News

Mooring lifts Iraqi exports

Andrew Hobbs — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:31:04 GMT

A new Gulf crude export outlet in Iraq’s southern oil hub of Basra is expected to increase the nation’s exports by around 300,000 barrels of oil per day during the first phase of a broader expansion.

Kuwait output slips

Josh Lewis — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:11:30 GMT

Opec member Kuwait produced about 2.9 million barrels of oil per day in January, about 100,000 barrels lower than the previous month.

PDP wins in Nigerian President’s home state

Josh Lewis — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 04:00:35 GMT

Nigeria's ruling party candidate has been elected governor of President Goodluck Jonathan's home state election, ending months of political uncertainty over who is in charge of the oil-producing state.

Iraq warns Total over Kurdish deals

Josh Lewis — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:06:31 GMT

Iraq’s Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussain Shahristani has warned French major Total would bear the “full consequences” if it signed oil deals with semi-autonomous Kurdistan.

DSME in NK venture

Andrew Hobbs — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 03:00:48 GMT

Daewoo Shipbuilding & Marine Engineering will team with a Chinese company in advancing into a special economic district in North Korea, a leading South Korean newspaper has reported.

Apache takes Tap's Harriet stake

Josh Lewis — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 02:21:00 GMT

Australia’s Tap Oil has sold its 12.2% stake in the Harriet joint venture to US independent Apache for US$10 million, removing its legal liability from the West Australian project.

Venezuela sends in Guarapiche cleaners

Andrew Hobbs — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 02:04:51 GMT

Venezuela will put 1500 people to work clearing up an oil spill at a river in the east of the country that has forced the authorities to close a water purification plant, the environment minister said on Sunday.

Crude falls as IEA cuts demand view

Kathrine Schmidt — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 22:31:35 GMT

Crude-oil futures prices fell Friday in line with broader market declines as the International Energy Agency cut its estimates for global oil demand this year, a report said.

Quicksilver to take Barnett MLP public

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 21:24:03 GMT

Debt-laden Quicksilver Resources plans to take its master limited partnership public in a $250 million offering, to cash in on rising investor appetite for the high-yield paying corporate structure.

Halliburton, Petronas in shale deal

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:42:28 GMT

Halliburton and Petronas Carigali have signed a framework agreement to evaluate and develop shale resources around the world.

Petrobras struggles with equipment shortfalls

Kathrine Schmidt — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 20:27:07 GMT

Petrobras cut investment in 2011 for the first time in eight years as Brazil's state-run energy company struggled to buy the equipment, technology and services needed to carry out its $225 billion expansion plan to exploit one of the world's most promising offshore oil frontiers, a report said.

Total shifts Iraq focus to Kurdistan

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:43:33 GMT

French oil major Total has become the latest oil major to shift the focus of its Iraq ambitions toward the semi-autonomous Kurdistan region, and away from the much larger but economically challenging contracts offered by Baghdad.

US rig count falls by eight

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:31:53 GMT

The number of rigs drilling for oil and gas in the US fell by eight this week to total 1989, according to data from Houston-based oilfield services giant Baker Hughes.

Analyst: State YPF would be no panacea

Kathrine Schmidt — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 19:19:57 GMT

Renationalising Argentina’s YPF will not solve deep and severe structural problems with the country’s energy industry, an analyst from one of the country's top think tanks wrote Friday.

Wintershall ramps up in Libya

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 17:58:00 GMT

Wintershall, the second-largest foreign oil firm in Libya before the civil war, has boosted output in the country to three times what it was in the fall, but ageing pipeline infrastructure is limiting its production capacity, according to a report quoting the company’s chief executive.

'Low' rates seen on $76bn Petrobras rig deal

Eoin Ocinneide — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 11:42:25 GMT

Petrobras’ monster $76 billion charter deal for 26 yet-to-be-built offshore drilling rigs may have caught the market’s eye, but some have seen the dayrates agreed as surprisingly low.

Survey: Shale to drive US growth in 2012

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 00:09:55 GMT

Unconventional resources like shale will be the main driver of growth for the oil and gas industry in 2012 as easier access to capital will allow for faster development of these assets, according to a recent survey of 100 industry chief financial officers.

Giants set for Hebron slugfest

Luke Johnson — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:53:22 GMT

ExxonMobil has issued bid documents to South Korea’s three super fabricators to build a huge 30,000-tonne deck for its groundbreaking US$8.3 billion Hebron project off Newfoundland, Canada.

Total near plateau at Pazflor FPSO

Bill Lehane — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:37:37 GMT

French oil giant Total has revealed its mammoth Pazflor floater in Angola is now yielding more than 200,000 barrels per day, with its chief executive joking that the company’s burgeoning operations in the southern African state were “the Brazil of Angola”.

Forland inks $100m subsea unit at Havyard

Eoin Ocinneide — Fri, 10 Feb 2012 16:36:52 GMT

Norway’s Forland Shipping is spending over $100 million on a subsea vessel newbuild at compatriot shipbuilder Havyard Group.