Could the U.S. Export Crude Oil? It's Time to Rethink the Unthinkable

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.

BRENT CRUDE OIL FUTURES RISE BY MORE THAN $1 PER BARREL

BRENT CRUDE OIL FUTURES RISE BY MORE THAN $1 PER BARREL

Crude oil thieves are being sponsored by the Federal Government, the Speaker of the House of Representatives

Crude oil thieves are being sponsored by the Federal Government, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Tambuwal, has said, insisting that the crime is not being perpetrated by ordinary criminals, but by those who enjoy the backing of government.
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.

End of the year take on the energy sector

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.

Crude Oil boosted by products demand

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. 
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.

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.

Crude oil held steady near $99

NEW YORK, Dec. 26 (UPI) -- 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.
Reformulated gasoline blendstock for January was up 1.05 cents at $2.8247 a gallon.
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.
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.

Crude, refined oil import falls by 20pc in Q1

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.

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.

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.

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.

Brent crude rises

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. 

Oil boom gives U.S. new options

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.

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.

Nigeria: Shell Disagrees With Amnesty, CEHRD Over Oil Spills Investigations

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.

The two global bodies had declared that Shell's claims on oil pollution in the region were "deeply suspect and often untrue."