Will Saudi Arabia and Russia maintain their grip on production, or could they succumb to another surge in U.S. shale? Is it possible for the economic collapse of a major producer to send crude prices soaring, or perhaps Silicon Valley will usher in the end of the combustion engine?
Trafigura Group denied it was involved in the illicit transfer of fuel to North Korea after the South Korean government said the world’s third-biggest independent oil trader originally owned a cargo that was shipped in breach of United Nations sanctions in October.
Oil traded near the highest close in more than two years before U.S. government data forecast to show stockpiles extended declines for a seventh week and as unrest continued in OPEC’s third-biggest producer.
One of the great questions of 2017 for the trade union movement in Scotland has been “What is to become of the Super Puma 225 helicopter?” That question has been raised well beyond union circles because of Unite Scotland’s campaign against any return of the Puma to the North Sea for transferring workers from the heliports outside Aberdeen to the oil rigs. Our slogan of the year has become “No Comeback for the Super Puma. Keep the North Sea Puma Free.” So why the controversy about this aircraft?
The last 12 months has seen something of a ‘changing of the guard’ in the North Sea as some of the major operators loosened control while other sharpened their focus on core areas for investment which resulted in a wave of mergers and acquisitions bringing on board new entrants to the UKCS.
A £2.6million hydrogen vehicle refuelling station in Aberdeen is being vastly under-utilised and falling short of its projected use.
An Aberdeen-based corporate finance team has acted for clients on deals worth a total of around £30million since it was launched less than a year ago.
It is going to be better. 2017 is the year of the recovery. Demand will finally out strip supply, rig counts will come back. All things we heard this time last year and all things we are hearing now as we head to the end of this year. What happened? More importantly, what will happen?
Whilst market conditions continue to be challenging, we are in a much stronger position than this this time last year. We have experienced steady trading throughout 2017, both in the North Sea and internationally although margins are tighter than they have ever been.
US oil production surged to a 46-year record in October.
A top boss at US oil giant Chevron has swapped winter in northern Europe for normally sunny California following a change of role.
Russia’s oil industry continued its long-term expansion last year, with production hitting a record even as President Vladimir Putin joined forces with OPEC to clear a global glut and lift prices.
After capping its second annual gain, oil started 2018 by advancing toward $61 as U.S. drilling activity remained at a standstill following a slip in production and as protests continued in Iran.
Oil services company Weatherford International has scrapped plans for a joint venture with competitor Schlumberger and instead sold outright its pressure pumping and hydraulic fracturing fleet to the international giant for $430million in cash.
Norway is realising it will have to do without the deep pockets of the biggest oil companies as it seeks to extend an era that has made it one of the world’s richest countries.
The North Sea’s oil rigs could be transformed into nightclubs, prisons, hotels and distilleries in the future, according to a new report.
BP, the UK oil major that invests more in the US than anywhere else, expects to take a charge of about $1.5 billion as a result of recent tax changes in the country, despite the prospects of long-term gains from the legislation.
Over the past 12 months, the energy sector has taken stock looking at how it can become more flexible to appeal to today’s offshore worker within the current cost constrained environment. Industry is also questioning what the training requirements will be for the roles of tomorrow.
Most of the other opinion pieces published here around this time of the year reflect on what happened in 2017 and try to predict what will possibly happen in 2018. This piece looks back a little bit further, but also looks further into the future. Thus, rather than dealing with the short-run, the focus here is more the medium-run.
The past three years have seen the oil and gas industry navigate its way through challenging economic conditions. These conditions have both created and highlighted the operational challenges in a sector that faces perpetual technical challenges.
Energy workers are urging the Government to fund a national skills programme to tackle the "crisis" of a lack of suitably qualified staff.
National Grid has confirmed electricity has started to flow through a cable taking renewable energy from Scotland to England and Wales.
Nexen today became the latest company to confirm that production had restarted from its fields served by the Forties pipeline.
No doubt 2017 has been another challenging year for the sector.
Peterhead-based engineering firm Score Group celebrated the graduations of almost 50 apprentices earlier this month.
