July 2010 Archives

The Sensex is trading in a lackluster manner with PSU, banking, FMCG and realty stocks edging higher, while capital goods, oil & gas and teck stocks declined. At 14.48., the Sensex was trading up 3.86 points or 0.02% at 17,961.23. Meanwhile, the Nifty was trading higher by 3.60 points or 0.07% at 5,401.15.

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The 30-share benchmark index, BSE Sensex opened flat with a rise of 4.21 points or 0.02% at 17,961.58, while the broad based NSE Nifty started with a rise of 38.55 points or 0.71%, at 5,436.10.

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Housing Development Finance Corporation contributed rise of 25.7 points in the Sensex. It was followed by I C I C I Bank (16.03 points), H D F C Bank (6.66 points), Hindustan Unilever (4.46 points) and Sterlite Industries (India) (4.27 points).

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Sensex trades positive; HDIL up 2.27% on robust Q1 nos - Myiris.com

NEW DELHI: The government may give additional time to Cairn India for exploring more oil and gas in its producing Rajasthan oil field provided the company agrees to pay levies in proportion to its stake in the energy asset.

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At present its 30% partner, state-owned Oil & Natural Gas Corp (ONGC), pays the entire royalty on crude from that section of the field where commercial production has already started. Cairn is the operator of the field with a 70% stake. “Cairn has expressed interest in exploring the Rajasthan block. But exploration phase in the block has expired and the company has to take fresh government approvals,” an official in Directorate General of Hydrocarbon (DGH) said, requesting anonymity.

Cairn may get more time to explore Rajasthan oil field - Economic Times

Oil & Natural Gas Corp. , India’s biggest energy explorer, plans to spend a record $5 billion to develop gas fields to boost output by almost 60 percent in six years, two people with direct knowledge of the matter said.

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The New Delhi-based explorer sought permission from the country’s oil and gas regulator on July 16 to invest the funds in nine natural gas discoveries off India’s east coast to produce 35 million cubic meters a day by 2016, one person said, declining to be identified before the Directorate General of Hydrocarbons approves the plan.

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The amount is triple ONGC’s planned spending on its largest oil field and follows the government’s decision in May to double the price at which the explorer sells gas. India is ramping up gas output at the fastest pace in the world, according to BP Plc’s 2010 Statistical Review of World Energy, after companies including Reliance Industries Ltd. discovered new fields.

ONGC Said to Plan $5 Billion Spending to Boost Gas Output 60% in Six Years - Bloomberg

Tropical Depression Bonnie, the season's second named tropical storm, dissipated into a disorganized low-pressure system in the eastern Gulf of Mexico on Saturday.

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Forecasters said the 2010 Atlantic hurricane season could be the worst since 2005, when Hurricanes Katrina, Rita, and Wilma caused havoc in the Gulf Coast, damaging oil rigs and refineries and forcing sharp cuts in production. The hurricane season runs from June 1 through Nov. 30 and often affects the Gulf of Mexico, home to about 30 percent of U.S. oil production, 11 percent of natural gas production, and more than 43 percent of U.S. refinery capacity.

FACTBOX-Gulf of Mexico oil, gas ops restart post-Bonnie - Reuters Africa

Plunging earnings and low gas prices kept shares of Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. mostly unchanged for the week to a Friday close of $31.84 per share.

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Cabot said Thursday its second-quarter net income fell 15 percent as lower natural gas prices offset the company's higher production of gas. The market had already adjusted for the earnings decline, with analysts predicting a slightly greater drop for the company. For the quarter that ended June 30, Cabot reported net earnings of $21.7 million, or 21 cents a share, compared with net income of $25.5 million, or 25 cents a share in the year-ago period.

Cabot Oil & Gas earnings in 2Q decline, as expected - Scranton Times-Tribune

BP Plc , working to plug the source of the largest oil spill in U.S. history, sent vessels back to drilling a relief well in the Gulf of Mexico yesterday as tropical storm Bonnie dissipated.

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The oil company was forced to evacuate all but two vessels on July 22 as Bonnie intensified over the Bahamas and was forecast to move west toward the spill site. Moving the ships delayed work at the site by seven to nine days, National Incident Commander Thad Allen said during a conference call with reporters yesterday. Allen ordered ships to return after the National Hurricane Center in Miami said yesterday that Bonnie had weakened to a “disorganized area” of low pressure.

BP Returns to Gulf Oil Spill Site to Drill Relief Well After Storm Weakens - Bloomberg

A natural gas well exploded Friday in a remote area northeast of Pittsburgh, killing two people and causing a fire that raged for several hours.

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However, local police in Pittsburgh, which is located in the US state of Pennsylvania, were able to confirm that the blast occurred as maintenance staff worked on oil tanks, which involved the use of welding torches.

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The blast comes as the US public experiences a heightened sensitivity to an apparent lack of safety oversight in the domestic oil and gas industry following the BP oil spill and plans for a controversial crude oil pipeline to be laid across vast tracks of sensitive natural areas in several states from Canada to the Gulf Coast by TransCanada.

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Natural gas explosion in Pittsburgh, two fatalities - Bombay News

At 11:42 hours IST - the 50-share NSE Nifty washed out early trade gains and started consolidation again after yesterday's late trade upmove. Index rallied in last one hour of trade on Thursday and continued till today's morning trade, ahead of stress test results of 91 Europen banks.

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Metal, cement, healthcare, realty and PSU oil & gas companies' shares wiped out early trade gains. HDFC, HDFC Bank, TCS, Reliance Communications, Power Grid, Tata Power and M&M were other losers in trade. However, buying continued in Reliance Industries, Wipro, Infosys, SBI, Axis Bank, ITC, L&T, Idea Cellular, ICICI Bank, Bharti, BHEL, Reliance Infra, HCL Tech, Siemens, Tata Motors, Hero Honda, Maruti and Reliance Power, which were supportive the markets.

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DA LAT (VIETNAM): The government has asked state-run oil companies to seek legal opinion on the impact of US sanctions against Iran on their investments and business plans in the Persian Gulf nation, even as New Delhi is taking measures to resume talks with Tehran on major projects in the oil and gas sector, a top government official said.

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On May 14, TOI had reported the US Government Accountability Office naming Indian oil firms, including flagship explorer ONGC and refiner-marketer IndianOil Corporation, among 41 companies worldwide who may attract sanctions for investing in Iran's energy sector. The latest sanctions limit any firm's investments in Iran to $20 million in any 12-month period without being blacklisted by the US, a move that can block flow of funds and technology besides make western markets out of bounds.

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On May 14, TOI had reported the US Government Accountability Office naming Indian oil firms, including flagship explorer ONGC and refiner-marketer IndianOil Corporation, among 41 companies worldwide who may attract sanctions for investing in Iran's energy sector. The latest sanctions limit any firm's investments in Iran to $20 million in any 12-month period without being blacklisted by the US, a move that can block flow of funds and technology besides make western markets out of bounds. "These are publicly listed firms and pursuing opportunities in Iran. They need to figure out the legal impact of the US sanctions against Iran before they take any financial decision," petroleum secretary S Sundareshan told TOI. Sundareshan is accompanying oil minister Murli Deora who is here to represent India as a dialogue partner of ASEAN energy ministers' conclave.

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Shares of BP PLC rose Wednesday after the British oil giant agreed to sell $7 billion in assets to help pay costs stemming from the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

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The price risen about 34 percent since hitting a 14-year low of $27.02 but still is less than the $60.48 per-share price on April 20 when the BP-operated rig exploded. BP announced plans Tuesday afternoon to sell properties in the U.S., Canada and Egypt to oil and gas production company Apache Corp. for $7 billion.

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In an exclusive interview with CNBC-TV18, Niraj Mansingka, VP-Research, Edelweiss Securities, speaks about what he expects from the oil and gas space this earnings season.

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ONGC ’s earnings would remain slightly muted. On a year on year side, they should be showing almost de-growth, but a marginal one and thanks to the increasing gas prices in the month of June. We expected Rs 4,650 crore of profit after tax (PAT) by ONGC for the quarter. GAIL , we are expecting Rs 700 crore of PAT, again there is an increased YoY. But on a sequential basis the earnings are going to be lower primarily because there is a 30% fall in the EBIT (earnings before interest and taxes) on petrochemical business almost 28% lower earnings, stronger LPG and obviously the subsidiary haven’t fallen to an extent the market was factoring. But the subsidiaries are inline with our estimate, so earnings growth will be there in GAIL.

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The earnings were released as the Houston oil and gas company said it will buy several assets from BP PLC for $7 billion. It also is starting two separate stock offerings.

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For the quarter that ended June 30, Apache recorded net income of $860.2 million, or $2.53 a share, compared with $443.3 million, or $1.31 a share, in the year-ago quarter. Revenue rose to $2.97 billion from $2.09 billion. Analysts surveyed by Thomson Reuters forecast, on average, earnings of $2.31 a share on revenue of $2.8 billion. Such estimates typically exclude one-time items.

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Concerns about oil and gas seepages around BP 's newly capped well in the Gulf of Mexico appeared to have eased after the US government said they were not "consequential".

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Thad Allen, the official appointed by Barack Obama to lead the government's response to the disaster, said leaks detected over the weekend did not threaten the well.

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He said the seepage of gas from the seabed probably had nothing to do with the well. Oil and gas are known to ooze naturally from fissures in the bottom of the Gulf of Mexico.

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Besides IOC and Mukesh Ambani's RIL, the other Indian companies in the coveted fortune 500 list are Tata Steel, Tata Motors, BPCL, HPCL, ONGC and State Bank of India (SBI).

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Eight Indian companies, including public sector oil major Indian Oil Corporation (IOC) and Mukesh Ambani-led Reliance Industries (RIL), have made it to the list of the world's 500 largest companies compiled by the Fortune magazine. Besides IOC and Mukesh Ambani's RIL, the other Indian companies in the coveted fortune 500 list are Tata Steel, Tata Motors, BPCL, HPCL, ONGC and State Bank of India (SBI). Tata Motors has made an entry into the list for the first time this year. The league of 500 elite companies for 2010 is topped by US retailer Wal-Mart Stores, followed by oil giant Royal Dutch Shell and another oil major, Exxon Mobil, in that order. The Fortune 500 list also features Citigroup, ArcelorMittal, PepsiCo and Motorola, four companies led by people with Indian roots.

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NEW DELHI: Reliance Industries (RIL) my be able to establish more commercially-viable oil and gas finds in the country’s largest gas field KG-D6 with the Cabinet allowing the company extra time for drilling wells.

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Two other operators, ONGC and Eni, have been allowed similar extension, benefiting 30 blocks in all. The extension will help RIL complete evaluation works in at least three wells in the KG-D6 block where drilling was not authorised by the concerned regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbon (DGH) after the company missed the deadline.

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Two other operators, ONGC and Eni, have been allowed similar extension, benefiting 30 blocks in all. The extension will help RIL complete evaluation works in at least three wells in the KG-D6 block where drilling was not authorised by the concerned regulator Directorate General of Hydrocarbon (DGH) after the company missed the deadline. “Inputs (data) of the three appraisal wells will now be reconsidered,” a DGH official said. However, DGH director general SK Srivastava did not respond to ET’s email queries.

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July 18, 2010 (ChattahBox)— So far, so good for day three of pressurized tests on the damaged BP oil well in the Gulf. As Gulf residents breathed a sigh of relief with the welcome absence of gushing oil into the waters, now the talk seems to be headed towards the issues of keeping the well valves shut vs. reopening the valves to continue containment and oil collection procedures. According to The New York Times, there is also a debate going on between BP engineers on whether to continue with the drilling of the relief wells, which is the best chance of permanently sealing the well or attempting what’s called a “bullhead kill” that would seal the well by pumping mud and cement down existing pipes. Whatever is decided, suddenly BP has a host of workable solutions to choose from, when just weeks ago, the outcome appeared grim.

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Kent Wells, a senior vice president of BP, told reporters he was encouraged by the tests performed on the underwater well. “The longer the test goes, the more confidence we have,” Wells said. Engineers found no signs of oil or gas leaks. After another day of testing on Sunday, a decision will be made on either keeping the well closed or reopening it to proceed with oil collection, which would mean the oil would be gushing into the Gulf again for a short time.

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BP, the government and an army of volunteers are fighting to contain and clean the millions of gallons of oil spewing from the site of the Deepwater Horizon explosion in the Gulf of Mexico.

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Baker Hughes: US Oil, Gas Rig Count Up 4 To 1571 This Week Wall Street Journal The number of oil and gas rigs climbed to 1571, up 4 rigs from the previous week, according to data from oil-field services company Baker Hughes Inc. (BHI). ... US rig count increases by 4The Associated Press Oil Service Stocks: Not a BargainEnergy and Capital (blog) US natgas rig count hits 17-mth high-Baker HughesReuters Africa all 138 news articles »

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TEHRAN, Iran — Iran's Oil Ministry says the powerful Revolutionary Guard's engineering arm, recently hit by U.N. sanctions, has partially withdrawn from developing the giant South Pars natural gas field.

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The report on the ministry website Friday says Khatam al-Anbia and another Guard-linked firm, Sepanir, pulled out of implementing two phases of the South Pars project, which has 30 phases.

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The report gives no reason for the withdrawal, and both firms remain involved in other parts of the project. But the announcement comes after the United Nations in June targeted Khatam al-Anbia in new financial sanctions against Iran.

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BP, however, remains cautious about the success of the latest development. "The sealing cap system never before has been deployed at these depths or under these conditions, and its efficiency and ability to contain the oil and gas cannot be assured," the company said in a statement.

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As of Monday, BP said it had spent $3.5bn (£2.3bn) dealing with the disaster which began with a fire and explosion aboard the Deepwater Horizon drilling platform that killed 11 workers. This page is best viewed in an up-to-date web browser with style sheets (CSS) enabled. While you will be able to view the content of this page in your current browser, you will not be able to get the full visual experience. Please consider upgrading your browser software or enabling style sheets (CSS) if you are able to do so.

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Michael Bromwich, director of the Interior Department's regulation and enforcement office, sent the British oil giant a letter Thursday requesting oil and gas production reports and said royalty payments were required. Failing to pay royalties violates the Federal Oil and Gas Royalty Management Act, Bromwich said in a letter to Guy Otwell, of BP America Inc.'s Tax Department.

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BP has tried numerous strategies to collect oil gushing from the bottom of the Gulf since the April 20 rig explosion. It's collected about 34.3 million gallons since May, and more will be pumped from the well while the company continues to work on a set of relief wells that could plug it for good.

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Some of the oil and gas has been burned off, but the company also has started selling the oil. BP said in June that it planned to donate the money it makes from the oil to the National Fish and Wildlife Foundation.

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NEW DELHI: The finance ministry appears to have sealed the fate of forthcomingauctions of exploration acreages. The revenue department has rejected the oil ministry's suggestion to extend the seven-year tax holiday under the New Exploration Licensing Policy to gas discoveries in the ninth bidding round.

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Revenue secretary Sunil Mitra has written to the petroleum ministry giving basically two grounds for rejection of tax holiday on gas discoveries. First, he says, the Income-Tax Act defines `mineral oil' -- which includes crude -- and `natural gas' as separate products, while the NELP policy has outlined the tax holiday for only oil finds. Second, Mitra said, the NELP policy has a profit-linked tax deduction structure. Under the circumstance, extending the tax holiday to gas finds from concessions auctioned in the ninth round would defeat the purpose behind the government's efforts to phase out to profit-linked deductions and bring in investment-linked incentives for identifed sectors.

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Xinhuanet reported that China National Offshore Oil Corporation, the parent company of CNOOC Limited and France Total will partner with Britain Tullow Oil to explore for oil and gas in Uganda.

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According to the report, the government of Uganda had approved Tullow Oil purchase of two oil exploration rights in west Uganda for USD 1.5 billion. Tullow Oil will pay USD 1.35 billion in cash and USD 150 million with other assets. The report added that the government of Uganda had imposed a regulation that requires Tullow Oil to cooperate with other oil companies to jointly develop and explore the oil fields in order to prevent a monopoly of the oil and gas resources by Tullow Oil.

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