Energy prices rallied in early May with natural gas climbing above $4/MMbtu and crude at one point topping $58/bbl–a new high for the year–as traders shrugged off bearish inventory reports and focused instead on indications of a possible economic turnaround.
Uruguay, with no current oil and gas production, has completed the qualification step of its first offshore bid round, offering 11 continental shelf blocks that drew interest from six operators.
Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez, attempting to bolster his socialist spending programs, has nationalized nearly 40 domestic and international oil services companies operating in his country, with another 20 still under threat.
The Iraqi government, despite recently approving the export of oil from Kurdistan, still considers contracts signed between the Kurdistan Regional Government and international oil companies illegal.
Shtokman Development AG plans to send out soon tenders for developing the giant Shtokman gas field in the Barents Sea, off Russia’s north coast, said Philippe Rondy, Total SA’s Shtokman planning manager.
The US Environmental Protection Agency issued proposed new renewable fuels regulations for 2010 and beyond on May 5 as part of a broader Obama administration initiative.
Deputy US Transportation Secretary Thomas J. Barrett will join the office coordinating federal agencies’ responses to expedite construction of a natural gas pipeline from Alaska to the Lower 48 as its deputy coordinator on May 26.
Saudi Arabia’s state oil company is feeling the impact of lower prices, but does not plan to change its spending plans or production levels, its chief executive officer said on May 6.
EOG Resources Inc., Houston, is emphasizing North American liquids and natural gas plays as it develops and explores unconventional and conventional plays in US and Canadian basins.
To boost its declining production, Indonesia has awarded exploration rights for 11 new oil and gas blocks and is already mapping out its next bid round.
The US rig count fell much more rapidly than most in the oil and gas drilling industry had forecast, and industry executives say they are uncertain when drilling activity might recover.
A team, composed of the operator and service company staff, tested various biocides to determine the best chemical for controlling bacteria in fluids used for fracturing Barnett shales in the Fort Worth basin of Texas.
This is the first of three articles that describe BP’s experience with reciprocating compressor damage from liquids intrusion at two facilities, in Oklahoma and Alaska.
