British Petroleum News

According to the preliminary estimate, the consumption of natural gas in China exceeded 27 million cubic meters in 2018, registering a YOY increase of more than 10%, said a report.The growing Chinese economy and stricter environmental protection policies drive the growth of natural gas consumption in China. In 2018, the Chinese government introduced several environmental protection policies to further prevent and control atmospheric pollution and replace coal with natural gas in key areas, which pushed up natural gas consumption in China.The market survey by ResearchAndMarkets shows that in 2018, the consumption of natural gas for power generation…

Egypt’s petroleum ministry has signed an agreement for UK Petroleum giant British Petroleum (BP) and UAE investment fund Mubadala to buy a 45 percent stake in the country's Noor offshore natural gas concesion in the Mediterannean from Italy’s Eni.In the concession, which is in participation with Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company (EGAS), Eni as operator through its subsidiary, IEOC, now holds a 40 percent interest. The other partners in the concession are BP with 25 percent interest and Tharwa Petroleum Company with 15 percent interest.The transactions were approved during a ceremony in Sharm El Sheik by the Egyptian Government represented by the Egyptian Petroleum Minister, Eng. Tarek El Molla.

Cress Systems helps container terminals reduce fuel bills, emissions and power peaks with ProwESS energy storage for rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs). New technology allows container ports and terminals to capture, store and reuse energy from container yard handling equipment to reduce fuel cost and emissions and better manage peak electricity demands. Following a successful proof of concept trial at the UK Port of Felixstowe, Cress Systems is pleased to announce the commercial release of its ProwESS energy capture, storage and reuse system for container terminal yard handling equipment. The first version of the system has been designed for rubber-tyred gantry cranes (RTGs), the global workhorse of yard operations, with a second version under development for straddle carriers.

Nordic American Tankers Limited (NAT) has entered into a 2 year time charter (TC)  with British Petroleum (BP). This follow's NAT's TC arrangements with Shell, ExxonMobil and other major oil companies both in the West and in the East. "The minimum rate is well above our cash break-even level with an index linked formula providing for upside potential to NAT. Commencement is mid September; i.e. in about 10 days," said a statement from the company. "As an example of the income potential of NAT, if our fleet is achieving about $30,000 per day spread across all the NAT vessels, the dividend potential could be about $2 per share per year. In the past, on occasions, the tanker market has been much higher than that," it added.

The oil giant British Petroleum (BP) oil and gas well on Alaska’s Northern Slope that blew out on Friday continues to spill crude oil and gas uncontrollably. There have been no injuries or reports of damage to wildlife, but crews trying to secure the well have failed amid frigid winds gusting to 38 miles an hour. Well pressure was monitored throughout the night and excess pressure was bled off to keep it within a safe rang. There was no estimate about volumes of natural gas and oil released. The Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation (ADEC) said in a statement that asecond leak had been reduced but was still emitting gas. Washington Post quoted Brett Clanton…

Fugro has been awarded a large geotechnical and geophysical (G&G) programme by ExxonMobil Alaska LNG LLC (AKLNG - a consortium of ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, British Petroleum, TransCanada and the State of Alaska). The 2015 G&G programme follows successful completion of a similar but smaller programme carried out by Fugro in 2014. The geotechnical scope of work includes drilling and sampling of borings for the onshore liquefaction facilities, marine terminal and offshore pipelines. It also includes installation of monitoring wells, seismograph and in situ measurement of soil properties. The geological and earthquake engineering scope will include assessment of geohazards, source characterisation, probabilistic seismic hazard and site response analyses.

As President and CEO of MSRC, Steve Benz presides over the largest oil spill response company in the United States (and worldwide). In that position since January 1996, he has during that tenure, overseen several critical phases in the Company’s evolution. These include a major restructuring in the late 1990s to make it more competitive; growth throughout the 2000-2009 period, including acquisition of several companies; leadership in overseeing MSRC’s role in responding to the 2010 BP spill in the Gulf of Mexico…

Global Energy Giant BP Confirms Severn Trent De Nora’s BALPURE Ballast Water Management Systems as its Preferred Solution with Large Contract Win Contract calls for 14 BALPURE systems to be installed aboard BP crude oil tankers being constructed by one of the world’s largest shipbuilders, STX Offshore & Shipbuilding. Severn Trent De Nora, a supplier of equipment for seawater electrochlorination, has received a big order for its BALPURE ballast water management system from STX Offshore & Shipbuilding for global energy giant British Petroleum (BP).

H.E. Khamis Juma Buamim, Chairman of Drydocks World and Maritime World the international provider of maritime services to the shipping oil, gas and energy sectors received the prestigious Sword of Honor for 2013 from the British Safety Council. The award was presented in the presence of Ms. Judith Hackett CBE, Chair of the UK Health and Safety Executive, Ms. Linda Armstrong, President of the Board of the British Safety Council and H.H. A series of audits by reputed international companies has proved beyond a doubt the company’s excellence in leadership…

Coast Guard Sector Anchorage personnel along with federal, state, local, tribal partners and industry representatives conducted mutual aid drills in Anchorage and Deadhorse, Wednesday. During the drill, participants tested their ability to establish a Unified Command, implement the North Slope Mutual Aid Agreement and deploy equipment in response to a simulated oil spill at the remote Nikaitchuq Project at Spy Island near Deadhorse. “Drills like this are important because they…

The last 12 months has been one for the books ... or the trash. There was no shortage of government inducements to turn the lackluster tide in 2012—stimulus spending in China and Japan, quantitative easing by the U.S. Federal Reserve, and multiple actions by the European Central Bank to strengthen the Eurozone. But as the year evolved, weak macroeconomic fundamentals decisively trumped monetary policy initiatives and continued their choke on global commerce, hence the maritime sector.

US EPA awards Blue Water Satellite contract to providie satellite data for an epidemiological study of 4 beaches. The US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has awarded a contract to Blue Water Satellite of Bowling Green, OH to provide unique historical data regarding the concentrations of potentially harmful Cyanobacteria, Chlorophyll-a, and Phosphorus at four Great Lakes beaches. This historical data will be used as part of an epidemiological study to potentially correlate concentrations of various biological constituents with human health effects.

Nordic American Tankers Ltd. is considering expanding its fleet by ordering new vessels or buying second-hand. The company's Board of Directors has declared a dividend of $0.16 for the fourth quarter of 2012. They are assessing expansion plans including ordering of new vessels from shipyards or buying second hand vessels at historically low prices. The level of the declared dividend should be seen in the context of a planned fleet expansion. Expansion is essentially the same as investing in the future. However, also yield is a priority as demonstrated by this payment of dividend for the 62nd consecutive quarter since the autumn of 1997. The record date is expected to be January 30, 2013 and the payment of dividend is expected to take place on or about February 13, 2013.

As far as seasonal customs go in the shipping industry, the advent of the New Year’s Wordscale tanker flat rates, currently arriving on desks worldwide, has proven to be one of the most reliable. And again, this reliability extends to the choice of AtoBviaC as Worldscale’s partner in calculating these rates. For the ninth year in succession, new Worldscale flat rates have been calculated using round voyage distances taken from tables developed by AtoBviaC – the BP Shipping Marine Distance Tables - widely recognized as offering the gold standard for distance calculations.

Nordic American Tankers Limited CEO briefs shareholders on market conditions and invites input. I would like to update you on developments in the company and in our industry. Conditions remain challenging in the tanker business, and we are doing our utmost to safeguard shareholder interests. Over the recent past NAT's position compared with the rest of the industry has improved. While some other tanker companies are debt-laden, NAT is in a good situation because of our low debt -- about $5 million net debt per vessel. Our recent agreement with a subsidiary of ExxonMobil is an example of our proactive business attitude, covering transportation of oil both in the Atlantic basin and also in other places in the world.

Texas A&M University at Qatar is actively engaged in solving engineering problems for major industries and companies in the country through path-breaking research, development, and technical services, according to a news report in 'Gulf Times'. In the relatively short period since the university arrived in Qatar, excellent collaboration and partnership have been established with many companies and government organisations, including British Petroleum, Chevron Qatar, ConocoPhillips Qatar, GDF Suez Qatar, Maersk Oil, National Instruments, Qatar Fertiliser Company, Qatar National Research Fund, Qatar Petrochemical Company, Qatar Petroleum, Qatar Shell, Qatar Science & Technology Park, Qatar Telecom, RasGas and Schlumberger.

Crowley announced the promotion of Eric Evans and Tony Otero each to the role of vice president, finance & planning, supporting several different business groups. In his new position Eric Evans will support Crowley's technical services, petroleum services, Alaska petroleum distribution and marine contract services business groups. His responsibilities include accounting, contract administration, budgeting, forecasting, analysis, and strategic planning for these business units, which encompass more than $1b in annual revenues and locations on five continents.

TIE Technologies, Inc. and Geocomp Corporation announced that the British Petroleum PLC Houston Command Team and the U.S. Coast Guard approved initial deployment of the OilDam(TM) as a solution to keep leaking crude oil from away from the Gulf Coast shore. Separately, BP announced that it will give $75m worth of grants to Alabama, Florida and Mississippi to protect the environmentally sensitive coastline as the states respond to the worst oil spill in America's history. The OilDam(TM) solution is designed to keep oil away from the shore, contain it and pump it into storage containers for recycling. At the same time, this fixed barrier blocks oil, and is ecosystem friendly by allowing water to pass back and forth through its base, maintaining tidal flows to support critical shoreline life.

The Passenger Vessel Association reminded its members on the gulf coast that economic losses from the BP oil spill may be compensable. As the spill continues and spreads, it may inflict harm upon PVA members in Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama, and Florida. These members may be able to obtain compensation from either British Petroleum or the federal Oil Spill Liability Trust Fund. The federal Oil Pollution Act of 1990, enacted following the Exxon Valdez spill, provides that persons who suffer documented physical or economic injuries from an oil spill can be compensated for their damages. Payment will be made by either the “responsible party” (in this case…

According to a May 20 report from New York Daily News, Kevin Costner spent years and millions of dollars perfecting a device that cleans oil from seawater and British Petroleum gave the okay to test six of Costner's units. Costner's high-speed centrifuge machine, named Ocean Therapy, is placed on a barge and sucks in large quantities of polluted water, separates out the oil and spits back 97% clean water. (Source: New York Daily News)

Vane Brothers closed a deal with British Petroleum (BP) to supply six tug boats which would maneuver six 50,000 barrel barges next to the skimmers that are collecting the oil from the gulf before pumping the oil out of the skimmers for transport to a disposal point at an oil refinery. While Vane Brothers, a marine transportation company headquartered in Baltimore, Maryland, was definitely supportive of the task, the commission from BP could not have come at a more inopportune time for the vessel the Potomac. Just three days prior, Vane Brothers had ordered a top end overhaul kit for twin Cat 3516B engines onboard the Potomac. Unfortunately…

American International Industries, Inc. announced that Subsea Oil Technologies, Inc., 50% owned by AMIN, has been assigned U.S. patent application number 12/822,324 entitled "Method and Apparatus for Containing an Undersea Oil and/or Gas Spill Caused by a Defective Blowout Preventer (BOP)," filed on June 24, 2010. The prosecution of the patent application at the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) has been entrusted to the law firm of Volpe and Koenig, P.C., which is located in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Mr. Dror stated, "We believe that the invention disclosed by this patent application (the "BOPstopper") is one of the first to be filed at the USPTO to specifically present possible solutions to contain oil and/or gas spills…

The following is a transcript from a May 1, 3:52 p.m. EDT, press briefing by Coast Guard Commandant Thad Allen, and Assistant to the President for Homeland Security John Brennan on ongoing response to the oil spill following the Deepwater Horizon incident. ADMIRAL ALLEN:  Thank you, Denis. Good afternoon to you all. This afternoon it was announced that I would be the National Incident Commander for this continuing response. I'd like to provide some context at the outset and make a couple of comments about myself personally and some background that I have. And then John Brennan will make some remarks. Regarding this incident, as you all know…