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Saturday, 2 April 2016

Today's ENERGY News - April 1, 2016

 

  Top Stories 

 

OPEC Crude Output Climbs as Iran Pumps Most Oil Since 2012


File photo shows an Iranian oil production platform in the Persian Gulf.
OPEC crude production rose in March as Iranian output climbed to the highest level in almost four years.  The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries increased production by 64,000 barrels to 33.09 million a day last month, according to a Bloomberg survey of oil companies, producers and analysts. The group set aside its output target of 30 million barrels a day at its Dec. 4 meeting in Vienna. Saudi Arabia, Russia, Venezuela and Qatar tentatively agreed on Feb. 16 to cap production at January levels. They’ll meet with other countries, both in and out of OPEC, in Doha on April 17. “Talk is cheap,” said Michael Lynch, president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research in Winchester, Massachusetts. “It’s hard to be really bullish about the oil market when production keeps going up. The OPEC output totals are a little reminder that we’re still in the midst of a massive glut.” 

Exclusive: Mexico’s Pemex sees crude refining up more than 6 percent in 2016

A view of Mexico’s national oil company Pemex’s refinery in Salamanca, in Guanajuato state, Mexico, February 8, 2016. Picture taken, February 8, 2016. Mexican state-run oil company Pemex expects to process 6.3 percent more crude oil this year, as it resolves problems at refineries that forced crude runs to a record low in 2015. The company, which operates six domestic refineries, will refine 1.134 million barrels per day (bpd) this year, compared with 1.066 million bpd in 2015, according to refining documents seen by Reuters. Last year, Pemex processed its lowest amount of crude in at least a quarter century, as plant outages and other inefficiencies battered margins. If Pemex refines more crude domestically, it would lessen Mexico’s need for gasoline imports, which have grown by nearly a fifth over the past three years. Mexico is currently forced to import more than half of its gasoline demand. In an […]

Japan’s 2016-17 non-power oil demand to fall 1.6% on year to 2.92 mil b/d

Japan’s domestic oil product demand except for power generation is forecast to fall 1.6% year on year to 169.348 million kl, or 2.92 million b/d, in fiscal 2016-17 (April-March), according to a forecast presented by the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Friday. METI’s 2016-17 forecast is part of its five-year oil demand outlook based in kiloliters, which excludes a forecast for fuel oil demand for power generation due to uncertainty over nuclear plant restarts. Under the forecast approved Friday by the ministry’s oil market trends working group under its oil and natural gas subcommittee, Japan’s oil product demand except for power generation is to fall an average 1.7% annually over the next five years to 157.761 million kl (2.72 million b/d) in 2020-21. For fiscal 2016-17, Japan’s overall oil product demand will decline on the year except for kerosene and gasoil. Kerosene demand is forecast to edge up […]

China’s manufacturing activity rebounds to nine-month high

China’s manufacturing activity rebounded in March to its highest level since last August, thanks to the government’s continued structural reforms, official data showed on Friday. The purchasing managers’ index (PMI) came in at 50.2 in March, up from February’s 49, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) and the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing. A reading above 50 indicates expansion, while a reading below 50 reflects contraction. NBS statistician Zhao Qinghe attributed the rebound to the government’s pro-growth measures, as well as the rising demand in manufacturing imports and exports. A price rebound for major international commodities spurred purchases. Technology upgrades also contributed to improvement in […]


Regional Banks Could Suffer Higher Losses From Oil, S&P Says


U.S. regional banks with large energy exposures including Comerica Inc. and Zions Bancorp could suffer higher losses than analysts predict if oil prices continue to fall, according to a Standard & Poor’s Ratings Services report. Only two of the 10 regional banks stress-tested by the ratings firm remained profitable before paying out dividends under the most adverse scenario, which assumes energy commitments rise 25 percent from current levels, according to the report issued Thursday. The uncertainty surrounding the energy industry could mean banks’ losses are significantly greater than even the most adverse scenario predicts, said Stuart Plesser and Devi Aurora, the primary credit analysts for the report. “Our outlooks for most of these banks remain negative, and given the unpredictability of energy prices, losses may be higher than we expect, even affecting loans outside of direct energy lending,” Plesser and Aurora said in the report. “U.S. regional banks are […]


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Friday, 1 April 2016

EYE on the World - Our Hometowns


 
 

Our Hometowns  

America Today: The Death of a Middle Class  

 SPECIAL REPORT  


  
    
            


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 Your Hometown, My Hometown 

Even the most liberal economists acknowledge that under  globalization and free trade agreements there will be winners and losers. That's the reality of the "invisible hand" and it makes abundant sense. 

Now guess who has not been a big winner over the past 35 years under this global economic policy initiative? And here are a few articles that support what is readily a self-evident truth to most,  and particularly for the 99% who are  suffering under its consequences. 

Our Hometowns...

" they say these jobs are going boys, and they ain't coming back"



My Hometown
May, 1983
B. Springsteen

The Game-Changer: "More Electric Cars"


THE FUTURE IS NOW


As Oil-Age Comes to Close

Many of Dyson’s devices use small, light and efficient electric motors developed over 10 years by his company, which may find application in developing a new electric car. Dyson is a now worth several billion pounds and in 2014 pledged his company would spend £1.5bn on research and development to create future products, aiming to launch 100 new electrical products by 2018.

THE GUARDIAN


Dyson Developing an Electric Car 



Rockefellers Dump Exxon Over Climate Deceptions


TELL GOP, "EVEN BIG OIL CONFIRMS CLIMATE CHANGE"


Exxon said it now believes the threat of climate change is clear and warrants action.


In response to the divestment movement, many oil industry leaders have said millions of people in the developing world would be condemned to darkness and poverty if society were to halt the burning of fossil fuels before there is ample supply of cleaner energy sources.
REUTERS

 Read More


64% of Americans Concerned About Climate - Hitting New Gallup Poll High


What Me Worry?

"Several years of unseasonably warm weather -- including the 2011-2012, 2012-2013 and 2015-2016 winters -- has potentially contributed to this shift in attitudes. If that's true, continuation of such weather patterns would likely do more than anything politicians and even climate-change scientists can to further raise public concern."

GALLUP



China's New "Solidarnosc" Hits Streets

China on Strike

China's workers have driven the explosive growth of its economy in recent decades. Now, with record numbers of strikes across the country, the government views them as an existential threat, and it may just be right. 

CNN



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Thursday, 31 March 2016

Today's ENERGY News -March 31, 2016

 


Top Stories 



New Coal Plants Rise in 2015 Despite Falling Consumption

Old coal plants are increasingly lying dormant, yet new ones keep getting built, according to a new report. The analysis by CoalSwarm, which includes researchers from Greenpeace and the Sierra Club, looks at the state of global coal over the last year. Their findings highlight a disconnect between the recent reductions in demand for coal, and the hundreds of gigawatts of new capacity that developers want to build in the future. Dormant plants Enthusiasm for burning coal has waned in recent years due to climate regulations and efforts to combat air pollution. In 2014, falling demand for coal in China meant that consumption fell for the first time, dipping by around 0.9%. While a relatively small decline, it is in sharp contrast with the annual average growth of 4.2% for the last decade. The trend is expected to have continued during 2015. Beijing recently released its statistics for 2015, […]

China Oil Giants Take Spending Cuts Deeper as Profits Shrink

After chopping spending by almost one-third to cope with a crash in oil prices and billions in writedowns that sent profits to the weakest since last decade, China’s energy giants are cutting even deeper. (Bloomberg) — After chopping spending by almost one-third to cope with a crash in oil prices and billions in writedowns that sent profits to the weakest since last decade, China’s energy giants are cutting even deeper. PetroChina Co., Cnooc Ltd. and China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., which together produce more crude than any country in OPEC besides Saudi Arabia, will reduce combined capital expenditure by about 8 percent this year, or roughly 29.5 billion yuan ($4.6 billion). That’s after they cut almost 174 billion yuan from spending last year. “The Chinese oil giants will continue to cut,” Qiu Xiaofeng, chief oil analyst with China Galaxy Securities Co., said by phone from Shanghai. “If the oil […]

China Seen Surpassing U.S. as Top Oil Importer This Year: Chart

The crisis engulfing the global steel industry is so severe that one of China’s top producers has warned a new Ice Age has set in as mills confront overcapacity and rising competition that threaten their survival. “In 2015, China experienced a slowdown in economic growth and excess steel capacity, which caused the domestic and overseas steel industry to enter into an ‘Ice Age’,” Angang Steel Co. said after posting a net loss of 4.59 billion yuan ($710 million) for last year. There are severe challenges, fierce competition and difficult survival conditions, it said. Steel demand in China is shrinking for the first time in a generation as growth slows and policy makers seek to steer the economy toward consumption. Faced with declining sales at home, mills in the top producer — which accounts for half of global supply — have shipped record volumes overseas, heightening competition from Europe to […]

OPEC oil output rises in March as Iran, Iraq growth offsets outages

OPEC oil output is rising in March, a Reuters survey found, as higher supply from Iran after the lifting of sanctions and near-record exports from southern Iraq offset maintenance and outages in smaller producers. The survey also found no major change in production in top exporter Saudi Arabia – another sign that Riyadh is serious about freezing output to support prices, which hit a 12-year low near $27 a barrel in January but have since recovered to $40. Producers are meeting on April 17 in Qatar to discuss the plan. “The production freeze has put a floor under the price,” said Carsten Fritsch, analyst at Commerzbank. “We see a risk of a short-term setback if the meeting produces a disappointment.” Supply from the Organization of the Petroleum […]

Oil Trader Andurand, Who Called Slump, Sees Bull Run’s Start

Pierre Andurand, a hedge-fund manager who predicted the oil collapse, said crude is starting a “multi-year bull run” because low prices have curbed supply. Crude futures, currently trading near $40 a barrel, will rebound to $60 to $70 this year and $80 in 2017, the chief investment officer of London-based hedge fund Andurand Capital Management LLP said in a newsletter to investors. A spokesman for the money manager declined to comment. “Large spending cuts are taking a toll on operational maintenance,” according to the newsletter, which was dated February. “After having been in an oversupplied market we expect inventory draws to start in a few months and accelerate quickly.” Oil has slumped about 60 percent since mid-2014, prompting companies to lay off workers, cut investment and cancel projects. While prices have rebounded from a 12-year low reached earlier this year on speculation the surplus is easing as U.S. output […]


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2015 Sets Record for Renewables Investment

  Top Signals End of Oil-Age

Global investment in renewable energy hit a record US$285.9bn (£202.3bn) in 2015, beating the previous high of $278.5bn set in 2011, a study shows.


UN: 2015 Record Year for Global Renewables Investment



The 10th Global Trends in Renewable Energy Investment also showed that investment in developing nations exceeded that in developed countries.
In another first, more new renewables capacity than fossil-fuel generation came online during 2015.
But it warned that much more had to be done to avoid dangerous climate change.
The assessment, produced by the Frankfurt School-Unep Collaborating Centre for Climate and Sustainable Energy Finance and Bloomberg New Energy Finance, showed that the developing world committed a total of US$156bn (up 19% on 2014 levels) in renewables (excluding large hydro) while developed nations invested US$130bn (down 8% from 2014 levels).
"A large element in this turnaround was China, which lifted its investment by 17% to US$102.9bn, or 36% of the world total," the report observed.
However, other developing nations also contributed as six of the top 10 investors were developing nations.
In the foreword, UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon said the report's findings increased confidence that a low-carbon world was obtainable.
He wrote: "We have entered a new era of clean energy growth that can fuel a future of opportunity and greater prosperity for every person on the planet."
However, he warned that in order to avoid dangerous climate change required an "immediate shift away from fossil fuels".
Electricity generation, Germany (Getty Images)



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Wednesday, 30 March 2016

Today's ENERGY News - March 30, 2016


Today's ENERGY News


March 30, 2016 





China’s oil giants hit hard by oil slump

Plunging global crude oil prices crimped 2015 earnings for China’s trio of oil companies, according to their annual reports. China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC), China’s largest offshore oil and natural gas developer, made 20.2 billion yuan (3.1 billion U.S. dollars) in net profits last year, plunging 66.4 percent year on year. Net profits of PetroChina Co. Ltd., China’s top oil and gas producer, shrank 66.9 percent to 35.52 billion yuan in 2015, the lowest profit since 1999. Sinopec, China’s largest oil refiner, saw its net profits decline 30 percent year on year to 32.4 billion yuan in 2015. The continued slump in global crude oil prices, downward pressure on the domestic economy and sluggish demand for oil and gas have caused the profit plunge for the oil giants, said Dong Xiucheng, professor with China University of Petroleum. Brent crude, the benchmark for more […]


BP to Lay Off 500 Workers in Houston

BP plc, headquartered in the UK, has announced it will lay off 500 of its workers in Houston. According to a letter to the Texas Workforce Commission, the oil and gas super major will lay off many of the employees beginning in early June and affected employees will receive written notice at least 60 days ahead of their separation date. The Houston workforce reductions are part of BP’s larger plan to cut 4,000 jobs globally in its upstream segment in 2016, company spokesperson Jason Ryan confirmed in an email to Rigzone. This is what is required to adapt to the protracted low oil price environment, and BP is taking the steps necessary to reduce costs and ensure we are structured to compete as efficiently as possible, Ryan said. BP has seen many changes this year, namely its announcement to cut thousands of jobs globally through 2017 as well as […]

Oklahoma’s governor defends earthquake response

Oklahoma’s governor defended the state response to the seismic activity attributed to oil and gas development against a federal report on the hazard. “Oklahoma remains committed to doing whatever is necessary to reduce seismicity in the state,” Gov. Mary Fallin said in a statement. Her comments followed the release of the first-ever report from the U.S. Geological Survey on human-induced seismic activity in the country. A map produced by the USGS shows Oklahoma is the state with the highest risk of potential hazard from human-induced seismic activity. Last year, the USGS found evidence to suggest seismic activity in the state may be tied to the disposal of wastewater from the oil and gas […]

China Natural Gas Price Cuts Seen Luring Customers From Coal

China’s natural gas demand has been boosted by price cuts aimed at switching users from coal to the cleaner-burning fuel, according to one of the country’s biggest gas distributors. ENN Energy Holdings Ltd. has seen its sales rise more than 15 percent in January and February as lower prices encouraged customers to switch, Vice Chairman Cheung Yip Sang said in an interview in Hong Kong. ENN expects full-year sales to rise 15 percent, following last year’s 11.5 percent jump to 11.3 billion cubic meters. “The movement really picked up a lot of momentum,” Cheung said. “The higher burning efficiency of gas and government pressure for better emission standards will help convert more industrial users from coal to gas.” President Xi Jinping’s government adjusted gas prices twice last year to stimulate demand and shift consumption from coal, which makes up 64 percent of the country’s energy mix. The share of […]

Hedge funds establish near-record bullish bet on rising oil prices: Kemp

Hedge funds and other money managers have amassed a near-record number of bullish bets on increasing oil prices, helping push the main international benchmark well above $40 per barrel. By the close of business on March 22, money managers held a net long position equivalent to almost 579 million barrels in the three largest crude oil futures and options contracts ( tmsnrt.rs/1WU26ND ). Hedge funds have more than doubled their net long position from just 242 million barrels at the end of last year, according to an analysis of data published by regulators and exchanges. The net long position has passed the previous peak of 572 million barrels, set in May 2015, and is closing in on the record of 626 million, set in June 2014, when Islamic […]

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