Petroleum Intelligence Weekly articles from May 2005

Petroleum Intelligence Weekly archives from May 2005

US-Saudi talks: soft words, harsher reality.(petroleum industry)
May 2, 2005... Not for the first time, Saudi Arabia and the US seemed to talk past each other at last week's Texas summit. Despite a long-standing alliance between two utterly different societies bound together by oil, their dialog often sounds tone-deaf. The...

Big deals are based on bullish views.(Bill Greehey, Dave O'Reilly management)
May 2, 2005... With nearly $25 billion worth of acquisitions in just two corporate deals in the US last month, two of the oil industry's top executives are defying the notion that deals shouldn't be done when oil sector valuations are so inflated by record...

Italy courts role as Europe's new gas hub.(planning of opening of natural gas fields)
May 2, 2005... Already well-supplied with piped natural gas, Italy has plans to build nine LNG receiving terminals whose combined capacity will be way in excess of the country's forecast needs. Sure, the costs of LNG have come down so sharply that it can...

Oxy encroaches on Shell's patch in Oman.(Oxy Petrochemicals Inc., Royal Dutch-Shell Group of Cos.)
May 2, 2005... Extracting the most from Oman's maturing oil patch is causing new ructions between Royal Dutch/Shell and the government, the majority partner in the Petroleum Development Oman (PDO) consortium. Differences over plans for PDO's Mukhaizna field...

ChevronTexaco steps up pace in global gas.
May 2, 2005... ChevronTexaco is getting serious about its global natural gas business, with a flurry of projects and deals in the Atlantic and Pacific Basins recently taking giant steps toward fruition. In fact, the surge in gas activity has one California...

Africa cashes in on hunger for reserves.
May 2, 2005... Has the real scramble for Africa only just begun? With most of the easy oil presumed found in Angola, Nigeria and North Africa, it may be time for the oil industry to roll up its sleeves and get stuck into the rest of the continent. An...

Asia-Pacific indies chase the big one.(petroleum industry management for oil exploration)
May 2, 2005... A tier of small independent upstream firms is emerging from Southeast Asia that is willing to bear the kind of exploration risk that much bigger players seem anxious to avoid. It was thanks to one such minnow--Australia's Hardman...

Corporate--BP Chief Executive John Browne last week again sought to play down suggestions that the TNK-BP joint venture in Russia is about to become embroiled in a Yukos-style tax wrangle.(GENERAL)
May 2, 2005... CORPORATE--BP Chief Executive John Browne last week again sought to play down suggestions that the TNK-BP joint venture in Russia is about to become embroiled in a Yukos-style tax wrangle. Life has recently begun to look more complicated for...

Industry restructuring--Norway's Statoil is to pay Canadian EnCana US$2 billion for its entire deepwater US Gulf of Mexico assets, which are expected to deliver 30,000 boe/d net by 2008-09, rising to over 100,000 boe/d net after 2012.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTRUCTURING--Norway's Statoil is to pay Canadian EnCana US$2 billion for its entire deepwater US Gulf of Mexico assets, which are expected to deliver 30,000 boe/d net by 2008-09, rising to over 100,000 boe/d net after 2012. Ashland...

Refining--ConocoPhillips has announced it will invest $3 billion to improve the company's ability to process heavy, sour crudes.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... REFINING--ConocoPhillips has announced it will invest $3 billion to improve the company's ability to process heavy, sour crudes. Chief Executive Jim Mulva said that in addition to being able to better process crudes from Canada, the upgrade of...

Canada--Alberta's government is working to lift proven oil reserves to a staggering 311 billion bbl from the current 179 billion bbl, based on current high oil prices.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... CANADA -- Alberta's government is working to lift proven oil reserves to a staggering 311 billion bbl from the current 179 billion bbl, based on current high oil prices. Such a number would propel the country past Saudi Arabia, which had proven...

Colombia--The National Hydrocarbon Agency (ANH) last week approved seven E&P contracts and three technical evaluations, raising the tally to 13 E&P contracts and four evaluation contracts agreed so far this year.(COUNTRIES)
May 2, 2005... COLOMBIA -- The National Hydrocarbon Agency (ANH) last week approved seven E&P contracts and three technical evaluations, raising the tally to 13 E&P contracts and four evaluation contracts agreed so far this year. Awards went to state oil...

East Timor--talks resumed with Australia last week to try and revive the Greater Sunrise LNG project, which has been suspended since boundary talks collapsed last October.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... EAST TIMOR -- Talks resumed with Australia last week to try and revive the Greater Sunrise LNG project, which has been suspended since boundary talks collapsed last October. At issue is an earlier agreement that would give East Timor 90% of the...

Iraq--the head of the Iraqi National Congress, Ahmad Chalabi, has been appointed acting oil minister in the transitional government headed by Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, which was approved last week by the National Assembly elected on Jan. 30.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... IRAQ -- The head of the Iraqi National Congress, Ahmad Chalabi, has been appointed acting oil minister in the transitional government headed by Prime Minister Ibrahim al-Jaafari, which was approved last week by the National Assembly elected on...

Kazakhstan--the mounting problems facing Canada's PetroKazakhstan just got worse after it was revealed that the company has been given no quota to export its oil production in May.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... KAZAKHSTAN -- The mounting problems facing Canada's PetroKazakhstan just got worse after it was revealed that the company has been given no quota to export its oil production in May. According to an export schedule issued by the energy...

Norway--pipe laying has begun for the 1,200-km Langeled pipeline that will eventually carry natural gas from the Ormen Lange field to the UK.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... NORWAY -- Pipe laying has begun for the 1,200-km Langeled pipeline that will eventually carry natural gas from the Ormen Lange field to the UK. The pipeline has been designed to carry a whopping 25.55 Bcm/yr (2.5 Bcf/d) into a UK terminal that...

Qatar--Doha is to delay decisions on three GTL projects and a planned gas pipeline to Pakistan for up to three years amid concerns about reservoir management, Energy Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah said in Trinidad and Tobago last week.(Marathon Ashland Pipe Line L.L.C.)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... QATAR -- Doha is to delay decisions on three GTL projects and a planned gas pipeline to Pakistan for up to three years amid concerns about reservoir management, Energy Minister Abdullah al-Attiyah said in Trinidad and Tobago last week. The...

Russia--the long-awaited sentencing of core Yukos shareholders Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev, which was expected on Apr. 27, has been postponed until May 16.(OAO NK Yukos)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... RUSSIA -- The long-awaited sentencing of core Yukos shareholders Mikhaii Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev, which was expected on Apr. 27, has been postponed until May 16. Officials say the judge required more time to write the sentence, but...

Russia--Lukoil and US Conoco-Phillips were due to wrap up all the legal procedures required for setting up a joint venture to develop the Timan-Pechora oil province in northern Russia by the end of last week, paving the way for production of 180,000-200,000 b/d by the end of 2008.(COUNTRIES)
May 2, 2005... RUSSIA -- Lukoil and US Conoco-Phillips were due to wrap up all the legal procedures required for setting up a joint venture to develop the Timan-Pechora oil province in northern Russia by the end of last week, paving the way for production of...

United States--in a belated attempt to contain negative political fallout from high energy prices, President George W. Bush last week proposed measures to encourage new refinery building, increase LNG imports and promote hybrid and clean diesel vehicles.(COUNTRIES)
May 2, 2005... UNITED STATES -- In a belated attempt to contain negative political fallout from high energy prices, President George W. Bush last week proposed measures to encourage new refinery building, increase LNG imports and promote hybrid and clean...

US taste for Saudi oil has its limits.(COUNTRIES)
May 2, 2005... Saudi Arabia has regularly renounced the use of oil as a political weapon in the years since the Arab oil embargo in which it participated in 1973-74. But that does not prevent a political spin being put on the ups and downs of its export...

Downing Oman.(Marketview)(petroleum industry)
May 2, 2005... SINGAPORE -- Arbitrage economics are pounding Asia's market for Mideast crude, with both West African and Russian grades flowing eastwards, hammering regional benchmark Oman into deep discounts. June-loading Oman is trading in Singapore at...

Saudi Aramco chief named petroleum executive of the year.(Abdallah S. Jum'ah, Saudi Arabian Oil Co.)(Brief Article)
May 2, 2005... Abdallah S. Jum'ah, president and chief executive officer of Saudi Aramco, will be honored as Petroleum Executive of the Year at the 26th annual Oil & Money Conference. This unique industry gathering, jointly convened by Energy Intelligence and...

PIW market indicators.(petroleum prices)(Illustration)
May 2, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $49.65 $47.99 $52.05 UK Brent (Dated) 52.03 51.12 54.15...

PIW scorecard: sweet premium to sour holds.(petroleum price forecast and trends)
May 9, 2005... Refiners worldwide had to pay much more for term-contract deliveries of sour crudes in the first quarter of this year as the market regained ground lost in late 2004. The increases in term-supply costs of over $10 per barrel in the quarter...

Big oil finds new ways to use cash.(petroleum companies spendings forecast)
May 9, 2005... Three straight quarters of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil averaging at least $40 per barrel have finally caused oil company executives to loosen the purse strings and begin shelling out billions of dollars for acquisitions and new projects....

Shell flaunts its entree in Libyan LNG.(Royal Dutch-Shell Group of Cos. signs deal with National Oil Corp. of Libya, liquefied natural gas)
May 9, 2005... In a week of bad news from its old stamping ground in Oman, Royal Dutch/Shell pulled some good news out of its new play in Libya (p6). The deal announced last week with state National Oil Corp. (NOC) could make Libya a serious player again on...

Wider Asian spreads start to embed.(petroleum forecast)
May 9, 2005... Oil traders used to reckon that the West-East arbitrage could be a moneymaker if the Brent-Dubai spread was less than $2 per barrel, as West African or North Sea crudes priced against Brent might then be competitive with Mideast Gulf crudes...

Abu Dhabi is shopping for Mideast assets.
May 9, 2005... As it reaps a rich bonanza from high oil prices, Abu Dhabi is going shopping for international assets in a big way, and is steadily acquiring an upstream portfolio in other parts of the Mideast. Abu Dhabi's International Petroleum Investment Co...

Time is short as Nymex defies electronic tide.(expansion plans at New York Mercantile Exchange, moving from Ireland to United Kingdom)
May 9, 2005... Is the London-based International Petroleum Exchange (IPE) going to give the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) a bloody nose when Nymex moves its Dublin, Ireland trading floor to the UK capital this summer? Nymex is banking on IPE...

Sloppier balances have minimal price impact.
May 9, 2005... Opec is keeping its foot on the accelerator in an effort to break the back of the current oil price rally by continuing to pour on the oil supply even as global demand begins to slide into the seasonal doldrums. PIW soundings show a fourth...

Corporate--the stars of the stock market so far this year struggled in April as oil prices tumbled.(petroleum stock performance analysis)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... CORPORATE -- The stars of the stock market so far this year struggled in April as oil prices tumbled. Oil shares in the IPF Index were all lower last month, with the exception of Norway's Statoil, which posted a 2% gain. ChevronTexaco and...

Formula Prices--Saudi Arabia narrowed the discounts for its June crude exports to its term customers in the US and Europe, but eased discounts for light sweet crude to Asia.(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... FORMULA PRICES -- Saudi Arabia narrowed the discounts for its June crude exports to its term customers in the US and Europe, but eased discounts for light sweet crude to Asia. The tighter discounts come as US refineries start processing more...

Industry Restructuring--a consortium led by US-based Access Industries.(GENERAL)
May 9, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTRUCTURING -- A consortium led by US-based Access Industries with the Chatterjee Group is to buy the polyolefins manufacturer Basell--a 50-50 joint venture of BASF and Shell Chemicals--for 4.4 billion [euro] ($ 5.7 billion),...

China--Saudi Arabia was the leading supplier of crude oil in March, with volumes up 22% from a year earlier to an average of 468,000 b/d.(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... CHINA -- Saudi Arabia was the leading supplier of crude oil in March, with volumes up 22% from a year earlier to an average of 468,000 b/d. Saudi landings averaged 510,000 b/d in February and 272,000 b/d in January. Imports from Russia were...

East Timor--the government has agreed with Australia to set aside differences on maritime boundaries in a deal that could revive Australian Woodside's dormant Greater Sunrise project and secure a much bigger revenue share for Dili.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... EAST TIMOR -- The government has agreed with Australia to set aside differences on maritime boundaries in a deal that could revive Australian Woodside's dormant Greater Sunrise project and secure a much bigger revenue share for Dili. According...

Kuwait--the commissioning of a new gas booster station has increased oil production capacity to slightly more than 2.7 million b/d, Energy Minister Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah said last week (p5).(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... KUWAIT -- The commissioning of a new gas booster station has increased oil production capacity to slightly more than 2.7 million b/d, Energy Minister Sheikh Ahmad al-Fahd al-Sabah said last week (p5). Capacity rose by 100,000 b/d in January...

Libya--National Oil Corp. (NOC) is inviting bids by Nov. 2 for 44 onshore and offshore blocks in a second round of bidding under the Epsa-4 upstream tender.(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... LIBYA -- National Oil Corp. (NOC) is inviting bids by Nov. 2 for 44 onshore and offshore blocks in a second round of bidding under the Epsa-4 upstream tender. Most of the blocks are in onshore basins--Ghadames (4), Sirte (6) and eight each in...

Oman--as expected, US Occidental and the UAE's Mubadala Development Co.(Occidental Petroleum Corp. signs agreement)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... OMAN -- As expected, US Occidental and the UAE's Mubadala Development Co. have reached a preliminary agreement to undertake a tenfold expansion of capacity at the Mukhaizna oil field to 150,000 b/d. If the heads of agreement concludes with a...

Nigeria--it took a while but French Total has finally been given the go-ahead to develop the deepwater Akpo gas and condensate field, which could be on stream as early as 2008.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... NIGERIA -- It took a while but French Total has finally been given the go-ahead to develop the deepwater Akpo gas and condensate field, which could be on stream as early as 2008. The field is destined to very quickly reach peak output levels of...

Russia--Crude production and exports both slid in April, marking the seventh consecutive month of stagnant output after an aggressive five-year growth streak.(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... RUSSIA -- Crude production and exports both slid in April, marking the seventh consecutive month of stagnant output after an aggressive five-year growth streak. The 25,000 b/d fall to 9.302 million b/d from March, according to preliminary data...

Ukraine--tensions are mounting with Russian companies, which stand accused of securing energy assets illegally and of price fixing.(AOA Lukoil, TNK-BP)(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... UKRAINE -- Tensions are mounting with Russian companies, which stand accused of securing energy assets illegally and of price fixing. The antimonopoly authorities are already investigating Lukoil and Anglo-Russian TNK-BP over allegations they...

Clarification.(COUNTRIES)(Correction Notice)
May 9, 2005... While Chevron-Texaco Chairman and Chief Executive Dave O'Reilly believes that the energy industry faces a "new equation" driven by market forces, technological advances and geopolitics, he has not cited $50 or any other price level as being...

$50 oil, downstream strength lead to huge Q1 profits.
May 9, 2005... The world's top six private sector oil companies turned in another set of sparkling results in the first quarter of 2005. While there were a few blips--such as ChevronTexaco's weak downstream performance--profits were huge for the world's top...

Stubborn bulls.(petroleum prices)
May 9, 2005... WASHINGTON -- Crude oil prices have fallen 14% since their all-time record highs at the beginning of April on a combination of continued builds in commercial inventories, profit-taking and easing demand growth. But Ub benchmark West Texas...

PIW market indicators.(petroleum prices )(Illustration)
May 9, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $47.53 $49.60 $48.84 UK Brent (Dated) 49.91 51.39 ...

Updated price scorecard for key world grades.(crude oil)
May 9, 2005... PIW's Price Scorecard is designed to sort through the complexities of crude oil pricing under term contracts, allowing a deeper understanding of market trends than is possible from tracking only spot grades. The scorecard aims to put all...

How term-contract prices are calculated.(Brief Article)
May 9, 2005... Term-contract formulas generally have four basic components: the point of sale, a market-related benchmark, an adjustment factor for differences related to crude oil quality and point of sale, and a timing mechanism stipulating when the value...

Saudi mega spend is fuzzy on detail.(Saudi Arabia's corporate spending in petroleum industry)
May 16, 2005... Saudi Arabia has expended much energy of late setting out its capacity expansion plans. Last week, state Saudi Aramco filled in some missing details on the midsize expansions that will complement the giant AFK and Khurais developments. The...

Russian curbs may defeat total deal.(Vladimir Putin proposes a bill to limit foreign investment in Russia, Total S.A.'s acquisition deal with Novatek delayed)
May 16, 2005... President Vladimir Putin has set a Nov. 1 deadline for his government to draft a bill limiting foreign investment in Russia's strategic resources, but that may be too long to wait for Total. The French major already seems hall resigned to...

Wall Street gives a boost to oil demand.
May 16, 2005... The sellers' market in oil and the $50 crude oil prices that seem to go with it are underpinned by strong demand. But the dynamism of demand does not just take the form of growth in China, India and other key physical markets. A second--highly...

Desert storm hits Shell's recovery plans.(Royal Dutch-Shell Group of Cos. contract in Oman)
May 16, 2005... Royal Dutch/Shell's upstream recovery plan has suffered a few setbacks in recent weeks. Having lost out on the Upper Zakum venture in Abu Dhabi to Exxon Mobil, it may now lose the Mukhaizna field development in Oman to Occidental. As Shell...

Appeal of Iran shrinks some more.
May 16, 2005... Deals for international oil companies in Iran are on hold as the country gears up for presidential elections next month. In the interim, local players affiliated to state National Iranian Oil Co. (NIOC) are scooping up onshore and offshore...

Big oil tests new ideas in troubled Nigeria.
May 16, 2005... Chevron has unveiled a new strategy for managing aid and community relations in the Niger Delta that it hopes will improve its fortunes. Capacity shut-ins due to murderous ethnic clashes and sabotage are costing Chevron and its partner, state...

Chavez widens attack on foreign players.(President Hugo Chavez imposes taxes on foreign petroleum companies)
May 16, 2005... For foreign companies operating in Venezuela, hiring a good team of lawyers is probably more cost effective than hiring an engineer these days. Firms holding operating service agreements (OSAs) with state Petroleos de Venezuela (PDV) have been...

Formula prices--Mexico kept its June discount for US-bound cargoes of its heavy sour Maya mostly unchanged, remaining competitive with Saudi Arabia, which recently narrowed its discounts for US and European deliveries (PIW May 9,p.6).(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... FORMULA PRICES -- Mexico kept its June discount for US-bound cargoes of its heavy sour Maya mostly unchanged, remaining competitive with Saudi Arabia, which recently narrowed its discounts for US and European deliveries (PIW May 9,p.6). The...

IEA--oil demand growth in the first quarter of 2005 was weaker than expected in key regions such as China, Europe and the US, the International Energy Agency (IEA) noted in its latest monthly report, released May 11.(GENERAL)
May 16, 2005... IEA -- Oil demand growth in the first quarter of 2005 was weaker than expected in key regions such as China, Europe and the US, the International Energy Agency (IEA) noted in its latest monthly report, released May 11. However, the forecast for...

Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum.(new oil minister elected)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... PEOPLE -- Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum returned as oil minister in Iraq, taking over from Ahmed Chalabi, who occupied the post briefly in an acting capacity (PIW May2,p6).

Industry restucturing--US utilities Duke Energy and Cinergy are merging via a $9 billion stock-swap, plus assumption of about $4.2 billion in long-term debt.(GENERAL)
May 16, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTUCTURING -- US utilities Duke Energy and Cinergy are merging via a $9 billion stock-swap, plus assumption of about $4.2 billion in long-term debt. The new company will retain the Duke Energy name and have a market capitalization of...

Bolivia--the Congress has passed a new energy bill that overturns much of the investor-friendly fiscal reforms that helped towards discovery of 54 Tcf of natural gas reserves in the country over the past decade or so.(taxation)
May 16, 2005... BOLIVIA -- The Congress has passed a new energy bill that overturns much of the investor-friendly fiscal reforms that helped towards discovery of 54 Tcf of natural gas reserves in the country over the past decade or so. The standout measure was...

Brazil--production at state-controlled Petrobras' domestic fields increased to 1.704 million b/d of crude and 1.7 Bcf/d of natural gas in April, up from 1.570 million b/d and 1.6 Bcf/d in March.(Petroleo Brasileiro S.A.)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... BRAZIL -- Production at state-controlled Petrobras' domestic fields increased to 1.704 million b/d of crude and 1.7 Bcf/d of natural gas in April, up from 1.570 million b/d and 1.6 Bcf/d in March. The company on Apr. 25 achieved a new...

India--Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has ended a long exploration drought with discoveries off the West Coast and in the deepwater Krishna-Godavari (KG) Basin.(COUNTRIES)
May 16, 2005... INDIA -- Oil and Natural Gas Corp. (ONGC) has ended a long exploration drought with discoveries off the West Coast and in the deepwater Krishna-Godavari (KG) Basin. In the eastern KG Basin, gas flowed at well VA-2 in Block KG-OS-DW-IV--at a...

Iraq--State Oil Marketing Organization (Somo) is due to meet its 28 term customers in Jordan this week to propose a rollover of its Basrah Light contracts into the second half of the year and some changes to its pricing basis.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... IRAQ--State Oil Marketing Organization (Somo) is due to meet its 28 term customers in Jordan this week to propose a rollover of its Basrah Light contracts into the second half of the year and some changes to its pricing basis. Term contract...

Saudi Arabia--Saudi Aramco has made public a new light crude discovery in the Eastern province.(petroleum discovery and exploration)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... SAUDI ARABIA -- Saudi Aramco has made public a new light crude discovery in the Eastern province. The new find, Halla-1, flowed in April at a rate of 6,000 b/d of light crude with a gravity of 36[degrees] API. Natural gas flowed at a rate of...

Saudi Arabia--Saudi Aramco plans to offer shares in a proposed 400,000 b/d export refinery to domestic investors through an initial public offering (IPO) and may also sell non-cure operations such as products distribution, under a strategic review now under way.(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... SAUDI ARABIA -- Saudi Aramco plans to offer shares in a proposed 400,000 b/d export refinery to domestic investors through an initial public offering (IPO) and may also sell non-cure operations such as products distribution, under a strategic...

Singapore--creditors of embattled China Aviation Oil (Singapore) have been offered a higher debt repayment rate of 53.9% and two options on the repayment schedule in the latest effort to resolve the saga at CAO, which collapsed last year after a debacle in its derivates trading (PIW Jan.31,p7).(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... SINGAPORE -- Creditors of embattled China Aviation Oil (Singapore) have been offered a higher debt repayment rate of 53.9% and two options on the repayment schedule in the latest effort to resolve the saga at CAO, which collapsed last year...

Syria--the exit of US Devon Energy has opened the way for Russia's Soyuzneftegas to make its upstream debut in the country after many years of trying.(Soyuzneftegas partners with Gulfsands Petroleum and acquires Syrian petroleum blocks)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... SYRIA -- The exit of US Devon Energy has opened the way for Russia's Soyuzneftegas to make its upstream debut in the country after many years of trying. Soyuzneftegas has acquired a 50% stake in Block 26, becoming partners with US independent...

United States--Have US retail gasoline prices peaked for the year?(petroleum)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... UNITED STATES -- Have US retail gasoline prices peaked for the year? The Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in a report released last week that both gasoline and crude prices are expected to remain high--well above historical levels...

Atlantic Basin LNG flows set for heady growth.(liquefied natural gas)
May 16, 2005... Liquefied natural gas (LNG) imports in Atlantic Basin markets are set for a significant leap this year. As much as 32 million tons of new LNG capacity earmarked for Europe and the US will have started up before year-end at projects in the...

Sour strength.(petroleum prices dips at West Texas Intermediate)
May 16, 2005... WASHINGTON -- US Benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) dipped below $49 per barrel last week after fresh data from both the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) spurred a sell-off on the New...

Nymex dips into new waters.(New York Mercantile Exchange launches shipping futures)(Brief Article)
May 16, 2005... In a new departure, the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex) was gearing up to launch shipping futures for both crude and products on May 16. Nymex plans to provide a marketplace for trading freight derivatives for seven global crude and...

PIW market indicators.(petroleum prices)(Illustration)
May 16, 2005... PIW Market Indicators Last 2 Weeks 4 Weeks Spot Crude Week Ago Ago Opec Basket $48.05 $47.55 $47.99 UK Brent (Dated) 50.11 49.79 51.12 UK...

Putin gives in to feuding empire builders.
May 23, 2005... Though not unexpected, the scrapping of the proposed takeover by Russian state natural gas giant Gazprom of Rosneft, the largest state oil producer, is hardly reassuring. It puts the question of who runs what in President Vladimir Putin's...

It's official: Russian output has lost steam.
May 23, 2005... It's been clear for some time that growing pressures from the state and legal uncertainties are slowing investment and putting the brakes on Russia's oil production growth. Even the Ministry for Economic Development and Trade now concedes as...

Asia's refiners start catch-up in capacity.
May 23, 2005... As two of the world's fastest growing oil consumers, China and India are stepping up their downstream investment to address soaring demand for oil products. China has a slew of refinery debottleneckings, expansions and new builds in hand that...

Carbon dioxide floods revive aging fields.
May 23, 2005... High oil prices have given producers a fresh incentive to maximize recovery rates and make sure they don't leave potentially profitable barrels in the ground. In the US, this has led to growing interest in the use of carbon dioxide floods, a...

Scale of oil sands is easy to exaggerate.
May 23, 2005... Canada's oil sands are a hot commodity all of a sudden and plans are afoot to nearly double the reserves estimate to reflect the doubling in oil prices since they were last assessed. The new working estimate is certainly eye catching, as the...

Brazil tests potential of north frontier.
May 23, 2005... Given Petrobras of Brazil's unerring ability to grab all the best prospects, the new interest the state-controlled company is showing in offshore areas in northeastern Brazil should be a wakeup call for foreign oil companies that still harbor...

Against the odds, North Sea edges ahead, briefly.
May 23, 2005... A major bone of contention in the differing views of non-Opec supply growth in 2005 is whether the North Sea will accelerate into decline or whether production will flatten out, albeit temporarily. Special circumstances inhibited output last...

Corporate--Anglo-Dutch supermajor Royal Dutch/Shell has announced final proposals for unifying the company under a single parent, to be named Royal Dutch Shell.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... CORPORATE -- Anglo-Dutch supermajor Royal Dutch/Shell has announced final proposals for unifying the company under a single parent, to be named Royal Dutch Shell. If adopted, the proposals would create a single board, one chairman and one chief...

Industry restructuring--German energy group E.On has sold its property and management subsidiary Viterra for around 7 billion [euro] ($8.9 billion) to Dusseldorf-based firm Deutsche Annington.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... INDUSTRY RESTRUCTURING -- German energy group E.On has sold its property and management subsidiary Viterra for around 7 billion [euro] ($8.9 billion) to Dusseldorf-based firm Deutsche Annington. TransCanada is selling its interest in...

OPEC--global economic growth is still expected to be strong this year but uncertainties are growing, especially in the US, and lower oil prices are needed to maintain momentum in the global economy, the producer group said in its Monthly Oil Market Report for May.(GENERAL)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... OPEC -- Global economic growth is still expected to be strong this year but uncertainties are growing, especially in the US, and lower oil prices are needed to maintain momentum in the global economy, the producer group said in its Monthly Oil...

People--Paolo Scaroni has been named to head Italy's Eni, where he will succeed chief executive Vittorio Mincato.(GENERAL)(Appointed Paolo Scaroni as Chief Executive Officer)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... PEOPLE -- Paolo Scaroni has been named to head Italy's Eni, where he will succeed chief executive Vittorio Mincato. Scaroni is currently head of power company Enel, where he will be succeeded by chief financial officer Fulvio Conti. In Iraq,...

Congo (Brazzaville)--small is proving prolific for French independent Maurel & Prom, which has struck again with development well 1002 at its onshore M'Boundi field, its UK partner Burren Energy announced last week.(COUNTRIES)(Brief Article)
May 23, 2005... CONGO (BRAZZAVILLE) -- Small is proving prolific for French independent Maurel & Prom, which has struck again with development well 1002 at its onshore M'Boundi field, its UK partner Burren Energy announced last week. The new well to the north...