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James Regan News

10 Jan 2018

Port Hedland May Clear Ships as Storm Builds off Australia

Giant iron ore port may close as Australian storm builds. Vessels may be cleared from Australia's Port Hedland, the world's biggest iron ore export terminal, as early as Thursday as a safety precaution because of a tropical storm, port manager Pilbara Ports Authority said on Wednesday. The authority said Port Hedland may start clearing vessels on Thursday morning if the tropical low builds overnight into a cyclone off the Western Australia coastline. Port Hedland is used by three of Australia's top four iron ore miners - BHP,, Fortescue Metals Group and Gina Rinehart's Hancock Prospecting. A significant risk remains that it might become a severe tropical cyclone early on Friday…

31 Oct 2017

Wheatstone LNG Facility Exports First Cargo to Japan

(Photo: Chevron)

Australia's Wheatstone liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, after starting production earlier this month, has shipped its first export cargo to a buyer in Japan, majority owner and operator Chevron Corp said on Tuesday. Wheatstone is the sixth out of eight projects in a $200 billion Australian LNG construction boom that is now in its final stretch. The two remaining project due to for start-up are Royal Dutch Shell's Prelude floating LNG project and Ichthys, led by Japan's Inpex.

07 Aug 2017

Crashed US Military Aircraft Found off Australian Coast

Royal Australian Navy (RAN) survey ship HMAS Melville located the submerged aircraft (File photo: Royal Australian Navy)

An Australian Navy survey ship has located a U.S. military aircraft that crashed off the Australian northeast coast at the weekend and left three Marines missing, Defence Minister Marise Payne said on Monday. The navy divers will conduct remotely operated underwater vehicle operations before considering sending down divers, Payne said in a statement. The U.S. Marine Corps had suspended a search for the three Marines missing since the MV-22 Osprey tilt-rotor aircraft crashed while on regular operations on Saturday.

08 Feb 2017

Australia Probes Coal Spill near Great Barrier Reef

Coal has washed up in waters dangerously close to Australia's Great Barrier Reef, environmental authorities said on Wednesday, following an investigation into complaints of black dust on nearby beaches. Ship-loading facilities at the port of Hay Point, which ships tens of millions of tonnes of coal annually to export markets worldwide, are at the centre of the investigation by authorities in the northeastern state of Queensland. But it was too early to say if the Hay Point port was the source of the coal and fine dust that washed up on the nearby beaches of East Point and Louisa Creek, the state's environment minister, Steven Miles, told reporters. "The impact on marine life and the reef is likely to be quite localised," Miles added.

06 Jan 2017

Iron Ore Exports to China from Port Hedland hit record

Port is world's biggest iron ore export terminal; iron ore prices soared 80 pct in 2016. December iron ore shipments to China from Australia's Port Hedland terminal hit a record 37.4 million tonnes in December, boosted as users such as BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group ramped up production. Overall shipments from the world's biggest iron ore export terminal also climbed to a record 43.9 million tonnes last month, according to the Pilbara Ports Authority. The previous record for iron ore exports to China was 35.5 million tonnes, while the overall record was 42.9 million tonnes. Both were set last August. "We saw records in both categories in December," a port spokesman said. Iron ore prices soared 80 percent in 2016 as economic stimulus in China helped sustain steel output.

05 Oct 2016

BHP: GoM Mad Dog Project Viable with sub-$50 Oil

BHP Billiton said the second phase of its Mad Dog offshore joint venture with BP in the Gulf of Mexico was economical at oil prices below $50 per barrel. Originally slated for development in 2013, the project has been deferred due to low oil prices and moves to reduce construction costs. After losing three-quarters of its value from mid-2014 to early 2016, the price of benchmark U.S. crude has rallied more than 80 percent since February to nearly $50 per barrel.   Reporting by James Regan

19 Sep 2016

Australia settles six years after Barrier Reef accident

Australia on Monday reached a A$39.3 million ($29.66 million) out-of-court settlement with the owners of a Chinese coal carrier that ran aground in 2010 on the Great Barrier Reef. The settlement, dismissed by an environmental group as not enough, is less than a third of what the Australian government was seeking from the ship's owner - Shenzhen Energy Transport Co - for remediation costs after the 225-metre long Shen Neng 1 ran aground on the reef's Douglas Shoal. The fully-laden carrier was en route to China when it sailed outside the shipping lane and ran aground on April 3, 2010. Anti-fouling paint that peeled off the ship contained a highly toxic component, tributyltin, that is now banned from use.

11 Jul 2016

Port Hedland June Iron Ore Exports to China Rise to Record

Port Hedland (Photo: Pilbara Ports Authority)

Record iron ore shipments to China moved through Australia's Port Hedland terminal in June, as major producers BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals operated close to full capacity and inventories at Chinese ports swelled. Most of the ore both companies mine is sent to China, where higher-grade imports are displacing lower quality domestic ore in Chinese steel mills. Shipments to China from the Indian Ocean port increased to 34.5 million tonnes in June from 31.7 million tonnes in May, topping the previous record of 33.9 million tonnes in March, according to the Pilbara Ports Authority.

09 Jul 2016

Fire at Prelude LNG Construction Site in South Korea

Happier Times: In May 2013 the price per barrel of oil was more than $100 and Shell ha laid the keel for 'Prelude FLNG', the world’s first floating liquefied natural gas (FLNG) project. (Courtesy of  Royal Dutch Shell)

Shell said a small fire occurred at the construction site in South Korea for its huge floating Prelude liquefied natural gas (LNG) project, with work resuming immediately and an investigation underway. The incident would not have an impact on the delivery schedule, according to a source in South Korea. Shell has declined to reveal the timetable or the budget for Prelude, based on a giant processing vessel being built in Samsung Heavy Industries' Geoje shipyard that will be towed to a gas field off the west Australia coast.

23 Jun 2016

Lenders Deny BHP Port Debt on Coal Worries

Australian mining giant BHP Billiton pulled a $500 million debt refinancing plan at one of Australia's biggest coal export terminals after banks were reluctant to lend to the sector, said three sources with knowledge of the process. The decision earlier this month sets back efforts to simplify complex debt arrangements at the Newcastle Coal Infrastructure Group (NCIG) project and stalls BHP's plan to release cash tied up in the terminal as it looks to strengthen its balance sheet amid a global commodities slump. It also underscores the plight of the industry in trying to attract financing from lenders wary of coal's commercial outlook and contribution to climate change.

13 Apr 2016

Total to Broaden LNG Cooperation with Korea Gas

French oil and gas company Total said on Wednesday that it signed an agreement with Korea Gas to extend the cooperation in their liquefied natural gas (LNG) businesses.   The agreement is designed to jointly identify and pursue opportunities to develop the LNG market in Asia and in new importing countries, Total said in a statement.   The French group added that the firms would also cooperate in LNG trading and terminal optimisation.   Total and Korea Gas are partners in the $18.5 billion Gladstone LNG project in Australia alongside other companies including Santos and Petronas.     (Reporting by Bate Felix; Editing by James Regan)

26 Feb 2016

Australian Icebreaker Refloated in Antarctica

Australian icebreaker Aurora Australis was refloated on Friday, two days after running aground in Antarctica while on a mission to resupply the Mawson Station, Australian Broadcasting Corp reported. The ship broke free of its moorings during a blizzard on Wednesday morning. None of the 67 expeditioners and crew on board on the ship, owned by P&O Maritime Services, were injured, according to the Australian Antarctic Division. "Expeditioners on board the Aurora Australis have been successfully transferred by barge to Mawson Station," it said. The Aurora Australis departed Australia's Tasmania island in early January to conduct research on an undersea geological formation. Ships traveling to and from Antarctica often face risky conditions.

23 Sep 2015

Egypt to Buy French Warships Initially Built for Russia

France has agreed to sell two Mistral helicopter carriers to Egypt for 950 million euros ($1.06 billion) after their sale to Russia was canceled in August, French officials said on Wednesday. Cairo has sought to boost its military power in the face of a two-year insurgency based across the Suez Canal in the Sinai peninsula and fears the conflict in neighbouring Libya could spill over. Egypt's allies are also keen to burnish its image in a region beset by turmoil. "We unwound the contract we had with Russia, on good terms, respectful of Russia and not suffering any penalty for France," Hollande told reporters on his arrival at an EU summit in Brussels.

23 Sep 2015

Hollande, Sissi Agree on Mistral Warships Deal

French President Francois Hollande and his Egyptian counterpart Abdel Fattah Al-Sissi have agreed on the purchase by Egypt of the two French Mistral helicopter carriers whose planned sale to Russia was cancelled. "They agreed on the principle and the terms of the acquisition by Egypt of the two" Mistral warships, Hollande's office said in a statement on Wednesday. France, whose navy already operates three of the Mistral helicopter carriers, has no use for the ships, whose sale to Russia was scrapped due to the Ukraine crisis. Reporting by James Regan

21 Jul 2015

BHP Will Beef Up Hedland Port, Acquire Tugs

BHP Billiton said on Tuesday it will spend $240 million upgrading its marine iron ore facilities in Western Australia. The funds will be used to purchase six tug boats and build a new tug harbor in the Port Hedland Port, with construction due to be completed in the September 2016 quarter. BHP is expected to show it shipped a record 250 million tonnes of iron ore through the port in fiscal 2015. when it releases its year-end operations report on Wednesday. "This project will enable BHP Billiton to safely meet projected demand for tug services and effectively manage shipping risk for all users of the Port Hedland Port," BHP iron ore division head Jimmy Wilson said in a statement.

11 May 2015

Bourbon Says 3 Kidnapped Crew Members Released

French oil services company Bourbon said on Monday that the three Nigerian crew members kidnapped after one of its speedboats was boarded off the Nigerian coast on April 8 had been released.   "They are in good health and arrived at Port Harcourt on May 8," Bourbon said in a brief statement.   The crew members had been abducted on board a Surfer 1440 boat.   Bourbon operates a fleet of light, fast cruisers called Surfers that are used to move professionals to offshore oil and gas sites, especially in West Africa.     (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Geert De Clercq)

03 May 2015

French Patrol Ship Rescues 217 Migrants off Libya Coast

A French patrol ship rescued 217 migrants from three small boats that had run into trouble off the coast of Libya on Saturday, the maritime police said in a statement. The Commandant Birot helped several dozen people in distress and intercepted two suspected people smugglers, according to the statement. "The intercepted vessels have all been neutralised," the maritime police said, adding that they were responding to a call from the maritime rescue coordination centre in Rome as part of the European Union's operation Triton. The rescued migrants and the suspected people smugglers have been handed over to the Italian authorities, the Toulon, France-based maritime police added.

13 Apr 2015

Three Kidnapped from Boat off Nigeria -Bourbon

French oil services company Bourbon said on Monday that three Nigerian crew members had been kidnapped after one of its speedboats was boarded off the Nigerian coast in the night of April 8.   "An emergency unit based in Nigeria has been immediately activated," the company said in a statement.   Bourbon operates a fleet of light, fast cruisers it calls Surfers that are used to move professionals to offshore oil and gas sites, especially in West Africa.     (Reporting by Michel Rose; Editing by James Regan)

29 Mar 2015

USNS Spearhead Delivers Materials to Ghana Charities

The U.S. Navy’s joint high-speed vessel USNS Spearhead (JHSV 1) delivered wheelchairs and medical supplies to Ghanaian non-governmental organizations March 26, 2015. The materials were delivered under the U.S. Navy’s Project Handclasp program, which accepts humanitarian, educational and goodwill donations, contributed by the American private sector, and transports them to foreign nations on a space-available basis aboard U.S. Navy vessels. Spearhead delivered 168 of these three-wheeled, hand-cranked wheelchairs, with 154 being adult sized and 14 being for children. The shipment weighed more than 15,600 pounds, with an estimated total worth of $42,000. The humanitarian items are from charities in the United States.

19 Jan 2015

Australian Bulk Ports Brace for Cyclone

Ships at 2 Australian iron ore ports face cyclone threat; ships being evacuated from Port Hedland, Dampier. Australia's Pilbara Ports Authority said it had started evacuation of ships at the Port Hedland and Dampier iron ore ports due to cyclone threat, but forecast a short closure due to the low intensity of the storm. Any interruption in iron ore shipments from the key ports of top supplier Australia could support prices of the steelmaking raw material, which are mired near 5-1/2-year lows in a world market flush with supplies from big Australian miners. Iron ore shipped via Port Hedland, which handles about a fifth of the world's seaborne iron ore trade, totaled nearly 40 million tonnes in December, most of which was mined by BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group.

08 Dec 2014

Total Sells Stake in GTT

Oil major Total agreed to sell its remaining 10.4% stake in Gaz Transport & Technigaz (GTT), a leading maker of insulated hull linings for tankers that carry liquefied natural gas, to Singapore-based investment group Temasek. Total had already reduced its shareholding from 30% in February during GTT's IPO. Total said in a statement on Monday that it will have raised more than $650 million overall from the sale of the entire stake. "With this transaction, Total continues to unlock significant value from its portfolio and to focus on its strategic assets," said Yves-Louis Darricarrere, president of upstream and of gas and power at Total. (Reporting by James Regan; Editing by Leigh Thomas, Reuters)

06 Nov 2014

Tug Operators Plan Strike at Port Hedland

Photo: Pilbara Ports Authority

Tug boat engineers at Port Hedland, Australia's biggest iron ore port, plan to stop work for four hours on Nov. 12 over a pay dispute, threatening exports from BHP Billiton and Fortescue Metals Group , according to tug operator Teekay Shipping. The Australian Institute of Marine & Power Engineers (AIMPE) has given notice of the stoppage, Teekay said, adding that it exempted towage already under way. AIMPE Federal Secretary Martin Byrne said the action was aimed at having "minimal impact" on the port's users and would take place in the morning during a low tide…

22 Oct 2014

Total Names Refining Boss to Replace de Margerie

Patrick Pouyanne (Photo: Total)

French oil company Total has appointed refining boss Patrick Pouyanne as chief executive to succeed Christophe de Margerie who was killed in a plane crash in Moscow this week. Pouyanne, 51, head of refining, had been considered as possible candidate to succeed de Margerie in the past and has a reputation as a shrewd cost-cutter. The world's fourth largest oil company also named Thierry Desmarest, a former Total CEO, as non-executive chairman. The appointments came less than 48 hours after de Margerie's death.