The Oil Daily back issues from February 1985:
FERC can't require gas carriage, legislators told. (Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
Feb 01, 1985 ... WASHINGTON -- The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has no broad authority to require pipelines to transport gas for others, the commission said in a reply to a series of gas questions posed by two House energy leaders. The lengthy response, signed by all members of the FERC, was to a ...
Herrington pledges strong role at DOE. (Dept. of Energy)
Feb 01, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- John Herrington, President Reagan's nominee for secretary of energy, said Thursday that he has a "totally open mind" on the issue of merging the departments of energy and interior. But Herrington assured the Senate Energy Committee at his confirmation hearing that ...
Land swap plan raises questions. (involves Agriculture and Interior department agencies)
Feb 01, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- Confusion was the dominant reaction from oil and gas industry observers and the environmental community over a Reagan administration plan to swap jurisdictions between Agriculture and Interior department agencies over about 35 million acres of land. Officials of ...
OPEC's moves spur crude price changes.
Feb 01, 1985 ... LONDON -- The decision by OPEC oil ministers to reduce oil prices by an average of $1 per barrel and narrow the price gap between heavy and light crudes sparked moves by producers around the world Thursday. Meanwhile, officials of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting ...
Distillates prices flutter; gasoline prices decline.
Feb 01, 1985 ... WHOLESALE gasoline prices continued to fall Thursday, while distillate prices fluctuated according to region. Spot product trading prices rose slightly in the New York Harbor and Gulf Coast. In wholesale market moves: * AMOCO OIL CO. reduced gasoline prices Jan. 31 ...
California offshore operators laud Hodel as Interior choice. (Donald Paul Hodel) (column)
Feb 01, 1985; ... THE NOMINATION of Energy Secretary Donald Hodel as Interior secretary is met in California with cautious glee by some and nominal applause by others. Hodel's appointment drew nearly no comment from a spokesman for the state's top environmental arm, the California Air Resources ...
Sohio receives Endicott development go-ahead.
Feb 01, 1985 ... HOUSTON -- Sohio Petroleum Co. unit has received the permits it needed to proceed with development of the first commercial oil production from the Beaufort Sea off Alaska's North Slope. The Standard Oil Co. of Ohio subsidiary received the permits Tuesday from the U.S. Army ...
Seeking the ideal levels. (OPEC policy and world oil prices) (editorial)
Feb 01, 1985 ... FALLING PRICES represent a significant starting point in assessing 1985's energy prospects. As reported in Monday's Oil Daily, they reach from independent producers, refiners and marketers through the major integrated oil companies to the world's oil producing nations. The results of this ...
'Oil Box' among many new motor oil packaging choices. (column)
Feb 01, 1985; ... MOTOR OIL packaging is going through an either-or phase. Either you go for the old standby, the composite quart can, plastic, a combination of both, or the paperboard "Oil Box," a derivative of the familiar milk carton. Oil Products Co. of Omaha, Neb., has what it ...
Thorny state issues confront marketers at spring meetings. (column)
Feb 01, 1985; ... THE 1985 round of spring regional jobber conventions is about to start. Among the first three regional associations to meet are the Missouri Oil Jobbers Association, the Petroleum Marketers of Iowa and the Intermountain Oil Marketers Association, representing chapters in ...
Pickens proposed a leveraged buyout in January, Phillips says. (T. Boone Pickens, Phillips Petroleum Co.)
Feb 04, 1985 ... NEW YORK -- Mesa Petroleum Co. Chairman T. Boone Pickens Jr. proposed in early January that Phillips Petroleum Co. join with him in a $53 per share leveraged buyout of the company. In proxy material filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Phillips said: "On Jan. 7, ...
Phillips plans asset sales of $2 billion. (Phillips Petroleum Co.)
Feb 04, 1985 ... NEW YORK -- Phillips Petroleum Co. said Friday it planned to sell $2 billion in assets in the year following its planned recapitalization. In a letter filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Phillips said that even after the asset sales, its cash flow from operations ...
Reagan unlikely to back oil tax break repeal, Hodel tells Senate panel. (Donald Paul Hodel)
Feb 04, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- Interior secretary-designate Donald Hodel doubts President Reagan will ultimately back the repeal of intangible drilling costs and other oil and gas investment provisions targeted in the Treasury Department's tax simplification plan. Hodel told his Senate ...
Tenneco has stake in big North Sea gas discovery.
Feb 04, 1985 ... HOUSTON -- Tenneco Inc. said Friday it is one of Statoil's partners in a "potentially significant" natural gas discovery in the Haltenbanken area of the Norwegian North Sea. The wilscat well 6506/12-1 flowed at a combined rate of 86.8 million cubic feet of gas and 12,666 barrels ...
Texaco lowers U.S. crude oil postings.
Feb 04, 1985 ... NEW YORK -- Texaco Inc. Friday reduced its crude oil postings by $1 per barrel on nine grades of crude in Texas, New Mexico, Louisiana and Oklahoma, and reduced by 50 cents per barrel the postings for Illinois and North Texas. The changes included a reduction of $1 per barrel ...
Phillips earnings down in 4th quarter, up in 1984. (Phillips Petroleum Co.)
Feb 04, 1985 ... NEW YORK -- Phillips Petroleum Co'. fourth quarter earnings fell 31.6 percent year to year, but strong gains in exploration and production and slightly improved refining operations led to a 12.3 percent earnings increase for all of 1984. Phillips' fourth quarter earnings were ...
Brooks looks at trends in industry's shakeout. (Leslie Brooks, petroleum industry) (column)
Feb 04, 1985; ... AMIDST an oil industry shakeout period, there is a lot of uncertainty, Tulsa-based petroleum engineer Leslie Brooks says. In a current analysis, he notes that the drilling rig count in January was below that of a year ago, in itself not a banner year, but still above 1978-79. Seismic ...
Why Treasury's tax plan threatens energy security. (Department of the Treasury)
Feb 04, 1985; ... OUR LEADERS have acknowledged the old truth that in order to inspire public confidence the system of taxation must not only be fair, it must be perceived to be fair and reasonable by the general public. That's why in 1984, several proposals were introduced that would ...
U.S. gas imports down in '84, up in December.
Feb 04, 1985 ... WASHINGTON -- U.S. imports of natural gas fell 5.9 percent last year to 859.51 billion cubic feet from 913.07 bcf in 1983, the Commerce Department says. In December, imports of gas, methane, mixes and synthetic gas rose 73.2 percent to 113.09 bcf from 65.31 bcf in November, the ...
Deficit reduction drive eases some of industry's tax worries. (petroleum industry) (column)
Feb 04, 1985; ... DEFICIT reduction first, then tax reform. That's the word from Republican congressional leaders who met last week with the president. It means that it will be several months at the earliest beofre the White House submits a tax bill, and Sen. John Heinz, R-Pa., went so far as to ...
BNOC holds off on crude pricing move. (British National Oil Corp)
Feb 05, 1985 ... BNOC Holds Off on Crude Pricing Move British National Oil Corp. is unlikely to make any announcement on a revised pricing structure within the next few days, industry sources said Monday. The sources said the state-owned corporation's new crude oil pricing ...
Budget plan would halt SPR development.
Feb 05, 1985; ... Budget Plan Would Halt SPR Development A moratorium on developing the Strategic Petroleum Reserve is the major element in a 39 percent reduction in energy spending authority proposed by the Reagan administration in its fiscal 1986 Department of Energy budget. The ...
Firms plan new interstate gas pipeline.
Feb 05, 1985 ... Firms Plan New Interstate Gas Pipeline El Paso Natural Gas Co., Houston Natural Gas Corp. and Pacific Lighting Corp. said Monday they have signed an agreement in principle to build and operate an interstate natural gas pipeline from a point in Arizona to the heavy oil fields of ...
Texas International discovers new Egyptian oil field.
Feb 05, 1985 ... Texas International Discovers New Egyptian Oil Field Texas Inernational Co. said Monday it has discovered a second oil field in its exploration concession in Egypt's western desert province. The company also said it plans to renew its exploration agreement with ...
White House seeks 8% EPA budget authority boost.
Feb 05, 1985; ... White House Seeks 8% EPA Budget Authority Boost The Reagan administration is asking Congress for $4.7 billion in Environmental Protection Agency budget authority for fiscal 1986, an 8 percent, $339 million increase from the authority request in 1985. The figure includes ...
Gasoline slump eases; distillates prices rising.
Feb 05, 1985; ... Gasoline Slump Eases; Distillates Prices Rising WHOLESALE petroleum product prices for gasoline held steady or fell slightly over the weekend, while distillates prices are moving up in some areas and declining in others. Among the latest wholesale market moves: ...
Recapitalization would cut Phillips spending plans.
Feb 05, 1985 ... Recapitalization Would Cut Phillips Spending Plans Phillips Petroleum Co. says it will "reduce previously planned' capital spending over the next three years if it proceeds with a proposed recapitalization. A company spokesman would not say what level of spending was ...
DOE-Interior merger not likely to occur. (column)
Feb 05, 1985; ... DOE-Interior Merger Not Likely to Occur IT'S NOT DIFFICULT to understand why the Reagan administration is not going to push hard for creation of a new Department of Natural Resources combining the present Departments of Interior and Energy--despite widely held views within the ...
Staying competitive hinges on innovative planning. (column)
Feb 05, 1985; ... Staying Competitive Hinges on Information Planning THE 1980s have brought substantial changes in the major influences that affect the energy industry. During the 1970s, the prolonged high rate of inflation, coupled with a perceived energy shortage, triggered increased government ...
Tenneco, Conoco have new field gas hit in Jefferson County, Texas.
Feb 05, 1985 ... Tenneco, Conoco Have New Field Gas Hit in Jefferson County, Texas Tenneco Inc. says an exploratory well has resulted in a new field natural gas discovery in Jefferson County, Texas. The company has a 50 percent stake in the Tenneco Grace Blanch No. 1 Well, which is ...
Analysis of Unocal's potential bearing out in market action. (column)
Feb 05, 1985; ... Analysis of Unocal's Potential Bearing Out in Market Action IT'S ALWAYS gratifying to lead the pack, to come up with a meaningful analysis--one that stands by itself. And so James D. Balakian, oil analyst at L.F. Rothschild, Unterberg, Towbin, had every reason to gloat ...
United Energy unit extends gas supply agreements.
Feb 05, 1985 ... United Energy Unit Extends Gas Supply Agreements United Gas Pipe Line Co. has signed extensions-of-service agreements, involving peak volume deliveries of as much as 1 billion cubic feet per day to Sonat Inc.'s Southern Natural Gas Co. and Texas Eastern Corp.'s Texas Eastern ...
Gasoline prices stable, survey shows.
Feb 06, 1985; ... MAJOR brand, regular grade, dealer tank wagon gasoline postings are fluctuating this week, depending on region, leaving the average dealer tank wagon price at 75.88 cents per gallon, nearly the same as last week. According to The Oil Daily's survey of 50 cities across the ...
Hodel Urges FERC to increase gas pipeline sector competition. (Donald Paul Hodel, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission)
Feb 06, 1985 ... WASHINGTON -- Energy Secretary Donald Hodel has urged the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to take steps to make the natural gas pipeline industry more competitive. In comments filed in a FERC proceeding on the effects of partial wellhead decontrol of gas which took ...
Icahn fights Phillips recapitalization plan. (Carl C. Icahn)
Feb 06, 1985; ... PROFESSIONAL investor Carl C. Icahn challenged Phillips Petroleum co.'s recapitalization plan Monday night as inadequate and said he will launch his own acquisition offer for $55 per share if the major fails to offer a higher price before the close of business Wednesday. ...
Nigeria has new crude pricing plan. (crude oil prices)
Feb 06, 1985 ... NEW YORK -- Nigeria has informed customers of its new official crude oil prices and of the details of an export package designed to encourage purchases of its light crudes, Nigerian customers said Tuesday. Nigeria said it raised its prices 45 to 60 cents per barrel depending on ...
Voluntary gas carriage up, INGAA study says. (Interstate Natural Gas Association of America)
Feb 06, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- Voluntary carriage by large interstate gas pipelines increased inthe first nine months of 1984 compared to the previous year, a survey by the Interstate Natural Gas Association of America showed. The INGAA survey of a sample of pipelines said voluntary carriage ...
GOP House energy panel gains mixed.
Feb 06, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- Republicans on the House Energy and Commerce Committee are still not happy about their representation on the panel. But they are taking some comfort from the ideologial makeup on the committee's key energy subcommittee -- Fossill and Synthetic Fuels. The ...
Interior expects $8.3 billion in oil and gas revenues. (Department of the Interior)
Feb 06, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- The Reagan administration's $5.635 billion request for Interior Department spending authority in fiscal 1986 includes estimates of $10.36 billion in receipts, with about $8.346 billion contributed by rents, bonuses and royalties from the oil and gas sector. The ...
Agency merger plan raises questions on ERA's fate. (merger of Departments of Interior and Energy and effect on Economic Regulatory Administration)
Feb 06, 1985; ... ETERNAL vigilance is the price of liberty. And in today's world of left-leaning bureaucrats and government regulations which are hostile to the free enterprise system, that is no less true for American industry than it is for America. Today more than at any time since the ...
Are today's conditions really that terrible? (petroleum industry conditions) (column)
Feb 06, 1985; ... SOFT WORLD petroleum prices seem to be stirring up about as much fuss and problems as high prices did 10 to 15 years ago in causing jitters in the world economy. Every so often, government-control or government-ownership advocates grow bold enough to plump openly and repeatedly ...
Gulf of Mexico finds spurring new boom in rig construction. (oil drilling rigs) (column)
Feb 06, 1985; ... THE SOUTH KOREAN government strives mightily to keep that country's shipyard workers on the job. A huge new oil reserve has been found off the U.S. in super-deep waters of the Gulf of Mexico's continental slope. Add these seemingly unrelated items together and you get ...
Mesa buys KN Energy stake for 'investment' goals. (Mesa Petroleum Co., KN Energy Corp.)
Feb 06, 1985 ... HOUSTON -- T. Boone Pickens Jr., acquisition-minded chairman and founder of Mesa Petroleum Co., is buying shares in another firm. This time the company is KN Energy Corp. and the purchases are said to be for "investment purposes." It's also the second time in 18 months that ...
EPA choice hedges acid rain stance. (Lee Thomas)
Feb 07, 1985 ... WASHINGTON -- Lee Thomas, President Reagan's nominee to succeed William Ruckelshaus as administrator of the Environmental Protection Agency, said Tuesday that he did not know when the government's study of acid rain would be complete. But he told the Senate Environment Committee ...
FERC asked to facilitate gas carriage.
Feb 07, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission has at least the authority to encourage more gas transportation by pipelines, if not to order mandatory carriage, gas producers argued. But pipelines and distributors stressed that FERC's powers are limited in the ...
Iran readies new floating terminal in Southern Gulf.
Feb 07, 1985; ... KUWAIT -- Iran may soon be able to ship much of its oil exports from a new floating terminal in the southern Persian Gulf shipping lanes, shipping sources say. They said Iran last week chartered a fleet of VLCCs (very large crude carriers) to run a shuttle from its Kharg Island ...
Japanese close to oil purchase pacts with Oman.
Feb 07, 1985 ... MUSCAT -- Japanese oil trading companies are close to signing new contracts for Omani oil but have not yet agreed on the quantity each company will be allowed, oil industry sources said. The companies, which buy more than 60 percent of Oman's crude exports of 360,000 barrels a ...
Synfuels budget-cutters attack again.
Feb 07, 1985; ... WASHINGTON--Congressional critics of the Synthetic Fuels Corp. who achieved a $5.4 billion cut in its funding last year are taking further swipes at it in the 99th Congress. Reps. Howard Wolpe, D-Mich., and Mike Synar, D-Okla., have introduced legislation to abolish the ...
Wholesale prices show no clear trend. (gasoline prices)
Feb 07, 1985; ... WHOLESALE product prices were all over the board Wednesday with reductions on distillates and increases on gasoline in the East and Gulf Coast regions. The same was true in the central U.S., with an exception of a distillate increase in South Dakota. Gasoline and distillates ...
Dome implements its debt rescheduling agreement.
Feb 07, 1985 ... CALGARY -- A $5.3 billion debt rescheduling agreement with 56 of Dome Petroleum Ltd.'s lenders was implemented without it having to fulfill a prior requirement to sell $350 million of equity-related securities to the public, the company said Wednesday. Dome said the $350 million ...
FERC backs Tenneco unit's practices.
Feb 07, 1985 ... WASHINGTON -- Tennessee Gas Pipeline Co. did not give affiliated producers illegal preferential treatment in purchases of deregulated natural gas, a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission administrative law judge has ruled. The decision by Judge Stephen Grossman said that Tennesee ...
Amid a downturn, billions spent on Oklahoma wells.
Feb 07, 1985; ... MUCH attention has been paid to the drop in crude oil prices and the resulting decline in the number of wells drilled. Little has been said, however, about the billions of dollars spent on drilling despite lower drilling costs. Industry figures released recently show that it ...
Canadian petroleum industry likely to gain in 1985.
Feb 07, 1985; ... AFTER suffering a severe decline during the past three years, Canada's petroleum industry can look forward to improved prospects during 1985. The stage is finally set for a recovery. Canadians will once again enjoy the benefits that come from an active petroleum industry. For ...
Seneca Oil bank group demands repayment of $52.7 million debt.
Feb 07, 1985 ... OKLAHOMA CITY -- Seneca Oil Co. said its bank group has demanded immediate payment in ful of all $52.7 million Seneca owes under its note agreement with the banks. The company said its board will meet this week in an attempt to reach a settlement with all parties involved. It ...
Industry should expect to be a target of new taxes, Archer tells roundtable. (Bill Archer)
Feb 07, 1985; ... WASHINTON -- President Reagan is firmly committed to tax simplification and broad-based reform, and the oil and gas industry should expect ot be a target again in any tax package discussed in Congress, the second-ranking Republican on the House Ways and Means Committee told the Natural Gas ...
Pakistani well flows oil and gas.
Feb 07, 1985 ... HOUSTON -- Allied Corp.'s Union Texas Petroleum corp, subsidiary says an exploratory well in the Badin area of southeast Pakistan tested oil and natural gas. Union Texas is operator of the well with a 30 percent interest. Another 30 percent is held by Occidental Petroleum Corp ....
Catalyst-killing fluid ensures refinery instruments' accuracy. (column)
Feb 07, 1985; ... BUYING a small $103 bottle of liquid from the National Bureau of Standards could be the best investment a refiner ever made. The bottle of oil, we're told, contains exactly 423 milligrams of vanadium and 75 milligrams of nickel per gram of fluid. At that level, it's a ...
Canada clears Chevron, Texaco purchases.
Feb 08, 1985 ... OTTAWA -- The Canadian government said Thursday it has approved Chevron Corp.'s bid to acquire 60 percent of Gulf Canada Ltd. as part of its acquisition of Gulf Corp. The Ottawa government also said Texaco Inc. will be allowed to take over Canadian Reserve Oil and Gas Ltd. and ...
EIA predicts modest rise in oil prices. (Energy Information Agency)
Feb 08, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- The Department of Energy's "base-case assumptions" foresee a stable energy world through 1995 with only moderately rising oil prices and imports. In its annual energy outlook, the DOE said oil importas could reach 1.5 times 1983's levels by 1990 and double the 1983 ...
More refineries may close, Hall warns. (John R. Hall)
Feb 08, 1985 ... HOUSTON -- Athough about 140 U.S. refineries have ceased operations in the last four years, another 39 "are in danger of closing, unless conditions improve," Ashland Oil Inc. Chariman John R. Hall warned Thursday. In what at times approached a worst-case scenario, Hall said the ...
Phillips says $62 a share is acquisition floor price.
Feb 08, 1985; ... HOUSTON -- Althought expressing strong opposition to any takeover or leveraged buyout, directors of Phillips Petroleum Co. have nonetheless set a price--$62 cash per share or more than $9 billion -- at which the company could be acquired. The directors also said "a leveraged ...
Texaco plans stock sale to boost public's stake in Texaco Canada.
Feb 08, 1985 ... WHITE PLAINS, N.Y.--Texaco Inc. said Thursday it proposes to sell by public offering as many as 12 million common shares of Texaco Canada Inc. in Canada. The shares total about 10 percent of Texaco Canada's outstanding stock. The proposed sale would increase the public holdings ...
Gasoline prices increase strongly in some regions.
Feb 08, 1985; ... SOME real increases in wholesale gasoline prices emerged Thursday in some areas, although price cuts remained prevalent in other regions. Distillate prices moves were mixed, but declines remained ahead in this area as well. Among the latest moves: * MOBIL OIL CORP ....
Reagan eases fears of some on taxes.
Feb 08, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- President Reagan's State of the Union message Wednesday night failed to oil state lawmakers' fears about the elimination of energy tax breaks, but some saw hopeful signs in the message. And the president drew praise for including a call for the deregulation of ...
Senate backs Hodel, Herrington to Interior, Energy departments. (Donald Paul Hodel, John Herrington)
Feb 08, 1985; ... WASHINGTON -- By identical 93-1 votes, the Senate Wednesday confirmed the nominations of John Herrington to be secretary of energy and Donald Hodel to be secretary of the interior. Both were sworn in Thursday morning. The lone dissenter on both votes was San. William Proxmire, ...