Nov 2011

Australian megaprojects are under threat from Atlantic basin producers, as expansion of the Panama Canal opens a new LNG trading route, writes Kwok W Wan

3,000 square km in central Botswana acquired from local CBM operator Sekaname

Not enough data yet to assess extractable volume

Government granted 20 exploration licences in July last year

Report commissioned by UK firm Cuadrilla

The battle with the EU over oil-sands carbon intensity isn’t over yet, says Canada’s energy minister, Joe Oliver

Environmentalists and lobbyists face to face in London

Alberta's new energy minister, Ted Morton, is reaching out to Canada, downplaying the oil sands in favour of new, clean-energy technology

First horizontal, fracture-stimulated unconventional oil well spudded

Benchmark’s prices bounced between $112/b and $106/b over five trading sessions

Access to pipeline infrastructure and consistent treatment of investors are vital

First shale block to be awarded to state-owned Pertamina in December

Development in southeast Asia would transform the region’s gas-supply mix, but there is a long and bumpy road to navigate

The US State Department has a tack in its left hand and a hammer in its right. The final nail in Keystone XL’s coffin is about to be struck

Onshore construction work for the Gazprom-led Shtokman gasfield development will start next year, a senior official with the Russian gas monopoly has said

Huge unconventional oil and gas resources and a welcome review of energy subsidies could herald a surge of much needed exploration investment in Argentina

Vico signs MoU to supply utility Perusahaan Listrik Negara (PLN)

Ologovskoye-6 (O-6) well yields 2.3 million cubic feet a day

Economist Intelligence Unit offers a more bearish view than the EIA on the world’s potential shale-gas resources and the chances for their development

Despite large and rising profits from petroleum, investors are nervous about BHP Billiton’s growing focus on oil and gas

Innovation is in Petrobras’s DNA, so dreams of a platform-less offshore environment may become reality within a decade

The Sudanese air force today flew a sortie across the international border with South Sudan, and bombed a refugee camp

Are advancing plans for US LNG exports the next stage of the shale gas revolution, or is it a sign that these huge unconventional resources are simply uneconomic?

Industry aims to increase production while easing environmental concerns

Investors shift their money into commodity markets

What does the supermajor’s oil deal with Kurdistan mean for Iraq?

Enbridge touts “significant commitments” for expansion of its mainline system to the Gulf coast

The Philippines’ upstream revival has hit a snag after ExxonMobil resigned as operator and pulled out of its deep-water block in the Sulu Sea

Shell asked UK government to help it secure contract in disputed region

Cairn India has made a second gas discovery in Sri Lanka’s offshore Block SL 2007-01-001. The find is expected to spur further interest in the country’s upcoming licensing round in the frontier Mannar basin

Shell is poised to help Malaysia reverse declining oil production after signing a multi-billion-dollar agreement covering two 30-year production sharing contracts (PSCs) with Petronas

Santos delays CBM test drilling, as Australia’s unconventional-gas sector tops state and federal agendas

Firm to spend $4.5 billion on shale gas next year on top of $17 billion this year

Potential of between 500 million and 1.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent unconventionals

Angola LNG is forming a marketing division to target customers beyond the US, Sonangol project director Artur Pereira told the World LNG summit in Rome today

With even China and Russia backing away from upstream investment, Iran has further impetus to craft a self-sufficient oil and gas sector

Middle East LNG exporters are increasingly worried about pirate attacks on tankers, with criminals following vessels even as they circumvent no-go areas

Company points to successes in testing at Shenandoah-1 exploration well

UK oil and gas companies would do well to keep the Gulf of Mexico on their radar as Pemex opens the door to foreign investment

Worldwide, oil and gas firms must jump legal and commercial hurdles to secure upstream finance. New UK taxes have raised the bar, threatening offshore development

For a continent on the verge of financial collapse, spending billions on gas imports is crazy when supply security sits in shales beneath its feet

Kulczyk completes its second successful reservoir stimulation

National Planning Commission (NPC) recommends shale-gas development

Rapid decline in flow rate at well in Damnica licence area

The race to supply US refineries from Canada’s oil sands shifted into high gear as rival pipelines moved to outflank each other following last week’s rejection of Keystone XL

Gas found consisting of methane with a small percentage of liquefied petroleum gases

Brent down by more than 2.5%, to just over $109/b; WTI trading at just over $100/b

India wants more LNG, if sold at the right price, with imports expected to rise sharply over the next five years – perhaps more than tripling

Determined to cash in on Australia’s shale-gas potential, Beach Energy has secured acreage across the country

Despite US natural gas prices in freefall, it’s full-steam ahead for Texas’s liquids-rich Eagle Ford play, providing an economic shot in the arm for the state

In an attempt to keep a lid on rising LNG import prices, Japanese buyers have proposed a move away from traditional oil-linked contracts

It's a long way back for post-Deepwater Horizon developments in the US Gulf of Mexico

Shahristani fumes over ExxonMobil’s KRG fait accompli: Iraqi government seems powerless to act over supermajor’s Kurdistan deal

Australian government pledges A$150 million ($147 million) to establish an independent scientific panel on environmental issues relating to CBM

Polish Prime Minister introduces royalties on shale gas, aimed at safeguarding Poland's economic growth

Shell’s Iraq gas plan delivers another body blow to the Nabucco pipeline, writes Kwok W Wan

Crude import sanctions would hit southern European countries hardest

Exploitation of the UK’s shale-gas reserves could lead to a rapid rise in carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions and cause the country to miss its longer-term climate change targets

NuEnergy Capital has secured operating rights for coal-bed methane (CBM) development in Tanzania, as the fledgling energy firm seeks to beef up its CBM portfolio

Canada’s net oil available for export will hit record levels by 2035, driven by increasing oil-sands production, says the country’s National Energy Board (NEB).

Dakota Oil Processing plans the construction of the first new US refinery in decades

Bulgaria turns to EU for advice on environmental approvals for shale-gas development

This week's oil-market report

While accepting its energy-import dependence, China is investing big, at home and abroad, to make the most of domestic, and global, oil and gas resources

The US’ debate over prioritising energy security, or environmental considerations, can only intensify, as the Gulf reopens to oil and gas drilling, says the EIU's Peter Kiernan

China, Jordan and the UAE will build a 900 MW power plant in Al Lajjun

Even without high-value NGLs to compensate for depressed US gas prices, the prolific Haynesville play is still going strong. Shaun Polczer reports from Lufkin, Texas