(EnergyAsia, January 31 2013, Thursday) — Global trade flows are becoming more inter-regional as companies move production closer to end markets, suggesting that globalisation could be at a turning point, according to a survey by an international logistics firm. “Global trade flows from manufacturers in the East to consumers in the West are undergoing a (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 31 2013, Thursday) — Saudi Basic Industries Corporation has announced the opening of four new state-of-the-art technology and innovation facilities in 2013, two in Saudi Arabia and one each in India and China, bringing the total number of its research facilities around the world to 18. The new centres represent a strategic investment (more…)

(EnergyAsia, Jan 30 2013, Wednesday) — State PetroVietnam has signed an agreement with Japanese and Kuwaiti companies to jointly build a long-delayed 200,000 b/d refinery in the coastal town of Nghi Son located about 200 km south of Hanoi city. The US$9 billion plant in Thanh Hoa province will process heavy Kuwaiti crude oil to (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 30 2013, Wednesday) — GE Oil & Gas has announced the establishment of a new technology and service centre near Basra City to support development and production of Iraq’s oil-rich North Rumaila region. The facility, which was opened earlier this month, brings the latest GE technology and expertise to local customers to help (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 29 2013, Tuesday) — For the third consecutive month, the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has kept its forecasts for global oil demand to grow by just under 800,000 b/d for 2013. With no major revision to its November and December outlook, OPEC said it expects world demand to grow by 760,000 (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 28 2013, Monday) — The Chinese government has completed a feasibility study for the construction of the Trans-Asia Railway linking China with Central Asia, according to a regional coal player citing Kyrgyzstan’s Transport Ministry. Australia’s Celsius Coal Limited, which is developing coking coal deposits in Kyrgyzstan’s Uzgen Basin, said the proposed railway route (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 28 2013, Monday) — PEOPLE: Australia’s International Coal Limited has announced the appointment of Glenn Simpson as CEO and the resignation of Managing Director Hugh Dai. A trained geologist with an honours degree in Applied Science (Geology) and a Graduate Diploma of Business Administration, Mr Simpson has over 20 years of experience in (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2013, Friday) — Norway’s DNV said it and Korea Gas Corp (KOGAS) have signed an agreement to jointly study the feasibility of establishing an liquefied natural gas (LNG) bunkering infrastructure in South Korea. The study will focus on the ports in the south-eastern area of Pusan, and western areas around Incheon and (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 25 2013, Friday) — Kisault, a town located 800 km north of Vancouver in Canada’s British Columbia province, offers investors the quickest and cheapest platform to export liquefied natural gas (LNG) and other energy products, said newly established Kisault Energy. Kisault, a purpose-built resource town with infrastructure and housing for more than 1,000 (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 24 2013, Thursday) — Commodities trader Gunvor Group said it and partner Novorossiysk Commercial Sea Port (NCSP) have secured a seven-year credit facility for US$110 million from ZAO Raiffeisenbank for their jointly-owned fuel oil terminal in the Black Sea. Their equally-owned Novorossiysk Fuel Oil Terminal (NFT) will draw on the facility to refinance (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 23 2013, Wednesday) — Germany’s BASF and Malaysian state energy firm Petronas said they have terminated an agreement to jointly develop a specialty chemicals venture that was part of a proposed RM120-billion oil-petrochemical complex to be developed in the southern state of Johor. (US$1=RM3.05). According to the heads of agreement the companies signed (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 23 2013, Wednesday) —– Greenpeace said “government hypocrisy” in support of major fossil fuel projects around the world is fuelling climate change and placing populations at risk. In a new report studying 14 carbon-intensive projects around the world, the environmental group said government support has raised the threat posed by a planned massive (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 22 2013, Tuesday) — Canada’s Sunshine Oil Sands Ltd, which is listed on the stock exchanges of Hong Kong and Toronto, has signed a one-year agreement to share oil sands exploration technology developed by the oilfields division of China’s CNOOC Ltd. Calgary-based Sunshine said it has signed an agreement with China Oilfield Services (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 22 2013, Tuesday) — Caltex Australia said it has begun supplying bitumen from a new purpose-built import terminal at Port Botany in Sydney following the closure of operations at the nearby Kurnell refinery. The new terminal, designed, constructed and commissioned in less than 14 months by Terminals Australia Pty Ltd, provides 24,000 tonnes (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2013, Monday) — A total of 55 people including 32 workers have been reported killed over the course of a four-day hostage crisis in Algeria that ended when security forces battled terrorists who had seized a BP-operated natural gas plant at Ain Amenas in the eastern central part of the country. On (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2013, Monday) — Oil will lose its dominant position as the world’s primary fuel by 2030 as natural gas and coal gain market share to share equal billing, according to BP’s latest energy forecast to 2030. The UK major expects global demand for oil will grow by just 0.8% p.a. between 2011 (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 21 2013, Monday) — US major Chevron Corp said it has signed agreements for two production sharing contracts with Chinese offshore oil company CNOOC Ltd to explore two blocks in the South China Sea. Their joint-venture company, Chevron China Energy Co, will have full contract ownership of blocks 15/10 and 15/28 in the (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 18 2013, Friday) — Rolls-Royce, the UK-based global power systems company, said it has secured a US$75million contract to supply PetroChina with equipment and related services to power the flow of natural gas through a tributary in the country’s West-East Pipeline Project (EPP). Rolls-Royce will supply six of its RB211-driven pipeline compressor units (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 18 2013, Friday) — After years of drawing on inventory, the world will produce more crude oil than it consumes next year, said the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). In its January short-term energy outlook report, the agency said it expects world production to rise more than 3% over 2012’s 88.99 million b/d (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 17 2013, Thursday) — With financial support from the the Asian Development Bank (ADB), China will be deploying at least 5,000 new “green” buses in its major cities by 2018 to help reduce the country’s greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions. The bank said it has allocated US$275 million for up to five top-tier financial (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 17 2013, Thursday) — Italian energy company Eni said it has secured a joint agreement to supply a total of 1.7 million tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) in 28 cargoes to two customers in Japan and South Korea. Eni said the exact volume to be shipped separately to Korea Gas Corp (Kogas) (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 16 2013, Wednesday) — GAIL, India’s state gas giant, has started up the country’s third terminal to import liquefied natural gas (LNG) at Ratnagiri in the western state of Maharashtra. Located around 340km south of Mumbai, the Dabhol LNG terminal will be the conduit for imported natural gas to provide fuel for power (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 15 2013, Tuesday) — Without a national carbon price floor, companies would be reluctant to invest in Australia’s domestic carbon offset mechanism known as the Carbon Farming Initiative (CFI), predicts carbon consulting firm RepuTex. Even with a floor price in place, the CFI is expected to deliver at most only five million tonnes (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 15 2013, Tuesday) — Mechel, a leading Russian mining and metals company, said it has completed the acquisition of a 55% stake in a Pacific port that will enable it to expand coal exports to the Asian markets. Mechel said the Russian government approved the offer by logistics subsidiary Mecheltrans to acquire the (more…)

(EnergyAsia, January 14 2013, Monday) — Tata Power, India’s largest integrated power utility, said it has started up the fourth 800 MW unit at its coal-fired power plant in Mundra in Gujarat state. Using the energy efficient supercritical boiler technology, the plant is owned and operated by wholly owned subsidiary Coastal Gujarat Power Limited (CGPL). (more…)