(EnergyAsia, December 17, Wednesday) — The 13 members of the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) pumped an average 31.38 million barrels per day (b/d) of crude oil in November, according to a Platts survey of OPEC and oil industry officials. This is a decline of 880,000 from the October level of 32.26 million...

(EnergyAsia, December 17, Wednesday) — The International Energy Agency has predicted world oil demand to fall by 200,000 b/d in 2008 for the first decline since 1983. Its latest forecast for world demand has been revised down to 85.8 million b/d from last month’s 86.15 million b/d. For 2009, the Paris-based agency expects demand to...

(EnergyAsia, December 17, Wednesday) — A severe economic recession will cause world oil demand to shrink by 50,000 b/d in 2008 and by 450,000 b/d in 2009, said the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). In its latest forecast which cast a pall on world oil prices, the agency said this will mark the first time...

(EnergyAsia, December 17, Wednesday) — Germany’s Siemens Energy said it has been awarded a 200-million euro order by the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) to help expand the power supply network of Dubai in the UAE. The order comprises delivery of two turnkey transformer substations for the 400 kV/132 kV voltage levels, which include...

(EnergyAsia, December 17, Wednesday) — India was the only Asian country placed among the world’s top 25 for their performance in protecting the climate in the latest ranking of the 56 leading carbon dioxide-emitting nations by watchdogs Germanwatch and Climate Action Network Europe. India came in seventh on the index’s annual score board, far ahead...

established presence in South Korea with the recent opening of a new service centre and office in Eomgung in Busan city. Wärtsilä said the new centre will enable it to centralise its existing finance and administration services, ship power, power plants and industrial operations business units in South Korea. “Our operations in Korea have expanded...

up of its new refinery in Jamnagar in Gujarat state, taking into account the weak state of the world oil markets. It is expected to operate only half the capacity of the 29-million tonne per year refinery in view of the weak demand for oil products in key export markets. The Rs270-billion plant is expected...

agreement for a key Caspian Sea oil venture, more than doubling its ownership stake. State energy firm KazMunaiGaz will now hold more than 16.81% in the Kashagan venture, equivalent to the stakes held by its partners Eni, ExxonMobil, Shell, and Total. ConocoPhillips of the US and Japan’s INPEX each retain 8.4% and 7.56% respectively. The...

study that called for US$450 billion to be invested each year to produce 45 million b/d of new oil output by 2030 to meet rising demand. The bulk of the money would need to be spent in OPEC countries, the IEA said. The oil cartel’s secretary-general Abdullah al-Badri slammed the forecast as “alarmist.” OPEC had...

Arabia will likely be delayed due to cost considerations. Construction of the 400,000 b/d project, a venture between Total and Saudi Aramco, was expected to start in early 2009. Some officials argue that construction costs could decline from their recent record highs and the project may become cheaper as the global recession takes hold. Saudi...

non-Chinese equity partner in “GreenGen,” the first near-zero emissions coal-fueled power plant with carbon capture and storage which is under development in China.   Peabody joined the initiative at a formal signing ceremony at the prestigious State Guest House in Beijing last week. The agreement was announced during the Sino-US Joint Commission on Commerce and...

Corp (AMSC) said it has agreed to let Chinese industrial equipment manufacturer Shenyang Blower Works (Group) (SBW) develop and sell wind turbines globally. Nasdaq-listed AMSC said its wholly owned subsidiary, AMSC Windtec, will provide SBW with designs for its 2MW doubly-fed induction wind turbines. The CEOs of the two companies signed the agreement in a...

another three coal gasification process (SCGP) licensing agreements in China, bringing the total number in the country to 19. The latest deals include an agreement which was registered with the Chinese government on November 10 involving Shell and two-time licence holder Yunnan Yuntianhua Co Ltd (YYTH), Shell’s third repeat SCGP user. YYTH is expected to...

a 23-month loan worth $7.6 billion to Pakistan to support the country’s economic stabilisation programme. About $3.1 billion is immediately available to Pakistan while the remaining amount will be phased in, subject to quarterly reviews. The total amount of the IMF resources made available under the arrangement equals 5005 of the country’s quota. The arrangement...

have been praised for “providing leadership” at last week’s UN climate change conference in the Polish city of Poznan. The world’s leading conservation group, World Wildlife Fund (WWF), said these countries offered constructive proposals and specific commitments in contrast to the industrialised nations which had “stymied progress”. “For many developing countries, which bear little or...

LienHwa, has been awarded contracts to supply thin-film photovoltaic (PV) cells to China. The company said the awards by Tianwei Baoding, Hangzhou Amplesun Solar and ENN Solar will help it capture more than 50% of China’s thin-film photovoltaic (PV) market. As part of these new long-term contracts, The Linde Group said it will be delivering...

Singyes Solar Technologies (CG Solar), have won a bid to construct a photovoltaic (PV) roof for the Weihai Citizen Culture Center in China. The 6,300-sq m PV roof will have a 270 kilowatt (KW) capacity. The system will use 45 sets of KACO Powador 4501xi on-grid inverters with an estimated 320,000 kilowatt-per-hour annual output. The...

owned subsidiary, PT Chevron Pacific Indonesia, has started producing oil at the North Duri Field Area 12. Using steamflood technology next year, Chevron expects production to rise to 34,000 b/d by 2012. “The Duri Field is a remarkable base business success for Chevron. With the application of technology, we have been able to extend the...

products and services, said it has signed a 10-year strategic supplier agreement with Saudi Aramco, one of the world’s largest oil producing companies. Texas-based Flowserve said it will supply its entire range of flow control products – pumps, valves and seals – and value-added services for use in Saudi Aramco’s existing and planned facilities. The...

a key player in the region’s geopolitical manouvering as the fallout from Russia’s military invasion of Georgia continues to play out. At an energy summit in Azerbaijan’s capital of Baku last month, European countries reached a framework deal to strengthen their energy ties with Azerbaijan in a move aimed at undercutting Russia’s role in the...

demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG), mitigating fears of supply shortages amid cancelled or delayed projects. Many LNG export projects around the world have been delayed this year by a variety of factors from rising labour and material costs to falling prices. With oil crashing to a third of their peaks in July, industry observers...

for the construction of very large floating storage (VLFS) tanks to be located in waters around the island. The tanks will be used to store oil in view of the high cost of building a similar structure on land in Singapore. A 300,000-cubic metre VLFS tank would need the equivalent of five hectares of space,...

facility in Fujairah in the UAE by the middle of next year. The 560,000-cubic metre terminal clean oil products terminal will lift Vitol’s total storage capacity at the port to almost 1.1 million cubic metres. Vitol’s US$150 million investment includes new tanks as well as spending on jetty infrastructure and an upgrade to an existing...