API says Biden’s infrastructure plan jeopardizes U.S. energy jobs

The American Petroleum Institute's senior vice president for policy, economic and regulatory affairs Frank Macchiarola says the White House's $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan jeopardizes both union and non-union jobs in the U.S. energy sector. More »

CGG wins three new offshore imaging projects for BP

CGG has been awarded three major seismic imaging projects by BP, two from the deepwater Gulf of Mexico and one from offshore Trinidad and Tobago. These projects will start in Q1/Q2 this year and complete with cloud delivery of the data no later than Q4 of 2021. More »

OPEC cuts global oil demand estimates ahead of production decision

The revision, which mainly affects the next few months, follows a recommendation from OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo that the coalition should remain very cautious. More »

$80 billion for Amtrak? The ambitious scope of Biden’s infrastructure plan

The $2.25 trillion, eight-year proposal is a follow-up to the $1.9 trillion economic relief bill passed earlier this month. To cover the costs, Biden wants to raise corporate taxes to 28% from 21%. The plan also seeks a minimum tax on profits U.S. corporations earn overseas, increasing the rate to 21% from roughly 13%. More »

Biden’s $2.25 trillion infrastructure plan to focus on green energy and decarbonization

The president’s plans, part of a $2.25 trillion infrastructure and stimulus blueprint he is set to unveil in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, are meant to catalyze investments in a clean energy economy and encourage low-emission technology necessary to constrain global warming. More »

Biden’s $2 trillion infrastructure plan to focus on green energy sources

The president’s plans, part of a $2.25 trillion infrastructure and stimulus blueprint he is set to unveil in Pittsburgh on Wednesday, are meant to catalyze investments in a clean energy economy and encourage low-emission technology necessary to constrain global warming. More »

Texas moves to block California-style natural gas ban in homes and businesses

Texas moved to stop the city of Austin and others from imposing a California-style ban on natural gas in new homes and buildings, the latest salvo in the gas industry’s bid to protect itself from local climate regulations. More »

Oil trader Gunvor sees crude stuck around $65 as stock drawdown slows

The head of oil trader Gunvor Group Ltd. expects prices to remain stuck where they are as draws of excess stocks slow amid rising coronavirus cases in Europe. More »

Dozens killed in Islamic State raid near Total Mozambique LNG project

It’s the latest in a series of incidents that are undermining the southern African country’s hopes of developing some of the continent’s biggest private investment projects. As much as $120 billion of investments by Total, Exxon Mobil Corp. and other companies may be approved by 2026, according to Standard Bank Group Ltd. More »

Oil prices slip below $61 on rising dollar and upcoming OPEC meeting

Oil is poised to close out a fourth quarterly advance on Wednesday, but the past week has seen volatility climb amid the Suez Canal blockage. While fuel consumption is rising in many parts of the world, risks remain, with the head of the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention warning of “impending doom” as cases and deaths in the country pick up. More »

OPEC members foresee little change in oil output targets on April 1

The coalition led by Saudi Arabia was widely criticized three weeks ago when it rebuffed calls to revive some of the crude production halted during the pandemic. As OPEC prepares for another decision on oil output, the producers believe their defiantly cautious approach is paying off. More »

NexTier successfully field tests NOV electric frac system

The field test, completed on behalf of a major operator, was comprised of more than 300 operating hours with an average of more than 18 pumping hours per day, including the completion of 172 stimulation stages at rates up to 22 barrels per minute. More »

Baker Hughes exclusively licenses carbon capture tech from SRI International

In an agreement that further expands and complements Baker Hughes CCUS technology portfolio offering to strategically position for new energy frontiers, the Mixed Salt Process technology enables significant carbon capture separation cost reductions, providing cost savings for energy and industrial operators to decarbonize operations. More »

Suez Canal reopens as Ever Given freed from canal bank

The Ever Given is now fully afloat, the Suez Canal Authority said in a statement. Tug boats hauled the giant vessel away from the side of the waterway, where it had been lodged since last Tuesday. More »

Weatherford moves to relist its shares on NASDAQ

Girish Saligram, Weathrford's President and CEO said "We believe this is the right time in our reemergence to relist on the NASDAQ stock exchange and that doing so will enhance long-term shareholder value by improving the Company's visibility, expanding liquidity in our ordinary shares, and providing a broader institutional investor base the opportunity to invest in the new Weatherford." More »

KCA Deutag lines up $110MM of land drilling projects across the Eastern hemisphere

KCA Deutag has secured contracts worth around $110 million for its land drilling business in Pakistan, Russia, Kurdistan, south-eastern Europe and Germany. The new business is made up of a mix of contract wins, allowing the company to mobilize stacked rigs, and contract extensions. More »

Rebel attack leads Total to evacuate Mozambique LNG staff

Total SE is evacuating most of the remaining employees from its liquefied natural gas project in northern Mozambique as insurgents attacked a town nearby, throwing Africa’s biggest private investment into disarray. More »

China inks 25-year oil investment deal with Iran, straining U.S. ties

Beijing plans to invest in Iran while buying oil from the Islamic Republic, further straining its relationship with the U.S. which has already been frayed by China’s imports of covertly-shipped Iranian crude. More »

New Mexico slashes routine gas flaring allowances

The three-member New Mexico Oil Conservation Commission voted unanimously for rules that are set to go into effect as early as May. Oil companies, gas processing plants and pipeline operators will have until 2026 to get their gas emissions down to 2% of production. More »

Iraq and Total mull $7 billion oil and gas infrastructure deal

Iraq is discussing a deal with Total SE to build large infrastructure installations, develop oil fields and produce gas, Oil Minister Ihsan Abdul Jabbar told Asharq News, saying “the agreement is giant, and the volume of the investment exceeds $7 billion.” More »

Abu Dhabi wants its Murban crude to benchmark Middle East oil prices

On March 29th, when Abu Dhabi begins selling futures contracts for its oil and then shipping the barrels from Fujairah, it will mark an aggressive shift by the emirate. It hopes to change the way nearly one-fifth of the world’s crude is priced. More »

BP board wants shareholders to vote against Paris Agreement climate resolution

BP’s board urged shareholders to reject a climate resolution filed by Dutch activist investor Follow This, despite pledging to work with the group last year to draft such a proposal. More »

Mexico’s president pushes nationalist agenda after Texas gas disruption

AMLO has turned the Texas freeze crisis into a rallying cry for more energy independence, weaponizing it to advance a nationalist agenda that has implications beyond natural gas imports and threatens tens of billions of dollars of investments in renewable energy by U.S., Canadian and European energy companies. More »

After talks of peace, Yemen rebels claim more Saudi Aramco attacks

Yemen’s Houthis said they attacked several of Saudi Aramco’s facilities with drones and ballistic missiles on Friday, the latest in a spate of strikes on Saudi Arabia’s oil infrastructure. More »

PetroChina’s $37B capex budget makes it the world’s most active oil company

China’s quick recovery from Covid-19 means that its demand for oil and gas has fully recovered from the pandemic-induced swoon of early 2020, and President Xi Jinping continues to make energy security a top priority. More »

U.S. shale patch gets back to work as unfinished well inventory falls

The backlog of drilled but uncompleted shale wells called DUCs is rapidly shrinking as oil prices rise, signaling that producers are ready to put drilling crews back to work as the industry rebounds from its pandemic-driven downturn. More »

Yemen’s rebels are ready for peace with Saudis, with a few conditions

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels are ready for an “honorable peace” but Saudi Arabia must end its attacks and lift its siege, group leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said on Thursday. More »

Kuwait’s state oil company plans multi-billion loans to cover funding shortfall

The borrowing plan underscores how badly Persian Gulf countries were impacted by the drop in crude prices last year as the coronavirus pandemic spread and energy demand plunged. More »

Canada’s top court upholds Trudeau’s carbon tax plan, codifying his green agenda

The decision means Canada's most ambitious environmental policy to date, which would see the baseline price on carbon rise to C$170 ($135) per metric ton by 2030, will stand. More »

Tenaris adds 140 staff as Conroe, Texas plant ramps up activity

Tenaris is scaling up industrial activity at its Conroe, Texas plant, adding about 140 employees onboard to support the facility’s ramp up, which includes a $600,000 investment in IT and automation infrastructure. More »

Noble Corp to acquire Pacific Drilling in all-stock deal

Noble Corporation and Pacific Drilling Company have entered into a definitive merger agreement under which Noble will acquire Pacific Drilling in an all-stock transaction. More »

Oil prices retreat as Suez blockage ramps up volatility

Futures in New York slid 1.6%, the latest sizable move this week. Work to re-float the container ship that’s stuck in the Suez Canal -- a key trade route for crude flows -- was expected to begin early Thursday in Egypt. The best chance of freeing the vessel may not come until Sunday or Monday. More »

More »

It could take weeks to reopen the Suez Canal, salvage experts say

Work to re-float the Ever Given and free up oceangoing carriers hauling almost $10 billion of oil and consumer goods continued without success on Thursday in Egypt. The Suez Canal Authority has temporarily suspended traffic along the waterway. More »

Shale’s post-crash recovery battles rising costs, loss of suppliers

The oil price needed to profitably drill a new well is $52 a barrel, executives from almost 100 producers said in the latest quarterly survey by the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas. That’s an increase of 6%, compared with when the question was asked last year. To cover costs on existing wells, companies need $31, which is 3% more than last year. More »

Wyoming and 12 other states file suits against Biden’s oil lease moratorium

President Joe Biden’s Jan. 27 executive order entitled Tackling the Climate Crisis at Home and Abroad violates federal law by sidestepping honest debate on whether the “speculative” benefits of the plan outweigh the financial cost to states, Wyoming said in a complaint filed Wednesday in federal court. A similar suit was filed separately by more than a dozen states led by Louisiana. More »

Permian methane emissions return to pre-pandemic levels

Emissions from the Permian basin dropped 60% from March to April last year as oil producers shut in wells and cut back on new ones due to tumbling crude prices. But methane emissions are now back at pre-pandemic levels as drilling ramps up, according to the non-profit Environmental Defense Fund. More »

Oil prices rebound on Suez Canal blockage, positive U.S. inventory data

Futures in New York jumped 5.9% on Wednesday, just about erasing the prior session’s price plunge that pushed futures to the lowest since early February. A U.S. inventory report showed domestic fuel consumption is at the highest in four months and Gulf Coast refiners are increasing their appetite for crude. More »

Tenaris to supply line pipe for Northern Lights CO2 transportation and storage project

Equinor has awarded Tenaris the supply of tubulars for the Northern Lights CO2 transport and storage facilities in Norway. From its Dalmine mill in Italy, Tenaris will produce 105km 12” Carbon Manganese (C-Mn) seamless line pipe for the milestone project. More »

North Sea oil and gas license ban may factor into UK’s green strategy

Energy Minister Anne-Marie Trevelyan said the UK could eventually follow in the footsteps of North Sea neighbor Denmark which will stop offering new oil and gas licenses and end production by 2050. More »

UK agrees to safeguard oil and gas jobs during low-carbon shift

The UK government said it has reached an agreement with the country’s oil and gas industry that will help safeguard jobs as the nation strives to achieve net-zero emissions of greenhouse gases. More »

Equinor and partners tally 2021’s largest Norwegian oil strike thus far

Preliminary estimates place the size of the discovery in the Fram prospects between 12 and 19 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil equivalent, corresponding to 75-120 million barrels of recoverable oil equivalent. More »

Oil prices rebound on Suez Canal blockage, positive European data

Crude futures in New York added as much as 3.4% after a ship ran aground in the Suez Canal, giving the market a reprieve after prices sank to the lowest level since early February. Despite efforts to move the vessel, it could block the route for days. More »

Suez canal blockage scrambles global oil and gas movement

European and U.S. refiners that rely on the vital waterway for cargoes of Middle Eastern oil may be forced to look for replacement supplies should the blockage persist, while flows of crude from North Sea fields destined for Asia will be held up. More »

Baker Hughes and Horisont Energi team on Barents Sea carbon capture and storage project

Baker Hughes and Horisont Energi AS have signed a memorandum of understanding for the Polaris carbon storage project off the northern coast of Norway. Under the agreement, the two companies will explore the development and integration of technologies to minimize the carbon footprint, cost and delivery time of carbon capture, transport and storage (CCTS). More »

European oil demand projections slide in the face of renewed Covid pressure

The oil demand recovery in Europe, a region that accounts for about 15% of global consumption, looks set to take a fresh hit as the continent struggles to deal with another wave of coronavirus cases that could curb summer travel plans. More »

Former Glencore trader charged in global oil price manipulation scam

U.S. prosecutors alleged that Emilio Heredia, a former Glencore employee, directed buy and sell orders that would push fuel oil prices up and down. That allowed the companies he worked for to profit from the price swings, between 2012 and 2016, according to a filing at a U.S. District Court in San Francisco on March 15. More »

Oil prices slide below $58 as coronavirus lockdowns accelerate worldwide

Covid-19 cases are surging in India and threatening the economy’s recovery from a rare recession, while in Southeast Asia, demand has hit a plateau and is unlikely to reach pre-virus levels until the end of 2021 or later. More »

Enhanced Drilling partners with Transocean on new subsea kick detection system

The Enhanced Kick Detection system eliminates the external effects of rig and slip-joint motion, to give a highly accurate return volume flow measurement enabling rapid detection of flow anomalies, resulting in reduced time spent on flow-checking. More »

Oil prices dip below $61 as coronavirus cases spike in India

Covid-19 cases are surging in India and threatening the economy’s recovery from a rare recession, while in Southeast Asia, demand has hit a plateau and is unlikely to reach pre-virus levels until the end of 2021 or later. More »

Leading oil and gas CEOs fall in with Biden’s climate change campaign

Chief executives of some of the largest U.S. oil companies promised to collaborate with the Biden administration in its campaign against climate change during a meeting Monday with White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy. More »

Shale drillers rushing to refinance debt at record-low rates

It hasn’t been this cheap for U.S. shale operators to raise money on the high-yield bond market since oil was at $100 a barrel in 2014, so they’re jumping on the opportunity to refinance debt at lower rates. More »

Yemen rebels rebuff Saudi Arabia’s latest cease-fire proposal

U.S. President Joe Biden has vowed to end the conflict in Yemen, ceasing sales of offensive weapons to Saudi Arabia, removing the Houthis’ terrorist designation to facilitate the delivery of humanitarian aid, and pushing for a negotiated settlement. More »

Oil leaders to meet with Biden’s climate advisor ahead of fossil fuel crackdown

Oil and gas industry leaders are set to meet with White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy Monday afternoon, as the Biden administration prepares to crack down on greenhouse gas emissions from fossil fuels. More »

AVEVA and OSIsoft combine to drive increased digital performance for industrial organizations

The combined portfolio brings OSIsoft’s world-class data management together with AVEVA’s leading industrial software to unlock Performance Intelligence. More »

Baker Hughes pioneers flexible pipe solution to overcome stress corrosion cracking

Baker Hughes has reached a significant technology milestone in pioneering a solution to overcome flexible pipe stress corrosion cracking (SCC) tendencies in high CO2 content fields, such as those found in Brazil’s pre-salt offshore developments. More »

Aramco and Saudi navy start exercises to thwart drone and missile attacks

The exercises will enhance the security of vital installations and oil fields, and secure freedom of navigation in the region’s waters, the official Saudi Press Agency said. They will be conducted by the Royal Saudi Navy with participation from Saudi Aramco, the state oil company. More »

Upstart driller seeks to break Mexico’s dependence on Texas natural gas

An upstart driller in Mexico aims to provide 10% of the country’s natural gas needs as it develops prospects south of Texas’s border. More »

Aramco seeks Chinese partnership for carbon capture and hydrogen goals

Aramco is looking to work with China on blue hydrogen and ammonia, synthetic fuels and carbon capture utilization and storage, Nasser said at the China Development Forum in Beijing. “All of these are essential to achieving our long-term, low-carbon ambitions,” said Aramco CEO Amin Nasser. More »

Oil prices steady as investors take stock of a challenging week

Brent oil gave up some gains posted at the end of the worst week since October as the dollar strengthened and as investors assessed the near-term demand outlook. More »

Oil prices slide as investors take stock of a challenging week

Brent oil gave up some gains posted at the end of the worst week since October as the dollar strengthened and as investors assessed the near-term demand outlook. More »

Despite some turbulence, global oil demand is on the route to recovery

Even as problems with Europe’s vaccine program and a slowdown in Chinese crude buying sent futures down more than 7% on Thursday, data from around the world showed a steady, albeit patchy, recovery in demand. More »

Saudis lead airstrike on Yemen’s capital after Aramco attack

Saudi-led coalition warplanes raided the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, targeting military camps and Houthi rebel facilities near the city’s airport and in its suburbs, residents and rebel-run Al-Masirah TV said. A separate strike hit a rebel target in the port province of Hodeidah. More »

Iranian missiles used in Yemen’s latest Aramco attack, says Saudi Arabia

“All of the missiles and drones that came into Saudi are Iranian-manufactured or Iranian-supplied,” Adel Al-Jubeir, minister of state for foreign affairs, said in an interview with Arab News published Friday afternoon. “Several of them, as we’ve said, came from the north; several came from the sea.” More »

Maduro enlists foreign oil companies to help end U.S. sanctions

Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro is keen to enlist the world’s largest oil companies to help bring an end to U.S. sanctions – and with investment opportunities in the world’s largest oil and gas reserves as leverage, his plan appears to be working. More »

Navigation Powder River announces significant well result in the Powder River basin

The Jacob Federal 1-42-73-9H was completed in the Parkman Formation, with a lateral length of 4,563 feet. More »

Successful drone attack on Saudi Aramco in Riyadh claimed by Yemen rebels

Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels said Friday they attacked Saudi Aramco in the capital Riyadh using six bomb-laden drones, stepping up their offensive on Saudi Arabia’s energy and security installations. More »

Siemens Energy to supply eight topside modules and support for FPSO vessel offshore South America

Siemens Energy was awarded a topside EPC contract by MISC Berhad for eight complete topside modules that will provide sustainable, efficient, and environmentally friendly power generation, transmission, and distribution, as well as gas processing and compression aboard an FPSO that will operate offshore South America starting in 2024. More »

Oil prices post deepest weekly loss since October, yet banks remain bullish

The sell-off will prove to be “transient” and this week’s decline presents a buying opportunity amid the large rally, Goldman Sachs Group analyst Damien Courvalin said in a note. There’ll still be a swift rebalancing of the market, with vaccinations driving an increase in mobility, he said. UBS Group AG also stuck with its positive outlook for Brent. More »

Oil prices fall nearly 10% on renewed demand concerns

Futures have backtracked since Brent rallied above $71 a barrel and U.S. crude topped $67 earlier this month. China has muted its buying, touching off physical-market weakness in Asia, and a shaky Covid-19 vaccine rollout in parts of the world spells trouble for a complete demand recovery in the short term. More »

Oil prices fall more than 6% on renewed demand concerns

Futures have backtracked since Brent rallied above $71 a barrel and U.S. crude topped $67 earlier this month. China has muted its buying, touching off physical-market weakness in Asia, and a shaky Covid-19 vaccine rollout in parts of the world spells trouble for a complete demand recovery in the short term. More »

Harbour Energy to keep its stake in Mexico’s Zama oilfield

A new company soon to be created by Chrysaor Holdings Ltd and Premier Oil Plc will likely retain its stake in the giant Zama oil development in Mexico, reversing an earlier decision by the indebted North Sea driller to exit the project. More »

Ecopetrol taps Aspen Technology to accelerate its digital transformation goals

Ecopetrol has selected Aspen GDOT dynamic optimization software as part of its digitalization initiative to improve refining margins at its two refineries in Cartagena and Barrancabermeja, and upgrading to Aspen DMC3 advanced process control software in Barrancabermeja refinery. More »

TechnipFMC to develop floating offshore wind projects in partnership with Magnora

TechnipFMC has entered into an agreement with Magnora ASA to jointly pursue floating offshore wind project development opportunities under the name Magnora Offshore Wind. More »

BP reveals plans for UK’s largest blue hydrogen facility

BP announced that it is developing plans for the UK’s largest blue hydrogen production facility, targeting 1GW of hydrogen production by 2030. The project would capture and send for storage up to two million tons of CO₂ per year. More »

Petrofac secures Iraq contract extension

The facility which Petrofac will continue to manage is one of the largest in the Gulf, and handles around 55% of Iraq’s crude oil exports. More »

China’s clean-energy planners take aim at its $7B high-sulfur oil market

One of the fastest-growing corners of China’s energy market is facing a potentially devastating blow as Xi Jinping’s government increases scrutiny of high-emission fuels. More »

Wall Street’s fading oil and gas interest revealed in new shale IPO

If the first initial public offering of a U.S. shale driller in four years is any indication, Wall Street is still souring on the U.S. oil and gas patch. More »

Oil posts longest run of losses in six months as rally fades

OPEC and its partners could quickly deploy their stalled production spare capacity to quash oil price rallies, the IEA said in its monthly report. Demand won’t return to pre-virus levels until 2023, the agency said in a separate report. More »

BP fields final offers for North Sea oil and gas assets

Oil and gas producers Tailwind Energy Ltd., Serica Energy Plc, Ithaca Energy Ltd., EnQuest Plc and newcomer Waldorf Production UK Ltd. have been considering binding offers for some or all of the assets, according to people familiar with the matter. More »

Expro and FTAI Ocean form subsea well intervention alliance

Expro Group has formed an exclusive alliance with global vessel provider FTAI Ocean for the supply of the DP3 M/V Pride well intervention vessel to provide full light well intervention services to the subsea oil and gas sector. More »

UK pledges two-thirds cut in industrial CO2 pollution by 2036

The Industrial Decarbonization Strategy, published March 17, is part of the UK’s ambition to effectively eliminate greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. More »

World Petroleum Congress opens registration for December meeting in Houston

Early bird registration for the 23rd World Petroleum Congress is now open and available through April 30th. Delegates who take advantage of registering early for the Congress, to be held in Houston, U.S.A. from December 5-9, 2021, will receive a discount of over one third on the onsite price. More »

UAE mulls sale of Taqa’s oil and gas assets, focusing on power generation

Abu Dhabi National Energy Co. is considering options for its oil and gas assets, including a potential sale, as the state-owned utility focuses more on power generation, people familiar with the matter said. More »

Oil shortages could follow key pipeline shutdown in Michigan, Enbridge warns

Refineries in Michigan, Ohio, Indiana, Pennsylvania as well as those in Ontario and Quebec would have to find alternative means for securing crude oil should Line 5 be shut, requiring the building of new rail terminals and rail cars, Vern Yu, Enbridge's president of liquid pipelines, told Canadian lawmakers Tuesday. More »

Despite localized growth, global oil demand won’t recover until 2023, per IEA

Global oil demand won’t return to pre-pandemic levels until 2023, and growth will be subdued thereafter amid new working habits and a shift away from fossil fuels, the International Energy Agency said. More »

Oil price retreat continues as some nations’ Covid recoveries stumble

Futures in New York slipped 0.9% on Tuesday for a third straight session of losses, following a surge earlier this month to intraday levels last seen in 2018. Though there are indications of growing demand in some parts of the world, other regions -- notably Europe -- are lagging. More »

Exxon warns activist investor’s plan threatens dividend

Exxon Mobil said in a letter to shareholders March 16th that Engine No. 1’s approach ignores the role oil and natural gas will play in the future, and the leadership role the oil giant intends to take in reducing emissions through the development of lower-carbon technologies. More »

Chevron accused of “greenwashing” by environmentalists in federal complaint

Chevron’s pledge of “ever-cleaner energy” amounts to so-called greenwashing because it hides the reality that the company’s production plans may end up increasing absolute emissions, according to a Federal Trade Commission complaint filed by Global Witness, Greenpeace USA and Earthworks. More »

Deb Haaland narrowly confirmed as U.S. Secretary of the Interior

The Senate’s 51-40 vote underscored deep opposition from Republicans who worry Haaland’s criticism of fossil fuels means she will discourage oil development across hundreds of millions of acres of federal land under the Interior Department’s control. More »

Sercel, Kappa Offshore launch 3D marine seismic system for renewable energy surveys

Sercel and Kappa Offshore Solutions introduced PIKSEL, a compact marine seismic solution specially designed for acquiring seismic data for high-resolution 3D imaging of targeted offshore areas. More »

U.S. oil demand shows staying power as fuel sales near 2019 levels

With new coronavirus infections falling to a record low last week and vaccination efforts ramping up, the latest crude demand rebound comes with a lower threat of being set back again by new outbreaks. More »

Shale’s fiscal discipline means missing out on rising oil prices

More focused than ever on keeping spending in check, shale drillers haven’t been boring new wells fast enough to keep up with output declines in older ones. So, next month, their combined production will edge lower by 47,000 barrels a day to about 7.46 million, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration. More »

New government to restore Libya’s oil and gas prominence

Libya’s back in the oil game after years of false starts and setbacks. Energy facilities shut or damaged during its civil war were reopened last year and the OPEC member has managed to keep its production above 1 million barrels a day since November. More »

Wärtsilä to supply and maintain two major interconnected energy storage systems for Texas grid services

The Madero and Ignacio energy storage plants will deliver valuable grid support to the Electric Reliability Council of Texas (ERCOT), the body responsible for managing the electric supply to more than 25 million customers. More »

Brent crude holds above $69 on mounting coronavirus recovery data

Figures from China for the first two months of the year showed a surge in industrial output, underscoring the strength of its V-shaped rebound and reinforcing expectations for increased energy demand. More »

Russia’s carbon-dependent economy challenges a clean energy shift

Seen from Moscow, the melting of the polar ice cap is as much economic opportunity as natural disaster, opening the Northern Sea Route from Asia to Europe for shipping and creating access to potentially vast new reserves of minerals, oil and gas. More »

Pemex discovers new billion-barrel oil field in Tabasco

Pemex is under pressure to prove that the company is increasing production under the government of President Andres Manuel Lopez Obrador, who swept into power in late 2018, promising to revive it by rolling back the liberalizing energy reforms of his predecessor. More »

Asian oil demand plateaus, slowing crude price growth

“Going forward into April and May, we’re going to see pretty significant increases in demand,” said Bart Melek, head of commodity strategy at TD Securities. “At this point, however, prices are a little overdone. The market is assuming a little too much in terms of what OPEC+ will do.” More »

Asia’s LNG demand upends global gas pricing models

Asia’s emergence as global natural gas trading superpower will increasingly dictate market rates in Europe for a once-localized commodity that was simply linked to the price of oil. More »

Carl Icahn to cut Oxy stake, remain on board of directors

Billionaire investor Carl Icahn, the third-largest shareholder in Occidental Petroleum Corp., plans to cut his $2.71 billion stake by up to one-third while remaining on the oil company’s board. More »

UK considering ban on North Sea drilling permits, reports Telegraph

Britain is considering options that include ending permits in 2040, and an immediate temporary pause in licensing, the UK newspaper Telegraph reported. More »

Newfoundland and Labrador Oil and Gas Industries Association remembers Flight 491

Twelve years ago on Friday, March 12th, the Canadian province of Newfoundland and Labrador experienced the tragic loss of 17 people when Flight 491 crashed in the waters off the coast. More »

U.S. shale prioritizing debt over drilling, just as OPEC predicted

A round-up of data on shale drillers shows they’re sticking to their pledge to cut costs, return money to shareholders and reduce debt. If they stay the course, it would validate the OPEC+ alliance’s high-stakes wager that it can curb output and drive crude prices higher without unleashing an onslaught of supply from U.S. rivals. More »

Oil prices level near $70 on mixed demand outlook

The oil demand picture remains uneven across various regions, with Indian fuel sales falling in February amid higher pump prices, while demand is climbing in America and the UK. More »

Sercel equips 3D mega-crew seismic survey in North Africa

The crew is operating with an 80,000-channel 508XT land acquisition system, with QuietSeis digital sensors and ten Nomad 90 Neo broadband vibrators in challenging desert terrain. More »

China buying record volumes of Iran’s sanction-discounted crude

Chinese imports of Iranian crude will hit 856,000 barrels a day in March, the most in almost two years and up 129% from last month, said Kevin Wright, a Singapore-based analyst with Kpler. More »

Oilfield service providers Expro Group and Frank’s International combine in all-stock deal

Expro Group and Frank's International announced a definitive agreement under which the companies will combine in an all-stock transaction. Upon the closing of the transaction, Expro shareholders will own approximately 65% of the combined entity, with Frank's shareholders owning approximately 35%. More »

Total and Microsoft partner to drive digital innovation and net zero goals

Total and Microsoft have agreed to collaborate as strategic partners to further digital transformation and support progress toward net-zero emissions. More »

OPEC slashes its Q2 global oil demand forecast

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries trimmed estimates for the amount of crude it will need to pump in the second quarter by 690,000 barrels a day, amid a weaker picture for demand and stronger growth in rival supply. More »

BP walks on three new Kazakhstan projects to focus on renewables

Last year BP said it would restructure the company to focus on cleaner energy and shrink its hydrocarbon business by 40% over the coming decade. Since announcing its strategy shift, the major has sold a string of oil and gas assets while making big investments in offshore wind. More »

Oil prices pass $65 on rising gasoline demand, falling U.S. dollar

Futures in New York climbed above $65 a barrel, while the U.S. currency was trading lower. Gasoline inventories have declined more than 25 million barrels in the last two weeks, while a measure for consumption expanded last week to the highest level since November. More »

OPEC’s plan will reduce global crude stocks and revive U.S. shale drilling, says EIA

The sustained OPEC+ production curtailment through April suggests that supply will remain constrained in the near term, even as demand continues to increase. As a result, the U.S. Energy Information Administration expects that further inventory withdrawals to meet rising crude oil demand will support crude oil prices through at least the end of April. More »

Oil rally spurs ConocoPhillips to resume stock buybacks

The U.S. company is buying back stock at an annualized rate of $1.5 billion, it said Tuesday in a statement. That’s an increase of 50% compared with the pace of repurchases in the fourth quarter, the point at which the program was suspended in the wake of Conoco’s acquisition of rival producer Concho Resources Inc. More »

Oil prices hover near $64 as crude inventories climb

Oil production across American shale patches next year is expected to climb as producers take advantage of a price recovery, according to a government report. More »

ADNOC and Petronas ink upstream and downstream tech collaboration deal

The first-ever agreement between both companies builds on the strong bilateral ties between the United Arab Emirates and Malaysia and underscores ADNOC’s expanded approach to strategic partnerships that is enabling it to unlock and maximize value across its entire portfolio as it delivers its 2030 strategy. More »

SPE/IADC keynote: Driving change toward a digital, low- carbon future

“We understand the industry is under political pressure from office-holding authorities and special interest groups, who want us to slow down on oil and gas activities, or change focus entirely to renewables. We cannot ignore this pressure, or the serious threat of climate change," said Equinor’s Executive Vice President, Technology, Arne Sigve Nylund. More »

Tullow Oil leverages rising oil prices to speed debt repayment

Tullow’s shares have jumped more than 80% this year as the company starts to turn its back on a tough period of drilling setbacks, management departures, collapsing prices and mounting borrowings. More »

Fugro performs geophysical surveys offshore Suriname for Petronas

The work for Petronas Suriname is being conducted from the survey vessel MV Fugro Brasilis and involves geophysical data collection, heat flow measurements, core sampling and onboard geochemical analyses, which aim to optimize future exploration activities in this frontier area. More »

Sparrows Group secures five-year US deal with major operator

The seven-figure deal will see Sparrows’ Houston team deliver crane inspection, maintenance, testing and repair services at two onshore facilities and a platform in the Gulf of Mexico. More »

Equinor logs new oil find near existing Barents Sea fields

Equinor and partners Vår Energi and Petoro have struck oil in exploration well 7220/7-4 in production license 532 in the Barents Sea. Recoverable resources are so far estimated at between 5 and 8 million standard cubic meters of recoverable oil, corresponding to 31 – 50 million barrels of recoverable oil. More »

India searches for new energy sources as global oil prices rise

Saudi Arabia’s push to restrain oil supply to buoy prices is spurring India to speed up plans to diversify its crude sources and pursue alternative energy, the chairman of one of the nation’s biggest refiners said. More »

Oil prices stall as overheated crude rally leads to profit-taking

Futures in New York slipped below $65 a barrel on Tuesday in choppy trading after surging to the highest since 2018 on Monday. OECD forecasts for this year and next suggest some European economies won’t make up lost GDP in 2022. More »

Biden’s pick for Interior delayed over oil and gas opposition

The move by senators Steve Daines of Montana and Cynthia Lummis of Wyoming underscores deep opposition from many Senate Republicans over the Biden administration’s plans for managing the nation’s federal lands and waters. More »

Brent crude premium climbs as North Sea field maintenance cuts flow

Heavy maintenance work on North Sea oil fields in the coming months is helping to erode the flow of crude to Asia from some suppliers in the Atlantic basin as a key price spread between the two regions balloons. More »

India searches for new crude sources as global oil prices rise

Saudi Arabia’s push to restrain oil supply to buoy prices is spurring India to speed up plans to diversify its crude sources and pursue alternative energy, the chairman of one of the nation’s biggest refiners said. More »

Shell signs $926MM deal to sell Egyptian onshore assets to Cairn Energy

The deal consists of Shell’s interest in 13 onshore concessions and in Badr El-Din Petroleum Co. The U.K.’s Cairn, together with Cairo-based Cheiron Petroleum Corp., will buy the assets for $646 million and make additional payments of as much as $280 million by 2024, “contingent on the oil price and the results of further exploration." More »

Strengthening U.S. dollar slows oil price rally

Oil fell the most in a week as the dollar strengthened and investors shrugged off an attack on the world’s largest crude terminal in Saudi Arabia. More »

Oil price settles near $70 as traders shrug off Saudi terminal attack

Futures in London earlier surged above $71 a barrel, the highest since January 2020, before retreating to trade little changed. The assault on a storage tank farm at Ras Tanura on Sunday was intercepted, Saudi Arabia said, and oil output appeared to be unaffected. More »

Saudis raise U.S. and Asian crude prices for April delivery

The world’s biggest crude exporter is boosting April pricing for crude exports eastwards to the highest levels since just before the Saudis unleashed a brief price and supply war a year ago. More »

Saudi-led coalition faults Biden’s Yemen policy shift for refinery attack

Yemen's Houthi rebels have stepped up assaults on Saudi Arabia and last week claimed they hit a Saudi Aramco fuel depot in Jeddah with a cruise missile. It wasn’t clear how much damage had been caused. While such assaults rarely result in extensive damage, their frequency has created unease in the Gulf. More »

Rebel attack on world’s largest crude terminal sends oil prices surging

Saudi Arabia said a storage tank at Ras Tanura in the country’s Gulf coast was attacked on Sunday by a drone from the sea. The terminal is capable of exporting roughly 6.5 million barrels a day -- nearly 7% of oil demand -- and as such one of the world’s most protected installations. More »

Republicans leverage Biden’s CIA pick to add Nord Stream 2 pressure

Senator Ted Cruz is delaying William Burns’s confirmation as CIA director to demand that the Biden administration do more to halt the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline, as Republicans seek to ramp up pressure now that construction has resumed. More »

Crude prices achieve budget-balancing levels for Middle East economies

Brent crude now trades above fiscal breakeven prices for the four biggest oil producers in the Middle East after Saudi Arabia convinced fellow OPEC+ members to keep output largely unchanged. More »

Oil prices vault towards $70 as the OPEC-fueled crude rally continues

Oil rallied toward $70 a barrel after OPEC+ chose not to relax supply curbs even as the global economy pulls out of its pandemic-driven slump, confounding widespread expectations the group would loosen the taps. More »

Saudi Arabia takes steps to lead the $700B global hydrogen market

Hydrogen is morphing from a niche power source — used in zeppelins, rockets and nuclear weapons — into big business, with the European Union alone committing $500 billion to scale up its infrastructure. More »

Oilfield workforce shrinks in 2021, giving up all last year’s gains

The companies that frac wells and make the equipment necessary to produce oil cut an estimated 12,321 jobs over a three-month stretch ending in February, according to an analysis of labor market data by the industry-funded Energy Workforce and Technology Council. More »

Canada idles oil sands as OPEC calls for greater unity among producers

The supply cuts out of Northern Alberta, following a surprise OPEC+ decision to not increase output next month, could add more support to the recent rally in crude prices. OPEC+ had been debating whether to restore as much as 1.5 million barrels a day of output in April but decided to wait. More »

Analyst roundup: What leading banks see coming from OPEC’s move

The surprise move by OPEC+ to maintain oil supply restrictions through April, coupled with Saudi Arabia’s decision to extend voluntary curbs, has stunned the global energy market. Prices surged again on Friday, with West Texas Intermediate topping $65 a barrel, and Brent climbing above $68. More »

Exxon’s CEO sees golden opportunities in carbon capture

Providing more detail on Exxon’s recently-announced efforts to commercialize low-carbon technologies, CEO Darren Woods stressed that partnering with outside investors would be a key objective of. It would also mean Exxon would not need to fund large projects solely with its own cash. More »

Oil prices surge past recent highs on OPEC’s crude production decision

Oil surged to the highest in nearly two years after the OPEC+ alliance surprised traders with its decision to keep output unchanged, signaling a tighter crude market in the months ahead. More »

OPEC shocks oil markets with plan to keep crude output constrained

Saudi Arabia and its OPEC+ allies stunned the oil market with a decision to keep supply in check, sending prices surging and adding inflationary pressure to the global economy as it emerges from the pandemic. More »

Schlumberger New Energy, Chevron, and Microsoft collaborate on carbon negative bioenergy

Schlumberger New Energy, Chevron Corporation, Microsoft and Clean Energy Systems announced plans to develop a ground-breaking bioenergy with carbon capture and sequestration (BECCS) project designed to produce carbon negative power in Mendota, California. More »

Lower-paying labor awaits oil and gas crews in the green energy transition

While the Biden administration promises to create millions of jobs on the march to carbon-neutral energy, the work that will be created won't look, or pay, like that with which oil and gas crews are accustomed. More »

CERAWeek Day 3: New U.S. Energy Secretary outlines green agenda

Secretary Granholm proposed a progressive agenda for energy research and innovation, to help the Biden Administration achieve net zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, and carbon/pollution-free energy generation by 2035. More »

Carbon taxes must be six times higher to stop global warming, says Wood Mackenzie

To stop global temperatures from rising above 1.5 degree Celsius from pre-industrial levels, carbon prices must surge to $160 per ton of CO2 by 2030, up from a global average of $22 at the end of last year, Wood Mackenzie said in a report. More »

U.S. energy secretary to Big Oil: Join the green transition or be left behind

Jennifer Granholm used her first speech as U.S. Energy Secretary to warn oil and gas companies they risk being left behind unless they embrace a transition to cleaner sources of energy, while also offering them an opportunity to partner with the new administration. More »

Israel calls oil spill an act of ‘environmental terrorism’ by Iran

A Libyan ship that sailed from Iran dumped oil into the sea off the coast of Israel in early February, Israel's Minister of Environmental Protection Gila Gamliel told reporters on Wednesday. More »

ADNOC says low carbon oil will play a central role in the energy transition

Speaking at CERAWeek, H.E. Dr. Al Jaber says the UAE has been preparing for the energy transition for over 15 years and views it as an opportunity to diversify its economy. ADNOC has stated that it will reduce its carbon intensity by a further 25% by 2030. More »

Oil prices climb as OPEC puts further supply cuts on the table

This year's oil rally has paved the way for the alliance to unleash some barrels, with OPEC Secretary-General Mohammad Barkindo saying on Tuesday that both the wider economic outlook and oil-market fundamentals continue to improve. More »

OPEC looks to slow rallying oil prices by adding more crude to global markets

While the usual differences between Russia and Saudi Arabia are present, all sides are ready to increase production, putting OPEC on track to implement the majority of the 1.5 million barrels per day output increase that’s up for debate on Thursday. More »

CERAWeek Day 2: Saudi Aramco and Chevron see better days ahead

The leaders of Saudi Aramco and Chevron see the market for oil and gas improving this year, with some momentum in the back half. But that outlook is tempered by the fact that the pandemic has forced some changes to the way that business is conducted. More »

John Kerry touts opportunities for oil and gas companies in a hydrogen-powered future

While most hydrogen is currently extracted from gas, there’s a push to use renewable energy to make the fuel from water, which wouldn’t generate carbon emissions. Oil and gas companies have “incredible infrastructure” to transport hydrogen, Kerry said. More »

New U.S. sanctions on traders choke Venezuela’s oil exports

In mid-January the U.S. blacklisted Maltese trading company Elemento Limited and Geneva-based Swissoil Trading SA for facilitating Maduro’s attempts to circumvent U.S. sanctions. More »

API considers backing a government-imposed carbon pricing program

The Chamber of Commerce embraced market-based policies to limit emissions in January, and several of API’s largest members, including Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, BP and Royal Dutch Shell already support a carbon tax-and-rebate plan. More »

Baker Hughes and Akastor ASA form global offshore drilling joint venture

Baker Hughes and Akastor ASA have announced an agreement to create a joint venture company that will bring together Baker Hughes’ Subsea Drilling Systems business with Akastor’s wholly owned subsidiary, MHWirth AS. More »

Oceaneering lands integrated rig services contract in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico

The work scope includes the provision of remotely operated vehicles with collocated ROV tooling and technicians, remote positioning and metrology survey resources, and installation and workover control system equipment and technicians. More »

India presses OPEC to drop “artificial cuts” that boost oil prices

It’s not the first time India, one of the biggest buyers of the producer group’s crude, has urged the Organization of Exporting Petroleum Countries and its partners to pump more oil. More »

OPEC output plunged in February as Saudis held to cutback pledge

OPEC and its allies have been constricting oil supplies since the pandemic crushed demand almost a year ago. To disperse the lingering stockpile surplus, the Saudis pledged extra crude reductions during February and March. More »

CERAWeek Day 1: Operators' novel approaches to adapt upstream business models

With the “Evolution of the Upstream Business Model” panel, CERAWeek explored the significant variations in the ways major oil and gas firms are approaching the changing landscape of the energy transition. More »

Abu Dhabi’s de facto ruler consolidates control over ADNOC

Abu Dhabi’s de facto ruler, Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Zayed, has cemented his control over the emirate’s state energy company by becoming chairman of a newly-established board of directors. More »

Eni Angola grants Fugro multiple offshore geotechnical surveys

Fugro has been awarded multiple contracts by Eni Angola to carry out geotechnical and environmental surveys off the coast of Angola between now and May, and two Fugro vessels from their world’s largest fleet of specialist geotechnical and geophysical vessels are currently active in the region. More »

Neptune Energy commences Dugong appraisal drilling in the North Sea

The Neptune-operated Dugong discovery, in Production License 882, was one of the largest discoveries on the Norwegian Continental Shelf in 2020. Neptune estimates recoverable resources to be between 40 - 120 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe). More »

Privately-held shale drillers poised to create headaches for OPEC

While oil majors and publicly-traded counterparts are mostly sticking to the mantra of drilling discipline, private operators’ ambitious growth plans present the OPEC cartel with a wild card as prices rebound and it attempts to boost its own oil production. More »

Oil prices rebound ahead of key OPEC output discussion

The alliance gathers on Thursday and is expected to loosen the taps after prices got off to their best ever start to a year. But it’s unclear how robustly the group will act, with the Saudi Arabian energy minister calling for producers to remain “extremely cautious.” More »