Baker Hughes Adjusted Profit Surges 85%
Baker Hughes, General Electric Co's oilfield services arm, posted an 85 percent jump in adjusted quarterly profit on Thursday, boosted by surging demand for its services.Unlike rivals Schlumberger NV and Halliburton Co, Baker Hughes has less exposure to the North American pressure pumping sector, where demand softened last year due to transportation bottlenecks in key oil producing basins and a sharp decline in oil prices in the fourth quarter.U.S. oil prices fell to around $42 a barrel in December amid concerns of a supply gut and slowing economic growth.
Halliburton Profit Beats on International Demand
Halliburton Co beat Wall Street estimates for quarterly profit on Tuesday, as higher demand for its oilfield services in international markets offset a slowdown in North America.Clients in North America, Halliburton's biggest market by revenue, began pulling back on some drilling services last year amid transportation bottlenecks in the largest U.S. production region and after oil prices slid sharply in the fourth quarter.An oil glut and concerns about a global economic slowdown have pushed U.S.
Hunting Expects Oil Producers to Defer Projects
British oilfield services company Hunting Plc expects oil and gas producers to defer some projects as a recent decline in crude prices could hit their short-term budgets, it said on Monday.Oilfield service companies, including U.S.-based Schlumberger, have been hit this year by a slowdown in demand as regional oil prices have fallen and oil-producing customers face transportation bottlenecks."Clients are indicating caution on committed spend for the early part of 2019 as the lower oil price and pipeline bottlenecks in the Permian basin indicate a short term slowing in completion activity…
Petoro Flags Rising Costs for Oil Industry
Norway's oil industry must harness digital technology and foster deeper partnerships across the sector to contain rising costs, Petoro, which manages the government's stakes in the country's offshore fields, said on Thursday.Executives of oil companies including Norway's Equinor have pledged to keep costs in check despite oil prices rising since the downturn of 2014-2016.Ahead of that downturn, Petoro had repeatedly warned about rising costs in the oil industry.They have since declined as companies sped up drilling…
Baker Hughes Predicts Oil Market Growth, Misses on Profit
Baker Hughes, General Electric Co's oilfield services arm, fell just short of estimates for profit in the third quarter while forecasting a rise in North American and foreign markets in 2019 that ran contrary to signals from its peers.The results follow those for bigger rivals Schlumberger and Halliburton Co, which barely beat quarterly profit estimates and warned of slowing North America growth in the ongoing quarter.U.S. rig count, an early indicator of future output, has risen…
US Sees Little Impact from Keystone XL Pipeline's Planned Route
The Keystone XL crude oil pipeline project cleared a hurdle on Monday as the Trump administration said in a draft environmental assessment that an alternative route through Nebraska would not do major harm to water and wildlife.The State Department's assessment of a plan for an alternative route through Nebraska submitted by TransCanada Corp, the company trying to complete the pipeline, said Keystone XL's cumulative effects would be "minor to moderate" on issues including water and biological resources.It said the pipeline would have only minor impacts on cultural resources…
Precision Drilling Posts Bigger-than-expected Quarterly Loss
Precision Drilling Corp reported a bigger-than-expected quarterly loss on Thursday as increased spending at the Canadian oilfield services company overshadowed higher day rates of its U.S. rigs.Expenditure on expansion more than tripled to C$15.8 million, while maintenance spending was four times higher than a year ago at C$13.1 million."During the quarter, we activated eight rigs in the U.S. and currently have 78 rigs running with visibility for four to six additional activations in the coming weeks…
Kinder Morgan Halts Most Work on Disputed Canada Pipeline
Kinder Morgan Canada on Sunday suspended most work on a C$7.4 billion ($5.8 billion) oil pipeline expansion that has become the focus of protests, a move underscoring uncertainty over major energy projects in Canada. Company Chairman Steve Kean said he would scrap plans to nearly triple the capacity of the Trans Mountain pipeline, which takes crude from Alberta's oil sands to a facility in the Pacific province of British Columbia, unless the various legal challenges could be resolved by May 31.
Cenovus Energy: Transportation Bottlenecks Impact Production
Canada's Cenovus Energy Inc said on Thursday it was running oil sands production below capacity and stockpiling excess oil due to trouble with exporting through maxed-out pipelines to the United States. The company forecast first-quarter production to double from a year earlier, but blamed transportation bottlenecks for reduced prices of its crude, compared to U.S. alternatives. Canadian heavy oil discount has widened against the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmark recently as growing inventories have led to a supply buildup.
