The North Sea is drowning in tax: Only radical action will salvage UK oil now March 2, 2015 Following his comments at the recent opening of the OECD’s Economic Survey, it is to be hoped that the chancellor gives North Sea oil companies, their shareholders, and their employees enough reason to cheer when he announces the Budget on 18 March. He recognised that the oil and gas industry is a vital national asset [...]
Mikhail Fridman and LetterOne fund attack UK government attempt to block North Sea oil and gas fields deal March 2, 2015 Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman has issued a stinging attack on the government over its attempts to block a deal which would see his fund LetterOne take ownership of North Sea oil and gas fields. A letter to the UK government called the decision “not rational” and criticised its last minute decision just days before the [...]
Government blocks Russian oligarch and Lord Browne-run fund buying North Sea oil fields over sanctions worries March 1, 2015 The government has blocked the sale of North Sea oil and gas fields to Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman and his LetterOne fund run by former BP man Lord Browne due to worries over Russian sanctions. Energy secretary Ed Davey warned it would not approve the sale of 12 oil and gas fields by the German [...]
Brent crude oil’s about show its biggest monthly gain since 2009 February 27, 2015 Oil futures could be about to show their biggest monthly gain in almost six years, after April Brent crude on London's ICE Futures Exchange rose $1.28, or 2.1 per cent, to $61.33 a barrel. That means it's risen 15 per cent in February, its highest monthly rise since May 2009. The price of a barrel [...]
French energy firm hammered by sunny skies and sliding oil prices February 26, 2015 FRENCH energy firm GDF Suez blamed warm weather and a decline in oil prices for a fall in profits, leading the company to announce a short-term restructuring plan. The group, which also experienced problems with its Belgian nuclear reactors last year, saw revenues for 2014 fall seven per cent to €74.7bn (£54bn). The firm said [...]
Antofagasta says falling oil price and weak peso have slashed costs February 23, 2015 Lower oil prices and a weaker Chilean peso have enabled mining firm Antofagasta to cut its anticipated cash costs for 2015. The firm also stated “certain input costs becoming more favourable” helped drive reduction of costs from $1.75 (£1.13) per pound to $1.40. According to the Chilean company, the revised costs are in line with [...]
Five charts showing what happens to London-listed companies when oil prices plummet February 19, 2015 Oil companies have been burned by plunging global oil prices, which have shed around 60 per cent since July, prompting them to abandon projects, and some have even had to make job cuts. Oil prices have crumbled 60 per cent since July last year, skidding to a near six-year low of $45.19 per barrel in January, thanks [...]
All hands to the pumps: The decline and fall of oil prices in one chart February 19, 2015 Oil prices are back down below $60 a barrel again, partly off the back of data showing the US inventory had skyrocket to 14.3m barrels last week. More on this story: How falling oil prices will hit the UK economy The decline in the global oil price has been a painful affair for some and [...]
Oil slides below $60 as US inventory leaps to 14.3m barrels February 19, 2015 The price of a barrel of Brent crude oil has slipped below the $60 mark again, after a survey by the American Petroleum Institute showed inventories had risen by 14.3m barrels last week. That's against expectations of 3.2m barrels. The shock rise goes against figures by oilfield services firm Baker Hughes, which showed the number [...]
Three reasons $10 oil is a very real possibility February 18, 2015 After a couple of weeks of rises during which oil prices gained 35 per cent, today they fell back by $1 to $61 per barrel, as investors showed renewed concern about a glut in the global supply of oil. Brent crude, the global benchmark, hit a six-year low of $45.19 in January – and the [...]