DGH Interactive Session for Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016 in Calgary
The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons organized an interactive session at Calgary, Alberta on 18th July 2016 for Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016 to facilitate interactions between the Government of India and Industry Leaders, and to promote investment in the energy sector of India. Many distinguished officials from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), Government of India (GoI), top business leaders, and various international and national media houses were present at the session. The interactive session was organized at The Westin, Calgary to showcase and invite prospective bidders for the Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016, which was launched on 25th May 2016 in New Delhi, India and was followed up by the subsequent shows at Mumbai and Guwahati in India and recently in Houston, Texas. The Government of India has introduced the Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016, under which it is offering 46 Contract Areas consisting of 67 different small fields across 9 sedimentary basins, estimated to hold over 625 Million Barrels of Oil and Oil Equivalent Gas in-place, spread over 1,500 square kilometres in Onland, Shallow water and Deepwater areas, for extraction and exploration of oil and gas. Bids are being invited by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) to develop and monetize these contract areas. Currently, India is the fastest growing large economy in the world, clocking a GDP of 7.6% in FY 2015-16. Along with the growing economy, the demand for energy has also risen dramatically over the past few years, which is majorly met by imports, and is expected to increase even further in the future. As stated by Mr. K D Tripathi, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the government aims to reduce energy import dependency by 10%. This can be done by tapping on the hydrocarbon resource available and increasing the oil and gas production. Joint Secretary, MoPNG, Mr. Amar Nath, informed that that this is a great opportunity to invest in the E & P sector in India especially considering the new policy regime under which the bid round is being held. Mr. Matthew Machielse, Asst. Deputy Minister, Ministry of Economic Development, Government of Alberta shared message on behalf of Premier, Govt. of Alberta and highlighted that there are significant opportunities for increasing trade between India and Alberta. Rajib Chander, Counsel General of India in Vancouver highlighted that energy has always been a focus for co-operation between India and Canada and that while, the trade between the two countries has grown over time, there are significant opportunities for furthering the trade relations. The session involved screening a film on Oil and Gas Industry of India, which highlighted the evolution of oil and gas sector and presented key statistics of the sector. Nilaya Varma, Partner with KPMG in India gave a detailed presentation on Indian economy with a focus on oil and gas sector in India. This was followed up by sharing of experiences by Mr. Stephen Beatty (Partner with KPMG Canada), Mr. Mayank Ashar (Leading oil and gas expert) and Mr. Sastry Karra (Director, Simorgh Energy) on Doing Business in India. Ms. Rachel Calvert from IHS gave a Presentation on Risk Rating of India. She highlighted that India was a very lucrative market in the Oil and Gas space and would continue to have a strong potential with further development. A presentation was given by Mr. Atanu Chakraborty, Director General, DGH to highlight the features of the Discovered Small Field Round along with the details of the contract areas on offer and the bidding timelines. To discuss the Taxation Regime in India, Ms. Neetu Vinayek (Partner, KPMG India) highlighted the specific provisions of the laws relating to income tax, customs duty, cess, royalty and license/lease fees as applicable to activities connected with the extraction or production of petroleum in the upstream sector. Sengupta from ONGC India informed the participants on the infrastructure and facilities available near the offered fields too. Mr. K.D. Tripathi, as part of his plenary address, informed the most important feature of the bid round that all the fields on offer are already discovered, which mitigates the risks associated in exploration. He highlighted that DGH has set up a facilitation cell to address investor queries. He also informed that he would be available at all times to provide assistance to the investors, especially in cases of difficulties faced by them. In the afternoon, a roundtable conference was conducted with select delegates to discuss and answer key queries on the Discovered Small Field Bid Round 2016. A physical data center, providing access to 2D and 3D seismic data, well logs etc., was launched in the evening by the Secretary, MoPNG. The GoI delegation informed the participants that they look forward to foster harmonious collaborations with the industry to help in taking the E&P reform process forward by facilitating the bidders at every step towards monetization of these discovered small fields. Kelvin Herrera Womens Jersey
Turkmenistan names head of oil & gas construction concern
Myratgeldi Meredov has been appointed the chairman of Turkmenistan’s Turkmenneftegazstroy state oil and gas construction concern, according to a decree signed by Turkmen President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedov July 20. The subdivisions of the state concern are engaged in construction of oil and gas pipelines and development of oil and gas fields, reconstruction of oil processing facilities, as well as construction of reservoirs in Turkmenistan. Turkmenneftegazstroy has implemented the project for construction of the East-West pipeline – the longest pipeline stretching in the country’s territory. The pipeline was commissioned in December 2015. Moreover, the state concern started to construct the Turkmen section of the Turkmenistan-Afghanistan-Pakistan-India (TAPI) gas pipeline in December 2015. Turkmenistan ranks fourth in the world in terms of the volume of its natural gas reserves. Currently, the country exports gas to Chinese and Iranian markets. D’Onta Foreman Womens Jersey
Samsung Heavy linked to giant Indian FSRU contract
A report out by Seoul-based Hi Investment & Securities suggests Samsung Heavy Industries (SHI) is on the cusp of winning a giant FSRU project in India, worth more than $850m. Fox Petroleum Group has tapped the South Korean builder to construct what would become Asia’s largest LNG import terminal with a gas storage capacity of 330,000 cu m in Karwar on India’s west coast. SHI, which has yet to confirm a single order this year and is now going through restructuring, has a lot on the table when it comes to India. It has formed a joint venture with India’s Cochin Shipyard in a bid to build a series of LNG carriers for GAIL, the giant Indian gas firm. SHI has also been selected as the builder of an LNG plant in Mozambique’s Rovuma Basin giving the yard hope that its barren order spell is coming to an end.
Directorate General of Hydrocarbons’ Interactive Session for Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016 in Calgary
The Directorate General of Hydrocarbons organized an interactive session at Calgary, Alberta on 18th July 2016 for ‘Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016’ to facilitate interactions between the Government of India and Industry Leaders, and to promote investment in the energy sector of India. Many distinguished officials from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas (MoPNG), Government of India (GoI), top business leaders, and various international and national media houses were present at the session. The interactive session was organized at The Westin, Calgary to showcase and invite prospective bidders for the Discovered Small Fields Bid Round 2016, which was launched on 25th May 2016 in New Delhi, India and was followed up by the subsequent shows at Mumbai and Guwahati in India and recently in Houston, Texas. The Government of India has introduced the Discovered Small Fields Bid Round – 2016, under which it is offering 46 Contract Areas consisting of 67 different small fields across 9 sedimentary basins, estimated to hold over 625 Million Barrels of Oil and Oil Equivalent Gas in-place, spread over 1,500 square kilometres in Onland, Shallow water and Deepwater areas, for extraction and exploration of oil and gas. Bids are being invited by the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons (DGH) to develop and monetize these contract areas. Currently, India is the fastest growing large economy in the world, clocking a GDP of 7.6% in FY 2015-16. Along with the growing economy, the demand for energy has also risen dramatically over the past few years, which is majorly met by imports, and is expected to increase even further in the future. As stated by Mr. K D Tripathi, Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas, the government aims to reduce energy import dependency by 10%. This can be done by tapping on the hydrocarbon resource available and increasing the oil and gas production. Joint Secretary, MoPNG, Mr. Amar Nath, informed that that this is a great opportunity to invest in the E & P sector in India especially considering the new policy regime under which the bid round is being held. Mr. Matthew Machielse, Asst. Deputy Minister, Ministry of Economic Development, Government of Alberta shared message on behalf of Premier, Govt. of Alberta and highlighted that there are significant opportunities for increasing trade between India and Alberta. Mr. Rajib Chander, Counsel General of India in Vancouver highlighted that energy has always been a focus for co-operation between India and Canada and that while, the trade between the two countries has grown over time, there are significant opportunities for furthering the trade relations. The session involved screening a film on Oil and Gas Industry of India, which highlighted the evolution of oil and gas sector and presented key statistics of the sector. Mr. Nilaya Varma, Partner with KPMG in India gave a detailed presentation on Indian economy with a focus on oil and gas sector in India. This was followed up by sharing of experiences by Mr. Stephen Beatty (Partner with KPMG Canada), Mr. Mayank Ashar (Leading oil and gas expert) and Mr. Sastry Karra (Director, Simorgh Energy) on Doing Business in India. Ms. Rachel Calvert from IHS gave a Presentation on Risk Rating of India. She highlighted that India was a very lucrative market in the Oil and Gas space and would continue to have a strong potential with further development. A presentation was given by Mr. Atanu Chakraborty, Director General, DGH to highlight the features of the Discovered Small Field Round along with the details of the contract areas on offer and the bidding timelines. To discuss the Taxation Regime in India, Ms. Neetu Vinayek (Partner, KPMG India) highlighted the specific provisions of the laws relating to income tax, customs duty, cess, royalty and license/lease fees as applicable to activities connected with the extraction or production of petroleum in the upstream sector. Mr. Sengupta from ONGC India informed the participants on the infrastructure and facilities available near the offered fields too. Mr. K.D. Tripathi, as part of his plenary address, informed the most important feature of the bid round that all the fields on offer are already discovered, which mitigates the risks associated in exploration. He highlighted that DGH has set up a facilitation cell to address investor queries. He also informed that he would be available at all times to provide assistance to the investors, especially in cases of difficulties faced by them. In the afternoon, a roundtable conference was conducted with select delegates to discuss and answer key queries on the Discovered Small Field Bid Round 2016. A physical data center, providing access to 2D and 3D seismic data, well logs etc., was launched in the evening by the Secretary, MoPNG. The GoI delegation informed the participants that they look forward to foster harmonious collaborations with the industry to help in taking the E&P reform process forward by facilitating the bidders at every step towards monetization of these discovered small fields. Antoine Roussel Authentic Jersey
MRPL Settles Half of Oil Debt to Iran: Report
Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Limited (MRPL) has cleared part of its outstanding oil dues to Tehran, a report said. MRPL which owed $ 2.56 billion to Iran since 2013 towards import of crude oil has so far paid $1.4 billion, The Hindu reported on Monday. The Indian-based oil company’s Managing Director H. Kumar said the payment was possible following the removal of anti-Tehran sanctions. Essar Oil, the top Indian buyer of Iranian oil, in June cleared $500 million of a debt owed to Tehran. On May 21, the Indian government paid the first part of its outstanding oil dues to Iran in euros through Turkey’s Halkbank. It was the first payment to Iran by India since the removal of the sanctions. However, Indian refiners later on June 9 announced that they had started to settle the rest of their debts to Iran via State Bank of India and Germany-based bank Europaeisch-Iranische Handelsbank AG (EIH). In addition to Essar Oil and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals Ltd, Indian Oil Corp owes $581 million to Iran. Also, HPCL-Mittal Energy Ltd (HMEL) has to pay $97 million and Hindustan Petroleum Corp owes $29 million. Keegan Kolesar Jersey
RIL refining margins up despite fall in regional benchmarks
Reliance Industries, owner of the world’s largest refining complex, reported improvement in refining margins during the April-June quarter despite a decline in regional benchmarks, Moody’s said. “RIL reported an EBITDA growth of 3 per cent during the quarter ended 30 June 2016. Improvement in earnings was aided by stronger gross refining margins (GRM) and higher product spreads in the petrochemical business,” it said. The company earned $11.5 on turning every barrel of crude oil into fuel compared to a GRM of $10.8 per barrel in the immediately preceding quarter while the Singapore benchmark slipped to $5 from $7.7 per barrel over the same period. “RIL’s GRM out-performed the regional benchmark by $6.5 a barrel during the quarter which was the highest in the last eight years,” Moody’s Investors Service said. The improvement in RIL’s gross refining margin was mainly attributable to the weakness in fuel oil cracks. A crack is the profit margin between the refined products (in this case fuel oil) and crude oil. Its Jamnagar refineries in Gujarat produces no or negligible amount of fuel oil as a result of which a weakness in fuel cracks is favorable for RIL’s refining margins. Improvement in gasoil cracks during the quarter also supported RIL’s GRMs. “We expect RIL’s GRM to improve by another $2 per barrel, once it completes its ongoing projects within the energy business by fiscal 2017 while the Singapore complex is expected to remain range bound within $5-6 over the next 4 -6 months,” Moody’s said. On a year-on-year basis, RIL reported an earnings growth of 17 per cent in April-June backed by earnings improvement in the refining and petrochemical segment. “As RIL continues to invest towards its ongoing projects in the energy and consumer businesses, borrowings remain on an uptrend,” it said adding the company’s net debt increased to Rs 959 billion as of June 2016 compared to Rs 904 billion in March 2016. Moody’s said it expects RIL’s credit metrics to improve once the ongoing projects are complete and start contributing to earnings over the next 12-18 months. “We expect fiscal 2018 to be the first full year for cash flows coming in from the next projects,” it said. RIL’s petrochemical business saw an earnings growth of 4 per cent during the June quarter. Improvement in earnings was attributable to increased polymer demand which boosted product deltas. Higher natural rubber prices led to increased demand for synthetic rubber which in turn led to higher elastomer. On a y-o-y basis, the petrochemical segment saw a 20 per cent growth in earnings backed by higher production volumes. “We expect earnings from the petrochemical segment to improve further as the company completes its ongoing expansion within the petrochemical segment over the next 12-18 months,” it added. Le’Veon Bell Womens Jersey
In a first, Iraq undercuts Saudi Arabia in Q2 to grab top spot in India oil market
Iraq overtook Saudi Arabia for the first time to become India’s top oil supplier in the June quarter, helped by sales of discounted heavy crude that refiners have also been using to make bitumen to build roads in the world’s No.3 oil consumer. State oil firm Saudi Aramco has traditionally been the main supplier to India and Riyadh could face pressure to deepen crude price cuts to regain market share, particularly ahead of the planned listing of Saudi Aramco. Iraqi oil accounted for about a fifth of Indian imports in the second quarter, up from 16 percent a year ago, according to trade sources and ship-tracking data compiled by Thomson Reuters Supply Chain & Commodities Research. The Saudi market share in India over the period fell to about 18 percent from a fifth last year, marking the first time Iraq has overtaken Saudi Arabia in an entire quarter. Facing inroads into its market shares, Saudi Aramco this month slashed the August official selling price (OSP) of its benchmark light crude grade to Asia by the most in nine months but analysts warned it may need to make deeper cuts. Saudi Aramco had been raising prices over the previous four months, leading some to believe that it was preparing to end an aggressive attempt to expand market share. “If Aramco wants to raise market share then it should strike long-term deals or offer crude at more attractive price than competitors,” said Ehsaan Ul Haq, a senior analyst at U.K.-based consultancy KBC Energy. OPEC’s top producer has lost ground in a number of major global markets including to Russia in China, and is also facing a further threat from Iran, which is ramping up exports after Western sanctions were removed. The drop in market share comes as the Kingdom prepares to list Saudi Aramco and other assets to raise tens of billions of dollars to help bridge a budget shortfall due to weak oil prices. ROAD CONSTRUCTION Iraq’s Basra Heavy crude grade has seen growing demand from Indian refiners since it was introduced last year. Many Indian refiners have the capability to process such heavier grades and it is also sold at a steep discount. In addition, Basra Heavy is also good for producing bitumen to be used for road construction. India aims to build about 40 kilometres (25 miles)of roads every day this fiscal year under Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s push to improve infrastructure. “When you compare it with other heavy rival grades it comes first in ranking,” said B. K. Namdeo, head of refineries at Hindustan Petroleum Corp, referring to Basra Heavy’s versatility and its price competitiveness. Demand for Basra, however, is likely to temporarily soften during the current monsoon season in India, when road construction slows and Namdeo said refineries could switch to competing grades like Murban and Arab Light. In the April-June quarter, India’s oil imports from Iraq rose by about 34 percent to 847,000 barrels per day (bpd), while those from Saudi Arabia fell to 768,000 bpd, the data showed. But in June alone, India’s oil imports from Iraq declined by about 13 percent from a year ago as Saudi Arabia regained its top spot in the month. Officials at Indian refineries said, however, loading problems had contributed to lower Iraqi oil imports and demand is expected to return after the monsoon ends in September. Dontari Poe Jersey
India, US agree to enhance cooperation on hydrocarbons, energy
Petroleum Minister, Dharmendra Pradhan, and US Secretary for Energy, Ernest Moniz, have agreed to enhance technical and institutional cooperation specific to hydrocarbons and energy. The two leaders met in Washington D.C. on Monday and agreed to cooperate on the assessment and reassessment of conventional and unconventional hydrocarbon reserves in India, new technologies of biofuel and development of petroleum storage. “Over the last decade, several areas of interest for cooperation including technology for production from marginal fields, shale structures, developing gas pipeline networks and improving refinery efficiency have been identified. During the meeting yesterday, the two ministers agreed that there is a need for regular meetings of officials and experts from both sides,” an official statement from the Ministry of Petroleum and Natural Gas said. Paul Richardson Jersey
Militants attack state-run Nigerian oil pipeline
Militants in Nigeria have attacked a crude oil pipeline on the outskirts of Warri, a city in the Niger Delta, which is operated by a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), a community leader said on Monday. Militants calling for a greater share of Nigeria’s energy wealth to go to the impoverished Delta area have carried out attacks oil and gas facilities in the southern region over the last few months. Two blasts were heard on the Pipelines and Product Marketing Company (PPMC) line Sunday night, said Batan community chairman Ogugu Dickson. A security source also said there had been blasts in the town of Batan. “This morning I and some PPMC workers, and security agents, were at the site. All we could see was a huge bubble (of oil) on the surface of the river,” said Dickson. Oil facilities in Batan have been hit in the last few months. NNPC could not immediately be reached for comment. No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Attacks in the Niger Delta briefly pushed the country’s oil production to 30-year lows in spring. Bo Jackson Authentic Jersey
Ending support to high-income customers: LPG subsidy cut off to 7 lakh consumers
More than 7 lakh customers with above Rs 10 lakh annual income have so far been identified and stopped from availing of cooking gas subsidy under the government programme to end state support to high-income consumers, officials said. Since the beginning of 2016, those who earn a taxable annual income of overRs 10 lakh, or have a spouse with that income, must pay market price for cooking gas. For continuing to receive the subsidy, every consumer has to submit an affidavit to the gas agency, declaring the annual income to be lower than Rs 10 lakh. The government database of income tax payers and declarations by consumers have been used to block subsidy to these consumers, officials and state oil firms’ executive said, adding that the higher-income category may have about 20 lakh consumers. Recently, the government has also allowed oil companies to increase the price of cooking gas by Rs 2 per cylinder, indicating its determination to reduce the subsidy bill. This is in addition to the decision to raise 25 paise per litre on kerosene a month for ten months. All these steps are part of the government’s larger drive to shrink petroleum subsidy and keep it targeted towards those who can’t afford to pay the market price for fuel. An oil price crash in the last two years has also aided the government effort to curb subsidy. By directly transferring subsidy to cooking gas consumers’ account, the state oil companies have been able to weed out about 3.25 crore duplicate or inactive consumers, enlarging subsidy saving. A little more than 1 crore consumers have also given up subsidy voluntarily, although they can claim it back after a year of surrender. As a result, the cooking gas subsidy fell sharply to Rs 27,571 crore in 2015-16 from Rs 76,285 crore in the previous year. For July, the cash transfer to a customer under direct benefit transfer scheme will be Rs 116.34 per cylinder. Milan Lucic Womens Jersey