Exxon Mobil Corp on Tuesday scored a win in a closely-watched case after a judge ruled that the company did not hide the true cost of climate change regulation from investors.The case, brought by the New York Attorney General, is one of dozens of lawsuits in the United States brought against oil companies by local and state governments over global warming. Justice Barry Ostrager said that the state had failed to prove investors were misled.The following is a summary of how climate change [Read more]
Oil prices slip again as spectre of trade war, demand concerns haunts market
Oil prices dropped on Tuesday for a second straight session as the cons of a slowing global demand outlook outweighed the pros of OPEC's agreement with associated producers at the end of last week to deepen crude output cuts in early 2020. West Texas Intermediate oil futures were down 7 cents, or 0.1% to $58.95 a barrel. Brent futures were down 11 cents, or 0.2%, at $64.14 per barrel. The benchmarks fell 0.3% and 0.2% respectively on Monday. "The euphoria (on output cuts) was short [Read more]
Enbridge says Minnesota concludes no additional risk to lake from pipeline
Canada's Enbridge Inc said on Monday that a revised environmental statement from the state of Minnesota's commerce department concludes that replacing the aging Line 3 oil pipeline would not introduce risks for Lake Superior in the case of a spill. The revised statement was drafted at the request of the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission (PUC). A court had determined the previous environmental assessment was inadequate. The commerce department's spill modelling showed that oil from a [Read more]
Heavy discount eases but remains wide on high stocks
The discount on Canadian heavy crude eased versus U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude on Monday, but remained at relatively high levels due to large inventories and strained transport. High stockpiles need to ease for the heavy differential to narrow substantially, a Calgary-based energy source said. Western Canadian oil stocks climbed to a record high 39 million barrels as of Nov. 29 due to a temporary outage of the Keystone oil pipeline and a strike by Canadian National [Read more]
Oil prices slip as weak China exports highlights trade war impact
Oil prices fell on Monday after data showing China's overall exports of goods and services shrank for a fourth straight month, sending shivers through a market already concerned about damage being down to global demand by the Sino-U.S. trade war. West Texas Intermediate oil futures were down 28 cents, or 0.47% to $58.92 a barrel, having risen about 7% last week on the prospects for lower production from 'OPEC+', which is made up of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) [Read more]
Saudi energy minister talks OPEC+ unity, backs Aramco to soar
OPEC and its allies would only ease supply curbs and pump more oil once global crude inventories fall and pricing reflects a tighter market, Saudi Arabia's energy minister told Reuters. Saudi Arabia spearheaded a deal on Friday with Russia and the other so-called OPEC+ oil producers to deepen output cuts through the first quarter of 2020. In his first interview with Reuters since he became energy minister in September, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said he expected OPEC+ producers to [Read more]
Heavy discount unchanged at wide level
The discount on Canadian heavy crude was unchanged versus U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude on Friday, trading at a wider than usual level. Prices were supported by the Keystone pipeline returning to near 90% utilization following a spill in North Dakota Oct. 29, said John Coleman, principal analyst for North American crude oil markets at consultancy Wood Mackenzie. Coleman said the Western Canada Select spread remained wide, however, as new standards for sulfur in marine [Read more]
U.S. oil drillers cut rigs for seventh consecutive week – Baker Hughes
U.S. energy firms reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a seventh week in a row as year-long declines in the rig count have only curbed growth of record U.S. production, prompting OPEC to deepen cuts in an effort to bolster prices amid a global glut. Drillers cut five oil rigs in the week to Dec. 6, bringing the total count down to 663, the lowest since April 2017, energy services firm Baker Hughes Co said in its closely followed report on Friday. In the same week a year ago, there [Read more]
Oil rises, U.S. crude trading near two-month high after OPEC cut
Oil edged up in early Asia trade on Friday, with U.S. crude trading near a two-month high after OPEC agreed to increase output curbs by nearly 50 percent in early 2020, although the cartel stopped short of promising any further steps after March. West Texas Intermediate oil futures were up by 96 cents at $59.30 a barrel. Brent futures were up $1.14 at $64.40. They fell 0.6% on Thursday. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and allies including Russia - a [Read more]
Heavy discount narrows on demand uptick, reduced Syncrude output
The discount on Canadian heavy crude narrowed versus U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude on Thursday, due to stronger demand and reduced production from the Syncrude oil sands site. The slight narrowing reflected some buyers being short and favorable arbitrage opportunities, a trader said. Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy blend crude for January delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, was trading at $19.95 per barrel below WTI, according to NE2 Canada Inc, compared with Wednesday's [Read more]