Pucks and Pellets: Canada Eyes New Ways to Move Crude
Canada's biggest railroad says it is attracting interest from oil producers in its effort to move crude in solid, puck-like form, as clogged pipelines divert more oil to riskier rail transport.Congested pipelines have stranded much of Canada's crude in Alberta, driving discounts to record-high levels. Canadian heavy crude traded on Friday for less than one-third of the U.S. benchmark light oil price.The latest blow to the sector landed on Thursday, when a U.S. court ruled construction must stop on TransCanada Corp's Keystone XL pipeline.Pipeline pressure has pushed more crude onto trains owned by Canadian National Railway Co and smaller rival Canadian Pacific Railway Limited.
Swiss Utility in Talks to Buy LNG from Canada's Goldboro Project
Axpo, a Swiss utility and energy trader, said on Thursday it was in talks for a 10-year supply deal with a Canadian company planning to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal.A sales and purchase agreement would boost the chances that Pieridae Energy would decide to build the C$10 billion ($7.6 billion) Goldboro project, which would be the first LNG export terminal on Canada's East Coast.Canada is rich in oil and gas but has yet to export major shipments of LNG to Asia from its West Coast or across the Atlantic from its East Coast."Under the term sheet with Pieridae Energy…
Pan Orient Energy Announces Thailand Oil Discovery
The oil and natural gas company Pan Orient Energy Corp announce that the L53-DD1 exploration well encountered an interpreted, combined 26 meters of net oil pay within three separate sandstone reservoirs between a true vertical depth of 960 to 1,125 meters.The Alberta based oil and gas exploration and production company with operations currently located onshore Thailand, Indonesia and in Western Canada said in a press release that this interpretation was based on conventional open hole wire line logs and hydrocarbon indications observed while…
Canada Environment Minister: 'No Apologies' for Oil Sector Support
Canada's top climate change official on Thursday said she would make no apologies for the nation's support for its oil producers, saying environmental and economic policies must consider the needs of all Canadians.Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government has sought to cast Canada as a global leader in combating climate change, particularly since U.S. President Donald Trump withdrew Washington's support for an international deal to curb global warming.But Trudeau's government is also seeking to expand the country's oil industry. Canada agreed in May to buy the Trans Mountain pipeline for $3.46 billion (C$4.5 billion) to save a controversial expansion of the line…
U.S. Crude Hits $75 as Oil Supply Risks Mount
U.S. crude oil prices rose above $75 a barrel for the first time since 2014 on Tuesday after Iran appeared to threaten to disrupt oil shipments from the Middle East Gulf if Washington pressed ahead with sanctions."The Americans have claimed they want to completely stop Iran's oil exports," the website, president.ir, quoted Iranian President Hassan Rouhani as saying. "They don't understand the meaning of this statement, because it has no meaning for Iranian oil not to be exported, while the region's oil is exported."The comments, partially repeated at a news conference in Switzerland…
Largest Oil Shipment Sent from Vancouver to China Since 2015
An Aframax tanker is scheduled to deliver the largest shipment of crude oil from Vancouver to China since January 2015 later this month, Thomson Reuters trade flow data show.For years, Canadian officials have pushed for an escalation in crude exports to rapidly growing Asian markets, but companies in the oil-rich Alberta have limited capacity to move crude to the nation's western coastline.That makes Canadian crude exports from Vancouver to Asia rare, but shipments have picked up in recent months, with oil tankers to China, Thailand and South Korea departing in April and July. Most of the crude shipped from Vancouver - which has limited export capacity - is carried to the U.S.
Oil Slips as U.S. Crude Stockpiles Show Surprise Build
U.S. crude stocks up 1.3 mln bbls vs 3.5 mln draw forecast-EIA. Oil fell on Thursday after U.S. government data showed an unexpected build in crude oil stockpiles. U.S. crude futures fell $1.20 to settle at $72.94 a barrel, retreating from Tuesday's 3-1/2-year high of over $75. Brent crude futures lost 85 cents to settle at $77.39 a barrel. U.S. crude stockpiles rose 1.3 million barrels last week, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration data. Analysts had expected a 3.5 million-barrel decline. "An unexpected build in the U.S. commercial crude inventory has prompted profit-taking," said Abhishek Kumar, senior energy analyst at Interfax Energy in London.
Hardide Coatings Invests in North America
Surface coating technology company Hardide Coatings has appointed Mark Hanania as Business Development Engineer based in Houston to help drive growth in the oil, gas and energy sectors throughout North America.Strong growth in demand from oil and gas customers in North America and recent entry into the aerospace market is underpinning significant investment in coating technology and quality accreditation at the company’s U.S. coating facility in Martinsville, Va.A third coating reactor will be installed by fall 2018 to accommodate increased demand from major oil and gas operating and service companies.
Sinopec Plans to Build Canadian Oil Refinery
China's Sinopec Corp has joined a group planning to build an oil refinery in Alberta, an enterprise that would strengthen demand for the Canadian province's heavily discounted crude.State-owned Sinopec, formally known as China Petroleum & Chemical Corp, along with an Alberta indigenous group, China State Construction Engineering Corp and Alberta management company Teedrum, plan to build a refinery to process 167,000 barrels per day of crude into gasoline and other products, the project's consulting firm Stantec Inc said in a statement on Thursday.The SinoCan Global refinery would cost C$8.5 billion…
Federal Judge Orders Keystone XL Pipeline Review
A federal judge in Montana on Wednesday ordered the U.S. State Department to do a full environmental review of a revised route for the Keystone XL oil pipeline, possibly delaying the project's construction and dealing the latest setback for Canada's TransCanada Corp.For more than a decade, environmentalists, tribal groups, and ranchers have fought the $8-billion, 1,180-mile (1,900-km) pipeline that will carry heavy crude to Steele City, Nebraska from Canada's oilsands in Alberta.U.S. District Court Judge Brian Morris ruled for the Indigenous Environmental Network and other plaintiffs…
Precision Drilling Trumps Ensign Bid for Peer Trinidad
North American drilling contractor Precision Drilling Corp on Friday said it would buy Trinidad Drilling Ltd in a deal valued at C$1.03 billion ($796 million), trumping a hostile bid from rival Ensign Energy Services.The acquisition, which has an enterprise value of about C$4 billion, makes Precision the third-largest driller in the United States with more than 200 active rigs and 322 rigs in total, said the companies, both based in the Canadian province of Alberta."We'll have strong coverage in other U.S. shale plays and in the Permian," said Precision Chief Financial Officer Carey Ford on a call with analysts.Precision expects the deal…
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…
TransCanada sees 'Robust' Shipper Interest in Keystone XL
Pipeline operator TransCanada Corp is seeing strong interest from oil shippers in locking up the remaining space on Keystone XL and expects it to be fully subscribed, its chief executive said on Thursday.TransCanada has not yet made a final investment decision on its $8-billion Keystone XL (KXL) expansion, which would boost export capacity from the oil-rich province of Alberta to U.S. refineries. That decision may come late this year or in early 2019, pending some remaining regulatory approvals needed and court challenges, Chief Executive Russ Girling said.In the meantime…
Enbridge Completes 40 pct of Line 3 Work, Tops Profit Estimates
Enbridge Inc said on Friday it had completed 40 percent of replacement work on its massive Line 3 pipeline and reported a better-than-expected quarterly profit by reining in costs.Canada's largest pipeline operator won a key approval in June to replace the 1,031-mile (1,660-km) long pipeline, which began service in 1968 and operates at half its capacity.A replacement would allow the pipeline, which runs from Alberta in western Canada to Wisconsin in the United States, to return to approved capacity of 760,000 barrels per day.The company also reaffirmed…
Canada Crude Differential Seen Staying High as Refiners Take Downtime
The discount on Canada's heavy crude, which reached a nearly five-year high this week, looks to remain elevated with pipelines strained and the refiners who buy it going offline for maintenance, industry officials say.Western Canada Select (WCS) oil traded on Tuesday for $34.15 per barrel less than West Texas Intermediate light oil, the biggest differential since November 2013, according to Shorcan Energy Brokers. The differential reduces the benefits of otherwise recovering global prices.WCS crude for September delivery was trading on Friday…
US Judge Halts Keystone XL Oil Pipeline
A U.S. judge in Montana has halted construction of the Keystone XL pipeline designed to carry heavy crude oil from Canada to the United States, drawing a sharp rebuke on Friday from President Donald Trump.The ruling of a U.S. Court in Montana late on Thursday dealt a major setback to TransCanada Corp, whose stock dropped 2 percent in Toronto. Shares of companies that would ship oil on the pipeline also fell.TransCanada said in a statement it remains committed to building the $8 billion, 1,180 mile (1,900 km) pipeline, but it has also said it is seeking other investors and has not taken a final investment decision.The ruling drew an angry response from Trump…
Cenovus Sees Crude Differentials to Ease Out by Mid-2019
Canadian oil and gas producer Cenovus Energy Inc expects the spread between Western Canadian Select (WCS) and U.S. benchmark Crude (WTI) to "significantly" ease out by mid 2019, Chief Executive Officer Alex Pourbaix said on a call.Cenovus also expects crude by rail to reach 300,000 barrels per day by the end of this year, the company said on a post-earnings call with analysts on Wednesday.Last month, the company signed three-year deals with Canada's two major railways to transport roughly 100,000 barrels per day from Northern Alberta to the U.S. Gulf Coast starting in the fourth quarter. (Reuters, Reporting by Laharee Chatterjee in Bengaluru)
Suncor Energy CEO Sees No Need for Oil Output Cuts
Suncor Energy Inc , Canada's second-largest energy producer, does not need to reduce crude output as some of its peers are doing to cope with low prices, Chief Executive Steve Williams said on Thursday.Suncor, which has dedicated pipeline space for its crude as well as refineries in Canada, is mostly insulated from the impact of growing discounts on Canadian crude that are due to pipeline constraints. (Reporting by Rod Nickel in Calgary, Alberta)
Encana Widens N. America Reach with $5.5 bln Newfield Deal
Canada's Encana Corp will buy Newfield Exploration Co for $5.5 billion, giving the natural gas producer greater access to North America's biggest oilfields.Thursday's all-stock deal will give Encana more acreage in United States' Anadarko and Permian basins as well as Canada's Montney regions. This fits into its five-year plan to boost output by focusing on high-margin, liquids-rich production.U.S. listed shares of Encana fell 15 percent, while Newfield rose 13 percent."This (deal) gives Encana a third growth area in the STACK/SCOOP. It also makes it more weighted obviously to the U.S. and U.S.
Canadian Oil & Gas Drilling Slipping
Canadian drilling activity will fall 5 percent in 2019, as deep price discounts discourage production, an industry group forecast on Thursday.Canadian oil producers are collecting prices that are much lower than the U.S. benchmark due to severe pipeline bottlenecks, and weak prices may lead producers to limit drilling budgets in the world's fifth-largest oil-producing country.The Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC) forecast that 6,600 wells will be drilled in 2019, the fewest in three years and down from an estimated 6,980 this year.
