Light, sweet crude prices gained more than $1.50/bbl on the New York market May 11, setting a new high settlement for 2016 at $46.23/bbl, which analysts attributed to a surprise drop in the estimated weekly crude oil inventory. Source: News

Citing a “challenging commercial landscape,” Sterling Energy PLC’s subsidiary Sterling Energy (UK) Ltd. announced its withdrawal from the Ambilobe block offshore Madagascar in April. The company also relinquished its operatorship, giving Pura Vida Energy 100% ownership of the block. Source: News

Linn Energy LLC, Houston, filed voluntary petitions on May 11 for restructuring under Chapter 11 of the bankruptcy code in the US Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Texas. The firm says it expects its operations to continue as usual throughout the process. Source: News

The US Senate approved legislation to improve emergency first responders’ capacity to act following accidents involving rail shipments of crude oil and other hazardous materials. S. 546, which US Sen. Heidi Heitkamp (D-ND) introduced in February 2015, was referred to the US House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee for further action on May 10. Source: […]

Oil’s share of the global energy market will decline but remain dominant through 2040 as natural gas becomes the fastest-growing fossil fuel, predicts the US Energy Information Administration. Source: News

Alberta’s wildfires have created havoc, but Alberta Energy Regulator said on May 10 it had no reports of damage to energy facilities. Source: News

Freeport-McMoRan Oil & Gas LLC (FMOG) and its parent company Freeport-McMoRan Inc. have agreed with drilling contractor Noble Corp. PLC to cancel contracts for the Noble Sam Croft and Noble Tom Madden drillships. Source: News

AWE Ltd., Sydney, has rejected an unsolicited $421-million (Aus.) takeover proposal from global private equity group Lone Star Fund. Source: News

ExxonMobil Corp. has restarted the fluid catalytic cracker (FCC) at its 155,000-b/d refinery in Torrance, Calif., after more than a year following a Feb. 15, 2015, explosion and ensuing fire shuttered the unit. Source: News

Whitecap Resources Inc., Calgary, has agreed to acquire certain assets in southwestern Saskatchewan from Husky Energy Inc., Calgary, for $595 million (Can.). The sale is subject to regulatory approval. Source: News