Chevron in LNG Supply Deal with GS Caltex
American multinational energy corporation Chevron signed a new sales and purchase agreement with South Korean oil refiner GS Caltex Corporation for the delivery of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to South Korea.As a joint venture between Chevron and GS Energy, GS Caltex has signed a long-term agreement and will begin receiving LNG in October 2019, said a press release from the U.S. oil and gas major.Chevron’s President of Global Gas, Hugh Connett stated the agreement is another indication…
Woodside Raises Dividend
Australia's Woodside Petroleum Ltd surprised investors with a fat dividend on Thursday after reporting a 36-percent percent rise in annual profit, underpinned by stronger oil prices.The higher-than-expected payout came after shareholders stumped up $2.5 billion to buy new shares a year ago at a time when Australia's biggest independent oil and gas producer expected oil prices to average $65 a barrel.By the end of the year it was flush with cash as oil prices had averaged $71 and the Wheatstone liquefied natural gas (LNG) project…
Size Matters in Shale Industry
Having taken a closer look at the detailed economics of the most recent 1,000 wells drilled in the most popular shale hotspot – the Wolfcamp A zone of the Permian Delaware basin – Rystad Energy can see a clear pattern emerging that favors large players.As US crude production is set to grow significantly over the next decade, analysts still debate whether shale drilling is actually a profitable endeavor. Some skeptics claim operators overstate their well production profiles, while…
US Drillers Add Oil Rigs Again
U.S. energy firms this week increased the number of oil rigs operating for the second time in three weeks after oil prices soared over 18 percent in January.Companies added 7 oil rigs in the week to Feb. 8, bringing the total count to 854, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday.The U.S. rig count, an early indicator of future output, is still higher than a year ago when 791 rigs were active after energy companies boosted spending in 2018 to capture higher prices that year.In 2019…
Record Production Lifts Total's Profits
French energy major Total said its net adjusted profit rose 10 percent in the final quarter of 2018, lifting its full year earnings by more than a quarter after record oil and gas production.Total said on Thursday that output reached an all-time high of 2.8 million barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2018 thanks to the start-ups of various operations and increased production in Australia, Angola, Nigeria and Russia.It reported a 28 percent rise in full-year profit to $13.6 billion…
BP's 2018 Profit Doubles as Output Soars
BP's profit doubled to $12.7 billion in 2018, driven by strong growth in oil and gas output following the acquisition of a large portfolio of U.S. shale assets.The company's debt rose however, and the pace of its share buyback scheme slowed in the last quarter as it completed the $10.5 billion BHP acquisition."We now have a powerful track record of safe and reliable performance, efficient execution and capital discipline. And we’re doing this while growing the business," BP Chief Executive Officer Bob Dudley said in a statement.Rivals Royal Dutch Shell…
Tankers with Venezuelan Oil Collect off US
A flotilla loaded with about 7 million barrels of Venezuelan oil has formed in the Gulf of Mexico, some holding cargoes bought ahead of the latest U.S. sanctions on Venezuela and others whose buyers are weighing who to pay, according to traders, shippers and Refinitiv Eikon data.The Trump administration's move to impose sanctions last week was meant to undercut support for Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro by targeting the Latin American nation's oil exports to the United States, the source of most of its foreign revenue.The sanctions aim to block U.S.
Chevron Names Breber CFO
Supermajor Chevron announced on Monday it has named Pierre Breber vice president and chief financial officer, effective April 1, 2019.Breber replaces Patricia Yarrington who has elected to retire after 38 years with the company.Breber joined Chevron in 1989. He became vice president and treasurer in 2009, vice president of Gas & Midstream in 2014, executive vice president of Gas & Midstream in 2015 and executive vice president of Downstream and Chemicals, his current position, in 2016.
PetroRio Wants Petrobras' Frade Stake
Brazilian independent oil firm PetroRio SA, which already owns 70 percent of the Frade oil field, has approached Petrobras about buying its 30 percent stake in the field, a person familiar with the matter said.PetroRio recently signed a deal to buy Chevron Corp's majority stake in the mature deepwater oil field. PetroRio, seeking more flexibility to pursue the Petrobras transaction and other upcoming deals, struck an agreement with Chevron for a deferred payment scheme in return for its stake in the field…
US Shale Lifts Exxon, Chevron Profits
Exxon Mobil Corp and Chevron Corp, two of the world's largest oil producers, on Friday posted improved quarterly earnings that benefited from double-digit percentage increases in production from the top U.S. shale field.Shares of both companies rose about 3 percent.The two U.S. oil majors missed the first stage of the shale boom in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico and have been investing billions of dollars to make up for lost time. They are betting their size and other businesses offer advantages smaller producers cannot duplicate.Combined…
Chevron's Profit Rises
U.S. oil and natural gas producer Chevron Corp on Friday reported quarterly earnings that topped analysts' estimates on higher prices and production, sending shares higher in premarket trading.Results for the San Ramon, California, company reflected a 12.5 percent increase in oil and gas production as net output added 156,000 barrels per day (bpd) from a year earlier to 3.08 million bpd. Prices paid for its crude rose to $59 a barrel in the quarter, from $57 a year earlier, the company said.Chevron's cash flow from operations rose nearly 51 percent to $30.6 billion…
Total Plans Biggest Exploration Drive in Years
Total is launching its biggest exploration campaign for years in 2019 as part of a turnaround plan that is ditching the company's focus on risky long-shots in favor of areas known to contain commercial levels of oil or gas.The French major aims to drill 23 wells this year, its senior vice president for exploration, Kevin McLachlan, told Reuters, in waters off Mauritania, Senegal, Namibia, South Africa, Guyana and Brazil.While the company declined to say how many wells it drilled in 2018, McLachlan said 2019 would be Total's largest program in years.
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 the PR game."There is no doubt - and there…
Newcomers Pile into Race for Qatar LNG
Qatar is preparing to issue a tender for energy firms seeking a stake in its gas expansion project, drawing interest from long-standing partners as well as newcomers Chevron, Norway's Equinor and Italy's Eni, industry sources said.Plans to expand Qatar's liquefied natural gas (LNG) facilities, already the world's largest, by more than a third in the next five years are considered one of the most lucrative investments in the rapidly growing global gas market.Competition is expected…
Woodside Boosts Spending for Next Leg of Growth
Australia's Woodside Petroleum Ltd on Thursday flagged higher-than-expected investment spending for 2019 as it steps up early work on the two big natural gas developments that will drive its growth in the next decade.Australia's largest independent gas and oil producer plans to spend between $1.6 billion and $1.7 billion in 2019 on projects, significantly higher than an estimate from UBS of $1.2 billion.At the same time it is roughly halving exploration spending from $273 million…
Oil Majors Join Blockchain Platform
Oil majors Chevron and Total, along with major Indian refiner Reliance Industries, have joined the blockchain-based platform Vakt, London-based Vakt said on Tuesday.Vakt, already in use by other major trading firms since the end of last year, is the first of many blockchain pilot schemes for commodities trading to go live.The firm was created in 2017 by a consortium that includes oil majors BP and Royal Dutch Shell, Norway's Equinor, global energy trading firms Mercuria Energy Group and Koch Supply and Trading…
Gorgon LNG Plant in Australia Shuts Train 3
Chevron Corp's Gorgon liquefied natural gas (LNG) project has temporarily halted train 3 to address a mechanical issue, a company spokesman told Reuters on Wednesday.The cause of the halt is being investigated, he said."There is no interruption to trains 1 and 2 and we continue to produce LNG and load cargoes," he said.The outage is expected to boost Asian LNG prices that are currently at an eight-month low and their weakest for this time of year in at least two years due to a mild winter in East Asia…
Exxon to Be Indonesia's Top Oil Producer
Exxon Mobil Corp unit Exxon Mobil Cepu Limited is expected to produce 216,000 barrels per day of crude oil in 2019, making it Indonesia's biggest oil producer, the country's upstream oil and gas regulator (SKKMigas) said.In second place Chevron Corp unit Chevron Pacific Indonesia is expected to produce 190,000 bpd of crude oil in 2019, SKKMigas chief Dwi Soetjipto told reporters on Wednesday.State-owned Pertamina unit Pertamina EP is expected to produce 85,000 bpd of oil in 2019.Pertamina unit Pertamina Hulu Mahakam is tipped to become the country's top gas producer with 196,000 barrels of oil equi
Premier Oil Eyes North Sea Deals
Britain's Premier Oil Plc said on Monday it was looking to buy U.K. North Sea assets, after the Sunday Times reported that it was preparing to tap shareholders for cash to help it buy about $1.5 billion worth of oil fields.The company's shares fell as much as 12.5 percent following the report and was the top loser on the U.K. midcap index.Premier Oil was in the running to pick up fields being sold by U.S. oil giant Chevron Corp and is considering a rights issue or share placing to help pay for them should it win the auction…
Exxon Ships Have Not Returned to Disputed Area off Guyana
Seismic research vessels hired by Exxon Mobil to explore for oil off Guyana's coast have not returned to the site of a December incident with Venezuela's navy, but they may in the future, Guyana's foreign minister said on Thursday.Guyana, with no history of oil production, has become the focus of intense interest since Exxon announced the discovery of over 5 billion barrels of oil and gas off its shores. That has reignited a century-old territorial dispute with neighboring Venezuela.
