Regions
Eyeing demand recovery in a post-COVID-19 world
At AFPM's virtual Summit on Tuesday, Robert Auers, Senior Consultant at Turner, Mason & Company, hosted an afternoon session on challenges in the U.S. refining sector, including how COVID-19 has affected the short-term global demand for refined products and the prospects for demand longer term.
2020 AFPM Summit: Five trends to watch as coronavirus reshapes the global olefins industry
The coronavirus outbreak is having a transformational effect on global olefins. Supply, demand, trade, pricing, costs and margins are all being affected to the extent that it will undoubtedly reshape the wider industry.
UK strives to develop economically viable deepwater wind capabilities
To further exploit the UK’s vast wind power potential, technology advances and cost reductions are required for floating installations to compete commercially against bottom-fixed facilities.
A Little Good News from Back East
The pipeline industry in the U.S. Northeast finally got some positive news on the permitting front, when New Jersey Natural Gas (NJNG) received the go-ahead to move forward with construction work on a controversial 30-mile (48-km) section of the Southern Reliability Link (SRL) pipeline in New Jersey.
IRPC Americas ONLINE: Refinery-Petrochemical integration – Upgrading existing refineries to maximize chemicals
Raj Singh, Senior FCC technologist, TechnipFMC, presented a highly informative technical session on Refinery-Petrochemical integration - Upgrading existing refineries to maximize chemicals at Hydrocarbon Processing’s IRPC Americas ONLINE event today.
Calculating petroleum quantities in the 21st century
Over the past 100 yr, a number of technological advances and process improvements have dramatically changed how the oil and gas industry finds, produces and refines petroleum. The industry has made vast improvements in physical property databases, calculation procedures, and the determination of density and petroleum quantities by incorporating advances in modern processing technologies and updating measurement standards.
Global announcements and developments July
The industry's most comprehensive list of current and recent rounds for onshore and offshore licences
Oil firms ready to pick up the infrastructure divestment pace
Pipelines, storage facilities and processing plants could replace non-advantaged production as prime candidates Oil and gas producing firms create the most value by exploring for, developing and producing hydrocarbons. Internal rates of return (IRRs) far in excess of 20pc are the norm for successful upstream projects.
End of an Era? Series of Setbacks Bode ill for Big Pipeline Projects
WASHINGTON/NEW YORK — A rapid-fire succession of setbacks for big energy pipelines in the United States this week has revealed an uncomfortable truth for the oil and gas industry: environmental activists and landowners opposed to projects have become good at blocking them in court.
Caution creeps into investors’ oil and gas infrastructure appetite
The US downturn and the inexorable rise of ESG concerns are clouds on the horizon even for traditionally low-risk energy investments Infrastructure assets have remained relatively immune to the negative sentiment from investors towards fossil fuels—good news for IOCs looking to sell off non-core pipelines, processing plants and storage tanks to generate cash. But this immunity may be waning. Investors like the steady source of revenue from these assets, which help to diversify their investment portfolios and can provide some protection from low oil prices.
Developers Cancel Long-Delayed Atlantic Coast Pipeline
RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The developers of the long-delayed, $8 billion Atlantic Coast Pipeline announced the cancellation of the multi-state natural gas project Sunday, citing uncertainties about costs, permitting and litigation.
Tallgrass Energy Cheyenne Connector Pipeline Enters Service
(P&GJ) — Tallgrass Energy announced that both the Cheyenne Connector pipeline and the Rockies Express Pipeline (REX) Cheyenne Hub Enhancement Project will commence commercial service effective June 26, 2020, having obtained approval from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on June 24, 2020.
TC Energy Selects Michels Canada to Build Keystone XL Pipeline in Canada
(P&GJ) — Michels Canada has been awarded the contract from TC Energy to construct approximately 260 kilometers (162 miles) of the Keystone XL Pipeline Project in Alberta, Canada.
Trans Adriatic Pipeline Enters Initial Testing Phase
(P&GJ) — The Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) has introduced the first natural gas into a 2.5-mile (4-km) section of the pipeline at the Greek-Albanian border as it prepares for first gas deliveries to Europe by the end of 2020.
Bulgaria's State Gas Firm Seeks Loans for Pipeline Construction
SOFIA, June 5 (Reuters) - Bulgaria's state gas firm Bulgartransgaz is seeking up to 400 million euros ($453 million) to finance an extension of the TurkStream gas pipeline and other gas projects in the Balkan country, it said on Friday.
Global announcements and developments June
The industry's most comprehensive list of current and recent rounds for onshore and offshore licences
Golden Pass Seeks to Boost Capacity at Texas LNG Plant
(Reuters) — Golden Pass LNG sought permission from U.S. federal energy regulators to boost the capacity of the company’s $10 billion export terminal under construction in Texas to 18.1 million tonnes per annum (MTPA) from 15.6 MTPA.
Record-setting Q2 at northwest Europe’s LNG terminals
Six of the region’s eight LNG terminals saw deliveries above 80pc of capacity for a second consecutive month All of the LNG terminals across Poland, the Netherlands, Belgium and France’s Atlantic coast received deliveries in May at more than 80pc of their processing capacity, as did the UK’s South Hook terminal, according to data by leading cargo tracking firm Kpler. This marks the second month that six of the facilities that can readily supply into northwest Europe (NWE) have topped 80pc utilisation for the first time since the so-called ‘LNG wave’ started emerging in early 2019.
China’s challenge: securing sufficient gas
The pandemic appears to have barely dented China’s hunger for gas. The difficulty remains building sufficient production, import, storage and transport capacity to satisfy demand China’s natural gas demand has proved to be surprisingly resilient in the face of the Covid-19 outbreak.
Bulgaria Still Aims to Complete TurkStream Pipeline Extension by Year-End
LETNITSA, Bulgaria (Reuters) — Bulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borissov said on Monday he hoped that the Balkan Stream natural gas pipeline - an extension of Russia's TurkStream - would still be ready by the end of the year despite construction delays due to the coronavirus crisis.
Maintenance: How to conduct successful turnaround maintenance at refineries
PricewaterhouseCoopers reports that, since 2014, the oil and gas industry has put off noncritical spending to reduce costs.1 In 2016, for example, the average number of backlogged labor hours for corrective and deferred safety-critical maintenance increased by 25%.1 While deferring maintenance saves resources initially, such delays lead to unsafe equipment and reduced output due to sub-par equipment.
IEA warns of investment chasm
Global investment in the energy sector will contract sharply in 2020, with governments prioritising control of the Covid-19 pandemic and many economies able to reopen only partially. In its World Energy Investment 2020 report, the IEA estimates that global investment could decline by 20pc—the largest slump ever recorded.
LNG: Intercontinental to inter-regional?
Price differentials are threatening the economics underlying global LNG arbitrage. But the lower prices may unlock competition within regions It was all going rather well for efficient global LNG trade. The associated gas boom that accompanied the US shale oil revolution drove Henry Hub prices to bargain-basement levels just at a time when the country was developing its first wave of liquefaction and export capacity, most of it linked to those Louisiana prices.
More Pipelines Are Needed for India to Increase LNG Imports — EIA Report
(P&GJ) — Data compiled by the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) shows that as India continues to increase its imports of LNG, the country will need to quickly complete construction on its planned gas pipelines.
Energy Transfer Slashes 2020 Capex, Dakota Access Expansion Could Face Delays
(Reuters) — Energy Transfer LP is slashing at least $400 million from its 2020 capital spending budget to $3.6 billion and will consider doubling the cuts after losses caused by oil prices driven lower by the coronavirus pandemic, company officials said on Monday.
Construction to Start on Gas Pipeline from Norway to Poland
WARSAW, Poland (AP) — Construction of a major gas pipeline from Norway is to begin in the coming days and will be a “milestone” in giving Poland independence from Russian gas, Polish President Andrzej Duda said.
Poland's Gaz-System Reaches $306 Million Pipeline Deal with Saipem
GDANSK/WARSAW (Reuters) - Polish gas grid operator Gaz-System said on Monday it has signed a 280 million euro ($306 million) contract with Italian oil services group Saipem to build a section of the Baltic Pipe between Denmark and Poland.
Williams Places Phase II of Hillabee Expansion in Service
HOUSTON (P&GJ) — Williams said it has placed Phase II of the Hillabee expansion project in service, adding natural gas capacity to the Transco system and direct access to Florida’s rapidly growing power generation market.
Arctic LNG sea fleet: Carrying gas from the cold
At present, 20 of the world’s approximately 500 in-service LNG carriers are used, or planned for use, to carry natural gas produced by the world’s northernmost LNG liquefaction projects. These projects include Equinor’s operating Hammerfest LNG plant on Melkøya Island in northern Norway; Novatek’s recently commissioned Yamal LNG terminal in Sabetta in Russia’s northeast Yamal Peninsula; and Novatek’s under-construction Arctic LNG 2 project in Russia’s Gydan Peninsula.
Greek-Italian Joint Venture Seeks Contractors for EastMed Gas Pipeline
ATHENS (Reuters) — A joint venture between Greek utility DEPA and Italy's Edison is seeking to shortlist two contractors to build part of a pipeline to carry natural gas from the eastern Mediterranean's rapidly developing gas fields to Europe, DEPA said on Thursday.
