(EnergyAsia, April 5 2011, Tuesday) — Qatar is producing its maximum 77 million tonnes of liquefied natural gas (LNG) a year thanks to last week’s boost from Qatargas to add to RasGas’s production. Qatargas said it achieved an “historic milestone” operating all seven of its liquefaction trains at capacity to produce 42 million tonnes of (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — CNOOC Limited, the listed arm of China’s largest offshore petroleum giant, China National Offshore Oil Corp, and France’s Total have each agreed to acquire from UK’s Tullow a one-third interest in three prospective onshore areas in Uganda. Subject to closing terms and conditions and approvals from the Ugandan government, (more…)
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — A Thai firm is looking to build a 4,000MW coal-fired power plant in Tavoy town on the southern Tenesserim coastline of Myanmar. The Italian-Thai Development Public Company Ltd said it has won approval for a 60-year concession from the Myanmar ruling junta to also establish a deep-sea port and...
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — Mongolia has trimmed the number of contenders for the contract to develop the central-west part of its giant Tavan Tolgoi coal field to six from the initial 15. State-run Erdenes MGL, which owns the asset, plans to pick one to three winners by July said executive director Baasangombo Enebish....
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — India would be badly hit if Indonesia proceeds with its plan to ban the exports of low-grade thermal coal by 2014 that would reduce global supply by 10%, said analysts. Indonesia accounts for around 30% of the global thermal coal supply, the bulk of it low-quality material of between...
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — Having identified coal as a strategic commodity, China will be looking to use some of its nearly US$3-trillion worth of foreign exchange reserves into acquiring tangible assets such as iron ore and coal mines. There are plans to establish iron ore and coal reserves along the lines of emergency...
(EnergyAsia, April 4 2011, Monday) — In a bid to secure stable coal supply, Japan’s Chubu Electric Power Co is buying a 5.95% stake in the Integra Coal Mine project in Australia from trading firm Toyota Tsusho Corp. This will be the first investment by Japan’s third-biggest power firm in an international coal mine. Separately,...
(EnergyAsia, April 1 2011, Friday) — US-based Peabody Energy said it will source over two years two million tons of coal from an East Kalimantan mine for export to its Asian customers. Peabody said its Singapore office will undertake the deal with the mine’s owner, Indonesia’s PT Cahaya Energi Mandiri (CEM). Peabody said the agreement...
(EnergyAsia, April 1 2011, Friday) — Oil producing countries are getting so used to the US$100/barrel price now that they are setting their sights on making US$120 the new normal. With inflation of food, fuel and essentials a permanent scourge on their national budgets, oil producers realise US$100 oil has lost its shock value, and...
(EnergyAsia, April 1 2011, Friday) — Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region was China’s largest coal-producing province with an output of 786.65 million tons in 2010. According to the Coal Industry Bureau of Inner Mongolia, the region produced 46 million tons more than Shanxi Province, the largest producer of raw coal in China in 2009. Inner Mongolia’s...
(EnergyAsia, April 1 2011, Friday) — Citing the need to meet the country’s growing demand for electricity, Indonesia’s Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Darwin Zahedi Saleh has appealed to domestic miners to sell coal to state utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN) at below market prices. He made the appeal as PLN has been struggling to...
(EnergyAsia, April 1 2011, Friday) — US-based conglomerate General Electric Company (GE) said it has inaugurated Russia’s first coal-bed-methane (CBM) to energy project at Kuzbasskaya Energosetevaya Compania’s (KEC) Talda site located near Kemerovo city. The project involves GE’s 1-megawatt (MW) J320 Jenbacher engine which uses the captured gas to provide electricity that is ultimately sold (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — Chinese fuel storage and distribution firm Longwei Petroleum Investment Holding Ltd said it expects to benefit from the 4.5% increase in gasoline and diesel prices enacted last February 21 by the powerful National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). New York Stock Exchange-listed Longwei said the increase, which translates to (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — Barely two months after signing off on two long-term deals to store crude oil in Japan, Saudi Aramco is watching with concern at the worsening nuclear power plant disaster in Fukushima. In February, Saudi Aramco announced that it had agreed to lease tanks from Japan Oil, Gas and Metals...
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — Oil prices could reach US$200 a barrel in the short term as a result of the political turmoil in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA), and the deadly earthquake in Japan on March 11, said Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin. However, he has made clear that his forecast...
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — Japan may have to increase oil product imports in coming years to overcome the long-term loss of several refineries from the effects of the massive earthquake and tsunami that struck the northeastern part of the country on March 11. Up to a third of the country’s 4.5 million b/d...
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — Russia, Qatar, Malaysia and Indonesia have offered to sell additional liquefied natural gas (LNG) cargoes to Japan to help it overcome the loss of energy supply from several nuclear power plants and refineries damaged by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin has proposed to...
(EnergyAsia, March 31 2011, Thursday) — World demand and prices for liquefied natural gas (LNG) are set to spike this year on account of higher imports from Japan, China and India. The massive earthquake and tsunami that struck Japan on March 11 caused the shutdown of several refineries and nuclear power plants, forcing the world’s...
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — ExxonMobil Japan Group said it has resumed operations at its Shiogama terminal allowing for an increase in the delivery of fuel supplies into northeastern Japan, which was struck by the March 11 earthquake and tsunami. More than 26,000 people died or are missing after a 9-richter scale quake struck (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — Shell Global Solutions said it has signed an agreement with the Centre for High Technology, India (CHT) to improve operational efficiency and business performance of three Indian refineries with a combined capacity of 32 million metric tons a year. The Refinery Performance Improvement Program (RPIP) contract will be implemented (more…)
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — Despite the political upheavals in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) and the global financial headwinds, Dutch storage terminal owner and operator VTTI remains confident of nearly doubling its global oil storage capacity over the next five years. While the troubled MENA region remains a key target, CEO...
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — Saudi Aramco and China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec) have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to develop a 400,000 b/d full-conversion refinery in Yanbu city on the west coast of Saudi Arabia by 2014. Saudi Aramco will have a 62.5% stake in the Red Sea Refining Company (RSRC) while Sinopec...
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — Shell Malaysia said it has begun building a RM810-million diesel processing unit at its refinery in Port Dickson on the west coast of peninsular Malaysia. (US$1=RM3). The company said the new unit will enable the refinery to vary its feedstock options, increase diesel production and improve its profit margin....
(EnergyAsia, March 30 2011, Wednesday) — ExxonMobil Group Japan said it has increased fuel supply into its Tohoku region dealer service station network by 140% above levels before March 11 when a 9-richter scale earthquake struck off the northeastern coast of the country. More than 26,000 people died or are missing when the quake struck,...
(EnergyAsia, March 29 2011, Tuesday) — China National Offshore Oil Corp Ltd (CNOOC) said it achieved record oil and gas production as well as net profit for the year ended December 31 2010. Its net production increased 44.4% year-on-year to reach 328.8 million barrels of oil equivalent (BOE), while its net profit grew 84.5% to...