France asks Engie to take hedging positions over gas price freeze
The French government said on Sunday it had asked utility Engie to take hedging positions to ensure gas prices do not rise until June next year. Unlike power prices, which typically move once a year, gas prices move every month in France and are set using a formula that takes into account production costs. Many French governments have postponed tariff increases to protect consumers and their own approval ratings in the past, but legally the government has no authority to set prices. Earlier this month, the government suspended increases to fuel taxes for at least six months in response to weeks of sometimes violent public protests against President Emmanuel Macron’s policies and said it would keep gas and power prices unchanged this winter. The environment ministry said on Sunday it wanted to ensure Engie’s gas prices do not change until June 2019 but gave no explanation on the new timeframe of the requested price freeze. Officials at the environment ministry were not immediately available to comment. “Engie has taken notice of the government’s request and will realise the necessary operations in order to guarantee the stability of the regulated tariffs of natural gas until the end of June,” Engie said in an emailed statement.
Uzbekistan borrows $2.3 billion for gas-to-liquids plant project
Uzbekistan has agreed loans worth $2.3 billion for its gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant project with 11 banks from Japan, China, South Korea, Russia and the West. The $3.7 billion GTL plant, set to be launched in 2020, will allow the Central Asian nation to use its large natural gas reserve to produce more fuels such as diesel which it currently imports due to declining crude oil output and insufficient refinery capacity. The plant will refine 3.6 billion cubic metres of gas a year and produce 1.5 million tonnes of fuel, its management said at a signing ceremony in Tashkent. Lenders include China Development Bank, Credit Suisse, Japan’s MUFG, Mizuho, and SMBC, Korea’s Eximbank, KSure, and Woori Bank, Russia’s Exiar, Gazprombank, and Roseximbank.
Niti Aayog pushes for methanol as cooking fuel
Premier think tank Niti Aayog has proposed a move to transform the way food is prepared in India, reducing the massive import bill and worsening pollution. The Aayog has prepared a comprehensive plan advocating adoption of methanol as the preferred cooking fuel in households as well as commercially. It’s a cleaner fuel and will reduce dependence on imported gas too, said people aware of the matter. A plant each would be set up in Bengaluru and Assam for manufacturing methanol cooking stoves based on a technology sourced from Sweden. Larger stoves for commercial use will be imported till technology is developed locally. Methanol is being produced by the Gujarat Narmada Valley Fertilizers & Chemicals, Rashtriya Chemicals & Fertilizers and Assam Petrochemicals. Methanol cooking fuel is being made available in canisters of 1.2 kg, to be priced at .`32. Around 18 canisters would be equivalent to a conventional domestic LPG cylinder. A senior government official told ET work is on full swing to introduce methanol-run cooking stoves. “After Assam, we are eyeing Uttar Pradesh and then Maharashtra to provide such stoves in households. Simultaneously, we have tied up with some hotels in Bengaluru to use methanol stoves,” said the official, requesting not to be identified. “Next in line would be big temples, gurdwaras and ashrams where cooking is done on a massive scale daily.” There was a pilot launch of methanol stoves in Assam in October. According to the official, the Bengaluru plant will be set up by a private player while the one in Assam may be government-owned. The Aayog has been aggressively pushing for adoption of methanol as cooking as well as transportation fuel. It estimates that even partial use of methanol could help reduce India’s import bill $100 billion and pollution 40%. In terms of heat value, a 14-kg LPG cylinder is equivalent to about 20 kg of methanol. But estimates show methanol is 30% cheaper and saving on an equivalent quantity of LPG is expected to be Rs 350. In contrast to the present cooking fuel, which is used in liquefied gas form, the methanol fuel will come in vapour form. Unlike LPG, which can explode if it combusts, the methanol canister will burn without explosion and will be safer. India’s LPG consumption stands at nearly 2 million tonnes per month and has been growing consistently in the past 56 months on the back of the government’s push for increasing access to LPG through the Pradhan Mantri Ujjwala Yojana. More than 70% of India’s demand is met through imports.
GoN agrees to review oil deal
Around six years since the Nagaland Petroleum & Natural Gas Regulations and Rules 2012 was enacted by the legislative assembly and around three years since the Gauhati High Court, Kohima Bench issued stay order against permit issued to Metropolitan Oil and Gas Private Limited (MOGPL) on a PIL filed by the Lotha Hoho, both state government (NPNG Board) and the Lotha Hoho appeared to have agreed to resolve contentious issues. In this regard, a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) was signed on November 20, 2018 between Lotha Hoho and Nagaland government represented by the NPNG board with certain terms and conditions to amend the Nagaland Petroleum and Natural Gas (NPNG) Regulations & Rules, 2012. As per the NPNG Regulations and Rules 2012, the state government set up the NPNG Board to monitor all activities related to oil and natural gas mining. The NPNG regulations stipulated a three-level committee: the first comprising state ministers; the second with senior bureaucrats; and the third with junior government officers, advisers and others. The issues raised in the PIL involved the controversial firm Metropolitan Oil and Gas Private Limited which bagged the lucrative oil zones in Wokha district. Other issues also included the fixing of 8% royalty in addition to other excise tax by the state government on the plea of sharing the revenue with non-oil bearing districts. The High court viewed that the source of power of the impugned permit in favour of MOGPL as “highly questionable, both legally and constitutionally and for which it felt, that the effect and operation of the said permit be kept in abeyance till the case was decided.
Hayleys Energy Services Commences Sri Lanka’s First Oil & Gas Drillship Lay-Up at Hambantota International
Hayleys Energy Services (HES), the pioneer in Oil and Gas support services in Sri Lanka, announced the arrival of the oil and gas drillship “Aban Abraham” for a warm lay-up to the Hambantota International Port, Sri Lanka. Aban Offshore Limited, the company that own the vessel, is India’s largest offshore drilling services provider to oil companies, providing drilling operations, production and exploratory work worldwide. Hayleys Energy Services, a subsidiary of Sri Lankan blue-chip conglomerate Hayleys PLC’s transportation and logistics arm – Hayleys Advantis Limited, had competed with several players from established lay-up service destinations in the region to win the country’s first ever drill ship lay-up project. Heralding Sri Lanka’s entry into the global oil and gas marine vessel lay-up services industry, this opens the doors to a world of new opportunities for the nation’s shipping industry. “Projects of this nature have a significant impact on the economy as a whole, creating business and employment opportunities beyond the enterprises directly involved in it. The leadership, commitment and world class facilities of the Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG) have been a key factor in the success of this project bid and will go a long way in helping us attract long-term businesses such as this,” said Ruwan Waidyaratne, Managing Director – Hayleys Advantis Limited. He went on to say, “Whilst commending the Hayleys Energy Services team for successfully competing with service providers from across the region and bagging this project, I look forward to seeing them expand their horizons and soar to greater heights.” Hayleys Energy Services has set up a permanent office within the Hambantota Port, at the 6th floor of the Sayurupaya Building, the first by an Oil & Gas Services company at this port, in light of this landmark project and the opportunities it is set to bring with it. Commenting about the initiative taken by Hayleys Energy Services, Saliya Wickramasuriya, Former Director General – Petroleum Resources Development Secretariat (PRDS) said, “Hambantota is an excellent location not just for a vehicle transhipment and break bulk hub, but also for a potential regional service and repair centre for the South Asian Oil & Gas industry. My congratulations to Hayleys Energy Services, long time partners with the PRDS in petroleum exploration and production, for kicking this concept off by bringing the drillship Aban Abraham to the port for long-term lay-up and refurbishment. This new area of business for Sri Lanka will help unlock the port’s full potential and no doubt increase employment and knowledge transfer opportunities for the people of Hambantota in the future.” Meanwhile, Chas Charles, Director / Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Hayleys Energy Services said, “Having offered an extensive range of end-to-end logistics services for the Oil and Gas industry for over 10 years, we are excited to enter the lay-up services domain with this project, the first for a Sri Lankan company. This is indeed a proud moment for the entire Sri Lankan shipping industry.” The Aban Abraham had called on the Hambantota International Port recently after completing a long drilling assignment in India. The almost 160 meters long vessel is capable of drilling at depths of up to 6,600 feet and has a drilling depth capacity of up to 24,600 feet. It is to be docked at the Port for a minimum of six months, during which lay-up support services and vessel preservation, husbandry, bunkering, crew management and several other marine services will be provided by Hayleys Energy Services. “We are delighted to have been chosen for this project and would like to thank the management of Aban Offshore Ltd for placing their trust in us. This is indeed a reflection of our team’s knowledge, expertise and service commitment in the Oil & Gas domain. Having delivered complex integrated logistics services for several Oil and Gas projects, we look forward to completing a safe and efficient project by assisting Aban in their lay-up and preservation of the drillship Aban Abraham at Hambantota International Port, Sri Lanka” said Ricky Barnett, General Manager, Hayleys Energy Services. “We would also like to express our sincere appreciation to all stakeholders including the port’s managers – Hambantota International Port Group (HIPG / HIPS), Sri Lanka Immigration & Emigration Department, Sri Lanka Customs, Sri Lanka Navy and Sri Lanka Ports Authority for their continued support in making this historic project possible.” Earlier this year, the company successfully completed two projects at the Trincomalee Port Anchorage – the offloading of the Semi-Submersible oil rig, Olinda Star and provision of agency services to the heavy lift carrier “GPO Grace” dry towing the Semi-Submersible oil rig “Louisiana” and they also went on to provide offshore ship to ship supplies/logistics services for Transocean Drillship “Dhirubhai Deepwater KG1” at the Colombo Port Anchorage. Hayleys Energy Services is a subsidiary of Hayleys Advantis Limited, the transportation and logistics arm of Hayleys PLC. Through the wider logistics offering of Hayleys Advantis Limited, the Group caters to diverse logistics needs of its clientele. The company has provided logistics & support services for several projects in the Oil & Gas sector both locally and internationally including supply base management services, seismic and metocean surveys, exploratory drilling, rig repairs & servicing, duty free storage of drill rigs
Foresight Int’l to invest $500 mn in LNG transportation
London-based shipping-to-retailing conglomerate Foresight Group International plans to invest $500 million in India across offshore drilling, shipping, port and LNG sectors over the next five years. The family trust-owned group is committed to a long term purpose and will be making investments across various sectors in India with a long-term growth perspective, a communiqué issued by the group maintained on Thursday. India always had great prospects in terms of the LNG and port sectors since before Independence. We have previously made an investment of around $350 million in cyber rigs which are working with ONGC and $30 million in Pavers England branded retail, Group’s joint venture with Pavers Limited UK which was India’s number one FDI for single brand retail.
Reliance’s Nov oil imports down 9 per cent from Oct: Trade sources
India’s Reliance Industries, owner of the world’s biggest refining complex, imported nearly 9 percent less oil in November compared with October and did not purchase Iranian oil, according to data from shipping and industry sources. The sources declined to be identified as they were not authorised to speak to the media. Sources previously told Reuters that Reliance would halt imports of Iranian oil from November to protect its wider exposure to the U.S. economy. The private refiner shipped in about 23 percent of its oil imports from Latin America in November, compared with about 37 percent in September, while the share of Middle East grades in its overall purchases rose sharply to 71 percent, driven by higher purchase of Iraqi oil, from 40 percent. The share of African grades in its overall purchases shrank to just about 4 percent from 16 percent same month last year.
Hungary looks at Cyprus gas to diversity energy supply
Hungary’s foreign minister says Cyprus’ offshore gas deposits could become an alternative energy source for his country, which is seeking to diversify its natural gas supply beyond Russia in order to bolster its energy security. Peter Szijjarto says Hungary “constantly seeks alternative solutions” and that his country considers as “realistic” the supply of gas from Cyprus’ Aphrodite offshore deposit. He said an agreement signed with his Cypriot counterpart Friday will ready the groundwork for Cypriot gas “over the medium term to play a role” in the energy supply of central Europe. Szijjarto also said that Hungary is willing to share its advanced technological know-know with Cyprus in order to help the east Mediterranean island nation with its water shortage problems.
Baker Hughes Things are looking good for oil, but headwinds building up too
Crude prices rallied before the end of the week and gained 5 per cent in reaction to the new production cut agreement. LAst week, OPEC announced that it will reduce overall production among its members by 1.2 million bpd during the first six months of 2019 in an effort to stave off a global glut in supplies and prop up prices. The recent decline in crude prices sparked jitters as international trade relations between China and the US escalated and raised concerns about demand for oil. Market tension intensified after the arrest of Huawei Technologies’s chief financial officer, Meng Wanzhou, in Canada at the request of the US. OPEC meet OPEC-led group agreed to roll back output by 1.2 million bpd during first six months of 2019 against the expectations for a cut between 1 million and 1.4 million bpd. OPEC will curb output by 0.8 million bpd from October levels while non-OPEC allies contribute an additional 0.4 million bpd of cuts. A further breakdown shows Saudi Arabia will reduce its production down to about 10.7 million bpd in December and 10.2 million bpd in January. Russia is going to be responsible for cutting about 2,28,000 to 2,30,000 bpd. Inventory report For this week, data from EIA showed that inventories fell by 7.3 million barrels for the week against the expectations for a decline of 2.39 million barrels. This was the first reported draw in 11 weeks. EIA reported a rise in gasoline stockpiles by 1.7 million barrels against the expectations for an increase of 3,57,000 barrels while distillate stockpiles climbed by 3.8 million barrels against an expectation of 1.25 million barrel build-up in inventories. Offering a hint on US production activity, Baker Hughes reported that the number of active domestic rigs drilling for oil fell by 10 to 877. US exports and imports For this month, the major factor that added pressure to the bearish momentum was data which showed that the US became a net oil exporter last week for the first time in 75 years. US crude oil exports surged to record high of 3.203 million bpd last week as oil production hit record highs. EIA data showed that US crude oil production kept at a record 11.7 million bpd throughout November, which was more than what each of Russia and Saudi Arabia pumped in November, although the Saudis are also expected to have reached record highs in their production last month. Demand China, the world’s biggest oil importer, over the weekend reported an annualised 8.5 per cent jump in November crude imports, to 10.43 million bpd, marking the first time when China imported more than 10 million bpd. That leaves the world’s second-biggest economy on track to set yet another annual import record. The country’s crude imports in November totalled 42.87 million mt, up 10.3 per cent from 38.88 million mt in October. This has supported prices as the increase in imports reduces the fear of slowdown in global demand. Natural Gas Natural gas price moved higher following a drop in the wake of the EIA estimate of stockpiles. The EIA storage report showed a 63 bcf withdrawal from storage stocks during the week-ending November 30. Demand in the US fell in the latest week as LNG exports continue to rise. China has now become the largest importer of natural gas, and a trade agreement would go a long way towards increasing US exports. Total US consumption of natural gas fell by 1 per cent compared with the previous week. Prices remain supported after a strong cold weather forecast for the next week followed by higher demand for natural gas. Conclusion The current trend for crude remains positive and the markets can get an additional boost from a weaker dollar, which could drive up foreign demand for US crude. However, gains could be capped by concerns over a slowing global economy, worries over a potential escalation in the US-China trade dispute and stock market weakness and volatility. Market players will also focus on monthly reports from OPEC and the IEA this week to assess global oil supply and demand levels. We expect crude to trade in a broad range of $50-56 for WTI.
Singapore’s petroleum company Coastal Oil to exit market
Singapore petroleum company Coastal Oil Singapore Pte Ltd has entered liquidation as of Dec. 13, according to the Accounting and Corporate Regulatory Authority. The company has decided to wind up but no other information was available. Coastal Oil declined to comment when contacted. Coastal Oil is a subsidiary of Hong Kong-incorporated Coastal Holdings and handles cargo trading, global oil product supply and blending, according to company website.