FSU Energy articles from January 2002

FSU Energy archives from January 2002

Russia grapples with oil glut: with refineries awash and the domestic crude price falling, oil bosses want product export tax concessions.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... The Russian government is considering further cuts in product export taxes in an effort to combat the effects of growing oversupply on the domestic market. The move would stimulate product shipments and reduce the pressure of any...

It's all about control: Russia wants a gas alliance with its central Asian neighbours. That should help keep them out of its markets. (Editorial).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... UK energy minister Brian Wilson this week stressed the importance of nuclear power for Britain's continuing energy security. The alternative, he said, would be a 70pc dependence on gas, with 90pc of that gas due to be imported once Britain's...

TotalFinaElf considers Russia options. (News).
January 25, 2002... TotalFinaElf chief executive Thierry Desmarest was due to visit Moscow this week, amid speculation about his firm's plans in Russia. Media reports last week suggested the French firm could be on the brink of signing a strategic alliance...

Miller continues Gazprom shake-up. (News).
January 25, 2002... Gazprom chief Alexei Miller is continuing to replace members of the firm's management team with trusted appointees. The latest is Nikolai Gornovsky, who replaces Valentin Nikishin as the head of domestic distribution subsidiary Mezhregiongaz....

Poland tackles gas issues. (News).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Polish president Aleksander Kwasniewski said this week that the country's gas supply deal with Russia will be renegotiated as soon as it determines its future gas needs. In 1996, Poland signed up for 250bn [m.sup.3] from Gazprom over 25 years...

Bulgaria promotes Bosporus bypass. (News).
January 25, 2002... Bulgarian vice-premier Nikolai Vasilev met Lukoil president Vagit Alekperov this week in Moscow. During the talks, Alekperov linked prospects for a proposed crude pipeline bypassing the Bosporus, with Lukoil's own expansion plans in southeast...

Niyazov tries to agree with Moscow. (News).
January 25, 2002... Russian president Vladimir Putin and his Turkmen counterpart Saparmurat Niyazov met in Moscow this week for talks covering gas supply and the seemingly intractable problem of Caspian demarcation. Russia hopes to sign an intergovernmental...

Yukos and TNK clash again. (News: Companies).
January 25, 2002... The confrontation between Yukos and Tyumen Oil (TNK) over gas producer Rospan has taken a new twist. TNK appears to have instigated an enquiry into alleged asset-stripping by Yukos at its VNK subsidiary, a development coinciding with news...

Kazakh debut for Yukos. (News: Companies).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Yukos announced this week that it has acquired a 77.5pc interest in the Fyodorovskoye gas block in north-central Kazakhstan, bordering its oil fields in Russia's Samara region. The company bought the stake from the US independent First...

Tatneft outlines investment strategy. (News: Companies).
January 25, 2002... The board of oil company Tatneft -- based in the autonomous republic of Tatarstan -- has approved an investment programme of Rbs22bn ($733mn) for 2002, company investment head Farit Davletshin said last week. Half of the investment funds will...

Lukoil to buy Ritek. (News).
January 25, 2002... Lukoil is to take full control of Ritek, which produces around 22,000 b/d in western Siberia. The oil giant is already believed to own about 51pc of Ritek, which, in common with other small producers, was hit by a government decision to end...

Iraq's Aziz seeks Moscow help. (News).
January 25, 2002... Iraqi deputy prime minister Tariq Aziz is visiting Russia this week for talks on extending co-operation between the countries and for discussion of UN sanctions against Baghdad. The Iraqi embassy in Moscow says Aziz will also meet foreign...

Agip releases Kashagan figures.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... The Almaty office of Italy's Agip released reserve estimates of 1.7bn bl last week for the giant Kashagan field in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea. Agip KCO, the consortium operating the offshore field, called Kashagan "the new Persian...

Zarubezhneft scores in Vietnam. (News).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Russia's Zarubezhneft has become an operator of Vietnam's 09-3 offshore oil and gas block in the Cuu Long basin. The company will set up a consortium to develop the block along with national oil firm PetroVietnam and Japan's Idemitsu....

A good year for rail exports. (Exports and trade).(Statistical Data Included)
January 25, 2002... Russia exported some 57mn t of crude and products by rail in 2001, an increase of 1 mn t on the previous year (FSUE, 18 January, pp16-17). Although the overall increase was relatively modest, there was a sharp increase in the volume of crude...

Novo loadings delayed. (Russia & CIS).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Russian crude exports continue to be hampered by weather-related delays. Trading sources indicate that the 3.5mn t January loading programme at the key Black Sea port of Novorossiysk is 500,000t behind schedule. As a result, loading of at...

CPC 2001 loadings. (Russia & CIS).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) loaded 934,000t of crude at its new Yuzhnaya Ozereyevka terminal near Novorossiysk last year. The terminal opened on 16 October, meaning exports averaged almost 90,000 b/d to the end of the year. Exports...

Kazakh transit deal. (Russia & CIS).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... A fall in Kazakh crude shipments through Russia as a result of the start-up of the CPC link (see above) has prevented Russia and Kazakhstan from signing a new long-term crude transit deal for 2002. The two countries have instead agreed that...

TNK profits fall. (Russia & CIS).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 25, 2002... Tyumen Oil (TNK) made a net profit of Rbs9.7bn-9.8bn ($320mn) last year under Russian accounting standards, down by a quarter on the previous year because of lower oil prices. Revenues in 2001 were unchanged, at Rbs 116bn-117bn....

Lukoil rebrands Norsi Oil. (Russia & CIS).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Lukoil has changed the name of Norsi Oil -- operator and 51pc owner of the 440,000 b/d Nizhny Novgorod refinery -- to Lukoil-Volgonefteprodukt. Lukoil bought 85.36pc of Norsi Oil for $26mn at a privatisation tender in October, and another...

Hurricane buys into CPC pipeline. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Hurricane buys into CPC pipeline Canada's Hurricane Hydrocarbons, operator of the Kumkol fields in southern Kazakhstan, has paid the first $40mn installment for a share in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) from BP. The firm agreed last...

Supsa February loading programme. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Three cargoes of Azeri Light crude will load at the Georgian Black Sea port of Supsa in February, a total of 3mn bl. This is the same as in December and January but 1 mn bl less than for most months last year. Statoil sold its cargo last week...

Canadian firm wins Azeri extension. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Canadian-registered oil firm Commonwealth has received approval from Azerbaijan's state-owned Socar for an extension of its preliminary work programme at the southwest Gobustan onshore concession to 27 November 2003. Commonwealth is in...

Technip wins Turkmen contract. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... French engineering and energy services firm Technip-Coflexip has won a lumpsum turnkey refinery upgrade contract worth 130 mn [euro] ($1 15mn) from Turkmen oil and gas firm Turkmenneftegaz. The French company will design and construct a...

Kazakh product exports. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 25, 2002... Kazakhstan exported 1.49mn t of oil products in January-November last year, 46pc more than in the same period of 2000. This is 22pc of output (see table). Export earnings climbed by 31pc year-on-year to $126mn. Kazakhstan also imported 1.13mn...

Azeri refineries to cut processing. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 25, 2002... Azerbaijan's refineries will cut crude processing this year. The two Baku refineries are set to process 6.3mn t of crude (126,000 b/d), compared with 6.45mn t last year. State-owned oil firm Socar's crude output is forecast at 8.8mn t this...

Azpetrol to deepen Baku terminal. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Azeri private firm Azpetrol plans to deepen its Baku oil terminal by up to 10m by mid-April, market sources say. The terminal will be able to handle vessels of 12,000t, compared with 5,000t at present. Projected capacity is 10mn t/yr. The...

Kaztransoil management change. (Caspian/central Asia).(Abai Sadykov;)(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Abai Sadykov, former first deputy director of Kaztransoil, a subsidiary of Kazakh oil and gas transport monopoly Transport of Oil and Gas (TNG), has been promoted to director-general, following a ruling by TNG chairman Timur Kulibayev....

Cold weather delays Batumi loading. (Caspian/central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Cold weather in Georgia is delaying rail operations, postponing loadings at the Black Sea port of Batumi, a key export outlet for Caspian crude. Lower temperatures have increased the viscosity of crude and fuel oil, slowing down unloading and...

Looking ahead.(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... * Russian Oil & Gas Summit. 5-6 March. London. WRA. Tel: (44) 1242 529 090 * The CIS Oil & Gas Summit. Russia, Caspian and Central Asian Republics. 15-17 April. London. WRA. Tel: (44) 1242 529 090 * Gioge 2002 Conference & Showcase....

Transneft to open Lithuania office. (Baltics).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Russian pipeline operator Transneft is to open a representative office in Lithuania to improve management of crude exports to the 263,000 b/d Mazeikiai refinery and Butinge terminal. The office will be based in Mazeikiai. Last year, crude...

RTS retreats from new high. (Stock Markets).(Russian Trading System)
January 25, 2002... The Russian Trading System (RTS) index appeared to be in the grip of a major rally for much of the week. Oil stocks remained the investors' favourites, with concerns about prices having been shelved, at least for the time being. As the...

Yukos wants it all in 2002. (Yukos).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... Mikhail Khodorkovsky -- president and leading shareholder of Russia's number two oil producer, Yukos -- last week outlined the company's targets for 2002. These appear to suggest that it is not worried by Russia's ill-defined pledge to Opec...

Warm weather weakens tone. (Products market).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... * Volatile crude prices have been towing the product markets higher but warm weather is still dampening gasoil demand. Fuel oil prices continued to hold up despite increased exports from Russia. * Russian gasoil levels stayed weak as...

Urals continues to slide against Brent. (Crude market).(Brief Article)
January 25, 2002... * Outright Urals prices held steady over the week due to dated Brent's strength. US trader Sempra's stranglehold on the dated Brent market boosted the Atlantic benchmark by 92 cents/bl, cancelling out a slump in the relative price of Urals....

FSU crude offtakers.(Illustration)
January 25, 2002... Export offtakers, Dec 2001 Producers Offtakers Volume ('000t) Novorossiysk Bashneft Euro Petroleum...

Netbacks.(Illustration)
January 25, 2002... Russian crude netbacks Jan 23 Ventspils Primorsk Butinge Urals (cif-fit) ($/bl) 17.77 17.77 17.77 Urals (cif-fit) ($/t) ...

Prosecutors move in on Sibur: the state appears to be turning up the heat in its pursuit of missing Gazprom assets.(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... The Russian prosecutor's office has launched a criminal investigation into allegations that top managers of Gazprom's wayward petrochemical subsidiary Sibur have been involved in the illegal sale of some Rbs2.6bn ($85mn) of assets. The move...

Show of force: the Kremlin is going after Gazprom asset-strippers with vigour. But its rail ministry shake-up seems half-hearted. (Editorial).(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... The arrest this week of Yakov Goldovsky, head of Gazprom's wayward petrochemical subsidiary Sibur (see p1) suggests there will be no let-up in the campaign to bring the oil giant back under state control. Officially, it has nothing to do...

Export plans contradict Opec pledge. (News).(Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)(Russia)(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... Russian oil firms are due to export 2.5mn b/d (30.9mn t) of crude in the first quarter of this year (see pp14-15), a figure not far short of fourth-quarter exports. This could lead to confrontation with Opec, which is expecting substantial...

Russia calls for Iraq concessions. (News).(UN embargo)(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... Moscow is seeking US support for an end to the UN embargo on Russian firms' contracts with Iraq. Officials from the two countries will hold talks on sanctions early next month, partly in a bid to define the so-called Goods Review List...

Pipeline exports rise in 2001. (Exports).(Russian gas exports)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russia exported 2.88mn b/d (144mn t) through its pipeline system in 2001 (see table, right), an increase of almost 10pc on the previous year. The boost was fuelled by both domestic firms and a sharp rise in transit from the Caspian states....

Bumper year for Russian product exports. (Exports).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Lower prices and export restrictions did not dent Russian seaborne, product exports in 2001. Shipments from FSU ports reached a total of just under 65mn t, an increase of 10pc compared with 2000. Exporters received a major boost in August...

Transneft breaks the ice at Primorsk. (Export routes).(Baltic Pipeline System)(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... Russian oil companies have been pencilled in to export 1.8mn t (146,000 b/d) of crude through the country's new Primorsk crude terminal in the first quarter. The start of operations at Primorsk, part of the Baltic Pipeline System (BPS) export...

Terminal gains from Butinge spill. (Export routes).(Lithuania)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Nine tankers are due to load a total of 780,0000t at Primorsk this month (see p9). The first ship to load on 27 December was the Petrokrepost, owned by Russian shipping firm Sovkomflot, with a 92,000t cargo sold to trader Glencore at a...

Shake up at rail ministry. (Russia and CIS).(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... President Vladimir Putin has appointed Gennady Fadeyev as Russia's new rail minister to replace Nikolai Aksyonenko, who was dismissed on 3 January. Aksyonenko was an associate of the family of cronies that surrounded former president Boris...

Export tax reduction. (Russia and CIS).(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... Russia's tariff commission announced last week that the government should reduce the country's crude export duty from 23.4 [euro]/t ($21.06/t) to $8/t. According to the newly-approved changes to Russia's tax code, the reduction will come into...

Rail ministry sets special tariff. (Russia and CIS).(transportation of petroleum and oil products starting Jan. 1, 2002)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russia's rail ministry has set a series of special discounts for the transportation of export and transit crude and oil products, effective from 1 January. A 50pc discount to the basic rate of $/56t will apply for transportation of VGO,...

Kasyanov cuts product levy. (Russia and CIS).(Russian premier Mikhail Kasyanov, export taxes for gasoil and gasoline)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russian premier Mikhail Kasyanov has signed a decree to reduce export taxes for gasoil and gasoline from 39 [euro]/t ($31.98/t) to 25 [euro]/t. The decree will come into effect on 5 February. The fuel oil export tax of 20 [euro]/t will remain...

Russia extends LPG export quotas. (Russia and CIS).(liquefied petroleum gas)(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... The Russian government has extended the country's obligatory liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) domestic supply quotas for the first six months of the year. The move is designed to keep LPG in the country during winter. And it envisages that the...

Butinge stays shut. (Baltics).(oil terminal, Lithuania)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Lithuania's 160,000 b/d Butinge oil terminal, operated by domestic oil firm Mazeikiu Nafta (MN), will remain closed until at least 15 January due to bad weather hampering repair work after a 23 November leak (FSUE, 30 November, p9). Some 59t...

Latvian fuel oil bottleneck. (Baltics).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Delays in the loading of fuel oil at Latvian ports have resulted in congestion on the country's rail system. Stanislav Baiko, a deputy railway director general says Latvia is negotiating with producers in Belams to suspend fuel oil shipments...

Mol sells Slovakian operations. (Central/Eastern Europe).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Hungarian oil and gas firm Mol has sold all its Slovakian assets to local oil firm Slovnaft, operator of the 115,000 b/d Bratislava refinery. Mol owns a 36.2pc stake in Slovnaft and the sale forms part of the two companies' plans to achieve...

Hellenic petroleum chief resigns. (Central/Eastern Europe).(Hellenic Petroleum, Eleftherios Tzellas)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Eleftherios Tzellas has resigned as head of Greek national oil company Hellenic Petroleum, due to poor results from its operations in the Balkans. The resignation comes before the sale of a 23pc stake in the company to a strategic foreign...

Sharp rise in Kazakh production. (Caspian/Central Asia).(crude oil and gas condensate)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Kazakhstan increased its crude and gas condensate production by 13.4pc in 2001 to 39.4mn t (788,000 b/d). Kazakh gas production also rose, by 3.1pc to 9.163bn [m.sup.3]. Meanwhile, Kazakh energy minister and vice-premier Vladimir Shkolnik...

Azeri crude exports rise. (Caspian/Central Asia).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Azerbaijan exported 8.37mn t (167,000 b/d) of crude in 2001, an increase of 2.9mn t on 2000. Of this, 5.87mn t was pumped by AIOC through the Baku-Supsa pipeline. In 2002, Azerbaijan plans to export 8.8mn-8.9mn t of crude, of which...

EBRD to sell Azeri oil stake. (Caspian/Central Asia).(European Bank for Reconstruction and Development)(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) has issued a tender for the sale of its 30pc stake in Azerbaijan's onshore Kursangi-Karabagly project. Estimated reserves at the block are 90mn-100mn t. The project is operated by...

Looking ahead.
January 11, 2002... * Central and Eastern European Gas Markets. 16-17 January 2002. Prague. SMI. Tel: (44 20) 7827 6110 * Gas & Power in Poland. 23-25 January 2002. Warsaw. IBC. Tel: (44 20) 7017 4027 * Russian Oil & Gas Summit. 5-6 March. London. WRA....

Mangistaumunaigaz boosts profits. (Caspian/Central Asia).(Brief Article)
January 11, 2002... Kazakh firm Mangistaumunaigaz (MMG) produced 4.39mn t (118,000 b/d)of crude in the first nine months of 2001, helping it achieve profits of over $83.3mn, double the amount achieved in 2000. MMG also spent $15mn modernising facilities at the...

RTS hits post-98 high. (Stock Markets).(Russian Trading System)(Industry Overview)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russian equities emerged extremely positively from the holiday season. Oil firms received a healthy boost by Opec's announcement of production cuts at the end of December. This spurred the Russian Trading System (RTS) to soar by 16.97pc to...

Lukoil's Baku-Ceyhan breakthrough. (News: loading schedules).(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russian oil firm Lukoil hopes to participate in construction of the 1mn b/d Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline, company president Vagit Alekperov said during a visit to Baku last month. And sources at the company claim that President Vladimir...

Warmer weather brings gasoil slump. (Products market).(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... * The market was notionally stronger as Opec production cuts sent crude futures higher, but activity was muted due to the holiday season. There were few signs of the heating oil market taking off but fuel oil supply remained tight. *...

Abundant supply keeps Urals in check. (Crude Market).(crude oil prices)(Brief Article)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... * Urals outright prices tracked Brent and surged to over $20/bl early in the new year after Opec and non-Opec producers agreed to cut world crude supply by almost 2mn b/d. But continuing weak global demand later put pressure on prices. *...

Russian crude exports.(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Crude exports from Russia, December 2001 '000t Novoro- Ode- Vent- Ger- Exporter ssiysk Tuapse ssa spils many Total exports through 2,882.2 430.0...

Russian 1Q oil exports.(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... Russia's crude export schedule outside the FSU, 1Q 2002 '000t Novoro- Tuapse Vent- Ger- Exporter ssiysk (1) spils many Poland Total Exports 9,151 ...

Netbacks.(Russian crude)(Statistical Data Included)
January 11, 2002... [GRAPHICS OMITTED] Russian crude netbacks 9 Jan Vents- Pri- Butinge Novo- pils morsk rossiysk Urals (cif-fit) ($/bl) ...