Malaysian oil and gas service company SAAG Consolidated posted a pre-tax loss of RM2.6million for the half year ended June 30, reported The Star newspaper. The loss was its first in five years, attributed mainly to interest expense amounting to RM1.9million arising from a RM45million unsecured term loan obtained at the end of 2002. Revenue...

SHANGHAI (AFX-ASIA) – China National Offshore Oil Corp (CNOOC), China’s largest offshore oil producer, has managed to sign up a group of customers for its Fujian liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal and may build a 2,000 km gas pipeline to link China’s northern and southern coastal areas, a CNOOC official said. “We have entered into...

By Steve Christy * Russian oil product exporters are facing major challenges with consequences for not just Europe, but for the international markets. Perhaps the biggest issues are being posed in the fuel oil market itself. Fuel oil cargoes have recently to move further afield into Asia to find a home. The recent relative strength...

LONDON (AFX) – The US government has increased Bechtel’s contract to rebuild the Iraqi power grid by US$350 million, or more that 50%, while Halliburton Co’s military contracts in Iraq are also significantly greater than previously thought, according to press reports. The extra money for Bechtel’s post-war reconstruction contract is expected to be turned over...

Australian upstream company Santos needs to regain investor confidence after “less than great” half-year results. The company retained its dividend payout, a wise move, but more is needed, said stock analysts. Importantly, it must work hard to boost production to replace its core Cooper Basin assets in South Australia state, most of which are declining....

Oil prices crept higher over the past month and look to keep within a tight trading range in the weeks ahead. Some analysts believe oil prices have hit or are near peak levels and are likely to slide back into the mid-US$20s per barrel level in the later part of the year. At US$30/barrel, the...

Jet fuel supplier China Aviation Oil (Singapore) Corporation Ltd (CAO) said its second quarter net profit rose 41.9% to S$11.3 million despite the massive impact of the US war in Iraq and the SARS epidemic on air travel in the Asia Pacific region. It attributed its strong performance to “contributions by strategic investments, as well...

Malaysia’s state oil and gas company Petronas has entered into Sudan’s retail marketing business and expanded its involvement in the upstream sector. With the opening of its first service station last week, Petronas officially marked its entry into Sudan’s retail business following the acquisition of the retail assets of Mobil Oil Sudan Ltd earlier this...

SYDNEY (AFX-ASIA) – Fuel refiner and distributor Caltex Australia Ltd said net profit fell 41.5% year-on-year to A$76.2 million in the six months to June as volatility in oil prices during the period caused inventory losses. (US$1=A$1.56). In a statement, Caltex said its RCOP (replacement cost of sales operating profit), which is normalized to exclude...

HONG KONG (AFX-ASIA) – Beijing Datang Power Generation Co Ltd 991.HK) deputy general manager Zhang Yi said the company is spending 20-25 billion yuan to raise its operating installed capacity to 12,500 MW in 2006. In the six months to June, operating installed capacity was 6,770 MW. He told reporters today that the company is...

JAKARTA (AFX-ASIA) – Bank Central Asia has extended a US$31.5 million loan to PT Apexindo Pratama Duta, a unit of oil and gas firm PT Medco Energi Internasional, Bisnis Indonesia reported, citing a joint statement by the two parties. BCA said it signed the loan agreement with Apexindo last week. The loan consists of US$25...

KUALA LUMPUR (AFX-ASIA) – YTL Power International Bhd said its net profit for the full year to June 2003 rose 24.2% to RM603.45 million, thanks to the consolidation Wessex Water Group results. (US$1=RM3.8). Sales for the full year came to RM3.18 billion compared to RM1.50 billion a year ago while pretax profit increased to RM836.61...

SHANGHAI (AFX-ASIA) – China Petrochemical Corp (Sinopec Group), the country’s largest refiner, plans to export 60,000 tons of diesel oil in September, 11.76 pct lower than the 68,000 tons exported in August, due to a gradual pick-up in domestic demand, a trader with China International United Petroleum & Chemical Co (Unipec) said. Vietnam was the...

Australian upstream company Santos Limited said that it has been awarded additional exploration acreage in the off-shore East Java Basin by the Indonesian government. The new Production Sharing Contract (PSC) area, north Bali 1 is located east of Java and north of the island of Bali. The block covers 3,449 square kilometers in water depths...

The September 4 official opening of its laboratory and technical centre on Jurong Island will mark an important strategic development for inspection and survey company Intertek Caleb Brett in its Asian operations. The centre, which began operating recently, will enable the company to provide latest technology-based solutions and services to the oil, petrochemical and chemical...

SYDNEY (AFX-ASIA) – BHP Billiton said net profit in the year to June rose 2.9% from a year earlier to US$1.92 billion with increased sales volumes, key commodity prices and cost savings offset by inflationary pressures and exchange rate impacts. The result was adjusted for discontinued operations and significant items and was ahead of the...

LONDON (AFX) – The US government has increased Bechtel’s contract to rebuild the Iraqi power grid by US$350 million, or more that 50%, while Halliburton Co’s military contracts in Iraq are also significantly greater than previously thought, according to press reports. The extra money for Bechtel’s post-war reconstruction contract is expected to be turned over...

KUALA LUMPUR (AFX-ASIA) – Scomi Group Bhd said its three major multinational production sharing contractors (PSC) ExxonMobil Exploration and Production (M) Inc, Sarawak Shell Bhd/Sabah Shell Petroleum Co Ltd and Petronas Carigali Sdn Bhd have renewed their contracts with the company, The Star reported, citing a company statement. The contracts involve the provision of drilling...

HONG KONG (AFX-ASIA) – China Petroleum & Chemical Corp (Sinopec) 386.HK) is spending less than 8 billion yuan to build two oil pipelines and three terminals, chairman Chen Tonghai said. (US$1=8.27 yuan). The company will spend about 6.7 billion yuan on the two pipelines alone, he told reporters. The first pipeline will transport imported crude...

JAKARTA (AFX-ASIA) – PT Medco Methanol Bunyu (MMB), a unit of Indonesia’s largest local private oil and gas company PT Medco Energi Internasional, plans to issue bonds to fund the construction of a fertiliser and a methanol plant, Bisnis Indonesia reported citing MMB’s president. “To build the two plants located in Central Sulawesi, we will...

SYDNEY (AFX-ASIA) – Papua New Guinea’s Oil Search Ltd said its first half to June net profit was up 104% at US$36.5 million, while underlying net profit, stripping out one-off items and exploration write-offs, was up 69% at US$40.2 million. During the half, Oil Search wrote off US$4.8 million of exploration expenditure and other costs,...

Indonesia has landed a deal to supply six million tonnes/year of liquefied natural gas (LNG) for 20 years to the Tijuana Regional Energy Center in the US. Indonesia’s state Pertamina and privately owned P.T. Exspan Tomori Sulawesi signed a memorandum of understanding with GNBC VENTAS, S. de R.L. de C.V. (GNBC), a subsidiary of independent...

TOKYO (AFX-ASIA) – Visiting Iranian Foreign Minister Kamal Kharazi said his nation has decided to start talks with the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) for inspections of its nuclear sites and that it is ready to offer “constructive” cooperation, according to a Japanese official. Mr Kharazi, who arrived in Japan last week after trips to...

JAKARTA (AFX-ASIA) – Indonesia expects to sign a memorandum of understanding soon with energy firms Shell, ChevronTexaco Corp and Sempra Energy for supply of liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the US West Coast, local media reported, citing government officials. Kompas daily reported that the chairman of BP Migas — an Indonesian regulatory body on the...

NEW YORK (AFX) – Analyst Tyler Dann at Banc of America upgraded Exxon Mobil to “buy” from “neutral,” saying in an overnight note to clients that he believes the oil company can afford to pay a special dividend of $1 to $2 a share anytime over the next couple of years. He also upped his...