International Petroleum Finance articles from February 2003

International Petroleum Finance archives from February 2003

Being Exxon Mobil.(business strategies of Royal Dutch/Shell, British Petroleum Company PLC, ChevronTexaco, China National Petroleum Corp.)
February 1, 2003... All integrated oil companies do not look alike, but after some recent failures in key areas, the business strategies of BP, Royal Dutch/Shell, ChevronTexaco--and even China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC)--are starting to resemble Exxon Mobil's...

Long hangover seen for PDV after crippling strike.(Petroleos de Venezuela S.A.)
February 1, 2003... The general strike in Venezuela that has paralyzed the country's oil industry since early December is sure to have a lasting impact on state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDV) long after a resolution to the anti-Chavez standoff is in...

Tide turns for Spanish "ugly duck" Repsol YPF.(corporate debt rating)
February 1, 2003... Despite its diligent efforts to pay down debt, and signs of economic improvement in its key market of Argentina, Spain's Repsoi-YPF remains something of a patito feo--an ugly duckling--in the eyes of the debt ratings agencies. Starting in...

BP rationalizes management along with asset portfolio.(British Petroleum Company PLC)
February 1, 2003... Coming off a disappointing 2002, BP announced a series of management changes and portfolio rationalization maneuvers last month that appear to portend an imminent, major shift in the company's business strategy. The moves could also provide...

Cash management methods raise questions at El Paso.
February 1, 2003... A recent credit report showing that US El Paso's pipeline subsidiaries have steadily boosted their debt leverage to the parent company raises questions concerning the line between the regulated and unregulated branches of energy companies....

Gas & power merchants exit developing markets in droves.
February 1, 2003... The cold light of disinvestment by US and, more recently, European energy merchants is dawning on the 1990s dream of well-to-wire projects across the developing world. An estimated $15 billion of commercial power plant assets in the developing...

Merger logic questioned after awful year at ChevronTexaco.(financial results in 2002)
February 1, 2003... ChevronTexaco capped off a forgettable 2002 by reporting weak fourth quarter earnings and saying that it would not achieve its modest five-year oil and gas production growth target of 2%-3% per annum. Calling last year's results "completely...

Russian firms feast on Iraqi oil deals, but Lukoil shut out.
February 1, 2003... Russian oil companies were handsomely rewarded during a visit to Baghdad last month. But Lukoil's attempts to reverse Iraq's decision to cancel its contract for the giant West Qurna field appear to have failed. Oil and gas construction...

Ceiba field, Triton deal haunt Hess for moment.(oil field offshore Equatorial Guinea, Triton Energy's acquisition by Amerada Hess)
February 1, 2003... Shares of New York-based Amerada Hess shed 14% on Jan. 30 to close at $48.40 after the company announced a $530 million after-tax impairment charge against its fourth quarter earnings to reduce the carrying value of the Ceiba oil field, one of...

Exxon earnings shine.(Exxon Mobil Corp.'s financial results in fourth quarter of 2002)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... US integrated oil companies saw their fourth-quarter earnings increase in a range of 30% to 100% from year-earlier levels, spurred by higher oil and gas prices and a recovery in domestic refining margins. Most top companies, including Exxon...

Zadco set for April sale.(Zakum Development Co., 2003)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Abu Dhabi state oil company Adnoc has extended until Apr. 30 the target for deciding who will be awarded a 28% stake in Zakum Development Co. (Zadco), the operating company that currently produces around 500,000 b/d of crude from the offshore...

Gazprom reverses output slide.(Gazprom Russian Joint Stock Co.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Russia's Gazprom, the world's largest gas producer, has reversed a steady decline in gas production, by hiking output just over 2% last year to 523.79 Bcm. The gas giant, which accounts for over 90% of Russian gas output, launched the second...

JNOC makes move in Iran.(Japan National Oil Corp.)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Continuing Tokyo's quest for new upstream acquisitions in the Middle East and the Caspian, a consortium of three Japanese state-owned companies has acquired a 20% stake in the Royal Dutch/Shell-led development of the Nowruz and Soroosh oil...

Atlantis sale too late for PGS.(Petroleum Geo-Services)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Petroleum Geo-Services (PGS) has finally sealed a deal to unload its Atlantis upstream unit to Chinese trader Sinochem. However, the sale may be too little, too late for the hemorrhaging US-Norwegian marine seismic firm to avoid going belly up....

Koch bails on oil sands scheme.(Koch Industries' subsidiary TrueNorth Energy's oil sands project in Alberta, Canada)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... The Kyoto climate change pact has officially claimed its first victim in Western Canada's oil sands industry. TrueNorth Energy shelved its proposed 190,000 b/d Fort Hills oil sands project in northern Alberta last month citing market...

Lukoil loses Greek refiner.(planned stake purchase in Hellenic Petroleum)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Lukoil, Russia's largest oil company, finally seems to have learned to take "no" for an answer. After steadfastly maintaining that the deal was not dead, the company finally acknowledged that its joint bid with Greece's Latsis Group to buy a...

On the move.(petroleum and gas companies' acquisitions, divestments)(Brief Article)
February 1, 2003... Fortuna Energy, a subsidiary of Calgary-based independent producer Talisman, is acquiring natural gas properties and production facilities in New York for $250 million. The assets include roughly 150,000 acres, 115 Bcf of proved gas reserves,...

ENI pledges to keep growth momentum alive.
February 1, 2003... Italy's ENI sought to maintain its position as the growth story in the European oil sector, announcing new targets last month for its core businesses out to 2006. The company expects average oil and gas production to exceed 1.8 million...

Oil shares off to slow start in 2003 despite high prices. (Equity Markets).(international oil and gas companies)
February 1, 2003... Shares of top oil and gas equities have gotten off to a slow start in 2003 despite the presence of high oil and gas prices. The IPF Oil and Gas Index, comprised of 15 of the world's largest publicly traded oil companies, shed nearly 6% in...

Appetite for overseas expansion grows at CNPC. (Emerging Markets).(China National Petroleum Corp.)
February 1, 2003... State-owned giant China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) has a new aim in life: to model itself after US supermajor Exxon Mobil, with up to 70% of its operations overseas. This bold aspiration is not quite as incredible as it may sound. ...