When I post something that seems so preposterous -- and then to have mainstream media provide something that suggests .... well, maybe not so preposterous -- that's reason #7 why I love to blog. LOL.
That happened early this morning. This has nothing to with the Bakken, at least not directly, but it does seem to put things into perspective. At this post, scroll down to the "Gay 20s" to see what I'm talking about. Again, it's not about the Bakken so if you came here for the Bakken, don't bother gong to the link.
Saturday, July 2, 2016
US Crude Oil Imports Data For April, 2016 -- July 2, 2016
April figures released. Unremarkable. US crude oil imports from Saudi Arabia down a bit from last month; up a bit from previous month, not all that different from all the other "Aprils" since 1995 (that's as far back as I looked).
I still find it amazing that it takes more than two months to get data that should be available in real-time. Lots of time for insiders to study, act. Whatever.
So, what about the rest of the world? Not particularly noteworthy. Same ol', same ol'.
Other side of the ledger, US crude oil exports. Again, the data is old. April data just now being released, and, again, not particularly noteworthy. Same ol', same ol'.
Weekly US days of supply of crude oil. Did we just hit a record? Almost.
As of 6/24/16: 31.9 days. A year ago: 28.2 days.
Flashback: February 28, 1983: The final episode of M*A*S*H airs, setting a record for most watched television episode and reaching a total audience estimated at 125 million.
I still find it amazing that it takes more than two months to get data that should be available in real-time. Lots of time for insiders to study, act. Whatever.
So, what about the rest of the world? Not particularly noteworthy. Same ol', same ol'.
Other side of the ledger, US crude oil exports. Again, the data is old. April data just now being released, and, again, not particularly noteworthy. Same ol', same ol'.
Weekly US days of supply of crude oil. Did we just hit a record? Almost.
- back in week 4, February, 1983, the previous record: 34.2 days
- now, week 5, April, 2016: 34.0 days
As of 6/24/16: 31.9 days. A year ago: 28.2 days.
Flashback: February 28, 1983: The final episode of M*A*S*H airs, setting a record for most watched television episode and reaching a total audience estimated at 125 million.
Update On RICO Subpoenas On XOM Regarding Climate Change -- Going Nowhere Fast -- July 2, 2016; Brexit? What Brexit?
An op-ed in the New York Post. Archived in case the link is broken. Again, had it not been for other bloggers (see sidebar at the right), I would have missed this; it has to do with RICO case against Exxon Mobil with regard to global warming.
From The Washington Examiner:
Speaking of New York, this is quite incredible, from The Kansas City Star (where Ernest got his start):
Speaking of jobs and The Kansas City Star:
Kansas City Star, Roger Miller
From MarketWatch:
Not only did the market as a whole have a great week, but it wasn't simply a matter of getting back to where it was. The number of new 52-week highs was quite impressive.
And it's alright ...
Right Back Where We Started From, Maxine Nightingale
" ... and if you get hurt by the little things I say, i can put that smile back on your face."
Wow, so many memories.
Just a thought: this might become the theme song for Angela Merkel, the EU, and Great Britain.
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US Debt Jumps Almost $100 Billion In One Day
From The Washington Examiner:
Total government debt hit a record $19.38 trillion on Thursday, up nearly $98 billion from the day before. It's the first time it has ever exceeded $19.3 trillion.
The debt will soar higher still in the coming months, and is expected to approach $20 trillion by the time President Obama leaves office.If Paul Krugman and Elizabeth Warren are not concerned, I am not concerned. Unlike Great Britain, Fitch still has a AAA rating for US credit. Great Britain: AA. There only a handful of countries with a Fitch rating higher than the US (97), including Germany (100).
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New York Governor Andrew Cuomo's Jobs Program Stimulates NY Economy
Speaking of New York, this is quite incredible, from The Kansas City Star (where Ernest got his start):
A signature job creation program created by Democratic Gov. Andrew Cuomo has generated only 408 new jobs in its first two years, according to a state report quietly published on a state website Friday evening.
The program, Start-Up NY, uses tax-free zones at colleges and universities to attract companies. The report says 159 businesses and their employees have received $1.19 million in tax benefits so far while investing $13 million in the economy. The state also set aside up to $175 million for in-state and out-of-state advertising and marketing campaigns to promote Start-Up NY as well as Cuomo's economic development proposals.
Seventy-six jobs were created in 2014, Start-Up's first full year, and another 332 last year.
Cuomo regularly praises Start-Up and other programs for jumpstarting the economy. But the unceremonious release of the report, three months late and at the start of the busy three-day July 4 weekend, suggests the administration isn't ready to celebrate the results.$175 million for advertising and all they got to show for it was a measly 400 jobs. I don't even want to do the math, but it looks like New Yorkers have a lot of cash to burn. Of course, the ban on fracking doesn't help the state. But it makes "everyone" feel better.
Speaking of jobs and The Kansas City Star:
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Brexit?
From MarketWatch:
- U.S. stocks booked a fourth straight daily gain Friday, and the Dow and S&P 500 marked their best week this year.
Not only did the market as a whole have a great week, but it wasn't simply a matter of getting back to where it was. The number of new 52-week highs was quite impressive.
And it's alright ...
" ... and if you get hurt by the little things I say, i can put that smile back on your face."
Wow, so many memories.
Just a thought: this might become the theme song for Angela Merkel, the EU, and Great Britain.
Peak Oil? What Peak Oil? Tengiz To Close In On One Million BOPD -- July 2, 2016
Updates
December 12, 2018: update here. Chevron three plays --
- the Permian
- other US shale
- Tengiz in Kazakhstan
Original Post
From Bloomberg/Rigzone. Wow, if this doesn't get your attention, nothing will.
Kazakhstan -- I doubt many folks could even pick this country out on a globe -- could surpass Norway and Qatar in crude oil output. One expert: "This will be like another small producing nation coming online."
The Tengiz expansion probably will begin pumping barrels in 2021 or 2022, said Samuel Lussac, research manager for Caspian upstream oil and gas at Wood Mackenzie in Edinburgh. The combination of new Tengiz supplies and output from the Kashagan project set to come online later this year could boost Kazakhstan’s daily output to more than 2 million barrels, vaulting it past countries including Norway and Qatar.But for that to happen, Chevron has to pull the trigger:
Chevron Corp. may shortly give a green light to the most expensive oil project in the world this year as the industry digs out from the worst slump in a generation.Chevron (50%); other partners -- Exxon Mobil, Kazmunaigaz National Co, and Lukoil PJSC.
The company said this week in a presentation on its website that the decision on expanding the Tengiz development in Kazakhstan will be made in mid-2016. Installing 4,500 camp beds for construction crews is done and port dredging 25 percent complete. The project may cost as much as $40 billion and add crude supply equivalent to that of Libya. The investment was put on hold last year after cost estimates ballooned amid plunging oil prices.
Current production:
Tengiz produced about 595,000 barrels a day last year. The expansion will involve pumping sulfur-laden gas back into the rocks to force out an additional 250,000 to 300,000 barrels a day.A bit of history:
“Tengiz has been very lucrative for Chevron for many years,’’ said Brian Youngberg, an analyst at Edward Jones & Co. in St. Louis, who has a “buy’’ rating on the shares. “It’s one of the few projects in that part of the world that worked as planned.’’
It’s also the only major new project Chevron spared from the austerity budget imposed this year to cope with the slump in crude prices and cash flow.
Discovered in 1979, Tengiz was too technically challenging for Soviet engineers to develop. A blowout in a well called T-37 in June 1985 blazed for more than 400 days before it was extinguished by U.S. well-control experts. [400 days! That's more than a year. And again, it's the "US roughnecks" that get it done.]
Chevron won the rights to develop the field in 1993 after the collapse of the Soviet Union. Tengiz produces a very light form of crude oil, highly prized by refiners because of its high gasoline yield. [Sort of like the Bakken, I guess.]
First Alaskan North Slope Crude Export Planned For Nicaragua -- Reuters - July 2, 2016
Link here.
Alaskan North Slope (ANS) crude will be shipped to Nicaragua for the first time in July, underscoring a shift in oil flows to and from the U.S. West Coast.
Global crude flows have changed in the last six months as oversupplied markets force producers to compete aggressively on price. The United States in December lifted a four-decade ban on exporting crude, giving global refiners access to a wider variety of crude.
ANS, which was exempted from the U.S. export ban, is almost exclusively sold to West Coast refiners and transported on U.S. flagged vessels owned by BP Plc, Exxon and ConocoPhillips that comply with maritime law. The rare cargoes that have moved abroad in recent years have gone to South Korea or Japan.
In March, Trafigura took 380,000 barrels of West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude at its Puma refinery in Nicaragua.
Trafigura has a stake in Puma Energy, which operates a small refinery in Managua, Nicaragua, and manages downstream assets in 47 countries.
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