NEFTE Compass articles from November 2007

NEFTE Compass archives from November 2007

Kashagan Partners Face New Deadline To Resolve Impasse.
November 7, 2007... The Eni-led consortium in charge of developing Kazakhstan's offshore Kashagan oil field has been given a new deadline of Nov. 30 to finalize an agreement with the government on how to resolve the dispute over the project, which is plagued by...

Gazprom Expands In EU With Stake In UK Pipe.
November 7, 2007... Gazprom's drive to build up its presence in its key European Union market gathered pace this week when it took a stake in a gas pipeline from the Netherlands to the UK. The Russian gas giant secured the new route when Dutch state gas grid...

Shell Identifies New Targets In Russia.
November 7, 2007... Royal Dutch Shell is identifying more Russian oil and gas projects in which it would like to participate with the backing of the Dutch Prime Minister Jan Peter Balkenende, who came to Moscow this week to bless Dutch state gas grid operator...

Crude Exports Fall As Production Creeps Up.
November 7, 2007... Exports of Russian crude oil through the network of state pipeline monopoly Transneft to non-CIS destinations fell to 3.876 million b/d (16.392 million metric tons) in October from 4.037 million b/d in September, as a new record-high export tax...

BPS-2 Gets Two Endpoints, But Remains Distant.
November 7, 2007... The Russian government has prepared a draft resolution on designing the Baltic Pipeline System-2 (BPS-2) with two endpoints, in the Baltic ports of Primorsk and Ust-Luga, but the start of the pipeline's construction remains far in the future....

Russia, China Fail To Agree On Oil Pipeline.
November 7, 2007... Pragmatism has again prevailed in Moscow and Beijing's oil and gas sales strategies, and the two countries have failed to sign an intergovernmental agreement on construction of a link to China from Russia's East Siberian Pacific Ocean (Espo)...

New Transneft Head Offers Different Vision.(Nikolai Tokarev)(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... State pipeline operator Transneft appears set to follow a new path under new head Nikolai Tokarev, who outlined his vision for the company in a recent televised interview. In a sharp break with former head Semyon Vainshtok, Tokarev...

Itera Eyes Production, Sales Growth.
November 7, 2007... Independent gas producer Itera plans to raise its annual gas production in Russia to a peak of 22 Bcm in 2018 from around 10 billion Bcm expected this year and around 12 Bcm expected in 2008. The production volume is to be reached by...

Russian Independents Change Strategy.
November 7, 2007... A chronic shortfall in funding among oil and gas companies listed on London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM) could herald a new wave of consolidation, as Russia-focused independents have shown signs of shifting their financial strategy to...

Concorde Lands Loan For Timan-Pechora Field.(Concorde Oil and Gas Plc)(The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development)(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has approved a $50 million loan that will enable Concorde Oil and Gas to go ahead with development of the Luzhskoye license area in Russia's northern Timan-Pechora region, according to...

Gazprom Approaching Baltic LNG Decision.
November 7, 2007... Gazprom continues to keep the future of the Baltic LNG project in limbo. A source involved in negotiations to join Baltic LNG told Nefte Compass last week that Gazprom will announce the makeup of the project's consortium on Dec. 7, but Gazprom...

Russia Rejects Yamal Gas Pipeline Expansion Via Belarus.
November 7, 2007... Russian Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko last week rejected the idea of expanding the Yamal-Europe pipeline, which carries around 20% of its natural gas to Europe through neighboring Belarus, as an expansion would compete with the...

Tatneft Prepared To Give Shell Half In Bitumen Project.
November 7, 2007... Tatneft is prepared to give Royal Dutch Shell a 50% stake in a joint venture aimed at developing Tatarstan's abundant bitumen reserves, the Russian regional producer announced recently (NC Sep.27,p5). The government of Tatarstan, which is...

Gazprom Neft, Tatneft Out Of Step In Ukraine Spat.
November 7, 2007... Russia's Gazprom Neft says it may resume crude oil deliveries to Ukrainian refineries, potentially undermining attempts by Russian producer Tatneft to regain control of Ukraine's Kremenchug plant. Gazprom Neft, the oil arm of Russian...

Azpetrol Founder Given Nine-Year Jail Sentence.(Azpetrol Ltd.)(Rafik Aliyev)
November 7, 2007... The former head of oil transportation firm Azpetrol, Rafik Aliyev, was sentenced to nine years in jail at the end of a five-and-a-half month trial in Baku last week, while his brother, Farhad Aliyev, the former economic development minister,...

Tethys Taps Into Tajikistan.(Tethys Energy Inc.)(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... Tethys Petroleum has become one of the first Western companies to tap into Tajikistan. The Toronto-listed independent hopes in the next two months to finalize a production sharing agreement (PSA) with the Dushanbe government for a 9,000 sq...

Turkmen Leader Visits EU For Trade Talks.(European Union)(Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov)(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... The president of gas-rich Turkmenistan, Gurbanguly Berdimuhammedov, made his first visit to the European Union this week and told EU Trade Commissioner Peter Mandelson during talks in Brussels that Turkmenistan is "open for business...

Kazakhstan Warned Against 'Venezuela Syndrome'.(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... Growing economic nationalism in Kazakhstan risks harming the republic's efforts to win the "next generation of investment," Daniel Witt, president of International Tax and Investment Center, told a conference of chief financial officers in...

Eurasia Drilling Company Shares Rise After IPO.
November 7, 2007... The share price of Eurasia Drilling climbed to over $28 per Global Depositary Receipt on Nov. 7, the first day of unconditional trading, up nearly 20% since the company's initial public offering (IPO). The Russian oil services company set an...

Budget Set For TNK-BP East Siberian Field.
November 7, 2007... Verkhnechonskneftegas, the operating company for the Verkhnechonskoye oil and gas field in East Siberia, said last week it would invest 330.3 billion rubles ($13.5 billion) developing the field over the next 30 years. Of this, about $9.5...

Equities and Currencies.
November 7, 2007... Share Prices Closing On November 6, 2007

Jittery Markets Make And Break New Records.(Brief article)
November 7, 2007... December ICE Brent futures pointed ever higher over the week, with jittery markets still making and breaking new records. The lowest trading point during the reporting period was $88.57/bbl on Nov. 1, but the contract continued to climb through...

Refinery Maintenance Squeezes European Market.
November 7, 2007... Europe's products markets have experienced a sizable squeeze, with the impact of the Coryton refinery temporary shutdown in the UK on Oct. 31 and extended delays in returning from maintenance at the Gonfreville refinery in France and...

Oil Giants Spar Over Turkmenistan Energy Riches.
November 14, 2007... Many of the world's biggest oil companies turned out in force this week for an industry gathering in one of the lesser-known areas on the oil and gas map -- Turkmenistan. Executives from American and European heavyweights like Exxon Mobil,...

New Changes Await Russia's Oil, Product Traders.
November 14, 2007... Russia's trading patterns may be headed for a new round of shake-ups, and Swiss-registered trader Gunvor could find itself at the vortex. This week's disastrous fuel oil spill on the Black Sea could force the country's oil firms to finally...

Gazprom Warns EU Against Pipe Interference.
November 14, 2007... Gazprom issued a warning to the European Union this week: Interfere in two big Russian pipeline projects and Europe could find itself massively short of natural gas. The warning came from Gazprom Deputy Chief Executive Alexander Medvedev,...

Company Tied To TNK-BP Signs Kurdistan Contract.
November 14, 2007... The Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) of northern Iraq announced recently that it has awarded four blocks collectively called the Hawler area to a company called Norbest, which it described as an affiliate of Russian-UK venture TNK-BP,...

CPC Changes Please Moscow.
November 14, 2007... A meeting last week chaired by Russian Deputy Prime Minister Sergei Naryshkin expressed satisfaction with the Caspian Pipeline Consortium's (CPC) recent decision to raise tariffs, refinance its debt and revise the consortium charter, insiders...

Russia Plans Big Offshore Investment.(Khristenko, Viktor)(Brief article)
November 14, 2007... Russia plans to build 30-35 drilling platforms for offshore shelf developments through 2016, Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko said after the recent approval of the national civil and marine shipbuilding program for 2009-16. The...

Shell-Led Offer For Yamal Work Based On Technology.(Royal Dutch-Shell PLC)(Brief article)
November 14, 2007... Russian Industry and Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko said this week that new technologies are key to a recent proposal by a Royal Dutch Shell-led group of Dutch companies to develop oil and gas reserves on the remote northern Yamal...

Gazprom Subsidiary In Hunt For Timan Oil And Gas.
November 14, 2007... Russian independent Timan Oil and Gas has revealed an unusual deal with Gazprom regional servicing subsidiary Zapsibgazprom, under which the state firm may take a stake in Timan. The independent is in need of investment to help it develop...

Rosneft Mulls $2 Billion Bond.
November 14, 2007... Rosneft may issue $2 billion in eurobonds before the end of the year to help refinance the short-term credit that the state-run major used to purchase the assets of bankrupt Yukos, Rosneft's vice president for finance and investments, Peter...

Eni Can't Get Pipeline Access, Gazprom Delays Buy.
November 14, 2007... EniNeftegas -- a joint venture between Eni and Italian utility Enel -- is facing delays in starting commercial gas production from two big Siberian fields it bought from bankrupt Russian oil major Yukos earlier this year because of a lack of...

Q3 Crude Deliveries To Russian Refineries.
November 14, 2007... Q3 Crude Deliveries To Russian Refineries*

Q3 Crude Deliveries To Kazak Refineries From Russian Producers.
November 14, 2007... Q3 Crude Deliveries To Kazak Refineries From Russian Producers

Q3 Crude Deliveries To Belarussian Refineries From Russian Producers.
November 14, 2007... Q3 Crude Deliveries To Belarusian Refineries From Russian Producers

Q3 Crude Deliveries To Ukranian Refineries From Russian Producers.
November 14, 2007... Q3 Crude Deliveries To Ukrainian Refineries From Russian Producers

Georgia Oil Transit Untouched By Trouble.
November 14, 2007... Stability is slowly returning to Georgia after President Mikheil Saakashvili called snap presidential elections for Jan. 5 and agreed to lift a state of emergency that was imposed last week after police used tear gas and water cannons against...

Germans Expand In Turkmenistan.(Wintershall AG)(Brief article)
November 14, 2007... Germany's Wintershall is expanding its presence in Turkmenistan and now has interests in seven offshore blocks (see p1). It recently took over the operatorship from Denmark's Maersk of blocks 11 and 12, which lie north of the existing...

Kremenchug Turns To Tanker Crude Supplies.
November 14, 2007... Faced with a cutoff of Russian pipeline oil supplies, Ukraine's Kremenchug refinery has been forced to begin importing tanker supplies of crude oil through the port of Odessa. Trading sources said that Ukrtatnafta is bringing in two...

BP Strikes It Rich In Shah Deniz.
November 14, 2007... BP has confirmed a major new gas and condensate discovery at the Shah Deniz field offshore Azerbaijan. The UK major said in a statement that the SDX-4 exploration well, which was drilled to a depth of 7,300 meters at a cost of some $240...

US Slaps Sanctions On Belarusian Firm.
November 14, 2007... The Bush administration has placed financial sanctions on Belarus' Belneftekhim in a bid to put more pressure on the country's authoritarian president, Alexander Lukashenko. The US Treasury sanctions against Belneftekhim prohibit Americans from...

Kazmunaigas Buys Karazhanbas Stake From Citic.(China International Trust and Investment Corp.)(Brief article)
November 14, 2007... Kazakhstan's state-controlled Kazmunaigas Exploration and Production has executed an agreement with China International Trust and Investment Corp. (Citic) to purchase 50% of Kazakh oil producer Karazhanbasmunai for US$930 million, a brokerage...

Kazakh Gas Production, October 2007.
November 14, 2007... Kazakh Gas Production, October 2007

Nizhnekamsk Refinery To Finalize Loan.
November 14, 2007... Tatneft's planned 140,000 b/d Nizhnekamsk refinery in the Russian republic of Tatarstan appears to be on track, as operator Taneko is set to finalize a $2 billion loan from BNP Paribas in the near future to finance the project, Taneko General...

Gazprom Considers Shanghai Share Listing.
November 14, 2007... Russian state gas giant Gazprom is reportedly considering listing its shares on the Shanghai Stock Exchange to take advantage of the red-hot Chinese market, following PetroChina's recent record-breaking IPO, according to Russian news reports....

TNK-BP Raises $600 Million Loan.
November 14, 2007... TNK-BP has reportedly raised a $600 million syndicated loan to finance general corporate needs. The loan was organized by a syndicate of eight banks, including ABN Amro, Barclays, Bayerische Landesbank, BNP Paribas, Calyon, Citibank, The Bank...

Equities and Currencies.
November 14, 2007... Share Prices Closing On November 13, 2007

High Stockpiles, Slow Economy Hit Crude.
November 14, 2007... Crude futures have dipped steadily, coming under pressure from better-than-expected US stock levels initially, and fears of a US economic slowdown. Further bearish indicators came from the IEA, which downgraded its demand forecast by 500,000...

Refined Products Stand Firm.
November 14, 2007... Middle distillate product prices generally continue to ride the wave of low stock levels in Europe and refinery maintenance and gained an extra bit of support from a rebound in crude futures on Nov. 14 after a recent slide. ICE December...

Turkmenistan Keeps Investors Waiting.
November 20, 2007... Despite the huge surge in optimism this year that Turkmenistan is opening up for business, the Central Asian country is taking it one step at a time. A number of deals negotiated with the likes of BP, Lukoil and ConocoPhillips remain on...

Lukoil Production Growth Hit By New Setbacks.
November 20, 2007... Lukoil, Russia's biggest private oil company, received another setback to its ambitious growth program last week when it failed to sign an exploration deal with Turkmenistan. In Russia, the company's expectations were further dented by...

Baltic LNG Suitor Pushes Shtokman Supplies.
November 20, 2007... Petro-Canada has proposed using gas volumes from Gazprom's Shtokman gas and condensate field for the proposed Baltic LNG plant, rather than building a separate facility for the Russian state gas company's massive Barents Sea development. Graham...

Rosneft Turns Sights On Foreign Product Markets.
November 20, 2007... Rosneft is not interested in expanding its domestic refineries, as the Russian market does not need more product, according to Vice President for Finance and Investments Peter O'Brien. "It does not make sense to expand refining capacity in...

UES Opposes Gazprom Power Expansion.
November 20, 2007... Russian power monopoly UES plans to oppose Gazprom's uninhibited expansion into the Russian power generation industry because of concerns that it could result in the rise of a new monopoly, according to UES Chief Executive Anatoly Chubais. ...

No Surprises At Rosneft Crude Tender.
November 20, 2007... Rosneft's recent tender to lift the company's crude during the first three months of next year appears to be offering no surprises, as sources claim that Swiss-registered trader Gunvor will win the majority of the crude from both the Baltic Sea...

Alliance To Upgrade Khabarovsk Refinery.
November 20, 2007... Russian independent Alliance has signed a contract with Spanish Tecnicas Reunidas for the construction of a hydro processing unit at its far eastern Khabarovsk refinery as part of a $1 billion upgrade plan through 2011 that will increase...

Russia-China Gas Talks Accelerate.
November 20, 2007... Gazprom has agreed to accelerate talks with China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) on "concrete terms of Russian gas volumes to be shipped to China, through both western and eastern routes," according to the Russian gas major, reanimating the...

Oil Majors Protest Flaring Fines As Excessive.
November 20, 2007... Russia's oil majors have sent a letter to Prime Minister Viktor Zubkov protesting legislation prepared by Russia's Environmental, Engineering and Atomic Oversight Board (Rostekhnadzor) that would raise the fines for flaring of associated gas...

Russian Firms Pledge No Rise In Retail Prices.(Brief article)
November 20, 2007... Russia's top oil companies have pledged to the government that there is no reason for further hikes in domestic fuel prices, suggesting that the companies will stick with a deal to keep domestic gasoline prices pegged through the upcoming...

Eni Gets Two Spots On Gazprom Neft Board.
November 20, 2007... Gazprom oil arm Gazprom Neft has added two members from Italian Eni to the Russian company's board of directors, Gazprom Neft announced this week. Eni's vice president for Russian development, Marco Alvera, and the company's head of exploration...

Yamal Pipe Construction To Begin In 2008.
November 20, 2007... Construction of a pipeline to export gas from Gazprom's massive Bovanenko field on Russia's Yamal Peninsula will begin at the Uktha gas hub in 2008, according to a government representative from the Russian region of Komi. The pipeline...

Rosnedra To Offer 10 Exploration Licenses.(Brief article)
November 20, 2007... The Russian Natural Resources Ministry's subsoil agency, Rosnedra, has identified 10 acreages to be offered for geological exploration in January 2008, including the sizable Kaminsk Block located in the Nenets autonomous region. The...

Russian Minister Supports Offshore Tax Breaks.
November 20, 2007... Russian Energy and Industry Minister Viktor Khristenko has again voiced his support for introducing more tax breaks for difficult field developments, saying at the recent World Energy Congress in Rome that the tax system should be adjusted to...

Bosporus Bypass Pipeline Company Shapes Up.
November 20, 2007... The international project company (IPC) that will carry out the construction of the 700,000 b/d Bourgas-Alexandroupolis oil pipeline is to be registered in the Netherlands by the end of the year, according to an agreement reached during a...

Turkey-Greece Gas Pipeline Launched.
November 20, 2007... One-time enemies Turkey and Greece opened a 300 km pipeline on Nov. 18 that will provide Greece with 750,000 cubic meters/yr of natural gas delivered from Azerbaijan's Shah Deniz field via Turkey -- marking Europe's first pipeline imports of...

BP Begins Drilling Azeri Block.
November 20, 2007... BP began drilling the second exploration well on the Inam Block off the coast of Azerbaijan on Nov. 11, according to BP Azerbaijan President Bill Schrader. The recent completion of the 7,000 meter well at the Shah Deniz gas field has freed...

Statoil Plans To Open Turkmen Office.
November 20, 2007... StatoilHydro is planning to open an office in Turkmenistan next year. The office will facilitate the Norwegian company's search for new projects in Turkmenistan, where interest is high following the change in leadership earlier this year...

Baltic Refinery Plans $1.5 Bn Upgrade.
November 20, 2007... Lithuania's Mazeikiu Nafta refinery, the only refinery in the Baltics, said last week it would spend $1.5 billion on an upgrade in the next five years, without providing details. The 240,000 b/d refiner resumed full operations on Nov. 16...

Russia, Ukraine Advance In Gas Talks.
November 20, 2007... Russia and Ukraine have moved closer to hammering out a gas cooperation agreement after talks last week between Gazprom Chief Executive Alexei Miller and Ukrainian Energy Minister Yuri Boiko. Gazprom said the two sides have agreed on a...

Slovakia Streamlines Gas Role.
November 20, 2007... Slovakian gas pipeline company SPP-preprava has decided to change its name to eustream, with effect from Jan. 1, 2008. Last year the company said it transported 73.8 Bcm of natural gas, almost all from Russia, representing 20% of European...

Surgutneftegas Doubles Upstream Spending.(Brief article)
November 20, 2007... Faced with stagnating production, oil major Surgutneftegas expects to invest approximately $3 billion in its upstream assets this year, double the shadowy company's investment of roughly $1.5 billion annually over the past five years,...

Urals Attracts Sberbank Loan For East Siberia.(Urals Energy)(Brief article)
November 20, 2007... London-listed independent Urals Energy has attracted a $270 million, six-year loan from Russian state bank Sberbank to refinance an earlier loan and help finance the development of its East Siberian Dulisma field, taking advantage of tax-free...

Equities and Currencies.
November 20, 2007... Share Prices Closing On November 19, 2007

Futures Take Off Again.
November 20, 2007... Crude oil futures have been in recovery mode through this shortened six-day reporting period -- Nefte Compass is published one day early because of the US Thanksgiving holiday on Nov. 22. Front-month January ICE Brent futures traded a $6.18...

Cold Snap Powers Gas Oil To New Record.
November 20, 2007... Despite European refineries returning from maintenance, middle distillate prices are still powering upward, with ICE December gas oil futures hitting a new intraday record on Nov. 20 of $852/metric ton as a cold snap across Europe started to...

D-Day Beckons For Kashagan, But Dispute Lingers.
November 28, 2007... As the Nov. 30 deadline approaches for the Eni-led consortium developing Kazakhstan's giant Kashagan field to agree to a mechanism to compensate the Kazakh government for the soaring costs of the project and repeated delays in getting first oil...

Putin To Keep Energy Policies On Track As National Leader.
November 28, 2007... Nobody doubts the outcome of the parliamentary election in Russia on Dec. 2: The United Russia party headed by President Vladimir Putin is on course to win the majority of votes and secure more than 60% of the new legislative chamber. ...

Gazprom Targets Europe, Ties Up Turkmen Supplies.
November 28, 2007... The gas map of Europe underwent another potentially seismic shift this week as Russia firmed up plans to build the South Stream pipeline directly to the European Union, dealing a blow to the rival Nabucco pipeline and to transit countries such...

Rosneft Gets OK For Chinese Refinery, Pipe Deliveries.
November 28, 2007... Rosneft and China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) have reached an agreement to build a 200,000 b/d refinery and a 1 million ton/yr ethylene plant in the northern Chinese port city of Tianjin, and possibly add significant oil storage facilities,...

TNK-BP Eyes Year-End For Righ Tender.
November 28, 2007... TNK-BP's two major tenders for long-term contracts to provide oil field services have slipped past their announced deadlines, as contractors need extra time to adapt their proposals to methods of managing price levels over a several-year term,...

Floating Storage Vessels Set Sail.(Brief article)
November 28, 2007... The two tankers used as floating storage vessels outside of St. Petersburg this summer have finally set sail, bringing a sluggish river shipping season in the north to a close. Shipping sources say that the Altai and the Kaluga both left...

Transneft Pens Exports Increase For December.(Brief article)
November 28, 2007... Russian pipeline monopoly Transneft is again opening up the taps, plotting out a nearly 100,000 b/d increase in seaborne crude shipments in December after an unusually light schedule for November. Transneft has penciled in shipments of 2.951...

Gazprom Ally Forges Pan-Europe Network.
November 28, 2007... Dutch state grid Gasunie has agreed to buy the gas grid of neighboring German business BEB, whose network extends from Berlin in the east to Denmark in the north. It hopes to conclude the transaction by summer 2008. The deal opens up the...