(EnergyAsia, March 25 2011, Friday) — PetroVietnam expects its newly opened Vung Ang oil storage terminal in the central coastal province of Ha Tinh to become a hub serving the northern provinces of Vietnam. Launched last month, the terminal started off with a 60,000-cubic metre capacity built at a cost of 257-billion dong, and will...
(EnergyAsia, March 25 2011, Friday)— Royal Dutch Shell expects to complete a swap of assets with Russian gas monopoly Gazprom that will allow both companies to diversify their markets. Under the proposed arrangement, Shell will have access to Gazprom’s Russian projects while Gazprom will be allowed to tap promising gas fields in the Asia Pacific...
(EnergyAsia, March 25 2011, Friday) — US oil major Exxon Mobil and Russia’s state-owned Rosneft have begun work to jointly explore for oil and gas under the Black Sea. The companies expect to begin surveying the seabed this year using Exxon’s technology with the aim of uncovering a billion tonnes of oil and gas off...
(EnergyAsia, March 25 2011, Friday) — Plans to build an oil storage hub near Manila Bay are underway, potentially to replace the existing Pandacan oil depot, according to Philippines’ Energy Undersecretary Jose Layug. He said a company, which he declined to name, is conducting a feasibility study on the project that will aim to attract...
(EnergyAsia, March 25 2011, Friday) — The Chinese government has approved a proposal by state-owned Sinopec and Kuwait Petroleum International to jointly develop a US$9 billion oil refining and petrochemical complex in China. The equally-owned project to be sited in southern Guangdong province will consist of a 300,000-b/d oil refinery and a one-million-tonne-per-year ethylene cracker....
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — Azerbaijan state energy firm SOCAR plans to increase trade and export more crude oil to Asia this year. Its trading arm, SOCAR Trading, has leased a 160,000-tonne vessel from Thailand’s state-owned PTT to store its crude blend for export to the region. The tanker is anchored off Singapore to...
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — India’s Finance Ministry has agreed to pay cash, instead of bonds, to oil companies as compensation for losses incurred in selling fuel at below cost, according to finance secretary Ashok Chawla. Oil firms are worried that unless they receive cash compensation for selling gasoline, kerosene, diesel and liquefied petroleum...
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — Iraq has boldly forecast its oil production to top three million b/d by the end of 2011. According to the oil ministry, the country’s crude exports and revenues in January and February have reached their highest levels since the 2003 ouster of Saddam Hussein. If sustained at current production...
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the UAE have temporarily suspended crude oil exports to Japan less than a week after Asia’s second largest economy was struck by a massive earthquake and tsunami on March 11. Nuclear plants and ports in northeastern Japan have been badly damaged and could be closed for...
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — Higher start-up costs are eating into profit margins at more recent liquefied natural gas (LNG) projects in Australia, according to a recent report by Bernstein Research. Newer projects such as Pluto LNG and Gorgon LNG cost around US$3,000 a metric tonnes, more than three times the amount shelled out...
(EnergyAsia, March 24 2011, Thursday) — Petrochemical giant Saudi Arabian Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) said it has signed a three-way agreement with the Saudi Industrial Property Authority (MODON) and the Boston Consulting Group (BCG) to develop industrialisation strategies for the Saudi cities of Al-Jouf, Tabuk, Hail, Jizan, Najran and Arar. SABIC was represented by vice (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — Singapore-based Loyz Oil Pte Ltd said it and Rex Oil & Gas Ltd will jointly explore for hydrocarbon resources in 35 areas in the Asia-Pacific region including India, Indonesia and New Zealand. Loyz, the exploration subsidiary of Singapore Exchange-listed Sim Siang Choon Ltd (SSC), said it will identify potential (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — The following is an edited version of an analysis by Vivek Mathur of US-based Energy Security Analysis Inc (ESAI) of the Japanese oil markets following the impact of the deadly earthquake and tsunami on March 11. At the time of writing, 890,000 b/d, equivalent to 19% of Japan’s total (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — Singapore’s offshore rig specialist Keppel FELS Ltd said it has landed a contract to build a US$210-million KFELS Super B Class jackup rig for Japan Drilling Co (JDC), with delivery scheduled for the first quarter of 2013. Keppel FELS said the new contract is the 12th for its mother...
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — Singapore will allow its power companies to import more piped natural gas (PNG) from Indonesia and Malaysia to meet its growing electricity demand. The power companies can now use additional PNG to generate electricity until March 31 2013 when Singapore starts up its first liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal,...
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — A leading figure in China’s energy sector has called for the country to accelerate its push for energy conservation and efficiency as oil and gas prices head higher amid the latest geopolitical crises in the Middle East and North Africa. Zhang Guobao, former head of China’s National Energy Administration,...
(EnergyAsia, March 23 2011, Wednesday) — Two of the world’s largest oil companies, Saudi Aramco and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), have announced plans to jointly invest in a 200,000 b/d refinery and downstream activities in China’s southern Yunnan province. This was Aramco’s second refinery deal with China this month to follow on its proposed...
(EnergyAsia, March 22 2011, Tuesday) — There is potentially large demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) as fuel for power generation and shipping in Southeast Asia, according to a special study by a multi-national consortium. The study examined the future LNG use in Southeast Asia as fuel for ship propulsion and as feedstock for small (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 22 2011, Tuesday) — Australia’s energy and minerals sectors need to re-assess, revise or perhaps totally re-negotiate their force majeure provisions in key contracts based on lessons learnt from managing recent weather impacts, according to a senior lawyer from Minter Ellison, a leading commercial law firm based in Melbourne. The caution comes as (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 22 2011, Tuesday) — As political unrest in the Middle East and North Africa, and the nuclear crisis in Japan grabbed media attention, world oil supply rose to an all-time high of 89 million b/d in February, up 200,000 b/d from January, said the International Energy Agency (IEA). The increase came from non-OPEC...
(EnergyAsia, March 22 2011, Tuesday) — Singapore-based oil trading company Chemoil Energy Ltd said it has made changes to its senior management ranks. Mats Berglund joins Chemoil as the group’s chief financial officer and chief operating officer with effect from March 3 2011. Mr Berglund had held senior positions at Overseas Shipholding Group Inc, Stena...
(EnergyAsia, March 22 2011, Tuesday) –- Two of Iraq’s refineries, including its largest, were completely shut down for weeks following separate incidents in late February, contributing to the country’s fuel supply and power shortages. The 150,000 b/d Beiji refinery located 250km north of Baghdad was attacked by gunmen who also shot dead at least five...
(EnergyAsia, Feb 6 2011, Sunday) – South Africa’s Sasol Ltd is looking at opportunities in gas-to-fuel industry to take advantage of current low gas prices. The company has decided not to proceed with its plan to build a US$10 billion coal-to-fuels plant in Indonesia, which would have been an addition to its existing projects in...
(EnergyAsia, March 21 2011, Monday) — Energy efficiency investors should focus on Thailand, Singapore, Malaysia and Philippines, and then gradually expand into Indonesia and Vietnam, according to a new report on “Energy Efficiency Investment Potential” in Southeast Asia by Singapore-based business consultants, ReEx Capital Asia. Launched by the British Embassy in Bangkok earlier this month, (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 21 2011, Monday) — AEG Power Solutions, a Frankfurt, Germany-based global provider of premium power electronics, said it has appointed KML Engineering Ltd as its representative to the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region’s (SAR) railway network and public utility sectors. AEG said the agreement covers all products including uninterrupted power supply (UPS) systems (more…)