Petroleum Intelligence Weekly articles from July 2005

Petroleum Intelligence Weekly archives from July 2005

Time to bring SPR oil back from the dead.(Strategic Petroleum Reserve)
July 4, 2005... The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is on track to reach its targeted 700 million barrel cap at the end of July or the beginning of August, leaving the US government to ponder what to do next. Whatever the decision on capacity expansions...

Chinese tastes, tactics rattle African sellers.
July 4, 2005... Sellers of West Africa's heavier crudes are wondering what's happened to their favorite customer, China. After showing solid growth on year ago levels in the first quarter of 2005, Chinese demand has since moderated and fallen back closer to...

Iran surprise will change face of oil sector.
July 4, 2005... The surprise election of outsider Mahmoud Ahmadinejad as Iran's new president is likely to trigger big changes at the oil ministry, where long-serving minister Bijan Zanganeh is predicted to move on, along with several other familiar faces. But...

State rivals stretch majors in bid wars.(national oil companies)
July 4, 2005... Western majors are getting used to national oil companies (NOCs) popping up as competitors for reserves from Central Asia to Central Africa, but the challenge from China's CNOOC Ltd. to Chevron for control of US Unocal takes this rivalry into a...

Policy, taxes dim Russia's northern light.(petroleum industry)
July 4, 2005... A mix of high oil prices, high taxes and policy uncertainty has stalled production growth in Russia, the largest source of non-Opec crude supply growth in recent years. Ominously for tight global crude markets, it has also halted the drive to...

High oil prices lead to upstream spending surge.
July 4, 2005... With benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) hovering around $60 per barrel, oil companies large and smaller are opening their checkbooks and spending more freely on upstream projects. Exploration and production (E&P) budgets were already set...

Unocal would shoot CNOOC up global ranks.
July 4, 2005... Amid the hype and hand wringing over the political and strategic ramifications of the Chinese offer for US Unocal, the transformational potential of the deal to bidder CNOOC Ltd. is no less sensational. Unocal's Asia-heavy portfolio of...

Environment--BP, ConocoPhillips, Royal Dutch Shell and UK utility Scottish and Southern Energy are to start engineering design of the world's first industrial-scale project.(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... ENVIRONMENT -- BP, ConocoPhillips, Royal Dutch Shell and UK utility Scottish and Southern Energy are to start engineering design of the world's first industrial-scale project to generate 350 MW of "carbon-free" electricity from natural...

FSU--faced with the threat of Russian crude supplies being cut off, the diminutive Baltic states of Latvia and Lithuania are selling off their main sea export terminals to bidders who can guarantee oil volumes.(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... FSU -- Faced with the threat of Russian crude supplies being cut off, the diminutive Baltic states of Latvia and Lithuania are selling off their main sea export terminals to bidders who can guarantee oil volumes. Latvia is to float its 38.62%...

Petrochemicals--Norway's Statoil has sold its 50% holding in the Borealis petrochemicals group to Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co. (Ipic) and Austria's OMV for 1 billion [euro] ($1.2 billion).(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... PETROCHEMICALS -- Norway's Statoil has sold its 50% holding in the Borealis petrochemicals group to Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co. (Ipic) and Austria's OMV for 1 billion [euro] ($1.2 billion). OMV and Ipic now own 100% of...

Bangladesh--a second blowout has hit the Niko Resources project to revive the Chattak natural gas field.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... BANGLADESH -- A second blowout has hit the Niko Resources project to revive the Chattak natural gas field. It is the latest mishap to hit the venture, which has also caused the downfall of Energy Minister Mosharraf Hossain. Dhaka says an...

Canada--in a move that should bring momentum to its main venture, Calgary-based UTS Energy Corp. has reached a final agreement to bring Petro-Canada into development of the Fort Hills oil sands project (PIW Mar.7,p8).(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... CANADA -- In a move that should bring momentum to its main venture, Calgary-based UTS Energy Corp. has reached a final agreement to bring Petro-Canada into development of the Fort Hills oil sands project (PIW Mar.7,p8). Located in Alberta's...

China--Beijing has thrown a sop to refiners by allowing modest increases in retail prices for diesel, gasoline and jet fuel, even though they fall far short of the increase in crude prices.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... CHINA -- Beijing has thrown a sop to refiners by allowing modest increases in retail prices for diesel, gasoline and jet fuel, even though they fall far short of the increase in crude prices. Diesel prices were increased from Jun. 24 by 3.8% or...

India--the offshore Krishna-Godavari Basin on the east coast has thrown up more superlative claims about massive gas reserves, discovered this time by a state company that is soon to be partially privatized.(COUNTRIES)(Gujarat State Petroleum Corp.)
July 4, 2005... INDIA -- The offshore Krishna-Godavari Basin on the east coast has thrown up more superlative claims about massive gas reserves, discovered this time by a state company that is soon to be partially privatized. Gujurati state officials have...

Indonesia--state energy company Pertamina and Exxon Mobil have reached an agreement in principle that finally settles their dispute over the Cepu Block, paving the way for its development.(COUNTRIES)
July 4, 2005... INDONESIA -- State energy company Pertamina and Exxon Mobil have reached an agreement in principle that finally settles their dispute over the Cepu Block, paving the way for its development. Production could begin as early as 2007. The...

Iraq--State Oil Marketing Organization (Somo) last week awarded to three lifters just over half the volume of Kirkuk crude it had tendered for sale from storage at the Turkish terminal of Ceyhan.(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... IRAQ -- State Oil Marketing Organization (Somo) last week awarded to three lifters just over half the volume of Kirkuk crude it had tendered for sale from storage at the Turkish terminal of Ceyhan. Somo rejected bids for the remainder as too...

Japan--crude imports jumped 9.2% to an average of 4.27 million b/d in May as refiners sought to replenish supplies after a period of seasonal maintenance.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... JAPAN -- Crude imports jumped 9.2% to an average of 4.27 million bid in May as refiners sought to replenish supplies after a period of seasonal maintenance. Imports from Saudi Arabia led the field at an average of 1.09 million b/d as the...

Malaysia--US Murphy Oil struck oil and natural gas offshore Sabah and Sarawak that could be tied into its Kikeh discovery, although volumes are not enough for a separate development.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... MALAYSIA -- US Murphy Oil struck oil and natural gas offshore Sabah and Sarawak that could be tied into its Kikeh discovery, although volumes are not enough for a separate development. The Endau #1 well, in 138 feet of water on Block SK 311...

Mexico--despite concerns about an imminent fall off in crude production from the main Cantarell field, current output is holding up well.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... MEXICO -- Despite concerns about an imminent fall off in crude production from the main Cantarell field, current output is holding up well. May production figures from state Pemex show output of crude oil and natural gas liquids rising to 3.882...

Russia--oil companies fear that ambitious plans to ramp up seaborne crude exports to 2.219 million b/d in July could end up costing them a lot more in taxes.(barrels per day)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... RUSSIA -- Oil companies fear that ambitious plans to ramp up seaborne crude exports to 2.219 million bid in July could end up costing them a lot more in taxes. Traders say national pipeline operator Transneft planned to schedule a whopping...

Saudi Arabia--Oil Minister Ali Naimi announced the discovery of new natural gas reserves in the Eastern province after a well tested initial gas flows of 40 MMcf/d.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... SAUDI ARABIA -- Oil Minister Ali Naimi announced the discovery of new natural gas reserves in the Eastern province after a well tested initial gas flows of 40 MMcf/d. The Farzan-23 well, drilled 95 km west of the city of Dhahran, also showed...

United Kingdom--despite seven new field start-ups since March 2004, output of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) in the first quarter of 2005 fell by 11% year-on-year to 1.83 million b/d, government statistics showed (PIW Jan.31,p7).(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 4, 2005... UNITED KINGDOM -- Despite seven new field start-ups since March 2004, output of crude oil and natural gas liquids (NGLs) in the first quarter of 2005 fell by 11% year-on-year to 1.83 million b/d, government statistics showed (PIW Jan.31,p7)....

Shell restructures--reserve, performance issues remain.(Shell Transport and Trading Co. and Royal Dutch Petroleum Co.)
July 4, 2005... Shell Transport & Trading and Royal Dutch Petroleum have ended almost a century of corporate history by merging the group's UK and Dutch parent companies into a single entity. The overwhelming vote by shareholders in favor of unification...

Pressure drops.(Marketview)
July 4, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Crude futures on both the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) and the International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) came under heavy selling pressure for three straight days last week, the result of speculators liquidating and bearish...

PIW market indicators.(petroleum industry prices)(Illustration)
July 4, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $53.23 $52.45 $50.73 UK Brent (Dated) 57.25 56.94 52.02...

Upside bias ratchets up oil prices.(petroleum)
July 11, 2005... Over the last year or so, any threat to crude oil or petroleum product supplies has been greeted by a predictable and immediate oil price rise. But the price corrections when the threats dissipate have left much of the increase intact,...

Kazakhs end deal drought in Caspian.(Caspian Sea, Kazakhstan)
July 11, 2005... After a long lull, Kazakhstan appears to be speeding up plans to sign production sharing agreements (PSAs) for large untapped blocks in the Caspian Sea. But the country is still reluctant to offer the kind of terms that some long-term...

Big Oil takes the ax to petchems.(divestment of petrochemical businesses)
July 11, 2005... Notoriously cyclical as a sector, petrochemicals is currently on a high as end-product prices have climbed even faster than crude prices. And yet BP, Royal Dutch/Shell, Statoil and Total are all in the process of divesting large portions of...

Stock draws behind China's demand puzzle.(petroleum)
July 11, 2005... China's rampant demand growth is weakening, but not as much as the headline figures imply. Apparent demand data show consumption contracted slightly in the year through May. But this is at odds with robust growth in refinery throughput, and...

Contango hurts commodity index fund investors.
July 11, 2005... After stellar returns from pouring billions of dollars into investment indexes over the past five years or so, are commodity investors becoming wary? Fresh money injected into commodity indexes slowed to a trickle during the last quarter while...

Peak looms for Mexico's Cantarell field.(production)
July 11, 2005... One of the more critical questions for Western Hemisphere oil supplies is the future course of output from Mexico's prolific Cantarell area in the Gulf of Campeche. Now more than double the size of Alaska's Prudhoe Bay field, Cantarell may be...

Crude supply surge fails to check prices.(markets)
July 11, 2005... There continues to be plenty of crude oil around. That's the message from an increase in global supplies in the second quarter due to continued high Opec output and new fields coming on stream that offset spring field maintenance in the North...

Corporate--officials from US Unocal have been holding talks with their counterparts from China's CNOOC Ltd. on its $18.5 billion all-cash offer for the US independent (PIW Jul.4,p5).(China National Offshore Oil Corp.)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... CORPORATE -- Officials from US Unocal have been holding talks with their counterparts from China's CNOOC Ltd. on its $18.5 billion all-cash offer for the US independent (PIW Jul.4,p5). Reports indicate Unocal has been laying out its conditions...

Corporate--bucking expectations, Russia's Sibneft is preparing for the largest dividend payout in its history after its board last week recommended a payment to shareholders totaling about $2.3 billion, up from $1.2 billion the previous year.(securities)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... CORPORATE -- Bucking expectations, Russia's Sibneft is preparing for the largest dividend payout in its history after its board last week recommended a payment to shareholders totaling about $2.3 billion, up from $1.2 billion the previous year....

Corporate--Lukoil and Conoco-Phillips have formally established a joint venture to develop oil and gas reserves in Russia's Timan-Pechora province, which could be producing 200,000 b/d within three years.(GENERAL)
July 11, 2005... CORPORATE -- Lukoil and Conoco-Phillips have formally established a joint venture to develop oil and gas reserves in Russia's Timan-Pechora province, which could be producing 200,000 b/d within three years. Under the deal, Conoco paid $500...

Formula prices--Saudi Arabia is cutting its term customers some slack in August by easing price formulas on most of its crude sales.(petroleum)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... FORMULA PRICES -- Saudi Arabia is cutting its term customers some slack in August by easing price formulas on most of its crude sales. The exception is sought-after Arab Extra Light, whose premium on sales to Asia was hiked while its US...

Industry restructuring--Italy's Finance Ministry raised at least 3.6 billion [euro] ($4.3 billion) by divesting 8.1% of power group Enel, reducing state equity to 23.1% from 31.2%.(ENEL S.p.A.)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTRUCTURING -- Italy's Finance Ministry raised at least [euro] 3.6 billion ($4.3 billion) by divesting 8.1% of power group Enel, reducing state equity to 23.1% from 31.2%. Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch/Shell completed the transfer of...

North Sea--Norway and the UK have given a boost to development of cross-border North Sea fields with approval of two projects--on the Enoch and Blane fields--that have sat undeveloped for years.(petroleum )(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... NORTH SEA -- Norway and the UK have given a boost to development of cross-border North Sea fields with approval of two projects--on the Enoch and Blane fields--that have sat undeveloped for years. Subsea installations for Blane, which will...

Australia--Royal Dutch/Shell and Chevron have won exploration rights to four deepwater blocks in the Carnarvon Basin offshore Western Australia, adjacent to the giant Greater Gorgon gas fields.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... AUSTRALIA -- Royal Dutch/Shell and Chevron have won exploration rights to four deepwater blocks in the Carnarvon Basin offshore Western Australia, adjacent to the giant Greater Gorgon gas fields. Chevron is operator of all four permits...

China--crude imports climbed 8% in May to an average of 2.46 million b/d, with demand for low-sulfur grades pushing Angola to the top of the list ahead of Saudi Arabia.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... CHINA -- Crude imports climbed 8% in May to an average of 2.46 million b/d, with demand for low-sulfur grades pushing Angola to the top of the list ahead of Saudi Arabia. Though total crude imports in the month were up 187,000 b/d on a year...

Egypt--Australia's Santos has farmed into an exploration block to the north of the Qarun oasis to the west of Cairo in a joint venture with US Devon Energy and Japan's Teikoku Oil.(COUNTRIES)
July 11, 2005... EGYPT -- Australia's Santos has farmed into an exploration block to the north of the Qarun oasis to the west of Cairo in a joint venture with US Devon Energy and Japan's Teikoku Oil. Devon has a 50% stake and is operator; Santos and Teikoku...

Iran--the oil executive who managed upstream negotiations with foreign oil companies, Seyed Mehdi Hosseini, is retiring in what could be the first of many personnel changes after the surprise victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in last month's presidential elections (PIW Jul.4,p2).(COUNTRIES)
July 11, 2005... IRAN -- The oil executive who managed upstream negotiations with foreign oil companies, Seyed Mehdi Hosseini, is retiring in what could be the first of many personnel changes after the surprise victory of Mahmoud Ahmadinejad in last month's...

Papua New Guinea--Exxon Mobil's $3.5 billion project to pipe natural gas to Australia took a big step forward with a 20-year contract signed to supply utility AGL.(COUNTRIES)
July 11, 2005... PAPUA NEW GUINEA -- Exxon Mobil's $3.5 billion project to pipe natural gas to Australia took a big step forward with a 20-year contract signed to supply utility AGL. Gas and power distributor AGL will take 194 MMcf/d of gas over 20 years, or...

Russia--the Black Sea port of Novorossiysk is embarking on an ambitions expansion program that will reclaim its position as the country's top crude export outlet from the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk.(COUNTRIES)
July 11, 2005... RUSSIA -- The Black Sea port of Novorossiysk is embarking on an ambitions expansion program that will reclaim its position as the country's top crude export outlet from the Baltic Sea port of Primorsk. The port's controlling shareholders,...

Russia--Royal Dutch/Shell has finally struck a deal that lets natural gas giant Gazprom into its Sakhalin-2 LNG project and secures for the Anglo-Dutch supermajor a 50% stake in Gazprom's vast Zapolyarnoye gas field in West Siberia.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... RUSSIA -- Royal Dutch/Shell has finally struck a deal that lets natural gas giant Gazprom into its Sakhalin-2 LNG project and secures for the Anglo-Dutch supermajor a 50% stake in Gazprom's vast Zapolyarnoye gas field in West Siberia. In the...

Russia--in a move to cement relations with China, Moscow has finally agreed to open its oil and gas reserves to its fast growing neighbor.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... RUSSIA -- In a move to cement relations with China, Moscow has finally agreed to open its oil and gas reserves to its fast growing neighbor. During last week's visit to Moscow by Chinese leader Hu Jintao, state-owned Rosneft signed two oil...

Exxon sheds mature assets, adds to cash.(Exxon Mobil Corp.)
July 11, 2005... When Exxon Mobil decides to clean out a corporate closet, the result is no ordinary yard sale. In only two months, the US supermajor has sold some $1.4 billion of mostly oil producing assets in the US and Canada, plus arranged significant...

Frenzied futures.(petroleum)
July 11, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Storm activity in the US Gulf of Mexico, terrorist attacks in London and data from the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) all caused some kind of drama in the oil futures market last weeK, causing rapid price swings on...

Nymex keeps shareholders sweet.(New York Mercantile Exchange)(Brief Article)
July 11, 2005... The New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) last week moved swiftly to quash rumors that it had rejected a joint bid for a minority stake from New York private equity firm Blackstone and Boston's Battery Ventures, while keeping shareholders sweet...

PIW market indicators.(Petroleum Intelligence Weekly )(Illustration)
July 11, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $54.04 $53.19 $51.62 UK Brent (Dated) 57.80 56.80 54.35...

Saudis edge out majors in China play.
July 18, 2005... In China last week for the launch of the Fujian refinery project, Saudi Aramco's president and chief executive, Abdallah Jumah, enthused that Saudi Arabia and China had "one of the most important energy relationships on the planet." Aramco's...

Storms send mixed message to markets.
July 18, 2005... Last year's experience with the damage from Hurricane Ivan has sensitized oil and natural gas markets to the critical role of the weather in determining supply, demand and prices. That Hurricane Dennis showed up so early in July in what is...

Upstream growth in sight for big oil.
July 18, 2005... The second half of 2005 looks set to be a turning point for the top ranking oil majors. After struggling to grow their oil and gas volumes, a handful of giant projects with very long lead times is finally coming on line, providing serious...

Shell, Gazprom asset swap carries risk.(Royal Dutch-Shell Group of Cos., OAO Gazprom.)
July 18, 2005... The proposed asset swap between Gazprom and Royal Dutch/Shell provides enticing prospects for all parties involved, although many details are still to be hammered out. Gazprom gets its desired entree into liquefied natural gas, while Shell gets...

Iran's capacity gains hit the buffers.
July 18, 2005... Iran has increased its notional production capacity in recent weeks with the completion of two "buyback" projects with European partners Royal Dutch/Shell and Eni. But, with output at onshore fields curving downward and doubts over the award of...

Europe's gas pipe rivalries heat up.
July 18, 2005... Few dispute that liquefied natural gas (LNG) will increase its share of Europe's gas market. But the importance of the pipelines that delivered 92.5% of the gas consumed in Western Europe last year is often overlooked. As regional production...

Asian State firms hoard African assets.
July 18, 2005... It is not only in the US where Chinese firms are making waves as they pursue energy resources to fuel the country's rampant economic growth. Over the last five years, a bevy of state-backed firms has built up a portfolio of African assets that...

Corporate--high commodity prices and still-strong refining margins are expected to deliver high second-quarter earnings for the integrated oil companies.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... CORPORATE--High commodity prices and still-strong refining margins are expected to deliver high second-quarter earnings for the integrated oil companies, which start reporting at the end of this week. Lehman Brothers analyst Paul Cheng is...

Environment--leaders of the G8 group of industrialized nations acknowledged the seriousness of climate change at the end of their summit in Gleneagles.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... ENVIRONMENT--Leaders of the G8 group of industrialized nations acknowledged the seriousness of climate change at the end of their summit in Gleneagles, Scotland on Jul. 8, but stopped short of setting targets to cut greenhouse gas emissions....

IEA--the latest monthly report from the International Energy Agency provides a relatively sanguine first look at 2006 market conditions.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... IEA -- The latest monthly report from the International Energy Agency provides a relatively sanguine first look at 2006 market conditions. The agency sees next year's call on Opec crude holding about even with this year's 28.1 million b/d,...

Industry restructuring--Houston-based independent Pogo Producing is shelling out US$1.8 billion in cash for Unocal's Canadian subsidiary Northrock Resources.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTRUCTURING--Houston-based independent Pogo Producing is shelling out US$1.8 billion in cash for Unocal's Canadian subsidiary Northrock Resources. The acquisition marks Pogo's entry into Canada and a refocusing of its operations on...

LNG--second quarter US imports were flat with year-ago levels, after registering steady increases for two years running.(GENERAL)
July 18, 2005... LNG--Second quarter US imports were flat with year-ago levels, after registering steady increases for two years running. The stagnation is mainly reflected in declining imports to the BG-controlled Lake Charles terminal in Louisiana, which...

LNG--the world's largest single buyer, Korea Gas Corp. (Kogas), has raised its liftings from Malaysia to 6.7 million tons per year from Malaysia to 6.7 million tons per year to become the largest single customer for Malaysian LNG.(GEBERAL)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... LNG -- The world's largest single buyer, Korea Gas Corp. (Kogas), has raised its liftings from Malaysia to 6.7 million tons per year to become the largest single customer for Malaysian LNG. Under a deal signed last week, Petronas' Malaysia LNG...

Brazil--production at state-controlled Petrobras' domestic fields increased to 1.755 million b/d of crude and 1.69 Bcf/d of natural gas in June, up from 1.729 million b/d and 1.72 Bcf/d in May.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... BRAZIL -- Production at state-controlled Petrobras' domestic fields increased to 1.755 million b/d of crude and 1.69 Bcf/d of natural gas in June, up from 1.729 million b/d and 1.72 Bcf/d in May. The company achieved a new daily record of 1.835...

Norway--State-controlled Statoil has submitted a plan to bring on the Tyrihans oil and gas field in the Norwegian Sea.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... NORWAY -- State-controlled Statoil has submitted a plan to bring on the Tyrihans oil and gas field in the Norwegian Sea, which is likely to be a $2.1 billion development (PIW Jul.11,p6). Oil output should rise gradually to a peak in 2011 of...

Russia--Anglo-Russian TNK-BP has made a provisin in its 2004 accounts for at least $123 million in back tax payments for 2001.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... RUSSIA -- Anglo-Russian TNK-BP has made a provision in its 2004 accounts for at least $123 million in back tax payments for 2001, suggesting that the venture is preparing to come to a deal with the Kremlin over the contentious issue. The...

Saudi Arabia--State oil giant Saudi Aramco is to supply customers with the same volume of crude in August as they received in July.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... SAUDI ARABIA -- State oil giant Saudi Aramco is to supply customers with the same volume of crude in August as they received in July. This means term contract holders in the US will typically get around 15% less than their monthly contracted...

Saudi Arabia--as it ratchets up capacity, Saudi Aramco is stepping up spending on development drilling to $2.407 billion next year.(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... SAUDI ARABIA -- As it ratchets up capacity, Saudi Aramco is stepping up spending on development drilling to $2.407 billion next year. The drilling spend will peak at $2.512 billion in 2007 before edging back below $2 billion in 2010. PIW...

United Kingsom--the shuffling of North Sea assets is continuing with Dana Petroleum set to acquire interests from BP that complement separate farm-ins it agreed last month with supermajors Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch/Shell.(COUNTRIES)
July 18, 2005... UNITED KINGDOM -- The shuffling of North Sea assets is continuing with Dana Petroleum set to acquire interests from BP that complement separate farm-ins it agreed last month with supermajors Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch/Shell. The deal with BP...

United States--salvage and repair teams were last week attempting to correct BP's listing Thunder Horse platform in the Gulf of Mexico.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... UNITED STATES -- Salvage and repair teams were last week attempting to correct BP's listing Thunder Horse platform in the Gulf of Mexico. The impact of the 20[degrees]-30[degrees] list on the production timetable for the Gulf's largest oil...

Yemen--parliament has overcome earlier objections and swung behind the Totalled Yemen LNG venture, authorizing the government to conclude final sales and purchase agreements for LNG exports.(liquefied natural gas)(Brief Article)
July 18, 2005... YEMEN -- Parliament has overcome earlier objections and swung behind the Totalled Yemen LNG venture, authorizing the government to conclude final sales and purchase agreements for LNG exports. Yemen LNG can now proceed to finalize deals it...

Abu Dhabi spreads its investments.(International Petroleum Investment Co.)
July 18, 2005... While neighboring Saudi Arabia and Kuwait are better known for their overseas downstream investments, Abu Dhabi has been quietly building up a sizable portfolio. Hot on the heels of a recent $1.2 billion investment in European petrochemicals,...

Cracks appear.(Marketview)
July 18, 2005... LONDON -- Front month crude oil futures traded in a $3.80 range last week with August WTI gyrating from $61.90 to $58.02 and Brent from $60.36 to $56.62. Prices were highest at the beginning and ended the week close to the lows. However,...

PIW market indicators.(Illustration)
July 18, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $54.26 $53.90 $52.45 UK Brent (Dated) 57.89 57.99 ...

World Gas Handbook 2005-06.
July 18, 2005... Now in its fifth edition, the World Gas Handbook has the enviable reputation as the must-have guide for anyone operating in international gas. This edition of the World Gas Handbook includes: * Expanded profiles of 56 key countries,...

Unocal deals blow to China's energy strategy.
July 25, 2005... Unocal shareholders will have the last laugh, having set off a Chinese-US bidding war that has ratcheted up the value of whatever sale deal they vote for on Aug. 10. Unless CNOOC Ltd. ups its offer, the sweetened takeover bid from...

Shell's new start marred by old doubts.(Royal Dutch-Shell Group of Cos.)
July 25, 2005... Last week should have marked a watershed for Royal Dutch Shell as the Anglo-Dutch super-major moved to a single listing in London. But the great occasion was overshadowed by fresh concerns over Shell's upstream business, this time having to do...

New York gets a taste for hard assets.(Investment banks' energy infrastructure buying spree)
July 25, 2005... Is the center of the energy world shifting to New York? Investment banks and funds are now some of the biggest buyers of energy infrastructure. Purchases of pipelines and power plants from the imploding energy merchants in the Enron era got the...

Taxing times for investors in Venezuela.
July 25, 2005... It was only a matter of time before the tax authority, known as the Seniat, caught up with Venezuela's most lucrative business--oil. Thirty-two operating service agreements (OSAs) that produce some 500,000 barrels per day are now facing a...

China, India, Russia set for Kazakh scrap.(bid for PetroKazakhstan Inc.)
July 25, 2005... The contest to take over PetroKazakhstan is shaping up into a three-horse race. The Calgary-based independent, which producers over 150,000 barrels per day of high quality crude from Kazakhstan's Kumkol oil fields and operates a refinery in the...

US duo buy, exploit their way to growth.(Chesapeake Energy Corp. AND XTO Energy Inc.)
July 25, 2005... XT-who? Chesa-what? XTO Energy and Chesapeake may lack name recognition outside the US, but they need no introduction on their home turf. Both have grown rapidly through similar acquire-and-exploit strategies and now belong to the dozen or so...

Oil market faces new game in second half.
July 25, 2005... Cooling demand growth, rising non-Opec supplies and an increasingly comfortable stock situation are setting the tone for a less frenzied oil market in the second half of the year. Although preliminary first-half data show respectable global...

Oil market reliability: a commercial proposal.
July 25, 2005... The following is a proposal to improve oil market reliability and operational efficiency through the commercial use of consuming-country strategic reserves by producing countries. If adopted, it could reduce that portion of today's oil price...

Corporate--the value of global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the upstream oil and gas industry surged in the second quarter of this year, due in large part to the battle between Chevron and CNOOC Ltd. for control of Unocal.(GENERAL)
July 25, 2005... CORPORATE -- The value of global mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the upstream oil and gas industry surged in the second quarter of this year, due in large part to the battle between Chevron and CNOOC Ltd. for control of Unocal (p1). The value...