Canada's heavy crude differential to U.S. futures narrowed on Wednesday:* Western Canada Select (WCS) heavy blend crude for August delivery in Hardisty, Alberta, last traded at $12.95 per barrel below West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil, according to Net Energy Exchange. On Tuesday, WCS for August delivery settled at $13.40 a barrel below WTI crude futures.* Falling western Canadian inventories helped lift prices, one industry source said. Crude stocks are declining after hitting record highs [Read more]
Headlines
Alberta Government offers relief for shallow gas producers
Alberta's government is offering much needed relief to its struggling natural gas industry. In particular, municipal tax rates on shallow gas and pipelines will be reduced by 35%. Read the release below from the Alberta Government: The Government of Alberta is acting swiftly to provide urgent, timely tax relief for shallow gas producers in dire straits. Economic mismanagement from the previous administration combined with low commodity prices have left natural gas producers on the brink of [Read more]
U.S. oil drillers cut rigs for first week in three -Baker Hughes
U.S. energy firms this week reduced the number of oil rigs operating for the first time in three weeks as drillers follow through on plans to cut spending this year.Drillers cut five oil rigs in the week to July 3, bringing the total count down to 788, General Electric Co's Baker Hughes energy services firm said in its closely followed report on Wednesday. That compares with 863 rigs operating during the same week a year ago.The rig count, an early indicator of future output, declined [Read more]
Indigenous group says Trans Mountain bid could be ready next week
CALGARY - An Indigenous-led group says it will soon be ready to make a bid for majority ownership of the controversial Trans Mountain pipeline currently owned by the federal government. The group, called Project Reconciliation, says it will be prepared as early as next week to talk with Ottawa about its proposal for a 51 per cent stake in the pipeline. Project Reconciliation says the bid will be underwritten by contracts with pipeline customers and not rely on taxpayers. [Read more]
Oil prices rise after U.S. crude stockpile drop
Oil prices rebounded slightly on Wednesday after a steep fall in the previous session as OPEC and its allies’ decision to extend output cuts was not enough to counter investors’ concerns about the slowing global economy. Prices were supported by widely-watched data showing a larger-than-expected drawdown in U.S. crude oil inventories, with government data due later in the day. U.S. crude futures for August were up 47 cents at $56.72 a barrel. Both benchmarks fell more than 4% on Tuesday as [Read more]
TC Energy sells U.S. midstream assets in Appalachian Basin for $1.7 billion
CALGARY - TC Energy Corp. has signed a deal to sell U.S. midstream assets held by its subsidiary, Columbia Midstream Group, to UGI Energy Services LLC for $1.7 billion. Columbia Midstream Group owns four natural gas gathering systems and an interest in a company with gathering, processing and liquids assets in the Appalachian Basin. TC Energy Russ Girling says the sale is part of the company's efforts to prudently fund its portfolio of natural gas pipeline, liquids pipelines and [Read more]
Celebrating Federal Environment Minister McKenna’s contributions to Canada
“Hello, this is 9-1-1, how may we help you?” “I’d like to report an emergency.” “Can you tell me what’s happened and where? Are there any injuries?” “Certainly. What’s happened is that hundreds of years ago people started burning coal, which made things better, so they burned more, and then there were a lot more people, then they discovered oil, which caused a lot of development and then there were a lot more people, and now they are using so much of it that the world might warm up 2 [Read more]
Osum Announces Extension of Debt Maturity and Surpasses Production Target Ahead of Schedule
CALGARY, July 3, 2019 /CNW/ - Osum Oil Sands Corp. ("Osum" or the "Company"), a private oil sands company, announced today that it has completed an amendment with lenders to extend the maturity date of 90.6%, or approximately US$172 million, of its existing US$190 million senior secured first lien term loan by two years to July 31, 2022. The interest rate on the extended portion of the loan has been increased and will vary between LIBOR plus 7.5% and 9.5% per annum depending on the Company's [Read more]
Baker Hughes, a GE company Announces June 2019 Rig Counts
HOUSTON & LONDON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Baker Hughes, a GE company (NYSE:BHGE) announced today that the Baker Hughes international rig count for June 2019 was 1,138, up 12 from the 1,126 counted in May 2019, and up 179 from the 959 counted in June 2018. The international offshore rig count for June 2019 was 246, up 6 from the 240 counted in May 2019, and up 51 from the 195 counted in June 2018. The average U.S. rig count for June 2019 was 969, down 17 from the 986 counted in May 2019, and down [Read more]
XI Technologies: Alberta’s Inactive Well Compliance Program is having the desired effect, decreasing non-compliant well counts by nearly 40 per cent
Each week, XI Technologies scans their unique combination of enhanced industry data to provide trends and insights that have value for professionals doing business in the WCSB. If you'd like to receive our Wednesday Word to the Wise in your inbox, subscribe here. In its first four years, the Inactive Well Compliance Program (IWCP) under AER Directive 013, decreased the number of non-compliant inactive wells in the province from 25,808 on April 1, 2015, to 15,628 as of yesterday, July 2, [Read more]