Oil and Gas News

February 27, 2014

Shell sells Aussie refinery, gas stations
Sydney (UPI) Feb 24, 2013
Shell has agreed to sell its downstream business in Australia - including the Geelong refinery and its 870 gas stations - to Vitol, the world's largest independent energy trader. The $2.6 billion deal, announced Friday, also includes Shell's bulk fuels, bitumen, chemicals and part of its lubricants businesses in Australia. Shell's announcement comes amid a $15 billion divestment program to be carried out over the next two years, overseen by Ben van Beurden, who took over as chief execu ... read more

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Nigeria's president ditches bank chief who triggered $50B oil scandal An explosive scandal over oil revenues in Nigeria has gone toxic, with President Goodluck Jonathan suspending the Central Bank governor who blew the whistle on $50 billion allegedly missing from state coffers, and accusing him of "financial recklessness." ... more		US judge blocks Keystone pipeline route in Nebraska The controversial Keystone XL pipeline met with another hurdle Wednesday when a Nebraska judge ruled that a state law granting approval to a proposed route was unconstitutional, court records showed. ... more		Israel has $500M gas deal with Jordan, but wider exports still unclear Israel has signed its first gas export deal, selling gas worth $500 million to Arab peace partner Jordan, but debate is still unresolved on whether the Jewish state will export the bulk of its gas via undersea pipeline or by tanker as liquefied natural gas. ... more
				Study on Methane Emissions from Natural Gas Systems Indicates New Priorities A new study published in the journal Science says that the total impact of switching to natural gas depends heavily on leakage of methane (CH4) during the natural gas life cycle, and suggests that m ... more		Iraq oil exports down in January: ministry Iraq's oil exports fell in January compared to the month before due to bad weather and sabotage by militants, the oil ministry said on Wednesday. ... more

CubeSats, SmallSats and MicroSats

Nigeria: State oil company to be probed over '$20B subsidy racket' Nigeria is to carry out a forensic audit of the state oil company over an alleged $20 billion subsidy racket that officials say may help explain what happened to $50 billion in oil revenues that the governor of the central bank says is missing. ... more		America's natural gas system is leaky and in need of a fix The first thorough comparison of evidence for natural gas system leaks confirms that organizations including the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) have underestimated U.S. methane emissions gene ... more		Simulations of Exoplanet Formation May Help Inform Search for Extraterrestrial Life Ancient hot springs reveal how microbes thrived before Earth gained oxygen Framework proposed to study planetary scale impact of life		Iran battles pollution with 'clean petrol': reports Iran is turning to environmentally friendly Euro-4 emissions standard petrol in major cities to battle worsening air pollution which claims thousands of lives every year, media reports said Monday. ... more
				Euro Parliament panel exempts shale gas from beefed-up rules Backers of shale gas scored a victory this week when a European Parliament committee exempted the industry from beefed-up environmental impact assessments. ... more		Quebec plans oil exploration program Quebec plans to partner with private sector interests in an oil exploration program on Anticosti Island in the Canadian province. ... more

Spaceplan 2020 - Space Technology Symposium

International Conference on Protection of Materials and Structures From Space Environment

Developing the Next-Generation Military Radar while Maintaining Current Systems; IDGA�s Military Radar Summit - April 2014

Methane leaks far higher than US estimates: study The natural gas system in the United States is leaking far more methane, a harmful greenhouse gas, into the air than official estimates say, according to research released Thursday. ... more		Minister claims Lebanon faces 'conspiracy' over gas fields As Lebanon's political leaders and sectarian chieftains squabble over who will control the Energy Ministry and the oil and gas bonanza in the eastern Mediterranean, Energy Minister Gebran Bassil accuses rivals of "conspiring against our oil." ... more		Northrop Grumman Hypersonic Navigation System Exceeds Rocket Test Milestones Teledyne Labtech and Bangor University advance Welsh space cooling technology NASA seeks student solutions for lunar lander life support technologies		Quebec opens up untamed Anticosti to oil exploration Quebec announced Thursday it will open up the pristine wilderness haven of Anticosti Island to oil and gas exploration, forming a joint venture with French energy firm Maurel et Prom to scour its vast wilds. ... more
				The Golden Age of Gas, Possibly: Interview with the IEA The potential for a golden age of gas comes along with a big "if" regarding environmental and social impact. The International Energy Agency (IEA)-the "global ener ... more		Shale not a miracle solution for Europe: think tank Shale oil and gas have had limited benefits for the US economy and their advantages for Europe will be even slimmer, a French think tank said Wednesday. ... more

Renewable Generation up 30% Last Week as Gas Consumption Plummets 35%

Simple and Elegant Building Energy Modeling for All-A Technology Transfer Tale

US Supreme Court to weigh emissions rule

Nanoscale pillars could radically improve conversion of heat to electricity

Smart glass

New, inexpensive production materials boost promise of hydrogen fuel

Team converts sugarcane to a cold-tolerant, oil-producing crop

Pond-dwelling powerhouse's genome points to its biofuel potential

Sustainable use of energy wood resources shows potential in North-West Russia

France's Areva posts 3rd straight annual loss

Nuclear important in Japan's latest draft energy policy

Obama approves Vietnam nuclear deal

	Iraqi pipeline attacks raise fears of threat to oil Fifteen soldiers were killed this week guarding an oil pipeline in northern Iraq, the first assault to involve so many casualties amid concerns an al-Qaida insurgency in western Iraq is spreading to vital oil-producing regions. ... more		New Delhi orders probe on gas pricing New Delhi's government called for a criminal probe of charges against federal oil minister Veerappa Moily, Reliance Industries Ltd.'s Chairman and Managing Director Mukesh Ambani and others following complaints of irregularities in the pricing of natural gas in the Krishna-Godavari basin. ... more		Iran drawing up new contracts to attract oil majors Iran's oil ministry said Sunday it is preparing a new type of contract that would be more attractive to major oil companies in case of the lifting of international sanctions. ... more		Kuwait awards $12 bn clean fuel project Kuwait National Petroleum Co said Monday it has awarded a $12-billion project to British, US and Japanese-led consortia to boost capacity at oil refineries and make production more environmentally friendly. ... more

India signs $7 bn deal for 97 domestically made fighter jets

France doubles down on threat to build future fighter jet alone

US approves $1.2 bn missile sale to Germany

Drought threatens US fracking industry: study		Tensions rise as Iraqi Kurds' oil flows to Turkey		Iraqi Government Threatens Action Against Kurds as Oil Exports Set to Begin		South Africa to move ahead with shale gas exploration		US to advise Iraq on securing oil infrastructure
Libya rebels say oil crisis can be resolved, but no end in sight		Oil sands pollution two to three times higher than thought		Obama to visit Saudi Arabia in March: White House		Sinopec 'cooperating' in Hong Kong bribery probe		Oil drops after tepid US, Chinese manufacturing data

Libya army has orders to end oil port blockades: PM

Iraq criticises Kurds over oil 'grey area'

Study finds Mexico's energy reforms represent 'abundant opportunities'

French trade delegation in Iran to boost business ties

Lebanon pols battle over energy ministry to control gasfields

French minister supports allowing 'clean' shale gas fracking

US says no major climate impact from Keystone pipeline

S. Korea cleans up after oil spill

Government retakes Machar's hometown, say South Sudan rebels

Market Disruptor: Nuclear Restarts Spells Trouble for LNG

Shell suspends drilling in Alaska as profits plunge

Czech Republic's MND plans move into gas distribution market

Putin: Russia won't rescind loans, gas price cuts for Ukraine

Iraq, Iran plot to challenge Saudi domination of OPEC

Norwegian oil worker unions pull out of offshore platform safety group

Kurds' oil deal with Turkey 'endangers Iraq's budget'

Arctic ruling a setback for Shell?

South Sudan agrees truce, but crisis not over yet

Australia on course for a shale boom?

US leg of controversial Canadian oil pipeline opens

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