Exxon, Chevron bracing for dark times ahead as oil slump lingers

31 July 2015, News Wires – Exxon Mobil Corp. and Chevron Corp., the biggest U.S. energy producers, hunkered down for a prolonged stretch of weak prices after posting their worst quarterly performances in several years. Exxon reported its lowest profit since 2009 as crude prices fell twice as fast as the world’s largest crude producer by […] More »

ConocoPhillips Reports Better-Than-Expected Profit in Oil Crash

31 July 2015, News Wires – ConocoPhillips, the third-largest U.S. energy producer, reported better-than-expected profit and output while cutting spending plans amid lower oil prices. Excluding certain items, Houston-based ConocoPhillips had a profit of 7 cents a share, which was 3 cents higher than the average of 21 analyst estimates compiled by Bloomberg. Production that […] More »

Afren’s board to put company into administration

31 July 2015, News Wires – Oil producer Afren Plc said its board has decided to put the company into administration after failing to secure support for a refinancing and restructuring plan. Afren, whose shares have been suspended since July 15, said talks with bondholders, banks and its partners were scuppered after the company cut its […] More »

Texas oil production on track to break record

31 July 2015, News Wires – Just about everyone knows that crude oil and natural gas production in Texas has been on the increase for several years. But the size of the increase – especially in crude oil production – has been lost until just a few days ago when economist Karr Ingham told a […] More »

Savannah signs contract with Niger for R3/R4 license area

31 July 2015, News Wires – Savannah Petroleum announced Friday that it has signed a Production Sharing Contract (PSC) with the government of Niger for the country’s R3/R4 license area. As part of the deal, a signature bonus payment of $28 million will soon be made to the state of Niger. Savannah has already mapped […] More »

STOAN berates Shippers Council over alleged false claims

31 July 2015, Lagos – The Seaport Terminal Operators Association of Nigeria (STOAN) has accused the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) of allegedly making false claims about its achievements at the nation’s seaports. STOAN said such claims are “immoral and misleading.” The terminal operators faulted the Council’s much  publicised achievement. It said: “Our attention has been […] More »

IPMAN wants NNPC to stop sending members’ petrol allocation to Capital Oil

31 July 2015, Abuja – Based on its accusation of fraudulent practices against Capital Oil and Gas, the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), has asked the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to stop sending members’ allocation of petrol to the tank farm and storage facilities of Capital Oil and Gas Limited. The factional […] More »

DPR gets task force on petrol pricing

31 July 2015, Lagos – Following the continued sale of petrol above the stipulated pump price by some marketers, the Department of Petroleum Resources, DPR,  has said it will engage government agencies like the police, Pipelines and Product Marketing Company, PPMC. and the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA, to stop them. The agency said it […] More »

Shell’s production in Nigeria falls by 28%

31 July 2015, Lagos – Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria has seen its total oil and gas production plunge by 28.2 per cent year-on-year, the company disclosed on Thursday. Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the parent company of the SPDC, in its unaudited financial statement and operating information for the second quarter of 2015, put its […] More »

EU, Germany support Nigeria’s energy sector with N5.33bn

31 July 2015, Lagos – A total of €24.5m (N5.33bn) has been earmarked by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry of Economic Cooperation and Development to fund Nigeria’s renewable energy, energy efficiency and rural electrification programmes. The amount, which has its beneficiary as the Federal Ministry of Power, will be used to promote the […] More »

Govt told to pursue completion of Ajaokuta, other steel mills

31 July 2015, Lagos – The Federal has been called upon to vigorously pursue, complete and put the Ajaokuta iron and steel complex, the Aladja steel rolling mills and the Oshogbo machine tools and Aluminum Smelter project into full and efficient production in order to boost the performance of PRODA, NASENI and FIIRO. Obibuzor Ifeanyi, President/Chairman […] More »

Oando opens new station in Kaduna

31 July 2015, Lagos – Oando Marketing Plc has inaugurated a recently upgraded service station in Kaduna State as part of the company’s commitment to enhance customers’ experience. According to a statement from the company, this is in line with the goal of delighting its customers by providing excellent service experience. The statement added that the […] More »

Savannah signs PSC with Niger for R3/R4 license area

31 July 2015 – Savannah Petroleum announced Friday that it has signed a Production Sharing Contract, PSC, with the government of Niger for the country’s R3/R4 license area. As part of the deal, a signature bonus payment of $28 million will soon be made to the state of Niger. Savannah has already mapped 29 leads […] More »

Oil producer Afren’s board to put company into administration

31 July 2015 – Oil producer Afren Plc said its board has decided to put the company into administration after failing to secure support for a refinancing and restructuring plan. Afren, whose shares have been suspended since July 15, said talks with bondholders, banks and its partners were scuppered after the company cut its production […] More »

Financial market products & services update

31 July 2015, Sweetcrude, Lagos – Local and international financial market products and services update. NIGERIA: THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has described the nation’s economy as “a volcano waiting to erupt” had the foreign exchange pressure been left unchecked. Its Director of Monetary Policy Department, Moses Tule, disclosed this yesterday in Calabar, Cross […] More »

OPEC daily basket price close at $51.45/b

31 July 2015, Sweetcrude, Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at 51.45 dollars a barrel on Thursday, compared with $50.82 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), […] More »

Oil prices dip as OPEC official says no cuts planned

30 June 2015, Lagos – US oil prices dipped Thursday, snapping a two-day streak of gains after a top official with OPEC reiterated that the cartel has no plans to cut petroleum production. US benchmark West Texas Intermediate for delivery in September dropped 27 cents to $48.52 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. European […] More »

Despite court order, GE directs Arco to vacate Agip’s contract site

30 July 2015, Lagos – Despite the subsisting order of a Federal High Court that all parties should maintain the status quo, General Electric (GE) International Operations Nigeria Limited has directed Arco Petrochemical Engineering Company Limited to demobilise from the multi-million dollar maintenance service contract for gas turbines and related equipment for OB/OB, Ebocha and […] More »

Nigeria LNG to take delivery of four carrier ships this year

30 July 2015, Lagos – The Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Company (NLNG)  is expected to take delivery of four LNG carrier ships before year-end and another two next year, its chief executive said, positioning the state-backed gas exporter to expand its share of the growing market. NLNG signed agreements with South Korea’s Samsung Heavy Industries and […] More »

Mexico ‘to postpone deep-water round’

30 July 2015, News Wires – Mexico’s energy minister said the country will postpone auctions for deep-water oil and gas licenses and adjust the terms of upcoming tenders after its inaugural bid round failed to meet the government’s modest expectations. Pedro Joaquin Coldwell told local television the government will change rules that scared off potential bidders […] More »

New oil sheen spotted off California

30 July 2015, News Wires – The US Coast Guard is investigating a mysterious oil sheen in the Pacific Ocean, the second hydrocarbon release to hit the California coast in recent months. The slick is about three square miles wide and was about a mile off the coast of Santa Barbara County, near the site of […] More »

Shell to sack 6,500; cut spending to cope with lower oil prices

30 July 2015, London – Royal Dutch Shell says it will axe 6,500 jobs this year and step up spending cuts, to deal with an extended period of lower oil prices. Besides, the company announced on Thursday in London the sale of a 33 per cent stake in the Showa Shell refinery in Japan to […] More »

Govt may review port concession agreements

30 July 2015, Lagos – Executive Secretary, Nigerian Shippers’ Council, Mr. Hassan Bello, has hinted about plans to review the concession agreements between the Federal Government and port terminal operators. He said this during a courtesy visit by the council’s management team to the Tin Can Island Container Terminal in Lagos. He said, “There is a […] More »

Market capitalisation dips by N36bn

30 July 2015, Lagos – Equities on the Nigerian Stock Exchange fell for the sixth session on Wednesday with the market capitalisation declining by N36bn or 0.34 per cent to close at N10.457tn. The NSE All-Share Index also fell by 0.34 per cent or 103.86 basis points from 30,614.81 basis points to 30,510.95 basis points. […] More »

DPR shuts 22 filling stations in FCT

30 July 2015, Abuja – The Abuja office of the Department of Petroleum Resources has closed down 22 filling stations in the Federal Capital Territory and its environs due to what it described as undue profiteering. The department said 19 of the affected filling stations were sealed for selling above the N87 per litre official price, […] More »

Yar’Adua shouldn’t have cancelled refineries’ sale to Dangote –Obasanjo

30 July 2015, Lagos –  Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that late President Yar’Adua was wrong for cancelling the sale of the Kaduna and Port Harcourt refineries to a Dangote-led consortium by his administration . In the second part of an interview granted a private television station, Channels TV,monitored by our correspondent on Wednesday, […] More »

Oil worth $13.7bn stolen under NNPC, says NEITI

30 July Abuja – The Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Hajiya Zainab Shamsuna-Ahmed, on Wednesday said between 2009 and 2012, about 160 million barrels of oil valued at $13.7bn was stolen under the watch of the national oil giant, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. She also said that subsidy payment from 2005 to […] More »

Generator fumes kill three in Bayelsa

30 July 2015, Yenagoa – Ogbia Local Government Area of Bayelsa State was been thrown into mourning as a result of the death of five persons from generator fumes and fire outbreak. It was learnt on Thursday that a family of three, involving a husband, his wife and his child died in Emeyal community in Ogbia, […] More »

Tullow: Ghana TEN Project 65% complete

*On-track for first oil mid-2016 30 July 2015 – Tullow Oil announced Wednesday in its 2015 half year results that the TEN project in Ghana is approximately 65 percent complete and confirmed that the field remains on schedule, and on budget, for first oil in mid-2016. A number of “important milestones” were achieved at the […] More »

Lekoil: First oil from Otakikpo delayed to 3Q 2015

30 July 2015 – West Africa-focused energy firm Lekoil revealed Wednesday that plans to produce first oil from the Otakikpo field, offshore Nigeria, have been delayed due to safety reasons. Drilling operations at the Otakikpo-002 well were temporarily halted, pending repairs and replacement of equipment, after the rig crew noticed a potential critical safety issue […] More »

OPEC daily basket price close at $50.82/b

30 July 2015, Sweetcrude, Vienna, Austria — The price of OPEC basket of twelve crudes stood at 50.82 dollars a barrel on Wednesday, compared with $50.54 the previous day, according to OPEC Secretariat calculations. The new OPEC Reference Basket of Crudes (ORB) is made up of the following: Saharan Blend (Algeria), Girassol (Angola), Oriente (Ecuador), […] More »

‎PTDF to establish alternative energy research centre

Oscarline Onwuemenyi 30 July 2015, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The management of Petroleum Technology Development Fund, PTDF, has declared its readiness to establish a National Coordination Centre for Research and Development on Biofuels and other alternative energy sources to be domiciled at the National Institute of Petroleum Policy and Strategy, NIPPS, in Kaduna. The Fund said […] More »

MX Oil announces Aje 5 well spud offshore Nigeria

30 July 2015 – MX Oil has announced commencement of drilling on the Aje 5 production well, located in the Aje Field on the OML 113 license offshore Nigeria. Once drilling operations at Aje 5 are completed, which is expected to be in approximately 70 days according to a company press release, the Scarabeo 3 […] More »

Royal Dutch Shell to cut 6,500 jobs

30 July 2015 – Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell has announced it is to shed 6,500 jobs as part of cost-cutting plans as it seeks to counter falling oil prices. The job cuts – to its employee base of around 94,000 people – comprise part of its $4bn reduction in operating costs. Shell also said […] More »

NNPC sponsoring attacks against me – el-Rufai

*As NEITI says $13.7bn oil money stolen in 3 years Oscarline Onwuemenyi 30 July 2015, Sweetcrude, Abuja – The Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai has accused the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, of sponsoring media attacks against his person ever since he called for the scrapping of the Corporation. El-Rufai, […] More »

Nigeria: First oil from Otakikpo delayed till 3Q 2015 – Lekoil

30 July 2015, News Wires – West Africa-focused energy firm Lekoil revealed Wednesday that plans to produce first oil from the Otakikpo field, offshore Nigeria, have been delayed due to safety reasons. Drilling operations at the Otakikpo-002 well were temporarily halted, pending repairs and replacement of equipment, after the rig crew noticed a potential critical […] More »

P’Harcourt, Warri refineries commence preliminary operations – NNPC

30 July 2015, Abuja – The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, has announced that the Port Harcourt and Warri refineries have been successfully re-streamed after a nine-month rehabilitation exercise conducted by its in-house engineers and technicians. The corporation, in a statement, noted that both plants commenced preliminary production of petroleum products after successful test-runs, adding […] More »

$13bn oil stolen under NNPC in four years – NEITI

30 July 2015, Abuja – The  Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, Hajiya Zainab Shamsuna-Ahmed, on Wednesday said  between 2009 and 2012 alone, about 160 million barrels of crude oil, valued at $13.7bn were stolen under the watch of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation. The NEITI boss, who called on the Federal […] More »

33 ships laden with petroleum products, other items expected in Lagos

30 July 2015, Lagos – Thirty three ships laden with petroleum products, food items and other goods are expected at the Apapa and Tin-Can Island ports in Lagos from July 29 to Aug. 8. The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) stated this in its daily publication – `Shipping Position’ – made available to newsmen on Wednesday […] More »

Ghana’s TEN project 65% complete, set for Ist oil mid-2016

29 July 2015, News Wires – Tullow Oil announced Wednesday in its 2015 half year results that the TEN project in Ghana is approximately 65 percent complete and confirmed that the field remains on schedule, and on budget, for first oil in mid-2016. A number of “important milestones” were achieved at the Tweneboa-Enyenra-Ntomme field in […] More »

Drilling commences on Nigeria’s Aje 5 production well

29 July 2015, News Wires – MX Oil has announced that drilling has commenced on the Aje 5 production well, located in the Aje Field on the OML 113 license offshore Nigeria. Once drilling operations at Aje 5 are completed, which is expected to be in approximately 70 days according to a company press release, […] More »

Edo mulls court option over unremmitted DPR fund

29 July 2015, Benin – Edo State Government may soon seek legal redress to compel a refund of monies due to it from the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). Governor Adams Oshiomhole made the state’s position known yesterday at a FAAC Post-Mortem Sub-Committee national seminar on the role of gas in Nigeria’s economy, which held […] More »

How pipelines saved America’s biggest oil basin from shale bust

29 July 2015, News Wires – To understand why U.S. oil production is so resilient, it helps to consider the maze of pipelines running out of Midland, Texas. New lines have relieved a chokepoint in America’s biggest oil-producing area. A massive supply glut had forced producers to offer discounts of more than $20 a barrel […] More »

Libya crude output drops as conflict cuts power at oil fields

29 July 2015, News Wires – Libya’s crude production dropped below 400,000 barrels a day as the conflict in the divided North African country cut electricity supply at oil fields, according to the state-run National Oil Corp. Output in Libya, holder of Africa’s largest crude reserves, has been hampered by a lack of security and […] More »

Total likely to get exploration right for oil, gas offshore Sri Lanka

29 July 2015, News Wires – France’s Total S.A. is expected to be granted the rights to explore for oil and gas off the eastern coast of Sri Lanka following the exit of Cairn India Ltd. from the Mannar Basin, a senior official of the country’s Power and Energy Ministry said, as quoted by local […] More »

UK oil, gas industry companies more optimistic in 2Q

29 July 2015, News Wires – Companies in the UK oil and gas industry are becoming more optimistic about the sector, according to Oil & Gas UK’s latest Business Sentiment Index (BSI). Published Wednesday, the BSI for the second quarter of 2015 reveals that respondents returned a score of minus 27 on a -50/+50, which marked […] More »

Split NNPC into Two, IPMAN Advises Buhari

29 July 2015, Abuja – The Western Zonal Chairman, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) Alhaji Debo Ahmed  has urged President Muhammadu Buhari  to split Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) into two so as to bring effective and efficient quick delivery of petroleum products to the doorsteps of the people of the country. He noted […] More »

NELMCO saves govt billions from verification of N462bn PHCN liabilities

29 July 2015, Abuja – Working with the Ministry of Power, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation and Debt Management Office (DMO), the Nigeria Electricity Liability Management Company (NELMCO) Limited may have effectively verified the factual status of an outstanding N462,754,646,902.96 billion worth of liabilities incurred by defunct Power Holding Company of Nigeria (PHCN). NELMCO, […] More »

Again, TCN records new power transmission peak of 4662MW

29 July 2015, Abuja – The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) on Wednesday disclosed that the national electricity grid transmission has attained a new peak capacity of 4,662 megawatts (MW), some 6MW different from its last record of 4656MW. TCN, in a press statement from its General Manager, Public Affairs, Seun Olagunju, in Abuja, explained that […] More »

Irish spud for Petronas

29 July 2015,  News Wires – The operator of the SEL 4/07 licence in the north of the Celtic Sea spudded the wildcat on the Midleton prospect in the early hours of Wednesday morning with the semi-submersible Ocean Guardian. The well is expected to take between 20 and 30 days to drill, Irish junior and block […] More »