The American Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) is under duress by President Donald Trump’s administration. He nominee to head the agency, Scott Pruitt, has sent waves of fear because he has publicly said the EPA should be abolished. Pruitt is also concerned about an increasingly bitter and rancorous practice in how the EPA reports the biofuel…
For the first time in years, China’s national oil companies (NOCs) are presumed to boost spending in 2017. CNOOC Ltd. announced it had allocated $10 billion (U.S.) to produce 450—460 barrels/day. PetroChina Co. and Sinopec Corp. are both expected to do the same, although their focus will be on natural gas exploration and production. “The…
The much-feared border-adjusted corporate tax (BTA), championed by the Republicans in U.S. House of Representatives, could thrust the benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) price higher than North Sea Brent, predicts the ubiquitous analysts at Goldman Sachs. The BTA has been designed to improve the competitiveness and profitability of American manufacturers by taxing imports, while exempting…
By Heather Douglas “Plant turnarounds, also known as shutdowns, are one of the most crucial events in the routine operation of an oil or gas plant. They also have the power to strongly affect a company’s bottom line. A turnaround that goes badly, lasts for too long, or exceeds its budget could result in the…
By Rosemary Bruus “That’s within tolerance.” “Suppliers know every day represents lost production, so everything costs more.” “We are the experts.” “We have been doing business this way for 23 years!” “We don’t understand – how did this happen??” Sound familiar? These are some of the most common excuses boards hear when a capital construction…
By Brent Rathgeber Thanksgiving was a time for family, food, post-season baseball and politics. More than one election has been won (or lost) over holiday table chatter. This year, the table talk in my neighbourhood was all about Energy East The announcement of the pipeline project’s collapse almost seemed to have been timed for maximum…
