International

Energy Book Review: ‘Private Empire – ExxonMobil and American Power’

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ExxonMobil is the world’s largest international oil company by virtually all operational and financial metrics and Steve Coll’s book offers a fascinating look at the inner workings of this secretive corporate colossus.

A vestige of John D Rockefeller Senior’s Standard Oil, which famously avoided speaking to the press for much of its existence, ExxonMobil is known within the industry for its operational expertise, rigorous financial discipline, project management skills and tight-lipped nature. Coll’s extensive research and unprecedented access to individuals within and outside the company with first-hand knowledge of transformative events is what makes the book stand out. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 28, 2013 at 11:00 AM

Chesapeake’s JV Deal with Sinopec ‘Looks a Little Light’

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Analysts mostly agree that Chesapeake Energy received a relatively low price for the Mississippi Lime acreage it agreed to sell to China’s Sinopec for $1.02 billion. What is less clear though, is whether the price Chesapeake received reflects the company’s position as a distressed seller, or the quality of the assets sold. The Mississippi Lime is a shale play extending from northern Oklahoma into central Kansas.

“From my perspective, the proceeds looked a bit light on a per acre basis as well as per barrel of oil equivalent on a proved reserve basis,” Phil Weiss, Senior Analyst covering energy for Argus Research recently told Breaking Energy in an email. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 26, 2013 at 1:00 PM

Power Market Transparency: Money Out of ‘Negawatts’

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Americans are accustomed to being told that they are running behind other countries, that other places are doing a better job of educating their young or building high-speed railroads or ensuring access to healthcare. Energy efficiency would seem to be the last area in which the US, with its famously well-lit and climate-controlled lifestyle, would be leading.

But in fact, demand response markets that allow customers and power providers to reap the benefits of “negawatts” (essentially un-used power they would traditionally demand or need to supply) are highly developed in the US, if admittedly still imperfectly understood and applied. The market for demand response, which is the activity that creates “negawatts,” has grown from essentially nothing a decade ago to a $3 billion market today, Joule Assets CEO Mike Gordon told Breaking Energy on the sidelines of the AGRION Energy & Sustainability Summit in New York City this month. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 26, 2013 at 8:00 AM

Wake Up, America! China is Attacking

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The United States is reportedly under attack by the Chinese government. America’s business secrets, critical infrastructure and wealth are the targets. But many businesses are taking a lackadaisical approach to cybersecurity. Multiple industry studies have shown that the vast majority of companies don’t begin following cybersecurity best practices until after they’ve been hit. The latest and most telling example came Tuesday. According to a new report from information security company Mandiant, the Chinese military is linked to one of the most prolific hacking groups in the world. That group, known as the “Comment Crew,” has attacked Coca-Cola (KO, Fortune 500), EMC (EMC, Fortune 500) security division RSA, military contractor Lockheed Martin (LMT, Fortune 500), and hundreds of others. It reportedly holds the blueprints to America’s energy systems, and has funneled trade secrets out of some of the country’s largest corporations. The implications of China’s presence in Corporate America’s networks are vast, from matters of economic competitiveness to international diplomacy.

 /  Published February 20, 2013 at 1:40 PM

Three Ways for a Solar Energy Deal to Fail

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The solar business has been overshadowed in the past two years by rapidly declining prices, related “trade wars” replete with accusations of dumping on global markets and the failure of a high-profile company – Solyndra – pushing an unproved technology.

But solar power has in the past decade gone from a hippie style accessory and an expensive small-scale solution to a large, proven generation source with installations that can rival and exceed the scale of competing fossil fuel plants. Nonetheless, financing remains a fundamental challenge, with many projects highly dependent on market forecasts that have too little historic data for banks wary of lending to any but the most traditional enterprises at a time of intense regulatory oversight. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 20, 2013 at 10:30 AM

Tepco’s US LNG Agreement: Small Volumes, Big Deal

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Japan’s recent deal to import US LNG at Henry Hub benchmark prices appears largely symbolic, but is important for the sector as it could represent the beginning of a larger trend away from oil-linked LNG prices for the world’s largest LNG importer.

“They [the deal’s negotiators] were very surprised they were able to pull it off,” a source familiar with the negotiations recently told Breaking Energy. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 19, 2013 at 8:30 AM

IEA: Oil Market Undergoing ‘Dramatic Changes,’ Prices Up

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In its Monthly Oil Market Report released today, the International Energy Agency said positive economic indicators from the US and China, strong financial market activity and cooler Northern Hemisphere weather combined to push global oil price benchmarks above nine month highs in early February.

Bringing incremental oil production volumes to the global market has been challenging for producers. The recent deadly hostage crisis at a remote Algerian natural gas plant has led firms to re-evaluate their security protocols in the region, with one company pulling its staff out of Nigeria due to safety concerns, said the IEA. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 13, 2013 at 12:00 PM

OPEC Warns on Risks to US Production Growth

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The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries Tuesday warned that expectations of growth in non-OPEC oil supply this year–seen as essential to meeting global oil demand in the long term–were subject to a high level of risk, particularly in the U.S.

 /  Published February 12, 2013 at 2:20 PM

Why Gasoline Prices are Rising

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It’s happening again.

It’s not even close to the summer driving season — in fact, it’s not even springtime — but as surely as February gives way to March, gas prices have begun their annual ascent. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 6, 2013 at 3:00 PM

Natural Gas Exports: ‘Whats the Rush?’ Asks Dow

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The debate over natural gas exports from the US has broken out of the energy sector and begun to raise temperatures across the political spectrum, with a high profile Congressional hearing this week underlining the stakes at play in a Department of Energy policy decision on the economic standing of natural gas export projects.

Despite being painted as absolutely opposed to exports of domestically produced natural gas and its position as a leader in the manufacturing sector’s opposition to unrestricted approval of export projects, Dow Chemical actually favors exports to free trade partners but is concerned about the impacts of unchecked exports to non free trade countries, the company’s Vice President for Government and Public Affairs Kevin Kolevar told Breaking Energy in a recent briefing. Keep reading →

 /  Published February 6, 2013 at 9:00 AM
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