MEXICO CITY (Reuters) - Pemex’s oil exports dropped by 11% in April compared to the previous month, while production slipped by 0.9%, data from the Mexican state oil firm showed on Friday. Exports of Maya crude, the only type Pemex has been selling abroad for almost a year, fell to 1.023 million barrels per day (bpd) in April from 1.150 million bpd in March, the data showed. Crude output dipped to 1.675 million bpd from 1.691 million bpd. Pemex has been struggling to cope with financial [Read more]
U.S. oil drillers cut rigs for third week in a row
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for a third week in a row as weaker oil prices encourage drillers to follow through on plans to cut spending. Drillers cut five oil rigs in the week to May 24, bringing the total count down to 797, the lowest since March 2018, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday. That compares with 859 rigs operating during the same week a year ago. The rig count, an [Read more]
Alberta tabling bill to repeal carbon tax
Alberta will table a bill to repeal the provincial carbon tax on Wednesday, the new government said in a speech kicking off its first legislative session. Premier Jason Kenney's United Conservative Party swept to power in Alberta last month on a platform that promised to champion the province's beleaguered energy industry and stand up to the federal government in Ottawa. Scrapping Alberta's carbon tax, which was introduced by the previous government, was a major part of Kenney's campaign. [Read more]
U.S. oil drillers cut rigs to lowest count since March 2018
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for the second week in a row, with the rig count at its lowest since March 2018, as some drillers follow through on plans to cut spending. Despite those cuts, production in the nation's biggest shale formations was expected to keep rising from record levels. Drillers cut three oil rigs in the week to May 17, bringing the total count down to 802, below the 844 units operating a year ago, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes [Read more]
Canadian Senate committee passes amendments on Bill C-69
A Canadian Senate committee has passed 187 amendments to a controversial energy bill proposed by the Liberal government that would change how the environmental impact of major projects like oil export pipelines is assessed. The amendments, approved late on Thursday, were welcomed by the premier of Canada's main crude-producing province Alberta, but environmental groups warned they represent a step backwards in Canada's commitment to tackling climate change. Bill C-69 will now go back to [Read more]
Scheer pledges to limit spending, build energy corridor
Canada's Conservative Party leader Andrew Scheer on Thursday said if he is elected in the October national election he will rein in spending, build oil pipelines and put the country on a path to energy independence by 2030. In a 14-page speech delivered in Toronto, Canada's financial capital, Scheer attacked Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, who he says has "blown it all." It was the second of five promised policy speeches by Scheer following one on foreign policy last week. Scheer's [Read more]
U.S. oil output helps fill gap left by Iran, Venezuela
The world will require very little extra oil from OPEC this year as booming U.S. output will offset falling exports from Iran and Venezuela, the International Energy Agency said on Wednesday. The IEA, which coordinates the energy policies of industrial nations, said Washington's decision to end sanctions waivers that had allowed some importers to continue to buying Iranian crude added to the "confusing supply outlook." "However, there have been clear and, in the IEA's view, very welcome [Read more]
Differentials weaken on curtailment uncertainty, strong supply
Canadian heavy and synthetic crude oil differentials weakened versus U.S. benchmark futures on Tuesday as market players waited for news on whether the Alberta government will adjust oil production curtailments. Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy blend crude for June delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, last traded at $14.20 per barrel below West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil, according to Net Energy Exchange. On Monday, WCS settled at $13.85 a barrel below WTI crude futures. The heavy crude [Read more]
Woodfibre targets 2023 start of British Columbia LNG export plant
Woodfibre LNG Ltd said Tuesday it plans to move forward with construction of its proposed C$1.4-C$1.8 billion liquefied natural gas export terminal in British Columbia later this year with the facility expected to be operational by 2023: That could make the Woodfibre plant the first LNG export facility in Canada. There are 18 LNG export projects under development in Canada, including Woodfibre, according to government data from Natural Resources Canada. Royal Dutch Shell Plc , meanwhile, [Read more]
Cash-rich Canadian oil firms favour buybacks as other options narrow
CALGARY, Alberta/WINNIPEG, Manitoba, May 14 (Reuters) - Canadian oil producers are raking in the highest revenues in five years thanks to strong global oil prices and Alberta's production cuts, but government intervention has hamstrung their spending abilities, encouraging many to buy back shares and pay down debt. Canada's main crude-producing province effectively became a mini-OPEC this year after the Alberta government imposed production quotas to relieve pipeline congestion and drain a [Read more]