International Petroleum Finance articles from December 2004

International Petroleum Finance archives from December 2004

The past is dust.
December 1, 2004... For the past five years, Royal Dutch/Shell has sponsored an essay competition in partnership with The Economist magazine, and the winners of this year's event were announced last month. For this year's contest--under the title "Import...

Trading turbulence downs China Aviation.
December 1, 2004... China Aviation Oil (CAO), the country's dominant jet fuel importer, has been plunged into crisis following the announcement late last month that it was seeking court protection from creditors after suffering a massive $550 million in...

Grim yuletide beckons for Yukos shareholders.
December 1, 2004... Just days before Christmas, Yukos, Russia's biggest oil producer and once trumpeted as the country's most efficient and transparent company, is set to see its grand finale. The extraordinary shareholders meeting which is to gather on Dec. 20...

Strategy first for Repsol despite merger talk.
December 1, 2004... When Spanish companies Repsol YPF and Gas Natural (GN) formally signed a contract in Algeria this month to together develop the Gassi Touil integrated liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, to many people this signaled a lot more than mere...

Liquidity, LNG give boost to project finance.
December 1, 2004... 2004 looks set to be the biggest year since the late 1990s for project finance in the oil and gas sector. Already this year, project finance deals worth more than $21 billion have been concluded, well ahead of the full year 2003 total of $16.3...

New regions underpin Conoco's growth plans.
December 1, 2004... Don't look for ConocoPhillips to increase its oil and gas output in the US, North Sea and Canada in 2005 and 2006. The Houston-based company has long been a player in those areas, but with growth there tough to come by, the oil major is looking...

Gas rivals square up in Russia's Far East.
December 1, 2004... Rivalry between Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch/Shell on Sakhalin Island in Russia's Far East is alive and well--the two operators are level-pegging on the construction of their respective projects, Sakhalin-1 and Sakhalin-2, having completed about...

Pipeline assets attract diverse band of investors.
December 1, 2004... Pipelines may lack the excitement of the oil and gas exploration business, but they do offer steady returns that are largely unaffected by upstream price volatility. These qualities appeal to a diverse band of investors, and have of late been...

What's in a BOE? Big oil can't agree.
December 1, 2004... This year's reserves crisis at Royal Dutch/Shell, and the ensuing debate over how reserves are booked, has shown that some areas of the oil and gas industry remain a very inexact science. But it's not only in booking reserves where there are...

E&P spending to rise.
December 1, 2004... Oil and gas companies' global spending on exploration and production is set to rise by 5.7% next year, according to a survey of 327 companies published this month by investment bank Lehman Brothers. That would mark a reduction from an...

Firms head to tripoli.
December 1, 2004... Some 62 companies have visited data rooms for the 15 exploration areas offered in Libya's current Epsa-4 bid round, where bids are due to be received and opened on Jan. 19, the country's National Oil Corp. (NOC) said earlier this month. ...

Iran eyes Pars loan deal.
December 1, 2004... Iran is close to awarding a mandate to two major European banks to arrange a loan of over $2 billion to finance Phases 15 and 16 of the giant South Pars gas project, according to regional banking sources. The loan, which has been approved...

BP ends Iran talks.
December 1, 2004... After several years of fruitless negotiations on major oil and gas projects, BP has finally given up its quest for upstream riches in Iran. A company spokesman said BP decided in November to call time on negotiations for a planned $2...

Dong buys Ormen Lange.
December 1, 2004... Denmark's state-owned Dong has agreed to pay an eye-watering $1.2 billion for BP's 10.34% stake in Norway's giant Ormen Lange gas development and its 10.2% interest in the related Langeled gas export pipeline. The sale price surpassed BP's...

Petroplus offer imminent.
December 1, 2004... The Carlyle Group and fellow US private equity firm Riverstone Holdings plan to launch a share offer for Petroplus later this month, after making an offer to the Dutch refiner's bondholders. The two firms are making an offer for Petroplus'...

OMV to raise $1.3-bil.
December 1, 2004... Austria's OMV is to raise approximately 1 billion[euro] ($1.3 billion) via a share capital increase and convertible bond issue to refinance the August acquisition of Romania's Petrom (IPF Aug.,p13). OMV will increase its share capital...

Mol buys Shell assets.
December 1, 2004... Royal Dutch/Shell is selling its Shell Romania downstream unit to Hungary's Mol for an undisclosed amount. The divestment includes a network of 59 retail service stations spread across Romania, as well as Shell's aviation, lubricants,...

Lukoil raises $210-mil.
December 1, 2004... Russia's Lukoil last month raised 6 billion rubles ($210 million) through the placement of a five-year, 7.25% bond, and intends to use the proceeds for investments in the gas sector, and debt restructuring. Demand for the bond had been...

CNR buys Anadarko assets.
December 1, 2004... Canadian Natural Resources has paid Anadarko C$698 million ($587 million) for a package of upstream assets in Alberta and British Columbia. The acquisition is CNR's third this year in Canada, following deals with US Murphy and Canadian...

Medco deal in doubt.
December 1, 2004... Plans by the Singapore government's investment vehicle, Temasek Holdings, to buy into Indonesian upstream independent Medco have been thrown into doubt, amid opposition from Medco's major shareholder, the local Panigoro family. The...

Shell ups Asia spending.
December 1, 2004... Royal Dutch/Shell is planning to spend $3 billion on upstream activities in Asia-Pacific over the next three years, focused on 10 projects in China, Malaysia, Brunei, Australia and New Zealand, according Dominique Gardy, chief executive of the...

Oil shares pointing lower after strong November.(Equity Markets)
December 1, 2004... Compared with other months this year, crude price swings in November were modest. In fact, the front-month New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) futures contract ended the month at $49.13 per barrel--not far from the $51.76/bbl price at the...

CNOOC sets Chinese record with $1-bil bond issue.(Emerging Markets)
December 1, 2004... China National Offshore Oil Corp. (CNOOC) raised $1 billion on the bond market at the end of last month, via its special purpose vehicle CNOOC Finance, to finance capital expenditure and general corporate needs. CNOOC's third offering...