OIL
How the worst oil price crash in history changed the upstream industry
Wood Mackenzie, June 24, 2020
2020 capital expenditure will be US$130 billion lower than our pre-crash view. In total, we have cut US$530 billion of investment (2020 terms) from our outlook for 2020-25 – led by reduced activity in North America:
Alaska
- 2020 budgets have been slashed, production has been shut-in and nearly all drilling activity suspended. Almost US$3 billion of investment has been lost between 2020 to 2022.
- This year’s exploration season has come to a halt with 50% of wells deferred and several pre-FID projects now delayed. 2020 had been cast as the year North Slope production would grow after decades of decline – how things can change.
GAS
Technologies advance on path for cleaner and efficient LNG plants around the world
LNG Journal.Com, June 24, 2020
Most major liquefied natural gas export projects around the world are using tried and test liquefaction processes developed by a handful of companies over the years, though new market entrants are coming forward with floating LNG and mid-scale solutions. The liquefaction Trains that began operations in the past 18 months have used a variety of technologies, but the Air Products process remained the most widely used, accounting for more than 70 percent of operational capacity globally, according to a recent report from the International Gas Union. However, other well-known processes continue to take their market share of liquefaction ventures and among the most recent Trains to come on stream.
Cheniere Energy’s Sabine Pass Train 5 in Louisiana and Corpus Christi Train 1 in Texas employed the Optimized Cascade Process developed by US major and LNG pioneer ConocoPhillips.
MINING
Murkowski: Mineral Supply Chains Critical to Energy – and Health, Economy, and Security
“The pandemic has brought home that we don’t produce many goods important to our country,” Murkowski said. “Over the past several months, that has become clear for a range of crucial medical items—including personal protective equipment for doctors and nurses, as well as individual Americans. But it also extends to a much wider range of health care, electronic, industrial, defense, and energy technologies.” Dr. Nedal Nassar of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS), Joe Bryan of the Atlantic Council, Simon Moores of Benchmark Mineral Intelligence, Dr. Thomas Duesterberg of the Hudson Institute, and Mark Caffarey of Umicore testified during the hearing. “China’s growing control over many basic materials, and its history of using that control as leverage for its own economic and political goals, makes this a cause of concern,” Dr. Duesterberg testified. Demand for lithium, graphite, and cobalt will increase 500 percent by 2050 to meet global clean energy needs, according to the World Bank. “Countries such as the United States have become increasingly import-reliant for their mineral commodity needs, thereby increasing their exposure to foreign supply disruptions,” testified Dr. Nassar. According to the agency, the U.S. imported more than 50 percent of at least 46 different minerals, including 100 percent of 17 of them, in 2019.
U.S. mining lobby in push to preserve tax break repealed by Democrats
Oil & Gas 360, June 24, 2020
The U.S. mining industry is spearheading a lobbying effort to protect a $160 billion pandemic tax break after congressional Democrats largely repealed the provisions in their recent stimulus bill, according to emails and a letter seen by Reuters.
On Monday, more than 70 industry associations wrote to Chuck Grassley, chairman of the Republican-led Senate finance committee on taxation and his Democratic counterpart Ron Wyden, raising concerns that “some in Congress are seeking to reverse these changes” and urging the senators to leave them in place. “The tax and liquidity provisions in the CARES Act are helping to ensure that the severe economic situation created by COVID-19 do not become even worse,” the groups wrote.
POLITICS
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy:
REPUBLICANS FAVOR POLICIES TO ADDRESS CLIMATE CHANGE: Most Republicans support a number of government policies to address climate change, according to a Pew Research Center survey out Tuesday, even as they still expect the private sector to do the heavy lifting.
The strongest support is for policies championed by Republicans in Congress.
About 90% of people polled favor planting a trillion trees around the world to absorb carbon emissions, including 88% of Republicans and Republican-leaning independents (President Trump favors this idea too).
Support is nearly as high for providing tax credits to businesses that capture their carbon emissions, with large majorities of Democrats (90%) and Republicans (78%) backing the idea.
Most of those polled also support tougher restrictions on power plant emissions (80%), imposing a carbon tax on businesses (73%), and tougher fuel-efficiency standards for cars and trucks (71%).