Texas drillers say slowdown worse than global analysts have estimated Seadrill unveils hybrid rig
Slowdown underestimated
Texas oil and gas companies, after years of eye-rolling at shale skeptics, now say global analysts are underestimating just how severe the industry’s slowdown is. The International Energy Agency in Paris expects U.S. production to increase by 900,000 barrels a day next year, while the U.S. Energy Department forecasts 1 million. But those projections don’t jibe with what companies are experiencing on the ground in Texas, home to about half of U.S. crude output.
Energy shift too slow
World leaders’ efforts to shift away from fossil fuels and slow climate change are not going quickly enough to avoid environmental catastrophe, the United Nations said in a report. Considering current emissions and the existing pledges by individual countries, the Earth’s temperature would rise by almost six degrees Fahrenheit, far beyond the goal of 3.6 degrees Fahrenheit set at the Paris meeting on climate change in 2015. To avoid that scenariom nations will need to increase their pledged carbon reductions fivefold between 2020 and 2030, according to the annual Emissions Gap Report.
Icahn escalates Oxy fight
Carl Icahn plans to nominate a slate of 10 directors in an attempt to seize control of the board of U.S. oil and gas producer Occidental Petroleum Corp., Bloomberg reported, citing people familiar with the matter. The billionaire investor, who owns a stake in the company valued at about $1 billion, plans to make his move before the Nov. 29 deadline for nominations, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the matter is private. A representative for Icahn declined to comment, while a representative for Occidental wasn’t immediately available for comment.
Regulators consider transparency
Texas regulators are weighing whether to require electricity brokers to disclose their ties to retail electric providers, a move that could shine a brighter light on the brokerage websites millions of Texas consumers use to shop for power. The proposed policy, which the commission will open to public comment, comes as more electricity sellers launch their own brokerage operations, creating a potential conflict of interest and concerns that the brokerages would favor their parent company over competitors in recommending plans to consumers.
Chevron sells gas assets
Chevron has entered into a deal to sell its natural gas assets in Colombia. Under the deal, Chevron is selling its 43 percent share in a joint venture with the Colombian national oil company Ecopetrol to an Ecopetrol subsidiary, Hocol. Financial terms of the deal were not disclosed but the deal remains pending approval from federal regulators in Colombia. The joint venture included a stake in offshore natural gas fields in the Caribbean Sea as well as the onshore Ballena natural gas field and a processing plant in the province of La Guajira.
Not only are offshore drilling rigs become smarter and more automated, they are becoming greener and more energy independent. Seadrill, an offshore drilling rig operator headquartered in Bermuda with its principal offices in London and Houston, has unveiled the company’s first hybrid offshore drilling rig — which draws power from both diesel-fired generators and renewables-friendly battery storage technology. Seadrill announced that the battery system for its West Mira offshore drilling rig was certified by the Norwegian registration and classification organization DNV GL.