(EnergyAsia, February 27, Wednesday) — China and Venezuela have agreed to jointly build three oil refineries in China to process heavy crude oil imported from the Latin American country, said the Chinese Ministry of Commerce. Venezeula is ready to export 350,000 b/d of crude to China this year, said the ministry. The agreement has yet...

(EnergyAsia, February 27, Wednesday) — The Australian government said it has allocated A$6.4 million to upgrade the navy’s fuel storage terminal in Darwin in Northern Territory state. (US$1=A$1.10). Calling the tanks a strategic asset, Prime Minister Kevin Rudd announced the investment during a recent visit to the country’s northernmost city, located south of Indonesia and...

(EnergyAsia, February 27, Wednesday) — The Philippines’ Department of Energy (DOE) wants the country’s three largest oil firms to obey the Supreme Court’s order to move out of the Pandacan oil depot in Manila by 2013. Petron Corp, Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp and Chevron Philippines Inc have been fighting to keep their oil storage and...

(EnergyAsia, February 27, Wednesday) — Bahrain is launching the first Sharia-compliant bank focused on the investment, financing and service needs of the energy sector, with the formation of the First Energy Bank with a planned paid-up capital of US$750 million. Gulf Finance House said it has obtained the ‘in principle’ approval of the Central Bank...

(EnergyAsia, February 27, Wednesday) — Australia’s upstream oil sector has released a special study calling for government action and increased research to stem the country’s growing deficit in its oil products trade. The study written by leading geoscientist Trevor Powell said the government must increase financial investment in geoscientific research to stop Australia’s growing oil...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Thai Oil, the country’s largest oil refiner, said strong refining margins boosted its 2007 net profit by almost 9% to 19.2 billion baht. (US$1=32 baht). Its revenue fell 6.5% to 261 billion baht while expenses were also down, by 8.8%, to 237 billion baht. Margins rose along with crude oil...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Reliance Industries and Essar Oil are expected to play a bigger role in supplying aviation fuel in India as new rules are allowing private-sector players access to that lucrative high-growth market segment. India’s new “Open Access” model for fuel supplies at airports allows all eligible players – public and private...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Indian engineering firm Larsen and Toubro (L and T) said it has won a $421 million contract to supply 22 hydrocrackers and desulphurisation reactors for the upgrade two of Kuwait’s three oil refineries. Mumbai-based L and T senior executive vice president M.V. Kotwal said it will deliver the reactors for...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Indonesia’s state oil firm Pertamina said it plans to import 150,000 b/d of crude oil from Libya to feed its proposed 300,000 b/d Banten refinery project after start-up in 2013. Iran will supply the rest. Pertamina and Libya’s National Oil Corp (NOC) have sealed a 20-year deal to supply the...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) said it has set aside a budget of Rs90 billion to upgrade its refineries to produce higher quality gasoline and diesel fuels. (US$1 = Rs40). The upgrades are scheduled to be completed in 2009. Some of its biggest investments will be made at its Haldia refinery...

(EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Jet fuel suppliers to India’s new GMR Hyderabad International Airport which starts up on March will have to pay a special fuel infrastructure fee of Rs1,500 per kilolitre. (US$1=Rs40). The suppliers complain that they are already paying the Airports Authority of India Rs670 per kilolitre as throughput fees at a...

  (EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — The Indian government appears to have made the correct political gamble when it raised fuel prices nearly two weeks ago as there had been warnings of widespread protests and anger. The public seems to have accepted that the price hikes were justifiable in the face of record world crude...

  (EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — US oil firm ConocoPhillips said its joint venture company in Malaysia has approved plans to expand its 128,000-b/d oil refinery in the western state of Malacca by 2010. ConocoPhillips, which owns a 47% stake, and partner, Malaysian state oil firm Petronas, which owns the remaining majority stake, has approved...

  (EnergyAsia, February 26, Tuesday) — Global Cryo Systems, a member of the Dubai-based Global Process Systems Group, is launching its concept for mini-LNG plants at Gastech 2008, the industry’s largest gas expo to be held in Bangkok, Thailand from March 10 to 13. The company said it is developing skid-mounted small to medium-scale plants...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Singapore has launched a solar energy research institute to develop solar photovoltaic devices and innovative materials for solar and energy-efficient buildings.Located at the National University of Singapore, the Solar Energy Research Institute of Singapore (SERIS) will help the country tap into the US$30 billion world solar market that is expected...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Malaysia’s Green Power Land Berhad said it is building a RM30 million jatropha mill in Nabawan in the country’s eastern state of Sabah. (US$1=RM3.22).Feedstock for the facility – the first such plant in Sabah – will come from a nearby a 200-acre jatropha plantation.Green Power believes its investment will enable...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Finland’s Neste Oil, which is building a large biodiesel plant in Singapore, said it welcomes the new sustainability criteria on biofuels imposed by the European Commission. The company agreed with the EU’s proposal that feedstock obtained from tropical wetlands and highly diverse rainforests should not be permitted.Neste said its proprietary...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Singapore-listed agricultural group Wilmar International Limited said the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) has accepted its response to complaints by environmental and civil organisations related to the destruction of rainforests in Indonesia for the cultivation of the oil palm crop.Wilmar said it was informed by the Roundtable on Sustainable...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Thailand’s PTT Public Company Limited has signed a long term agreement to import one million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) a year from Qatargas Operating Company Limited.Qatargas will supply the LNG into PTT’s LNG receiving terminal when it becomes operational in 2011. The terminal will be capable of handling...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — GE Energy said it has established its Asia commercial operations centre in Singapore to make decisions for the company’s projects in the region, taking over some responsibilities that until now had been solely held in the US.Two GE veterans have relocated to Singapore to lead this unit. Alan Sides, commercial...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — China Petroleum and Chemical Corporation or Sinopec Corp and Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) recently signed a Heads of Agreement (HOA) to form an equal venture company to build a one-million-ton-per-year complex to produce ethylene derivatives in the Chinese city of Tianjin. The complex has the capacity to produce 600,000...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — The US economic downturn, high oil prices and the looming global food shortages are the biggest threats to the world this year, said the World Economic Forum (WEF).They replaced terrorism, conflicts and diseases as the main concerns for world business leaders in the findings contained ‘Global Risks 2008’ report.The report...

(EnergyAsia, February 25, Monday) — Caltex Australia Limited, the country’s only listed downstream oil company, said it will pay shareholders a full-year 2007 dividend of A$0.80 per share, unchanged from the previous year. (US$1=A$1.1). It was unable to raise dividends despite reporting a 3.2% rise in after-tax profit, warning instead that it is preparing to...