1. US oil exports to Asia hit a record high in January
U.S. oil exports at Louisiana’s offshore supertanker port jumped to a record level in January as Asian buyers hoarded U.S. crude oil in response to a rebound in fuel consumption after the pandemic. In January, crude oil exports from the US Gulf region to Asia increased to nearly 51 million barrels.
2. ExxonMobil’s first annual loss since listing
Exxon Mobil, a Texas based oil giant, announced its first annual loss as a listed company on February 2. The reason is that the covid-19 pandemic hit energy prices and reduced the value of its shale gas assets by more than $20 billion.The company reported a net annual loss of $22.4 billion in 2020 and a full year profit of $14.34 billion in 2019 due to write downs and losses in oil production and refining.
3. Brazilian regulators approved the deal between Petrobras and total
Brazil’s antitrust regulator, Cade, has approved Petrobras’s acquisition of total’s shares in five oil blocks in the Amazon region.In September, total abandoned the blocks because it had difficulty obtaining environmental permits.
4. BP reports its first annual loss in 10 years
BP’s profit fell 96% to $115 million in the fourth quarter of 2020 due to weak energy demand and poor trading performance. As BP wrote down $6.5 billion of crude oil and natural gas assets in the second quarter of 2020, the company lost $5.7 billion for the first time in a decade.
However, despite the weak environment, chief executive Bernard Rooney said BP’s transition to a green future continued. It aims to increase renewable power generation from the current 3.3 GW to 50 GW by 2030, while cutting oil production to reduce greenhouse gas emissions.
5. Gazprom has applied the unique ultrasonic oil treatment technology in the industry
The science and technology center of Gazprom and Slavneft megionneftegaz have completed Russia’s first test of oil treatment technology involving industrial ultrasonic.
The water oil emulsion is separated into oil and water by ultrasonic wave. The process is directly carried out in the pipeline without the use of special separators. Compared with traditional methods, this new technology can reduce demulsifier consumption by up to 30%.
6. Iraq increased crude oil exports in Januar
Iraq’s oil exports increased slightly in January 2021 compared with December 2020, according to data released by Iraq’s Ministry of oil on Monday, indicating that Iraq is once again seeking to maximize its oil revenue and may fail to comply with the OPEC + production reduction agreement.
Iraq is OPEC’s second largest producer and the biggest laggard country that does not comply with the OPEC + production reduction agreement. The country’s crude oil exports in January increased to 2.868 million barrels a day from 2.846 million barrels in December 2020.
7. IEA cuts crude oil demand growth forecast in 2021
According to the IEA’s analysis report on the trend of crude oil demand in the future, it is very difficult for the global crude oil demand to recover rapidly in 2021, so the demand growth forecast is lowered from 280000 B / D to 5.5 million B / d. In the long run, before 2050, the global economy will further develop towards low carbon, and then the decline of oil demand will be faster.
8. The CEOs of ExxonMobil and Chevron discussed the possibility of a merger
Mike Wirth and Darren woods, the chief executive officers of ExxonMobil and Chevron, the two major oil giants in the United States, initially discussed how to integrate their companies. If they merge, it will be one of the largest mergers in the world, and will become the second largest energy company in the world with a market value of $350 billion, second only to Saudi Aramco.
Post time: Feb-03-2021