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Texas oil, gas drilling permits slide by 33pc in March

  • : Crude oil, LPG, Natural gas, Pipe and tube
  • 24/04/08

Texas drilling permits for oil and natural gas fell in March by 33pc from a year earlier on declines across all major producing regions.

There were 669 permits issued in March for drilling oil, drilling gas, or drilling for both oil and gas across the state, according to the Texas Railroad Commission (RRC), down from 999 in the same month last year. Permits ticked higher from the 659 recorded in February.

The year-on-year drop was led by the Midland region, or District 8, where permits fell in March to 328, down by 133 permits from a year earlier, and lower by five compared to February.

Also down from a year earlier were permits issued in the San Angelo region, or District 7C, to the immediate southeast of Midland. The regulator issued 60 permits there in March, lower by 39 from March 2023 but up from 42 permits in February.

The westernmost San Antonio region, or District 1, saw permits slide to 79 in March from 166 a year earlier. This was also down from 95 in February.

WTI crude prices at Cushing, Oklahoma, averaged $80.41/bl in March, higher by $7.03 from the same month last year, while average spot natural gas prices at Henry Hub fell by 55pc in the same period to $2.30/mmBtu.


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24/10/03

US light vehicle sales surged in September

US light vehicle sales surged in September

Houston, 3 October (Argus) — Domestic sales of light vehicles rebounded in September, increasing to a seasonally adjusted rate of 15.8mn on the strength of greater truck purchases. Sales of light vehicles — trucks and cars — rose from a seasonally adjusted annual of rate 15.3mn in August, the Bureau of Economic Analysis reported today. Sales have whipsawed the previous four months, but September's rate largely was in line with the 15.7mn unit rate in September 2023. The US Federal Reserve last month cut its target rate for the first time since 2020, bringing it down by 50 basis points from its 23-year highs as inflation has been easing. Lower inflation and Fed easing, which ripples across credit markets, make it more affordable for people to purchase new vehicles. Fed policymakers have penciled in another 150 basis points worth of cuts through 2025, as they hope to head off any weakening in the labor market that could scuttle the wider economy. Higher overall sentiment about the US economy, fueled by a robust 3pc growth in gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter, healthy labor conditions and consumer spending also have encouraged consumers to spend. Sequentially, light truck sales increased by 3.1pc to a 12.8mn unit rate in September, while sales of cars rose by 4.4pc to a 3mn unit rate in the same time period. By Alex Nicoll Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Libya lifts force majeure as oil blockade ends


24/10/03
24/10/03

Libya lifts force majeure as oil blockade ends

London, 3 October (Argus) — Libya has begun to ramp up crude production after state-owned NOC lifted force majeure on all fields and terminals today. This should restore Libya's crude production to more than 1.2mn b/d, from an estimated 500,000 b/d. NOC declared force majeure after much of Libya's output was forced offline by a blockade imposed by the country's eastern-based administration in late August. Libya's eastern-based parliament earlier this week approved an agreement to resolve a leadership crisis at the central bank, which had prompted the blockade. NOC also lifted force majeure at the El Sharara oil field, which was shut down before the blockade. Output at the field, which normally produces about 260,000-270,000 b/d, has started, a source told Argus . By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US tries to shape Israel's response to Iran: Update


24/10/02
24/10/02

US tries to shape Israel's response to Iran: Update

Updates with additional comments by President Biden starting in second paragraph. Washington, 2 October (Argus) — US president Joe Biden today called on Israel to keep its expected retaliatory strike proportionate after an Iranian missile attack on Tuesday. "We'll be discussing with the Israelis what they're going to do," Biden told reporters. The US and other G7 countries agree "that they have a right to respond, but they should respond in proportion", he said. The US would not support an attack by Israel on sites associated with Iran's nuclear program, Biden said. For its part, the immediate US response would include new sanctions, he said. Biden reached out to fellow leaders of the G7 group of advanced democracies on Wednesday "to coordinate on a response to this attack, including new sanctions", the White House said. The US Treasury Department today imposed sanctions on two additional tankers allegedly engaged in transporting Iranian crude to China. The Gabon-flagged Izumo and the Marshall Islands-flagged Frunze allegedly also transported Russian crude in contravention of the G7 price cap on Russian exports, Treasury said. Including today's action, the US sanctions list now totals 302 tankers and other vessels accused of facilitating Iran's oil and other commodity exports since 2019, including 68 tankers added by Treasury's sanctions enforcement arm this year. That has not succeeded in stopping the flow of Iranian crude to China, as Tehran has developed a sophisticated network of intermediaries and "shadow fleet" tankers to bypass US sanctions. Biden, who ordered US naval and military assets in the region to shoot down Iranian missiles aimed at Israel, promptly declared Tehran's barrage of missiles to have been ineffective. The nearly 200 missiles launched by Iran appeared to be targeting military sites but did not cause significant damage, and the only reported fatality is of a Palestinian civilian in the West Bank, according to the White House. The White House is holding consultations with Israel to help shape its response to the attack. "Iran made a big mistake and it will pay for it," Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said following the Iranian attack, which came hours after Israel launched a ground invasion of Lebanon. Netanyahu referenced the aerial strikes that decapitated the leadership of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon, noting that "the regime in Tehran does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and to exact a price from our enemies". Tehran, in turn, said "we will respond in a more severe manner" if Israel retaliates with strikes against Iran. A previous Iranian missile attack on Israel in April led to a restrained Israeli retaliation on targets inside Iran, with the US, China and other regional powers intervening to prevent a further escalation. The Biden administration has tried to balance support for Israel's self-defense with efforts to prevent an escalation of the conflict that could engulf the world's largest oil producing region on the eve of the 5 November US presidential election. The Iran-Israel confrontation featured at Tuesday's televised debate between the US vice-presidential candidates, but neither offered an explicit plan for how the US should respond to the Iranian attack. The response from US lawmakers similarly fell along partisan lines, with the Democrats backing efforts by the White House to prevent further escalation, while the Republicans called for a stronger response. Iranian "oil refineries need to be hit and hit hard because that is the source of cash for the regime to perpetrate their terror", senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) said. Graham made similar calls in April and in October 2023, at the outset of the Gaza conflict. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US tries to shape Israel's response to Iran attack


24/10/02
24/10/02

US tries to shape Israel's response to Iran attack

Washington, 2 October (Argus) — US president Joe Biden's administration is working to moderate a likely retaliatory strike by Israel after an Iranian missile attack on Tuesday. The US would not support an attack by Israel on sites associated with Iran's nuclear program, Biden told reporters today. Biden reached out to fellow leaders of the G7 group of advanced democracies today "to coordinate on a response to this attack, including new sanctions," the White House said. The US Treasury Department today imposed sanctions on two additional tankers allegedly engaged in transporting Iranian crude to China. The Gabon-flagged Izumo and the Marshall Islands-flagged Frunze allegedly also transported Russian crude in contravention of the G7 price cap on Russian exports, Treasury said. Including today's action, the US sanctions list now totals 302 tankers and other vessels accused of facilitating Iran's oil and other commodity exports since 2019, including 68 tankers added by Treasury's sanctions enforcement arm this year. That has not succeeded in stopping the flow of Iranian crude to China, as Tehran has developed a sophisticated network of intermediaries and "shadow fleet" tankers to bypass US sanctions. Biden, who ordered US naval and military assets in the region to shoot down Iranian missiles aimed at Israel, promptly declared Tehran's barrage of missiles to have been ineffective. The White House is holding consultations with Israel to help shape its response to the attack. "Iran made a big mistake and it will pay for it," Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu said following the Iranian attack, which came hours after Israel launched a ground invasion of Lebanon. Netanyahu referenced the aerial strikes that decapitated the leadership of the Iran-backed Hezbollah militant group in Lebanon, noting that "the regime in Tehran does not understand our determination to defend ourselves and to exact a price from our enemies." Tehran, in turn, said "we will respond in a more severe manner" if Israel retaliates with strikes against Iran. The previous Iranian missile attack on Israel, in April, led to a restrained Israeli retaliation on targets inside Iran, with the US, China and other regional powers intervening to prevent a further escalation. The Biden administration has tried to balance support for Israel's self-defense with efforts to prevent an escalation of the conflict that could engulf the world's largest oil producing region on the eve of the 5 November US presidential election. The Iran-Israel confrontation featured at Tuesday's televised debate between the US vice-presidential candidates, but neither offered an explicit plan for how the US should respond to the Iranian attack. The response from US lawmakers similarly fell along partisan lines, with the Democrats backing efforts by the White House to prevent further escalation, while the Republicans called for a stronger response. Iranian "oil refineries need to be hit and hit hard because that is the source of cash for the regime to perpetrate their terror," senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) said. Graham made similar calls in April and in October 2023, at the outset of the Gaza conflict. By Haik Gugarats Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

China’s cracker expansion to drive LPG storage growth


24/10/02
24/10/02

China’s cracker expansion to drive LPG storage growth

The addition of ethylene crackers will further drive LPG storage capacity expansion following strong growth in recent years Shanghai, 2 October (Argus) — China's LPG storage capacity is expected to expand again in 2025 after it continued to grow in 2024, the latest Global LPG Storage Survey finds. But whereas the expansion of the past five years has been driven by the country's investment in propane dehydrogenation (PDH) projects, next year's increase is supported by facilities built to serve new ethylene steam crackers. China's PDH capacity reached 22.6mn t/yr by the end of September, up 237pc from 6.7mn t/yr at the end of 2019. This has necessitated a significant increase in propane imports as well as domestic refrigerated LPG storage capacity for VLGC deliveries, which rose 159pc to 5.7mn t from 2.2mn t. The number of import terminals that can be served by VLGCs has grown to 41 from 23 since 2019. China's PDH expansion is expected to slow next year owing to sustained negative production margins. Yet the country's LPG storage capacity is yet again on course to rise, by 330,000t to 6.1mn t, backed by projects tied to new crackers. Domestic petrochemical producers believe LPG will be more competitive than naphtha in terms of cost over the long term, and are consequently building crackers designed to use the feedstock, including ExxonMobil's 1.6mn t/yr cracker in Huizhou, and BASF's 1mn t/yr cracker in Zhanjiang. Ethane imported from the US is likely to be even more competitive than LPG or naphtha, resulting in a crop of new ethane-fed cracker projects as well as conversions of existing units, supporting the development of ethane import terminals and storage capacity. Huatai Shengfu's 600,000 t/yr cracker in Ningbo will switch one of its propane furnaces to ethane use by the end of this year, converting its VLGC terminal into an ethane dedicated one. The 320,000 b/d Shenghong Petrochemical and 800,000 b/d Zhejiang Petroleum and Chemical integrated refineries also plan to develop new ethane terminals in the medium term. China's ethane storage capacity is forecast to rise by 320,000t to 760,000t by the end of 2025 as a result. Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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