The Oil Daily articles from December 2008

The Oil Daily archives from December 2008

New data shows US oil demand at 12-year low.(United States. Energy Information Administration)
December 1, 2008... The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) has revised its US oil demand figures downward for September, keeping up the trend of downward revisions that has occurred throughout the past year. However, the magnitude of the September revision...

Mexico energy reform may limit union power.(Petroleos Mexicanos)
December 1, 2008... Energy reforms approved by both houses of Mexico's Congress in October could significantly diminish the power of the oil workers union, ultimately improving efficiency and transparency at state-owned oil company Pemex. The reforms would...

EIA weekly statistics.(Statistical table)
December 1, 2008... EIA Weekly Statistics For Week Ended November 21, 2008 US Crude Oil: Stocks (1) (millions of bbl) Current Previous Week Week Chg. PADD 1 13.4 13.0 3.1% PADD 2 ...

CNOOC eyes Andarko South China Sea block.(China National Offshore Oil Corp.)(Anadarko Petroleum Corp.)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) is reportedly seeking to farm into a block in the South China Sea operated by US-based Anadarko Petroleum. Dow Jones Newswires on Wednesday quoted a source as saying CNOOC intends to back into...

Iran seeks to attract new partners to revive stalled gas projects.(China National Petroleum Corp.)(National Iranian Oil Co.)
December 1, 2008... Iran is inviting new partners into major gas projects stalled by international pressure with the aim of "lubricating" the schemes, a top official at National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) told Oil Daily in Tehran. The two key LNG projects it is...

Daily oil & gas price review.(Statistical table)
December 1, 2008... Daily Oil & Gas Price Review Prices for Wednesday, November 26, 2008 US Domestic Crudes ($/barrel) Cash/Spot Change Spot Price 5-Day Avg. Month-Ago WTS (Midland) +4.04 48.87 45.41 60.39 LLS (St....

Natural gas prices rally on storage draw, but upside limited until weather turns cold.
December 1, 2008... After a strong December Gas expiry, gas futures saw some sharp volatility during an abbreviated week of trading as a large draw in gas stocks clashed with concerns that a deteriorating US economy and intensifying recession will slash demand for...

Rig count falls by 75.(Baker Hughes Drilling Report)(Statistical table)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The number of drilling rigs searching for oil and gas in the US fell by 75 last week to 1,866, Baker Hughes said. During the same week last year, there were 1,941 rigs at work. The number of rigs searching for oil in the US fell by seven to...

Petro-Canada aims to unlock full potential of Libya's Sirte Basin.
December 1, 2008... Armed with long-term contract extensions that will allow it to play a more active role in the exploration and development process, Petro-Canada is hoping to unlock the full potential of Libya's under-exploited Sirte Basin. With many of its...

Frontrunner for national security job would elevate energy issues.
December 1, 2008... The likelihood that retired Marine Gen. James Jones will become President-elect Barack Obama's national security adviser suggests that energy issues will play a bigger role in setting the new administration's foreign policy. A Democratic...

Verenex opens data rooms.(Corporate News)(Verenex Energy)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Verenex Energy said it has opened data rooms in London to facilitate a potential corporate sale as a strategic option that is currently under review. It is expected that these data rooms will remain open until at least mid-December. Verenex...

Chevron expands North Duri.(International)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... US major Chevron said Wednesday it began production from the North Duri Area 12 field development in Indonesia earlier this month. Output from the field, in central Sumatra, kicked off at 1,000 b/d and should hit 34,000 b/d by 2012. ...

Total submits China plan.(International)(China National Petroleum Corp.)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Total has submitted a development plan for the Sulige Block onshore China. The French major said Wednesday that cooperation with China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) has advanced with submission of the plan, which follows more than two years...

Tussle over Sao Tome Blocks.(International)(ERHC Energy)(Joint Ministerial Council)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... US-listed ERHC Energy, which has a raft of oil and gas assets in the joint development zone (JDZ) between Sao Tome and Principe and Nigeria, is seeking legal redress amid claims it is to be stripped of its interests in Blocks 5 and 6. ...

EIA gas storage report.(International)(Statistical data)
December 1, 2008... Gas in Storage Falls by 66 Bcf Stocks of working natural gas in US storage facilities fell by 66 Bcf in the week ending Nov. 21, leaving storage levels at 3,422 Bcf, according to the Energy Information Administration. Gas in storage is 109...

Stock market scorecard.(International)(Statistical table)
December 1, 2008... Stock Market Scorecard Integrated Close 1-Day % Chg. Majors 11/26 Chg. % Chg. 10-Day 52-Wk YTD Hess 56.21 +6.42 +12.89% -0.76% -18.05% -44.27% Petro-Canada...

Rubiales scores in Colombia.(Latin America)(Pacific Rubiales)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Pacific Rubiales said the latest exploratory well it drilled in the Llanos Basin of Colombia was a success. The Quifa-5 well was drilled on Prospect "E" at the Quifa Block, which completely surrounds the Rubiales Field and is three times...

Woodmac sees low gas prices.(Natural Gas)(Wood Mackenzie)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The head of natural gas research at Wood Mackenzie, Jen Snyder, has warned of a prolonged period of significant weakness in US gas prices. "We expect US natural gas prices to trade in the range of $5 to $6/MMBtu for the next five years,"...

Gas Opec will not set quotas.(Natural Gas)(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The world's top gas exporting nations will set up a formal organization at a December summit in Moscow, a Russian official said on Wednesday, but denied the new body will seek to copy Opec's production quotas. "No one is planning to...

Storms destroyed 60 platforms.(Offshore)(United States. Minerals Management Service)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... Sixty oil and gas production platforms in the US Gulf of Mexico were destroyed as a result of hurricanes Gustav and Ike earlier this year, the US Minerals Management Service (MMS) said in its final damage assessment. The destroyed...

BLM agrees to scale back Utah lease sale.(United States. Bureau of Land Management)
December 1, 2008... The Bush administration has scaled back plans to lease land for oil and gas exploration near several national parks. The move follows criticism from environmental groups that it was trying to open sensitive areas to exploration and production...

Feds assess energy corridors.(Pipelines)(Brief article)
December 1, 2008... The federal government on Wednesday published the final environmental impact statement for the proposed Western energy corridor. Designation of the corridor is designed to accelerate the application process for new energy-transportation...

Opec delays decision on further output cuts.(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)
December 2, 2008... With oil stocks rising rapidly and demand falling fast too, Opec is preparing another formal cut in production targets. A decision on the magnitude of the cut will be taken in two weeks when oil ministers meet again in Oran, Algeria. ...

Cash-strapped Chesapeake to issue stock.(Chesapeake Energy Corp.)(United States. Securities and Exchange Commission)
December 2, 2008... Cash-strapped Chesapeake Energy hopes to tap equity markets for new funding, supplementing the billions it has already raised in joint venture deals and asset sales since natural gas prices tumbled from their record highs in July. ...

National oil companies claim top spots in PIW industry rankings.(Industry ranking)
December 2, 2008... A decade after the mega-mergers that created today's international majors, the latest PIW ranking of the world's top 50 oil companies casts doubt on the wisdom of the supermajor strategy. While six international majors still rank among the...

Husky adds to Atlantic acreage.(Husky Energy Inc.)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Husky Energy further bulked up its portfolio of exploration properties in the Atlantic around the Canadian province of Newfoundland with acreage in the prospective Sydney Basin. Husky, Canada's No. 2 oil exploration and refining firm by...

Oil falls back below $50 as Opec postpones decision on output cut.(Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Nymex crude started December by dropping below $50 again after Opec postponed a decision on further production cuts until its Dec. 17 meeting in Algeria. Crude was also hit by more bad news about the global economy. Adam Sieminski of...

Daily oil & gas price review.(Statistical table)
December 2, 2008... Daily Oil & Gas Price Review Prices for Monday, December 1, 2008 US Domestic Crudes ($/barrel) Cash/Spot Change Spot Price 5-Day Avg. Month-Ago WTS (Midland) -5.67 43.83 47.22 60.39 LLS (St. James)...

Acting chief executive appointed at TNK-BP as Dudley steps down.(resignation of Robert Dudley)(appointment of Tim Summers)
December 2, 2008... Robert Dudley stepped down as chief executive of TNK-BP on Monday after five often difficult years at the helm of Russia's third-biggest oil company. The Russian-UK joint venture has named Chief Operating Officer Tim Summers acting chief...

Heating degree days.(Statistical table)
December 2, 2008... Heating Degree Days For the week of November 29, 2008 Week Dev Cum Dev From From From Week From Year Cum From...

Russia boosts economic and political ties with Latin America.(Dmitry Medvedev)
December 2, 2008... Russian President Dmitry Medvedev undertook a six-day tour of Latin America last week that was aimed at strengthening his country's commercial and political ties with a region that has traditionally been viewed as part of the US sphere of...

United Nations climate change talks get under way in Poland.(United Nations framework convention on climate change)(Conference news)
December 2, 2008... The latest round of international climate talks kicked off Monday in Poland with the goal of reaching agreement on the framework of a treaty to replace the Kyoto Protocol, which expires in 2012. The 12-day meeting of the 192-nation United...

Solid earnings for majors, outlook less rosy.
December 2, 2008... Prospects for the immediate future are looking a lot less rosy than they did a few months ago, but third-quarter earnings reports from the leading integrated oil majors were uniformly strong. Exxon Mobil led the pack, earning $14.8 billion...

Independent refiners cut capital spending.(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Independent refiners performed better than expected in the third quarter, but they are now facing difficult conditions which are forcing them to rethink their investment plans. For the third quarter, a group of seven US independent...

Independent producers create gas supply glut as they ramp up output.
December 2, 2008... Independent producers ramped up their natural gas output in the third quarter as shale fever continued to grip North America. Production from 10 top independents tracked by Oil Daily increased by 9% over year-ago levels, despite an active...

Integrated oil companies.(Statistical table)
December 2, 2008... Integrated Oil Companies (millions of dollars, except per-share, production, and product sales figures) Overall Results Adjusted Earnings ...

Shell delays oil sands project.(Corporate News)(Royal Dutch-Shell PLC)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Royal Dutch Shell is delaying another Canadian oil sands project, saying on Thursday it has withdrawn a regulatory application for its 100,000 b/d Carmon Creek thermal project as it looks to cut costs by revamping the project. The delay is...

Total success off Congo.(International)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Total has announced successful appraisal results from its Moho Marine Nord-3 find in the northern part of the Moho-Bilondo field in deepwater offshore Congo (Brazzaville), which flowed at a rate of 3,000 b/d. Moho Marine Nord-3 was drilled...

Algeria delays bid deadline.(International)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Algeria has delayed the bid deadline for its current upstream licensing round by 10 days until Dec. 13, the country's licensing and regulatory agency, Alnaft, said. Algeria launched the bid round in July for 16 perimeter zones containing...

Eni completes Hewett buy.(International)(Tullow Oil PLC)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Italy's Eni has completed the acquisition of Tullow Oil's Hewett fields in the UK North Sea and related Bacton onshore gas processing terminal, Tullow said Monday. "The headline cash consideration of [pounds sterling]210 million [$322.9...

Shell closes Nigeria gas plant.(International)(Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd.)(Soku)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Royal Dutch Shell says it has been forced to close its Soku gas plant in the Niger Delta as a result of sabotage caused by a significant increase in condensate theft from the plant's pipelines. Shell's Nigerian affiliate, Shell Petroleum...

Tensions rise in Kuwait.(International)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... The emir of Kuwait on Monday asked his nephew, Sheikh Nasser al-Mohammad al-Sabah, to form a new government, his fifth since 2006, after the cabinet resigned last week. The move to reappoint Sheikh Nasser is in clear defiance of lawmakers,...

Stock market scorecard.(International)(Statistical table)
December 2, 2008... Stock Market Scorecard Integrated Close 1-Day % Chg. Majors 12/1 Chg. % Chg. 10-Day 52-W YTD Exxon Mobil 74.31 -5.84 -7.29% +0.86% -16.12% -20.69% ConocoPhillips...

Callon halts US Gulf project.(Callon Petroleum)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Callon Petroleum said it has decided to suspend operations underway to develop the Entrada Field in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico due to the economic crisis. The field is located on Garden Banks Block 782 and is 50% owned by Callon which is also...

Tycoon pulls out of project.(Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd.)(Lakshmi Mittal)(Brief article)
December 2, 2008... Steel tycoon Lakshmi Mittal has pulled out of a project to build a $10 billion refinery and petrochemical complex in eastern India after losing about $17 billion on stock markets amid the global financial meltdown. The Indian-born...

CFOs say tight credit their top concern.(Chief financial officers)(Survey)
December 3, 2008... Credit restraints, including reduced access to capital, are the greatest financial challenges facing US oil and gas exploration and production firms in 2009, according to a survey conducted by consulting firm BDO Seidman. Falling oil and...

Chavez seeks to end presidential term limits.(Hugo Chavez)
December 3, 2008... Buoyed by his victory in recent regional elections, Venezuela's President Hugo Chavez plans to hold a constitutional referendum in the coming months that would allow him to remain in office indefinitely. The initiative comes just a year after...

Oil shares outperform broader stock market again in November.
December 3, 2008... As Wall Street continued its downward spiral in November, the integrated oil companies that make up the International Petroleum Finance (IPF) index largely outperformed the S&P 500 and the FT World index for a second consecutive month. The...

Crude falls to mid-$40s on poor compliance with Opec quotas.(Organization of the petroleum exporting countries)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Nymex crude settled on Tuesday at its lowest level since May 20, 2005 on news of poor compliance with Opec production cuts and a continuing deterioration of the global economy. Oil is now trading more than $100 below July's all time high of...

Daily oil & gas price review.(Statistical table)
December 3, 2008... Daily Oil & Gas Price Review Prices for Tuesday, December 2, 2008 US Domestic Crudes ($/barrel) Cash/Spot Change Spot Price 5-Day Avg. Month-Ago WTS (Midland) -0.95 42.88 46.83 63.43 LLS (St. James)...

Russian oil exports fall as firms try to avoid punitive duties.
December 3, 2008... Russian oil production and exports both fell in November, with exports crashing as firms scrambled to reroute flows to domestic refineries and into storage to avoid punitive export duties. Exports through the Transneft pipeline system...

Pundits say oil prices will fall further before they bottom out.
December 3, 2008... The fate of short-term oil prices lies in the hands of Opec and the health of the world economy, with little sign of upside coming from either source before next year at the earliest, according to economists and analysts at an oil industry...

Total said to plan Nexen bid.(Top Briefs)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Shares in Nexen soared on Tuesday after a report said that French oil major Total is poised to make a C$19.7 billion ($15.8 billion) takeover offer for Canada's No. 4 independent oil explorer. The Financial Times reported on its website...

Chevron sees flat capex.(Corporate News)(capital expenditure)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Chevron said it will announce its capital spending program at the end of January, instead of this month, because market conditions had changed "significantly." The company is reexamining its business plans in light of changes in the...

EU compromise on car emissions.(Environment)(European Union)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... The European Union has reached a compromise on reducing carbon dioxide emissions from cars after hard-fought negotiations between environmentalists and a beleaguered auto industry. The deal announced late Monday by the European...

Suncor suffers another fire.(Exploration & Production)(Suncor Energy Inc.)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Suncor Energy said repairs to one of its upgraders north of Fort McMurray, Alberta, will take three to four weeks to fix damage cause by a fire last week. The incident hapened during start-up of a vacuum unit after completion of planned...

Alaska oil output up slightly.(Exploration & Production)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Alaskan crude oil production averaged 771,047 b/d in November, a gain of 11,404 b/d from October, according to daily data from the state's Department of Revenue Tax Division. Most of the monthly rise occurred at the BP-operated Prudhoe Bay...

Shell upgrader work cuts output.(Exploration & Production)(Royal Dutch-Shell PLC)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Royal Dutch Shell said on Tuesday its 155,000 b/d Scotford oil sands upgrader near Edmonton, Alberta, is operating at reduced levels as the company completes maintenance work on one of the facility's units. Randy Provencal, a spokesman for...

EOG sees Bakken slowdown.(Exploration & Production)(EOG Resources Inc.)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Energy companies are slowing drilling in the Bakken Shale in North Dakota because of falling crude oil prices, the chief executive of natural gas producer EOG Resources said on Tuesday. "People are dropping rigs up there in a pretty...

Stock market scorecard.(NEWS ALERT)(Statistical table)
December 3, 2008... Stock Market Scorecard Integrated Close 1-Day % Chg. Majors 12/2 Chg. % Chg. 10-Day 52-Wk YTD Eni 43.67 +2.95 +7.24% +0.44% -38.97% -39.71% Repsol YPF ...

Malaysian firm bags Iran deals.(International)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Iran has boosted energy ties with Malaysia by signing a package of oil and gas deals valued at $16 billion with SKS, a secretive group headed by Malaysian billionaire Syed Mokhtar al-Bukhary. Underlining the close political relationship...

Tokyo Gas spikes Tangguh deal.(International)(BP Indonesia)(PTT Gas)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Tokyo Gas has canceled a deal to buy LNG from the BP-led Tangguh project in Indonesia, and Thailand's state PTT also says it is no longer interested in purchasing Tangguh LNG, an Indonesian government official says. The local Antara news...

CNPC ups reserves.(International)(China National Petroleum Corp.)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) says it has made six significant oil and gas finds this year, bringing proved oil reserves to near-record levels. It did not provide details, other than to say that additions to gas reserves are again...

Norway faces investment crunch.(International)(Norwegian Oil Industry Association)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Norway's oil industry association OLF released its latest KonKraft report on Tuesday, in which it suggested the country must open up new areas to oil and gas development to stop a sharp decline in future investment. The report, a...

Petrobras starts new platform.(Latin America)(Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Brazilian state-run energy giant Petrobras said Tuesday its recently inaugurated P-53 platform started production at the Marlim Leste field in the Campos Basin. Crude output at the platform started Nov. 30, Petrobras said. The platform is...

Mexico outlines refinery plans.(Latin America)(Petroleos Mexicanos)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Mexican state oil company Pemex has recommended nine possible sites for a planned 300,000 b/d refinery, which it says would cost $9 billion to $10.8 billion to build, according to a local news report. Pemex presented a report on the...

Chevron cleared in Nigeria.(Litigation)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... A US federal court has cleared Chevron of complicity in attacks by Nigerian armed forces on environmental protestors at a Chevron platform in the Niger Delta a decade ago. The plaintiffs' co-counsel, Washington-based human rights group...

Shell sets deepwater record.(Offshore)(Shell Oil Co.)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Shell Oil--the US unit of Royal Dutch Shell--said it has set a world record by drilling and completing a subsea well 9,356 feet below the water's surface at the Silvertip Field--part of the Perdido multi-field development project in the Gulf of...

Gazprom inks Schlumberger deal.(Oil Field Service)(OAO Gazprom)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Gazprom says it has inked a framework technology cooperation deal with oil services giant Schlumberger. The accord, signed last week by Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller and his counterpart at Schlumberger, Andrew Gould, centers on using...

Petrobras delays Japan upgrade.(Refining)(Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.)(Nansei Sekiyu)(Brief article)
December 3, 2008... Petrobras is delaying a feasibility study on upgrading Nansei Sekiyu's 100,000 b/d refinery in Okinawa, Japan. The state-controlled Brazilian firm acquired an 87.5% stake in Nansei Sekiyu in April. Petrobras and Sumitomo, the other...

Kurdish oil set for export via pipeline.
December 3, 2008... The first oil from fields in the Kurdish region of northern Iraq--DNO's Tawke and Addax's Taq Taq--is set to be exported via the Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline, Iraqi officials said this week. The pending flows follow news last week that Baghdad...

Asian heavyweights cut domestic fuel prices.
December 8, 2008... Asian energy giants China and India both unveiled changes to domestic fuel prices on Friday in response to the $100 per barrel crash in crude oil prices over the past six months. The moves are designed to revive flagging economies hurt by the...

IEA: some refiners may go out of business.(International Energy Agency)
December 8, 2008... Some refinery operators in member countries of the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) may be forced to shut down in the coming years due to poor economic conditions, the International Energy Agency (IEA) forecast...

Talisman says top shale plays will be spared from spending cuts.(Talisman Energy Inc.)
December 8, 2008... Talisman Energy anticipates "significant" reductions in its capital spending program next year. However, the Canadian company remains committed to its North American unconventional gas plays going into 2009. Talisman Chief Financial...

Crude slides toward $40 mark as jobs data highlights weak economy.
December 8, 2008... Crude prices suffered a brutal first week of December, losing 25% of their value as they marched closer towards $40. The global economy has slid into a deep decline, with the US officially declaring a recession. That was underscored on Friday...

Daily oil & gas price review.(Statistical table)
December 8, 2008... Daily Oil & Gas Price Review Prices for Friday, December 5, 2008 US Domestic Crudes ($/barrel) Cash/Spot Change Spot Price 5-Day Avg. Month-Ago WTS (Midland) -2.68 36.60 40.98 55.25 LLS (St. James)...

Natural gas futures sink to 15-month low as economic downturn eats away at demand.
December 8, 2008... Nymex January Natural gas futures fell to their lowest level in more than 15 months as a slowing economy gnaws away at demand from utilities and industrial users. Collapsing crude oil prices and tumbling equities also helped squash gas...

Baker Hughes drilling report.(Statistical data)
December 8, 2008... Rig Count Falls by 14 The number of drilling rigs searching for oil and gas in the US fell by 14 last week to 1,852, Baker Hughes said. During the same week last year, there were 1,828 rigs at work. The number of rigs searching for oil...

Conoco to pay big bonus.(International)(ConocoPhillips)(Mubadala Development)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... US firm ConocoPhillips and the UAE's Mubadala Development will pay Kazakhstan a $100 million signing bonus as part of a deal to buy a stake in a Kazakh offshore oil block, officials said on Friday. Conoco and Mubadala agreed in October to...

Nuclear an option for Singapore.(International)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... Singapore has not ruled out using nuclear power to meet its energy needs, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong said Friday. "It is difficult to do because the scale is large.... When we talk about nuclear plants, we are talking about plants...

BG to cooperate with Kazakhs.(International)(BG Group PLC)(Kazakhstan)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... UK firm BG signed a potentially far-reaching agreement Friday to cooperate with two Kazakh national companies on identifying upstream opportunities in Kazakhstan and overseas. "It's a good example of an NOC-IOC [national oil...

Talisman starts Vietnam field.(International)(Talisman Energy Inc.)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... Talisman Energy has announced first oil production from the Song Doc field in Block 46/02 offshore Vietnam. Gross production from five pre-drilled wells is expected to reach 25,000 b/d by early 2009. An additional three development wells...

SK may nix Kurdish deal.(International)(SK Energy)(Kurdistan Regional Government)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... The Iraqi Oil Ministry said South Korea's SK Energy has "expressed its willingness" to cancel contracts with the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of northern Iraq, according to news agency reports. The cancellation could lead to the...

Gazprom sets spending plans.(International)(Brief article)
December 8, 2008... Gazprom plans to invest 920.44 billion rubles ($32.8 billion) in 2009, according to a draft spending program approved by the executive board Friday. The Russian state gas giant said capital expenditure will total almost 699.9 billion rubles,...