Maersk Steers Annual Shipping Forecast Lower
Maersk restates annual guidance after energy deal; lowers forecast for its key container business. A.P. Moller-Maersk , the world's largest container shipping group, cut the profit forecast for its core business on Tuesday after a costly cyber attack and a weaker than expected third quarter. Maersk, which agreed to sell its oil and gas business to Total in a $7.5 billion deal this year, has to prove to investors that the firm's strategy to focus on transport and logistics is the right one even with oil prices rising again. Expectations for the container shipping business had been high after Chief Executive Soren Skou said in August that fundamentals were "at their best since 2010".
Philippines says China Will Halt Expansion in South China Sea
China has assured the Philippines it will not occupy new features or territory in the South China Sea, under a new "status quo" brokered by Manila as both sides try to strengthen their relations, the Philippine defence minister said. Philippine Foreign Secretary Alan Peter Cayetano also said the Philippines was working on a "commercial deal" with China to explore and exploit oil and gas resources in disputed areas of the South China Sea with an aim to begin drilling within a year. The defence minister, Delfin Lorenzana, told a congressional hearing the Philippines and China had reached a "modus vivendi", or a way to get along, in the South China Sea that prohibits new occupation of islands.
Petrobangla, Excelerate Energy Deal for LNG terminal
Petrobangla has signed an agreement with Excelerate Energy Singapore Pte Ltd to establish a floating storage and re-gasification unit (FSRU) at Maheshkhali to facilitate the supply of 500 mmcfd imported liquefied natural gas to the country. Syed Ashfakuzzaman, secretary of state-run Petrobangla, and Karlman Tham, business development manager for Asia region of Excelerate Energy, signed the deal at Petrobangla in Dhaka. Under the agreement, the EEBL, a subsidiary of US-based Excelerate Energy, will build the country’s first FSRU – popularly known as LNG terminal – to process imported LNG into natural gas on a build-own-operate-transfer basis.
US: Noble Energy Deal Should Move Forward, Boosts Energy Security
The United States supports moving forward with offshore natural gas deals in the Mediterranean involving the U.S. company Noble Energy, a State Department spokesman said on Tuesday. U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry has also discussed the issue with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, State Department spokesman Jeff Rathke said. "We continue to engage and we support all parties to move forward with the natural gas deal signed between Noble Energy and entities in Jordan and Egypt," Rathke told reporters. Last week, Israel's competition regulator recommended breaking up control of the country's offshore gas reserves by Noble Energy and Delek Group, who together hold 85 percent of the giant Leviathan natural gas field.
Chinese Premier to Attend Europe Summit, sign Russia Energy Deal
Chinese Premier Li Keqiang will attend a summit of European and Asian leaders on a trip starting next week that will also include a visit to Germany and the signing of energy and high-speed rail deals with Russia, the government and state media said. Li's Oct. 9-16 swing through the continent is the second this year, and culminates in the Asia-Europe Meeting (ASEM) summit in the Italian city of Milan, the foreign ministry said in a statement. It comes as the former British colony of Hong Kong has been rocked by pro-democracy demonstrations, and also as the European Union steps up sanctions on Russia over the crisis in Ukraine. In response to the crisis, Russian President Vladimir Putin has turned to China.
Major Latin America Energy Deal Handled by Milbank
In support of energy infrastructure in Latin America, Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy LLP represented Itaú BBA S.A. in providing a $370 million loan for construction of a new multipurpose port facility and terminal in Cartagena Bay, Colombia. The new Puerto Bahia terminal, located on Colombia’s northern Caribbean coast, is one of the most significant investments in the country’s energy infrastructure sector to date. When operational in early 2015, the crude oil and products terminal…
Barclays Corporate Oil and Gas Exceeds 2010 Energy Deal Totals
Barclays Corporate oil and gas team announces it has provided funding for global energy deals amounting to US$1.26billion so far this year. The facilities have been provided for organisations operating in the UK and internationally, comprising bilateral and syndicated debt and trade lines for activities such as mergers and acquisitions as well as corporate funding. The figure has already exceeded the team’s US$1billion total of new deals in 2010. The announcement comes as thousands of delegates from across the world gather in Aberdeen for the biennial Offshore Europe exhibition.
