the potential double play system (Cretaceous and Palaeozoic) in the North West Flank of the Pirity Concession, Paraguay. The well is designed to drill multiple independent reservoir targets. Total gross mean prospective resources of 624 mmboe are being targeted. The well…
Few Funds Ready To Follow Stanford's Lead On Fossil Fuel Stocks
Few if any of the big U.S. pension or college endowment funds appear ready to follow in Stanford University's footsteps and pull their money out of shares of coal miners or other fossil fuel producers. Officials from the pension systems for California's public employees and schoolteachers and New York public employees, the three largest U.S. retirement funds, told Reuters they prefer to work with their portfolio companies to improve their behavior rather than divest them.
BSEE’s Fesmire Participates in Arctic Drilling Panel
BSEE's Alaska Region Director Mark Fesmire participated in a panel discussion today in Washington, D.C. on applying lessons learned for drilling in the Arctic. During the discussion hosted by the nonprofit organization Resources for the Future, Fesmire spoke about BSEE's commitment to ensuring that should drilling operations occur in the Arctic, they are done safely. He also noted the tremendous amount of oil spill recovery research occurring at Ohmsett…
Three NOAA scientists honored by White House
The White House yesterday awarded three NOAA scientists with Presidential Early Career Awards for Scientists and Engineers. The award is the highest honor given by the federal government to outstanding scientists and engineers in the early stages of their careers. Laboratory. The NOAA scientists are part of a group of 102 scientists from across federal agencies that received the prestigious award. “NOAA is home to some of the world’s leading…
Scientists Make Ethanol without Corn or Other Crops
Scientists said on Wednesday they have developed a new way to make liquid ethanol efficiently without using corn or other crops needed in the conventional method for producing the biofuel. The scientists said their process turns carbon monoxide gas into liquid ethanol with the help of an electrode made of a form of copper. They said the new technique may be more environmentally friendly and efficient than the current method. Critics say that growing crops for biofuels is energy-intensive and takes up vast tracts of nonagricultural land…
Deepwater Horizon Spill Causes Fish Abnormalities
The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) reported that results to a new study conducted by a team of NOAA and academic scientists suggest that crude oil from the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster causes severe defects in the developing hearts of bluefin and yellowfin tunas. The findings, published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences on the 25th anniversary of the Exxon Valdez oil spill, show how the largest…
