Posts under ‘Conoco Phillips’

Oil companies defeat New York City appeal over global warming

By Jonathan Stempel, Sebastien Malo: 3 MIN READ: APRIL 1, 2021/ 2:53 PM

NEW YORK (Reuters) -A federal appeals court on Thursday rejected New York City’s effort to hold five major oil companies liable to help pay the costs of addressing harm caused by global warming.

Ruling in favor of BP Plc, Chevron Corp, ConocoPhillips, Exxon Mobil Corp and Royal Dutch Shell Plc, the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan said the regulation of greenhouse gas emissions should be addressed under federal law and international treaties. read more

Oil titans vow climate collaboration with White House

Jennifer A. Dlouhy, Bloomberg: March 23, 2021Updated: March 23, 2021 8:24 a.m.

Chief executives of some of the largest U.S. oil companies promised to collaborate with the Biden administration in its campaign against climate change during a meeting Monday with White House National Climate Adviser Gina McCarthy.

The oil industry leaders pledged support for federal regulations explicitly limiting emissions of methane from wells and other oilfield equipment — a declaration that dovetails with President Joe Biden’s vow to clamp down on leaks of the potent greenhouse gas. read more

How the Oil Lobby Learned to Love Carbon Taxes

The American Petroleum Institute may come out in favor of a carbon price, a sign of Washington’s dramatic move toward climate-friendly policy.

By Jennifer A Dlouhy and Leslie Kaufman: 4 March 2021, 07:00 GMT

Few saw the surprise disclosure earlier this week that the American Petroleum Institute is considering endorsing a price on carbon dioxide emissions and thought the fierce fossil fuel lobby was suddenly becoming climate-friendly. Rather, seasoned industry-watchers say it’s the clearest sign yet that fossil fuel companies see Washington’s shift on climate policy as a real and significant threat. read more

Big Oil’s future could be smaller than its past

Paul Takahashi, Staff writer: Feb. 6, 2021

Oil companies have crisscrossed the world for more than a century, drilling on nearly every continent and in ever deeper oceans to prospect for fossil fuels that power the global economy.

While they did, the biggest six or seven companies collectively known as Big Oil reshaped international politics and economies, bending them to their will. Oil executives became statesmen in their own right, negotiating deals with foreign leaders to extract oil from the tar sands of Canada, the deserts of the Middle East, off the coasts of South America and Africa and in the shale formations of the U.S. read more

Debt-laden oil majors retreat amid rally

Laura Hurst and Kevin Crowley, Bloomberg Feb. 5, 2021Updated: Feb. 5, 2021 7:57 a.m. The wreckage of 2020 still looms large in the boardrooms of Big Oil as executives last week laid out deep spending cuts and plans to repay stubbornly-high debt even as crude rallies to the highest in more than a year.

Royal Dutch Shell on Thursday added itself to the growing list of supermajors to post disappointing fourth-quarter results. Like many of its peers, the Anglo-Dutch company reported weak cash flow and net income that fell short of expectations.

The earnings came as an unpleasant surprise to investors that had been expecting a tailwind after crude recovered from last year’s historic lows. But with Covid-19 lockdowns still depressing fuel sales and refining margins, the industry’s focus is on playing defense rather than on taking advantage of a rally that’s pushing Brent crude toward $60 a barrel. read more

Royal Dutch Shell sees huge loss as pandemic hits oil demand

Shell announced that up to 9,000 jobs would go worldwide as the company responded to the effects of the pandemic.

Thu, February 4, 2021, 10:20 AM

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell sank to a net loss of $21.7bn (£16bn) last year after the coronavirus pandemic caused demand to slump.

The announcement comes after two of its rivals, BP and Exxon, posted similar big losses.

Looking ahead, Shell said “significant uncertainty” would continue to have a negative impact on demand for oil and gas products. read more

Exxon, Shell Face Rating Cuts on Greater Climate Risk, S&P Says

Javier Blas and Laura Hurst: Tue, January 26, 2021, 5:08 PM

(Bloomberg) — Big Oil suffered a fresh setback after one of the most influential rating companies warned it may cut the credit score of Exxon Mobil Corp., Royal Dutch Shell Plc and a plethora of other major energy companies due to “greater industry risk” associated with climate change.

The move by S&P Global Ratings comes as the oil and gas industry is on the ropes, unloved by equity investors and facing pressure from multiple policy makers after U.S. President Joe Biden put climate change at the center of his agenda. read more

Investing in oil: I wonder if a BP-Shell merger could be a possibility?

Kirsteen Mackay: Fool.co.uk: 20 Oct 2020, 09:38

With the crude oil price stagnating around $40 for the past few months and no solution to Covid-19 yet in sight, investing in oil is a risky business and oil companies are out of favour with investors.

Premier Oil is merging with Chrysaor, and rumours abound that Tullow Oil might be next in line for a takeover. No less than 36 US oil and gas companies had declared bankruptcy by August. But with pressure piling on, even the majors are in trouble and as both Royal Dutch Shell (LSE:RDSB) and  (LSE:BP) appear to be struggling, could a merger be on the cards? read more

Shell Offshore files plans to return to Alaska’s North Slope

Author: Elwood Brehmer: Alaska Journal of Commerce

A supermajor oil company is looking to advance its position on Alaska’s North Slope.

Shell Offshore Inc. has applied to form the West Harrison Bay Unit in state waters just offshore from the National Petroleum Reserve-Alaska with plans to drill the area in search of oil in the coming years, according to documents submitted to the state Division of Oil and Gas.

If the Dutch oil industry giant can secure a partner to share in the costs and risks of remote offshore North Slope exploration, it expects to drill exploration wells in the West Harrison Bay Unit with at least one sidetrack each in 2023 and 2024, Shell’s initial unit plan of exploration states. read more

Delaware joins list of states and localities suing Big Oil

Defendants in the lawsuit include Exxon Mobil, Chevron, ConocoPhillips, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and the American Petroleum Institute.

By Randall Chase | AP: September 10, 2020

DOVER, Del. — Delaware has joined the list of state and local governments that have sued the petroleum industry in an attempt to hold oil producers accountable for costs related to climate change.

The attorney general’s office joined forces with a California law firm that has sued the industry on behalf of other state and local governments in filing a Superior Court complaint Thursday. read more

By Alex Kimani – Aug 17, 2020, 7:00 PM CDT

Booms and bust cycles are very much a part of investing in the fossil fuel sector. In previous energy downturns, prices frequently experienced serious slumps, but oil and gas companies mostly kept faith in their biggest asset: Oil and gas reserves buried deep in the ground. But things are markedly different this time around.

Faced with pandemic-driven demand destruction and a relentless call for climate-conscious and ethical investing, oil executives are resigning themselves to the uncomfortable fact that a significant amount of their vast oil and gas reserves will end up totally worthless. read more

By Will Kennedy | Bloomberg: July 3, 2020 at 5:56 p.m. GMT+1

One big question emerging from the pandemic is whether it will speed up the global shift away from oil. Life under lockdown gave a taste of a world that burns less petroleum, with consumption down by about a quarter and city dwellers from Los Angeles to New Delhi relishing the cleaner air. As restrictions eased, things weren’t exactly returning to normal. Many workers had given up on commuting and there was talk that air travel might never recover. On the other hand, rock-bottom oil prices and the desire to avoid crowded public transport had some people driving to work for the first time or taking road trips instead of flying. read more

By Brian Melley | AP  May 26, 2020 at 7:22 p.m. GMT+1

LOS ANGELES — Big Oil lost a pair of court battles Tuesday that could lead to trials in lawsuits by California cities and counties seeking damages for the impact of climate change.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals rejected arguments by energy companies and ruled state courts are the proper forum for lawsuits alleging producers promoted petroleum as environmentally responsible when they knew it was contributing to drought, wildfires, and sea level rise associated with global warming.

The lawsuits claim Chevron, Exxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips, BP, Royal Dutch Shell and other companies created a public nuisance and should pay for damage from climate change and help build sea walls and other infrastructure to protect against future impact — construction that could cost tens of billions of dollars. read more

Jessica Jaganathan, Scott DiSavino, Sonali Paul: MAY 7, 2020 SINGAPORE/NEW YORK/MELBOURNE (Reuters) – Lockdowns to slow the coronavirus pandemic are pummelling gas demand in the world’s biggest buyers of liquefied natural gas (LNG), pushing Asia’s spot prices to record lows and forcing some suppliers to start cutting output.

Economies worldwide have ground to a halt as virus containment measures have taken their toll, slashing gas demand for power generation, heating, cooking, vehicles and chemical manufacture. The world’s biggest LNG markets – Japan, China, South Korea and India – are all seeing a drop in demand.

Asia’s spot LNG prices LNG-AS dropped to $1.85 per million British thermal units (mmBtu) last week, the lowest ever, as cargoes have flooded the market. [LNG/]

“At prices in the $2/mmBtu range … some producers are getting close to not recovering cash costs of their operations. We are likely to see some producers start to ‘shut in’ (production),” said Alex Dewar, senior manager at the centre for energy impact at Boston Consulting Group (BCG). read more

Bloomberg News: Javier Blas: April 26, 2020

(Bloomberg) — Negative oil prices, ships dawdling at sea with unwanted cargoes, and traders getting creative about where to stash oil. The next chapter in the oil crisis is now inevitable: great swathes of the petroleum industry are about to start shutting down.

The economic impact of the coronavirus has ripped through the oil industry in dramatic phases. First it destroyed demand as lockdowns shut factories and kept drivers at home. Then storage started filling up and traders resorted to ocean-going tankers to store crude in the hope of better prices ahead. read more

BP Boss Looney Sets Out to ‘Reinvent’ Oil Giant With Zero Carbon Goal

Reuters: Feb. 12, 2020

LONDON — BP set one of the oil sector’s most ambitious targets for curbing carbon emissions on Wednesday as new chief executive Bernard Looney began the biggest revamp in its 111-year history.

While investor groups welcomed the 2050 targets set out by Looney, which put BP ahead of rivals Royal Dutch Shell, Total, Equinor and all of the U.S. oil majors, environmental campaigners criticized a lack of detail.

“We have got to change and change profoundly because the world is changing fast and so are society’s expectations of us,” Looney said in his first major speech as CEO, after earlier highlighting a need to “reinvent BP”. read more