Oil & Gas Exploration

A poll on Monday showed that analysts have slightly raised their oil price predictions after the recent flare-up in tensions in the Middle East. However, rising OPEC+ supplies and a tempered outlook for demand continue to weigh down on crude. In a survey conducted by 40 economists and analysts, a June estimate of Brent crude at $67.86 per barrel in 2025 was higher than the $66.98 estimate made in May. U.S. crude, on the other hand, is forecast to average $64.51 per barrel, which is above last month's $63.35 estimate. According to LSEG, prices have averaged around $70.80 and $67.50...

MEG Energy, a Canadian oil company, urged Monday its shareholders to reject Strathcona Resources' hostile takeover bid of nearly C$6 Billion ($4.42 Billion), calling it inadequate and not in the best interests of their shareholders. The board launched a review of strategic alternatives to MEG's plan to become a separate company. Strathcona Resources, a Canadian oil and natural gas company, announced in May that it would launch a hostile bid to take over MEG Energy. Strathcona Resources valued MEG Energy's shares at C$23.27 each. MEG's closing price was C$25.71. MEG later advised its shareholders not to take any action regarding...

Intercontinental Exchange, parent company of the New York Stock Exchange, announced on Monday that it would list both on NYSE Texas. This will add to a long list of listings at the bourse in an effort to stay ahead of its competition. NYSE Texas opened its doors in March. It offers a new trading and listing venue for businesses attracted by Texas' business-friendly environment. According to ICE, in the first three month, 10 companies have listed both on the Dallas-based exchange. These include oilfield services company Halliburton and Trump Media & Technology Group, the parent company of Truth Social, as...

The wildfires in Canada's oil producing province of Alberta has reduced Canada's daily crude output by approximately 7%. The following is a list of oil production sites that have been affected so far. CENOVUS Energy - CHRISTINA LAKE SITE: On May 29, Cenovus began to shut down production of approximately 238,000 barrels a day at its Christina Lake facility south of Fort McMurray in Alberta. The company stated that it was not aware of any damages to its infrastructure, and anticipates a full site restart in the near future. CANADIAN NATURAL RESOURCES – JACKFISH LAKE: Canada’s largest oil-and-gas producer announced...

Calculations show that wildfires in Canada's oil producing province of Alberta affected the production of more than 344,000 barrels of oil sands per day, or approximately 7% of Canada's total crude oil output. Over the weekend, at least two thermal oil-sands producers south of Fort McMurray, the hub of the industry in Canada's north, evacuated their workers and shut down production. Canadian Natural Resources announced that it had evacuated its Jackfish 1 site and halted production of approximately 36,500 Bpd. Cenovus Energy announced that it had evacuated all non-essential staff from the Christina Lake oil sands facility and had shut...

Mexican authorities have announced that they seized over 3 million liters (792 516 gallons), of fuel illegally stored at a property located in Tabasco in the southeast of the country. This is the latest of a series of large fuel seizures in Mexico. Why it's important The seizure of fuel on Thursday was part of Mexico's ongoing fight against fuel smuggling. This includes both theft from the state-run oil company Pemex pipelines, and imports classified falsely to avoid taxes. KEY QUOTES In a statement released on Thursday, Mexico's cabinet of security said that 18 vehicles, 3 pieces of machinery and...

Centrica, a British company, announced on Tuesday that Spirit Energy - its joint venture with German utility Stadtwerke Munchen GmbH - will sell to Ithaca Energy a 46.25 percent stake in the Cygnus field for approximately 116 million pounds (155.05 millions dollars). Cygnus is located in the Southern North Sea and is the UK's largest continental shelf gas field. It also contributes to the UK energy security. Ithaca Energy will increase its operating interest in Cygnus from 65% to 85%. This will position the company as a majority owner, and reinforces the strategic goal of becoming one the largest independent...

A U.S. court of appeals ruled Thursday that Citigroup will have to face a lawsuit alleging it caused over $1 billion in losses by orchestrating a fraud at the Mexican oil and gas service company Oceanografia. Three judges of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Miami said that 30 Oceanografia vendors, creditors and bondholders adequately alleged that Citigroup substantially aided the fraud. A lower court judge erred by dismissing this nine-year-old case. Circuit Court of Appeals, Miami, said that 30 Oceanografia vendors and creditors, as well as bondholders, adequately alleged Citigroup's involvement in the fraud. A lower court...

ConocoPhillips surpassed Wall Street expectations for the first-quarter profits on Thursday. Chief Financial Officer Bill Bullock, who has worked at the Texas-based oil producer for 39 years, will retire. ConocoPhillips has increased its presence in the Permian and Eagle Ford basins and Bakken Basins with the $22.5 billion purchase of Marathon Oil. It also added new operations to the Anadarko Shale Formation and Equatorial Guinea. ConocoPhillips produced 2.38 million barrels equivalents per day in the first quarter, an increase of 487,000 boepd over the previous quarter. The increased output helped to offset the effect of low oil prices. The price...

Occidental Petroleum beat Wall Street expectations for the first-quarter profits on Wednesday thanks to strong production and favorable commodities prices. Benchmark Brent crude averaged $74.98 per barrel in the first quarter of 2018, up 1.3% from the previous quarter. Meanwhile, U.S. Natural Gas prices have been steadily rising over the last few quarters, and reached a 2-year high on 10 March. The average domestic realized price of total natural gas production has risen to $2.42 for every thousand cubic feet. This is a 50% increase from last year. Natural gas liquids (NGLs) realized by the company were $25.94 a barrel,...

APA Corp announced on Wednesday it would sell New Mexico Permian assets to focus on its core business. This was in an effort for the company to streamline its operations and concentrate on areas of strength. It also beat Wall Street's expectations for first-quarter profits. These assets, which generate about 12,400 barrels equivalent of oil per day (boepd), are less than 5% APA's overall Permian production. The company stated that the deal with Permian Resource is expected to close by the end of the second quarter and proceeds will be used to reduce the debt. This move comes after APA...

The U.S. Energy Information Administration announced on Wednesday that they estimate that the average number oil wells completed within 50 feet from each other simultaneously in the Lower 48 States has more than doubled since the last decade. The agency stated that the number of wells completed simultaneously per location has increased from 1 1/2 wells per location in December 2014 to over three wells per location in June 2024. This will allow operators to "accelerate production timelines and reduce costs per well." The EIA defines wells that are drilled within a 50-foot radius of each other as being at...

Israel's Energy Minister Eli Cohen announced on Wednesday that the country will resume natural gas exports once its military deems it safe. The air battle between Israel & Iran is now in its sixth day. Since June 13, two of Israel's three natural gas fields, Leviathan operated by Chevron and Karish owned by Energean, off its Mediterranean coastline that provides the bulk of the exports to Egypt & Jordan have been closed. The older leaves are still in use Field used mostly for domestic supply. Cohen stated that he had been in touch with Egpyt, Jordan and Jordan regarding the...

After agreeing to the first reduction in output in 2022, OPEC+ producers have implemented three levels of cuts. Eight OPEC+ oil producers have begun to increase production this year and unwind the most recent tranche. Sources said that the 22-member OPEC+ group will meet online on Wednesday. This meeting is not expected change policy on output. Eight OPEC+ members plan to meet on Saturday and decide on a July production increase. Algeria, Iraq and Kuwait are the eight countries that have met earlier this year to discuss their production targets. They raised them by almost 1 million barrels a day...

A senior executive at Mubadala Energy said that the company would be happy to provide all of the natural gas produced in its South Andaman Block for Indonesian domestic consumption, and do so at the best possible price. Indonesia wants producers of gas to increase their supplies to domestic consumers as the demand is increasing. The producers have been focusing on exports of LNG and asked the government to revise price caps for domestic gas. They argue that it is not a good business decision when spot LNG prices are so high. Abdulla Bu Ali (President Director of Mubadala Energy...

ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance stated on Tuesday that U.S. shale production will plateau if oil prices stay where they are and will begin to decline when oil prices reach $50 per barrel. "The breakeven has probably not moved much." "I think that long-term if oil prices are in a range where they're comfortable - perhaps in the 70s or 65-75 - we will still see modest growth from the U.S.," Lance said, speaking at Qatar Economic Forum. We see a plateauing of production in the U.S. by the end of this year, unless we have a technological breakthrough. Don't bet...

The company announced on Tuesday that Alfred Stern, Chief Executive Officer of Austrian oil-and-gas group OMV, has decided to not run for reelection when his current term expires on August 31, 2026. Stern is CEO of the Vienna-based firm since September 2021. He previously ran the Borealis division, and tried to steer it away from fossil fuels toward sustainable fuels and chemical. In March, he oversaw the merging of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company with OMV's Polyolefin business, creating Borouge International, a chemical powerhouse with a $60 Billion enterprise value. The merger should be completed in the first quarter 2026....

The companies announced on Friday that North Sea oil producer EnQuest would not make an offering for UK-based Serica Energy as they could not reach an agreement on favorable terms in time due to market volatility. At 1623 GMT, EnQuest shares fell about 5% to 13.14 pence. Serica shares rose 0.3% to 127 pence. Serica announced in March that it was in discussions with EnQuest regarding a potential deal. The termination comes amid an economic wave of uncertainty caused by the sweeping tariffs that U.S. president Donald Trump has imposed around the world. Energy prices have been dragged down by...

Bloomberg News reported Monday that Woodside Energy was in discussions with an overseas division of Kuwait Petroleum about selling a stake in their Louisiana liquefied gas plant. The report was based on people familiar with the matter. Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration is also looking at securing LNG from the project. Other companies are interested in both LNG and equity, according to the report. Woodside Energy and Kuwait Foreign Petroleum Exploration did not respond immediately to comments. Woodside, Australia’s largest gas producer, agreed earlier this month to sell a 40 percent stake in its Louisiana Liquefied Natural Gas plant to U.S....

Executives at the CERAWeek Conference in Houston explained that artificial intelligence has accelerated oil and gas drilling, and prompted companies to reconsider areas they previously deemed too expensive or difficult to develop. AI was a major topic in several sessions of the largest energy conference. Oil producers are looking for ways to stay profitable amid a plummeting price of oil and concerns that U.S. president Donald Trump's tariffs may slow down global energy demand. Ann Davies, BP’s senior vice-president of wells, revealed that the UK oil giant BP uses AI to predict problems and steer drill bits before they occur....

On Wednesday, Turkish Energy minister Alparslan Bayraktar announced on the social media platform X that TPAO, Turkey's national oil company, had signed a joint-venture agreement with U.S. producer Continental Resources for the development of shale deposits in Diyarbakir Basin. This cooperation will contribute greatly to our goal to bring Turkiye’s oil and natural gas resources into our economy. "I hope that this agreement will benefit all parties, as it opens up a new phase in Turkiye's exploration," he wrote in the blog. The Turkish oil and gas industry is not very large. Continental Resources CEO Doug Lawler stated in an...

S&P Global Commodity Insights (Platts), a commodities reporting agency that provides information on commodity prices, stated Monday that the dated Brent crude oil market is working well since U.S. WTI was added to it. Further changes are not expected, Platts said. The first year that WTI Midland was included in the Brent benchmark date after its inclusion in the basket began in May 2023 due to falling North Sea production, was also the first year in which it was the first crude oil grade outside of the North Sea. Platts announced on Monday that Brent oil 2024 is a smooth...

The European Union has suspended sanctions against Syria, including those relating to energy, banking and transport, with immediate effect. The EU has implemented a number of sanctions against individuals and sectors in Syria. After the insurgents led by Hayat Tahrir Al-Sham (HTS), an islamist group, ousted Bashar al Assad from his position as president in December, European leaders began to rethink their approach. On Monday, the EU Foreign Ministers met in Brussels and agreed to suspend sanctions against the oil, gas, and electricity sectors, as well as the transport sector. The Syrian Central Bank has also been exempted from restrictions...

According to a press release from the president's offices, Lebanon President Joseph Aoun told Qatari Premier Sheikh Mohammed Bin Abdulrahman Al Thani on Tuesday that he hoped TotalEnergies would soon resume oil exploration off the coasts of Lebanon. In 2023, the state-owned QatarEnergy will join France's TotalEnergies (ENI.MI), and Italy's Eni in a consortium of three to search for oil and natural gas in two marine blocks off Lebanon's coast. Two sources who were directly involved in the matter said that no hydrocarbons had been found after the exploratory drilling offshore in 2023. TotalEnergies didn't respond to a comment request...