Petrobras discovers light oil in Carcará area of pre-salt Santos basin

Petrobras has announced that the drilling of the second well in Carcará area (Block BM-S-8), at Santos basin´s ultra-deep waters, confirmed the light oil potential in pre-salt’s reservoirs. ...

Oil drilling retreat in U.S. drags on for 25th straight week

Oil explorers idled rigs in U.S. fields for the 25th straight week, drawing out an unprecedented retreat in drilling that has curbed the country’s shale oil boom and helped crude prices rally. ...

Oil fund’s biggest outflow in 6 years shows rally may stall

The biggest U.S. exchange-traded fund that tracks oil is heading for the largest two-month outflow in six years, raising concern that crude’s 30% rally may stall. ...

BofA Sees 50% chance U.S. ends crude-export ban by 2017

The U.S. has a more than 50% chance of lifting the ban on most crude oil exports within the next two years, potentially narrowing the gap between domestic and international oil prices, according to Bank of America Corp. ...

WandT Offshore discovers oil, gas at Ewing Banks 910; brings Medusa SS #6 well online

WandT Offshore has announced a new discovery at Ewing Banks 910 and first production from the SS #6 well at Mississippi Canyon 538 field (Medusa), both in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico. ...

Stewart Tubular announces new manufacturing facility

Stewart Tubular Products, a manufacturer of premium threaded products for use in the global oil and gas industry, has announced an office relocation and expansion of manufacturing capacity. ...

DOE authorizes Alaska LNG exports to non-FTA countries

The Energy Department has issued a conditional authorization for the Alaska LNG Project, LLC to export domestically produced LNG to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. ...

Circle Oil names new CEO

Circle Oil, an Irish incorporated Middle East and Africa focused EandP company, has announced the appointment of Mitchell Robert Flegg as the company’s new CEO and a director of the company with effect from June 1. ...

U.S. states compete among top energy producing nations

Many individual states now rival the world’s major energy producing countries, according to a ranking published Thursday by API. ...

North Sea crudes trade at biggest discounts in six years

North Sea crudes are trading at the biggest discount to the regional benchmark in more than six years amid a surplus of cargoes. ...

Libya seconds OPEC output target as ministers head to Vienna

OPEC will maintain its production target next week, Libya’s deputy vice prime minister for energy said, joining Kuwait in predicting no policy change when oil ministers from the 12-member group meet in Vienna. ...

Atlantic Offshore Rescue launches latest vessel as part of fleet modernization program

Atlantic Offshore Rescue has unveiled its third new vessel in the past 12 months as part of the company's fleet modernization program, representing an investment totaling about $458 million (£300 million). ...

Jee presents subsea mattress removal research in Aberdeen

Jee Ltd, an independent multi-discipline subsea engineering and training firm, has completed a contract with Decom North Sea (DNS), the representative body for the decommissioning industry, to identify pioneering methods of salvage and re-use options for concrete subsea mattresses. ...

Stewart Tubular announces new manufacturing facility and relocation of administrative offices

Stewart Tubular Products, a manufacturer of premium threaded products for use in the global oil and gas industry, has announced an office relocation and expansion of manufacturing capacity. ...

WandT Offshore discovers hydrocarbons at Ewing banks 910; brings Medusa SS #6 well online

WandT Offshore, Inc. has made a new discovery at Ewing banks 910 and first production from the SS #6 well at Mississippi Canyon 538 field (Medusa), both in the deepwater of the Gulf of Mexico. The company also provided an update on the status of the Big Bend and Dantzler deepwater development projects. ...

Seatronics inks global rental agreement with Neptune Oceanographics

Seatronics, an Acteon company, has signed a rental agreement with Neptune Oceanographics. Seatronics now has access to Neptune’s range of leak detection systems globally. ...

U.S. Energy Department authorizes Alaska LNG exports

The Energy Department has issued a conditional authorization for the Alaska LNG Project to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. ...

OPEC output target seconded by Libya as ministers head to Vienna

OPEC will maintain its production target next week, Libya’s Deputy Vice Prime Minister said, joining Kuwait in predicting no policy change when oil ministers from the 12-member group meet in Vienna next week. ...

Somalia may pay 90% of oil revenue to explorer under draft deal

Soma Oil and Gas Holdings Ltd., chaired by former U.K. Conservative Party leader Michael Howard, has proposed a deal with the Somali government that may grant it as much as 90% of the country’s prospective oil revenue. ...

Adelos unveils distributed acoustic sensor solution for upstream oil and gas

Adelos Inc. has introduced Adelos 2.0, a fiber optic sensor system designed and optimized for commercial acoustic applications, including upstream oil and gas operations. ...

Remi Eriksen appointed new group CEO at DNV GL

The Board of Directors of DNV GL Group has appointed Remi Eriksen as the company’s new Group President and CEO. ...

Sage-grouse plan said to bar drilling on some U.S. land

A flamboyant bird will get new protections when federal regulators announce a plan to limit oil and gas drilling on its sprawling western U.S. habitat, which may stave off declaring the greater sage-grouse as endangered. ...

Weatherford V.P. Bill Lane to receive the SPE Gulf Coast Regional Production and Operations Award

Bill Lane, Vice President of Emerging Technologies for Artificial Lift, has received the SPE Gulf Coast Regional Production and Operations Award for his outstanding contributions to SPE and dedicated service to the Gulf Coast Region. ...

Engie sees possible exploration, production purchases in months

Engie, the French utility giant formerly known as GDF Suez SA, is studying fossil-fuel acquisitions. ...

U.S. Geological Survey releases frac sand research

Newly released research from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) describes U.S. hydraulic fracturing (frac) sand deposits and their locations, and provides estimates of frac sand production, consumption, and reserves. ...

Ashtead Technology boosts rental fleet with Neptune agreement

Ashtead Technology has secured a deal with Neptune Oceanographics Ltd., adding innovative underwater leak detection products to its rental fleet. ...

OneSubsea wins $330 million subsea production system contract

OneSubsea, a Cameron and Schlumberger company, has been awarded a subsea production systems contract totaling more than $330 million for a gas project offshore North Africa. ...

Amec Foster Wheeler awarded LNG contract in Timor-Leste

Amec Foster Wheeler has been awarded a pre-FEED (front-end engineering design) contract by the government of Timor-Leste for the proposed Beaço LNG plant. ...

Transocean announces departure of CFO

Transocean has announced that Esa Ikaheimonen is stepping down as executive V.P. and CFO with immediate effect. ...

Premier Oil strikes oil in North Falkland basin

Premier Oil has struck oil at the Isobel Deep exploration well, 14/20-1, in the North Falkland basin, approximately 30 km south of Sea Lion field. ...

Seadrill drops as rig market gloom seen lasting into 2016

Seadrill Ltd. fell in Oslo trading as the offshore driller controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen sees the rig market remaining challenging until next year after a collapse in oil prices. ...

U.S. Geological Survey describes hydraulic fracturing sand sources and production in the U.S.

Newly released research from the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) describes U.S. hydraulic fracturing (frac) sand deposits and their locations, and provides estimates of frac sand production, consumption, and reserves. ...

Atlas Copco introduces new QEC range for rental, mining and oil and gas

Atlas Copco has expanded its containerized generator offering with four new QEC models. ...

Ashtead Technology boosts its rental fleet with Neptune agreement

Ashtead Technology has secured a deal with Neptune Oceanographics Ltd., adding innovative underwater leak detection products to its rental fleet. ...

Applus RTD to open new office in Corpus Christi

Applus RTD has announced it is to open an office in Corpus Christi, Texas following increased demand for its non-destructive testing (NDT) services from the region’s energy industry. ...

Petrobras abandons deepwater prospect in Brazil’s top region

Brazil’s state-controlled oil company Petroleo Brasileiro abandoned exploration at the Caramba prospect in a deepwater region that holds the country’s biggest discoveries. ...

A relic of California’s oil past haunts state with ocean spill

A pipeline the oil market had all but forgotten resurfaced like a painful memory last week, spilling 500 bbl of heavy oil into the Pacific Ocean. ...

Alberta fire threat grows as blaze moves toward oil facilities

Northern Alberta firefighters are battling a wildfire that has moved within 5 km of Cenovus Energy Inc’s oil sands operations. ...

Much needed reductions in North Sea costs of 10 to 20% expected by 2016, says Wood Mackenzie

According to the latest analysis from Wood Mackenzie capital and operating costs in the UK and Norway's Upstream sectors will decrease steadily this year as operators respond to lower oil prices. ...

Petrobras abandons Brazil's deepwater Caramba prospect

Brazil’s state-controlled oil company Petroleo Brasileiro SA has abandoned exploration at the Caramba prospect in a deepwater region that holds the country’s biggest discoveries. ...

BG Brasil, Senai CIMATEC launch Latin America’s fastest supercomputer

SALVADOR, Brazil -- BG Brasil and Senai CIMATEC have unveiled the fastest ever supercomputer in Latin America at the Senai CIMATEC Supercomputing Center for Industrial Innovation in Salvador, Bahia. ...

Brent oil trades near one-month low on Iraq exports, dollar

Oil traded near a one-month low in London on concern record Iraqi exports will boost OPEC supplies. ...

UK aims to maximize oil production as onshore wind loses out

The UK aims to maximize domestic oil and gas production and curb the spread of onshore wind farms as the government leans toward maintaining energy security over cutting carbon emissions. ...

Wood Group appointed as DECC technical advisor for CCS

Wood Group Kenny (WGK) will provide technical advisory services for carbon capture and storage (CCS) policies, as well as potential projects across the UK, as part of a framework agreement with the Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC). ...

Statoil awards new Oseberg contract to Aibel

Statoil has awarded Aibel the contract to conduct a FEED study for the Oseberg Future Development Brownfield Topside project. The contract gives an opening for the subsequent EPCI contract. ...

Arcticgas making use of high-technology field development techniques

ST. PETERSBURG, Russia -- JSC Arcticgas—a subsidiary of Gazprom Neft and Novatek—has completed the first ever four-stage fracing of a horizontal well in the Yamalo-Nenets Autonomous Region, undertaken as part of the development of the Achimov deposits in Urengoyskoye field. ...

TGS announces appointment of new CFO

TGS has announced the appointment of Sven Børre Larsen as the company's new CFO. The effective date of Mr. Larsen's employment is yet to be determined, but will be no later than Dec. 1, 2015. ...

DOE authorizes Pieridae Energy to export U.S. natural gas

Pieridae Energy (Canada) Ltd. has announced that the Department of Energy of the U.S. has granted Pieridae Energy (U.S.) Ltd. long-term multi-contract authorization to export natural gas to Canada for end use in Canada and to export LNG produced from such natural gas from Canada to countries with which the U.S. has entered into a free trade agreement requiring national treatment for trade in natural gas (FTA countries). ...

Eni in gas, condensates discovery offshore Libya

Eni has made a gas and condensates discovery offshore Libya, in the Bouri North exploration prospect. ...

CNOOC reports discovery in Eastern South China Sea

CNOOC Limited has reported a mid-sized discovery, Liuhua 20-2, in the Eastern South China Sea. ...

Total produces 2 Bbbl from Angola’s deepwater Block 17

Total has achieved the significant milestone of producing a cumulative 2 Bbbl from its operated deepwater Block 17, 150 km off the coast of Angola. ...

Chevron to release documents in lawsuit over Nigerian oil leases

Chevron U.S. and BNP Paribas agreed recently in District Court in Texas to turn over documents and correspondence between the two companies and other entities to the Nigerian oil company that has sued Chevron over the sale of three oil mining leases in the Niger Delta. ...

Billionaire Koch brothers top Wealth-X list of wealthiest U.S. oil tycoons

The Koch brothers took the top two positions in a Wealth-X list of the wealthiest U.S. oil tycoons released Tuesday. ...

Cenovus Energy announces executive retirements

Cenovus Energy Inc. has announced that four Cenovus executives have made the decision to retire. Their transitions off the executive team will begin at different times over the course of 2015. ...

The U.S. Department of Energy authorizes Pieridae Energy to export American natural gas

Pieridae Energy (Canada) Ltd. has announced that the Department of Energy of the U.S. has granted Pieridae Energy (U.S.) Ltd. long-term multi-contract authorization to export natural gas to Canada for end use in Canada and to export LNG produced from such natural gas from Canada to countries with which the U.S. has entered into a free trade agreement requiring national treatment for trade in natural gas (FTA countries). ...

Eni discovers new gas and condensates offshore Libya

Eni has made a new discovery of gas and condensates offshore Libya, in the Bouri North exploration prospect. ...

Texas storms shut wells and fuel rack as plants go unscathed

Devon Energy Corp. shut wells and Kinder Morgan Inc. suspended operations at a fuel terminal southeast of Houston after storms flooded parts of Texas and cut power to tens of thousands. Refineries and pipelines continued to run. ...

Alberta fires keep 10% of oil sands offline for third day

Wildfires in northern Alberta kept about 10% of Canada’s oil sands production offline for a third day as Bank of America Corp. warned the blazes may slow the economy. ...

OPEC seen backing Saudi Arabia’s plan to keep supplies elevated

When Saudi Arabia argues next week that OPEC should keep up production to fight the rise in U.S. shale oil levels, prices will be on its side. ...

Bordelon Marine takes delivery of ultra-light intervention vessel

Bordelon Marine has taken delivery of the M/V Shelia Bordelon, a DP2 Ultra-Light Intervention Vessel (ULIV). ...

Big oil investors give cold shoulder to climate change

Investor resolutions urging corporate leaders to be more environmentally friendly in how they run their businesses are being rolled out at a record pace this year for the energy industry. Just don’t expect them to pass. ...

Ecopetrol’s new strategy targets 870,000 bopd by 2020

Ecopetrol, the worst performing major oil stock in the past year, is scraping a high-growth strategy to focus on preserving margins and boosting reserves. ...

Questerre enters into MOU for oil shale acreage in Jordan

Canada-based Questerre Energy has entered into a memorandum of understanding with the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources of the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan for the appraisal and development of oil shale acreage in Jordan. ...

Bentec wins rig and equipment contracts for Caspian Sea and onshore Russia

Drilling rig and oilfield equipment manufacturer Bentec has won three major, multi-million dollar contracts. The company also confirms its further expansion into the offshore market. ...

Bentec wins drilling rig and equipment contracts for Caspian Sea and onshore Russia

Drilling rig and oilfield equipment manufacturer Bentec has won three major, multi-million dollar contracts. The company also confirms its further expansion into the offshore market. ...

Non-OPEC production growth reduced by over 2 MMbopd towards 2020: Rystad Energy

Non-OPEC liquids growth potential of 5.5 MMbopd over the next five years has been reduced by over 2 MMbopd to 3.3 MMbopd, according to Rystad Energy’s most recent forecasts. ...

New offshore wind blowing in North America: Douglas Westwood

NEW YORK -- For the U.S. energy industry, 2014 will be remembered as the year when crude oil prices fell below $50/bbl, resulting in significant realignments in the sector, noted Douglas-Westwood. ...

New offshore wind blowing in North America: DW Monday

For the U.S. energy industry, 2014 will be remembered as the year when crude oil prices fell below 50 $/bbl, resulting in significant realignments in the sector, noted Douglas-Westwood’s DW Monday. ...

South Sudan oil field becomes battleground in civil war as economy reels

After 17 months of civil war spanning a swathe of South Sudan bigger than Syria, President Salva Kiir’s survival may hinge on the fate of a single oil field. Paloch in Upper Nile state, the only region still pumping crude in a nation with sub-Saharan Africa’s third-largest reserves, has re-emerged as the rebels’ prime target. ...

Statoil orders Kongsberg technology delivery for Johan Sverdrup field

Kongsberg Maritime has been awarded a call-off order for delivery of the Safety and Automation System (SAS), Life Cycle Simulator and SAS Information Management System for the four platforms on the Johan Sverdrup field centre in Norway. ...

Canadian Natural shuts more output as Alberta fire rages

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd. reduced production from its Kirby South oil-sands operation in Alberta, raising the amount of production brought offline because of a nearby forest fire to 233,000 bpd. ...

Claims that Exxon is lobbying on Iran sanctions are inaccurate, company says

Media has reported that ExxonMobil is lobbying the U.S. government on Iran sanctions are inaccurate. ...

Oil becoming ‘mundane return-on-capital’ business to hedge fund manager

“Having to do things like drill in the Arctic” and “deal with Mr. Putin” are some of the reasons hedge fund manager Jim Chanos said he’s “really negative” on integrated oil companies. ...

Cue Energy brings Maari MR7A development well online

Cue Energy has initiated production from the Maari MR7A development well, with a provisional initial production rate between 1,500 to 2,000 bopd. ...

UK-based Third Energy submits planning application for hydraulic stimulation

Third Energy will submit a planning application to North Yorkshire County Council to hydraulically stimulate and test various geological formations, at the existing well KM8 at Kirby Misperton. ...

Oil becoming ‘mundane return-on-capital’ business to Chanos

“Having to do things like drill in the Arctic” and “deal with Mr. Putin” are some of the reasons hedge fund manager Jim Chanos said he’s “really negative” on integrated oil companies. ...

Cue Energy brings New Zealand's Maari MR7A development well online

Cue Energy has initiated production from the Maari MR7A development well, with a provisional initial production rate between 1,500 to 2,000 bopd. ...

Alberta forest fires shut 9% of Canada’s oil sands capacity

Alberta forest fires have prompted the shutdown of about 9% of Canada’s oil sands production. ...

Libya airstrike sets oil tanker ablaze amid political strife

Warplanes deployed by Libya’s internationally recognized government bombed an oil tanker at a terminal controlled by the nation’s rival Islamist leaders, killing one person, the regional coastguard commander said. ...

Oil trades near $60/bbl as U.S. drillers add onshore rigs

Oil traded near $60/bbl as explorers in the U.S. increased drilling activity for the first time since November. ...

Third Energy submits planning application for hydraulic stimulation

Third Energy will submit a planning application to North Yorkshire County Council to hydraulically stimulate and test various geological formations, at the existing well KM8 at Kirby Misperton. ...

Buru Energy spuds Olympic 1 exploration well in Western Australia

Buru Energy has commenced its extensive 2015 exploration drilling program with the spudding of the Olympic 1 conventional oil well located southeast of Broome in Western Australia. ...

ExxonMobil lobbying on Iran sanctions are inaccurate, media reports

Media has reported that ExxonMobil is lobbying the U.S. government on Iran sanctions are inaccurate. ...

Mario Mehren takes over as CEO for Wintershall

Mario Mehren will take over as the Chairman of the Board of Executive Directors at Wintershall Holding GmbH on Jun. 1. ...

Twin Eagle lands its first 130 car frac sand unit train in the heart of the Eagle Ford shale

Twin Eagle Sand Logistics, a subsidiary of Twin Eagle Resource Management, has landed its first 130 car frac sand unit train at Mission Rail in Elmendorf, Texas, which is in the heart of the Eagle Ford shale. ...

Oil bears miss out as record U.S. refinery demand drives rally

Oil speculators missed out as record demand from U.S. refineries helped trim supplies from their highest level in more than eight decades and drive prices higher. ...

Oil platform in Gulf of Mexico shuts in production after fire

A platform gathering oil in the Gulf of Mexico shut in about 2,200 bopd of output after a compressor caught fire. The Texas Petroleum Investment Co. platform in Breton Sound Block 21, near the southeastern Louisiana coast, evacuated 28 workers without injury after the compressor fire, according to a U.S. Coast Guard. ...

Oil’s whodunit moment coming with millions of barrels to vanish

Millions of barrels of untapped oil that U.S. shale drillers discovered during the boom years are about to disappear from their inventories. ...

Coast Guard responds to oil platform fire in Gulf of Mexico

The U.S. Coast Guard is responding to a report of a platform fire near Breton Island, Friday. ...

Vanguard Natural Resources to acquire Eagle Rock Energy Partners

Vanguard Natural Resources and Eagle Rock Energy Partners have entered into an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to which a subsidiary of Vanguard will merge into Eagle Rock for total consideration of $474 million in Vanguard common units and the assumption of Eagle Rock's net debt of $140 million as of Mar. 31. ...

Core Bakken assets remain economical despite low oil prices, GlobalData says

While the 12 counties with Bakken production between North Dakota and Montana have lost the majority of their horizontal rigs over the last eight months, core areas of the shale play remain attractive, especially as oil prices creep towards $70/bbl, says an analyst with research and consulting firm GlobalData. ...

Jee bags FEED contract for EOR project from Amec Foster Wheeler

Jee Ltd. has been awarded a contract from Amec Foster Wheeler for the front end engineering design (FEED) of a jacket rigid polymer injection riser package (including J-tubes) as part of an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) field development. ...

Canadian crude oil supply chain adapts to U.S. glut, Genscape says

With a global oversupply of crude and ever-changing price environment, the crude oil supply chain between the U.S. and Canada has reacted quickly to rebalance supply and demand by moving U.S. crude north to the Canadian East coast, adding new infrastructure to de-bottleneck oil sand storage hubs, and conducting maintenance at Canadian oil sands production facilities, according to Genscape analysis. ...

Statoil wildcats disappoint in the Norwegian Sea

Statoil Petroleum, operator of production license 348 C, is in the process of completing the drilling of wildcat wells 6407/8-7 and 6407/8-7 A. Both wells have been drilled about 4 km north of Hyme field in the southern part of the Norwegian Sea. ...

Petronas reports first oil from Indonesia’s Bukit Tua field

Petronas has reached a significant milestone in its upstream operations in Indonesia with first oil achieved from Bukit Tua field on May 17. ...

Petronas brings Indonesia's Bukit Tua field online

Petronas reached a significant milestone in its upstream operations in Indonesia with the first oil achieved from the Bukit Tua field on May 17. ...

Saudi oil supply outpaces rivals in grab for record China demand

Saudi Arabia expanded its share of China’s oil market last month, outpacing rival producers as they compete to meet record demand from the world’s biggest energy consumer. ...

Petronas first-quarter profit plunges on oil price slump

Petroliam Nasional Bhd., Malaysia’s state oil company, posted a 43% decline in first-quarter profit after a plunge in crude oil prices. ...

Vanguard Natural Resources to acquire Eagle Rock Energy Partners for approximately $614 million

Vanguard Natural Resources and Eagle Rock Energy Partners have entered into an agreement and plan of merger pursuant to which a subsidiary of Vanguard will merge into Eagle Rock for total consideration of $474 million in Vanguard common units and the assumption of Eagle Rock's net debt of $140 million as of Mar. 31. ...

Core Bakken assets remain economical despite low oil prices, says GlobalData analyst

While the 12 counties with Bakken production between North Dakota and Montana have lost the majority of their horizontal rigs over the last eight months, core areas of the shale play remain attractive, especially as oil prices creep towards $70/bbl, says an analyst with research and consulting firm GlobalData. ...

Jee bags FEED contract for enhanced oil recovery project from Amec Foster Wheeler

Jee Ltd. has been awarded a contract from Amec Foster Wheeler for the front end engineering design (FEED) of a jacket rigid polymer injection riser package (including J-tubes) as part of an enhanced oil recovery (EOR) field development. ...

Canadian crude oil supply chain adapts to U.S. glut; Edmonton storage inventories plummet while waterborne shipments ease constraints, Genscape reports

With a global oversupply of crude and ever-changing price environment, the crude oil supply chain between the U.S. and Canada has reacted quickly to rebalance supply and demand by moving U.S. crude north to the Canadian East coast, adding new infrastructure to de-bottleneck oil sand storage hubs, and conducting maintenance at Canadian oil sands production facilities, according to Genscape analysis. ...

Husky Energy begins steam operations at Rush Lake

Husky Energy has started commercial steam operations at the 10,000 bpd provider, Rush Lake heavy oil thermal project in Saskatchewan, approximately eight weeks ahead of schedule. ...

OPEC seen unyielding in oil-market share battle with shale

OPEC will stick with the strategy of favoring market share over prices when it meets next month because rival producers are already starting to buckle. ...

Oil rout spurs Canadian Pacific to cut shipments forecast

Canadian Pacific Railway Ltd. cut its forecast for moving crude by rail for a second time in four months because of production delays and lower demand for the commodity. This year’s total will probably be 100,000 to 140,000 carloads, Chief Operating Officer Keith Creel said Wednesday. Canadian Pacific had forecast 140,000 in January, a reduction from its original outlook of 200,000. ...

Risk from Canada’s oil sands reputation is as challenging as costs

Canada’s oil sands industry faces an equal risk from its reputation as an environmental laggard, as from high operating costs, industry observers said. The failure to win approval for pipelines like TransCanada Corp.’s Keystone XL and Enbridge Inc.’s Northern Gateway is tied to concerns about carbon emissions with oil production, Ed Whittingham, executive director of the Pembina Institute, said at the Bloomberg Economic Series Canada summit in Toronto. “The oil sands feeds into concern about the climate,” he said. “The primary driving concern is climate.” ...

Exxon Mobil accelerates Iran sanctions lobbying as nuke deal looms

Exxon Mobil Corp. is ramping up lobbying efforts with the U.S. government over Iranian sanctions that have locked out American oil companies from the Middle Eastern nation for more than three decades. Exxon Mobil, the world’s largest publicly traded crude producer by market value, hired the lobbying firm founded by former Senator Don Nickles—an Oklahoma Republican—to work on Iranian sanctions, according to federal disclosure documents. This is the first time since 2010 that the Irving, Texas-based oil company enlisted outside lobbyists to discuss Iran. ...

Brazilian gas producer PGN plans $500 million output growth

Parnaiba Gas Natural SA, Brazil’s biggest independent natural gas producer, is investing 1.5 billion reais ($500 million) in projects, including developing five fields in the country’s northeast. The producer, backed by Cambuhy Investimentos, which counts Brazilian billionaire Pedro Moreira Salles as an investor, expects the plan to increase gas output 71%, to 8.4 MMcmd (297 MMcfd) by July 2016, said Henrique Rzezinski, institutional relations vice president of the company, known as PGN ...

Rosneft acquires 100% of Solimoes project from HRT

Rosneft Brasil and PetroRio (the new brand of HRT Participações em Petróleo S.A.) have announced the signing of the Rosneft Brasil transaction to acquire PetroRio’s 55% in the Solimões project. ...

California declares state of emergency in Santa Barbara to assist oil spill response

California Governor Edmund G. Brown Jr. issued an emergency proclamation Wednesday for Santa Barbara County due to the effects of an oil spill near Refugio State Beach on Tuesday. ...

BG takes full operational control of Queensland Curtis LNG in Australia

BG Group announced Thursday that operational control of Train 1 at its Queensland Curtis LNG plant has been formally transferred to QGC, BG Group's Australian subsidiary, from Bechtel Australia, which constructed the facility. ...

Expro wins the RoSPA President’s Award 2015

Expro has won the President’s Award, following 11 consecutive Gold Awards, in the RoSPA (Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents) Occupational Health and Safety Awards 2015. ...

Talisman drills dry well north of Varg field

Talisman Energy Norge AS, operator of production licence 672, has concluded the drilling of wildcat well 15/12-24 S. The well was drilled in the central part of the North Sea about 6 km north of the Varg field and 220 km southwest of Stavanger. ...

Bister exploration well disappoints in Norwegian Sea

Faroe Petroleum has announced that drilling has reached target depth on the Statoil-operated Bister exploration well in the Norwegian Sea. ...

Transocean reaches settlement agreements with BP, PSC

Transocean Ltd. has reached two separate settlement agreements, with the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC) and with BP Exploration and Production Inc. and BP America Production Co. ...

Verisk Analytics closes $2.8 billion WoodMac acquisition

Verisk Analytics, Inc. has completed the acquisition of Wood Mackenzie Ltd. The purchase price was £1.85 billion (approximately $2.8 billion, net of foreign currency hedges). ...

Onshore opportunities could attract smaller players to Mexico, Wood Mac says

Mexico has announced the next phase of Round One with an offering of 26 onshore conventional fields. All are located in the Burgos, Tampico-Misantla, and Salinas-Sureste basins. ...

Gudrun leak could have proved fatal, Statoil finds

Statoil has completed its investigation into a leak on Gudrun platform. ...

‘Shale-ionaires’ suffering from wave of bankrupt oil drillers

At the height of the U.S. energy boom, Texas landowner John Baen received about $100,000 a month in royalty payments from companies producing oil and natural gas on his property. ...

South Sudan says oil staff back at northern field after violence

Staff at South Sudan’s largest oil hub are returning to work after fighting between the army and rebel forces forced some to temporarily evacuate, the East African country’s government said. ...

Eclipse Model 706 guided wave radar transmitter now with Modbus protocol

Magnetrol International has released the Eclipse Model 706 guided wave radar (GWR) transmitter configured with Modbus protocol. The Modbus communications protocol is widely used in the unconventional oil and gas industry, where the ECLIPSE offers advanced liquid and interface level control to ensure accuracy, efficiency, reliability and ease of use for production applications. ...

Talisman drill dry well north of the Varg field

Talisman Energy Norge AS, operator of production licence 672, has concluded the drilling of wildcat well 15/12-24 S. The well was drilled in the central part of the North Sea about 6 km north of the Varg field and 220 km southwest of Stavanger. ...

Faroe releases results of Bister exploration well

Faroe Petroleum announces that drilling has reached target depth on the Statoil operated Bister exploration well in the Norwegian Sea (Faroe 7.5%). ...

Transocean reaches settlement agreements with Plaintiffs' Steering Committee and BP

Transocean Ltd. has reached two separate settlement agreements, with the Plaintiffs' Steering Committee (PSC) and with BP Exploration and Production Inc. and BP America Production Co. ...

Verisk Analytics acquires Wood Mackenzie for $2.8 billion

Verisk Analytics, Inc. has completed the acquisition of Wood Mackenzie Ltd. The purchase price was $2.8 billion (approximately £1.85 billion, net of foreign currency hedges). ...

Mexico's Round One offers onshore conventional opportunities, Wood Mackenzie says

Mexico has announced the next phase of Round One with an offering of 26 onshore conventional fields. All are located in the Burgos, Tampico-Misantla, and Salinas-Sureste basins. ...

Wintershall ceases activities in Qatar

Wintershall is ceasing its activities in Qatar and is returning Block 4 North near the North Field off the Qatari coast on May 25. ...

Petrofac supports Bumi Armada with maintenance build for North Sea FPSO

Petrofac has been awarded a contract to support maintenance management system (MMS) implementation for Bumi Armada’s FPSO, the Armada Kraken bound for the North Sea. ...

Statoil completes investigation of Gudrun leak

On Feb. 18, a condensate leak occurred on the Gudrun platform in the North Sea. The incident has been investigated by Statoil’s corporate investigation team which classifies it to be of the highest degree of seriousness. ...

ExxonMobil announces significant oil discovery offshore Guyana

Exxon Mobil Corporation has announced a significant oil discovery on the Stabroek block, located approximately 120 miles offshore Guyana. ...

Petronas-led group signs pact on $30 billion Canada LNG project

British Columbia and a group of companies led by Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd. reached a preliminary deal on taxes and royalties for a proposed C$36 billion ($30 billion) liquefied natural gas project. ...

Halliburton reaches agreement with BP on Deepwater Horizon claims

Halliburton has reached an agreement with BP Exploration and Production Inc. to resolve remaining issues, which includes indemnities between the parties and dismissal of all claims against each other, relating to the April 20, 2010, Deepwater Horizon well incident in the Gulf of Mexico. ...

Oil rises after U.S. crude supply drops amid refining boost

Oil climbed after U.S. crude stockpiles dropped as refineries bolstered operating rates. Crude inventories declined 2.67 MMbbl last week, according to the Energy Information Administration. Refinery operating rates rose for the third time in four weeks. Gasoline supplies unexpectedly fell ahead of the Memorial Day holiday, which heralds the start of the U.S. summer driving season. ...

NCS Multistage creates corporate technology group, makes key appointments

NCS Multistage, LLC, has created a Corporate Technology Group that will focus on new technology RandD, including identifying and commercializing complementary technologies and services that will enable its customers to improve efficiency and maximize hydrocarbon recovery. The new group combines NCS’ Emerging Technology, Engineering and Corporate Technical Services teams with Anderson/Thompson Reservoir Strategies, NCS’ newly formed reservoir engineering and consulting business. ...

Acona UK starts drilling operations in Northern Ireland

Well drilling and project management specialist Acona UK has begun drilling operations on a salt well for AIM-listed InfraStrata plc on behalf of Islandmagee Storage Limited in Northern Ireland. An Acona UK team is managing the drilling of the Islandmagee- 1 well, on the shores of Larne Lough. Operations to drill the 1,700-m well are expected to take about five weeks. The objective is for data gathering to confirm the feasibility of a strategically important underground gas storage facility in leached salt caverns. ...

Total brings Russian gas field onstream in northern Siberia

Total has started-up gas and condensate production from the onshore Termokarstovoye field, in the Yamalo Nenets Autonomous District of the Russian Federation. The field will produce around 6.6 MMcmgd and 20,000 bcpd, with a combined production capacity of 65,000 boed. “We are delighted with the start up of Termokarstovoye, the first project executed together with our strategic partner in Russia, Novatek, with whom we are also jointly developing the Yamal LNG project,” commented Michael Borrell, Total’s senior V.P., Exploration and Production, Europe and Central Asia. ...

South Sudan denies rebels have taken control of oil fields

South Sudan’s government denied claims by rebel forces that they’ve seized oil fields in the north of the country after clashes in the region. Lony T. Ngungdeng, a spokesman for insurgents loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar, said on Tuesday that the fighters took control of facilities in Upper Nile state, which are still producing crude. Fighting is taking place around Malakal, the state capital, and Akoka, Information Minister Michael Makuei Lueth said by phone Wednesday from South Sudan. ...

Packers Plus introduces real-time frac monitoring technology

HOUSTON -- Packers Plus Energy Services has launched of the ePLUS Retina monitoring system as a cost-effective solution for observing downhole events and their effects on the reservoir. ...

UK Oil and gas urges cooperation across UKCS

Ardent co-operation across the UK oil and gas industry which draws on the experience of others is important in helping to contain inflationary pressures and achieve a sustainable future for the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS), a London audience heard on May 19, at an Oil and Gas UK briefing, sponsored by Costain Upstream Ltd and Herbert Smith Freehills. ...

Packers Plus addresses low oil price with innovative new technology

Packers Plus Energy Services announces the launch of the state-of-the-art ePLUS Retina monitoring system as a cost-effective solution for observing downhole events and their effects on the reservoir. ...

NOV scores $395K from Mud King over stolen trade secrets

Houston-based National Oilwell Varco LP has won nearly $400,000 from Mud King Products Inc. after a bankruptcy judge found that Mud King paid an NOV employee to steal hundreds of NOV's secret mud pump blueprints that Mud King was using to start manufacturing Chinese knockoffs when the scheme was uncovered. ...

National Oilwell Varco scores $395K from Mud King over stolen trade secrets

Houston-based National Oilwell Varco LP has won nearly $400,000 from Mud King Products Inc. after a bankruptcy judge found that Mud King paid an NOV employee to steal hundreds of NOV's secret mud pump blueprints that Mud King was using to start manufacturing Chinese knockoffs when the scheme was uncovered. ...

Working co-operatively and learning from others is key to improving UK oil and gas industry efficiency

Ardent co-operation across the UK oil and gas industry which draws on the experience of others is important in helping to contain inflationary pressures and achieve a sustainable future for the UK Continental Shelf (UKCS), a London audience heard on May 19, at an Oil and Gas UK briefing, sponsored by Costain Upstream Ltd and Herbert Smith Freehills. ...

Oil falls to 3-week low as Goldman sees $45 crude by October

Oil slid to a three-week low as the dollar strengthened and Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said a continuing surplus would send prices back down to $45 bbl by October. ...

ANGA applauds passage of Texas’ LNG export resolution

Frank J. Macchiarola, executive vice president of government affairs at America’s Natural Gas Alliance (ANGA), issued the following statement on the passage of Texas S.C.R. 32, a resolution to help protect America’s competitive advantage in energy markets: “ANGA applauds the Texas Legislature’s passage of S.C.R 32. This bipartisan measure urges Congress and the president to advance policies that will enable America to export natural gas to ensure our nation’s competitive advantage in energy markets as a global energy leader. ...

South Sudanese rebels say they seized oil-producing fields

South Sudanese rebels said they have taken control of the country’s main oil fields that are still producing crude, after defeating government forces in Upper Nile state on Tuesday. The insurgents loyal to former Vice President Riek Machar, allied with local militia, are occupying the area around Paloch, rebel spokesman Lony T. Ngundeng said on Tuesday. “Our forces have controlled all the oil fields,” he said by phone from the Ethiopian capital, Addis Ababa. “There’s not any damage to the installations.” ...

Shale set to pummel another market, as U.S. LNG plants arrive

The U.S. is about to change the global LNG market forever. When the first tanker carrying LNG from shale fields leaves the Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana in December, it will turn consumers into traders with more bargaining power. That will transform a market dominated by long-term contracts into one where spot trading gains prominence, similar to crude oil. Since the first LNG cargo went to the U.K. from Algeria under a long-term contract in 1964, buyers opted for guaranteed supply, because the fuel was scarce. That’s changing, because gas from the Eagle Ford and other plays will transform the U.S. into the third-biggest exporter by 2020. ...

Oil MandA activity likely to pick up during 2016

Oil’s rebound and more certainty around company valuations are keys to driving mergers and acquisitions activity next year given the pent-up demand for deals, bankers said Tuesday at an energy forum in Houston. “The dam will break at some point,” Stephen Trauber, vice chairman and global head of energy at Citigroup Inc., said at the Mergermarket conference. ...

AVEVA to provide Everything 3D design software to Aker Solutions

AVEVA has entered a multiyear agreement with Aker Solutions for Everything. Aker has selected the software systsem to be its strategic 3D tool on plant design, modification and maintenance projects. ...

Gazprom revives Saipem deal to build Turkey gas link through Black Sea

Gazprom has revived a deal with Saipem to build a gas link through the Black Sea, which was suspended after Russian President Vladimir Putin scrapped the South Stream pipeline to Europe last year. ...

Nigeria plans to split gas from oil leases to boost output

Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, plans to issue separate leases for gas assets in order to attract more investors to boost output of the fuel, the state-owned oil company said. ...

BP plans to sell part of its stake in Australian oil venture

BP Plc plans to sell part of its oil project off southern Australia, before an exploration campaign that’s slated to start late next year at a cost of more than $800 million (A$1 billion). ...

Saudi March oil exports reach 9-year high in market push

Saudi Arabia shipped more crude in March than in any month since November 2005 as the world’s biggest oil exporter battled for market share amid a global glut. ...

JP3 launches vapor pressure analyzer to ensure low crude volatility during transport

JP3 Measurement announces the launch of the industry’s first in-line, field deployable, optical vapor pressure analyzer - the Verax VPATM. For the first time, operators can measure vapor pressure in condensate and crude oil in real time with no sample conditioning. ...

Geodynamics acquires Connor Oil Tools

Geodynamics Inc. has acquired the assets of Connor Oil Tools. Connor Oil Tools manufactures bridge plugs, setting tools and cement retainers from their facilities in Saginaw, Texas. ...

Oil share of U.S. transportation is lowest since the steam age

Oil has the lowest share of the U.S. transportation fuel market since the 1950s, when steam trains remained a common sight on American railroads. ...

DEA farms out part of West Nile Delta project to BP

DEA Deutsche Erdoel AG has equalized its working interest and farmed down its stake in the West Nile Delta (WND) project in Egypt to its joint venture partner and operator BP in order to better balance its portfolio. ...

Goldman Sachs sees Brent at $55/bbl in 2020

Brent crude oil will trade at $55/bbl in five years according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., more than $10 lower than current prices and a discount of $20 to 2020 futures. ...

FEI, Weatherford enter agreement for advanced reservoir characterization

FEI and Weatherford Laboratories have entered into a joint agreement to offer advanced reservoir characterization services to the oil and gas industry. ...

FEI, Weatherford enter agreement for advanced reservoir characterization services

FEI and Weatherford Laboratories have entered into a joint agreement to offer advanced reservoir characterization services to the oil and gas industry. ...

PGS kicks off 2D survey offshore Mexico

Petroleum Geo-Services commenced operations on a multi-client 2D seismic program offshore Mexico on May 16. ...

Independent producers seek to halt federal hydraulic fracturing rule

BakerHostetler, on Friday, filed a request for preliminary injunction against the final rule the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued to regulate hydraulic fracturing on federal and Indian lands. ...

Senators introduce bills to increase states’ share of oil and gas revenues

U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Tim Scott, R-S.C., have introduced separate proposals to increase energy production on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) and increase revenue sharing with states that support offshore energy production activities. ...

Anadarko appoints contractor for Mozambique LNG development

Anadarko Petroleum, on behalf of the co-venturers in Mozambique's Offshore Area 1, has announced the selection of a consortium consisting of CBandI, Chiyoda Corporation and Saipem (CCS JV) for the initial development of the onshore LNG park in Mozambique. ...

Nostra Terra buys minority interest in Texas’ San Miguel prospect

Nostra Terra has announced the acquisition of a 1% working interest in the San Miguel Prospect, comprising 35,000 acres in South Texas. ...

PGS kicks off survey offshore Mexico

Petroleum Geo-Services commenced operations on a multi-client 2D seismic program offshore Mexico on May 16. ...

Lundin secures production license for Russia’s Morskaya field

Lundin Petroleum has announced that Rosnedra, the Russian licensing authority, has issued a production license for Morskaya field. ...

TGS announces major 2D survey offshore Mexico

TGS has announced Gigante, a 181,500 km regional 2D seismic survey in the Gulf of Mexico. ...

OMV Petrom says low oil price hurt profit, may reduce investment

OMV Petrom SA, Romania’s biggest oil company, said its first-quarter profit fell 68% from a year earlier due to lower oil prices and warned it may be forced to reduce investment and production through 2017. ...

BHP lowers priority of Australian LNG project with Exxon

BHP Billiton Ltd. is lowering the priority of its Scarborough liquefied natural gas project with Exxon Mobil Corp. in Australia amid a fall in prices and increasing competition from the U.S. ...

$100 oil seen years away by Petronas as shale output resilient

The rally in crude prices may not last as U.S. shale output remains robust, according to Malaysia’s state oil company. ...

Conoco sees selling U.S. oil to world amid call to end crude ban

ConocoPhillips said it’s capable of supplying U.S. oil to the global market and reiterated a call to end the nation’s ban on crude exports. ...

Senators introduce bills to increase States’ share of oil and natural gas revenues

U.S. Sens. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, Bill Cassidy, R-La., and Tim Scott, R-S.C., this week each introduced separate proposals to increase energy production on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS) and increase revenue sharing with states that support offshore energy production activities. ...

BakerHostetler files injunction in U.S. District Court against BLM's final rule

BakerHostetler, on Friday, filed a request for preliminary injunction against the final rule the Bureau of Land Management (BLM) issued to regulate hydraulic fracturing on federal and Indian lands. ...

Hedge funds lose faith in oil rally as OPEC seen boosting supply

Speculators are losing faith in the oil rally, judging that OPEC will keep increasing supply from the highest level since 2012. Their net-long position in West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 2.1%, as long wagers fell the most in two months and short bets declined to the lowest since August. ...

Hedge funds lose faith in oil rally as OPEC seen boosting bupply

Speculators are losing faith in the oil rally, judging that OPEC will keep increasing supply from the highest level since 2012. Their net-long position in West Texas Intermediate crude dropped 2.1%, as long wagers fell the most in two months and short bets declined to the lowest since August. ...

Qatar Petroleum sees rising OPEC demand as price drop hits shale

Demand for OPEC’s crude will rise as the drop in oil prices below $100/bbl continues to hinder shale production, Qatar Petroleum International’s Chief Executive Officer Nasser Khalil Al-Jaidah said. ...

Petrobras shakes off bad news with $7.2 billion of earnings

Petroleo Brasileiro SA, the state-run oil producer battered by months of bad publicity from a corruption probe and asset writeoffs, reported some surprising good news. ...

Oil sands land in Alberta becomes hot real estate as oil rebounds

An indication that crude’s recent rally has further to run can be found in the northern forests of Alberta, where companies are paying the most in eight years to lease land for oil sands development. ...

Anadarko said ready to name CBandI for Mozambique LNG project

Anadarko Petroleum is poised to select a construction team led by Chicago Bridge and Iron (CBandI) as its main contractor for a potential $15 billion Mozambique liquefied natural gas project, according to people familiar with the matter. ...

RSCC introduces high performance Exane cables for drilling applications

EAST GRANBY, Connecticut -- RSCC Wire and Cable has introduced two new Category 6 cable products for rigorous offshore oil drilling and land drilling applications that improve performance and safety for rig equipment installers. ...

Two Texas oil towns, 38 miles apart: One still booms, one’s dead

They are separated by just 38 miles on the remote plains of south Texas, really no more than a quick spin down old Highway 80. ...

Suncor comes up dry with North Sea appraisal well

STAVANGER, Norway -- Suncor Energy Norge AS, operator of production license 375, has completed drilling of appraisal well 34/4-14 S in the oil discovery 34/4-11. ...

OMV wildcat strikes out southeast of Wisting discovery

OMV (Norge) AS, operator of production license 537, is in the process of concluding the drilling of wildcat well 7324/8-2. The well is dry. ...

New TAG Oil pipeline nears completion; paves way for natural gas sales and field development

TAG Oil Ltd. has announced that the pipeline construction connecting the Cheal-E development area to TAG's main Cheal-A production infrastructure has nearly been completed. ...

Seatronics announces Phil Middleton as new Group Managing Director

Seatronics Ltd., an Acteon company and part of its survey, monitoring and data business, has promoted Phil Middleton from Deputy Managing Director to Group Managing Director. ...

Pemex scraps third Paragon Offshore rig contract as woes mount

Petroleos Mexicanos abandoned a third rig contract with Paragon Offshore Plc this week as the state-owned oil producer reduces spending after prices collapsed. ...

Oil trader Andurand sees U.S., OPEC supply capping prices

Oil supply from both OPEC and U.S. shale drillers is set to expand later this year, preventing further gains in prices, according to hedge fund Manager, Pierre Andurand. ...

Oil services ‘ugly’ second quarter seen as prompting mergers

Deals among oil services companies trying to survive a collapse in crude prices are expected to pick up in the second half of the year as profits hit a low point. ...

Unconventional techniques could free 141 Bbbl from mature fields, IHS says

As much as 141 Bbbl of potential incremental hydrocarbon resources could be unlocked if drilling and completion techniques refined in U.S. shale plays are applied to conventional, low-productivity oil plays outside of North America, according to new analysis from IHS. ...

William Jacob Management establishes presence in London

William Jacob Management, Inc. has appointed Mike Emans as V.P. of Marketing (UK and Europe). He will be located in London. ...

Ana Zambelli appointed as CCO in Maersk Drilling

Ana Zambelli, currently managing director for Subsea Operations at Transocean, is to take up the role of chief commercial officer (CCO) at Maersk Drilling. Zambelli will start June 1, reporting directly to CEO Claus V. Hemmingsen. ...

Upstream mega projects to alter global crude routes and refining, Wood Mac says

By 2025 mega-projects offshore Brazil and Norway will add some 3.8 MMbpd of new crude supply from the Atlantic basin, according to Wood Mackenzie's latest outlook. ...

BP appoints Britain’s former chief spy to company’s board

BP Plc, the former state-owned oil company with operations from Russia to Iraq, appointed the former head of Britain’s Secret Intelligence Service as a board member. ...

Eni Norge to perform manned underwater operations at Goliat field

Eni Norge has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) for the manned underwater operations at the Goliat field. ...

Caterpillar receives certification from EPA for improving air quality in U.S.

Caterpillar Inc. and Solar Turbines, a Caterpillar company, each received the 2014 Certificate of Avoided Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for achievement in reducing carbon pollution with combined heat and power (CHP). ...

Caterpillar receives certification for improving air quality in U.S.

Caterpillar Inc. and Solar Turbines, a Caterpillar company, each received the 2014 Certificate of Avoided Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for achievement in reducing carbon pollution with combined heat and power (CHP). ...

Pemex EandP Head Hernandez Temporarily reassigned after accidents

Petroleos Mexicanos’ exploration and production Director will be temporarily reassigned a week after a fatal oil platform collapse in the Gulf of Mexico. ...

Caterpillar recieves Certificate of Avoided Greenhouse Gas Emissions for improving air quality in U.S.

Caterpillar Inc. and Solar Turbines, a Caterpillar company, each received the 2014 Certificate of Avoided Greenhouse Gas (GHG) Emissions from the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) for achievement in reducing carbon pollution with combined heat and power (CHP). ...

William Jacob Management appoints V.P.-Marketing for UK and Europe

William Jacob Management, Inc. has appointed Mike Emans as V.P. of Marketing (UK and Europe). He will be located in London. ...

iSURVEY Singapore bags pipeline installation contract from EMAS AMC

iSURVEY, Singapore, has been awarded a contract from EMAS AMC for the provision of positioning and survey services on board its pipe lay vessel, the ‘Lewek Centurion’. ...

Shell to add firepower to BG assets in East Africa LNG race

Royal Dutch Shell’s $70 billion takeover of BG Group Plc will put Europe’s largest energy company in the middle of East Africa’s race to export natural gas and is set to boost the chances of Tanzania becoming a major supplier. ...

South Korea’s GS Energy wins 3% Stake in Abu Dhabi oil fields

GS Energy has secured a 3 percent stake in Abu Dhabi’s largest onshore oil-field concession, joining France’s Total and Japan’s Inpex in a $22 billion venture. ...

Canada aboriginals reject $960 Million Petronas gas deal

An aboriginal group along Canada’s Pacific Coast turned down Petroliam Nasional Bhd.’s offer of C$319,000 ($267,000) for each member as compensation for building a natural gas export terminal on ancestral lands. ...

Bipartisan coalition introduces bill to end U.S. oil export ban

U.S. Sens Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, and Heidi Heitkamp, D-N.D., along with 11 of their Senate colleagues introduced the Energy Supply and Distribution Act of 2015 on Wednesday. This bipartisan legislation would modernize federal energy policy by ending the ban on crude oil exports. ...

Petrobras’ operated pre-salt production exceeds 800,000 bopd

Petrobras has announced that on April 11, 2015, oil production in the fields it operates in the pre-salt province of the Santos and Campos basins reached the milestone of 800,000 bopd, constituting a new daily production record. ...

CGG starts new multi-client survey offshore Norway

CGG has announced a western extension of the Horda BroadSeis-BroadSource 3D multi-client program that it began acquiring in the Northern North Sea, offshore Norway, in 2014. ...

Waters around Prirazlomnoye field show no divergence from natural status: Gazprom Neft

As a part of yearly investigations undertaken by Gazprom Neft, researchers from the Knipovich Polar Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography have recently completed comprehensive investigations on aquatic conditions round the Prirazlomnaya platform, located in the Pechora Sea. ...

Murkowski introduces bill to increase Alaska’s share of offshore revenues

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, took an aggressive step Tuesday to ensure that Alaska receives its fair share of revenue from oil and natural gas production on Alaska’s outer continental shelf (OCS) by introducing the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Lease Sale Act. ...

OIS wins multiple well abandonment contract from Centrica

Offshore Installation Services (OIS), an Acteon company, has been awarded a contract to decommission multiple wells in the North Sea by Centrica Energy. ...

Optime Subsea Services targets cost savings on subsea tree installations

A group of ex-FMC employees have teamed up with subsea installation player DeepOcean to found Optime Subsea Services, whose multiCompletionSystem (mCS) can provide up to 80% time and cost savings on subsea tree installations compared to traditional solutions. ...

CGG extends multi-client survey offshore Norway

CGG has announced a western extension of the Horda BroadSeis-BroadSource 3D multi-client program that it began acquiring in the Northern North Sea, offshore Norway, in 2014. ...

Massy Wood Group wins BP contract in Trinidad and Tobago

Massy Wood Group has been awarded a five year contract, with a potential value of up to $250 million, by BP to provide services to its operations in Trinidad and Tobago. ...

OPEC battle for oil market share only just started, IEA says

OPEC’s push to defend its share of the global oil market has just begun and the International Energy Agency said the group may further increase production, a strategy that caused prices to crash last year. ...

CGG begins new multi-client BroadSeis survey in Norway

CGG has announced a western extension of the Horda BroadSeis-BroadSource 3D multi-client program it began acquiring in the Northern North Sea offshore Norway in 2014. ...

Massy Wood Group wins $250 million BP contract in Trinidad and Tobago

Massy Wood Group has been awarded a five year contract, with a potential value of up to $250 million, by BP to provide services to its operations in Trinidad and Tobago. ...

There’s a missing ingredient in oil’s recovery from six-year low

Oil bulls who’ve cheered a rebound of 40% from a six-year low should take heed: Unless demand accelerates, the rally is in danger. ...

OPEC seen by Kuwait more united on oil output as prices rise

OPEC is more united now about keeping its oil-production target unchanged than it was at its last meeting in November because crude prices have risen this year, according to Kuwaiti Oil Minister Ali Al-Omair. ...

Oil extends gain above $61 as U.S. crude supply glut seen easing

Oil extended its advance to trade above $61/bbl on signs the U.S. supply glut is easing. ...

Ecopetrol profit drops 91% from year ago after crude price slump

Ecopetrol SA, Colombia’s state-controlled oil producer, said first-quarter profit fell 91% from a year earlier as the slump in oil prices weighed on the company. ...

FMC Technologies names Douglas J. Pferdehirt as President

FMC Technologies' Board of Directors have appointed Douglas J. Pferdehirt as the President of the company. Pferdehirt assumes this responsibility from John T. Gremp who remains Chairman and CEO. ...

Monitoring of aquatic environment around Prirazlomnoye field shows no divergence from natural status: Gazprom Neft

As a part of yearly investigations undertaken by Gazprom Neft, researchers from the Knipovich Polar Research Institute of Marine Fisheries and Oceanography have recently completed comprehensive investigations on aquatic conditions round the Prirazlomnaya platform, located in the Pechora Sea. ...

Offshore Installation Services wins multiple well abandonment contract by Centrica Energy

Offshore Installation Services (OIS), an Acteon company, has been awarded a contract to decommission multiple wells in the North Sea by Centrica Energy. ...

Optime Subsea Services targets up to 80% cost saving on subsea tree installations

A group of ex-FMC employees have teamed up with subsea installation player DeepOcean to found Optime Subsea Services, whose multiCompletionSystem (mCS) can provide up to 80% time and cost savings on subsea tree installations compared to traditional solutions. ...

Sen. Murkowski introduces bill to increase Alaska’s share of offshore oil and natural gas revenues

U.S. Sen. Lisa Murkowski, R-Alaska, took an aggressive step on Tuesday to ensure that Alaska receives its fair share of revenue from oil and natural gas production on Alaska’s outer continental shelf (OCS) by introducing the Alaska Outer Continental Shelf Lease Sale Act (S. 1278). ...

TransCanada inks project agreement for Prince Rupert Gas Transmission with Lake Babine Nation

TransCanada has announced that its Prince Rupert Gas Transmission project (PRGT) has entered into a project agreement with the Lake Babine Nation of northern B.C. that provides the Nation with financial and other benefits related to the pipeline project. ...

LUKOIL initiates production tests for Kandym Early Gas Project in Uzbekistan

LUKOIL has begun production tests of two Gas Treatment Plants (GTPs) at the Northern Shady Site and the Kuvachi-Alat field in Uzbekistan's Bukhara region as part of the Kandym Early Gas Project, which is being implemented together with National Holding Company Uzbekneftegaz. ...

Subsea 7 announces cost reduction programme

Subsea 7 has announced that in view of the difficult business and economic conditions in the oil and gas market and declining workload, a programme of cost reduction measures will be implemented including a re-sizing of the fleet and workforce, and the restructuring of its corporate organisation. ...

Europa Oil and Gas: 1.5 Bbbl of gross prospective resources identified on Irish license

...

Saudi Arabia tells OPEC oil output surge maintained in April

Saudi Arabia boosted crude oil production for a second month to the highest level in at least three decades, helping to raise OPEC output as U.S. supply growth showed signs of slowing. ...

Natural gas climbs to 8-week high as hot weather boosts demand

Natural gas futures advanced in New York to an eight-week high as forecasts showed hotter-than-normal weather that would boost demand from power plants. ...

Shale drillers capitulating in Europe as Poland proves to be no Texas

When Cuadrilla Resources opened an office in Poland in 2009, it had a reason to be optimistic: the shale boom was transforming the U.S. into the world’s largest producer of natural gas. To the companies rushing to imitate that success in Europe, Poland looked like the next Texas. ...

Natural gas futures climb as hot weather boosts power demand

Natural gas futures advanced in New York for the second time in three days as forecasts showed hotter-than-normal weather that would boost demand from power plants. ...

Tracerco introduces offshore mobile labs for reservoir tracer analysis

Tracerco has invested in a number of new mobile reservoir tracer analysis laboratories for use onsite in offshore projects. ...

Upstream mega projects to alter global crude routes and refining

By 2025, mega-projects offshore Brazil and Norway will add some 3.8 MMbopd of new crude supply from the Atlantic basin, according to Wood Mackenzie's latest outlook. ...

Brazil's local content rules to be eased to spur oil projects

Brazil is preparing to ease limits on foreign-built oil equipment to reduce development bottlenecks that are being exacerbated by a graft case involving local suppliers ...

Putin’s cash-starved allies target Surgutneft's $34 billion oil hoard

In Russia, even private companies serve at the pleasure of the president, particularly if they pump oil. A decade ago, Vladimir Putin’s allies had Mikhail Khodorkovsky jailed and seized his Yukos Oil Co. Last year, they forced billionaire Vladimir Evtushenkov to hand over OAO Bashneft. Now they’re coveting the biggest corporate treasure of all: OAO Surgutneftegas. ...

Premier Oil resolves BOP problem, restores operations at Falkland well

Falkland Oil and Gas Ltd. has announced that the technical issues relating to the blow-out preventer (BOP) control system on the 14/20-1 'Isobel Deep' well (operator-Premier Oil) offshore Falkland Islands have now been fully resolved and drilling operations have recommenced. ...

Goldman sees oil dropping as price rally makes crude too costly

Oil prices are set to slide as their rally to the highest level this year threatens to prolong a global glut, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc. ...

Saudi Chevron halting output at Wafra Oil fields for maintenance

A unit of Chevron Corp. operating along the Saudi-Kuwaiti border confirmed it’s shutting down the Wafra oil fields for maintenance amid a shortage of staff and equipment, trimming a potential 250,000 bpd from global supply. ...

TGS partners with PGS for multi-client 2D program offshore Canada

TGS has announced two new multi-client 2D surveys offshore Eastern Canada, with plans to acquire approximately 30,000 km of seismic data. Both surveys are in partnership with PGS, utilizing two vessels during the 2015 acquisition season. ...

Big oil remains interested in Colombia shale, minister says

Colombia sees at least two shale projects starting development this year, with Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon Mobil maintaining their interest despite a slump in prices. ...

Shale oil production cuts to get bigger next month, EIA says

The U.S. lost about 1% of the oil production flowing from its shale formations this month, and the decline is just starting. ...

BP selects Technip for the Thunder Horse South Expansion project in GoM

BP Exploration and Production Inc. has awarded Technip a lump sum project for the design, engineering, fabrication, installation and pre-commissioning of the new production pipeline systems on the south side of the Thunder Horse production drilling quarters unit. ...

Saudi Aramco’s 2014 oil, gas output reaches near-record high

Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest crude exporter, boosted 2014 production of hydrocarbons close to an all-time high while adding reserves amid a supply glut that led to a drop in oil prices by almost half last year. ...

$2.1 billion Rosetta acquisition could be first of many

The first major shale deal after the worst oil price collapse in five years is a model for future transactions that promises to quickly change the industry as companies expand in new areas or soak up struggling rivals. ...

Shell gets green light for Chukchi Sea exploration program

The U.S. Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) has conditionally approved Shell Gulf of Mexico, Inc.’s revised multi-year Exploration Plan (EP) for the Chukchi Sea. ...

Exxon Mobil’s Cold Lake project expansion starts production

Exxon Mobil Corp. announced Monday that bitumen production began on schedule at the $2-billion Cold Lake Nabiye project expansion in northeastern Alberta, Canada. ...

2H Offshore strengthens flexible riser service in Aberdeen, Kuala Lumpur

2H Offshore, an Acteon company, is adding strength to its flexible marine riser engineering capabilities by growing its teams in Aberdeen and Kuala Lumpur. ...

Canada’s NEB approves WesPac Midstream LNG export license

Canada’s National Energy Board (NEB) has approved the application of WesPac Midstream - Vancouver LLC (WesPac) for a 25 year natural gas export license with a maximum term quantity of 116.44 Bcm. The issuance of this license is subject to the approval of the Governor in Council. ...

Cairn Energy submits offshore evaluation plan for Senegal

Cairn Energy and its JV partners have submitted a three-year evaluation work plan to the Government of Senegal. ...

Apache, Inpex produce first oil from Australia's Coniston field

Inpex Corporation, through its wholly owned subsidiary Inpex Alpha, Ltd., has commenced oil production from the Coniston oil field, offshore Western Australia on Sunday. ...

Oilfield services in a holding pattern as EandP searches for equilibrium: DW Monday

When oil prices dramatically dropped in the fall of 2014, operators began to significantly alter their plans. As months passed, many thought service providers would gain clarity on the upstream situation and begin to develop their own strategic plans. However, as we have progressed toward mid-2015, as answers have been obtained, many new questions have arisen. ...

Saudi Aramco said to plan up to $80 billion spending abroad

Saudi Arabian Oil Co., the world’s largest oil exporter, is planning to spend between $70 billion and $80 billion on overseas acquisitions and investments during the next five years, three people with knowledge of the matter said. ...

Noble Energy buys into Eagle Ford, Permian with Rosetta Resources acquisition

Noble Energy and Rosetta Resources have announced a definitive merger agreement whereby Noble Energy will acquire all of the common stock of Rosetta in an all-stock transaction valued at $2.1 billion, plus the assumption of Rosetta's net debt of $1.8 billion as of March 31, 2015. ...

Statoil scouts for deals yet to become ‘cheap’ after oil slump

Statoil, Norway’s biggest oil company, is keeping a close watch of acquisition opportunities after a crash in crude prices. ...

Wood Group Kenny supports industry leading oil spill containment project

Wood Group Kenny (WGK) has secured a five-year contract with Oil Spill Response (Capping) Ltd. (OSRCL) to provide the maintenance support for a key part of a containment toolkit that would be used to control hydrocarbon release in the event of a subsea well control incident. ...

Inpex brings Western Australia's Coniston oil field online

Inpex Corporation, through its wholly owned subsidiary Inpex Alpha, Ltd., has commenced oil production from the Coniston oil field, offshore Western Australia on Sunday. ...

Cairn Energy submits offshore evaluation plan to Government of Senegal

Cairn Energy and its JV partners have submitted a three-year evaluation work plan to the Government of Senegal. ...

AGR, SP Offshore sign MoU for ultra-deepwater well off Comoros Islands

AGR and SP Offshore Energy Services have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) under which AGR will provide a range of exploration services and the drilling of an ultra-deepwater well off the Comoros Islands, between Mozambique and the Comoros. ...

Crude-oil bulls threatened as shale patch revives drilling plans

The rally in crude oil is reviving the U.S. shale boom, threatening speculators who are the most bullish on prices since July. ...

Natural gas rises to seven-week high as warmer weather boosts demand

NEW YORK -- Natural gas futures rose to a seven-week high as forecasts for hotter-than-normal weather signaled increased demand from power generators. ...

America’s oil boom sputtering back to life one rig at a time

The oil boom isn't dead after all. ...

U.S. Energy Department authorizes Dominion Cove Point LNG exports

The U.S. Energy Department has issued a final authorization for Dominion Cove Point LNG to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. ...

Subsea 7 bags $300-million contract offshore Norway

Subsea 7 has been awarded a contract with a value of approximately $300 million for Wintershall Norge's Maria field development. The field is located in the Norwegian Sea at a water depth of approximately 300 m. ...

Gazprom Neft selecting technologies for development of hard-to-recover reserves

The first exploratory well has been drilled at Achinsk field (Tomsk Oblast, under development by Gazprom Neft subsidiary Gazpromneft-Vostok), part of a federal project to establish a regional testing ground to identify effective technologies for the development of hard-to-recover (tight) reserves. ...

Ichthys LNG project commences mooring installation

Mooring installation works have commenced at Ichthys field in the Browse basin, about 220 km offshore Western Australia, as part of the Inpex-operated Ichthys LNG project’s ongoing offshore installation campaign. ...

Transocean beats first-quarter profit estimates on cost cuts

Transocean Ltd.’s first-quarter earnings exceeded analysts’ estimates by 86% as the offshore rig owner named new leadership, scrapped vessels and cut costs to handle a drop in drilling demand. ...

U.S. Energy Department authorizes Dominion Cove Point LNG to export LNG

The U.S. Energy Department has issued a final authorization for Dominion Cove Point LNG to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. ...

Subsea 7 bags $300-million EPCI contract offshore Norway

Subsea 7 has been awarded a contract with a value of approximately $300 million for the Maria field development by Wintershall Norge. The field is located in the Norwegian Sea at a water depth of approximately 300 m. ...

Plexus Holdings wins third order from Maersk Oil's Danish business unit

Plexus Holdings has secured an additional purchase order with Maersk Oil's Danish business unit to supply its wellhead system and mudline services for a well offshore in the Danish sector of the North Sea. ...

VGN Norge to drill two wells in Norwegian Sea

VNG Norge has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) Norway to drill two exploration wells 6406/12-4 S and 6406/12-4 A in the Norwegian Sea. ...

Statoil to plug Kristin field well using 'Scarabeo 5'

Statoil has received consent from the Petroleum Safety Authority (PSA) Norway to use 'Scarabeo 5' for permanent plugging of well 6506/11-N-4 H on the Kristin field in the Norwegian Sea. ...

RINA Services acquires QIC Inc. to expand oil and gas services

RINA Services, a multi-national group based Italy has acquired QIC, Inc. by its U.S. subsidiary. ...

Third Energy to purchase Atlantic Petroleum’s interest in Pegasus Discovery

Third Energy Offshore Ltd. has signed a sale and purchase agreement with Atlantic Petroleum for Atlantic Petroleum’s interests in P1724 (UK Block 43/13b which contains the Pegasus West Gas Discovery), P1727 (UK Blocks 43/17b and 43/18b) and P2128 (Block 43/12). ...

More must be done to reduce major accidents, states DNV GL study

The new DNV GL study analyses current regulatory regimes, outlining possible future developments and DNV GL’s recommendations to reduce the risk of major accidents. ...

Energy Department authorizes Dominion Cove Point LNG to export LNG

The Energy Department has issued a final authorization for Dominion Cove Point LNG to export domestically produced liquefied natural gas (LNG) to countries that do not have a Free Trade Agreement (FTA) with the U.S. ...

California oil waste rules challenged as groundwater threat

(Bloomberg) -- California’s rules allowing oil extraction waste to be injected into the ground were challenged by environmental groups saying the practice threatens protected sources of drinking water as the state suffers through a record drought. ...

Oil drops from 5-month high on concern demand slow to accelerate

Crude oil fell from a five-month high on concern demand isn’t rising fast enough to erase a glut. ...

Gazprom, PetroVietnam to drill first deepwater well offshore Vietnam

Gazprom and PetroVietnam are to set drill the first deepwater well offshore Vietnam later this year, Moscow-based Gazprom said Wednesday. ...

Applus RTD completes latest INCOTEST project in Malaysia

Applus RTD is celebrating the successful completion of the latest advanced non-destructive testing (ANDT) project with its RTD INCOTEST technology, which provides a unique solution for unpiggable subsea pipelines. ...

Wood Group completes engineering services for MWCC’s modular capture vessels

Wood Group Mustang has completed engineering services for the two Marine Well Containment Company vessels that can be deployed in the event of a deepwater well control incident in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. ...

iSURVEY celebrates contract awards for Singapore division

iSURVEY Group, a provider of survey and positioning services to the global oil and gas, telecommunications and offshore renewable energy sectors, has marked a positive start to 2015 with significant contract wins for its Singapore division. ...

There’s one part of the world where the oil industry is booming

As the oil industry tightens its belt after the worst price slump in a generation, the state-owned giants of the Middle East are taking the opposite tack. ...

Canadian Natural reports first quarterly loss in four years

Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., the nation’s largest heavy-oil producer, reported its first quarterly loss in more than four years as record output failed to offset a collapse in crude prices. ...

Iran sees $75 oil amid plans for post-sanctions output boost

Iran, OPEC’s fifth-biggest producer, sees $70-$75/bbl as a suitable price for crude, Oil Minister Bijan Namdar Zanganeh said, as markets show signs of a partial recovery from last year’s collapse. ...

EFC Group celebrates multi-million dollar Weatherford MPD contract wins

EFC Group has been awarded multiple multi-million dollar contracts by major oilfield services company, Weatherford, marking continued success in the US since the Group set up its Houston base in 1995. ...

Tracerco launches subsea flowline inspection technology

Tracerco, part of FTSE100 Johnson Matthey Plc, has launched an innovative new product that enables oil companies to quickly scan many kilometres of pipeline to detect the location of deposits causing flow assurance issues. ...

Applus completes latest INCOTEST project in Malaysia

Applus RTD is celebrating the successful completion of the latest advanced non-destructive testing (ANDT) project with its RTD INCOTEST technology which provides a unique solution for unpiggable subsea pipelines. ...

DNV GL supports operators moving from exploration to production

With lower oil prices and smaller margins, good project management is more important than ever, yet operators are often challenged when moving from field development projects into the operational phase. DNV GL has therefore developed a framework and roadmap for planning operations. This will support smaller operators in the transition from exploration to production to ensure a safe and cost-efficient operation. ...

Cummins QSK Series drilling engines to meet tier 4 final using integrated SCR aftertreatment

Cummins Inc announced that the QSK Series engines for land-based drilling will meet the 2018 U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Tier 4 Final regulation using next-generation Selective Catalytic Reduction (SCR) aftertreatment. The Cummins Tier 4 Final drilling solution will meet or exceed the same uptime, reliability and durability that customers are currently experiencing with Tier 2 product. ...

BNSF oil-train crash sparks fire, evacuation in North Dakota

A BNSF Railway train carrying crude oil derailed in North Dakota, setting several tank cars on fire and prompting the evacuation of nearby residents, U.S. and local authorities said. ...

Baker Hughes introduces bi-directional digital reamer

Baker Hughes has announced the commercial release of its GaugePro Echo on-command digital reamer, the industry’s first bi-directional digital reaming tool. ...

MicroSeismic launches AlertArray seismicity monitoring network

MicroSeismic Inc. has released its newest technology, AlertArray, a real-time seismicity network which offers operators a single solution alternative to monitor seismicity during hydraulic fracturing and fluid injection operations. ...

Wintershall submits PDO for Maria discovery to NPD

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD) received Wintershall’s Plan for Development and Operation (PDO) for the Maria oil discovery on Tuesday. ...

Ensco wins three-year contracts for two jackups

Ensco plc has entered into a three-year contract with NDC for a new premium jackup, ENSCO 110. This newbuild rig is scheduled to commence operations later this month offshore United Arab Emirates at a rate of approximately $114,000 per day. ...

Halliburton opens new Indonesian HQ in Jakarta

Halliburton opened its new Indonesian headquarters in Jakarta with a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 27. This facility serves as Halliburton’s headquarters for all of its business lines in Indonesia, which provide services to support customers’ activities in the country. ...

DNO doubles capacity at Kurdistan’s Tawke field

DNO ASA has doubled the capacity at its flagship Tawke field in the Kurdistan region of Iraq to 200,000 bopd. ...

Proserv delivers opening phase of record contract

Proserv has completed the first phase of one of its largest contracts yet, to provide subsea control systems for deepwater projects in Brazil. ...

Oxy names Vicki A. Hollub as next CEO

Occidental Petroleum Corp. announced Tuesday that its board of directors has approved a CEO succession plan and promoted Vicki A. Hollub to senior executive V.P. of Occidental and president – Oxy Oil and Gas, responsible for operations in the U.S., Middle East region and Latin America. ...

Oil analysts practice cautious capitulation as crude surprises

As oil prices climbed above $68 on Tuesday for the first time since December, analysts at some of the world’s biggest banks were holding onto views that this would be a bad year for crude--just not as terrible as they originally predicted. ...

U.S. seen joining biggest oil exporters if ban is lifted

The U.S. will become one of the world’s largest oil exporters if domestic production continues to surge and policy makers lift a four-decade ban that keeps most crude from leaving the country, a government-sponsored study shows. ...

Shell CEO visits China to win backing for $70 billion BG deal

The biggest obstacle to Royal Dutch Shell’s $70 billion offer for BG Group probably lies in China. ...

MicroSeismic launches AlertArray seismicity monitoring network to mitigate risk

MicroSeismic Inc. has released its newest technology, AlertArray, a real-time seismicity network which offers operators a single solution alternative to monitor seismicity during hydraulic fracturing and fluid injection operations. ...

OTC' 15: Weir Oil and Gas launches SPM QEM 3000 Frac Pump

Weir Oil and Gas has announced its latest innovation to increase customer efficiency and performance. The new SPM QEM 3000 is the industry’s first high-horse power frac pump designed for continuous-duty pressure pumping operation at 275,000 pound force rod load, all the time. ...

Baker Hughes introduces wireline service to deliver precise pressure data

Baker Hughes has commercially released its FTeX advanced formation pressure testing service, which uses downhole automation and real-time control of an intelligent packer and pump configuration to deliver critical formation data, including pressure profiles, fluid contact and mobility information-reliably, accurately and efficiently. ...

CGG, Air Control announce partnership for airborne geophysics in Kazakhstan

CGG and Air Control have signed an agreement to provide airborne geophysical survey services in Kazakhstan. ...

Lloyd’s Register Energy’s Technology Qualification aims to reduce risk and uncertainties in new technology across the energy sector

Lloyd's Register Energy has launched a new risk-based Technology Qualification Guidance Note which helps to minimise risks and uncertainty of novel designs, concepts or applications not covered by existing rules, industry codes or best practice. ...

Texas cities wouldn’t be able to ban oil drilling under bill

Texas cities would no longer be able to ban oil and gas companies from drilling inside municipal limits under a bill lawmakers sent to Governor Greg Abbott. ...

EIA: Crude by rail supplies 52% of East Coast refinery supply

WASHINGTON, D.C. -- Monthly rail receipts of crude oil accounted for more than half (52%) of the crude oil supply to East Coast refineries in February. ...

EOG will resume major oil growth at ‘stable’ $65 oil price

EOG Resources, the biggest shale-oil producer, will resume major growth in output once crude prices are stable at $65/bbl. ...

Gauthiers’, Modex merger creates world’s third-largest offshore container fleet

LAFAYETTE, La. -- Gauthiers’ has acquired an equity share of Modex, an international manufacturer of DNV-certified offshore equipment. ...

Russia keys on condensates after sanctions hit Arctic oil

With Siberia’s aging oil fields slowly running dry, Russia is turning to a natural gas by-product to help maintain crude production and meet President Vladimir Putin’s target of 10 MMbopd. ...

U.S. oil rises above $60 for first time this year as glut fades

Oil rose above $60/bbl in New York for the first time since December, extending the biggest monthly advance since May 2009 on signs the U.S. supply glut is easing. ...

GE Oil and Gas releases remote collaboration software to improve asset reliability inspections

BILLERICA, Massachucetts -- GE Oil and Gas has announced the release of its InspectionWorks Connect software, a remote collaboration platform for the nondestructive testing (NDT) and inspection industry. ...

Ocean Marine Systems launched as new offshore company

UNITED KINGDOM -- A new innovative precision engineering company for the marine industry has launched as Ocean Marine Systems Limited. ...

Ceona awarded deepwater Gulf of Mexico contract with Bennu Oil and Gas

LONDON -- Ceona, a SURF contractor with heavy subsea construction capabilities, has been awarded a new deepwater contract with Houston-based Bennu Oil and Gas LLC in the Gulf of Mexico on their Mirage field. ...

Eni brings Angola's Kizomba project online

Eni has started production at the Kizomba Satellites Phase 2 project in the Block 15, offshore Angola, ahead of schedule. ...

OPEC says speculation played important role in oil’s decline

Oil supply and demand don’t fully justify the 60% drop in prices between June and January as speculation also played a role, according to OPEC. ...

Canadian crude price strengthens as Enbridge fills new pipeline

Heavy Western Canadian Select crude’s discount to West Texas Intermediate shrank to the least since 2012 as a new pipeline started and production sites were shut for maintenance. ...

Gulf oil states need swift adjustment to lower prices, IMF says

The International Monetary Fund warned Middle Eastern oil exporters that their economies will pay a price if they don’t take rapid steps to scale back public spending amid the global oil-price slump. ...

ExxonMobil awards license to EON Reality for Immersive 3D Operator Training Simulator technology

ExxonMobil Research Qatar (EMRQ) has announced that ExxonMobil has awarded a global commercial license for Immersive 3D Operator Training Simulator technology to co-developer EON Reality Inc. ...

Cummins announces production of PowerCommand 3300 controller for drilling operations

Cummins Inc. has announced the production of the PowerCommand (PCC) 3300 Controller for drilling operations, offering greater drilling power module (DPM) efficiency. ...

Enteq introduces Twin Electro-Magnetic Telemetry System for MWD/LWD

Enteq Upstream PLC, a provider of systems and components for MWD and directional drilling, has introduced the new Twin Electro-Magnetic Telemetry System into its product portfolio. ...

Erin Energy Corp. brings Nigeria's Oyo field online

Erin Energy Corp. has commenced production from the Oyo-8 well located in OML 120, offshore Nigeria. ...

Total, Shell buy into Mid-Atlantic Current Hindcast (MACH) data set

BMT ARGOSS Ltd., the Met Office and Oceanweather Inc. have announced the launch of their joint Mid-Atlantic Current Hindcast (MACH) data set, resulting in two successful data sales to oil and gas majors, Shell International Petroleum Company Limited and Total S.A. ...

Erin Energy brings Nigeria's Oyo field online

Erin Energy has commenced production from the Oyo-8 well located in OML 120 offshore Nigeria. ...

Expro nets Statoil contract for Canada's Flemish Pass basin

Expro has secured a key contract offshore Canada with Statoil in the Flemish Pass basin. The initial four-year contract is valued at $45 million with options for two one-year extensions. ...

WPX Energy in $200 million-plus Marcellus deal

WPX Energy has signed an agreement to sell a package of Marcellus shale marketing contracts and release certain related firm transportation capacity to an undisclosed buyer for in excess of $200 million cash. ...

Total, Shell buy MACH data set

ARGOSS - MACHBMT ARGOSS Ltd., the Met Office and Oceanweather Inc. have launched their joint Mid-Atlantic Current Hindcast (MACH) data set, resulting in two successful data sales to oil and gas majors, Shell and Total. ...

Renowned oil trader sees rally as U.S. production falling

The meteoric rise in U.S. oil production has ended, easing a global glut and driving a rebound in crude prices from below $50/bbl, according to crude trader and hedge fund manager Andrew J. Hall. ...

Leadership reshuffle at China big oil clears path for reform

China confirmed the reshuffle of the leadership of its biggest oil companies, helping clear a path in a crucial area of the economy for President Xi Jinping as he plans his overhaul of the nation’s bloated state sector. ...

WorleyParsons cuts 2,000 jobs on falling oil prices

WorleyParsons Ltd., Australia’s largest oil services business, said second-half earnings will fall about 50% from the first half as it cuts 2,000 jobs and reduces work due to falling commodity prices. ...

Brazil minister supports regulatory relief for Petrobras

Brazil is considering lifting a requirement for its national oil company to operate all new projects in a deepwater region where exploration costs are some of the highest in the industry. ...

Repsol makes new gas discovery in Bolivia

Repsol has announced a new gas discovery in the Margarita-Huacaya block in Bolivia. ...

Expro secures contract with Statoil in Eastern Canada

Expro, has secured a key contract offshore Canada with Statoil in the Flemish Pass basin. The initial four-year contract is valued at $45 million with options for two one-year extensions. ...

Expro secures $200 million contract from Statoil in NCS

Expro has secured a significant Europe CIS (Commonwealth of Independent States) contract, providing fully integrated well testing and fluid sampling services for Statoil in the Norwegian Continental Shelf (NCS). ...

OTC '15: Annual dinner honors distinguished achievement award winners

HOUSTON – The 2015 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) will kick off on Sunday, May 3, with the Annual OTC Dinner to honor the recipients of this year’s Distinguished Achievement Awards. ...

U.S. oil rigs fall for 21st week as supply shows signs of easing

Oil explorers idled rigs in U.S. fields for the 21st straight week, extending an unprecedented retreat in drilling that has curbed domestic output and helped crude prices rally. ...

Saudi Aramco names Nasser as acting president, CEO

Amin H. Nasser has been named as the acting president and CEO of Saudi Aramco, following the appointment of Khalid A. Al-Falih, Nasser's predecessor, as Saudi Arabia's minister of health. ...

Chevron’s Watson sticks to plan for raising output through slump

Chevron Corp.’s plan to lift output 20% in three years is on track, CEO John Watson said, despite an oil-price slump that bled $5 million a day from the company’s U.S. oil and gas wells. ...

Lower Canadian costs offer competitiveness with U.S. LNG, Wood Mac says

The huge gas resource base in North America offers significant potential for LNG exports, but currently it is the U.S., not Canada, that is building an LNG export industry, according to Wood Mackenzie’s latest analysis. ...

SOCAR assumes operatorships as Statoil completes Shah Deniz sale

SOCAR, the State Oil Company of the Azerbaijan Republic, assumed operatorship of the Azerbaijan Gas Supply Company (AGSC) and commercial operatorship of the South Caucasus Pipeline Company (SCPC) on May 1, positions which were both previously held by Statoil. ...

Chariot secures extension of Mauritania exploration license

Chariot and its partners—Cairn Energy and the SociétéMauritanienne des Hydrocarbures et de Patrimoine Miner (SMHPM)—have secured a one-year extension on the current exploration phase of license C-19 in Mauritania. ...

Deirdre Michie takes the helm at Oil and Gas UK

Deirdre Michie has assumed the position of chief executive at Oil and Gas UK, the leading representative organization for the UK offshore oil and gas industry. ...

Enterprise to build new crude, condensate pipeline from Midland to Houston

Enterprise Products Partners L.P. has executed long-term agreements that support development of a new 416-mile, 24-in. diameter pipeline to transport crude oil and condensate from the company’s Midland, Texas, terminal to its Sealy storage facility west of Houston. ...

Cape wins two-year BP contract

Cape plc has extended its current relationship with BP with the award of a new two-year contract with an estimated value of $153 million (£100 million). ...

Chevron in natural gas discovery offshore Australia

Chevron Australia Pty Ltd. has announced further drilling success in the Greater Gorgon Area, located in the Carnarvon basin, a premier hydrocarbon basin offshore northwest Australia. ...

Global oil producers rewind the clock on profit with price crash

Big Oil’s profit engine has gone into reverse, taking it back to the days when oil was just $28/bbl. ...

Oil producers’ sale of future output puts lid on price gains

Oil producers are taking advantage of the biggest monthly price increase since 2009 to sell more of their future output, threatening to slow the rally. ...

OPEC oil output near 2 1/2-year high as Saudis show no letup

OPEC oil production was little changed in April near the highest level since November 2012 as Saudi Arabia pumped 10 MMbpd. ...