MALAYSIA: Race on to attract foreign investments as oil importer status looms

(EnergyAsia, January 26 2011, Wednesday) — The Malaysian government has forecast that it expects to attract a total of more than RM15 billion in investments from Exxon Mobil Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc. (US$1=RM3.06). The investments from the two Western majors will contribute toward the Southeast Asian nation’s goal of attracting US$444 billion in...

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MALAYSIA: Plan to develop integrated oil-petrochemical complex in Johor state

(EnergyAsia, January 26 2011, Wednesday) — The Malaysian government has mapped out a long-term plan to develop an integrated oil-petrochemical hub in Johor state along the lines of neighbouring Singapore’s Jurong Island. Kicking off development along the state’s eastern coastline, Malaysian engineering firm Dialog Group and Vopak Asia, a subsidiary of the Dutch energy logistics...

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AUSTRALIA: Caltex said Lytton refinery outage was unplanned, start-up continuing

(EnergyAsia, January 26 2011, Wednesday) — Australia’s largest transportation fuel supplier and retailer Caltex said heavy rains over the last few weeks caused an unscheduled shutdown at its 105,000 b/d Lytton refinery in Queensland state on January 5. Despite floods having reached Brisbane city, the company added that neither the refinery nor its terminal, also...

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MARKETS: Floating LNG summit to tap emerging technology’s potential revenue stream

(EnergyAsia, January 26 2010, Wednesday) — While organisations have begun to recognise the possibilities presented by floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG), many have yet to take advantage of the untapped revenue stream from this emerging technology. On January 24-26, the 2011 Global Floating LNG Summit in London will offer operator-led, in-depth analyses of current trends...

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CHINA: Sinopec, Repsol exploring joint upstream ventures worldwide

(EnergyAsia, January 26 2011, Wednesday) — China Petrochemical Corp (Sinopec) and Repsol YPF SA are exploring the jointly developing new upstream business around the world after the Chinese firm bought a 40% stake in the Spanish firm’s subsidiary in Brazil last year.   Sinopec paid US$7.1 billion to acquire the stake as part of a...

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BANGLADESH: Oil storage capacity to be expanded

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) said it is expanding its oil storage capacity to meet the country’s growing demand for petroleum products. The state-owned firm plans to install two new tanks in Khulna district and to increase the capacity of its tank in Baghabari to store imported fuel. Dhaka’s diesel...

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CHINA: PetroChina to buy into INEOS’ two refineries in Europe

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — As part of an ambitious plan to become a leading international oil company, Chinese state oil giant PetroChina plans to buy a 50% stake in two oil refineries in France and Scotland currently owned by British company INEOS. The deal will pave the way for refining ventures at the...

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CHINA: Refining capacity to rise 20% by 2015

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — China is expecting its oil refining capacity to rise by 20% to 12 million b/d by 2015, with gasoline, diesel and kerosene to account for more than half of production by then.   China, the world’s second-largest energy user, is also predicting its domestic crude oil production to stay...

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CHINA: Loss of influence from Sudan’s impending split

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — China, which relies on Sudan for nearly five percent of its oil imports, is bracing itself for the looming division of the African nation when the south declares independence.   Formers rebels who are set to lead the south are leaning toward forging ties with Western countries which extended...

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INDIA: BPLC’s Bina refinery to start full commercial operation in mid-February

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — After starting up its main Bina refinery unit last June, India’s Bharat Petroleum Corp Ltd (BPCL) expects to launch the plant into full commercial operations around the middle of next month. The six-million-tonne-per-year refinery in Madhya Pradesh state will sell the bulk of products to the domestic market and...

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AUSTRALIA: BHP expects “significant” decline in coal output from floods

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2011, Tuesday) — Australia’s BHP Billiton said its coal production in Queensland state has been “significantly” affected by the persistent rain and flooding in the Bowen Basin in the December 2010 quarter. The world’s largest mining company said its Queensland coal output was down 30%  compared with the September 2010 quarter, while...

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SINGAPORE: SLNG Corp awards S$200 million contract to Samsung C&T to build third LNG tank

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — Singapore LNG Corporation Pte Ltd (SLNG) said it has awarded South Korea’s Samsung C&T Corporation a S$200 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract for the third storage tank at its liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal on Jurong Island. (US$1=S$1.3). To be completed by early 2014, the 188,000-cubic-metre tank,...

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RUSSIA: Mechel reports 176% rise in output of metallurgical coal, 52% rise in coking coal

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — New York Stock Exchange-listed Mechel OAO, one of Russia’s leading mining and steel companies, has reported strong performance for 2010, with the output of its metallurgical coal up by 176% and coking coal by 52% over the previous year. Its steel production grew by 11% over 2009 while the...

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AUSTRALIA: Fluor Corp lands US$3.5 billion EPC contract with Santos for Gladstone LNG project

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — Fluor Corporation, a Texas, US-based engineering, procurement, construction and maintenance firm, said it has secured a US$3.5 billion contract from Australian upstream firm Santos Limited to develop its Gladstone liquefied natural gas (GLNG) project in Queensland state in Australia. Fluor will provide engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) services for...

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SINGAPORE: Rotary Engineering bags S$14.6 million deal to build new plant, upgrade existing plant

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — Singapore Exchange-listed Rotary Engineering Ltd said it secured a S$14.6 million engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contract from chemicals company Stepan Asia Pte Ltd to build a four-storey 50,000 tons-per-year (expandable to 100,000 tons-per-year) fractionated methyl ester plant and upgrade an existing plant on Jurong Island. (US$1=S$1.29) Works include...

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MARKETS: Ernst & Young analysis on challenging 2010, optimism for 2011 oil and gas

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — Oil and gas merger-and-acquisition (M&A) cases for 2010 rose 50% from the previous year while initial public offering (IPO) activity is rebounding on the back of a strong increase in oil demand, the second largest in 30 years, providing a favourable outlook for 2011, said Ernst & Young (E&Y),...

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AUSTRALIA: BHP Billiton approves increased capital expenditure for Kipper and Turrum projects

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2011, Monday) — Melbourne, Australia-based BHP Billiton, a leading global mining, oil and gas company, said it has approved an increase in its capital expenditure by a total of US$2.25 billion for two oil and gas projects off the coast of Australia’s Victoria state. BHP said it will be spending an additional...

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DUBAI: Dubai Mercantile Exchange records 35% increase in trading volume in 2010

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2011, Friday) — The Dubai Mercantile Exchange Ltd (DME) said it achieved a 35% growth in trading volumes and record levels of open interest last year. In its annual review for 2010, the company said its Oman contract, known as the DME Oman, remains the world’s largest physically delivered crude oil futures (more…)

SINGAPORE: India’s ICICI Bank clears and settles first contract on SMX

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2010, Friday) — Singapore Mercantile Exchange (SMX), the first pan-Asian multi-product commodity and currency derivatives exchange, said its pioneer special clearing member, ICICI Bank Ltd Singapore Branch (ICICI), has started trading on the bourse with its first contract cleared last December 30. The inaugural trade for SMX Singapore-deliverable gold futures made the...

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SINGAPORE: EOC reports lower 1Q net profit, expects offshore market upswing

(EnergyAsia, January 18 2011, Tuesday) — EOC Limited, an Oslo, Norway-listed provider of offshore oil and gas support services in Asia, said its net profit fell to US$600,000 for the first quarter ended November 30 2010 on revenues of US$23.5 million. The company’s press release did not reveal the extent of the profit decline for...

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INDIA: US dollar may no longer be used to buy Iranian oil

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2011, Friday) — India is considering replacing the US dollar with the Japanese yen and the Emirates dirham to pay for its oil purchases from Iran in response to tightened international trade sanctions against the Islamic regime. The UN has imposed further trade sanction on Iran, India’s second largest crude supplier after...

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CHINA: Construction of second phase of Shihua crude oil terminal to begin soon

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2011, Friday) -–- The Chinese government has approved the construction of the second phase of the Shihua crude oil terminal project at the Ningbo-Zhoushan Port. Located on Daxie Island in Ningbo, the RMB190 million project will be China’s largest crude oil terminal with an annual throughput capacity of 18 million tonnes. (US$1=CNY6.6)....

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CHINA: CNPC completes storage terminal in Dagang, to start building reserves in Huizhou

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2011, Friday) — State-owned China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) said it has completed construction of a crude oil storage terminal in northern China and has started work on a strategic petroleum reserve base in the south. The company said the one-million-cubic-metre commercial crude storage facility in Dagang city, located south of Tianjin...

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MARKETS: OPEC sees world oil demand up 1.2 million b/d in 2011 after 1.6 million b/d rise in 2010

(EnergyAsia, January 20 2011, Thursday) — The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) expects world oil demand to grow by 1.2 million in 2011, down from last year’s 1.6 million b/d increase. The cartel said last year’s stronger increase came off the “low base” of 2009, and was further helped by the global economic recovery...

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INDONESIA: Pertamina, Exxon to jointly develop Indonesia’s oil and gas block

(EnergyAsia, January 20 2010, Thursday) — After years of delay, Indonesia’s state-owned Pertamina and US major Exxon Mobil have agreed to jointly develop an oil and gas block off the coast of Borneo Island. The Natuna D-Alpha oil and gas block is estimated to hold 200 trillion cubic feet of gas reserves, although only 45...

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