Royal Dutch Shell plc (NYSE:RDS.A) announced an update on its offshore Alaska oil and gas drilling program, commenting that it has a variety of oil spill response equipment in position. However, the containment dome on one of its barges was damaged during testing and now needs to be repaired; as a result the company has decided not to drill into hydrocarbon zones this year.
An overview of three technologies that have the potential to push the boundaries of offshore drilling in the near future.
Oil companies are hoping this latest major find will provide further justification for speeding up the permit issuing process for deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
Recent dismal economic data and growing U.S. inventories kept oil prices below $50 a barrel Friday despite hopes of a possible second-half recovery in crude demand. Benchmark crude for May delivery fell 40 cents to $49.58 a barrel by Noon in European electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The contract on Thursday rose 73 cents to settle at $49.98.
The state of Alaska will issue key permits for drilling of the first two wells in a $1.3 billion gas cycling and condensate production project ExxonMobil plans at Point Thomson, 60 miles east of Prudhoe Bay, state Commissioner of Natural Resources, Tom Irwin, announced Tuesday afternoon in a press release. For full story, click here
Petroleos de Venezuela SA’s Petrosucre joint venture “assumed operational control” of Ensco International Inc.’s offshore drilling rig Ensco 69 after the Dallas-based company halted operations in a payment dispute. For full story, click here
There have been unofficial reports of independent oil and gas exploration companies deferring some of their drilling programs, but the most recent economic indicators still show optimism in the industry. For full story, click here
Texas Alliance of Energy Producers has started placing advertisements in regional print and broadcast media in support of drilling on federal lands to offset crude oil imports. For full story, click here
After four weeks of refreshing slippage, NYMEX oil futures began to edge upward into the $120 per barrel range. It appears the rise was largely predicated on two factors.
Barack Obama hinted that he is open to expand offshore oil drilling if it is in a broader package of energy measures, which would free the logjam on energy bills in Congress. Obama was quoted as saying: My interest is in making sure we’ve got the kind of comprehensive energy policy that can bring down gas prices. For more [...]
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