Exxon in Advanced Talks for $60B Acquisition of Pioneer - Sources
Exxon Mobil is in advanced talks to acquire Pioneer Natural Resources in a deal that could value the Permian shale basin producer at about $60 billion, people familiar with the matter said on Thursday. The acquisition would be Exxon's biggest since its $81 billion deal for Mobil in 1998 and would expand its footprint in one of the most lucrative regions of the U.S. oil patch.Pioneer's shares rose nearly 12% to $240.47 in premarket trading on Friday while Exxon slipped 1.7%.Pioneer…
US Energy Firm Payouts to Oil Investors Top Exploration Spending for First Time
Top U.S. energy companies last year paid out more of their earnings to shareholders than they invested in new oil and gas fields for the first time, according to a report released on Tuesday.The outlook for stronger energy prices has not changed the focus on investor returns from the U.S. industry, according to the report's authors, Ernst & Young LLP. U.S. energy companies have been focused…
Oil Supply Crunch is Coming, ConocoPhillips CEO Says
ConocoPhillips' chief executive on Tuesday warned of looming crude oil shortages and price volatility, citing limited spare capacity among the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and slow U.S. output gains ahead.Ryan Lance, head of the largest U.S. independent oil producer, offered a dour outlook on future supply in remarks to members of oil group the Houston Producers Forum. His comments came days after U.S.
ConocoPhillips Beefs Up Stake in Australia Pacific LNG
ConocoPhillips has completed the acquisition of an additional 10% stake in Australia Pacific LNG (APLNG) from Origin Energy for $1.645 billion. After customary closing adjustments, cash paid for the additional interest is approximately $1.4 billion (AU$2.0 billion). The transaction resulted from the exercise of ConocoPhillips’ preemption right and is funded from cash on the company’s balance sheet.ConocoPhillips now owns a 47.5% interest in APLNG…
Ship Emissions: MIT Takes the Lead Toward Net Zero
The MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) launched a new research consortium—the Future Energy Systems Center—to address the climate crisis and the role energy systems can play in solving it. Randall Field, Executive Director, discusses current research and the challenges ahead for the maritime sector.The reputation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is such that it can take mammoth issues — such as driving the world to net zero — head-on…
ConocoPhillips Swings to 3Q Profit
ConocoPhillips reported a third-quarter profit on Tuesday, compared with a year-ago loss, thanks to a rebound in crude prices to pre-pandemic levels.Oil prices have climbed nearly 63% since the beginning of the year, driven by a rise in global demand and on supply bottlenecks, pushing Brent above $86 to its highest in nearly three years. The rally has been accompanied by sky-high gas prices around the world.The company…
Investors on Board as U.S. Oil Majors Dismiss Wind and Solar Projects
Top U.S. oil firms are doubling down on drilling, deepening a divide with European rivals on the outlook for renewables, and winning support from big investors who do not expect the stateside companies to invest in wind and solar. Among a dozen U.S. fund managers contacted by Reuters from companies overseeing about $7 trillion in assets, most said they prefer oil firms to generate returns from businesses they know best and give shareholders cash to make their own renewable bets.
Shell Exits Permian with $9.5B Sale to ConocoPhillips. Its U.S. Output Now Mostly Offshore
Royal Dutch Shell said on Monday it would sell its Permian Basin assets to ConocoPhillips for $9.5 billion in cash, an exit from the largest U.S. oilfield for the energy major shifting its focus to the clean energy transition.For ConocoPhillips, it is the second sizable acquisition in a year in the heart of the U.S. shale industry, as American and European producers diverge in whether to focus on hydrocarbons going forward.Like all of the world's largest oil companies…
Exxon Suspended from Climate Advocacy Group It Helped Form
Exxon Mobil Corp was suspended from advocacy group Climate Leadership Council (CLC) that looks to make policies to address climate change, the CLC said on Friday.The move comes a little over a month after an Exxon lobbyist said the company supports a carbon tax publicly because the plan to curb climate change would never gain enough political support to be adopted.
US Drillers Add Oil and Gas Rigs for Fifth Week in Six
U.S. energy firms this week added oil and natural gas rigs for the fifth time in six weeks although growth in the rig count over the past few months has slowed as drillers continue to focus on capital discipline despite firmer oil prices.The oil and gas rig count, an early indicator of future output, rose three to 491 in the week to Aug. 6, energy services firm Baker Hughes Co said in its closely followed report on Friday.The total rig count was up 244 rigs…
Buyers Reportedly Line-up for a Crack at Seadrill
Noble Corp and a consortium that includes Transocean Ltd and Dolphin Drilling are competing to acquire the assets of Seadrill Ltd, the bankrupt offshore oil driller controlled by Norwegian-born tycoon John Fredriksen, people familiar with the matter said on Tuesday.Seadrill is trying to emerge from its second U.S. Chapter 11 bankruptcy in four years: like many in the industry, it expanded its…
When is a Cargo of Oil Certified "Carbon Neutral"? Ask Lundin Energy
Sweden's Lundin Energy has sold to Italian refiner Saras what it said is the world's first oil cargo certified as carbon neutral at the point of production, the two companies said on Monday.Oil companies are increasingly trying to market their products as cleaner in an effort to secure a future for the fossil fuel industry in a world where investors, activists and regulators are demanding action…
New York City Sues Exxon, BP, Shell Over Climate Change
New York City on Thursday sued three major oil companies and the top industry trade group in state court, arguing that the companies are misrepresenting themselves by selling fuels as "cleaner" and advertising themselves as leaders in fighting climate change.The lawsuit comes after a federal appeals court this month rejected the city's effort to hold five major oil companies liable to help pay the costs of harm caused by global warming.The lawsuit said Exxon Mobil Corp…
ConocoPhillips Posts Smaller-than-expected Loss
Oil producer ConocoPhillips, which is buying Concho Resources Inc for $8.3 billion, posted a smaller-than-expected quarterly loss on Thursday as it benefited from a recovery in crude oil prices from pandemic-driven lows.Oil prices began recovering in the third quarter after a number of countries started easing their months-long cornonavirus-led lockdowns, which has slammed fuel demand and forced some oil companies to merge for survival.ConocoPhillips reported a loss of $450 million…
ConocoPhillips to Reverse Most Output Cuts by End of Q3
ConocoPhillips said on Thursday it expects production curtailments in the current quarter to be roughly half as much as last quarter and will restore most of its output by the end of September, after the oil and gas producer slashed about a third of its output in April as oil prices plunged 41%.The company restored part of its curtailed volumes earlier in June, as crude prices recovered some…
U.S. Oil Firms Hit Brakes on Return-to-work as Virus Cases Soar
U.S. energy companies slammed the brakes on returning staff to their Houston offices as COVID-19 cases soared and top hospitals warned they could soon run out of beds for the most severely ill patients.A record number of new illnesses in Texas this week spurred local officials to impose restrictions as new cases topped 5,000 on two days in a row. Intensive care unit (ICU) beds were 97% full at Houston's Texas Medical Center…
ConocoPhillips CEO Says Surprised by Quick Rebound in Oil Prices
ConocoPhillips Chief Executive Officer Ryan Lance on Wednesday expressed surprise at the quick rebound in U.S. oil prices that slipped into the negative territory in April and said he expects prices to remain volatile in the near term.Oil is now trading at near $40 per barrel, almost double of $20 it averaged in April, the same month prices had briefly slumped to minus $38 per barrel due to low demand as countries halted travel to curb the spread of the new coronavirus…
Qatar Petroleum to Cut Spending by 30%
Qatar Petroleum will slash its spending by around 30% this year in the face of the sharp drop in oil and gas prices due to the coronavirus epidemic, its Chief Executive said on Thursday.Speaking during a webcast organized by the U.S-Qatar Business Council, Saad al-Kaabi however said that plans to sharply expand Qatar Petroleum's liquefied natural gas (LNG) capacity by the middle of the decade remain on track."We are going through budget revisions...
Virus Lockdowns Pummel Global Gas Demand, Force LNG Output Cuts
Lockdowns to slow the coronavirus pandemic are pummelling gas demand in the world's biggest buyers of liquefied natural gas (LNG), pushing Asia's spot prices to record lows and forcing some suppliers to start cutting output. Economies worldwide have ground to a halt as virus containment measures have taken their toll, slashing gas demand for power generation, heating, cooking, vehicles and chemical manufacture.
Oil, Fishing, Tourism: Alaska Economy Faces Triple Hit from Coronavirus
The U.S. state of Alaska is so far distant from the worst medical ravages of the coronavirus pandemic, but its economy is in critical condition. Alaska is especially vulnerable because it depends on oil, tourism and fisheries – basic industries that are reeling from the global coronavirus pandemic – and the state government gets most of its revenue from investment earnings that have now evaporated."Alaska is experiencing a perfect storm…
