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Oil Sector News

26 Jan 2024

China Presses Iran to Rein in Houthi Attacks in Red Sea

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Chinese officials have asked their Iranian counterparts to help rein in attacks on ships in the Red Sea by the Iran-backed Houthis, or risk harming business relations with Beijing, four Iranian sources and a diplomat familiar with the matter said.The discussions about the attacks and trade between China and Iran took place at several recent meetings in Beijing and Tehran, the Iranian sources said, declining to provide details about when they took place or who attended."Basically, China says: 'If our interests are harmed in any way, it will impact our business with Tehran.

28 Nov 2022

Chevron Can Resume Key Role in Venezuela's Oil Output, Exports

© Vallehr / Adobe Stock

Chevron Corp on Saturday received a U.S. license allowing the second-largest U.S. oil company to expand its production in Venezuela and bring the South American country's crude oil to the United States.The decision grants broader rights for the last big U.S. oil company still operating in U.S.-sanctioned Venezuela. However, it restricts any cash payments to Venezuela, which could reduce the oil available to export.License terms are designed to prevent state-run oil firm Petróleos de Venezuela, known as PDVSA PDVSA.UL, from receiving proceeds from Chevron's petroleum sales, U.S. officials said.

10 Nov 2022

Yemen's Houthis Increase Pressure with Oil Port Attacks

© James Steidl / Adobe Stock

Yemen's Houthi group is piling on pressure to extract economic gains in U.N.-led talks for an extended truce deal with attacks on oil ports in government-held areas, which officials say have disrupted crude exports, choking state revenues.Yemen's foreign ministry said in a statement that the Houthis launched a drone attack on the southern Qena port in Shabwa on Wednesday. The group's military spokesman said on Twitter that the operation "foiled an attempt to loot" Yemen's oil by preventing a vessel from docking.A joint statement by the U.S.…

07 Aug 2022

How the Blue Economy Will Shape the Future of Canada’s Oceans

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The words “blue economy” will soon shape the future of Canada’s oceans, from the fiords and straits of British Columbia to the rugged coastlines of the Atlantic to the vast seascapes of the Arctic. The transformation of Canada’s ocean economies will be felt throughout the country and will set an example for nations around the world.But what is a blue economy? And what makes it different from business as usual?The term blue economy was first championed by small-island developing countries, including Fiji, Bahamas and Palau, to bring more local benefits from ocean industries.

23 Jun 2022

Russian Oil Tankers Get India Safety Cover Via Dubai Company

India is providing safety certification for dozens of ships managed by a subsidiary of top Russian shipping group Sovcomflot, official data showed, enabling oil exports to India and elsewhere after Western certifiers withdrew their services due to global sanctions against Moscow.Certification by the Indian Register of Shipping (IRClass), one of the world's top classification companies, provides a final link in the paperwork chain - after insurance coverage - needed to keep state-owned Sovcomflot's tanker fleet afloat and delivering Russian crude oil to overseas markets.Data compiled from the IRClass website shows that it has certified more than 80 ships managed by SCF Management Services (Dubai) Ltd…

14 Feb 2022

Liza Unity: Exxon's Second FPSO in Guyana Produces First Oil

 Liza Unity is Guyana's second FPSO in production. - Image Credit: SBM Offshore

Exxon Mobil Corp on Friday said it is accelerating output at its Guyana offshore oil development, starting a new production vessel that will bring total capacity to more than 340,000 barrels per day.An Exxon-led consortium started production in the South America country in 2019 and is responsible for all oil and gas output in Guyana. Exxon and partners Hess Corp and CNOOC Ltd. have discovered some 10 billion barrels of oil.Production at the Liza Unity floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) vessel is expected to reach 220,000 barrels of oil per day later this year, Exxon said.

04 Feb 2022

Rystad on Nigerian FPSO Explosion: 'No Impact on Oil Price. Environmental Implications Still Hard to Quantify'

Video Screenshot

The Trinity Spirit FPSO, operated by Nigeria's SEPCOL, exploded Wednesday and started burning, and, according to videos shared on social media, sinking. However, according to Rystad Energy, the incident is not expected to have an impact on Nigerian production as the unit was not producing at the time of the explosion. Environmental implications, however, are yet to be quantified.According to a Reuters report on Wednesday, an industry source active in Nigeria's oil sector said the FPSO had about 50…

03 Feb 2022

FPSO Explodes Offshore Nigeria

Illustration only - FPSO Flare © Teimuraz/AdobeStock

An oil production and storage vessel exploded off the coast of Nigeria early on Wednesday with 10 crew members on board though it was not yet clear if there were any casualties or how much crude might have spilled into the sea.Nigeria's Shebah Exploration & Production Company Ltd (SEPCOL) said on Thursday that flames had engulfed the Trinity Spirit floating production, storage, and offloading (FPSO) vessel following the blast a day earlier."At this time there are no reported fatalities…

12 Nov 2021

Report: Exxon, SBM Offshore in Talks to Build Fourth FPSO for Guyana

Illustration only - An SBM Offshore FPSO - File image: SBM Offshore

Exxon Mobil is in discussions with Dutch contractor SBM Offshore NV to build a fourth multibillion-dollar production unit to develop its Guyana oil discoveries, two people close to the negotiations said.The talks include the potential for some future platform assembly in Guyana, the people said. Guyana hopes to develop an oil industry infrastructure to boost the economy and job growth. Officials are under pressure to show the potential oil bonanza will be shared with its citizens.The South American country is home to the world's biggest offshore discoveries in years…

30 Apr 2021

Mexican Yard Services US-sanctioned Tankers that Carry Venezuelan Oil

Three Cuban-flagged tankers that are under U.S. sanctions for transporting Venezuelan oil to the Communist-run island have been serviced in the port of Veracruz on Mexico's Gulf coast, according to vessel tracking data and industry sources.The maintenance work on the vessels—one of which was serviced as recently as this month—is a potential breach of sanctions on Venezuela, two lawyers who specialize in U.S. sanctions said.However, the United States has in the past not brought enforcement actions against shipyards for doing work on blacklisted vessels from those countries, according to U.S. Treasury Department data.Under U.S. law, companies and individuals are prohibited from materially assisting sanctioned entities.

20 Apr 2021

Libya's NOC Declares Force Majeure on Port of Hariga Exports

Credit: NOC

Libya's National Oil Corp (NOC) declared force majeure on Monday on exports from the port of Hariga and said it could extend the measure to other facilities due to a budget dispute with the country's central bank.Daily lost income "may exceed 118 million dinars ($26 million)", NOC said in its statement.The port was expected to load about 180,000 barrels per day (bpd) in April, on board six tankers, according to a loading schedule.Libyan oil output hit 1.28 million bpd in March…

13 Apr 2021

ADNOC L&S Adds Two More VLCCs to Its Fleet

Credit: ADNOC L&S

Abu Dhabi-based ADNOC Logistics & Services, the shipping and maritime logistics branch of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC), has ordered two additional Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCC), bringing the total number of VLCCs added to its fleet in 2021 to eight.ADNOC L&S said Tuesday that the VLCC fleet expansion played a significant role in supporting ICE Murban Futures, which is expected to boost trading of the UAE’s flagship Murban crude oil, enabling it to reach new customers and markets around the globe.

05 Apr 2021

Seadrill Asks Creditors to Write Off More Than 85% of its Debts

A Seadrill drillship - Image Credit: Seadrill

Offshore drilling rig contractor Seadrill has asked creditors to write off more than 85% of its debts in exchange for a 99% stake in the reorganized company, a court filing showed.The Oslo-listed firm controlled by Norwegian-born billionaire John Fredriksen in February filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection in the United States, the second time it has done so in four years.Seadrill has in the past year written off billions of dollars worth of assets due to a bleak outlook for the oil sector…

19 Jan 2021

US Blacklists Tankers, Oil Traders Undermining Venezuela Sanctions

The United States on Tuesday sanctioned a network of oil trading firms, individuals and vessels that have helped Venezuelan state-run oil company PDVSA sell crude mainly to Asia despite Washington's sanctions on the South American nation.The measure targets a network that the U.S. Treasury Department says helped the administration of President Nicolas Maduro, whose 2018 re-election Washington called a sham, broker the sale of hundreds of millions of dollars in Venezuelan oil."Those facilitating the illegitimate Maduro regime's attempts to circumvent United States sanctions contribute to the corruption that consumes Venezuela," Treasury Secretary Steven Mnuchin said in a news release.The Treasury said its Office of Foreign Assets Control…

29 Dec 2020

UAE Emerges as Hub for Companies Helping Venezuela Avoid US Oil Sanctions

In June, the United States imposed sanctions on half a dozen oil tankers managed by established shipping firms. It was a major escalation of American attempts to choke off Venezuela’s oil trade.Within weeks, a little-known company based in the United Arab Emirates took over management of several tankers that had been shipping Venezuelan oil. The vessels got new names. And then they resumed transporting Venezuelan crude.The company, Muhit Maritime FZE, is one of three UAE-based entities identified by Reuters that have shipped Venezuelan crude and fuel during the second half of this year. Their role emerges from an examination of internal shipping documents from Venezuela’s state oil company as well as third-party shipping and vessel tracking data.

27 Nov 2020

Report: Venezuela Resumes Oil Shipments to China Despite U.S. Sanctions

Venezuela has resumed direct shipments of oil to China after U.S. sanctions sent the trade underground for more than a year, according to Refinitiv Eikon vessel-tracking data and internal documents from state company Petroleos de Venezuela (PDVSA).Chinese state companies China National Petroleum Corp (CNPC) and PetroChina - long among PDVSA's top customers - stopped loading crude and fuel at Venezuelan ports in August 2019 after Washington extended its sanctions on PDVSA to include any companies trading with the Venezuelan state firm.The imposition of the sanctions was part of a push by the Trump administration to oust Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro…

10 Nov 2020

Phantom Buyers in Russia, Advice from Iran Help Venezuela Skirt Sanctions

On Aug. 21, a tanker called the Otoman docked at the Jose oil terminal on Venezuela’s coast in the Caribbean to load 1.82 million barrels of heavy crude, according to the state oil company’s internal documents.Yet no tanker with that name is registered in major global shipping databases.Muddying the situation further, the unique identifier for the Otoman listed in the documents - a number used by the International Maritime Organization to identify ships - was assigned to another tanker called the Rubyni, according to the databases.The Rubyni was broken up two years ago, they record. Satellite images provided by TankerTrackers.com, an independent vessel tracking service…

26 Oct 2020

Noncomprehensive Sanctions: Venezuela, Global Magnitsky, Hong Kong

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This article will focus on “noncomprehensive sanctions,” which target “Specially Designated Nationals” (SDNs), but otherwise do not prohibit most trade between the U.S. and the target country (if any). While there are multiple noncomprehensive sanctions programs, we will focus on three: Venezuela (which can be thought of as quasi-comprehensive), Global Magnitsky (human rights) and Hong Kong. Russia also has a substantial noncomprehensive sanctions program, which we will address in a later article.NONCOMPREHENSIVE SANCTIONS PROGRAMS: IN GENERALThe U.S.

30 Oct 2020

The Path to Zero: First Wave of Ships Explore Green Hydrogen

Norwegian ferry operator Norled is developing hydrogen-powered ferries (Image: LMG Marin)

While there is no consensus on what will be the maritime 'fuel of the future', developers across the world are for the first time testing the use of hydrogen to power ships as the maritime industry races to find technologies to cut emissions and confidence grows the fuel is safe to use commercially.To reach goals for the shipping industry set by the United Nations, industry leaders say the first net-zero ships must enter the global fleet by 2030. Ships powered by green hydrogen…

21 Apr 2020

Norway Deciding Whether to Cut Oil Output

(Photo: Equinor)

Norway's oil minister reiterated on Tuesday that Western Europe's largest oil producer was soon to conclude whether to cut its output following historical curbs agreed by the OPEC+ group.Brent crude front-month contract fell to $18.10 a barrel on Tuesday, its lowest since December 2001, after U.S. May futures dropped to minus $40 a barrel on Monday due to worries about the novel coronavirus pandemic's impact on fuel demand."We have not yet concluded. It will happen soon," Oil…

17 Jun 2020

Maersk Supply Service Sells Two 2004-built AHTS Vessels

Image Credit: Maersk Supply Service

Danish offshore vessel operator Maersk Supply Service has sold two of its older Anchor Handler Tug Supply Vessels (AHTS), citing the global oversupply in the market and the current market situation.The vessels in question are the Maersk Advancer and Maersk Asserter. Both vessels were built in Germany in 2004.Chief Commercial Officer of Maersk Supply Service Carsten Gram Haagensen: "As a response to the recent downturn in the oil and gas industry, we have re-evaluated our fleet composition and future fleet deployment.

27 Oct 2020

US Issues Fresh Sanctions Targeting Iran's Oil Sector

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The United States on Monday imposed fresh Iran-related sanctions targeting the Islamic Republic's oil sector, including the Iranian Ministry of Petroleum, in Washington's latest move to increase pressure on Tehran.The U.S. Treasury Department in a statement said it was slapping sanctions on key actors in Iran's oil sector for supporting the Quds Force, the elite foreign paramilitary and espionage arm of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps."The regime in Iran uses the petroleum sector to fund the destabilizing activities of the IRGC-QF…

02 Jul 2020

US Lifts Some Venezuela-related Sanctions

The United States on Thursday lifted sanctions on Marshall Islands-based Delos Voyager Shipping Ltd and Greece-based Romina Maritime Co Inc that had been imposed last month over accusations the companies operated in the Venezuelan oil sector.The U.S. Treasury Department’s action lifted Venezuela-related sanctions on four companies, including Marshall-Islands based Adamant Maritime Ltd and Sanibel Shiptrade Ltd, as well as on four vessels.The move, which follows the delisting last month of other Greece- and Marshall Islands-based shipping firms, removed the remaining Greece-based companies blacklisted in June for transporting Venezuelan oil from the U.S.