U.S. Refiners Control Gasoline, Diesel Oversupply
U.S. refiners have cut seasonal crude processing sharply since the start of the second quarter, averting a potential oversupply of gasoline and distillates, but worsening the build up of crude stocks.U.S. refiners have processed an average 16.64 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude since the start of the year compared with 16.94 million bpd at the same point in 2018 (https://tmsnrt.rs/2N9ziVH).Some of the loss can be attributed to the destruction of the 335,0000 bpd Philadelphia Energy Solutions refinery by fire near the end of June.But refiners started running below prior-year rates from March…
Canadian E.Coast LNG Export Plans Progress Shell Deal
Pieridae Energy moved closer to building a liquefied natural gas (LNG) export terminal on Canada's East Coast after taking ownership of fields from Royal Dutch Shell which will feed gas into the plant, the company said.The Goldboro LNG terminal would be the first on Canada's East Coast and compete with the growing number of plants on the U.S. Gulf Coast, hoping its shorter distance to Europe and further west will help sell its LNG by cutting shipping costs.Pieridae said in a statement late on Thursday it had closed a C$190 million ($145 million) acquisition of Shell's gas assets in Alberta's Foothills region…
BP Raises Asian Profile
BP is increasing its Asian presence with an initial agreement, or memorandum of understanding, with China's Zhejiang Petroleum and Chemical Corporation (ZPCC) to build a 1 million tonne a year acetic acid plant, BP said on Friday. The planned production site for acetic acid, which is used in chemical products such as paints and adhesives, would be part of ZPCC's refining and petrochemical plant in Zhoushan in eastern China, BP said in a statement."The potential new plant...would be BP’s largest acetic acid producing site in the world.
Saudi Attacks, High Demand Leaves U.S. Short on Oil Tankers
A disruption in global oil flows following attacks on Saudi Arabian facilities has left U.S. crude exporters without enough tankers to cover rising demand for cargoes, traders and shipping sources said.Missile attacks last Saturday temporarily cut Saudi oil production by more than 5 million barrels per day, or about half the country's output.That set off a scramble for alternative cargoes of crude, particularly in the United States, which lined up available tankers sailing from the Mediterranean, West Africa and continental Europe to pick up cargoes.
Equinor, SSE Win Contract for Largest Offshore Wind Project
Equinor and Britain's SSE have won a tender to build three wind farms off Britain, which the Norwegian firm said together will form the world's largest such development.Like other European oil firms, Equinor is developing its renewables business and is focused on offshore wind given its experience as an offshore oil platform operator."The successful bids for the world’s largest offshore wind development represent a game-changer for our offshore wind business and support the development of Equinor as a broad energy company…
Mitsui Looks to Sell BassGas Stake
Japan's Mitsui & Co has put its 40% stake in the BassGas project off southeastern Australia up for sale, the company said on Thursday.Mitsui's stake in the BassGas project, which includes the undeveloped Trefoil gas project, could be worth about A$360 million ($244 million), according to Credit Suisse. However, a person with knowledge of the asset estimated it at about A$140 million.Mitsui Australia's spokesman said Rothschild has been engaged to advise on the sale of the stake, which Mitsui acquired with its takeover of oil and gas producer AWE last year.
ExxonMobil Looks to Sell Australian Assets
Exxon Mobil Corp said on Wednesday it was looking to sell its 50% stake in the Gippsland Basin oil and gas development in Australia's Bass Strait as part of a broader review of its global portfolio of assets.The sale could fetch up to $3 billion, however decommissioning costs for the ageing fields could dent the price tag, analysts and bankers said.The Gippsland Basin joint venture, off the state of Victoria, has long been the mainstay oil and gas supplier for southeastern Australia, but output…
Ireland Calls for More Offshore Wind
Irish Wind Energy Association (IWEA) chief executive Dr David Connolly has called for greater urgency from the government in the country and across the political system to support the development of offshore wind energy.Ireland currently only has a single offshore wind farm but there is an estimated 4-5,000 MW of offshore wind energy ready to be developed off the country’s east coast.Dr Connolly said: “Our industry is ready, willing and able to deliver the 3,500 MW of offshore wind energy by 2030 required in the Climate Action Plan.
Triton Knoll Selects Seacat for OESV
Offshore energy support vessel (OESV) operator Seacat Services signed a deal to support the construction phase of Triton Knoll offshore wind farm.The contract, which includes options for further vessel charters, will initially see two Seacat Services OESVs – one 26-meter and one 24-meter catamaran – operating out of Triton Knoll’s new Grimsby construction base, providing specialist crew transfer and logistical support at the 90-turbine, 857MW project off the UK’s East Coast.With offshore construction set to commence in Q1 2020…
Offshore Wind: Regulatory “Takes” – Take a Close Look
On April 30 the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) published a notice, requesting public comments, on a proposed “incidental harassment authorization” (IHA). An IHA is a legal and enforceable document presenting the terms and conditions with which a company must adhere in order to protect wildlife. In this case, the draft IHA was for Vineyard Wind, the wind energy company ready to start construction on an 800 MW offshore wind farm in the Atlantic, covering about 675 square kilometers, starting 14 miles from the coastline of Martha’s Vineyard.
Kinder Morgan: Bankrupt Refiner Owes $1.5 mln
Kinder Morgan Liquids Terminals LLC says Philadelphia Energy Solutions failed to make payments for fuel storage and other services totaling nearly $1.5 million since December, roughly seven months before the Pennsylvania refiner filed for bankruptcy.In a Wednesday filing, Kinder asked the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware to allow it to sell fuel stored by PES at its Carteret, New Jersey, facility to pay itself back for the missed payments.PES, which shut its last crude unit this week…
Ørsted Offshore Wind Hub Comes in East Coast
Ørsted U.S. Offshore Wind announced a landmark agreement to develop Maryland’s first offshore wind energy staging center at Tradepoint Atlantic, a 3,300-acre global logistics center in Baltimore County, Maryland.Establishing a facility for offshore wind at Tradepoint Atlantic marks a major milestone in the development of Ørsted’s Skipjack Wind Farm located 19.5 miles off Maryland’s coast, and the expansion of Maryland’s offshore wind energy workforce.The developer will work with Tradepoint Atlantic…
Beach Energy to Boost Drilling Spend
Beach Energy, Australia's third-largest independent oil and gas producer, ended the 2019 financial year more cashed up than expected and plans to step up spending on drilling while keeping an eye out for acquisitions, its boss said on Wednesday.Beach paid off debt on its A$1.6 billion ($1.1 billion) acquisition of Lattice Energy within just 18 months, two years earlier than originally planned, with the help of an asset sale and strong cash flow from its expanded portfolio.The company ended the year to June 30 with net cash of A$172 million…
Vitol Builds Refinery for New Ship's Fuel
Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, has started building a small oil refinery at its storage terminal in Malaysia that will provide low-sulfur fuel for ships, a senior company official said on Monday.The project consists of a crude distillation unit that can process 30,000 barrels per day of crude and is located on the same site as Vitol's oil storage terminal at Tanjung Bin in the southern Malaysian state of Johor, Vitol Asia's President and Chief Executive Officer Kho Hui Meng…
Anadarko Approves $20 Bln Mozambique LNG Project
U.S. energy firm Anadarko Petroleum Corp gave the go-ahead on Tuesday for the construction of a $20 billion gas liquefaction and export terminal in Mozambique, the largest single LNG project approved in Africa, according to the government of Mozambique and energy consultancy Wood Mackenzie.The announcement, which occurred at an event in Mozambique, was widely expected after Anadarko last month flagged the decision date. Officials at Anadarko were not immediately available for comment.The project…
Offshore Wind – A Brief History
Happy 80th birthday Maritime Reporter & Engineering News! Eighty years is a significant publishing and business accomplishment!Birthdays always cause a look back. An 80-year review starts in 1939, the close of one very challenging decade, the start of events still reverberating today. History’s most important history is contained in the last 80 years.Energy dominated every one of those decades. Consider energy use, say, starting after World War II, from 1950 to 1975. There was power for everything…
Russian Pipeline: Bringing Gas and Building Trust
A discussion over energy at the summit last week between Russian President Vladimir Putin and North Korean leader Kim Jong-un has excited the government in South Korea, where the government is desperately looking to entice the North Koreans to come in out of the cold.Among the topics that came up was access for the North Koreans to Russian electricity supplies and the question of North Korea allowing the Russians to build a pipeline that would ship natural gas from Vladivostok, where the summit was held…
Aker Energy Extends FPSO Dhirubhai-1 Charter
The oil and gas company Aker Energy AS, a 50-50 joint venture between Aker ASA and TRG AS, has paid to extend an option it has for the long-term charter of Ocean Yield’s FPSO Dhirubhai-1.A press release said that on the 12th of February 2019 Ocean Yield ASA entered into an option agreement with Aker Energy AS for a long-term bareboat charter of the FPSO Dhirubhai-1.The initial option period expires on 1st of May 2019 with an extension period of up to 30 days against an additional compensation…
A New York State of Mind
“A new industry is being established in New York, with the primary stimulus being a state-driven procurement process.”New York State Public Service Commission (PSC), July 12, 2018.To a great extent, this PSC comment provides direct insight into the dynamics behind New York’s pace-setting moves to establish offshore wind. First, this new energy development is deliberate – not left to chance or laissez faire markets. Second, state officials are in control, from choosing a contractor to securing money for payment.
AMS Wins Hornsea Two Gig
AMS Trenchless Specialists, North Lincolnshire-based engineering company, has won a huge contract for part of the onshore cable works for Hornsea Two, an offshore wind farm being constructed 89km off the Yorkshire Coast.AMS Trenchless Specialists, based in Scunthorpe, will undertake Horizontal Directional Drilling (HDD), a method of installing ducting and cables beneath existing infrastructure without disruption, at the landfall site in Horseshoe Point where the offshore cables meet the onshore cables.This contract builds on the existing relationship between the East-coast firm and Ørsted…
