U.S. energy companies this week cut oil rigs for the first week in three even though crude prices hovered near their highest level since the spring of 2015. Drillers cut 5 oil rigs in the week to Jan. 5, bringing the total count down to 742, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Friday. In the prior two weeks, drillers did not add or remove any rigs. The U.S. rig count, an early indicator of future output, is much higher than a [Read more]
Frigid weather sends heating prices soaring as energy usage spikes
NEW YORK, Jan 5 (Reuters) - A severe winter storm in the U.S. Northeast brought plunging temperatures on Friday, driving regional natural gas prices to all-time highs, disrupting refinery operations and causing electrical outages. From Baltimore to Caribou, Maine, efforts were under way to clear roadways from Thursday’s snowfall. Temperatures were expected to be 20 to 30 degrees Fahrenheit below the average for this time of year and could set records, according to the National Weather [Read more]
Canadian oil exports to U.S. dip in November
Canadian exports of crude oil fell 2.4 percent month-on-month in November to 3.28 million barrels per day, Statistics Canada data said on Friday, after a decline in shipments to the United States. The 80,000 bpd drop in exports to Canada's biggest customer came in the same month TransCanada Corp's Keystone pipeline, which carries crude from Alberta's oil sands to U.S. refineries, was shut down following a leak in rural South Dakota. Keystone restarted in late November but the 590,000 bpd [Read more]
U.S. shale returns to growth, posing problem for OPEC: Kemp
LONDON (Reuters) - U.S. crude oil prices have risen above $60 per barrel which should accelerate shale drilling and production in the next few months, provided the price increase is sustained. U.S. crude futures are trading over $60 for all delivery months between February and August 2018, an increase of about 40 percent since the middle of 2017. And the futures strip for 2019, the benchmark against which U.S. shale producers can execute hedges for next year’s output, is trading over $56, [Read more]
Quest for new oil discoveries still on back burner
Despite the strongest start for oil prices in four years, the world's top oil companies are hesitating to accelerate the search for new resources as a determination to retain capital discipline trumps the hope of making bonanza discoveries. Exxon Mobil , Royal Dutch Shell , Total and their peers are set to cut spending on oil and gas exploration for a fifth year in a row in 2018, according to consultancy Wood Mackenzie (WoodMac), despite a growing urgency to replenish reserves after years of [Read more]
Suncor, Teck buy part of Total stake in Canada oil sands mine
Suncor Energy Inc., Canada's second-largest energy producer, said on Wednesday it and Teck Resources Ltd have taken higher stakes in the Fort Hills oilsands mine from partner Total SA, resolving a dispute over building costs. Under terms of the deal, Suncor and Teck will fund more of the C$17 billion project's capital cost - C$300 million and C$120 million more respectively. Suncor's share of the project will be 53.06 percent, compared to 20.89 percent for Teck and 26.05 percent for [Read more]
Numbing cold wave grips U.S., heralding a frigid New Year’s Eve
The torrent of arctic air that poured into many parts of the United States this week tightened its grip on Friday and brought record cold to some spots, as forecasters warned revelers from Memphis to Maine to expect numbing conditions on New Year's Eve. As far south as Charleston, South Carolina, freezing rain coated the city's landmark church steeples, while a shroud of ice blanketed rock faces next to Niagara Falls as mist from the thundering falls on New York's border with [Read more]
Canada crude-by-rail exports to U.S. rise to 6-month high
Canadian crude-by-rail exports to the United States climbed to a six-month high of 137,000 barrels per day in October, data from the National Energy Board showed on Friday, the latest sign that tight pipeline capacity is pushing more oil onto railroads. October was the third straight month in which rail exports climbed. Volumes rose 2 percent from September, but were up 33 percent from the same month in 2016 when Canada shipped 103,000 barrels per day of crude by rail. The amount of crude [Read more]
U.S. oil rig count ends 2017 40 pct above year-ago levels -Baker Hughes
The U.S. oil rig count rose by about 42 percent by end-2017 compared to the levels seen during the corresponding period last year, as energy companies boosted spending amid a recovery in crude prices. Drillers held the number of oil rigs steady for a second straight week at 747 in the week to Dec. 29. That was 222 more than the 525 rigs at the end of 2016, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes Inc energy services firm said on Friday. (Reporting by Vijaykumar Vedala in Bengaluru; Editing by [Read more]
Deals of the day-Mergers and acquisitions
The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1050 GMT on Wednesday: ** Japan's Mitsubishi UFJ Financial Group (MUFG) said it was cautiously optimistic of winning approval to take control of PT Bank Danamon Indonesia - in what could become the biggest acquisition of an Indonesian firm on record. ** China's Geely Holding , which already owns the Volvo Car Group, is buying an 8.2 percent stake in Swedish truck maker AB Volvo from activist [Read more]