Husky Energy Inc., Calgary, has started steam operations at the 10,000-b/d Edam East heavy oil thermal project in Saskatchewan. Production is expected to begin early in the second quarter. Source: News

Malaysia’s state-run Petronas plans to reduce capital and operating expenditures by $12 billion over the next 3 years, starting with $3.6-4.8 billion in 2016. The move comes with a companywide reorganization that will result in about 1,000 redundancies. Source: News

New cuts to ultradeepwater drilling plans by Petroleo Brasileiro SA (Petrobras) aggravate strains on the Brazilian holding company Sete Brazil and on the offshore drilling industry generally, according to UBS Securities LLC. Source: News

Production drilling has commenced on the first of a total of 35 wells to be drilled during Phase 1 of the Johan Sverdrup field development offshore Norway in the North Sea, operator Statoil ASA reported. Source: News

US crude oil production in 2015 averaged 9.43 million b/d, up from 8.71 million b/d in 2014, according to data from the US Energy Information Administration. The increase in output shrunk to 722,000 b/d in 2015 from 1.25 million b/d in 2014. Source: News

The unprecedented plunge in global crude oil prices poses significant challenges for producers that previously benefited from using technologies considered unconventional, an Australian government official said. “What’s really interesting is the decline in exploration expenditures—around 20% in 2015 and 20% so far in 2016,” said Josh Frydenburg, Australia’s minister for resources, energy, and northern Australia. […]

Light, sweet crude oil prices on the New York market bounced up nearly $1 to settle at $33.75/bbl on Feb. 29. Source: News

Petroleos Mexicanos (Pemex) has reduced its 2016 capital budget by 22% compared with that of 2015 to $20.8 billion. The firm says the sharp decline in crude oil prices “poses serious liquidity problems” necessitating the downward revision. Source: News

An underground natural gas pipeline’s presence does not affect residential properties’ sales prices or insurability, a study commissioned by INGAA Foundation Inc. concluded. The study by Integra Realty Resources Inc. for the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America’s foundation based the finding on analysis of property sales in Ohio, New Jersey, Virginia, and Mississippi. […]

Three US House Republicans from Mid-Atlantic coastal states asked US Interior Sec. Sally Jewell to keep all of the proposed area for an oil and gas lease sale off their states in the next 5-year US Outer Continental Shelf management program. Source: News