Duqm Refinery & Petrochemical Industries Co. LLC (DRPIC), Muscat, a joint venture of state-owned Oman Oil Co. and the United Arab Emirates’ International Petroleum Investment Co. (IPIC), has revealed its shortlist of prequalified tenderers selected to bid on design and construction of a grassroots 230,000-b/d refinery to be built in Oman’s Duqm Special Economic Zone […]

The Henry Hub natural gas spot price of $1.93/MMbtu in December 2015 marked the lowest monthly average since March 1999. However, US gas prices are expected to rise over next 2 years, reflecting consumption growth, mainly from the industrial sector, that outpaces near-term production growth. Source: News

Light, sweet crude oil prices soared by more than $2/bbl on the New York market Jan. 22, settling at $32.19 for March delivery while Brent crude oil prices climbed by nearly $3/bbl on the London market to settle at $32.18/bbl. Source: News

The US Department of the Interior’s Jan. 15 announcement that it will not issue new leases while it reexamines its coal program may have made oil and gas producers wonder if the federal onshore program for those resources might be next. Source: News

Attacks on energy facilities on Libya’s coast indicate a “severe and rising threat” and raise prospects for further disruptions to oil supply, warns a risk analyst at JLT Specialty, London. Source: News

Equity markets have joined crude oil in alarming contraction. Crude prices began their descent in the middle of 2014, flirted with recovery during March-May last year, then foundered, and now sink. Source: News

During the past 18 months, this editor has worked to become more knowledgeable about induced seismicity as it relates to earthquake swarms. A swarm involves numerous earthquakes happening in a local area in a relatively short period although a swarm’s duration can vary from days to weeks. Source: News

With arguments crumbling for governmental support of ethanol, politicians have joined lobbyists to slay the “big-oil” dragon. Source: News

Gas-directed rigs represented most of the decline in the US rig count for the second consecutive week, giving up 8 of the 13 total units to go offline during the week ended Jan. 22, according to Baker Hughes Inc. data. Source: News

The US Department of the Interior proposed regulations aimed at reducing methane emissions from oil and gas operations on public and tribal lands. Three leading industry associations immediately said the proposed rules are unnecessary because operators already are curbing methane releases voluntarily. Source: News