Thursday, September 6, 2012
Ethemba to buy 45% interest in Avgol
UK-based Ethemba will buy 45% interest in Avgol held by Israel Petrochemical Enterprises (IPE) for a consideration of $106.8m, following the approval from IPE’s board of directors.
IPE plans to use the sales proceeds to clear its $500m debt. It will also get a payment of $16m depending upon next year's financial results, reported Platts.
The Israeli company will retain 21% interest in Avgol and the remaining will be traded on Tel Aviv Stock Exchange.
IPE has plans to invest about $71m in new production lines in China and the US, and expand business into India.
Ethemba is a private equity firm based in London, while Avgol Nonwoven Industries is a manufacturer and supplier of ultra lightweight and top quality nonwoven fabrics.
Ecopetrol discovers new oil field
Thursday, June 28, 2012
MHB Awarded RM278 Million F14/F29 Topsides, Substructure And Process Module Contract By Shell
Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Holdings Berhad (“MHB”) announces that its wholly
owned subsidiary, Malaysia Marine and Heavy Engineering Sdn Bhd, has successfully bidded for the F14/F29 project award which comprises three (3) structures by Sarawak Shell Berhad (“SSB”). The combined contract value of the project is RM278 million.
Mr. Dominique de Soras, Managing Director & Chief Executive Officer of MHB shared, “We are honoured to be awarded another project by a member company of Shell. With the addition of F14/F29 topsides, substructure and process module contract, MHB would have two projects being fabricated simultaneously at our MMHE West Yard – the other being the Gumusut-Kakap Floating Production System. The F14/F29 would enhance the production of gas in Sarawak as these structures would be installed at gas field located at a water depth of about 320 feet when they are completed in about a year’s time.”
Tuesday, March 6, 2012
Remarkable Output Proven at Donggi 6
JAKARTA: PT Pertamina EP has proved successfully success reserves in well of Donggi 6, Central Sulawesi with output more than 17 Million Metric Standard Cubic Feet per Day after undergoing an output test in the well.
President Director of Pertamina EP Syamsu Alam revealed the management is more optimistic to start distributing the gas from the structure of Donggi in the fourth quarter of 2014. Donggi site having 8 wells is a part of gas development project of Matindok.
"We are grateful that the success of Donggi-6 has added the success record of Pertamina EP after proving the gas and oil reserves in the first two months in 2012. the success has strengthened the optimism of Pertamina EP in achieving the target of gas distribution from Donggi’s structure in the fourth quarter of 2014,” he said in a press conference yesterday.
President Director of Pertamina EP Syamsu Alam revealed the management is more optimistic to start distributing the gas from the structure of Donggi in the fourth quarter of 2014. Donggi site having 8 wells is a part of gas development project of Matindok.
"We are grateful that the success of Donggi-6 has added the success record of Pertamina EP after proving the gas and oil reserves in the first two months in 2012. the success has strengthened the optimism of Pertamina EP in achieving the target of gas distribution from Donggi’s structure in the fourth quarter of 2014,” he said in a press conference yesterday.
Monday, February 6, 2012
Shell Looking to Cash in on PetroChina’s Quest for Shale Gas
China, with an 1,275 trillion cubic feet (tcf) of technically recoverable shale gas resources, is certainly not short of supply, but what it does lack is the technology and know-how to extract the hard to reach gas from the country’s complex shale formations.
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It has tasked its three major state-owned oil and gas companies: PetroChina, Sinopec Corp. (NYSE:SHI), and CNOOC Ltd.(NYSE:CEO), with acquiring the requisite expertise in shale development from foreign operators to unlock their vast domestic reserves.
And PetroChina, the listed arm of state-run China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) and the largest downstream operator of the three, has increasingly been turning to Shell to achieve this.
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It has tasked its three major state-owned oil and gas companies: PetroChina, Sinopec Corp. (NYSE:SHI), and CNOOC Ltd.(NYSE:CEO), with acquiring the requisite expertise in shale development from foreign operators to unlock their vast domestic reserves.
And PetroChina, the listed arm of state-run China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) and the largest downstream operator of the three, has increasingly been turning to Shell to achieve this.
More environmental rules needed for shale gas, says Stanford geophysicist
The topic is controversial. Breaking up rock layers thousands of feet underground with hydraulic fracturing has unleashed so many minuscule bubbles of methane that shale gas now accounts for 30 percent of U.S. gas production, an increase in supply that has pummeled the commodity's price. The gas industry will support more than 600,000 jobs by the end of the decade, Obama said.
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But environmental concerns about the technology behind the boom – specifically hydraulic fracturing – receive near daily news coverage, with opponents saying that toxic additives in the water used for the fracturing have found their way into household tap water, among other concerns.
Obama said natural gas producers will have to disclose the chemicals they add to the fracturing slurry of water and sand when they are working on federal lands. The Secretary of Energy's seven-person advisory group on shale gas, of which Zoback was a member, called for such disclosure by shale gas operators on all lands. The advisory group further recommended that data on a well-by-well basis be posted on publicly available, searchable websites.
Saturday, June 18, 2011
Canada’s Oil Deals Falling Most Since 2003 as Crude Rallies
Purchases of Canadian energy companies and assets are slackening as crude hovers near $100 a barrel and natural gas languishes after a three-year rout.
The gain in oil has made prices for oil reserves more expensive, limiting potential buyers, while analysts forecast natural gas will stay below $6 per million British thermal units for the next three years, less than half the July 2008 peak. A total of 231 million barrels of oil and gas reserves have been sold this year through May 18, less than half the 482 million barrels in the same period in 2010, according to National Bank Financial Inc.
The value of oil and gas deals in Canada -- which rivals Mexico as the U.S.’s biggest foreign oil supplier -- plunged 35 percent to $11 billion through June 15, the biggest drop since 2003, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The merger slowdown, which also affects the U.S., is having a deeper impact in Canada because energy accounts for almost 7 percent of gross domestic product, according to the Energy Council of Canada.
“It’s a much more selective buyer and seller environment,” said Trevor Loose, an investment banker with National Bank in Calgary.
The energy industry represents 4.6 percent of the U.S. economy.
Gas prices are set to remain near record low levels for the coming years, making it difficult for companies to recoup their investments, especially for smaller companies, Loose said.
Crude Rises
Crude-oil futures touched a 31-month high of $114.83 a barrel on May 2 and have gained 24 percent in the past year. Oil for July delivery rose 0.2 percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas prices have fallen 1.8 percent this year and are about a third of their peak of $13.58 in July 2008.
Gains in the price of crude over the past 12 months followed by a recent decline have made “a few people nervous,” said Michael Black, a Calgary-based partner with law firm Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP who advises companies on energy deals.
“Demand growth in China and the U.S. is also uncertain and this helps pile on the negative views.” That may limit the potential for transactions this year, Black said.
Prices for oil assets in Alberta, Canada’s energy-rich province, have soared. The average price per acre has risen to C$3,110.85 from a previous high of C$2,185.03 in July 2010, the government said on June 1. Alberta sells leases to land to fossil-fuel developers.
PetroChina, Encana
The largest energy deal in Canada in 2011 has been PetroChina Co.’s acquisition of Encana Corp. (ECA)’s natural-gas assets in British Columbia’s Horn River region. Excluding the C$5.4 billion ($5.5 billion) deal announced in February, the overall value of transactions is down by a third, according to National Bank figures, compared with same period last year.
RBC Capital Markets leads banks working on Canadian oil and gas transactions this year, with 10 deals valued at $6.5 billion. That compares with $5.7 billion for Jefferies Group Inc., according to Bloomberg data.
While transactions have slowed, there are still several targets that may be attractive for potential buyers, said Chris Damas, a Barrie, Ontario-based analyst with BCMI Research. Takeover candidates include Meg Energy Corp., Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. and Nexen Inc. (NXY), he said.
“Nexen is a value play,” Damas said. “There is no significant shareholder and there would likely be no contest if someone stepped in to buy. It’s basically on sale.”
Patti Lewis, a Nexen spokeswoman, did not return calls from Bloomberg seeking comment.
Alberta’s Reserves
Nexen, valued at about C$10.8 billion, and partner Opti Canada Inc. (OPC) have failed to meet production targets at their Long Lake oil-sands project, the company has said, contributing to a 10 percent decline in Nexen’s shares this year.
While transactions have been slow this year, sales of oil and gas assets will likely attract foreign buyers in the coming years, Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert said in a May 17 interview in New York.
With 173 billion barrels of recoverable reserves of oil, the third-largest in the world after Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, Alberta offers access to energy resources on a scale not available anywhere else in the world, he said, even with higher extraction costs compared with conventional reserves.
“What you’re going to see is continued Asian investment partners,” Liepert said, referring to the PetroChina purchase of Encana assets.
Oil Sands
The Canadian Energy Research Institute expects Canada’s oil sands to attract C$2.08 trillion in investments over the next 25 years, making it the largest engineering undertaking on earth. Chinese investors may contribute significantly to that investment in the coming years, said Wenran Jiang, a University of Alberta professor and senior fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation.
“So far China’s overseas M&A investment has been really small,” Jiang said in an interview. “The Chinese would love to get into the Canadian energy market.” Though they’re “not willing to buy at any price.”
Encana and Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE) have both said they’re looking for partners to help develop their gas and oil resources. Cenovus, Canada’s fifth-largest energy company, is discussing partnership opportunities with companies from Asia, the U.S. and Canada for a deal worth “billions” of dollars, Chief Executive Officer Brian Ferguson said in an April 27 interview.
Total, Suncor
Total S.A. concluded an agreement worth C$1.75 billion in December with Suncor Energy Inc. to jointly develop bitumen reserves in Alberta.
“We need to share because it’s cheaper,” said Total S.A. Chief Executive Officer Christophe de Margerie in Calgary on May 19.
The partnership, which provides Europe’s third-biggest oil producer with 200,000 barrels per day of production by 2020, may be a harbinger of agreements between other companies.
Korea National Oil Corp. said March 21 it would pay $1.55 billion to Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) for a joint-venture stake in the Eagle Ford shale-rock formation in Texas.
On June 2, Petronas Nasional Bhd, Malaysia’s state-owned oil company, made its entry into Canada by agreeing to pay Progress Energy Resources Corp. (PRQ) as much as C$1.07 billion for stakes in natural-gas fields that may eventually be able to export the fuel to Asia.
Before deals pick up, oil prices may have to fall, said BCMI Research’s Damas. “Buyers need to see light at the end of the tunnel.”
The gain in oil has made prices for oil reserves more expensive, limiting potential buyers, while analysts forecast natural gas will stay below $6 per million British thermal units for the next three years, less than half the July 2008 peak. A total of 231 million barrels of oil and gas reserves have been sold this year through May 18, less than half the 482 million barrels in the same period in 2010, according to National Bank Financial Inc.
The value of oil and gas deals in Canada -- which rivals Mexico as the U.S.’s biggest foreign oil supplier -- plunged 35 percent to $11 billion through June 15, the biggest drop since 2003, data compiled by Bloomberg show. The merger slowdown, which also affects the U.S., is having a deeper impact in Canada because energy accounts for almost 7 percent of gross domestic product, according to the Energy Council of Canada.
“It’s a much more selective buyer and seller environment,” said Trevor Loose, an investment banker with National Bank in Calgary.
The energy industry represents 4.6 percent of the U.S. economy.
Gas prices are set to remain near record low levels for the coming years, making it difficult for companies to recoup their investments, especially for smaller companies, Loose said.
Crude Rises
Crude-oil futures touched a 31-month high of $114.83 a barrel on May 2 and have gained 24 percent in the past year. Oil for July delivery rose 0.2 percent on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Gas prices have fallen 1.8 percent this year and are about a third of their peak of $13.58 in July 2008.
Gains in the price of crude over the past 12 months followed by a recent decline have made “a few people nervous,” said Michael Black, a Calgary-based partner with law firm Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP who advises companies on energy deals.
“Demand growth in China and the U.S. is also uncertain and this helps pile on the negative views.” That may limit the potential for transactions this year, Black said.
Prices for oil assets in Alberta, Canada’s energy-rich province, have soared. The average price per acre has risen to C$3,110.85 from a previous high of C$2,185.03 in July 2010, the government said on June 1. Alberta sells leases to land to fossil-fuel developers.
PetroChina, Encana
The largest energy deal in Canada in 2011 has been PetroChina Co.’s acquisition of Encana Corp. (ECA)’s natural-gas assets in British Columbia’s Horn River region. Excluding the C$5.4 billion ($5.5 billion) deal announced in February, the overall value of transactions is down by a third, according to National Bank figures, compared with same period last year.
RBC Capital Markets leads banks working on Canadian oil and gas transactions this year, with 10 deals valued at $6.5 billion. That compares with $5.7 billion for Jefferies Group Inc., according to Bloomberg data.
While transactions have slowed, there are still several targets that may be attractive for potential buyers, said Chris Damas, a Barrie, Ontario-based analyst with BCMI Research. Takeover candidates include Meg Energy Corp., Athabasca Oil Sands Corp. and Nexen Inc. (NXY), he said.
“Nexen is a value play,” Damas said. “There is no significant shareholder and there would likely be no contest if someone stepped in to buy. It’s basically on sale.”
Patti Lewis, a Nexen spokeswoman, did not return calls from Bloomberg seeking comment.
Alberta’s Reserves
Nexen, valued at about C$10.8 billion, and partner Opti Canada Inc. (OPC) have failed to meet production targets at their Long Lake oil-sands project, the company has said, contributing to a 10 percent decline in Nexen’s shares this year.
While transactions have been slow this year, sales of oil and gas assets will likely attract foreign buyers in the coming years, Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert said in a May 17 interview in New York.
With 173 billion barrels of recoverable reserves of oil, the third-largest in the world after Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, Alberta offers access to energy resources on a scale not available anywhere else in the world, he said, even with higher extraction costs compared with conventional reserves.
“What you’re going to see is continued Asian investment partners,” Liepert said, referring to the PetroChina purchase of Encana assets.
Oil Sands
The Canadian Energy Research Institute expects Canada’s oil sands to attract C$2.08 trillion in investments over the next 25 years, making it the largest engineering undertaking on earth. Chinese investors may contribute significantly to that investment in the coming years, said Wenran Jiang, a University of Alberta professor and senior fellow at the Asia Pacific Foundation.
“So far China’s overseas M&A investment has been really small,” Jiang said in an interview. “The Chinese would love to get into the Canadian energy market.” Though they’re “not willing to buy at any price.”
Encana and Cenovus Energy Inc. (CVE) have both said they’re looking for partners to help develop their gas and oil resources. Cenovus, Canada’s fifth-largest energy company, is discussing partnership opportunities with companies from Asia, the U.S. and Canada for a deal worth “billions” of dollars, Chief Executive Officer Brian Ferguson said in an April 27 interview.
Total, Suncor
Total S.A. concluded an agreement worth C$1.75 billion in December with Suncor Energy Inc. to jointly develop bitumen reserves in Alberta.
“We need to share because it’s cheaper,” said Total S.A. Chief Executive Officer Christophe de Margerie in Calgary on May 19.
The partnership, which provides Europe’s third-biggest oil producer with 200,000 barrels per day of production by 2020, may be a harbinger of agreements between other companies.
Korea National Oil Corp. said March 21 it would pay $1.55 billion to Anadarko Petroleum Corp. (APC) for a joint-venture stake in the Eagle Ford shale-rock formation in Texas.
On June 2, Petronas Nasional Bhd, Malaysia’s state-owned oil company, made its entry into Canada by agreeing to pay Progress Energy Resources Corp. (PRQ) as much as C$1.07 billion for stakes in natural-gas fields that may eventually be able to export the fuel to Asia.
Before deals pick up, oil prices may have to fall, said BCMI Research’s Damas. “Buyers need to see light at the end of the tunnel.”
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