International Petroleum Finance articles from August 2006

International Petroleum Finance archives from August 2006

Gulltopp syndrome.
August 1, 2006... Sakhalin. Thunder Horse. Snohvit. Pearl. All names that have become familiar over the past few years as examples of the new breed of mega-projects the industry is taking on, and of the problems they're posing. But how about Gulltopp? Ring any...

Alaska adds its name to BP's sick list.
August 1, 2006... John Browne's BP career began in Alaska, and it may well end there. This month's shutdown of up to 400,000 barrels per day of Prudhoe Bay production because of pipeline corrosion that had gone undetected for years is the latest in a series of...

Shell clams up as pearl costs soar.
August 1, 2006... Rising costs are giving most of the world's oil companies a headache at the moment, but it's Royal Dutch Shell that has arguably the biggest migraine of them all. Shell is juggling a number of major projects as it tries to rebuild its upstream...

Rosneft heads the queue for Yukos assets.
August 1, 2006... Two years after President Vladimir Putin declared that the state had no intention of bankrupting Yukos, the Moscow Arbitration Court officially declared the company bankrupt on Aug. 1, putting Russian state-controlled Rosneft one step closer to...

Indies seek more control over crude marketing.
August 1, 2006... Papua New Guinea producer Oil Search has decided to take control of its own oil marketing, after judging that it had reached sufficient size and control over its upstream assets. The firm previously relied on third-party arrangements, with...

Big oil on defensive after bumper Q2.
August 1, 2006... Second-quarter earnings statements from the top Western oil companies showed them by and large saying and doing the right things--at least for now--to quiet calls for a windfall profits tax and other types of punitive legislation. Big Oil...

Asset deals hot up in European refining.
August 1, 2006... The market for European refining assets has been hotting up in recent months, with the national oil companies (NOCs) and integrated majors lining up on one side keen to sell, and a mixed cast, including Russia's Lukoil, privately held...

Rising fuel costs hit Asia's new airlines.
August 1, 2006... Asia's new breed of budget airlines--including Tiger Airways, Jetstar Asia and AirAsia--have revolutionized regional travel in the last five years, deploying models applied successfully in Europe, the US and Australia to offer low-price...

Mideast crisis boosts commodity inflows.
August 1, 2006... Money is still pouring into commodities in general and energy in particular, as investors expect prices to continue on their upward trend because of unrelenting demand and geopolitical tensions. In recent weeks, more cash has been "piling"...

Abu Dhabi starts gas opening.
August 1, 2006... Abu Dhabi has kicked off the first phase of its planned upstream gas opening to international oil companies by sending out letters to about 15 firms asking them for expressions of interest in its gas development plan and to apply for...

Total joins Brass LNG.
August 1, 2006... Total has acquired Chevron's 17% stake in Nigeria's planned $3 billion Brass LNG project. The French major declined to say specifically how much it was investing, or detail its marketing plans except to say "negotiations are ongoing and...

Addax buys Pan-Ocean.
August 1, 2006... Canada's Addax Petroleum has agreed to acquire Pan-Ocean Energy in a C$1.6 billion ($1.4 billion) cash deal, thereby creating one of the largest independent exploration and production companies operating in West Africa. Addax currently...

Chad agrees bank deal.
August 1, 2006... The World Bank has reached a final agreement with Chad on the management of its oil revenues which significantly increases government spending on projects benefiting the poor, the bank's President Paul Wolfowitz said last month. "There is...

Eni eyes Nerefco stake.
August 1, 2006... Italy's Eni is understood to be among the bidders for the latest European refining asset to be put up for sale, Chevron's 31% stake in the 400,000 b/d Nerefco refinery in Rotterdam in the Netherlands. Italian press reports suggested Eni's bid...

Gazprom plans bonds.
August 1, 2006... Russia's Gazprom has applied for permission to issue ruble-denominated bonds worth 15 billion rubles ($555 million), though it remains unclear how the company plans to use the funds. Gazprom's board of directors approved the plan on Jul....

More trouble for Sakhalin-2.
August 1, 2006... Problems are mounting for Royal Dutch Shell's troubled Sakhaiin-2 LNG development on the Russian Pacific Shelf, with the country's Natural Resources Ministry looking at legal action to cancel an earlier ruling by state ecological experts in...

Repsol buys Shenzi stake.
August 1, 2006... Spain's Repsol YPF is paying $2.15 billion for BP's 28% stake in the Shenzi field in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. The field, operated by Australia's BHP Billiton, is estimated to hold 350 million-400 million boe of reserves and will produce up...

Atlantis woes for BHP.
August 1, 2006... Australia's BHP Billiton has been hit with major cost overruns at the Atlantis oil field development in the US Gulf of Mexico, admitting last month that the project is running late and at least 30% over budget. BHP owns 44% of the scheme, while...

Brazil ups gas spending.
August 1, 2006... Brazil's Petrobras plans to invest $22.1 billion between 2007-11 on developing the country's natural gas industry, some 70% more than originally stipulated in its latest four-year investment plan. Imports of LNG will be one of the main areas...

BP inks Tangguh loans.
August 1, 2006... BP has signed loans worth $2.6 billion for its Tangguh LNG project in Indonesia. The financing comprises $350 million from the Asian Development Bank, $1.2 billion from the Japan Bank for International Cooperation and $1.07 billion from a group...

Citic moves into Indonesia.
August 1, 2006... China's state-owned Citic Group is buying a 51% stake in an Indonesian oil block controlled by Kuwait Foreign Exploration Co. (Kufpec) for $97.4 million, advancing plans by the investment company to build an oil business. With the...

Exxon sets the pace as oil equities surge in July.(EQUITY MARKETS)
August 1, 2006... By now, oil company shareholders have become accustomed to watching their holdings climb higher month after month. However, July's share price gains were out of the ordinary, with most equities posting far larger gains than those seen in the...

Operators refuse to panic as Algeria tightens terms.(EMERGING MARKETS)
August 1, 2006... North Africa is currently riding high in most surveys of upstream hot spots for the international oil and gas industry, but that popularity could be put to the test by the latest legislative and fiscal developments in Algeria (IPF Jul.,p11)....