tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-39744227658211017472024-03-13T14:51:37.104-07:00BLCO,FLCO, CRUDE OIL,MAZUT,FOCADOS, JP54, D2, LPFO,JETFUEL,PMS,FLCO,AGOMPN GLOBAL VENTURES engages in the export of crude oil from Nigeria and as well as import of refined Petroleum Products into Nigeria. As a link agent between the supplier/seller and buyer of Bonny Light Crude Oil
(BLCO), FORCADOS (FLCO) Light Crude Oil, QUA IBOE, JET FEUL, DPK-KEROSINE, MAZUT, LPFO in Nigeria. The company was registered and established in Nigeria in the year 2009, November the 11Th and approved by corporate affairs commission (CAC), Federal Republic of Nigeria. MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.comBlogger95125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-82156061407684247202016-06-16T08:19:00.001-07:002016-06-16T08:19:43.985-07:00Crude Oil Extends Decline From One-Week Low Ahead of Brexit VoteCrude fell a fourth day after closing at a one-week low as concern mounts over the strength of global growth as Britain votes later this month on whether to leave the European Union.<br /><br />Futures fell as much as 0.8 percent in New York after settling at the lowest since June 3 on Monday as investors looked ahead to a June 23 referendum that will determine Britain’s membership in the EU. Shale drillers added 12 oil rigs in the U.S. over the past two weeks in the first consecutive weekly gains since August, according to Baker Hughes Inc. data.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />Oil has surged about 85 percent from a 12-year low in February as the global glut is trimmed by disruptions and a slide in U.S. output, which is under pressure from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ policy of pumping without limits.<br /><br />West Texas Intermediate for July delivery fell as much 38 cents to $48.50 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange and was at $48.53 at 7:44 a.m. Tokyo time. Total volume traded was 49 percent below the 100-day average. The contract slipped 19 cents to settle at $48.88 on Monday.<br /><br />Brent for August settlement dropped 19 cents to end the session at $50.35 on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange on Monday. The global benchmark crude closed at an 83-cent premium to WTI for August delivery.<br />MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-34025521786166280882015-07-23T10:42:00.005-07:002015-07-23T10:42:31.675-07:00QTY.: 1,000,000 SPOT 2 TO 5 MM X 12 CONTRACT JP54 CI DIP & PAY AT ROTTERD<div>
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<span style="font-size: 18pt;"><strong><span style="background-color: magenta; color: blue;">JP54 CI DIP & PAY - ROTTERDAM</span></strong></span></div>
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(1) IF BUYER HAS TANKS 7/8 LESS PLATTS. 50 CENTS CLOSED. 50 CENTS OPEN</div>
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(2) IF BUYER DOESN'T HAVE TANKS 6/7 LESS PLATTS. 50CENTS CLOSED. 50 CENTS OPEN</div>
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<strong><span style="background-color: magenta; color: blue; font-size: 18pt;">Procedures:</span></strong><br />1) Buyer provides ICPO and RWA letter from his bank<br />2) Seller sends CI<br />3) Buyer executes CI and returns<br />4) Seller sends full POP: SGS/DTA or Pre-Injection report<br />5) Buyer verifies POP and pays by MT 103 within 12 hours.<br /> 6) Documents titled in end buyer's name and Buyer lifts<br />7) Seller/Buyer negotiate contract.<a name='more'></a><br />8) Buyer places Divisible, Transferable SBLC for the contract<br />9) Buyer / Seller move into contract<br /> </div>
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<span style="background-color: yellow;"><strong><span style="color: blue;">PLEASE EMAIL JUST IF YOU ARE GENUINE & SERIOUS BUYER AND AGREE WITH PROCEDURES: </span></strong></span></div>
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-- <br />
If you want to work with Taajirun<br />
1. We are in Marketing for 5 years.<br />
2. We have 50 specialized business forums<br />
3. We have 30 Marketing Managers<br />
4. We have hundreds of partners and connections <br />
5. We are a global business community<br />
Our Forums: <br />
Oil, Bitumen, Minerals, Metals, Ores, Ingots, Urea, Fertilizers,
Biomass, Wood, Real Estate, Funding, Investors, Financial Instruments,
Gold, Copper, Currency, Seafood, Meat & Chicken, Cars& Spare
Parts, Rice, Air Crafts, Livestock, Grains, Rice, Wheat, Tea, Sugar,
Fruits & Vegetables, Cement, Edible Oil, Olive Oil, Garment &
Fashion.<br />
Our Philosophy:<br />
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What is the subject quantity?</div>
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MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-87620133517546713692015-07-23T10:36:00.002-07:002015-07-23T10:36:16.113-07:00 CI Dip & Pay MAZUT-100 GOST 10585/75 is available at the moment Our seller just confirmed to us on monday that CI Dip & Pay MAZUT-100 GOST 10585/75 is available at the moment and they are looking for a serious buyer to purchase the product in Kosmino/Nakhodka Port and we have Tank receipt and the SGS available for verification. This documents are in our custody as i am writing you!<br /><br /><br />Kindly revert back to us immediately if your buyer is ready to purchase the said product MAZUT-100 GOST 10585/75 from our seller with quantity 55.000 metric tons, to enable us request for the procedure from the seller as soon as possible. Be adviced that your buyer must act very fast on the allocation because we are not the only mandate working for the refinery<br />
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Only serious buyers should Email us.MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-1112965456534975322015-06-16T04:47:00.002-07:002015-06-16T04:47:41.631-07:00OFFER FOR AFRICAN WOOD OFFER FOR AFRICAN TIMBER,LOGS,SAWN WOOD,PLANKS ETC.<div style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">
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<span style="color: #494429; font-family: Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;">Here are other wood species that we have in stock NOW CONFIRMED FOR EXPORT</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>AZOBE =€305/cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>BUBINGA=€275/cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>DOUSSIE(PACHY)=€2805cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>KOSSIPO=€275/cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>PADOUK=€305/cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>TALI=€285/cbm fob douala port</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>EKOP BELI (price upon request)</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>SUPPLY ABILITY</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>1000CBM+ FOR LOGS</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>300-600CBM+ FOR SAWN WOOD</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>LOADING 2-WEEKS MAXIMUM</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>OFFER EXPLICITLY FRESH CUT LOGS</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>WILL LIKE BUYER OR BUYER MANDATE TO VISIT</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>LOGS RANGE FROM 0.3M+ FOR DIAMETER AND 5-70CM+ LENGTH</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>PAYMENT CAD/TT/DP</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px;"><b>COMMISSION-PREFER TO DISCUSS WHEN EXCHANGING MAILS.</b></span></span></div>
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<span style="color: #494429; font-family: Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;"><b><u>PS</u></b></span></span><span style="color: #494429; font-family: Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;"><br /></span></span><span style="color: #494429; font-family: Tahoma,sans-serif; font-size: medium;"><span style="font-size: 16pt; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;">Wood samples available upon request.</span></span></div>
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<span style="font-family: Times New Roman, sans-serif; line-height: normal;"><span style="font-size: 21.3333339691162px; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;">email us at: </span></span><span style="color: #666666; font-family: Arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; white-space: nowrap;">mpn.gblobal.ventures@gmail.com or info@afrishoponline.com</span></div>
<div style="color: #444444; font-size: 15px; line-height: 21.2999992370605px;">
<span style="font-family: 'Times New Roman', sans-serif; font-size: 21.3333339691162px; line-height: 30.2933349609375px;">Magee Hanson</span></div>
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<span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">-- </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">If you want to work with Taajirun</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">1. We are in Marketing for 5 years.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">2. We have 50 specialized business forums</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">3. We have 30 Marketing Managers</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">4. We have hundreds of partners and connections </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">5. We are a global business community</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Our Forums: </span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Oil, Bitumen, Minerals, Metals, Ores, Ingots, Urea, Fertilizers, Biomass, Wood, Real Estate, Funding, Investors, Financial Instruments, Gold, Copper, Currency, Seafood, Meat & Chicken, Cars& Spare Parts, Rice, Air Crafts, Livestock, Grains, Rice, Wheat, Tea, Sugar, Fruits & Vegetables, Cement, Edible Oil, Olive Oil, Garment & Fashion.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Our Philosophy:</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">H.I.T.T (Honesty - Integrity- Truth-Trust) will take you far and earn you the respect.</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" /><span style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;">Amer Al Azem</span><br style="background-color: white; color: #222222; font-family: arial, sans-serif; font-size: 12.8000001907349px;" />MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-2457836159627306752014-07-17T11:27:00.001-07:002014-07-17T11:27:32.215-07:00Crude oil price weighed down by weak demand<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<span style="font-size: small;"><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jj9GEDIa_Ug/U8gVSMdSG9I/AAAAAAAAANk/juIGZ5etuPE/s1600/crude.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-Jj9GEDIa_Ug/U8gVSMdSG9I/AAAAAAAAANk/juIGZ5etuPE/s1600/crude.jpg" height="240" width="320" /></a></span></div>
<span style="font-size: small;">Crude oil price differentials for Nigeria stayed under pressure,
Friday, having fallen this week, weighed down by weak demand from large
Asian buyers.</span>
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<span style="font-size: small;">Nigeria’s largest stream, Qua Iboe, was assessed at its lowest
premium to dated Brent in two years. Refining margins in Europe and Asia
have been weak, curbing non-essential buying interest, say traders.
“Margins and cracks have improved, but it does not seem to changed
things very much,” said one.</span><br />
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<a name='more'></a><span style="font-size: small;"> </span><br />
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</span><span style="font-size: small;">With ample supply of Nigerian crude and differentials under pressure,
traders suggested majors could keep August-loading cargoes for their
own refineries.</span><br />
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</span><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>NIGERIA<br /></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;">Around 40 cargoes for August loading out of a total of 65 are
available, a trader said. Qua Iboe end-August cargoes offered at dated
plus $1.90, a trader said, versus up to dated plus $2.20 earlier this
week. The grade was assessed at dated plus $1.30-$1.40, steady from
Thursday and the lowest since July 2012, Reuters data showed.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;">Several of August’s 13 cargoes have been placed into tenders, although there have been few spot trades so far.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;">Royal Dutch Shell has yet to lift a force majeure on output from its
EA field in Nigeria that was declared in June, a company spokesman said
on Friday.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>ANGOLA<br /></strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;">Differentials looked to be drifting lower, pressured by a lack of
demand. Cabinda offered at dated Brent minus $2.00, a trader said, lower
than on Thursday. Girassol offered at dated minus 65 cents on
Thursday, weaker than previously heard.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;"><strong>ASIAN TENDERS</strong></span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;">Indian Oil Corp is running a buying tender, which a trader expected to absorb September barrels.</span><br />
<span style="font-size: small;">
</span><span style="font-size: small;"><strong> - Reuters</strong></span>MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-42356487126143210772014-07-17T11:13:00.002-07:002014-07-17T11:13:56.274-07:00W. Africa Crude-Sagging demand keeps differentials weak<span class="focusParagraph"></span><br />
<pre>LONDON, June 30 (Reuters) - Nigerian crude oil cargoes
failed to attract much interest from buyers on Monday, traders
said, with expectations that differentials will fall further
keeping activity thin.
There were still around seven cargoes due to load in August
available on top of more than 50 for July, a trader said.
Slack demand from European refiners that have cut runs due
to lower margins has hit demand, while sharper drops in
differentials in crudes from other regions have limited demand
from Asia and elsewhere. <a name='more'></a>
"The weakness is fundamental in nature, with low refinery
runs on the back of weak margins having severely impacted
demand," said JBC Energy in a note.
"Crude availability is also higher due to fewer imports into
North America, with Canada now following in the U.S.' footsteps
and using light tight oil imported from the U.S. Gulf to crowd
out imports of more expensive Dated Brent-related crudes."
West African crude oil exports to Asia are set to fall to
1.68 million barrels per day (bpd) in July from 1.93 million bpd
in June, a Reuters survey of traders found on Monday.
NIGERIA
* Qua Iboe was valued at around dated Brent plus $1.80 by
traders. About nine of the 13 cargoes for August export remained
available.
* Around seven July cargoes out of 63 planned are still
available on top of the bulk of the 65 August cargoes.
ANGOLA
* Dalia: This grade has been most in demand of all Angolan
crudes, a trader said, with all cargoes for August finding
buyers. It was valued at around dated minus $2.80.
* Cabinda: Chevron has sold its Aug. 20-21 cargo, a trader
said. The cargo had been last offered at dated minus $1.00.
* Girassol: Statoil's cargo was moved into CPC's tender, a
trader said.
ASIAN TENDERS
* The second parts of an MRPL and a BPCL tender are due on
Monday, with results for both expected on Tuesday or Wednesday,
a trader said.
* A CPC tender is also expected this week.
(Reporting by Simon Falush; editing by Tom Pfeiffer</pre>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-18523150574005030592014-03-30T05:15:00.001-07:002014-03-30T05:15:31.675-07:00Shell Nigeria Declares Force Majeure on Forcados Oil Exports <br />IBADAN, Nigeria--Royal Dutch Shell PLC's (RDSA, RDSA.LN) Nigerian unit said Tuesday it has declared force majeure on the shipping of the Forcados oil blend from Nigeria after it shut an export pipeline due to a leak. <br />
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Precious Okolobo, a spokesman of the Shell Petroleum Development Co. of Nigeria, or SPDC, said in a statement that the force majeure took effect from 09.00 hours local time Tuesday, due to ongoing repairs on the pipeline at the Forcados Terminal in the western Nigeria Delta. <br />
He said the subsea line was shut when a leak was discovered on March 4, leading to the suspension of SPDC and third-party crude oil exports through the terminal. <br />
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Mr. Okolobo didn't say how much oil may have been shut in as a result of the leak, but stressed that SPDC has "mobilized equipment and materials to the site, and is working to repair and reopen the line as soon as possible." <br />
He said helicopter over-flights showed a slight sheen around the export line, adding that a joint investigation conducted by community representatives, SPDC, regulators and security agencies determined that the leak was caused by unknown persons who had installed a crude theft point in a water depth of about 8 meters. <br />
Force majeure is declared when a company is unable to fulfill its contractual obligations to deliver crude or gas due to circumstances beyond its control. MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-43771978304844633382014-03-29T00:53:00.004-07:002014-03-29T00:53:37.900-07:00Crude above $101 a barrel on higher than expected US GDP; supply worriesThe price of oil advanced past US$101 a barrel Thursday following an upward revision to U.S. growth figures and ongoing concerns about tight supplies.<br />
Benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude for May delivery rose $1.02 to close at US$101.28 on the New York Mercantile Exchange. That is the highest closing price in three weeks. On Wednesday, oil jumped $1.07 to close at US$100.26.<a name='more'></a><br />
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Brent crude, a contract for international varieties of oil, gained 80 cents to US$107.83 on the ICE Futures exchange in London. The American economy grew by 2.6 per cent in the last three months of 2013, up from an earlier estimate of 2.4 per cent, the Commerce Department reported Thursday. The improvement was attributed to higher consumer spending, which suggests demand for energy might be stronger than expected.<br />
<br />
Meanwhile, there remained some concerns over supplies. A report by the U.S. Energy Department on Wednesday showed that while crude oil supplies increased 6.6 million barrels in the latest week surveyed, that was offset by declines in gasoline stocks.<br />
"Gains are being maintained ... as geopolitical tensions and supply issues that never seem to fully recede support prices," said the Kilduff Report edited by Michael Fitzpatrick.<br />
In other energy futures trading on Nymex, wholesale gasoline rose three cents to US$2.94 a U.S. gallon (3.79 litres), heating oil added three cents to US$2.94 a gallon and natural gas advanced 18 cents to US$4.58 per 1,000 cubic feet.MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-84547827890545735582014-01-18T18:47:00.002-08:002014-01-18T18:47:52.124-08:00Chevron Is Said to Seek Buyers for $1 Billion in U.S. Assets<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Chevron Corp. (CVX) is seeking to sell pipeline and storage operations in Texas and Louisiana that together may fetch more than $1 billion, people familiar with the matter said.<br />
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Chevron is working with Jefferies Group LLC to find buyers for at least four natural gas and crude oil pipeline operations, said two of the people, who asked not to be named because the process is private. The San Ramon, California-based company began sending out offering materials this week, the people said.<br />
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Diversified energy companies have been seeking to sell or spin off transportation and storage operations to cut costs and focus on exploration. Chevron sold a pipeline business in the Northwestern U.S. last year to Tesoro Logistics LP, while Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Chesapeake Energy Corp. made similar divestitures.<br />
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Chevron is looking to sell the West Texas LPG Pipeline LP, a natural gas pipeline 20 percent owned by Atlas Pipeline Partners LP, one of the people said. It’s also seeking buyers for a gas storage facility in West Texas, a crude oil terminal close to the Gulf of Mexico, and at least one of its pipelines in Louisiana, this person said.<br />
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Chevron Spokesman Kent Robertson declined to comment on the sale as did Jefferies spokesman Richard Khaleel. The company plans to sell some oil and gas assets to focus on exploration prospects in Iraq, Canada, and Australia, Chevron’s Chief Financial Officer Pat Yarrington said in a conference call with analysts in November.<br />
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Chevron will report a fourth-quarter decline in profit amid a slump in oil and natural gas production, according to a statement on Jan. 9. The company, run by Chairman and Chief Executive John S. Watson, plans to spend close to $40 billion on new terminals and wells under a plan to boost output by 20 percent by the end of 2017.<br />
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The company’s shares have dropped about 4 percent this year, giving it a market value of over $230 billion.</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-4762691560414203672014-01-18T10:59:00.000-08:002014-01-18T10:59:15.313-08:00Ezekwesili Challenges Okonjo-Iweala to Account for 'Missing' U.S.$10.8 Billion' Oil Money - PREMIUM TIMES<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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Former Vice President of the World Bank, Oby Ezekwesili, has taken the Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to task over the sloppy manner the government has handled the issue of the 'missing' $49.8billion oil money. The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Lamido Sanusi, had, in a memo to President Goodluck Jonathan accused the NNPC of diverting huge oil revenue that should be paid to the federation account.</div>
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Mr. Sanusi had alleged that the NNPC systematically diverted more than 76 per cent of revenues realised from crude oil sales between January 2012 and July 2013, paying only 24 per cent of the proceeds from crude oil sales within the period into the federation account.</div>
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Later, at the end of a purported reconciliation meeting with the NNPC and other agencies, the CBN governor and Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala claimed the bulk of the money was not missing, but that about $10.8billion was yet to be accounted for.</div>
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The NNPC claimed, last week, that the missing $10.8 billion was spent on oil subsidy payments, repairs of vandalized oil pipeline facilities and operational costs. However, the NNPC's explanation appeared not to have convinced some Nigerians, who feel that the manner the issue was handled by the government left much to be desired. Mrs. Ezekwesili, who said she was one of such Nigerians dissatisfied with the explanations offered by the NNPC, took to her tweeter handle, @obyezeks, at about 4:44 p.m. Nigerian time, on Wednesday, to express disappointment and frustration at the NNPC's lack of accountability.</div>
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The former minister of education, popularly known as 'Madam Due Process' for her consistent insistence on transparency and accountability, in a series of tweets urged Nigerians to stand up and demand accountability over the matter.</div>
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She challenged Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala to personally shoulder the responsibility of accounting to Nigerians about the 'missing money, pointing out that "a good place to start would be if the Coo (Coordinating) Minister of Economy can sign off on NNPC's breakdown of the "missing $10Billion".<br /></div>
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She said, "Madam Minister, @NOIweala, can we please v (verify?) your signed off breakdown of the "missing $10Billion" that NNPC must account for?," she asked. "It would help raise confidence in the administration if you! @NOIweala took up the accounting for the "missing $$10 Billion".<br /></div>
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#PublicPolicy101: Madam Minister @NOIweala can we please v your signed off BREAK DOWN of D "missing $10Billion" that NNPC must ACCOUNT FOR?</div>
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-- oby ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 16, 2014</div>
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#PublicPolicy101: Since you @NOIweala will be presenting #Budget2014 BREAK DOWN on the 22nd. Also provide BREAK DOWN OF "missing $10Billion</div>
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-- oby ezekwesili (@obyezeks) January 16, 2014<br /></div>
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Justifying her demand for Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala to take personal responsibility to render account, Mrs. Ezekwesili noted that "statutorily, the NNPC must render accounts to her, @NOIweala, as our finance minister. If she signs off, we ought to assume all is well."</div>
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"... until NNPC realizes that Citizens will not believe their accounting without @NOIweala ... . Signing off the appropriateness and accuracy of those "operational expenditure", they will repeat bad behaviour again", she said.<br /></div>
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Pre-empting possible attacks from some Nigerians who might not share her view on her advice to Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala, the former World Bank Vice President noted: "There will of course be some of the typical "chicken that defends Christmas" behaviour by some trollers on my TL (timeline), but you waste your time... .</div>
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"Some of the "chicken that defends Christmas" behaviour would even be put up by some of the 54% jobless youths that cannot connect the dots."</div>
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She challenged other Nigerians who are worried over the issue to respond to her tweet. "If as a Citizen, you are as vexed as I am at the way the issue of "missing $10Billion" has been handled tweet @ me".</div>
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The former minister continued, "Citizens who allow politicians to set the agenda while they just react have themselves to blame for lack of tangible result from governance.</div>
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"The day we begin to see tangible results from governance is the day Citizens master agenda setting around the deep challenges of our society.</div>
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"Is there yet a detailed breakdown of the "missing" $10Billion that NNPC said it used for "XYZZY & Operational Expenses?".</div>
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Apparently drawing the attention of members of the National Assembly to what their role should be in resolving the issue, Mrs. Ezekwesili queried: "Can the NASS gain the confidence of citizens by ending "tales" of this kind where $$10 Billion is so lightly esteemed?"</div>
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"Does NNPC know that some African countries sweat to raise $5Million to stay afloat? And here, $10Billion is waved off?"</div>
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Mrs. Ezekwesili also took a swipe at the media for not paying sufficient attention to the matter, saying "When citizens and media act unperturbed by the "murky" accounting for the "missing $10Billion, the rest of the world hiss!".</div>
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Drawing the attention of the NNPC to her campaign for accountability on the issue, she said: "Hello, NNPC! Here is one Citizen that demands accurate accounting for the "missing" $10Billion. What happened to it? What?"</div>
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The handling of the controversy by the government has irked a lot of Nigerians, who feel there are more to the explanations so far given by the parties involved.</div>
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For the Chairman, House Committee on Finance, Abdulmumini Jubrin, who was commenting on the issue during a recent television interview last week, the NNPC's explanation on the missing billions is unacceptable.</div>
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"For me, NNPC's explanation is an afterthought," Mr. Jubrin said. "If the NNPC knew the $10.8billion was spent on the payment of fuel subsidy and repair of vandalized pipelines, why did they wait for several weeks to tell Nigerians that?"</div>
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MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-73694659044391226772014-01-18T10:46:00.004-08:002014-01-18T10:46:32.326-08:00Could the U.S. Export Crude Oil? It's Time to Rethink the Unthinkable<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
The four-decade ban on domestic crude exports was originally codified because the U.S. wanted greater energy security during the 1973 Arab oil embargo. The ban was unquestioned until recently, when lawmakers started to consider the unthinkable: that the U.S. may repeal the export ban on crude oil.<br />
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The U.S. is considering repealing the ban because the original reason, energy dependence on unfriendly or unstable foreign oil, is no longer a big worry.<br />
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Because of the shale revolution, the U.S. is on track to overcome Saudi Arabia and Russia as the world's largest producer of oil and gas combined. <br />
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<br />
According to economist Ed Yardeni, the U.S. petroleum deficit may even go to zero in the next couple of years. Because of America's newfound energy resources, Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz recently suggested that the Obama administration may reconsider the four-decade ban.<br />
<br />
While the Energy Department does not have the authority to relax restrictions, Mr. Moniz's comments is likely a trial balloon and a sign of possible change in policy.<br />
The winners<br />
Large oil companies such as ExxonMobil , ConocoPhillips , and Continental Resources see no reason for the ban and would win if the law were repealed.<br />
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Those companies argue that most U.S. refineries can't easily refine the high-quality crude currently produced in the Bakken and other shale plays. When they were built decades ago, those refineries were designed for lower-quality crude from Venezuela, Mexico, and the Middle East.<br />
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The solution, according to the oil companies, is for the U.S. to allow companies to export crude oil to other nations that can handle the higher quality. By allowing for export, the price of Brent crude, which plays a large part in setting the price at the gas pump, may go lower, and American consumers would save money on gasoline.<br />
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Not coincidentally, the producers would realize more profits because they would realize a higher price for their crude oil.<br />
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The losers<br />
If the ban were repealed, it would be bad news for pure-play refiners such as Marathon Petroleum and Valero Energy . Crude oil refiners benefit from a wider WTI-Brent spread. Any narrowing of the spread would narrow their profit margins. They would also see lower revenues because they would be refining less crude oil.<br />
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The bottom line<br />
It is unclear whether repealing the law would actually change the price of Brent or gas at the pump in the near term. The Brent oil market dwarfs any amount that the U.S. can export in the near future.<br />
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I think the companies opposed to the repeal do so because they are concerned that this may be the beginning of a disturbing trend. They may not see any impact on the bottom lines now, but they will be affected down the road as U.S. exports grow.<br />
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OPEC's pain can be investors' gain<br />
Imagine a company that rents a very specific and valuable piece of machinery for $41,000... per hour (that's almost as much as the average American makes in a year!). And Warren Buffett is so confident in this company's can't-live-without-it business model, he just loaded up on 8.8 million shares. An exclusive, brand-new Motley Fool report reveals the company we're calling OPEC's Worst Nightmare. Just click HERE to uncover the name of this industry-leading stock... and join Buffett in his quest for a veritable LANDSLIDE of profits!</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-791311895608751392014-01-18T08:55:00.000-08:002014-01-18T08:55:07.592-08:00BRENT CRUDE OIL FUTURES RISE BY MORE THAN $1 PER BARREL<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">BRENT CRUDE OIL </span><span class="mandelbrot_refrag" style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;">FUTURES</span><span style="background-color: white; font-family: georgia, 'times new roman', serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 23px;"> RISE BY MORE THAN $1 PER BARREL</span></div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-22360183256366511672013-12-26T21:32:00.000-08:002013-12-26T21:32:48.661-08:00Crude oil thieves are being sponsored by the Federal Government, the Speaker of the House of Representatives<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
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Crude oil thieves are being sponsored by the Federal Government, the <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD9">Speaker</span> of the <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD5">House of Representatives</span>,
Aminu Tambuwal, has said, insisting that the crime is not being
perpetrated by ordinary criminals, but by those who enjoy the backing of
government.<br />
Tambuwal, said this at the inauguration of the House Ad-hoc Committee
on Crude Oil Theft in Nigeria in Abuja, noting that the only way to
fight the crime is for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
(EFCC) to arrest and prosecute suspected crude oil thieves in the
country.<br />
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He said the House would ensure that law enforcement agencies were well
equipped to carry out investigation of those engaged in the illicit
business.<br />
“This House must use its influence to ensure that the law enforcement
agencies approach their investigation of the criminals engaged in oil
field theft from a more sophisticated angle.<br />
“We need to put in place the right kind of legislation to improve <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD4">the monitoring</span> of on-shore and off-shore areas in order to discourage vandalism.<br />
<br />
<br />
“We need to establish a robust regulatory framework to plug all
loopholes through which all sorts of official and unofficial corruption
thrive in the oil sector,” he said.<br />
He said that oil theft had reached a level that required the assistance of every Nigerian to check the dangerous trend.<br />
“Oil theft in our country has now reached an industrial scale, we need
the concerted efforts of all stakeholders who must be invited and heard
at a scheduled 5-day public hearing.<br />
“There is also no doubt that we must try, as much as possible, to pass
the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), as soon as possible,” he said.<br />
He urged members of the committee to scrutinise the report by the
Royal Institute for International Affairs, which alleged that Nigeria’s
oil was being stolen not just from pipelines, but also from tank farms
and export terminals.<br />
The Chairman of the committee, Bashir Adamu (PDP-Jigawa) said illegal
bunkering costs Nigeria an estimated N780 billion annually.<br />
Mr. Adamu said unless government summoned the courage to fight the
menace, the situation would further worsen the country’s economic woes.<br />
<br />
<br />
The legislator explained that the rising level of crude oil theft and
pipeline vandalism, particularly in the Niger Delta region, had assumed
higher dimensions.<br />
He said that the ugly development had made <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD10">operations</span> in the <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD2">oil and gas Industry</span> one of the most expensive in the world.<br />
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“Attacks on production facilities have led to several shut-downs and declaration of force majeure by the international <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD3">oil companies</span> (lOCs), ultimately resulting in loss of revenue to the government,” he said.<br />
Adamu recalled that in April 2013, oil giant – Shell Petroleum
Development Company – shut down the 150,000bpd Nembe Creek oil pipeline
due to the urgent need to clear illegal connections.<br />
He called for serious efforts to combat the menace, adding that the
trend had become more complicated because of its international slant.<br />
<br />
“Cooperation between the government and private sector is vital to
achieving effective maritime security and prevent crude oil theft within
the nation’s maritime domain”.<br />
It would be recalled that the House, during its sitting, set up a
14-man committee to investigate people or institutions behind oil theft
in the Niger Delta.<br />
The House had earlier called on President Goodluck Jonathan to
immediately overhaul the operations of the Joint Task Force (JTF), in
the Niger Delta to ensure a more proactive <span class="IL_AD" id="IL_AD1">security check</span> of all oil installations in the country.<br />
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Adopting a motion introduced by Aliyu Sani Madaki (PDP-Kano) on the
issue yesterday, the parliament, without debate, resolved to set up an
ad-hoc committee to look into the propriety of contracting the
protection of the country’s waterways and oil pipelines to private
firms, among others.<br />
It also mandated the committee to investigate the allegations made by
the Director-General of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety
Agency (NIMASA), Dr. Patrick Akpobolekemi, of the involvement of
influential people in oil theft and the fact that the organisation had
seized ships belonging to the oil thieves and report back to the House
within two weeks.<br />
<br />
<br />
The Federal Government had in the discharge of its constitutional
responsibility, awarded pipeline surveillance contract to protect the
country’s waterways so that crude oil theft could be curbed.<br />
But the House said engaging a private firm to man the country’s
waterways had worsen the level of the oil theft thereby making its
presence unnecessary.<br />
<br />
<br />
It noted the revelation by the Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala, who said the illegal oil theft (bunkering) could be as
high as 400,000 barrels per day.<br />
This, according to her, led to a 17 per cent fall in official sales of the crude oil in international market.<br />
The House last October accused President Jonathan of doing too little
to curb increasing oil theft, and said the government’s reluctance to
deploy improved methods to end the theft was tantamount to “economic
sabotage”.<br />
<br />
<br />
A spokesperson for the House, Zakari Mohammed, said the government had
no explanation for not addressing the theft with new technologies
available, but choosing to offer excuses.MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-64331021989950290612013-12-26T20:29:00.000-08:002013-12-26T20:29:09.914-08:00End of the year take on the energy sector<div id="1">
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<br />Energy has become, increasingly, a major focus of the
British Columbia economy with billions of dollars of proposed projects.
Those include Enbridge's controversial $6.5-billion Northern Gateway and
Kinder Morgan's $5.4-billion Trans Mountain pipeline expansion. There
are also billions in liquefied natural gas projects being considered by
global energy heavyweights such as Exxon Mobil, Shell and the BG Group.
The Vancouver Sun talked with Canadian Association of Petroleum
Producers president David Collyer for a year-end take on these major
projects.<br />
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Q Northern Gateway has recently received approval from
the federal review panel with 209 conditions (which are tough but
"doable," says the company). However, there is staunch First Nations
opposition in B.C., supported by environmental groups, who are saying
they will launch legal action. Will this pipeline get built?<br />
A I
don't think one should conclude by any means that all First Nations are
opposed to that particular project or opposed to oil pipelines. But
there is no question there are some tough issues to be resolved. I think
the (Doug) Eyford report (Prime Minister Stephen Harper's special envoy
on First Nations) that was issued a couple of weeks ago is a fairly
balanced and pragmatic road map to try to resolve those issues. There's a
trust relationship building piece of this, and there's a need obviously
to find some way to reconcile issues around claims - although not
necessarily solving them in the context of a project. And then you need
to try to figure out a way to figure the economic-benefits dimension of
it. It's not easy.<br /><br />
Q First Nations claims and consultation
concerns around industrial projects seems to be fought out in the
assessment process. Are environmental reviews the best place to be
dealing with these issues?<br />
A The short answer is no, with some
qualifiers. I think we are burdening the regulatory process with more
than it can actually deal with. And we are doing it in a process that is
almost, by definition, adversarial and doesn't provide much room for
finding common ground. I think we're increasingly living in a world
where the broader social licence dimensions of energy and the
environment need to be dealt with outside the specifics of a project or
the specifics of a regulatory process.<br /><br />
Q Is there any work underway to try to address that?<br />
A
Again, I think the Doug Eyford report was quite a thoughtful
examination of this, and he certainly provided strong encouragement for
governments to take the lead in creating that table, but also was pretty
clear that First Nations and industry needed to be constructive
participants in it. (Eyford recommended creating a Crown-First Nations
corporate "tripartite energy working group" as a forum for open dialogue
on energy projects).<br />
Q If a panel says yes, and the federal
government says yes, but at least among a significant portion of the
public, they are saying no to a project, how does it gain social
licence?<br />
A We've got a challenge in this country - whether it's an
oil and gas project or a wind farm, or natural gas-fired power plant -
as most people want the benefits of industrial development, including
energy development. But very few people want to be directly impacted by
it. And, one of the challenges that governments in Canada have - it's
not unique to this counter - is this question of how do you balance the
broader public interest with the local interest. I think all that can be
done in that context is to try to make sure all reasonable steps are
taken to deal with the issues and concerns people have raised from a
technical, environmental or safety standpoint.<br /></div>
<div id="2">
Q
The B.C. government has said that, except for partly meeting the first
condition on passing the review, Northern Gateway doesn't pass the other
four conditions. (Those are world leading sea and spill response
systems, aboriginal benefits and economic benefit for B.C.) And B.C.
Environment Minister Mary Polak said she can't see how they can be
achieved in the 180-day time frame Ottawa has to make a decision or even
within one year.<br /><br />
Can this project be built without B.C.
government support? A I guess in theory it can. From a practical or
pragmatic stand point, I think, we as industry, and the pipeline
proponents, and the Alberta government, have all recognized the need to
address the five conditions. We think they're quite reasonable in terms
of the types of things they expect. Obviously, the devil is in the
details.<br />
Q It's been suggested the fifth condition could be met
through a fee or tax on oil that goes through B.C. Is that an idea
industry is willing to consider, or is it a non-starter?<br /><br />
A I think it's premature to be specific about what we would consider and what we wouldn't.<br />
Q
Another major proposed project just filed its formal application:
Kinder Morgan's $5.4-billion Trans Mountain expansion. There is also
significant opposition to this project - but it does follow nearly
three-quarters of existing route. Will this project be easier to build?<br />
A
The First Nations' opposition to the Trans Mountain Kinder Morgan
pipeline is not as strong as it is in northern B.C. Conversely, it's the
Lower Mainland, and there will be a different set of issues that arise
from increased tanker traffic from the Port of Vancouver. I don't think
any of these projects are going to be easy, or simple or
straightforward.<br />
Q How important is west coast access for bitumen,
given there are proposals to get oil to the east coast of Canada, and
Canadian oil can get to the U.S. gulf coast where it can be exported as
refined products?<br />
A Our view is we need west coast oil market
access. Given our view of the production growth potential (in Canada),
we think it's really important to be attached to the market that has the
greatest potential demand growth - and that's Asia.<br />
Q There is
much interest in LNG in B.C. from oil and gas heavyweights: As many as a
dozen facility proposals, and maybe half a dozen pipelines. But there
is much competition from existing exporters such as Australia, and
emerging participants such as the U.S. and East Africa. Will any company
make a final investment decision in 2014?<br /></div>
<div id="3">
A I
am optimistic we will. The market is there. The supply is there. The
question is whether we can bring all the pieces together to hit those
market windows. Frankly, part of that is making sure we are as
competitive as possible and we don't miss these market windows because
we're unduly focused on carving up the pie before we create the
opportunity.<br />
Q Are you, in part, talking about the B.C. government's LNG tax decision that's been pushed off to 2014?<br />
A
I think there's a package of issues that need to be dealt with on
competitiveness. the upstream (drilling) dimension, how carbon or carbon
tax is going to be handled, electricity generation. The LNG tax is
obviously one of those.<br /><br />
Q The public generally appears to be
warmer to LNG development than oil pipelines. That said, there are
challenges tied to the broader footprint, including greenhouse gases,
pollution emissions and fracking. Can these concerns be addressed?<br />
A
We need to find a way to overcome them, frankly. We need a conversation
at two levels. We obviously need to work on the ground with communities
to mitigate concerns that arise from increased activity (fracking and
water use) and investment. And we need to find a way to have
constructive conversation about some of these broader (energy mix and
carbon) issues that can't be resolved, and shouldn't be expected to be
resolved, in the context of individual projects The interview has been
edited for brevity.</div>
<br />Read more: <a href="http://www.vancouversun.com/business/year+take+energy+sector/9324674/story.html" rel="nofollow" style="color: #003399;" target="_blank">http://www.vancouversun.com</a>MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-6723028011669357502013-12-26T20:16:00.001-08:002013-12-26T20:16:30.448-08:00Crude Oil boosted by products demand<div class="widget storyContent article widget-editable viziwyg-section-12 inpage-widget-1000057 comment">
<div class="lead_text">
<br />Crude oil futures ended higher on Thursday, boosted by demand
for refined products after industry data earlier this week showed a
steep decline in gasoline and distillate inventories. <br />US gasoline and ultra low-sulfur diesel (ULSD), more
commonly known as heating oil, futures both rose to more than
three-month highs in intraday trading as large French refineries
remained offline due to strikes.</div>
</div>
<div class="widget storyContent article widget-editable viziwyg-section-12 inpage-widget-1000056 comment">
<div class="body">
While US crude stocks unexpectedly rose last week,
refineries boosted output and distillate and gasoline stockpiles
fell, a report from industry group the American Petroleum
Institute said late on Tuesday, indicating strong demand for oil
products, including exports, Reuters reported.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br /><br />
"Seasonally, this is the time of year when gasoline and
heating oil are in the middle of their rally," said Bill Baruch,
senior market strategist at iitrader.com in Chicago. Supply disruptions in Africa supported Brent while the rise
in US crude stockpiles capped gains in US benchmark West
Texas Intermediate.<br />
Brent crude settled 8 cents higher at $111.98 a
barrel, after touching an intraday high of $112.12, the highest
since 5 December.<br /><br />
US crude ended 33 cents higher at $99.55 per
barrel, trading fully above the 200-day moving average of $98.92
for the whole session for the first time in two months. A
settlement above $99.50 likely means prices have further to
rise, some technical analysts said. Both markets were shut for
Christmas on Wednesday.<br />
Other analysts expect the price to ease longer term as
refiners enter maintenance at the end of next month, reducing
demand for crude as production rises.<br /><br />
"With rising North Dakota and Texas oil production, I think
that WTI is a little on the high side," said Kyle Cooper,
director of research with IAF Advisors in Houston.<br />
The spread between the two benchmarks has
steadied around $12.50 per barrel for the last four sessions in
thin holiday trade. It settled at $12.43, narrowing by 25 cents
from the previous session.<br />
US gasoline futures touched $2.8463 per gallon,
their highest level since 9 September, before easing to settle less
than one cent higher at $2.82. ULSD futures traded to
their highest level since 16 September at $3.1085 per gallon,
settling 1.65 cents up at $3.0948.<br /><br />
Rich refining margins are prompting US refiners to make
oil products. The crack, or difference, between US crude oil
futures and gasoline continued to widen on Thursday,
hitting a four-week high of $19.72 per barrel. The price
ultimately narrowed by 26 cents from the previous session to
settle at $18.68.<br />
Traders will next look to the US government's Energy
Information Administration report to gauge supply and demand.
The data is due on 27 December at 11:00 am in New York, delayed from its
usual Wednesday release by the Christmas holiday.<br /><br />
US crude also drew support from jobs data showing the
number of Americans filing new claims for unemployment benefits
fell last week to the lowest level in nearly a month, a hopeful
sign for the labour market in the world's top oil consumer. In Europe, workers extended a strike over pay at two French
refineries, while lifting action at a third plant. A majority of
workers at the 247,000 barrel-per-day Gonfreville refinery,
Total's largest in France, and at the 153,000-bpd La
Mede refinery voted to extend their action, union officials
said.<br /><br />
The strikes, in addition to poor refinery margins, have
weighed on European crude demand, say analysts.<br />
Supply outages in Africa are also in focus and added some
geopolitical risk premium to prices. The government in South
Sudan, which is threatened by civil war, has shut 45,000 bpd of
production. Rebels in the nation have seized some oil wells and
may damage them.<br /><br /><br />
Export terminals remain closed in Libya, where output is
one-quarter of the 1 million bpd it pumped in July.
Tribal leaders will hold more talks on reopening
ports in eastern Libya but the government will not negotiate
with protesters blocking them, the prime minister said.<br />
</div>
</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-89209618404510696112013-12-26T20:09:00.001-08:002013-12-26T20:09:45.515-08:00Crude oil held steady near $99<div class="st_text_c">
<span class="story_dl">NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- </span>Crude oil prices held steady at a lot more than $99 per barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Thursday.West Texas Intermediate crude oil added 10 cents to $99.65 per barrel.<br />
Reformulated gasoline blendstock for January was up 1.05 cents at $2.8247 a gallon.<br />
January
heating oil added 2.55 cents to $3.1038 a quart while natural gas rose
2.1 cents to $4.437 per million British thermal units.<br />
The
national average price of unleaded regular gasoline rose at the pump,
climbing to $3.268 a quart from Wednesday's $3.264, the AAA Daily Fuel
Gauge Report said.</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-90755963267486261832013-11-24T02:29:00.000-08:002013-11-24T02:29:06.268-08:00Crude, refined oil import falls by 20pc in Q1<br />State-owned Bangladesh Petroleum Corporation (BPC) imported around 1.2
million tonnes of crude and refined oil during the first quarter of
fiscal year (FY) 2013-14, down by 20 per cent from the same period of
the previous FY, a senior BPC official said.<br /><br />The import cost also
dropped by 25.69 per cent to US$821.81 million during the
July-September period of this year from $1.10 billion of the same period
of the previous fiscal, he said quoting statistics from the country's
central bank.<br /><br />The closure of the country's lone crude oil
refinery, the Eastern Refinery Ltd (ERL) and suspension of several
oil-fired power plants under cost-cutting measure led to the fall in
petroleum consumption, he said.<br /><br />The BPC did not import 100,000
tonnes of crude oil for refining in its subsidiary ERL during the
August-September period as it was on 40-day routine overhauling, said
the BPC official.<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />The ERL has a capacity to refine crude oil of around 1.4 million tonnes per year.<br /><br />Frequent
'hartals' (general strikes) also caused significant fall in petroleum
product consumption, said the BPC official. During hartals, motor
vehicles usually refrain from plying on roads, businesses become bearish
and shoppers down their shutters.<br /><br />Diesel consumption across the
country declines almost by 75 per cent to around 3,000 tonnes per day
during the hartal days compared to the usual consumption of around
12,000 tonnes per day during non-hartal days, the BPC official figured
out.<br /><br />Hartals do not impact much the consumption pattern of other
petroleum products like furnace oil, kerosene, octane, petrol, and
aviation fuel, he added.<br /><br />Hundreds of thousands of motor vehicles
are run by diesel in the country, most of which do not consume fuel on
hartal days, said the BPC official.<br /><br />The BPC, however, estimated
that it would need to import 5.40 million tonnes of crude and refined
oil products in 2014 calendar year, up 1.88 per cent from the estimated
import quantity of the previous 2013 calendar year.<br /><br />In terms of
cost of importing these products, the BPC estimated that it would
require $5 billion for 2014, which is similar to the import cost of
2013.<br /><br />The BPC currently has term deals to import refined oil
products from the Kuwait Petroleum Corp., the Petco, the trading arm of
Malaysia's Petronas, the Philippine National Oil Company, the Emirates
National Oil Company, Egypt's Middle East Oil Refinery, the Maldives
National Oil Company, the PetroChina and Indonesia's Bumi Siak Pusako.<br /><br />The corporation has also deals to import crude oil from the Saudi Aramco and the Abu Dhabi National <a href="http://www.thefinancialexpress-bd.com/2013/11/24/5550" target="_blank">Oil Company.</a>MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-9426307037078981292013-11-10T07:25:00.000-08:002013-11-10T07:25:36.813-08:00Brent crude rises<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">Brent crude futures edged higher on Thursday after seven straight sessions of losses, as the threat of Hurricane Sandy to East Coast gasoline and heating oil supplies lifted markets. Gasoline led the oil complex higher, standing up more than 2 percent in afternoon activity, and heating oil also rose as Sandy churned northward. Expectations of heavy snowfall in the Appalachians, and the possibility refineries along the coast could face disruptions helped drive prices. </span><br />
<a name='more'></a><br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">"It's a combination of the products finding some support after being hit hard and Sandy looks to make a direct hit in the Northeast, so it's very possible New Jersey and Pennsylvania refiners might engage in some prevent defence and slow or shut some operations," said John Kilduff, partner at Again Capital LLC in New York. Brent was on track to break its longest losing streak since July 2010, but remained on pace to post a weekly loss. Prices have been dragged lower by rising US inventories, an expected return of production from the North Sea's <a href="http://www.brecorder.com/general-news/172/1252255/" target="_blank">Buzzard </a>Oilfield and continued uncertainty surrounding Europe's debt crisis. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">Further support came from British government data showing gross domestic product rose 1.0 percent in the third quarter, beating forecasts for a 0.6 percent gain after GDP contracted 0.4 percent in the previous quarter. Brent December crude rose 64 cents to settle at $108.49 a barrel. Thursday's $107.46 low trade put Brent briefly below the 100-day moving average of $107.58. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">US December rose 32 cents to settle at $86.05 a barrel, having reached a high of $86.75. US RBOB gasoline futures closed at $2.67, up 7.34 cents, breaking a 10-day streak of lower closes. Oil prices struggled to hold gains throughout the day, with traders digesting mixed US economic data. Concerns about the impact of the struggling economy on fuel demand have weighed on prices in recent weeks. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">Initial jobless claims fell last week, supporting oil prices, but the four-week average was up. Durable goods orders were up more than expected in September, but excluding defence and aircraft, were unchanged. The durable goods figures supported the view that companies are holding back investments because of fears the US Congress will fail to avert sharp tax increases and spending cuts in 2013. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">"The market is still struggling because of the high inventory numbers and the weak demand, even with the better economic data," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Price Futures Group in Chicago, referring to weekly US inventory data released on Wednesday which showed a steep rising in crude oil stockpiles. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">The market was also watching the resumption of North Sea oil flows in XXX that had been disrupted by maintenance and geopolitical risks in the Middle East which have supported prices for direction. European Union (EU) foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton has agreed to discuss future steps in talks about Iran's nuclear program with Tehran's chief negotiator, a spokeswoman said on Thursday. It would be the first contact between Ashton, who represents six major powers in talks with Tehran, and Iran's Saeed Jalili since EU governments imposed new sanctions on Tehran in mid-October. </span><br />
<br style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;" />
<span style="background-color: white; font-family: Arial, 'MS Trebuchet', sans-serif; line-height: 18px; text-align: justify;">Syria's army command also announced a cease-fire on Thursday to mark the Muslim holiday of Eidul Azha, drawing back the perception of geopolitical tensions in the Middle East. Still, some forecasters said prices could ease in the fourth quarter, with ABM Amro Commodity Research predicting Brent prices could dip to $100 a barrel by the end of the year, although it added prices would average $110 for the year. </span></div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-64612375676097444082013-11-10T07:05:00.001-08:002013-11-10T07:05:13.761-08:00Oil boom gives U.S. new options<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
Things are going so well, the United States has surpassed Saudi Arabia to become the world's largest oil producer. The milestone was reached in mid-October, when total crude-oil and biofuel production hit 8 million barrels a day -- an increase of 2 million barrels a day from 2011.<br />
<br />
The industry is predicting that by the end of 2014, the U.S. oil industry will be producing 13 million barrels a day -- an amazing feat.<br />
<br />
<a name='more'></a><br /><br />
It's big news. Ironically, few major metropolitan newspapers have printed the story. And if they did, it wasn't in a prominent space.<br />
<br />
Few liberals want to promote the growth of the oil, gas and biofuel industry, except in their retirement stock portfolios. That's why the Obama administration keeps tightening environmental regulations to make it harder to extract oil on land and at sea while pushing up mileage standards on vehicles and forcing consumers to purchase overpriced hybrids.<br />
<br />
Yes, it's important to save the earth, and the United States is doing it's fair share to promote clean energy; it's also important to save our economy and end our dependence on foreign oil.<br />
<br />
Obama's reluctance to sanction the Keystone XL Pipeline project, which would add thousands of U.S. jobs and make it easier for producers to transport their product from Canada to Gulf Coast refineries, is hard to comprehend at this point. But even with the president's hardened position, American know-how has trumped the administration's war against biofuel commerce.<br />
<br />
The shale revolution has given U.S. engineers the chance to develop new technology that can extract oil and gas from the most remote -- and previously unreachable -- mineral deposits. "Hydraulic fracking" has revived the entrepreneurial spirit of the California Gold Rush in North Dakota, South Dakota and parts of Montana and Texas. Cities and towns are springing up along the Bakken Formation, a 200,000-square-mile range of rich shale deposits. Jobs are being created by the thousands.<br />
<br />
The boom has allowed America to reduce its daily dependence on Middle East and Russian oil imports by more nearly 2 million barrels a day. That was unheard of just two years ago. The result is cheaper gasoline at the pump and an economic uptick for consumers who have more disposable income.<br />
<br />
Equally important, though, is the change it is producing on the political front. By decreasing our dependence on foreign oil, America no longer has to be held hostage by the wild swings in crude oil prices that are brought on by government instability in the Middle East. We're no longer being held hostage by the sheiks and radical regimes of the Taliban.<br />
<br />
The best thing is America should never be drawn into another foreign war over the issue of protecting its crude-oil allocation. Although we remain the world's biggest oil user, we are no longer the world's biggest importer. That distinction is now held by China.<br />
<br />
In the years ahead, America will continue to reduce its imports while building reliance on its own production. The economy will prosper in many ways.<br />
<br />
The only downside is how we create a new foreign policy with Middle East allies, particularly the Saudis, who have kept open the oil spigot to our growing demands through the years. They can't be ignored, but America's oil independence is certainly a reason to formulate a different relationship.<br />
<br />
-- By The Sun of Lowell editorial board, Digital First Media<br />
<br />
<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.sentinelandenterprise.com/editorial/ci_24494101/oil-boom-gives-u-s-new-options" target="_blank">Source</a></div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-72276747120754093972013-11-10T06:57:00.003-08:002013-11-10T07:02:04.964-08:00Nigeria: Shell Disagrees With Amnesty, CEHRD Over Oil Spills Investigations<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="story-body" style="background-color: white; border: 0px; font-family: Arial, 'Liberation Sans', sans-serif; font-size: 15px; line-height: 18px; margin: 0px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC) has described as “unsubstantiated assertions”, a recent statement by Amnesty International and the Centre for Environment, Human Rights and Development (CEHRD) that it manipulates investigations into series of oil spills in Nigeria.</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
The two global bodies had declared that Shell's claims on oil pollution in the region were "deeply suspect and often untrue."</div>
<a name='more'></a><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h2>
<b><i><span style="color: purple;">But in a swift reaction, the Anglo Dutch oil company, in a statement by its spokesman, Mr. Precious Okolobo insisted the company seeks to bring greater transparency and independent oversight to the issue of oil spills, and will continue to find ways to enhance this.</span></i></b></h2>
</blockquote>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Okolobo faulted the claims by the two organisations and insisted that "Shell routinely publishes spill data online since January 2011 and is working with Bureau Veritas, an independent third party, to find ways to improve the immediate response to a spill".</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
The statement read: "The SPDC firmly rejects unsubstantiated assertions that they have exaggerated the impact of crude oil theft and sabotage to distract attention from operational performance. We seek to bring greater transparency and independent oversight to the issue of oil spills, and will continue to find ways to enhance this.</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
These efforts include publishing spill data online since January 2011 and working with Bureau Veritas, an independent third party, to find ways to improve the immediate response to a spill." The company added: It must be emphasised that the joint investigation process is a federal process that SPDC cannot unilaterally change, involving as it does representatives of regulatory bodies, the Ministry of Environment, the Nigerian Police Force, State Government and impacted communities.</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
"A recent Chatham House report highlighted that an average of 100,000 barrels of oil were stolen each day in the first quarter of 2013, costing the Nigerian government and its people billions in lost revenue. Solutions to the terrible tragedy of oil pollution in the Niger Delta need to be found.</div>
<div style="background-color: transparent; border: 0px; color: #333333; margin-bottom: 16px; outline: 0px; padding: 0px; vertical-align: baseline;">
Crude theft continues to affect people, the environment and the economy. Coordinated action from the industry, government, security forces, civil society and others is needed to end this criminality, which remains the main cause of oil pollution in the Delta today. SPDC regrets that some NGOs continue to take a campaigning approach rather than focusing on on-the-ground solutions that bring societal benefits."</div>
</div>
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Nigeria</div>
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<span style="color: #10579f; font-size: small;"><span style="line-height: 24px;"><b>Herdsmen Clashes Claim Dozens</b></span></span></div>
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MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-29602373115681853492013-11-10T05:55:00.000-08:002013-11-10T05:55:25.587-08:00Crude Oil Theft: Act Of Terrorism Or Lack Of Political Will?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n2v_QvBmVco/Un-L4Z6dUSI/AAAAAAAAAKw/Mejebf6VnA4/s1600/crude_oil.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="227" src="http://3.bp.blogspot.com/-n2v_QvBmVco/Un-L4Z6dUSI/AAAAAAAAAKw/Mejebf6VnA4/s320/crude_oil.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h2>
<em><b><span style="color: purple;">Recently, the Minister of Petroleum Resources raised the alarm
over the increasing menace of crude oil theft describing it as another
face of terrorism. JULIET ALOHAN takes a look at the situation and
writes on whether the challenge is insurmountable or simply aided by the
lack of political will to confront the threat on the nation’s
commonwealth</span></b></em></h2>
</blockquote>
<em><br /></em>
The rising level of crude oil theft and pipeline vandalism
particularly in the Niger Delta region has reached an all-time high with
the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke
recently describing it as another face of terrorism. The menace which
led to the declaration of amnesty for repentant militants in the Niger
Delta region by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, has assumed an
even higher dimension prompting the question about the effectiveness of
the amnesty programme which is costing government billions of naira.<br />
<br />
Industry observers believe that the amnesty programme for militants
seems to have waned, going by available statistics of crude theft.
Statistics show that a total of 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) was lost
to illegal bunkering in 2012, representing an increase of 45 per cent
over the figure for 2011, and 67 per cent over that of 2010, while the
trend for 2013 is even more alarming. They insist that unless government
summons the will to fight the menace the situation will further worsen
the country’s economic woes.<br />
<br />
<strong>One Too Many Attacks</strong><br />
The ugly development has made operations in the Nigerian oil and gas
industry one of the most expensive in the world according to the
Chairman of Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mutiu Sunmonu. Attacks on
production facilities have led to several shutdowns and declaration of
force majeure by the International Oil Companies (IOCs), ultimately
resulting in loss of revenue to the government. In April, 2013, oil
giant Shell; shut-down the 150,000bpd Nembe Creek oil pipeline due to
the urgent need to clear away illegal connections.<br />
<br />
Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC) in the same month declared a force
majeure regarding crude oil lifting at the Brass terminal and suspended
its activities in Bayelsa State, following the intensification of
illegal bunkering activities and the vandalisation of the 10-inch
Kwale-Akri-Nembe-Brass oil delivery line. Another explosion and fire at a
crude theft point on Shell’s facility at Bodo West in Ogoniland also
forced the company to shut the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP), in June 2013,
deferring some 150,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd), to mention just a
few.<br />
<br />
Data from the NNPC revealed that 53 break points were discovered
along the 97km Nembe Creek Trunkline in the first quarter (Q1) of 2013
reducing April and May monthly average oil production to about 2.2 mbpd
and decreasing revenue that should have accrued to the Federation
Account for the period by about $554.0 million (equivalent to
N83billion).<br />
Acting Spokesperson of the Corporation, Tumini Green, disclosed that
crude oil production within the period dropped to 2.1 million bpd as
against the estimated production figure of 2.48m bpd.<br />
<br />
<strong>Failed Attempts To Tackle Challenge</strong><br />
Several attempts have been made by the federal government to tackle
the challenge to no avail. The collaboration forged between the NNPC and
the Inter Agency Maritime Operation Committee, whose members are drawn
from the NNPC, Nigerian Navy, Air Force, Customs, Police, SSS and the
Judiciary has not done any good.<br />
<br />
In a meeting with Yakubu in Abuja, the Chairman of the Operation
Committee, Rear Admiral E. O. Ogboh, said the committee was established
with a mandate to address the issue of illegal bunkering in the nation’s
maritime waters, but crude theft still thrive in the face of the
collaboration.<br />
There has also been the constitution of a Committee by the National
Economic Council (NEC), comprising of some Governors, NNPC, Department
of Petroleum Resources (DPR), IOCs, security agencies and other relevant
bodies to work out modalities to mitigate the menace to no avail. Even
the juicy pipeline protection contract awarded to some ex-militants
warlords at a combined sum of N5.6 billion ended up as yet another drain
on the nation’s scarce resources.<br />
<br />
A breakdown of the contract showed that Mujaheed Dokubo-Asari got $9
million, Ebikabowei “Boyloaf” Victor Ben and Ateke Tom, each got $3.8
million, while Government “Tompolo” Ekpumukpolo, got the largest share
of $22.9 million to engage their foot soldiers to protect the pipelines,
but the menace has remained on the increase.<br />
<br />
To further worsen matters, it has been alleged that some bad eggs in
the Military Joint Task Force (JTF) deployed to the region to protect
oil personnel and facilities have been accused of complicity in the
illegal bunkering activities. Not even the much hyped crude oil finger
print which Nigeria claims to be championing to detect crude oil theft
as purchased by other nations has helped matters.<br />
<br />
<strong>Alleged Culpability Of International Community</strong><br />
The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke,
recently declared that the grave phenomenon of oil theft and its global
support system has continued to remain a cog in the wheel of the
nation’s high economic growth trajectory. While delivering a
presentation titled, “The Strengths and Obligations of the African
Diaspora,” recently in London, at the Powerlist 2014, the minister said
efforts at combating the menace locally is made more complicated because
of the international slant of the crime.<br />
“Theft of this magnitude is not only highly technical, but it is also
an international-level crime. It is aided and abetted by syndicates
outside of Africa who are the patrons and merchant-partners of the oil
thieves,’’ she said. She also made a similar accusation while speaking
at the 2013 Offshore Technology Conference (OTC) in Houston, Texas, USA,
where she called on the global community and international oil traders
to drop the appetite for stolen Nigerian crude oil.<br />
Presenting a paper with the theme: ‘Development efforts in the West
African Exploration Zone,’ the minister who spoke through the NNPC GMD,
Engr. Andrew Yakubu said, “It takes two to tango, if those stealing our
crude do not find a market for it there would be no incentive to steal
that is why we are appealing to the international community to take
action.”<br />
<br />
<strong>Economic Implication</strong><br />
In the meantime, while government battles with how to effectively
bring the situation under control, it is estimated that between $6bn and
$12bn is lost to crude oil theft annually, with oil theft peaking at
about 350,000 barrels per day (bpd), higher than the quantity of oil
produced daily by Gabon or Equatorial Guinea.<br />
According to the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Engr. Andrew
Yakubu, the persistent attacks on major pipeline arteries supplying
crude oil to export terminals has impacted negatively on the nation’s
economy. Speaking during his submission to the Senate and House of
Representatives Joint Committee on the Medium Term Expenditure Framework
(MTEF) for the period of 2014 to 2016, Yakubu lamented that the
continuous crude oil theft, pipeline vandalism and shut-ins have
constrained the sector from meeting its revenue projection. He said the
oil and gas sector is a key component of MTEF adding that any impact on
it will have a negative effect on revenue flow to the federation
account.<br />
<br />
“The critical and most important point to note here is that when the
artery conveying crude oil to the terminals is hit, this reduces our
production volume by 150,000 barrels per day and for the period that the
line is down that accounts for the drop in crude oil production. From
February to date we have witnessed so much breaches and each time we go
down about 150,000bpd goes down,” Yakubu informed.<br />
He said the daily crude oil production figure for 2013 has been very
erratic as a result of the several attacks on the arteries stating that
crude oil production figure ranges between 2.2mbpd to 2.3mbpd.
According to the Corporation, about $2.23 billion (N191bn) revenue that
should have accrued to the federal government from oil proceeds was lost
to the activities of crude oil thieves in the first quarter (1Q) 2013
alone.<br />
<br />
<strong>Way Forward</strong><br />
Appalled by the worrisome level of crude theft, experts and industry
captains have picked holes in government approach to tackling the menace
and called on the federal government to apply multi-dimensional
strategies towards finding a lasting solution to the challenge. Managing
Directors of IOCs who spoke at the 2013 Nigeria Oil and Gas (NOG)
Conference and Exhibition in Abuja, noted that the issue of crude theft
has grown to become an organised industrial scale business requiring
more than one approach to fight.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<h3>
<b><i><span style="color: purple;">In his presentation, SPDC Chairman, Mutiu Sunmonu, said the war
against crude theft is no longer a war against the poor people of the
Niger Delta, “it is a war against the big fishes,” he stated. While
noting that the finger print tracing which the federal has decided to
adopt as part of efforts to end crude oil theft, was crucial, Sunmonu
maintained that the country still needs to apply other strategies.</span></i></b></h3>
</blockquote>
<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b><i>“We need strategies to engender some sense of outrage so that all
Nigerians can see crude theft as crime against humanity and the
environment and begin to condemn it,” he said. He also advised the
government to look for ways to make it more difficult for the oil
thieves to access the pipelines by laying the pipes deeper below the
ground. “I don’t think one solution is okay, government has to look for
multidimensional strategies to end this challenge,” Sunmonu maintained.</i></b></blockquote>
<br />
For his part, Managing Director of ExxonMobil Nigeria, Mark Ward
advised the federal government to look into the issue of poverty in the
host communities which he maintained was playing a major role in the
rising level of crude theft. Also speaking, former Venezuela’s Minister
of Energy and Mines, Dr. Alirio Parra, urged government to apply four
major strategies which he listed as identifying the market where
Nigeria’s oil is sold, tracking the money from the illegal business,
incorporate the communities in the fight against bunkering and to raise
public outrage against crude oil theft.<br />
<br />
Furthermore, an industry expert who spoke to LEADERSHIP on the matter
explained that the pipelines, being strategic assets, ought to be
conventionally outsourced by government to competent companies for
protection, where it feels it is not capable of protecting them.
According to him, the global practice is that the owner of the assets
works out the safety and security needs assessment of the infrastructure
using a consultant, and where needs be, contract a third party to
protect the assets if it becomes obvious that it cannot protect it.<br />
<br />
He however, stressed that such services are usually contracted to the
best companies after advertisement and specifying which artery of the
network is most prone to vandals that needs protection. The expert who
did not want to be named said the manner in which the pipeline
protection contract was handed over to ex-militants under the table
sends the wrong signals to the international community over Nigeria’s
commitment to the principles of extractive industry transparency, which
the country is a signatory to.<br />
<br />
Also speaking to <a href="http://leadership.ng/" target="_blank">LEADERSHIP</a>, Nigeria’s representative on the Board of
the Global Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI), Faith
Nwadishi expressed worry that despite the contract awarded to the
ex-militants and the money paid to the JTF for the protection of the
assets, no visible result has been seen. “The question to be asked is
what has changed since ex-militants were paid this money? Why are we not
getting results? Is the money meant for jamboree? Are they paying it to
them to acquire their ships and enlarge their cabal?” Nwadishi who is
also the Country Director of Publish What You Pay Nigeria, queried.<br />
<br />
Against the background, there is therefore, the need for government
to put sentiments and blame-game aside and engage in strategic
reassessment and re-orientation towards bringing the challenge to an end
in the interest of the nation’s economy.
</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-73075916136905770692013-09-01T17:18:00.003-07:002013-09-01T17:18:39.180-07:00 If US attacks Syria, crude oil may surge to $150/barrel - Expert<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br />
<br />
<div class="articleLead">
If US attacks Syria, crude oil may surge to $150/barrel but, going by
experience, Indian users know the price will return to more realistic
levels and are also reconciled to fuel price hikes. <br />
</div>
<div class="article-dateline">
<span class="upper">
</span>
August 31, 2013:
</div>
<div class="body">
</div>
<div class="body">
</div>
<div class="body">
The last time India experienced a oil shock was in August 2008 when
crude prices galloped to $148/barrel. It was a difficult period when
public sector oil marketing companies were near collapse as fuel losses
soared.
</div>
<div class="body">
Today, as tension levels rise in West Asia, with the US threatening to
strike Syria, crude oil prices have once again reacted and are inching
towards $120 a barrel. There is fear that a crisis could affect supplies
from West Asia, and importers such as India (which coughs up over $170
billion annually for its crude oil) will face the brunt. </div>
<div class="body">
<br /></div>
<div class="body">
It is still a million-dollar question if the US will go ahead with its
plans to attack Syria, but the uncertainty is enough to prompt a surge
in crude oil prices. “And, should the strikes actually happen, we will
not be surprised if crude touches $150 a barrel ,” says a top-level PSU
oil sector official.
</div>
<div class="body">
Will it, therefore, be back to the grim days of 2008, when IndianOil,
Bharat Petroleum Corporation and Hindustan Petroleum Corporation were
incurring annual losses of over Rs 250,000 crore? In fact, these
companies were actually borrowing heavily to stay afloat since the
government compensation was slow in coming.
</div>
<div class="body">
At one point, reports began doing the rounds that if the crisis
continued, fuel supplies would be severely affected as a result of
refinery shutdowns. “It was an impossibly difficult period when all of
us were stressed out and wondering how long we could keep going,”
recalls the official.
</div>
<div class="body">
The Government compensation finally came with added support from the
upstream oil companies (ONGC and Oil India) but the damage had been
done. The three refiners were battered and this was reflected in their
results in 2008-09. The silver lining was that crude had come back to
the $40-a-barrel level during the last quarter of the fiscal; the alarm
bells fell silent.
</div>
<h3>
Prepared now
</h3>
<div class="body">
The oil industry is, however, a lot more composed this time around even
as crude prices stay uncomfortably high. Part of the reason could be
because everyone is reconciled to the fact that crude oil will not go
below $100 a barrel. “This is the new reality and we are not naïve to
think that prices will nosedive to $60 a barrel,” says a finance
executive.
</div>
<div class="body">
By the same yardstick, the think-tanks in these companies are only too
aware that any sharp escalation in crude prices (as a result of the
crisis in Syria) will only be temporary. It is only a matter of time
before they are back to the more realistic levels of $100-105 a barrel.
</div>
<h3>
Deregulation of fuels
</h3>
<div class="body">
The companies are also assured by the fact that the Government has
kicked off the process of deregulating petrol and diesel. There have
been blips along the way when petrol prices were not allowed to be
raised during state elections but the constant dithering of yesteryear
is clearly a thing of the past. Today, even the end-user is unhappily
aware that a steep diesel price hike is round the corner despite the
inevitable political opposition that will follow. The managements of
IOC, BPCL and HPCL have also become more pragmatic to the realities of a
new pricing regime. Panic and uncertainty were natural reactions in
2008 because nobody had quite seen anything as dire. “You only get
tougher and more cynical with experience,” quips an oil industry
veteran.
</div>
Does this mean there is little to worry about this time around? On the
contrary, it is going to be a tough period, especially when the rupee
has been ravaged and the economy is in dire straits. At the end of the
day, it is going to be yet another rollercoaster year for India’s oil
sector. Nobody is, perhaps, too vocal about it any longer because they
have seen this scenario remain unchanged for the last six years now<br />
<br />
<a href="http://www.thehindubusinessline.com/industry-and-economy/another-oil-shock-coming-but-india-may-not-be-singed/article5079714.ece" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Source </a></div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-59251133922492174392013-09-01T16:45:00.001-07:002013-09-01T16:45:23.728-07:00Nigeria’s Oil Sector: Bumpy Ride No Doubt, But Many Cause For Cheer<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<b><a href="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jXVPfYnkPFY/UiPRTQLm1WI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/M9s-hYbf46k/s1600/allison_madueke.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="184" src="http://1.bp.blogspot.com/-jXVPfYnkPFY/UiPRTQLm1WI/AAAAAAAAAKQ/M9s-hYbf46k/s320/allison_madueke.jpg" width="320" /></a></b></div>
<br />
<b>Despite the many challenges,
there are a few reassuring glimpses that presage a better future for
Nigeria’s oil sector. This, writes Shaka Momodu, owes much to the gritty
resolve of petroleum minister, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke</b>
<br />
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
There’s no question about that; the petroleum sector is the primary
driver of Nigeria’s socio-economic development - being the chief foreign
exchange earner. Perhaps, its then not surprising that over 50 years’
experience in the oil and gas industry continues to reveal the complex
dynamics of balancing global energy security, domestic economic growth,
climate, and environmental considerations. Currently, all alternative
revenue generation efforts and options for the country pale when
compared to the sheer size of petroleum revenue in Nigeria.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The sector has drawn and continues to attract intense focus, wrangling
and debate. In effect, being the key driver and supervisor of this
all-important ministry then poses the most policy-making, operational
and structural challenges - more than that experienced by any other
Nigerian minister. This has been the lot of Mrs. Diezani
Allison-Madueke, the nation’s first lady petroleum minister. But
significantly the Bayelsa-born technocrat has shown surprising strength,
focus and vision.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
On top of her game, the minister herself succinctly captures key
grounds her ministry had covered in the preceding two years, a detail
presented during the recent mid-term report. Her words: “The Ministry of
Petroleum Resources has in the last two years vigorously pursued the
Transformation Agenda of President Jonathan’s administration. Oil and
gas which is the mainstay of government revenues and expenditure in
Nigeria is critical to supporting various policies and programs of
government.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
“The Ministry of Petroleum Resources through its parastatals gives
effect to government’s aspirations in the oil and gas industry and has a
direct link with the ability of the government to deliver on
transformation agenda through - building sustainable industries with
indigenous participation; delivering quality products to the Nigerian
people and creating oil and gas institutions of the future.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
More specifically, she stated that the key accomplishments in the
period 2010-2013 cover the entire oil and gas value chain namely;
Upstream - “where we have increased exploration in frontier areas and
sustained production in spite of incessant crude theft and pipeline
vandalism; Midstream (Gas) - where we have increased gas supply to
power, enhanced gas commercialisation, implemented the gas
infrastructure plan and gas for industrialisation.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
In the midstream (Oil) and downstream arenas, Mrs. Allison-Madueke
identified the ongoing repairs and upgrading of facilities in the
refineries and pipelines distribution network in order to sustain
in-country product supply. In the downstream, Nigerians are of course
witnesses to the product supply stability that is often taken for
granted now. “We have ensured stable supply of petroleum products in
spite of pipeline vandals and product theft, effective and efficient
administration of the subsidy programme which remains unsustainably
expensive and increased domestic refining,” she had further explained.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Perhaps of more than passing significance are specific improvements in
local capacity and indigenous participation in infrastructure
investments which have been vigorously pursued. The observable outcome
has been in upgraded training facilities and increased regulatory
compliance with local content requirements.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Going forward, some of the key positives of the petroleum ministry within this period cover the following arena:<br />
<br />
PIB<br />
One of her most important achievements is putting together the
Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), now before the National Assembly and
generating all sorts of controversy. The Bill essentially targets a
fundamental restructuring of the petroleum industry to maximize returns
on the country’s investment in the oil and gas sector. Stemming from the
Oil and Gas Reform Implementation Committee (OGIC) empanelled to review
the subsisting 16 laws that governed the nation’s hydro-carbon
resources arena, the PIB represents a one-stop-shop legislation that
would guide the sector and effect a pro-Nigeria restructuring of the
country’s lop-sided relationship with international oil companies
(IOCs).</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The initial efforts to push the PIB were scuttled in the Sixth National
Assembly. no thanks to intense intrigues that stoked a few business
divestment from Nigeria as well as prospective investors heading to
nearby countries such as Angola, Ghana and Burkina Faso which boasted
more stable policies. Today, for Nigeria, the story appears different.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The PIB cobbled under the watch of Diezani essentially incorporates the
legal outline that will delineate and shape the oil sector. The
creation of a conducive business environment for petroleum operations;
optimization of domestic gas supplies, especially for power generation
and industrial development; establishment of a progressive fiscal
framework that encourages further investment in the petroleum industry
while optimising revenues accruing to the government; the establishment
of commercially oriented and profit-driven oil and gas entities; as well
as the deregulation and liberalization of the downstream petroleum
sector form central pegs of the PIB.<br />
<br />
Midstream Oil (PPMC)<br />
Of great importance is the rehabilitation and upgrade of PPMC major
petroleum pipelines and strategic product depot facilities across the
nation. “After many years of being inoperable due to pipeline vandals,
the Port Harcourt – Aba product line has been rehabilitated and the Aba
product Depot was re-commissioned after seven (7) years of inactivity.
This has enabled products to be sent directly from the Port Harcourt
refinery to Aba for onward distribution in the Eastern parts of the
country. Aba – Enugu product pipeline is expected to be recovered by
third quarter, 2013.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Similarly, Warri – Benin product line has been recovered and the Benin
depot has been re-commissioned. Other lines recovered so far include:
Kaduna – Suleja, Kaduna – Gusau, Suleja – Minna, Kaduna – Jos and Jos –
Gombe all of which are now fully operational.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
According to the Minister, her ministry is aggressively working on the
recovery of the remaining product pipelines and depots namely; Enugu –
Markurdi; Gombe – Maidugri and Markurdi – Yola. “Restoration work in the
refineries and pipeline distribution network / storage systems have
contributed to stable supply of petroleum products across the country
despite the challenges of vandals and the criminal activities along
these vital and critical infrastructure.”</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
It is to the credit of the Minister and PPMC that despite stoppage of
importation by the oil marketing companies during subsidy saga, the
nation did not witness any significant disruption in product supply
across the country.<br />
<br />
Growing reserves and production<br />
The ministry in line with government’s drive to achieve the national
aspiration of 40 billion barrels of oil reserves and 4 million barrels
of oil per day production, including condensate, as captured in vision
20:20:20, has increased exploration activities in the Offshore, Onshore
and Inland Basins.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
From THISDAY checks, in order to meet the above national target, a
total of 19 exploration wells were drilled comprising eight exploration
wells in the JV and 11 wells (3 Exploration and 8 Appraisal wells) under
the PSC in 2012.<br />
A further 93 development wells were drilled comprising 55 development
wells under JV while the PSC delivered 38 development wells and within
the same year, 33 Workover wells were also drilled consisting of 32
work-over wells under JV and 1 workover well in PSC.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The petroleum ministry has significantly maintained crude oil
production (including condensate) above an average of 2.30 Million
Barrels per Day (MBOPD) despite illegal oil bunkering, crude oil theft
and pipeline vandalism. Following the federal government’s amnesty
programme, Nigeria’s production rose from an average of 1.9 mmbopd in
2009 to a peak of 2.62 mmbopd in October 2010.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
Sustaining production at these levels continues to be challenged by
increasing pipeline vandalism and crude theft, which intermittently
results in production falling below the programmed 2.46 mmbopd and
rebounding following government intervention to stem this menace. But
happily, the government is tackling this problem through enforcement and
the Crude Oil Fingerprinting Initiative.<br />
<br />
The local content challenge<br />
The Nigerian Oil & Gas Industry Content Development Act 2010 (the
“Local Content Act” or “NCA”) received presidential assent on Thursday,
April 22, 2010. Now in operation, the Act seeks to increase indigenous
participation in the Nigerian oil and gas industry (the “Industry”) by
prescribing, inter alia, minimum thresholds in relation to the
utilization of local services and goods.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
The Local Content Act which derives from the Nigerian Content Policy
focuses on the promotion of value addition to the Nigeria economy
through the utilization of local raw materials, products, and services
in order to stimulate growth of indigenous capacity.</div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
<br />
The NCA accords certain privileges and preferential treatment to
companies that qualify as “Nigerian Companies” pursuant to the Act,
including preferential treatment in the award of contracts for projects
in the Industry. To qualify as a Nigerian Company under the NCA, a
minimum of fifty one per cent (51%) of the issued shares must be held by
Nigerian shareholder(s); whilst the remaining forty nine per cent (49%)
of its issued shares can be held by foreigners.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Nigeria’s product supply and distribution system consists of about
5,000km of pipeline network interconnected to the four refineries with a
total capacity of 445kbd at three locations namely Warri, Port-Harcourt
and Kaduna. The reliability of this network holds the key to
sustainable supply of petroleum products across the country.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Nigeria’s petroleum product consumption for white products is estimated
at about 38 Million Liters PMS , 12 Million Liters AGO and eight
million litres DPK, whose production is inadequate for meeting domestic
consumption even if they operate at design level. This scenario has led
to importation of products from proceeds of crude exports to supplement
supply from domestic refineries.<br />
The plan going forward is to rehabilitate the refineries so as to
obtain maximum production from them. This will meet about 70 percent of
the country’s needs. The deficit will be met by on-going plans to
construct Greenfield Refineries. The ministry is also cooperating with
private initiatives for construction of new refineries and have
progressed with plans for rehabilitation of the refineries commencing
with the Port Harcourt refinery.</div>
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<br /></div>
<div style="text-align: justify;">
Clearly, these challenges will continue to drive innovation and change
in the petroleum ministry’s approach to delivering an oil and gas
industry that is internationally competitive and is governed by open and
transparent processes to ensure security of investment for both
domestic and international investors.</div>
</div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-26758184561854106802013-08-17T06:04:00.002-07:002013-08-17T06:04:24.888-07:00Who Steals Nigerian Crude Oil?<div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
<br /><br />“Insanity has been described as doing the same thing over again and expecting a different result.”<br /><br />Nigerians have been treated to a theatre of the absurd in which those close to the oil scene and those who should be the prime suspects for the incessant theft of crude are the same people complaining about it and passing the buck among themselves. Jonathan’s government is obviously powerless to stop the grand larceny or is unwilling to do so. Meanwhile, we face real fiscal catastrophe this year and next year if the theft is not checked. Who are the culprits? Take your choice from the list below.<br /><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b>“Oil workers………</b></i><br /><i><b>“Security agents……</b></i><br /><i><b>“NNPC officials…..</b></i><br /><i><b>“Top govt officials….</b></i><br /><i><b>“Militants…….</b></i></blockquote>
<u><i><b>Continue</b></i></u><br />
<a name='more'></a><br />As Nigeria lurches dangerously towards another debt trap; and as it will become increasingly difficult for the Federal and State governments to meet their financial obligations to a wide range of stakeholders, the most important item on the national agenda is to find out who are those stealing Nigerian crude oil. Next to that is to also find out who are the buyers of the stolen crude. But, let me pose a question to all Nigerians.<br /><br />Supposing the members of a household engage security people to guard their residence and pay them extremely well. Yet, thieves break into the household every night and steal their most precious properties, what would the owners of the household do? Retain the security staff or sack them? If the answer that comes to your mind is “sack them”, then why do we continue to retain the security people, the oil workers, the NNPC and top government officials, as well as the militants who have collected fantastic salaries and huge contracts to protect our oil installations and are not doing it?<br /><br />Ask anyone who had ever gone far into Nigeria’s territorial waters and you will be amazed how extremely difficult, if not impossible for any maritime vessel to enter our coastal waters to do any business. Last week, I talked to a former owner of a trawler about my experience aboard another trawler whose owner had asked me to go out to sea with his crew to find out from first hand experience what the security forces, pirates and militants do to fishing boats.<br /><br />I went and to my utter surprise, the former owner, now in his late 70s told me his own experience when he went out in his boat with the men. There was no way of escaping from the Navy, the Marine Police, the militants and the pirates who board the boats and shake down the staff or get killed. To the best of my knowledge, no single trawler escapes the vigilant mafia consisting of officials and criminals on Nigerian waters.<br /><br />The question is: if people engaging in lawful business cannot sail into Nigerian waters undetected, how is it possible on a daily basis for criminals to so without being apprehended? The answer is obvious, our security people, like the guards in the fictitious house above are the thieves. The story had been told about the man in rural Russia who could predict when a goat would be stolen – until people discovered that he was the thief.<br /><br />The Ministers of Petroleum and Finance, as well as the President have told us that 400,000 barrels per day is being stolen with the calm assurance that another 400,000 barrels will disappear tomorrow and next week. They stay in Abuja mostly, but they have staff in the oil producing areas. The questions that arise are: how do they know it is 400,000 a day?<br /><br />Whose oil is stolen and from which location and yet the owners have not been able to put a security blanket over the areas involved? Again, let us return to the analogy of the household. Is it possible that the home owner will continue to suffer the breaking and entry into his premises every night without taking measures to put a stop to it and to find out who is behind the relentless attack on his property? That is what the Federal Government will want us to believe.<br /><br />A top official of the Directorate of Petroleum Resources, DPR, last week announced without embarrassment that “there is nothing” that can be done about it.<br /><br />Nigeria must be the only oil producing nation in the world where the oil resourcesare being stolen and government proclaims that it is powerless to put a stop to the atrocity bordering on economic sabotage involved. The obvious question now is: if this government cannot stop the loss of close to one quarter of our annual budget, should’nt we look for a government which can do it?<br /><br />The reason for that question should be clear. With Nigeria incurring more debts daily, and with our pledge to repay anchored on our crude shipments, nobody needs a doctorate in economics and finance to know that Nigeria might again be in default of repayment of external loans. In other words, we are again headed for the debt trap from which Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala released us in 2003-4.<br /><br />The truth now confronting Nigerians is clear. The Federal Government either has no clue about how to stop this economically ruinous erosion of the national income or it has no intention to do so. There is no other alternative.<br /><br />That again raises the question: if this government has no ideas or is not interested in solving this life-and-death problem for Nigeria, shouldn’t they admit it and allow Nigerians to find a solution?<br /><br />The truth is, never in the history of Nigeria has any government admitted such a colossal loss of revenue due to the nation without at the same time setting out an action plan to bring an end to it. To that extent, this government is the first to achieve that degree of helplessness. A government which concedes one third to one quarter of its revenue to thieves might as well hand them the keys to the treasury. It is difficult to imagine what else could take priority over crude oil losses, on the weekly Federal Executive Council, FEC, meeting, other than Boko Haram. Everything else, by comparison, pales into insignificance. Without security progress is stifled; without adequate funding development is arrested.<br /><br />Crude oil theft represents another synonym for arrested development. At least, the Ministers of Finance, Agriculture, Education, Works, Trade and Investment, Heath etc should know that. Nothing will work until this government finds a solution to this problem – very soon.<br /><br />One last question: why is it that now that we have a President from the Niger Delta that crude oil theft had risen so astronomically and with government wringing its hands helplessly?<br /><br />ISLAMIC BANK: EATING OUR OWN VOMIT ON LOAN<br /><br />“Federal Government borrows $………… from Islamic Bank”.<br /><br />When the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor announced the licensing of Islamic Banks in Nigeria, my fellow Christians were up in arms. The conventional wisdom then was that Sanusi Lamido was embarking on Islamisation of Nigeria. Dr Okonjo-Iweala, the Finance Minister and I were among a small minority of Christians who saw nothing wrong with it. In fact, we enthusiastically endorsed it. The opposition led by the Christian Association of Nigeria, CAN, was most vocal and mostly uninformed because Islamic Banks already operated in several countries in Europe and the USA.<br /><br />Now, the Federal Government of Nigeria, with a Christian President and a Christian Minister of Finance, as well as a Director-General in the Debt Management Office, DMO, has approached the Islamic Bank for a loan. Honour demands that all the Christian who were opposed to the establishment of Islamic banks in Nigeria should protest government’s action in this regard. Otherwise, they stand branded as hypocrites.<br /><a href="http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/08/who-steals-nigerian-crude-oil/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">Source</a><br /></div>
MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-3974422765821101747.post-13375395570147168942013-08-17T06:01:00.001-07:002013-08-17T06:01:25.259-07:00Three-Pronged, Energy-Based Approach Needed to Generate Resurgence of American Manufacturing <div dir="ltr" style="text-align: left;" trbidi="on">
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<a href="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0l95-wyhgZQ/Ug90E8mGCYI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/qtb8tBgrvMA/s1600/ann_jackson.jpeg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" src="http://2.bp.blogspot.com/-0l95-wyhgZQ/Ug90E8mGCYI/AAAAAAAAAJ8/qtb8tBgrvMA/s1600/ann_jackson.jpeg" /></a></div>
<h2>
<br />Staying focused on a clean energy agenda and working collaboratively
across the business, academic, and government sectors is the key to
sparking a resurgence in United States manufacturing and to mitigating
climate impacts, Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute President Shirley Ann
Jackson said today.</h2>
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<div class="news-img" style="width: 250px;">
<div class="news-img-caption">
President Shirley Ann Jackson</div>
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President Jackson was addressing a forum on American Energy and
Manufacturing Competitiveness, jointly sponsored by General Electric,
the Council on Competitiveness, and the U.S. Department of Energy’s
Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (DOE-EERE), and hosted
by the GE Global Research Center, in Niskayuna, New York.<br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<i><b><u>Continue</u></b></i></blockquote>
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<a name='more'></a> <br /><br />
“To truly achieve energy security—with both a burgeoning supply of
energy and plummeting carbon emissions—it is going to require innovation
on a grand scale,” President Jackson said in speaking of the
opportunities and challenges of implementing a long-term, comprehensive
energy security plan. “Given the centrality of energy to our economy, if
we act decisively, energy innovation can serve as the focus of a
full-fledged resurgence in U.S. manufacturing—and global leadership that
spurs exports and growth.”<br />
To ensure that the United States leads in clean energy manufacturing,
she said that the private sector, academia, and the government must work
together to “create a fertile environment for innovation, and to
overcome market failures that keep promising technologies from
commercialization.”<br /><br />
She discussed a three-pronged, energy-based approach needed to generate
a resurgence of American manufacturing including: using more
energy-efficient technologies and approaches in manufacturing, to keep
the costs of domestic manufacturing competitive with the rest of the
world; taking the lead in developing and manufacturing clean energy
products; and recognizing the targets of opportunity for the future, and
creating the capacities that will allow the U.S. to get a jump start on
those targets.<br /><br />
President Jackson highlighted Rensselaer’s work with industry and
government (federal and state) to advance manufacturing through (1)
shared infrastructure including the Computational Center for
Nanotechnology Innovations (CCNI), one of the world’s most powerful
university-based supercomputers, (2) expertise to expedite the transfer
of technology into commercially viable products and processes via the
Center for Future Energy Systems, the Center for Automation Technologies
and Systems (CATS), and the Smart Lighting Engineering Research Center,
and (3) guidance in applying the new digital tools and technologies to
applications in clean energy and smart energy use and management via the
recently launched Rensselaer Institute for Data Exploration and
Applications (The Rensselaer IDEA).<br /><br />
Detailing the interconnections of climate impacts and energy security,
President Jackson said, “As recent natural disasters have demonstrated
decisively—with (energy) supply chain disruptions that reverberated
globally as well as immensely painful local effects—we all increasingly
are subject to intersecting vulnerabilities with cascading
consequences.”<br /><br />
Energy security requires that on a national basis, we do six key things, she said:<br />
<ul>
<li>
Create redundancy of supply and develop the diversity of energy sources to power our economy.</li>
<li>
Invest in smart infrastructure for energy generation, transmission, and distribution.</li>
<li>
Commit to environmental sustainability and energy conservation, with a
calculation of the full lifecycle costs of energy sources, systems, and
devices.</li>
<li>
Adopt policies that ensure consistent regulation and transparent price signals.</li>
<li>
Ensure well-functioning energy markets that are not distorted by excessive speculation or outright manipulation.</li>
<li>
Think strategically about how each sector is matched to the supply
source that will be the most efficient, cost-effective, sustainable, and
reliable.</li>
</ul>
Noting the historic lack of a long-term “concerted response to the
challenges of energy security,” in the U.S., President Jackson said,
“for the last 40 years we have had a series of energy shocks and crises
that have captured the attention of the public and of policymakers in
this country and abroad. Each time, we have responded to the crisis at
hand with a limited attention span and short-term solutions—lacking the
consistent breadth of vision and commitment of resources the overarching
issue demands.”<br />
She applauded President Obama and his administration for having been
“willing to think more broadly, and to take the longer view,” in
promoting an overarching energy program, including the recently
announced plan for the nation to lead the world in what President Obama
called “a coordinated assault on a changing climate.”<br /><br />
<blockquote class="tr_bq">
<b>The U.S. has the capacity to drive innovation on a “grand scale,”
President Jackson said. “We have done this many times before, including
during the space race that succeeded in putting a man on the moon.
Energy security is, indeed, the space race of our time. We can
accomplish something equally startling today, with infinite innovations
contributing to a single outcome: abundant, affordable clean energy that
safeguards the natural world, as it powers our economy and radically
improves human lives. But it will take a sense of national purpose.”</b></blockquote>
<br />
The loss of federal investments in energy innovation, combined with
other economic pressures, may deter critical collaborative efforts among
business, academia, and the government to provide a more secure energy
future, President Jackson said. “We have made considerable progress in
recognizing the need for an Advanced Research Projects Agency for
Energy, or ARPA-E, to fund transformational research, and a National
Network for Manufacturing Innovation to revolutionize our products and
processes. Yet, the progress we have made may well be undone by concerns
about the federal debt, budget impasses, and sequestration.” Due to the
federal budget impasse—the U.S. “once again may be backing away from
key (energy) investments and policy development, when we should be
plunging ahead,” Jackson said.<br />
Source: <a href="http://www.rpi.edu/" rel="nofollow" target="_blank">http://www.rpi.edu/</a><br />
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MPN.Global.Ventureshttp://www.blogger.com/profile/08277157679060581331noreply@blogger.com0