More Background To The Hess Tioga Gas Plant And Expansion

Earlier today, in the June Director's Cut, reference was made to the completion of the expansion of the Hess Tioga gas plant.

Rigzone also had a story on same subject, posted today:

After making a $1.5 billion infrastructure investment in North Dakota made by Hess Corp. between 2012 and 2014, the company more than doubled the operational capacity of its Tioga Gas Plant in North Dakota, while also reducing its natural gas flaring by a substantial amount, the company said in a recent release.

The expansion of the plant enabled the company to significantly increase its production of propane, methane, butane and natural gasoline, as well as ethane, which was not previously produced in the state. The operational improvements to efficiency and production showed that Hess is committed to North Dakota, John Hess, company chief executive officer, said in a press release.

“The Tioga Gas Plant was built in 1954, just three years after we drilled the very first oil well in the state of North Dakota. Today, as one of the largest oil and gas producers in the Bakken, we are committed to responsible long-term growth in North Dakota and proud to contribute to the state’s infrastructure,” Hess added.

The plant is processing about 120 million cubic feet of gas per day (MMcf/d), with the potential to handle more than 300 MMcf/d, compared with the previous processing figure of 100 MMcf/d figure prior to the expansion. In addition to the expansion of the Tioga Plant, Hess used some of the investment on four new gathering projects which are expected to be completed by the end of 2014.

There is more at the link. 

Montana Completions

The Fairfield SunTimes is reporting: in Richland County (west of McKenzie County in North Dakota), there were two completions.

• CLR, 691, Fisher 1-29H, Bakken, three laterals (15,797 feet; 18,026 feet; and, 18,615 feet)
• Whiting, 597, Iversen Bros 31-1-1H, Bakken, 21,400 feet

Global Energy, 2014: An Inconvenient Truth -- Oil Demand In The US Grew At The Fastest Pace In The World In 2013 -- Outstripping China For The First Time Since 1999 -- Think About The Implications

I posted this earlier as part of another post but this is so important, I posted it separately, and gave it the appropriate tags. In addition, it will be linked at the sidebar at the right, not quite sure where, but it will be one of the "Big Stories."

Reuters over at Rizone is reporting:

Oil demand in the United States grew at the fastest pace in the world in 2013, outstripping China for the first time since 1999 as the globe's top economy reaped the benefits of a shale boom, oil company BP said on Monday.

In its annual review of energy statistics unveiled in Moscow, BP also raised its global oil reserves estimate by 1.1 percent after revising U.S. reserves upwards by more than a quarter.

Global natural gas reserves were cut for a second year as lower provisions for Russia and Qatar offset a significant uptick in U.S. estimates.

BP also said the United States recorded its largest-ever annual rise in oil production for a second year in a row with a 13.5 percent increase to above 10 million barrels per day (bopd).

The annual review, first published in 1951 and considered an industry benchmark, showed U.S. oil consumption in 2013 grew by 400,000 bpd to 18.9 million bpd, the sharpest gain in the world, followed by China's rise of 390,000 bpd to 10.8 million bpd.

The consumption growth was led by an expansion of the U.S. industrial sector as the world's top economy emerged from the 2008 financial crisis, BP Chief Economist Christof Ruhl said. 

The linked article goes on for three internet pages.

There are so many story lines here. But let's just go down one story line: if oil demand surges like this, one would assume the price of oil (and natural gas) would also increase (sort of "Economics 101, Supply and Demand").  If oil and natural gas got more expensive last year, and if Germany is shutting down their nuclear program (as Japan did), what do you think is the likely outcome? That brings us to the story.

The St Louis Post-Dispatch is reporting:

Coal dominated world energy markets last year by supplying the biggest share of demand since 1970, making it the fastest growing fossil fuel, according to an annual review by BP.

Consumption grew 3 percent last year, driven by coal use in developing nations, according to a statement Monday from Europe's third-largest oil company. Use of renewables such as solar and wind also reached a record, accounting for 2.7 percent of all energy demand.

The findings are another indication that consumers are prioritizing cheap fuels over efforts to rein in greenhouse gas emissions blamed for global warming. Coal is the dirtiest fossil fuel, and use of it expanded at utilities from China to Germany.

"Europe is increasing its carbon emissions because it's using too much coal because it's cheap," Royal Dutch Shell's Chief Financial Officer Simon Henry said in an interview on Bloomberg Television June 3.

Coal's share of global energy use reached 30.1 percent, just below the 32.9 percent share for crude oil, which lost market share for a 14th consecutive year. China was the world's biggest coal consumer, followed by the U.S. and India.

In China, coal accounted for 67.5 percent of the total energy demand, the lowest on record because of new measures to combat pollution. Carbon dioxide emissions from fossil fuels use grew by 4.2 percent, or 358 metric tons, the slowest in five years, the report showed.

And the article goes on and on. 

Enbridge 1, Activist Nuts 0

I assume the activist environmentalists who showed up to protest, drove up in their gas-guzzling SUVs.

Sorry about that. My editor posted the headline and the line above; by contract I am not allowed to change it.

The New York Times is reporting:

The Canadian government’s approval of a major pipeline running from the Alberta oil sands to a new port on the coast of British Columbia has intensified opposition from aboriginal groups, environmentalists and community advocates.

The Northern Gateway project, which the government approved on Tuesday as expected, would send heavy, oil-bearing bitumen to Asia, giving Canadian producers better access to the world markets. The pipeline, being built by Enbridge, has been championed by the federal government as a way to diversify Canada’s energy industry from its current dependence on exports to the United States.

But opponents in British Columbia, who span the political spectrum, threatened to block the pipeline altogether. The fear is that the pipeline would make the province vulnerable to an oil spill, damaging the rugged and scenic coastline.

Whatever. Something tells me I won't see this pipeline completed in my investing lifetime. Which is not all bad.

Snowing In The Rockies; Eighteen (18) New Oil And Gas Permits, North Dakota; Several New Sanish Wells In The Antelope Field By Different Operators

Wells coming off the confidential list Wednesday:

• 24652, 570, OXY USA, Henry Kovash 3-7-6H-142-95, Manning, t12/13; cum 22K 4/14;
• 26021, 331, North Plains Energy, State 160-100-3-10-36-15E-1H, Smoky Butte, t5/14; cum --
• 26022, 439, North Plains Energy, State 160-100-4-9-36-15A-1H, Smoky Butte, t3/14; cum 26K 4/14;
• 26157, drl, Statoil, Johnston 7-6 4H, Banks, no production data,
• 27024, drl, Hess, HA-Nelson A-152-95-3427H-3, Hawkeye, no production data

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Kennedy Snow Alert

I'm getting ready to post a summary of today's daily activity report but if anyone in the Kennedy clan happens to be reading this, note: there is still an opportunity for you children and grandchildren to see snow -- in the middle of the summer, yet, from a Facebook posting:

BEARTOOTH PASS HAS BEEN CLOSED FROM VISTA POINT ON THE MONTANA SIDE TO LONG LAKE ON THE WYOMING SIDE due to falling snow on top of the pass plus high winds creating blowing and drifting conditions. Travelers on the MT side will need to turn around at Vista PT and come back down to Red Lodge. Travelers on the Wyoming side will be turned around at Long Lake. Updates will occur as they are received. Montana Dep't of Transporation and the National Park Service are both up on the pass plowing at this time but it is drifting as soon as they go through with their plows.

This ends the "Kennedy Snow Alert" but a picture is worth a thousand words"

Global Warming, June 16, 2014

 
On July 1, 2014, I will be using the new tag "Global Warming 2014 - 2014; just a couple more weeks to use the current tag.

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Active rigs in North Dakota:

	6/17/2014	06/17/2013	06/17/2012	06/17/2011	06/17/2010
Active Rigs	187	184	214	173	129

Eighteen (18) new permits --

• Operators: Oasis (7), CLR (6), Whiting (3), American Eagle, XTO,
• Fields: Baker (McKenzie), Brooklyn (Williams), Sanish (Mountrail), Skjermo (Divide), Capa (Williams),
• Comments: All the CLR permits are for the Brooklyn; all the Oasis permits are for the Baker oil field

Wells coming off the confidential list were posted earlier; see sidebar at the right.

Twelve (12) producing wells completed:

• 22555, loc, Whiting, Tarpon Federal 44-19-2RTF (name change, was Taron Federal 44-19-2H), Sand Creek,
• 22682, 912, Hess, EN-Jeffrey A-155-94-2734H-3, Alkali Creek, 4 sections, t6/14; cum --
• 22707, 1,959, HRC, Fort Berthold 151-94-26B-35-3H, Antelope, a Sanish well, t4/14; cum --
• 22708, 1,776, HRC, Fort Berthold 151-94-26B-35-2H, Antelope, a Sanish well, t4/14; cum --
• 24807, 354, CLR, Wahpeton 11-16H1, Banks, t6/14; cum --
• 25700, 1,263, Hess, AN-Evenson 152-95-0310H-3, Antelope, a Sanish well, t5/14; cum --
• 25814, 1,256, CLR, Salers 1-27H, Antelope, a Sanish well, t5/14; cum --
• 25815, 1,351, CLR, Salers 2-27H, Antelope, a Sanish well, t6/14; cum --
• 25986, 490, Hess, EN-Frandson-154-93-2116H-5, Robinson Lake, t5/14; cum --
• 26115, 364, Hess, EN-Chamley 156-93-0508H-5, Baskin, t5/14; cum --
• 26173, 1,066, Hess, SC-4WX-153-98-3130H-3, Banks, t5/14; cum --
• 26380, 1,371, Hess, HA-Chapin-2560-152-95-3229-3328H-1, Hawkeye, 4 sections, t5/14; cum --