MARKETS: Norway’s DnB NOR forecasts E&P spending to rise 11% in 2010, and 8% in 2011

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — Norwegian bank DnB NOR has forecast that 70 of the world’s leading upstream companies will increase their collective exploration and production (E&P) spending by 11% to US$435 billion this year, and by a further 8% in 2011. In its annual E&P spending report, the bank found that the 70...

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CHINA: Far East Wind Power investing in wind farm in Yunnan province

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — Far East Wind Power Corp (FEWP) said it plans to invest US$20 million in a proposed 49.5MW wind farm in China’s Yunnan province after signing a Letter of Intent (LOI) to acquire a 49% stake in it from Taitong Energy Limited. FEWP said it will be paid back by...

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NIGERIA: Investment prospects brighten with banking, oil reforms

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — Fund managers consider Nigeria as one of the most attractive investment destinations these days as Africa’s second-largest economy pursues banking and oil sector reforms. Some say Africa’s largest oil producing country is starting to look as attractive as the leading emerging economies of Brazil, Russia, India and China, given...

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SOUTH KOREA: KNOC employs robots to monitor oil storage terminal

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — State-owned Korea National Oil Corp is using robots to monitor its 957,000-square metre oil storage terminal south of Seoul. Together with Samsung Techwin Co, KNOC has put into operation five robots and 24 security cameras at the Seosan oil storage facility. The Ministry of Knowledge Economy said it is...

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MALAYSIA: New coal-fired power plant to be built within existing power complex

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — Three companies have been shortlisted to house a new coal-fired power plant that will supply the Malaysian national electricity grid by 2015. The Energy Commission said it will choose between MMC Corp subsidiary Malakoff Corp Bhd’s Tanjung Bin Power Plant, Jimah Power Plant in Port Dickson in Negri Sembilan...

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NIGERIA: Crude exports affected after armed groups attack Shell oil pipeline

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — Shell said it has been forced to halt the export of Bonny light crude oil from Nigeria following recent attacks on its pipelines in the Niger Delta. The force majeure declared by Shell took effect on August 16, disrupting deliveries for August and September. The company said it has...

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GHANA: Kosmos Energy cancelled Jubilee oilfield sale agreement with ExxonMobil

(EnergyAsia, September 1 2010, Wednesday) — US, Texas-based Kosmos Energy said it has cancelled an agreement to sell its stake in Ghana’s offshore Jubilee oilfield to ExxonMobil. The cancelled deal was valued at US$4 billion, and would have delivered a huge profit to Kosmos. The Ghana government was believed to have blocked the planned sale...

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VIETNAM: Technics completes delivery of production equipment and platforms to Vietsovpetro

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — Technics Oil and Gas Limited, a Singapore-listed full service integrator of compression systems and process modules for the offshore oil and gas sector, said it has completed a S$40 million engineering, procurement, construction and commission (EPCC) contract for Vietnam-based upstream company Vietsovpetro. Vietsovpetro ordered topside equipment for two wellhead...

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CHINA: Coal imports continue to rise

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — China’s coal imports are gathering pace as it looks to extend its lead on the rest of the world in the coming years. China’s net coal imports, which account for 30% of the Asia Pacific region’s coal trade, nearly doubled to 71 million metric tons in the first half...

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MONGOLIA: SouthGobi plans second coal pit

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — Hong Kong-listed SouthGobi Resources Ltd said it is planning to develop a US$205 million coal pit in south-central Mongolia for production start-up in 2012. The company, which is also listed in Toronto in Canada, will seek a mining licence for the proposed Soumber mine before the end of this...

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CHINA: Coal demand to reach 3.8 billion tons by 2015

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — China is set to become the world’s largest importer of coal this year, with demand expected to continue surging to 3.8 billion tons over the next five years. According to state agency National Energy Administration (NEA), China will import 170 million tons of coal this year, up from 103...

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MALAYSIA: Tenaga bidding for MYR7 billion state project

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — Malaysia’s state power company Tenaga Nasional Berhad said it is bidding for a RM7 billion government project to expand and upgrade the country’s power plants by 2015. (US$1=RM3.15). The Energy Commission is calling for bids to boost the country’s power capacity to meet its electricity demand, which is projected...

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BANGLADESH: Nitol-Niloy Group wants Tata to support proposed coal-fired power plant

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — The chairman of a Bangladesh-based conglomerate said it has proposed to India’s Tata Group to jointly invest in a 1,000-megawatt coal-fired power plant in his country. According to Nitol-Niloy chairman Abdul Matlub Ahmad, the plant, envisioned to be the largest in Bangladesh, will be fuelled by coal from Tata’s...

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MALAYSIA: Coal-fired power plant needed to meet Sabah’s energy demand, says executive

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — Sabah Electricity Sdn Bhd (SESB) said it is hoping to start building its proposed 300 megawatt coal-fired power plant project in Malaysia’s Sabah state next month. The controversial project touted to help overcome an electricity supply shortage facing East Malaysia is facing enormous environmental opposition as it is to...

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INDONESIA: Prolonged rains threaten coal output goal this year

(EnergyAsia, August 31 2010, Tuesday) — Indonesia’s coal output this year is likely to be little changed from last year’s level of 300 million metric tons because of prolonged rainy season brought on by the La Nina weather pattern. That’s below the 2010 target of 320 million metric tons coal output projected earlier this year...

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SINGAPORE: Commodities exchange SMX to start trading on August 31

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) —Singapore Mercantile Exchange (SMX), the first pan-Asian multi-product commodity and currency derivatives exchange, said it will begin trading on August 31. The first phase of product launches will include a gold futures contract with physical delivery in high-security vaults in Singapore, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil, Brent-Euro crude oil (more…)

PEOPLE: Hoekstra, President of Asia division, to succeed Broeders as new Royal Vopak chairman

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — Dutch oil logistics giant Royal Vopak N.V. said Eelco Hoekstra, president of its Asia division, will be succeeding John Paul Broeders as chairman of its executive board on March 1 2011. Mr Broeders has been appointed chairman of the board of SHV Holdings. Having worked with the company since (more…)

VIETNAM: State Vinacomin targets to produce 60 million tons of coal by 2015

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — State-owned Vietnam National Coal-Mineral Industries Group (Vinacomin) has announced that it plans to produce 60 million tons of coal by 2015, up from around 47-50 million tons this year. With coal prices expected to rise and exports rising to 18 million tons, Vietnam’s leading top miner expects its revenues...

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CHINA: July oil demand slipped from June’s record high, says Platts

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — China’s oil demand for July dipped to 35.82 million mt or about 8.47 million barrels per day (b/d) from June’s record high of 36.74 million metric tonnes (mt), said oil media Platts. Nevertheless, this represented a 2.7% rise from year-ago levels. China’s apparent oil demand in the first seven...

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AUSTRALIA: US coal producer Peabody Energy to expand ‘highly productive’ Wilpinjong mine

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — The world’s largest private-sector coal company, Peabody Energy, said it will expand the production capacity of the Wilpinjong thermal coal mine in Australia’s New South Wales state by two to three million tons annually from 2012. US-based Peabody said it expects to invest a total of US$90 million, including...

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AUSTRALIA: Gloucester Coal reports a dip in full year net profits for year ended June 30

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — Citing a sharp downward correction in coal prices, Australia’s Gloucester Coal Ltd has reported a sharp drop in its full-year net profit for the year ended June 30. Excluding transaction costs, its profit for FY2009 came in at A$36.4 million, down from A$90.7 million the previous year, which was...

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GHANA: Jubilee field to start up on time despite funding challenge for oil processing vessel

(EnergyAsia, August 30 2010, Monday) — A consortium of international banks is holding up the proposed financing for a US$875-million floating production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel in Ghana after a review of the construction contract found that it was awarded to a company partly owned by a former government official. The FPSO vessel is...

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SINGAPORE: Sembcorp to develop new multi-utilities facility and cogeneration plant on Jurong Island

(EnergyAsia, August 27 2010, Friday) — Singapore’s Sembcorp said it has signed a 20-year term agreement to supply steam, water and wastewater treatment services to Jurong Aromatics Corporation (JAC)’s proposed aromatics complex on the western side of Jurong Island. Sembcorp will build a S$800-million multi-utilities facility and a new gas-fired combined-cycle gas turbine cogeneration plant...

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INDONESIA: Pertamina to relocate LPG storage tanks

(EnergyAsia, August 27 2010, Friday) — Indonesia’s state engineering and construction firm PT Wijaya Karya said it has won a contract to relocate six LPG storage tanks in Tanjung Priok in Jakarta for state oil and gas firm PT Pertamina. The tanks will be moved to another site in Jakarta. Wika would also have to...

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MARKETS: IEA sees world demand rise 1.5% to record 87.9 million b/d next year

(EnergyAsia, August 27 2010, Friday) — Fears of a ‘double dip’ recession notwithstanding, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has raised its latest forecast for global oil demand by 100,000 b/d to a record 87.9 million b/d in 2011. In its previous forecast in July, the Paris-based oil watchdog for the developed economies said global oil...

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