US House bills aim to thwart Trump administration’s offshore agenda

Preserving coastal US states and communities’ vibrant recreation and commercial fishing economies is more important than increasing US offshore oil and gas exploration and development, sponsors of three bills and witnesses told a House Natural Resources Committee subcommittee on Apr. 2. Source: News


Equinor 36/1-3 wildcat off Norway is dry

The Equinor 36/1-3 wildcat on production license 885 in the Northern North Sea was dry, reports partner Cairn Energy PLC. The Transocean Spitsbergen semisubmersible drilled the well to 2,873 m below sea surface in 230 m of water 15 km east of a gas discovery designated Agat and 55 km northwest of Floro. Source: […]


Chariot Oil & Gas adds acreage off Morocco

Chariot Oil & Gas Holdings (Morocco) plans to reprocess 1,425-sq-km of 3D seismic data and assess development and exploratory potential of the Lixus license offshore Morocco. The subsidiary of Chariot Oil & Gas has been awarded the license and designated operator with a 75% interest, in partnership with the National Office of Hydrocarbons and Mines, […]


MARKET WATCH: Oil prices gain on OPEC cuts, Venezuelan disruption woes

Light, sweet crude oil prices on the New York market gained on Apr. 2, with both May and June contracts closing close to $1/bbl higher. Brent prices in London also rose for June and July contracts. The increases mark record 2019 highs for the second day in a row as concerns continue over cuts by […]


Global LNG trade sets record; US Gulf Coast to lead future supply

Global LNG trade occurred at record volumes for the fifth consecutive year, reaching 316.6 million tonnes, according to the International Gas Union’s (IGU) 2019 World LNG Report. This marks an increase of 28.2 million tonnes (9.8%), from 2017, the third-largest annual increase ever behind only 2010 and 2017. Source: News


Rystad Energy: E&P firms, awash in cash, could gain more

The world’s publicly listed oil and gas exploration and production companies are bringing in cash at the best rate ever witnessed, even though oil prices have only partially recovered from the huge drop suffered in 2014 and 2015, according to Rystad Energy. Source: News


PNG-LNG project signs another midterm sales deal

The ExxonMobil Corp.-led PNG-LNG project in Papua New Guinea has made a midterm LNG sale agreement with Unipec Singapore Pte. Ltd. for the supply of about 450,000 tonnes/year of LNG over 4 years starting this month. Unipec is a wholly owned subsidiary of Sinopec, one of PNG-LNG’s original long-term customers. Source: News


Noble Energy sanctions Alen gas development project

Noble Energy Inc. has sanctioned the Alen natural gas development project offshore Equatorial Guinea with the start of production expected in first-half 2021. Gas will be processed through Alba Plant LLC’s liquefied petroleum gas plant and EGLNG’s LNG plant at Punta Europa, Bioko Island—both onshore and Marathon Oil-operated. Source: News


Sinopec starts up composite ionic liquid alkylation unit

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (Sinopec) has started up a revamped unit now based on composite ionic liquid (IL) alkylation technology at subsidiary Sinopec Jiujiang Co.’s 161,000-b/d refinery in Jiujiang City, Jiangxi Province, China. Source: News


ExxonMobil reaches FID for expansion of Singapore integrated complex

ExxonMobil Corp. has taken a final investment decision on a multibillion-dollar expansion to convert fuel oil and other bottom-of-the-barrel crude products into higher-value lube base stocks and distillates at subsidiary ExxonMobil Asia Pacific Pte. Ltd.’s integrated manufacturing complex in Singapore, which has a crude oil processing capacity of 592,000 b/d and includes two steam crackers. […]