EIA expects $76 per barrel this winter 12/20/2009
Henry Hub natural gas spot price projected at $3.95 per thousand cubic feet this year, $4.62 in 2010; US natural gas consumption down
The U.S. Energy Information Administration said Dec. 8 in its Short-Term Energy Outlook that it expects the price of West Texas Intermediate crude oil to average $76 from October through March, with a...

Climate change legal impacts heat up 12/06/2009
U.S. legislation, regulation and litigation will all have far-reaching impacts on the Alaska oil and gas industry in coming years
In one sense it makes no difference who is right and who is wrong in the debate over the effect of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases on the Earth's climate: The legal fallout from a broad view...

The Explorers 2009: ENI Petroleum 11/15/2009
Italian major Eni Petroleum took its first stab at Alaska in the late 1960s as Agip Petroleum, but didn't begin exploring in earnest until summer 2005, when it bought a portfolio of North Slope leases...

Massive OCS feedback 10/25/2009
NOAA, Natives oppose much of 2010-'15 leasing plan; drillers, lawmakers endorse
A key scientific agency is advising the Obama administration against oil and gas leasing in large portions of the nation's Outer Continental Shelf. The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration...

Eni aims for 2010 oil 08/16/2009
Italian firm submits revised plan for Nikaitchuq field, cites work already done
Back in February, managers for Eni Petroleum were explaining to Alaska industry regulators how plunging oil prices and other complications had shifted their fast-track Nikaitchuq oil field development...

Nikaitchuq oil in 2010 05/24/2009
Missed sealift last year led to delays; company expects modules next year
Eni US Operating Co. Inc. expects to start producing oil from an offshore North Slope unit in December 2010, according to new information from the Alaska Division of Oil and Gas. Earlier this year the...

EIA forecasts $53 per barrel WTI in '09 04/19/2009
Henry Hub spot price expected to average $4.24 per mcf this year, down from $9.13 in last year; rise to $5.80 in 2010 forecast
The U.S. Department of Energy's Energy Information Administration is forecasting an average $53 per barrel price for West Texas Intermediate crude oil this year. That compares, EIA said in its April...

Topping up the U.S. strategic reserves 01/25/2009
The U.S. Department of Energy has awarded contracts to Shell Trading and Vitol to replenish the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve in underground salt caverns located along the Gulf Coast of Louisiana a...

The Explorers 2008: A race at Corsair for Pacific Energy 11/23/2008
After a year in Alaska, California independent hoping for 2009 exploration season in Cook Inlet
Realists in the oil industry use the word "if," but so do pessimists, and over the past year no company in the Cook Inlet inspired the word more than Pacific Energy Resources Ltd. Well into its second...

U.S. Gulf production still languishing 10/26/2008
Nearly two months after operators began evacuating offshore platforms and drilling rigs ahead of back-to-back hurricanes Gustav and Ike more than 30 percent of oil and gas production remained shut-in...

Conoco profits fall in Alaska in 3Q 10/26/2008
Lower production, volatile prices and higher taxes end a run of increasingly profitable quarters
Planned maintenance and an increased tax burden significantly decreased profits for ConocoPhillips Alaska in the third quarter of the year, according to data released Oct. 22. The largest producer in...

Oil drops to less than half of July high 10/19/2008
Oil prices closed at a new 14-month low beneath $70 a barrel Oct. 16, bringing its price to less than half its July record high after the government reported massive increases in U.S. crude and gasoli...

Oil markets expected to remain tight 10/19/2008
EIA says while current economic slowdown contributes to decline in demand, sluggish production expected to keep markets tight
The current slowdown in economic growth is contributing to the decline in oil demand and to a sharp decline in oil prices, but sluggish production growth is expected to keep oil markets relatively tig...

Gulf production struggles in hurricane aftermath 10/12/2008
MMS reports 54 platforms destroyed, 35 extensively damaged, 60 moderately damaged; some pipeline systems also crippled
U.S. Gulf of Mexico oil and gas production has been slow to recover from back-to-back hurricanes Ike and Gustav, which swept through the region more than a month ago. Meanwhile, offshore platform and...

Pacific gets second extension 10/12/2008
Cook Inlet producer's negotiations with Blake Offshore, Dockwise delayed by hurricanes; Jones Act waiver still an issue
Following delays caused by a pair of hurricanes that hit the Gulf Coast around Labor Day, state oil and gas officials have given a Cook Inlet operator another extension on the deadline for hiring a ve...

Ike destroys 49 oil platforms in Gulf 09/28/2008
Two-thirds of region's oil production, more than three-fifths of natural gas output remains off line 10 days after hurricane hit
At least 49 offshore oil platforms, all with production of less than 1,000 barrels a day, were destroyed by Hurricane Ike as it raced across the Gulf of Mexico, and some may not be rebuilt, according...

MMS, operators take stock after Ike 09/21/2008
Hurricane destroys at least 28 platforms in Gulf of Mexico, others severely damaged; more reports of devastation expected
Reported damage to Gulf of Mexico oil and gas facilities is mounting in the wake of Hurricane Ike, while government authorities try to figure out how long before the region's production can be restore...

Ike, Gustav take big bite out of production 09/14/2008
Hurricanes take out big part of Gulf of Mexico production as operators, refiners shut down; MMS says shut-ins began late August
Back-to-back hurricanes Gustav and now Ike, as it churns through the Gulf of Mexico, have taken the lion's share of U.S. Gulf oil and natural gas production out of circulation, causing a major supply...

Oil down on sign of cooling US demand 09/07/2008
Oil prices fell for a fifth straight session Sept. 4 after a lower-than-expected drop in U.S. gasoline supplies fed beliefs that a cooling economy is curbing fuel demand in the world's thirstiest cons...

Storm danger looms in Gulf 08/31/2008
Platforms, drilling rigs evacuated as Gustav bears down; 80% of Gulf production could be shut down
Companies began evacuating workers and shutting down oil and gas production platforms and drilling rigs ahead of Gustav, which was expected to strengthen from a tropical storm into a full-blown hurric...

Prices rebound even as inventories jump 08/24/2008
The price of oil bounced back near $115 a barrel on Aug. 20, as traders shrugged off a massive increase in U.S. crude inventories and a stronger dollar and focused on possible supply threats. It was...

Oil rebounds as Iran tensions flare 07/13/2008
Oil prices head up after quick slide; tensions in Middle East threaten to push prices higher; gas prices yet to fall with oil
Oil prices regained some ground on July 10 from their recent tumble of nearly $10 a barrel, as traders monitored escalating political tensions in the Middle East but also signs of slowing demand. Crud...

BP's Thunder Horse oil field goes online 06/22/2008
U.S. Gulf's largest discovery producing after delays; just one well online; commissioning will be after steady state production
The BP-operated Thunder Horse field, the largest-ever oil discovery in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico, is finally onstream and headed toward higher production following repeated startup delays dating back to...

Two lines to Southcentral 06/22/2008
Enstar, ANGDA argue the merits of small pipelines projects for in state gas
On the natural gas fight card this year, the main event is clearly the big pipeline: Denali, created by BP and ConocoPhillips, squaring off against TransCanada, backed by the state and looking for leg...

Scientists: Beef up climate modeling 05/25/2008
Researchers ask U.S. Senate panel to help fine-tune national system with more funding for supercomputing, research and observation
As average temperatures rise and sea and glacial ice continues to melt in the Arctic, several top scientists urged a Senate panel May 8 to allocate generous resources for climate modeling research in...