Iraq troops enter Tikrit, drive Islamic State from oilfields

Iraqi forces entered the central city of Tikrit earlier this week, in an attempt to drive out Islamic State militants, and regained control of two oilfields in the region, a local official said. More »

Oil falls for second day as dollar strengthens after jobs report

Crude futures dropped for a second day in New York as the dollar strengthened after a monthly jobs report, reducing the investment appeal of commodities. More »

Rigs seeking U.S. oil slide to 3-year low in record retreat

U.S. energy explorers shut rigs targeting oil for the 13th straight week, extending the biggest retrenchment in drilling on record and dragging the total count to the lowest level since 2011. More »

Shale drillers storing oil underground, waiting for price recovery

HOUSTON -- Oil drillers expecting prices to rebound after the biggest drop in six years have come up with an alternative to storing their crude in tanks: They’re keeping it in the ground. More »

Enbridge to optimize regional oil sands infrastructure expansions

Enbridge has revealed plans to optimize a previously announced expansion of its Regional Oil Sands System. More »

GE opens new facility in Australia to support subsea projects

GE has announced the official opening of a new oil and gas facility in Broome, Western Australia, specifically designed to service subsea projects. More »

Statoil delays Castberg, Snorre projects to cut costs

STAVANGER, Norway -- The licensees in the Johan Castberg and Snorre 2040 licenses have decided to spend more time on the projects, Statoil announced Friday. More »

BP finalizes $12-billion deal to develop Egypt’s West Nile Delta

BP announced Friday that it has signed the final agreements of the West Nile Delta project to develop 5 Tcf of gas resources and 55 MMbbl of condensates with an estimated investment of around $12 billion by BP and its partner. More »

Gazpromneft Khantos acquires two new licenses

Gazpromneft Khantos has acquired two new licenses, for Maloyugansk and Zapadno-Zimnee fields, in Russia’s Khanty Mansiysk Autonomous Region. More »

BNSF train hauling 103 crude cars derails in Illinois

GALENA, Illinois (Bloomberg) -- A BNSF Railway Co. train carrying 103 cars of crude oil derailed in rural Illinois, and U.S. regulators said a fire had broken out. There were no reports of injuries. More »

Statoil to drill UKCS Catcher and Mariner wildcats

STAVANGER -- Statoil is preparing to drill two UKCS wells in the Spring -- one in the Catcher area of the Central North Sea and the other in the Northern North Sea to the west of the Mariner field. More »

Blackbird Energy reports gas and liquids discoveries in Montney shale

CALGARY -- Blackbird Energy has announced that its first two operated horizontal Montney wells at Elmworth, Alberta, have been successfully completed and tested. More »

Statoil exec sees a year of cash flow challenges, cost containment

For the remainder of 2015, the global EandP industry should expect to see operators wrestling with cash flow challenges, negotiating price discounts with suppliers and looking to sell assets to raise cash, said Jason Nye, Statoil’s senior V.P. for U.S. Offshore Development and Production, North America. His comments came during a presentation to The 5th Norwegian Finance Day, held Wednesday by the Norwegian Consulate General at the Federal Reserve Bank in Houston. More »

Colorado operator misses bond payment, marking junk's swift fall

DENVER -- A Colorado oil producer is giving debt investors a lesson in the risks of lending to companies that staked their future on the U.S. shale boom. More »

ConocoPhillps’ chief economist sees gradual market recovery

HOUSTON -- The recovery of the global oil market from sharply lower oil prices will be gradual, and it will be driven mostly by a supply response, said ConocoPhillips Chief Economist Marianne Kah. Her comments came during a presentation to The 5th Norwegian Finance Day, held Wednesday by the Norwegian Consulate General at the Federal Reserve Bank in Houston. More »

Shell contracts first LNG-fuelled supply vessel for deepwater Gulf of Mexico

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Canadian Natural Resources triples profits by pumping more oil

Canadian Natural Resources, the nation’s largest heavy crude producer, boosted its dividend by half a cent after reporting an almost tripling of its profit as it pumped more oil to counter the effect of plunging prices. More »

Woodside gets green light for Apache Corp. deal

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced that it will not oppose Woodside’s proposed acquisition of Apache Corporation’s interests in the Wheatstone, Balnaves and Kitimat Projects. More »

Honeywell wins contract for third HLJOC platform offshore Vietnam

Honeywell Process Solutions announced Thursday it has been selected to handle critical project management and engineering for a third oil and natural gas platform that will tap energy reserves off the coast of Vietnam. More »

Exxon looks to U.S. shale fields to drive global growth

In a world of $55/bbl oil, Exxon Mobil Corp. is relying on shale fields in Texas, Oklahoma and North Dakota to help fund the next wave of big overseas projects it needs to thrive in the future. More »

Tendeka celebrates 10,000 FloSure AICD installations

Tendeka has reached a landmark in the growing demand for its FloSure autonomous inflow control device (AICD) range, with more than 10,000 now having been installed globally. More »

Oil gains on Libya turmoil while Cushing supply growth slows

Oil rose in London after Libya suspended its obligation to deliver supplies from 11 oil fields amid clashes between guards and Islamist militants. Prices gained in New York as inventory growth at the largest U.S. storage hub slowed. More »

Lamprell delivers second jackup to Greatship Group

Lamprell has announced the completion of construction on a further jackup rig, the Greatdrill Chaaru, and its delivery to Greatship Global Energy Services Pte. Ltd. More »

Rosneft, Golar LNG to partner on FLNG

Rosneft and Golar LNG Ltd. have entered into a Memorandum of Understanding that foresees cooperation between the companies in the area of floating liquefaction and transportation of natural gas. More »

Goldman sees LNG as biggest commodity after crude this year

Global trade in LNG will exceed $120 billion this year, taking it past iron ore as the most valuable commodity after oil, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. said. More »

Northern Petroleum inks farm-out agreement with Shell

Northern Petroleum's wholly owned subsidiary, Northern Petroleum (UK) Ltd., has signed a farm-out agreement, which includes the agreed terms of a joint operating agreement, with Shell Italia EandP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, in respect of its Cascina Alberto permit, which is located onshore, north west Italy. More »

Northern Petroleum inks farm-out agreement with Shell, onshore Italy

Northern Petroleum's wholly owned subsidiary, Northern Petroleum (UK) Ltd., has signed a farm-out agreement, which includes the agreed terms of a joint operating agreement, with Shell Italia EandP, a wholly owned subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell, in respect of its Cascina Alberto permit, which is located onshore, north west Italy. More »

ACCC agrees to Woodside’s proposed acquisition of Apache’s interests in the Wheatstone, Balnaves and Kitimat projects

The Australian Competition and Consumer Commission (ACCC) has announced that it will not oppose Woodside’s proposed acquisition of Apache Corporation’s interests in the Wheatstone, Balnaves and Kitimat Projects. More »

Seadrill braces for two more years of rig pain after oil slump

Seadrill, the offshore oil driller controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen, said the rig market is unlikely to recover for at least two years following a slump in crude prices. More »

Caley and Umbilicals International to offer integrated intervention systems

Offshore handling systems producer Caley Ocean Systems and umbilical and cable maker Umbilicals International have joined forces to offer operators and offshore contractors integrated solutions for the deployment of subsea packages and well intervention systems. More »

VAALCO spuds Kindele-1 well offshore Angola

VAALCO Energy has spudded the post-salt Kindele-1 well, its first exploration well on Block 5 offshore Angola on Mar. 02. More »

Exxon says output growth on track even as crude price drops

Exxon Mobil Corp. is sticking to production targets established when oil traded for more than $100/bbl, signaling confidence that demand for crude-based fuels will continue to expand. More »

Republicans fail to override Obama veto of Keystone XL measure

The U.S. Senate failed to override President Barack Obama’s veto of a bill forcing approval of the Keystone XL pipeline, a setback for Republicans who’ve made building the $8 billion U.S.-Canada oil link a legislative priority. More »

Exxon cuts 2015 spending 12% to $34 billion

Exxon Mobil Corp. anticipates capital spending of about $34 billion in 2015—12% less than in 2014—as it continues to bring major projects online, the company reported Wednesday. More »

Norway’s PSA to investigate accident on Transocean Barents

STAVANGER, Norway -- Petroleum Safety Authority Norway (PSA) has launched an investigation into an incident on Transocean Barents when a roughneck suffered crush injuries. More »

Saudi Arabia to keep pumping as much oil as customers want

Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest crude exporter, pledged to supply as much oil as its customers need as recovering demand helps rebalance the global market. More »

Circle Oil abandons Oman well following drilling difficulties

Circle Oil is to plug and abandon the Shisr-1 well, in Oman’s Block 49, following drilling difficulties. More »

Oil production in federal GoM to continue increasing, EIA says

Because of the long timelines associated with Gulf of Mexico (GoM) projects, the recent downturn in oil prices is expected to have minimal direct impact on GoM crude oil production through 2016, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration's Today in Energy report.. More »

Lundin spuds wildcat on Morkel prospect in Northern North Sea

Lundin Petroleum, through its wholly owned subsidiary Lundin Norway, has commenced drilling of exploration well 33/2-2S in PL579. More »

Polarcus wins 3D survey offshore Egypt

DUBAI -- Polarcus has received an award from an undisclosed client for a 3D marine seismic project offshore Egypt utilizing Polarcus' RightBAND technique for broadband data acquisition. More »

Aqualis Offshore wins Brazilian FPSO contract

OSLO, Norway -- Aqualis Offshore, part of Oslo-listed Aqualis ASA, has won an important contract for an FPSO project in Brazil. More »

Wintershall takes over Vega operatorship from Statoil

Wintershall has taken over the operatorship of the subsea oil and gas field Vega from Statoil. More »

Oil holds above $50 as Saudis signal demand before supplies data

Oil held above $50/bbl as investors weighed Saudi Arabia’s signal that demand is improving against data forecast to show U.S. inventories expanded from a record. More »

Chevron, Linn ordered to shut California wells on water concerns

California regulators ordered oil drillers including Chevron and Linn Energy to halt operations at 12 injection wells in the state because of concerns they may taint groundwater. More »

Oil production in federal GoM expected to continue increasing: EIA

Because of the long timelines associated with Gulf of Mexico (GoM) projects, the recent downturn in oil prices is expected to have minimal direct impact on GoM crude oil production through 2016. More »

Halliburton opens new Integrated Completions Center in Louisiana

Halliburton officially opened its new Integrated Completions Center (ICC) in New Iberia on February 26, 2015. More »

Halliburton introduces Quasar Pulse M/LWD service

Sperry Drilling, a Halliburton business line, announced the release of Quasar Pulse Service, the only M/LWD service capable of operating in harsh environments up to 392°F and 25,000 psi. More »

Magnetrol expands company sites on three continents

Magnetrol International, Inc., has recently expanded and opened several key locations: Aurora, Ill., Zele, Belgium, and Dubai, UAE. More »

Russia billionaire draws on Red Army service to predict $100 oil

When Leonid Fedun first studied the oil market in 1978, he was a young officer in the Red Army asked to research the impact of prices on NATO forces. More than three decades later, the billionaire shareholder in Russia’s second-largest oil company is still at it. More »

Oil exports could sustain benefits of U.S. energy renaissance, ConocoPhillips CEO says

ConocoPhillips Chairman and CEO Ryan Lance delivered an energy policy speech at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Tuesday that appealed to the congressional and executive branches of federal government to lift the outdated and economically constraining national ban on crude oil exports. More »

Anadarko cuts 2015 budget by a third, reduces rigs

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Anadarko Petroleum Corp. has cut its planned capital expenditure for 2015 to $5.4 billion to $5.8 billion, about 33% less than last year, the company announced Tuesday. More »

Anadarko announces reduced budget, cuts rigs

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Anadarko Petroleum Corp. has cut its planned capital expenditure for 2015 to $5.4 billion to $5.8 billion, about 33% less than last year, the company announced Tuesday. More »

Anadarko announces reduced budget, rig count

THE WOODLANDS, Texas – Anadarko Petroleum Corp. has cut its planned capital expenditure for 2015 to $5.4 billion to $5.8 billion, about 33% less than last year, the company announced Tuesday. More »

UK’s Forum Energy granted force majeure amid China, Philippines dispute

Forum Energy confirmed Monday that the Philippine Department of Energy had granted a force majeure on Service Contact 72 because this contract area falls within the territorial disputed area of the West Philippine Sea, which is the subject of a UN arbitration process between the Philippines and China. More »

Glencore sees ‘blowout’ year for oil traders as volatility surges

Glencore Plc, the world’s biggest listed commodities trader, said 2015 could be a boom year for oil amid the biggest price swings in six years. More »

PetroShare acquires acreage in Wattenberg field

CENTENNIAL, Colorado -- PetroShare Corp. announced Monday that under its strategic land and leasing services agreement with Kingdom Resources, LLC, it has accepted an assignment of approximately 309 net acres covering all depths in parts of Township 1 South, Range 67 West, Adams County, Colorado. More »

Eirik Raude arrives in Falklands for drilling campaign

Ocean Rig's Eirik Raude has arrived in the North Falkland basin (NFB) ahead of a six-well campaign, Rockhopper Exploration has reported. More »

Gazprom Neft, Rosneft JV turns to drones for asset monitoring

Tomskneft VNK—a joint enterprise between Gazprom Neft and Rosneft—has started using unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs or drones) in monitoring its pipeline routes and oil and gas production facilities. More »

Lukoil profit drops 39% after impairments, oil-price slump

OAO Lukoil said profit fell 39% last year as crude prices slumped and Russia’s second-largest oil producer reported asset impairments from Kazakhstan to West Africa. More »

U.S. to offer all available acreage in Western GoM in August lease sale

BOEM Director Abigail Ross Hopper has announced that the bureau will offer more than 21 million acres offshore Texas for exploration and development in a lease sale that will include all available unleased areas in the Western Gulf of Mexico Planning Area. More »

WPX Energy cuts workforce, trims Denver office

WPX Energy is trimming its company-wide workforce by approximately 8% and consolidating most of its regional office staff in Denver, Colorado, together with personnel at the company’s headquarters in Tulsa, Oklahoma. More »

Statoil to drill in Julius prospect in Norwegian Shelf

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate has granted Statoil Petroleum a drilling permit for well 2/4-23 in Julius prospect, located in PL146 on the Norwegian Shelf. More »

U.S. Gulf to receive flood of oil from Midwest as glut spreads

The flood of oil inundating the U.S. Midwest is about to cascade down to the Gulf Coast. More »

Obama says Keystone decision may be announced in weeks or months

President Barack Obama said a decision on whether to approve the Keystone XL pipeline is possible in weeks or months. More »

BOEM to offer all available acreage in the western GoM in August Lease Sale

As part of President Obama’s all-of-the-above energy strategy to expand safe and responsible domestic energy production, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Director, Abigail Ross Hopper, has announced the bureau will offer more than 21 million acres offshore Texas for oil and gas exploration and development in a lease sale that will include all available unleased areas in the western Gulf of Mexico (GoM) Planning Area. More »

WPX Energy announces decisions affecting employees

WPX Energy is trimming its company-wide workforce by approximately 8% and consolidating most of its regional office staff in Denver, Colorado, together with personnel at the company’s headquarters in Tulsa, Oklahoma. More »

Bearish oil wagers surge to record as glut keeps growing

Hedge funds raised bearish wagers on oil to an all-time high, speculating crude has further to fall as the supply glut keeps swelling. More »

McDermott bags EPCI project offshore Qatar

McDermott International has been awarded a large project for a new jacket, temporary deck and replacement umbilical by Qatar Petroleum for the North Field Alpha gas development, offshore Qatar. More »

Technip awarded flexible pipe contract for Lula Alto field in Brazil

Technip was awarded a subsea contract from Tupi BV for the ongoing development of the Lula Alto field, in the Santos basin pre-salt area, Brazil. More »

Parsons acquires T.J. Cross Engineers

Engineering firm Parsons has acquired T.J. Cross Engineers, Inc., a privately held oil and gas industry professional services firm specializing in engineering, design, and consulting services. More »

BP joins Occidental in Mexican hesitation after crude plunge

Mexico’s hopes of replicating the U.S. offshore oil boom rest on authorities sweetening contract terms after prices collapsed, according to prospective drillers, as preliminary terms being offered by Mexico “need to be a little more competitive,” according to the CEO of BP. More »

Brent oil retreats from 2015 high; premium over WTI narrows

Crude fell from its highest close this year in London on concern a global surplus will linger. U.S. oil futures narrowed their discount to Brent after an industry survey was said to report a slowdown in stockpile gains. More »

LetterOne closes RWE Dea deal

The LetterOne Group and RWE AG have completed RWE’s sale of RWE Dea AG to LetterOne. More »

Tullow Oil drops on concern Ghana dispute may halt activity

Tullow Oil Plc, an energy explorer in Africa, fell to a one-month low in London trading after saying Ghana could be ordered to suspend drilling in an offshore area where it operates. More »

Statoil chooses Allseas vessel to install Johan Sverdrup topsides

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Oil drops as gain in Saudi Arabian output boosts OPEC production

Oil fell after the first monthly gain since June as Saudi Arabia stepped up production, lifting OPEC’s output beyond its collective quota for a ninth month. More »

Wood Group Kenny appoints new CEO

ABERDEEN, United Kingdom -- Wood Group Kenny (WGK) has appointed Bob MacDonald as CEO, effective April 6. MacDonald moves into the role from his position as WGK regional director for the North Sea. More »

Maersk nets contract for ultra-deepwater drillship Maersk Voyager

Maersk Drilling has been awarded a contract from Eni Ghana Exploration and Production Ltd., an Eni subsidiary, for employment of the newbuild drillship Maersk Voyager. More »

Kosmos Energy wildcat disappoints offshore Morocco

Kosmos Energy’s CB-1 exploration well, in the Cap Boujdour permit area offshore Western Sahara, has encountered hydrocarbons. The well penetrated approximately 14 m of net gas and condensate pay in clastic reservoirs over a gross hydrocarbon bearing interval of approximately 500 m. The discovery is non-commercial, and the well will be plugged and abandoned. More »

Gassco assumes operatorship for Knarr gas pipeline

Gassco has taken over as operator of the Knarr pipeline, which will transport rich gas to the Shell-Esso Gas and Liquids (Segal) system and St Fergus in Scotland. More »

CGG kicks off Davros survey in Northern Carnarvon basin

CGG has started acquiring the Davros 3D BroadSeis and BroadSource multi-client survey in the Northern Carnarvon basin on the North West Shelf of Western Australia. More »

Otto Energy to farm-in with 15% stake in SC55; hires Maersk Venturer drillship

PERTH, Australia -- Otto Energy Philippines, a subsidiary of Otto Energy, has signed a farm-in agreement with Red Emperor Resources to earn a 15% working interest in SC55, offshore the Philippines. More »

RWE plans to close sale of Dea unit to LetterOne

RWE, Germany’s second-largest utility, said it will proceed with the sale of its oil and gas unit to a Russian billionaire on Mar. 02 and may buy back the U.K. business should the new owner face sanctions. More »

Subsea 7 bags $240 million worth contract extensions, offshore UK

Subsea 7 has been awarded a two-year extension to two Underwater Services Contracts (USCs) by Shell Upstream International Europe, worth approximately $240 million. More »

Belzona pioneers multipurpose metal repair system for oil contaminated and wet surfaces, even underwater

One of the major challenges faced by maintenance engineers across many industries is the extremely limited amount of time in which an urgent repair, such as a pipe or tank leak, must be carried out. More »

OMEGA Engineering inaugurates new office in Mexico

OMEGA Engineering has inaugurated its new office in Mexico. This is in line with OMEGA's strategy to expand its business and leadership globally. More »

Increased well decommissioning activities gain abandonment focus, says SPE Aberdeen

In the UK and North Sea alone, around 475 installations will eventually have to be decommissioned and the associated costs for the rest of this decade are expected to average at $2 billion (£1.3billion) per year, noted Society Of Petroleum Engineers-Aberdeen Section (SPE Aberdeen). More »

Pemex negotiates lower rig rates as crude collapse hurts profits

MEXICO CITY -- Petroleos Mexicanos is negotiating reduced rig rates with all of its providers after the state-owned oil producer posted a ninth straight quarterly loss on slumping crude prices. More »

U.S. oil drilling retreat slows as fewest rigs shut in eight weeks

HOUSTON -- The tide may be turning in the retreat of the U.S. oil explorers. Rigs targeting oil fell by 33 to 986, the smallest decline since Jan. 2, according to Baker Hughes. Rigs in the Permian basin dropped by seven to 355 after dropping by as much as 49 earlier in the month. The Eagle Ford in Texas lost three rigs. More »