Now IOC targets clothes ironing shops with gas iron boxes
Energy major Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) is now looking at newer market segments with products like gas-powered iron boxes for neighbourhood launderers, value-added gas for metal cutting units and bigger gas cylinders for rice mills, food factories and hotels, said a senior official. The company has got a big order for its Indane Nanocut-specialised LPG for cutting metals from integrated lignite mining-cum-power generation company NLC India Ltd. “One of the new market segments we are tapping is the neighbourhood laundry units with our gas powered iron boxes. We are offering LPG in various capacities from 5 kg cylinders to 425 kg cylinders for different kind of users ranging from mobile food vendors to big food factories and hotels,” R. Sitharthan, Executive Director, Tamil Nadu and Puducherry told IANS. He said the IOC will soon launch its liquified petroleum gas (LPG) powered iron boxes which works out economical and also a healthy option for launderers as compared to charcoal and electricity powered iron boxes. “The LPG iron boxes weighs almost the same as the traditional coal fired iron boxes- about six kg and costs about Rs 7,000. But the startup time is far shorter – two minutes- as compared to about 45 minutes in the case of coal fired ones. The costs works out to just about fifty paise per cloth whereas it is about Re 1 and Rs 2 for coal and steam powered iron boxes respectively,” Sitharthan said. Further the gas iron boxes are environment friendly owing to low carbon emissions and is also healthy option for the users. That apart, there is no risk of damage to clothes due to coal sparks, he added. “Launderers can use five kg or 19 kg LPG cylinders,” he said. The oil and gas company is selling its innovative Indane Nanocut gas cylinders to units where metal cutting is involved. “We are now selling about 18 tons per month of Indane Nanocut in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry. We have recently got a trial order from NLC India for 240 cylinders. The order value is about Rs 36 lakh,” Sitharthan said. On the sales of jumbo LPG cyclinders weighing about 425 kg Sitharthan said the company is targeting food factories and hotels as it would replace a battery of small cylinders and free up costly space. He said IOC is looking at new clients for its jumbo LPG cylinders as well as converting its existing ones. According to Sitharthan, a big biscuit unit and couple of rice mills in Tamil Nadu have opted for LPG fuel. Customer Service Womens Jersey
Shell recovers most oil from Nigerian spills, pipeline still shut
Royal Dutch Shell’s Nigerian subsidiary has recovered more than 95 per cent of the oil from two spills that took place this year, although the pipeline that carries crude to the coast for export remains closed, the company said on Monday. The Trans Ramos pipeline, which carries some Forcados crude oil to the export terminal of the same name, closed in late April following two leaks, one in Abhoro in Bayelsa State and one in Odimodi, in Delta State. A spokesman for Shell said there had been no change in the operating status of the pipeline. “As soon as clean-up and site assessment are completed, we are committed to starting the immediate remediation of the impacted areas in Aghoro and Odimodi,” Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Ltd said in a statement. The Forcados grade, along with Bonny Light and Qua Iboe, is one of Nigeria’s three largest crude streams. Montee Ball Womens Jersey
Poland and Germany disagree over planned Russian gas pipeline
Poland, unlike Germany, strongly opposes Russia’s plan to build a new gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea, and shares U.S. opinion that the project would help strengthen Moscow’s market position, Polish foreign minister Jacek Czaputowicz said. Berlin has given political support to the building of a new, $11 billion pipeline to bring Russian gas across the Baltic Sea called Nord Stream 2, bypassing traditional routes through Ukraine, despite qualms among other EU states. In July U.S. President Donald Trump publicly criticised Germany for supporting the pipeline deal with Russia. “I would like to underline that Poland’s stance differs here from the German one. We see this dispute as an existing one between the U.S. and Germany,” Czaputowicz said at a joint statement with his German counterpart Heiko Maas. Poland buys most of the gas it consumes from Russia but has taken steps to reduce that reliance. “In this U.S.-Germany dispute we are at the U.S. side, as its arguments are more convincing and besides, we have raised them before,” Czaputowicz also said in a broadcast speech. He reiterated Poland’s concerns that Nord Stream 2 was a harmful and political project that will strengthen Russia’s dominant position in the gas market and be a threat to Ukraine. “I know about these objections but the German government does not share them,” Maas said. The foreign ministers spoke in Harmeze, south of Poland, near the Auschwitz Nazi death camp, which Maas visited earlier on Monday. Keith Magnuson Womens Jersey
Vedanta to invest $2.3 billion in ‘near term’ on oil and gas
Vedanta Limited has said it will be investing USD 2.3 billion towards capital expenditure on its oil and gas activities in the “near term” to increase the reserve base by around 375 million barrels. According to its latest annual report, Vedanta aims to increase production from the current 200,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to 300,000 Barrels of oil equivalent per day (boepd), over the next few years. “In the near-term, we are investing gross capex of USD 2.3 billion to increase our resource and reserve base by around 375 million barrels. Our rich project portfolio is comprised of enhanced oil recovery projects, tight oil and gas projects and exploration prospects. As well as boosting production, this investment will generate sustainable employment opportunities, directly and indirectly, and bring cutting-edge solutions to community needs,” the metals and mining giant said. For FY2019, it expects to achieve a significant growth in production with total volumes in the range of 220-250 kboepd through executing growth projects, with opex of sub-USD 7/boe (Barrel of Equivalent). “We estimate the net capex commitment at USD 600-800 million (for FY 19),” it said. Kuldip Kaura, Chief Executive Officer of Vedanta, said the company’s vision was to contribute 50 per cent of the country’s domestic crude oil production by increasing their gross production to 500,000 boepd. “Working towards this goal, we announced growth projects, including Enhanced Oil Recovery (EOR), tight oil and gas projects, upgrade of liquid handling facilities and exploration, for which key contracts have been awarded to world-class partners. These projects, along with an exit run rate of 200,000 boepd in March 2018, will pave the way to achieve 300,000 boepd in the near-term and 500,000 boepd in the medium-term,” he said. As the largest private sector producer of crude oil in India, and with a strong track record and growth pipeline in exploration and development, Vedanta is well positioned to benefit from the Governments desire to boost domestic production and to leverage Indias oil and gas resource potential, it said. Vedanta had recently bid for all 55 blocks on offer in the first round of oil and gas auctions under the Open Acreage Licensing Policy (OALP) auction. The Anil Agarwal-led Vedanta is likely to bag as many as 40 oil and gas exploration blocks in India’s maiden open acreage auction, official sources had earlier said. Joshua Dobbs Womens Jersey
Oil Prices are down, prices at pumps aren’t!
It’s not just a looming global trade war. As I’ve written, not only will tariffs and retaliatory measures stifle the activity that normally stokes consumption, they’ll squeeze economies everywhere. That’s a good way to stifle demand. But that’s not the only problem the market faces. Recovering oil prices and weaker emerging-market currencies have combined to hit consumers’ pockets. The result could be a significant slowdown in the very countries expected to be the powerhouses of global growth. And this adds up to another reason for thinking growth in demand for oil is set to cool. Although dollar-denominated crude prices are currently around 40 percent below their level just before the 2014 price crash, the same is not true of retail gasoline or diesel prices, not even in the U.S. American average premium gasoline prices peaked in June 2014 at a little over $4 a gallon before sliding below $2.50 in early 2015 and as low as $2.20 a year later. But since then they have staged a steady recovery, coming within a whisker of $3.50 in the run-up to this summer’s driving season. That was enough to prompt angry tweets from President Donald Trump and promises from Saudi Arabia and its allies in OPEC, as well as from Russia, to boost oil supply. And though crude prices reacted sharply, gas prices eased only a little, remaining around $3.40 a gallon through the height of the driving season. The highest summer gas prices in four years have hit demand, and the picture has shifted from one of strong growth in the first three months of the year to a much more ambiguous picture in the second and third quarters. The more-accurate, though less-timely monthly numbers from the Department of Energy bolster this view. Stubbornly high gas prices have darkened the outlook for U.S. demand. Elsewhere, the headwinds are even stronger. Here, the strengthening greenback has made oil more expensive when converted into local currencies. The knock-on effect on pump prices has been dramatic. In China, motorists never saw the full benefit of lower crude prices passing through to the pump. Though the international market dropped by more than 70 percent from mid-2014 to 2016, retail gasoline prices in Beijing fell by about a quarter. And while crude is still down around 35 percent from pre-crash levels, gasoline prices are back close to where they were at that time. The International Energy Agency says China’s gasoline consumption in the second quarter dropped by 200,000 barrels a day, or around 7 percent, compared with the same period last year. Demand could continue to shrink, with rising sales of alternative-fuel vehicles and the growing popularity of bike-sharing arrangements for short-distance travel both denting demand for gasoline, according to Bloomberg Intelligence. In India, drivers have been hit even harder. Here, retail gasoline prices are around 8 percent higher than they were in June 2014. Rising vehicle sales and steady economic growth are helping to underpin Indian gasoline demand, according to OPEC. But the IEA notes that year-on-year growth rates in 2018 have been flattered by comparisons with weakness in 2017, which resulted from demonetization and the introduction of a new tax. The agency already sees growth slowing next year. That doesn’t bode well for global demand, given that India has overtaken China as the world’s fastest-growing oil market. The market has plenty of support on the supply side, from renewed sanctions on Iran to the continuing slide in Venezuelan production, uncertain stability in Libya, and an erosion of the world’s spare production capacity. With all these factors coming alongside solid growth in consumption, oil prices would be pretty well underpinned. But cracks in demand are starting to appear. Pat Tillman Authentic Jersey
Hoegh LNG to supply floating LNG terminal to Australian import project
Norway’s Hoegh LNG has won a tender to supply a floating LNG import terminal for a consortium aiming to import liquefied natural gas to Australia’s east coast from 2020 in a push to boost local supply. Australian Industrial Energy, a consortium that includes Japan’s JERA and Marubeni Corp, said on Monday it signed an agreement giving it the right to lease one of Hoegh LNG’s floating storage and regasification units (FSRU), to be docked at Port Kembla. The project needs approvals from the state of New South Wales, which is evaluating the proposal on a fast track as “critical state significant infrastructure”, amid pressure to drive down gas prices. “We remain on schedule to deliver gas to our industrial customers during early 2020,” Australian Industrial Energy (AIE) Chief Executive James Baulderstone said in a statement. Wholesale gas prices have nearly tripled over the past two years following the opening of three LNG export plants on Australia’s east coast that have sucked gas out of the domestic market. To help fill the supply gap, Australian Industrial Energy (AIE) and AGL Energy have advanced plans to import LNG. ExxonMobil Corp, the dominant gas supplier to the southeastern market over the past several decades from gas fields in the Bass Strait, and a private firm are also considering importing LNG from around 2021 or 2022. The gas import projects are moving ahead as politicians wrangle over an energy policy that was meant to end a decade of climate wars but looks set to fall apart amid leadership tension ahead of a federal election. Patric Hornqvist Jersey
GAIL awards contract for 108 km of Barauni-Guwahati gas pipeline
GAIL (India) Limited has awarded the first contract for purchase of 108 km 24-inch diameter line pipes under the Barauni-Guwahati segment of the Jagdishpur-Haldia and Bokaro-Dhamra Natural Gas Pipeline (JHBDPL) project. The contract for purchase of line pipes of 108 km was awarded to M/s Ratnamani at a total cost of Rs 125 crore. Line pipe procurement activities for the rest of the 600 km trunkline up to Guwahati is at an advanced stage of tender process, a senior official of the M/s Ratnamani said on Thursday. The Barauni-Guwahati pipeline section executed on a capital outlay of Rs 3,300 crore is an integral part of the prestigious 3,405 km-long JHBDPL project, popularly known as ‘Pradhan Mantri Urja Ganga’, executed by GAIL, and envisages to connect eastern and north-eastern India to the existing natural gas grid. This project is planned to cover eastern Uttar Pradesh, Bihar, Jharkhand, West Bengal, Odisha and Assam. GAIL officials said that JHBDPL project is progressing in full swing and the first phase is scheduled for completion by December 2018. The project will usher industrial development in eastern part of India by supplying environmentally clean natural gas to fertilizer units, power plants, refineries, steel processing plants and other industries. It will also provide clean energy to households and transportation through the city gas distribution networks through the pipeline. City Gas distribution projects have been commissioned at Varanasi, Bhubaneswar and Cuttack while project activities are in progress at other cities of eastern India. Jaleel Scott Jersey
India bans petcoke import for use as fuel
India on Friday banned the import of petcoke for use as fuel, but said shipments for use as feedstock in some industries was allowed. Usage of petcoke, a dirtier alternative to coal, in the energy-hungry country has come under scrutiny due to rising pollution levels in major cities. “Import of Petcoke is allowed for only cement, lime kiln, calcium carbide and gasification industries, when used as the feedstock or in the manufacturing process on actual user condition,” the directorate general of foreign trade said. As the world’s largest consumer of petcoke, India imports over half its annual petcoke consumption of about 27 million tonnes, mainly from the United States. Local producers include Indian Oil Corp, Reliance Industries and Bharat Petroleum Corp. India is the world’s biggest consumer of petroleum coke, which is a dark solid carbon material that emits 11 per cent more greenhouse gases than coal, according to the Carnegie-Tsinghua Center for Global Policy. Gary Zimmerman Authentic Jersey
Sudan wants India’s ONGC Videsh to withdraw arbitration over oil payment dues
Sudan wants India’s ONGC Videsh Ltd (OVL) to withdraw arbitration proceedings against the African nation as it is making efforts to mitigate default on payment of dues, OVL said in a statement on Friday. OVL, the foreign acquisition unit of Oil and Natural Gas Corp’s (ONGC), filed an arbitration claim earlier this year against the government of Sudan in a London court seeking to recover dues pending for years from a project hit by the breakaway of South Sudan in 2011. Earlier this week, a Sudanese delegation including its finance and foreign affairs minister met ONGC officials seeking withdrawal of the arbitration proceedings. OVL, however, said it would continue with the arbitration process and work simultaneously with Sudan to find out a suitable mechanism of resolving the issues. At the centre of the dispute is ONGC’s 25 percent stake that the company had acquired in the Greater Nile Oil Project (GNOP) in Sudan in 2003. Other stakeholders include China’s China National Petroleum Corp with a 40 percent stake and Malaysia’s Petronas with a 30 percent share. Will Clark Womens Jersey
India to test gas-fired plants as ‘peakers’ to smooth power grid
India will test a plan to operate its underutilized natural gas-fired power generators as “peaker” plants that can switch on quickly when there’s high demand, according to the country’s power planning body. The project will start with four NTPC Ltd. plants with a combined capacity of 2.3 gigawatts that will run only in the evenings, Central Electricity Authority Chairman Pankaj Batra said in New Delhi. The agency envisions 20 gigawatts of gas-fired capacity being used as peaking stations to even out supply fluctuations from the large amount of renewable energy that’s set be built by 2022, he said. “The government will start testing the plan this month by operating one of NTPC’s gas-based power plants as a peaking station” for nearly four hours in the evening, Batra said in an interview last week, adding that the three other plants will be online by the end of the year. State-owned GAIL India Ltd. has agreed to supply gas to the four plants, he said. India has an ambitious goal of installing 175 gigawatts of renewable energy by 2022, or a little more than the country’s current peak demand, as part of its Paris climate pledge to cut carbon emissions. Gas-fired power plants can play a role balancing the grid by maintaining uninterrupted electricity supply, especially when solar-fired generation peters out in the evenings and coal plants take time to ramp up. The gas facilities will be run on fuel produced in India, which is in short supply, and running them as peakers will optimize use of the fuel, Batra said. A shortage of domestic gas has kept the utilization of India’s 25 gigawatts of gas-fired plants at about a fifth of total capacity, according to CEA data. The cost of gas imports for India makes the fuel uncompetitive with other sources of baseload power. Chris Long Authentic Jersey