International Petroleum Finance articles from February 2002

International Petroleum Finance archives from February 2002

Enronitis.(Enron Corp. collapse affects energy sector stock prices)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... The military calls it "collateral damage." It refers to the harm caused unintentionally by bombs or other weapons that missed their targets or debris blown into adjacent areas. Wall Street has its own name for collateral damage these days,...

EnCana rises to the top of E&P rankings.(merger of PanCanadian Energy Corp. and Alberta Energy Company Ltd.)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... There is a new top independent producer in North America -- and Houston is not its home. Calgary-based firms PanCanadian and Alberta Energy Co. (AEC) came to terms on a merger of equals last month, creating the latest "super independent" that...

Petrobras looks beyond Brazil to fuel growth plans.(Petroleo Brasileiro S.A. targets Gulf of Mexico)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... The Gulf of Mexico appears to be the main focus of an ambitious plan by Brazilian state oil company Petrobras to expand its foreign upstream production fourfold over the next four years, as well as for increasing its refining capacity outside...

Enterprise joins Legions of Stalked M&A Prey.(consolidation in the UK exploration and production sector; Enterprise Oil PLC)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Already decimated by consolidation, the UK exploration and production sector looks ripe for more mergers and acquisitions that threaten to wipe out the sector entirely. London-based Enterprise Oil confirmed in early January that it had recently...

Getting global: Petro-Canada makes risky push overseas.(Petro-Canada Inc. acquires international operations of Veba Oil and Gas GmbH)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Petro-Canada has embarked on a major overseas push, through its agreement to buy the international operations of Germany's Veba Oil & Gas. The deal apparently reverses a strategy of concentrating on safe -- but somewhat staid -- assets at home...

O'Malley breathes new life into US Premcor.(Thomas O'Malley joins Premcor Refining Group Inc.)
February 1, 2002... It didn't take long for Thomas O'Malley to find a new gig. Two weeks after resigning from Phillips, O'Malley, who built Tosco into the US' largest independent refiner before selling it to Phillips for a handsome premium in early 2001, agreed to...

ENI turnaround silences critics -- for now.(Enterprise Oil PLC)
February 1, 2002... Italian ENI has long yearned for a union with UK Enterprise Oil, having approached the company a few times about a deal in recent years. But the story of their relationship reads not like the romantic thrillers of the late 1990s in the...

Weak profits cloud prospects for Indian Oil opening.(deregulation of India's petroleum sector)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Downbeat results by India's refiners are threatening the prospects of the country's privatization process, despite the fact that share prices of state oil companies have risen in the last few months and that the first sale -- of stake in...

Big oil profits plunge.(fourth-quarter 2001 earnings)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... The top six US-based integrated oil companies saw their fourth-quarter 2001 earnings fall by nearly 60% from the year-ago quarter, reflecting the dramatic year-to-year change in the commodity price picture. In 2000, most majors posted record...

Taxing oil in Argentina.(hydrocarbon taxation)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... The Argentine government has confirmed that the oil sector will be subject to a new charge that could take the form of a tax on oil production at the wellhead, to compensate banks affected by a recent devaluation of the peso. Finance Secretary...

BP wants more Sidanco.(British Petroleum Company PLC seeks to increase share of Sidanco)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... BP is seeking to increase its share of Russian oil company Sidanco from its current 10% -- a stake bought in 1997 for $484 million that it nearly lost in a long business and political battle. Tyumen Oil Co. (TNK) President and Chief Executive...

Chevron cuts budget.(ChevronTexaco Corp.'s capital spending program)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... While most supermajors like Exxon Mobil, Royal Dutch/Shell, and BP are preparing to ramp up capital spending this year to get their growth plans back on track, Chevron Texaco is taking a different course. The budding supermajor from San...

Tesoro bulks up.(Tesoro Petroleum Corp. acquired Golden Eagle refinery from Valero Energy Corp.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Tesoro, the rapidly growing Texas-based refiner, has snared Valero's 168,000 b/d Golden Eagle refinery in California for just over $1 billion, the first major refinery sale this year, but Tesoro's third buy in six months. Valero was required to...

Succession story at BP.(British Petroleum Company PLC appoints new executives)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... BP announced an executive reshuffle prompted by news that the head of the downstream division was stepping down, in a move some believe gives clues about who will eventually run the company. BP said that Douglas Ford, chief executive of the...

M&A value fell in 2001.(global energy merger, acquisition statistics)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Global energy industry merger and acquisition (M&A) transaction value dropped to $243.5 billion in 2001 from $264.4 billion in 2000, triggered by a 24% decline in upstream global M&A transaction value to $81.5 billion, according to analysts...

UBS to restart defunct Enron trading operations.(UBS Warburg to restart EnronOnline)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2002... Swiss-based investment bank UBS Warburg picked up the trading platform of bankrupt Enron without paying Enron any up-front cash, just a pledge to share earnings for up to 10 years. The question is whether the former Enron's traders -- now...

Big oil equities inch lower with sluggish market. (Equity Markets).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Oil equities languished alongside a sluggish broader market in January, with analysts and investors expressing concern over Opec compliance rates, the slowdown in the global economy, and a glut of US natural gas. The IPF Oil and Gas Index...

Bombshell: Miller rules out Gazprom reform. (Emerging Markets).(Alexei Miller, chief executive of Gazprom Russian Joint Stock Co.)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
February 1, 2002... Alexei Miller, chief executive of natural gas monopoly Gazprom, has dropped a bombshell by saying there will be absolutely no restructuring of the Russian natural gas giant. "There will be no kind of reorganization of Gazprom -- it is not...