As Wars Rage, Middle East's Waning Influence on World Oil Prices Exposed
The contained move in oil prices during the Israel-Iran war highlights the increasing efficiency of energy markets and fundamental changes to global crude supply, suggesting that Middle East politics will no longer be the dominant force in oil markets they once were.The jump in oil prices following Israel's surprise attack on Iran was meaningful but relatively modest considering the high stakes involved in the conflict between the Middle East rivals.Benchmark Brent crude prices…
BP CEO: It's time to increase U.S. production of gas
HOUSTON, 11 March - BP will increase U.S. Natural Gas production in its onshore shale operation following the recent rise of domestic gas prices. CEO Murray Auchincloss announced this on Tuesday. Auchincloss said at the CERAWeek Conference in Houston that "with rising gas prices, it is time for the Haynesville basin" in eastern Texas. As new LNG export terminals on the Gulf Coast ramped-up, the benchmark U.S. Natural Gas prices more than doubled in the last year to $4.4 per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu). BP's onshore U.S.
BP to slash over 5% of workforce
BP will cut over 5% of its global workforce, it said on Thursday, as part of CEO Murray Auchincloss' efforts to reduce costs and rebuild investor confidence in the energy giant.Around 4,700 employees and 3,000 contractor positions will be cut this year, BP BP.L told Reuters. The cuts were announced in an internal memo seen by Reuters earlier on Thursday.BP shares were up 1% at 1200 GMT.Auchincloss last year said he would cut the British company's costs by at least…
Shell downplays Namibia's oil discovery as a blow to the country
Shell has written down $400 million in oil discoveries offshore Namibia, which it considered commercially unviable. This is a major blow to Namibia's attempts to become a crude-producing country. Shell, its partners QatarEnergy, and Namibia's National Oil Company discovered hydrocarbons in block PEL39 2022. This discovery along with a second TotalEnergies in a block nearby sparked colossal global interest in this southern African nation that has no oil or gas production. Shell has drilled nine wells on the license in the last three years. In a different licence offshore.
BP's offshore Wind Head to Step Down
A spokesperson for BP announced on Monday that Matthias Bausenwein, the head of offshore winds, is leaving the firm. This comes after the oil giant announced its intention to spin off its offshore operations into a JERA-JERA joint venture. Bausenwein, who joined BP in August 2022 from the Danish renewables giant Orsted, will lead BP's expansion of offshore wind project. Anja-Isabel Dotzenrath - a former CEO at RWE Renewables - left the company last April after less than two years on the job.
Sources say that BP is looking for buyers to buy its US Natural Gas Pipeline System stake.
Four people familiar with the matter have confirmed that BP is looking for buyers to take a stake in their U.S. Natural Gas Pipeline Network. Two people have said that the British energy company may be able to raise $3 billion through the sale. One of them added that BP could sell as much as a 49 percent stake in its business. Two other people confirmed that the sale is part of BP's CEO Murray Auchincloss’s efforts to reduce the debt levels at the company, which have risen in the last year. BP refused to comment.
Energean CEO urges Israel issue new oil and Gas Exploration Licences
Energean, a gas company based in Israel, urged Israel on Thursday to issue new oil and gas exploration licenses offshore to meet the growing demand for gas in the region. Mathios rigas also called upon governments to develop new routes of export from Israel to Egypt and Cyprus. "We need to talk to the government (Israeli) about new licenses and exploration because we have to find more natural gas." Rigas stated that we need to develop additional gas. Energean reported on Thursday that it produced 153,000 barrels equivalent to oil per day during the first 10 month of this year.
Woodside CEO: Louisiana LNG project to be partnered with several companies by March
Woodside Energy's CEO said that the company expects to have several partners in its Louisiana liquefied gas project by the time it gives financial approval to the U.S. Project, which is expected to be the first quarter of 2020. Woodside, a company listed in Australia, is looking to sell 50% of its Louisiana LNG project. It now owns the entire project after acquiring Tellurian Inc. for $1.2 billion in October. The U.S. Gulf Coast plant could convert U.S. Shale Gas into up to 27,7 million tons of LNG per year. Woodside has held talks with U.S.
Woodside's O'Neill says that the LNG market will grow by 50% over the next decade.
Woodside Energy's CEO, who spoke on Tuesday, said that the company expects global demand for liquefied gas (LNG), to increase by 50 percent in the next decade. Over the past decade, the LNG market has grown by 50%. Meg O'Neill, speaking at the Energy Intelligence Forum held in London, said that she expects the market to grow another 50% over the next decade. O'Neill stated that the company has received interest from many onshore gas companies and other companies in partnering with its Driftwood LNG Project and that talks are ongoing.
Woodside: LNG Market to Grow by 50% in Next Decade
Australia's Woodside Energy WDS.AX expects the global market for liquefied natural gas (LNG) to grow by 50% in the coming decade, its CEO said on Tuesday."Over the last decade the LNG market grew by 50%. We anticipate it will grow by another 50% in the coming decade," Meg O’Neill told the Energy Intelligence Forum in London.O'Neill said the company had received interest from a lot of onshore gas players and other companies to partner with its Driftwood LNG project and talks were ongoing."We've got the balance sheet to fund our 50%.
Exxon executive: US oil producers are unlikely to switch to "drill baby, drill" mode
LONDON, November 26 - U.S. producers of oil and gas are unlikely to increase production dramatically under President-elect Donald Trump, as companies remain focused upon capital discipline, said a senior Exxon Mobil executive on Tuesday. Liam Mallon is the head of Exxon’s upstream division. He told the Energy Intelligence Forum in London that "we're not going see anyone in a 'drill baby, drill'" mode. He said that a radical change in production is unlikely, because most, if no one else, are focused on the economics.
Euro Oil Giants Rethink Renewable Balance
Almost five years ago, BP embarked on an ambitious attempt to transform itself from an oil company into a business focused on low-carbon power. The British company is now trying to return to its roots as a big oil and gas player with a growth story to match rivals, revive its share price and allay investor concerns over future profits.Rivals Shell and Norway's state-controlled Equinor are also scaling back energy transition plans set out earlier this decade. Their…
Shell sales increase in Q3 vs TotalEnergies due to higher Asian LNG prices
LONDON, October 31 - Analysts and traders say that higher production and sales of liquefied gas in Asia helped Shell to outperform TotalEnergies in the third quarter. However, group profits for both companies were affected by a drop in oil refining. Shell's quarterly profit of $6 billion beat forecasts by 12 percent, while TotalEnergies reported a profit of $4.1 billion that was slightly below expectations. Shell and TotalEnergies both reported quarterly profits that were down 70% and 82%, respectively.
BP's third quarter profits slump to $2.3 bln due to a decline in oil demand
BP reported higher than expected third quarter profits, $2.3 billion. This is their lowest profit in nearly four years. The drop in refinery profits and the weakening of oil trading were to blame. The drop of 30% in profits compared to a year ago is due to a slowdown on the global economy and in oil demand in particular in China. This puts pressure on CEO Murray Auchincloss, who has pledged that BP will improve its performance in response investor concerns about its energy transformation strategy.
Source: Energean has loaded a new oil unit on a vessel off Israel
LONDON, October 25 - Energean added a second unit of oil production to a production vessel that is floating off Israel. This will boost the crude production by as much as two-thirds over the next few months, according to an industry source. Recent days, the M10 oil train modules was lifted onto the Energean Power floating storage and offloading vessel (FPSO), which produces primarily natural gas for the Israeli domestic market from the Karish Field. The source stated that installation and commissioning of the module could take up to 6 months.
Shell's refining margins in the third quarter drop dramatically
Shell said that its refining profits fell sharply from the previous quarter to the third due to a slump in global demand. Its oil product trading earnings were also down, the company added. Shell's trading update, released ahead of its quarter-end results on October 31, revealed that its refining margins had fallen by almost 30% in the three months leading up to the end September. They were $7.7 per barrel the previous period. Shell has said that it expects its trading results in its Chemicals and Oil Products division to be lower than the second quarter.
Grangemouth Oil Refinery in Scotland to close by 2025 and lose 400 jobs
Petroineos, the operator of Scotland's sole oil refinery, announced on Thursday that it would close the facility in 2025, resulting in the loss of 400 positions. The closure is part of plans for the site, which has been around 100 years, to be converted into a fuels-import terminal. Petroineos will shut down the refinery in the second quarter next year. This is subject to employee consultations, according to a spokesperson for the company. The closure of the oil refinery with a capacity of 150…
Eni, Vaar Agree to Buy Neptune Energy in $4.9 Billion Deal
Italy's Eni ENI.MI and its Norwegian unit Vaar have agreed to buy private-equity backed Neptune Energy in a deal valuing the assets of the gas and oil producer at $4.9 billion including debt, the two groups said on Friday.The acquisition, which is expected to be completed at the start of next year, is one of the biggest oil and gas deals in Europe in years.The deal fits the Italian group's plan to increase the share of gas in its total hydrocarbon production and is expected to boost its earnings immediately…
Shell LNG Trading Gives Quarterly Boost
Earnings from Shell's liquefied natural gas (LNG) trading operations are likely to have been significantly higher in the fourth quarter of last year despite a sharp output drop owing to plant outages, it said on Friday.Europe's largest oil and gas company's update ahead of its full-year results on Feb. 2 also said it expects to pay about $2 billion in additional 2022 taxes related to the European Union and British windfall taxes imposed on the energy sector.Fourth…
Has Green Hydrogen Sprung a Leak?
The green hydrogen express is gathering pace, but it may have a worrying problem with leaks.As governments and energy companies line up big bets on the much-touted fuel of the future, some scientists say the lack of data on leaks and the potential harm they could cause is a blind spot for the nascent industry.At least four studies published this year say hydrogen loses its environmental edge when it seeps into the atmosphere. Two scientists told Reuters that if 10% leaks during its production…