Oil Industry Veterans to Launch Hydrogen Investment Fund
Two energy industry veterans plan to launch an investment fund focused on hydrogen this year as more and more governments include the niche fuel in their global warming battle plans.Hydrogen has long-been touted as a potential clean fuel as it only emits water vapour but it has failed to gain traction, mainly because of historically high production, transportation…
China's Sinopec Starts Hiring for New Risk Management Unit
China Petrochemical Corp, or Sinopec Group, has started hiring for six top management positions for a new commodities risk management unit, according to a statement posted on the state energy company's official wechat account on Sunday.Formally known as Sinopec Chaoyang Risk Management Co and with a registered capital of 300 million yuan ($42.40 million)…
BP to Sell Petrochemicals Business to Ineos for $5B
British oil major BP will sell its global petrochemicals business to Ineos for $5 billion, a transaction delivering BP's divestments target a year earlier than originally scheduled.Brian Gilvary, BP’s chief financial officer, said: “With today’s announcement we have met our $15 billion target for agreed divestments a full year ahead of schedule, demonstrating…
EU Hydrogen Plan Splits Supporters Down Color-coded Lines
Energy industry lobbyists and advocates of renewable hydrogen are divided over whether the bloc should support low-carbon hydrogen produced by fossil fuels ahead of a new EU strategy next month.The EU's executive Commission plans to publish its hydrogen strategy on July 8, which will form the basis for EU regulation and funding to scale up production of the…
Sinopec Starts Up $6B Zhanjiang Refinery Complex
Top Chinese state refiner Sinopec Corp said on Tuesday it had started up a $6 billion new refinery and petrochemical plant in south China, making it the country's third integrated complex to start operations in the past 18 months or so.The Sinopec venture, situated in coastal city of Zhanjiang, comprises a 200,000 barrel per day (bpd) crude oil refinery and an 800,000 tonne-per-year ethylene facility, built at a cost of 44 billion yuan ($6.2
More Disruption and Uncertainty in Store for Petrochemicals
The impact of the coronavirus lockdowns on the oil, gas and chemicals industries’ integrated value chains is radically shifting relationships and profitability.It is also making planning virtually impossible, as BASF suggested last week.The environment around refining and chemical margins remains challenging, Shell CEO Ben van Beurden also said this week.“The…
Exxon Posts First Loss in 30 Years on $3 Bln Writedown, Oil Plunge
Exxon Mobil Corp on Friday posted its first quarterly loss in three decades on plunging oil demand and collapsing prices, reporting a $610 million quarterly deficit after a nearly $3 billion inventory writedown.Global fuel demand has tumbled by a third on coronavirus-related lockdowns and business shutdowns. Oil giants largely have reported losses on weaker…
Total Cuts Capex, Mostly in E&P Business
French energy group Total announced plans on Monday to step up cost cuts and suspend its share buyback programme in order to deal with a slump in oil prices and the economic fallout from the coronavirus outbreak.Total CEO Patrick Pouyanne said that with prices of $30 per barrel, Total would now target organic capital expenditure cuts of more than $3 billion.In a video message to the company's staff last Thursday…
Saudi Aramco Launches Largest Shale Gas Development Outside US
Saudi Aramco is launching the biggest shale gas development outside of the United States to boost domestic gas supply and end the burning of oil at its power generation plants, Chief Executive Officer Amin Nasser told Reuters on Monday.The world's top crude oil exporter has for years battled for market share with rapidly expanding shale oil producers in the United States…
Sempra LNG, Aramco Sign Deal
North American energy infrastructure company Sempra Energy and Saudi Aramco's Aramco Services Company, signed an Interim Project Participation Agreement for the Port Arthur LNG export project under development in Jefferson County, Texas.According to a press release, the IPPA represents another milestone for both companies after having signed a heads of agreement…
Timeline: Saudi Aramco's Winding Road to IPO
State-run oil giant Saudi Aramco has priced its initial public offering (IPO) at the top of its indicative range, making it the world's biggest flotation by raising more than Alibaba's $25 billion listing in 2014.Here are key events in the Saudi state oil giant's planned stock market debut.Dec 5, 2019 - Saudi Aramco announces the offering generated subscriptions…
Oil Companies Swap Stakes in Mexico
With Mexico's government insisting that energy companies increase oil and gas output before it auctions off more of the country's vast reserves or offers more partnerships with state-run Pemex, firms ranging from foreign majors to local players are scrambling to buy and sell blocks they already own.The negotiations are creating a dynamic secondary market for oil acreage…
Three Injured in TPC Port Neches Explosion
Three workers were injured in an early Wednesday explosion that sparked a blaze at a petrochemical plant in Port Neches, Texas, the latest in a series of chemical plant accidents in the region.An initial explosion at the TPC Group plant was followed by secondary blasts, shattering windows and blowing locked doors off their hinges in homes near the facility…
Worley and Arundo Launch The Data Refinery
Engineering, procurement and construction firm Worley and software company Arundo have come together to launch The Data Refinery, a hub for applied data science and machine learning solutions in the energy, chemicals and resources industry.The Data Refinery aims to bridge the gaps among operations, data science and information technology to help industrial…
Shell Appoints New Head of Refining
Royal Dutch Shell has appointed Huibert Vigeveno to head its downstream businesss, the refining operations that are to become a key pillar for the oil and gas company as it transitions to cleaner energy.Vigeveno, 50, previously led Shell's global commercial business and rose to prominence when he oversaw the integration of smaller rival BG Group after its…
Stuck Pipe Solution Cut Through
Oilfield services company Churchill Drilling Tools announced four successful drill-string severs using its HyPR HoleSaver, following stuck pipe events across the Middle East, including two in the UAE.Over the last six months, four drilling teams from three major Middle East operators deployed the HyPR stuck pipe solution. All successfully cut their drill-strings in a matter of hours, a 100% success rate.
ExxonMobil Profit Halves
Exxon Mobil Corp's third-quarter profit nearly halved, hit by lower oil prices and weaker margins in refining and chemicals, with its three major business reporting lower year-over-year profit.Earnings fell to $3.17 billion, or 75 cents per share, in the quarter, from $6.24 billion, or $1.46 per share, a year earlier, the company reported on Friday.It beat analysts' recently reduced expectations for earnings of 67 cents per share.
CSB: Chemical Leak Caused Fire at ITC Houston Terminal
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) said on Wednesday that a fuel leak, possibly due to open valves and a running pump, set off a massive blaze at a Mitsui & Co Ltd petrochemical storage operation along the Houston Ship Channel in March.The fire that began on March 17 at Intercontinental Terminals Co (ITC) spread black smoke across Houston, shut the nearby ship channel…
Fire at Mitsui’s ITC Houston-area Terminal Began with Naphtha Leak -U.S.
The U.S. Chemical Safety Board (CSB) said on Wednesday that leaking volatile naphtha, possibly due to open valves and a running pump, set off a massive fire at Mitsui & Co Ltd's Intercontinental Terminals Co (ITC) operation along the Houston Ship Channel in March.The fire that began on March 17 spread a black cloud of smoke across Houston, shut the ship channel…
BP Profits Fall 40%
BP's profits fell sharply in the third quarter, hurt by lower oil prices, but strong refining operations helped the company beat expectations even after taking a one-off $2.6 billion charge linked to asset sales.BP, like other big energy companies, has been hit by a sharp drop in oil prices as trade tensions between the United States and China have impacted…
