India’s second round of bidding on licenses encompassing discovered small fields attracted 145 bids for 24 of the 25 blocks on offer. Vedanta Ltd. submitted the most bids by a single company, 21. Source: News
ConocoPhillips reports 4Q, full-year earnings gains
ConocoPhillips reported fourth-quarter 2018 earnings of $1.9 billion compared with fourth-quarter 2017 earnings of $1.6 billion. Excluding special items, fourth-quarter 2018 adjusted earnings were $1.3 billion compared with fourth-quarter 2017 adjusted earnings of $500 million. Source: News
Rystad Energy: ExxonMobil leads pack of top explorers in 2018
Driven by its large investment in Guyana, ExxonMobil Corp. is leader of the pack among the top oil and gas explorers of 2018, according to Rystad Energy’s annual exploration review. “ExxonMobil was exceptional, both in terms of discovered volumes and value creation from exploration,” said Espen Erlingsen, Rystad Energy head of upstream research. Source: News
Chevron inks deal to buy Petrobras’s Pasadena refinery, assets
Chevron Corp. subsidiary Chevron USA Inc. has signed a share purchase agreement with Petroleo Brasileiro SA subsidiary Petrobras America Inc. to acquire all outstanding shares and equity interests of Pasadena Refining System Inc., which includes the refinery in Pasadena, Tex., and PRSI Trading LLC for $350 million, excluding working capital. Source: News
ExxonMobil lets contract for Beaumont refinery expansion
ExxonMobil Corp. has let a contract to TechnipFMC PLC to provide detailed engineering, procurement, and construction for the operator’s recently approved project to expand refining capacity by more than 65% at its 366,000-b/d integrated refining complex in Beaumont, Tex. Source: News
Bill to repeal foreign tax credit introduced in US House
US House Rep. Julia Brownley (D-Calif.) has introduced a bill that would repeal the foreign tax credit, a provision US multinational oil companies consider essential for them to compete with overseas enterprises that receive government subsidies. Source: News
IHS Markit: Sanctions to push Venezuelan output below 1 million b/d
New US sanctions against Venezuela’s national oil company Petroleos de Venezuela SA (PDVSA) could push the South American country’s crude oil production to a 700,000-900,000 b/d range for 2019, IHS Markit said in a Jan. 30 report. “It is uncertain how much of the 500,000–600,000 b/d of US imports will be absorbed by other buyers […]
MARKET WATCH: NYMEX crude oil settles above $54/bbl
Light, sweet crude oil for March delivery rose nearly $1 to settle above $54/bbl on Jan. 30 as analysts continue to monitor political struggles in Venezuela. A weekly US government inventory report showed US gasoline supplies fell for the first time in 9 weeks. Source: News
PSAC lowers outlook for Canadian drilling by 15%
Deteriorating investor confidence “weighs heavily” on the drilling industry in Canada, according to the Petroleum Services Association of Canada (PSAC). In the first update of its 2019 drilling forecast, the trade group lowered its forecast for wells drilled, which it measures as rigs released, to 5,600 from 6,600 in the November 2018 revision—a 15% decline. […]
Magellan, Navigator extend open season for Voyager crude line
Magellan Midstream Partners LP and Navigator Energy Services have extended the open season to solicit transportation commitments for the Voyager pipeline to transport various grades of light crude oil and condensate from Cushing, Okla., to Houston. Source: News