B07 Oil and Gas Extraction

Gorgon LNG looks ‘fine’: Chevron

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 2-Feb-15

Chevron CEO John Watson says the economics of the $US29 billion Wheatstone and $US54 billion Gorgon LNG projects in Western Australia will be "just fine" once production begins. Watson is less optimistic about the odds of short-term progress at Chevron’s Kitimat LNG project in Canada. He says management is focused on starting production at Gorgon, which had an initial budget of $US37 billion. Watson concedes that the drop in crude oil prices has placed pressure on the LNG sector as well

CORPORATES
CHEVRON CORPORATION, GORGON JOINT VENTURE, CHEVRON AUSTRALIA PTY LTD, MOBIL AUSTRALIA RESOURCES COMPANY PTY LTD, EXXONMOBIL CORPORATION, SHELL DEVELOPMENT (AUSTRALIA) PTY LTD, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, APACHE CORPORATION

China claims Woodside withheld gas

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angus Grigg, Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 1 : 29-Jan-15

Woodside Petroleum’s Chinese customers have accused the Australian company and its partners of delaying LNG shipments. The Chinese side claims that the North West Shelf Gas consortium is holding back gas in an attempt to force the clients to renegotiate the terms of a deal signed in 2002 and raise the price. At an investor briefing in August 2014, Woodside CEO Peter Coleman said the contract was running at a "cash loss"

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, NORTH WEST SHELF AUSTRALIA LNG PTY LTD, JAPAN AUSTRALIA LNG (MIMI) PTY LTD, TRI-ZEN INTERNATIONAL PTE LTD, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF INDUSTRY AND SCIENCE, BP PLC, ROYAL DUTCH SHELL PLC, CHEVRON CORPORATION, MITSUI AND COMPANY LIMITED, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP

Santos in ‘active’ talks on CSG project deal

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 20 : 22-Jan-15

Santos plans to sell roughly 30 per cent of its proposed $A2 billion coal seam gas project in Narrabri, New South Wales. The Australian-listed energy group has an 80 per cent stake in the contentious development. It is holding talks with gas ­buyers, manufacturers and global companies. Santos’s vice president of eastern Australia, James Baulderstone, says the project will not proceed without more investors, but the slump in the crude oil price presents "challenges" in the negotiations

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, ENERGYAUSTRALIA PTY LTD

Oil prices to stay low for years, JPMorgan warns

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 17 : 21-Jan-15

JP Morgan has lowered its 2014-15 earnings forecast for Australian-listed resources group BHP Billiton to $US8.3bn ($A10.1bn), or $US1.2bn less than the consensus. A major factor is that JP Morgan also expects the global crude oil price to fall further, and not recover for two years. Brent crude is now tipped to trade at $US49 a barrel in 2015 and $US57 in 2016, compared with previous estimates of $US82 and $US88 respectively. However the Global Energy Fund of Investec Asset Management has taken advantage of the bargain buying opportunity to acquire stock in energy company Santos

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, BEACH ENERGY LIMITED – ASX BPT, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, INVESTEC ASSET MANAGEMENT LIMITED, INVESTEC GLOBAL ENERGY FUND, LUKOIL-NEFTEGAZSTROY, CNOOC LIMITED, CHINA NATIONAL OFFSHORE OIL CORPORATION, PETROBRAS, PETROLEO BRASILEIRO SA

Woodside flags cuts, write-downs

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 13 & 20 : 16-Jan-15

Woodside Petroleum has reported total sales of $US1.76bn for the final three months of 2014, while sales for the full year were 22.5 per cent higher at $US7.08bn. The oil and gas producer has warned of the potential for asset write-downs of between $US250m and $US400m as a result of the decline in the crude oil price. Woodside also expects to scale back its capital expenditure in 2015. Its shares closed 1.35 per cent lower at $A35.06 on 15 January

CORPORATES
WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, UBS HOLDINGS PTY LTD, MITSUI AND COMPANY LIMITED, MITSUBISHI CORPORATION, PLATYPUS ASSET MANAGEMENT PTY LTD, PAVILION ENERGY PTE LTD, TEMASEK HOLDINGS (PTE) LTD, ORGANISATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES, ORGANISATION OF PETROLEUM EXPORTING COUNTRIES, JP MORGAN AUSTRALIA LIMITED, APACHE CORPORATION

Petrol plunge could hit 85c

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Andrew Tillett
The West Australian – Page: 1 & 4 : 14-Jan-15

Data from FuelWatch shows that some service stations in Perth are selling unleaded petrol for $A1.06 per litre. The crude oil price has fallen below $US50 a barrel, and Stephen Moir of the Motor Trade Association of Western Australia says it could potentially fall to around $US30 a barrel. He adds that at that price, Perth motorists could be paying between $A0.85 and $A0.90 per litre for petrol

CORPORATES
FUELWATCH PTY LTD, MOTOR TRADE ASSOCIATION OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA INCORPORATED, COMMONWEALTH SECURITIES LIMITED, COMMONWEALTH BANK OF AUSTRALIA – ASX CBA, ROYAL AUTOMOBILE CLUB OF WESTERN AUSTRALIA (INCORPORATED), PUMA ENERGY (AUSTRALIA) HOLDINGS PTY LTD

Oil plunge will stir M&A when price settles

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Angela Macdonald-Smith
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 16 : 12-Jan-15

Santos, Senex Energy and Horizon Energy are among the Australian companies whose share prices have fallen sharply in response to the downturn in the crude oil price. Experts say lower valuations in the oil and gas sector is likely to prompt mergers and acquisitions activity, although some suggest that potential suitors will bide their time as the oil price and shares may fall further. The price of Brent oil closed at $US50.11 per barrel on 9 January 2015

CORPORATES
SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, SENEX ENERGY LIMITED – ASX SXY, HORIZON OIL LIMITED – ASX HZN, BEACH ENERGY LIMITED – ASX BPT, HERBERT SMITH FREEHILLS PTY LTD, TOTAL SA, INPEX CORPORATION, ROC OIL COMPANY LIMITED – ASX ROC, FOSUN INTERNATIONAL LIMITED, DRILLSEARCH ENERGY LIMITED – ASX DLS, AMBASSADOR OIL AND GAS LIMITED – ASX AQO, MAGNUM HUNTER RESOURCES CORPORATION, NIDO PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX NDO, BANGCHAK PETROLEUM PCL, METGASCO LIMITED – ASX MEL, ELK PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX ELK, BP PLC, BP AMOCO PLC, EXXONMOBIL CORPORATION, CHEVRON CORPORATION, TEXACO INCORPORATED, BERNSTEIN AND ASSOCIATES, BRIGHTOIL PETROLEUM, HARBOUR ENERGY LIMITED, TEMASEK HOLDINGS (PTE) LTD, PAVILION ENERGY PTE LTD

AMP strategist says crude likely to hit $US40 before any recovery

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Matt Chambers
The Australian – Page: 22 : 9-Jan-15

The crude oil price is currently trading at about $US50 a barrel, but AMP Capital’s Shane Oliver says production is unlikely to be reduced until it falls to around $US40. He adds that historical analysis shows that any resulting rebound in the oil price is likely to occur gradually. Meanwhile, Oliver says investors should capitalise on any downturn in share prices as a result of the falling oil price

CORPORATES
AMP CAPITAL INVESTORS LIMITED, AMP LIMITED – ASX AMP, SANTOS LIMITED – ASX STO, OIL SEARCH LIMITED – ASX OSH, WOODSIDE PETROLEUM LIMITED – ASX WPL, KAROON GAS AUSTRALIA LIMITED – ASX KAR, ORIGIN ENERGY LIMITED – ASX ORG, AWE LIMITED – ASX AWE, BEACH ENERGY LIMITED – ASX BPT, CITIGROUP PTY LTD, SENEX ENERGY LIMITED – ASX SXY

Nation to burn past coal quota

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Peter Hannam
The Sydney Morning Herald – Page: 12 : 9-Jan-15

A study by University College London assesses the limits on carbon emissions needed to ward off dangerous climate change. The research finds that for increases in worldwide temperatures to remain within two degrees Celsius of pre-industrial levels, 82 per cent of global coal and 50 per cent of gas reserves must stay unmined. Julien Vincent of Market Forces says the study suggests that Australia will soon surpass the level of coal output with which a stable climate can cope, it it has not already

CORPORATES
UNIVERSITY COLLEGE LONDON, ORGANISATION FOR ECONOMIC CO-OPERATION AND DEVELOPMENT, FRIENDS OF THE EARTH, ADANI ENTERPRISES LIMITED, AUSTRALIAN GREENS, MINERAL COUNCIL OF AUSTRALIA, AUSTRALIA. DEPT OF THE ENVIRONMENT, FAIRFAX MEDIA LIMITED – ASX FXJ, INTERNATIONAL ENERGY AGENCY

Price crash may see BHP pull rigs

roymorgansocial Leave a comment

Original article by Amanda Saunders
The Australian Financial Review – Page: 11 & 20 : 8-Jan-15

West Texas Intermediate crude oil was trading at $US48 per barrel on 7 January 2015. Paul Young of Deutsche Bank suggests that BHP Billiton could potentially reduce the number of drilling rigs it operates in the Permian Basin in the US until there is a sustained rebound in the oil price. Young adds that BHP could delay adding additional drilling rigs until the oil price rises to about $US80/barrel, which may not occur until around 2018

CORPORATES
BHP BILLITON LIMITED – ASX BHP, DEUTSCHE BANK AG