The Oil Daily back issues from March 1992:
Producers pin hopes on Senate for tax reform. (petroleum producers)
Mar 02, 1992; ... WASHINGTON---Independent producers are pinning their hopes for alternative minimum tax relief on the Senate, after their AMT reform proposal failed to make the House tax bill. The Senate Finance Committee is scheduled to mark up its tax package on Tuesday. Independents are ...
Financially-pressed pipelines desert gas research arm. (natural gas pipeline companies, ANR Pipeline Co., United Gas Pipe Line Co., Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's Gas Research Institute)
Mar 02, 1992; ... HOUSTON---Another problem has surfaced in the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission's approach to creating a deregulated natural gas industry. Financially squeezed pipelines have decided they can no longer afford to belong to the industry's research arm, the Gas Research ...
Foster Wheeler awarded major Kuwait oil refinery contract. (Brief Article)
Mar 02, 1992; ... After a long competition with several of the largest engineering and construction companies, Foster Wheeler Corp. has won a contract to manage the restoration of Kuwait's three largest refineries. The contract with Kuwait National Petroleum Corp. covers assessment of damages and ...
U.S.-Japanese group confirms Russia oil plan. (McDermott Inc., Marathon Oil Co., Mitsui and Company Ltd.; exploration offshore of Sakhalin) (Brief Article)
Mar 02, 1992; ... HOUSTON --- The preliminary deal on the Sakhalin Island offshore project is still in force and should resultin in a crontract for Marathon, McDermott and Mitsui to conduct a detailed feasibility study, the three companies say. Senior representatives from the companies are in ...
Nymex sour contract off to positive start but not yet called a success. (New York Mercantile Exchange, petroleum futures contract)
Mar 02, 1992; ... The futures market attentively watched the newly launched sour crude contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange Friday, but weren't ready to call it a success just yet. The initial focus, as expected, was on the "spread" between the new sour contract and the well-established ...
Mesa Offshore gets distribution, mulls choices. (Mesa Offshore Trust)
Mar 02, 1992 ... HOUSTON -- Mesa Offshore Trust will receive a February 1992 $70,000 royalty income distribution from Mesa Inc., representing the trust's share of proceeds from royalty properties after Mesa Inc.s recovery of operating, drilling and workover costs. But the trust disclosed last ...
Oil experts: Saudi reforms won't erase instability.
Mar 03, 1992; ... The political reforms announced over the weekend by Saudi Arabia's King Fahd are aimed at enhancing the internal stability of the world's largest supplier of oil to the U.S. and other international markets. But some Saudi watchers doubt that these changes--the most extensive in ...
Move by Statoil into U.S. refining sector possible, but Europe growth higher priority.
Mar 03, 1992; ... NEW YORK -- The acquisition and operation of a refinery in the eastern part of the United States are a possibility for Norwegian state oil company Statoil, but right now expansion in Europe is a higher priority, according to Harold Norvik, president of the company. Norvik ...
Colombia's climate of violence poses another hurdle for foreign investors.
Mar 03, 1992; ... BOGOTA -- The recent murder of a Japanese Mazda vice president by two police officers has raised doubts about Colombia's ability to shed its violent image in order to attract foreign investors. Colombia has spent millions of dollars on public relations--mostly to combat its ...
Hazwaste listing for used oil looks less likely.
Mar 03, 1992; ... The Environmental Protection Agency, facing a May 1 deadline on regulation, may be close to deciding that it will not classify used oil as a hazardous waste. Operating under a consent order reached as a result of a federal court decision, the agency is trying to determine ...
Global warming treaty edges a little bit closer amid clouds of rhetoric.
Mar 03, 1992; ... Out of context, Shelley's lines read like a warning of global warming and ozone loss. The spates of facts, theories, accusations, policy pronouncements and diplomatic jargon about global warming do not provide a clear context for much of anything, unfortunately. In New York, ...
Canada's Energy Board ponders subpoenas on exports. (National Energy Board might subpoena officials from the California Public Utility Commission)
Mar 03, 1992; ... CALGARY -- Canada's National Energy Board is pondering a request by Canadian producers to subpoena California officials at the public hearing under way on the Alberta & Southern Gas Co. export licenses imbroglio. (Meanwhile, the California Public Utility Commission has set ...
House nearing action on its energy plan. (H.R. 776) (Brief Article)
Mar 03, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- Markup on the House energy bill could begin as early as next week. The bill, H.R. 776, has been awaiting action since it was reported out of the House Energy and Power Subcommittee last October. Efforts to get the House moving on its energy bill were stepped up ...
Venezuela names energy expert Para as new oil minister. (Alirio Para) (Brief Article)
Mar 03, 1992; ... Alirio Para, vice president of the London-based Global Center for Energy Studies, has been named the new oil minister of Venezuela. Para is a respected international oil man, with particular expertise in oil marketing. The Global Center is the energy think-tank set up by former ...
Unocal replaces 119% of production in '91; reserves at 2.09 billion BOE. (barrels of oil equivalent) (Brief Article)
Mar 03, 1992 ... LOS ANGELES -- Unocal Corp. says it replaced 119 percent of its worldwide crude oil, condensate and natural gas production on an oil equivalent basis in 1991. Its total reserves rose to 2.09 billion barrels of oil equivalent at the end of 1991 from 2.06 billion barrels a year ...
Ultramar Canada's $93.5 million products pipeline plans advanced.
Mar 04, 1992; ... OTTAWA -- Ultramar Canada Inc. is still planning to ge ahead with a $93.5-million refined dproducts pipeline between Quebec City and Montreal despite being put up for sale by new owners. The Montreal-based refiner is poised to announce "within days" the second phase of its ...
Venezuela, Opec deliver a double boost to prices. (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries)
Mar 04, 1992; ... Nymex energy futures jumped late Tuesday on reports of unrest in Venezuela and the possibility that Opec may meet ahead of its scheduled April session. Nymex April light, sweet crude futures closed up 30 cents to $18.64 per barrel. Nymex May sour crude settled up 25 ...
Environmental costs for refining sector set at $1.40/barrel. (oil refining industry) (Brief Article)
Mar 04, 1992 ... Environmental costs for the downstream oil refining industry will run the equivalent of $1.40 a barrel, excluding financing costs, in the opinion of Alain Guillon, Sr., Director of Refining & Marketing for French oil company ELF Aquitaine. "The stakes are enormous ...and the risks are ...
U.S. tax court inches forward in 'Aramco Advantage' case. (Exxon Corp. and Texaco Inc. face tax evasion charges)
Mar 04, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- Having recently taken one significant step, the slow-moving "Aramco Advantage" tax case will take its next step by March 16, the deadline for Exxon Corp. and Texaco Inc. to file a legal brief. Before then, however, the U.S. Tax Court will hear from Citizen Action, ...
Saudis expand U.S. oil market share 45 percent. (Saudi Arabia)
Mar 04, 1992; ... Saudi Arabia expanded its share of the 1991 U.S. market for crude oil imports by 44.9 percent, in a year when net total crude imports declined 2.1 percent. The Saudis supplied an average of 1,698,000 barrels of crude daily to U.S. customers, an increase of 503,000 b/d or 42.1 ...
Gas producers ignore low prices, keep rigs busy. (Texas oil production)
Mar 04, 1992; ... [TABULAR DATA OMITTED] HOUSTON -- There are almost as many reasons why Texas produces are working to add gas supplies to an already glutted market as there are companies doing it. After more than a year of record low spot prices, almost 40 percent of the rigs active in ...
Austin Chalk horizontal drilling play crosses into Louisiana.
Mar 04, 1992; ... After more than a year of preparation, the Louisiana Office of Conservation staff may be about to receive the first flood of horizontal drilling activity. Although the Pearsall boom in south Texas has subsided, the search for upper Cretaceous Austin Chalk production has moved ...
Improvements in Asia's fuel quality to trigger major refining changes. (oil refining)
Mar 04, 1992; ... Concern about air pollution from motor vehicles is spreading rapidly throughout Asia. Most countries have introduced unleaded gasoline or have announced plans to do so, and a small but significant group of countries is now trying to improve the quality of diesel. Market ...
Washington-Riyadh conspiracy theories fueled by high Saudi oil production.
Mar 05, 1992; ... Saudi Arabia's insistence on pumping enormous quantities of petroleum in the face of calls by its Opec partners for deeper cuts in production have inevitably fueled speculation that Riyadh is paying off Washington for its protection. It cannot be denied, argue the conspiracy theorists, ...
Options trading for natural gas futures gets OK. (Commodity Futures Trading Commission ruling) (Brief Article)
Mar 05, 1992 ... WASHINGTON -- The Commodity Futures Trading Commission has approved options trading on natural gas futures, with trading expected to start by the end of the year. The CFTC voted Wednesday without discussion to approve the New York Mercantile Exchange's application. ...
Nevada dealer spokesman raps new agreement with oil refiners. (Jack Greco)
Mar 05, 1992; ... An agreement between national groups representing oil refiners and the dealers and jobbers they supply with fuel "is meaningless," says Jack Greco, a spokesman for Nevada service station dealers. Nevada is one of several western states opposing the compromise, which calls for ...
Denationalization of petroleum seen picking up momentum.
Mar 05, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- The recent trend toward privatizing state ownership of oil and gas operations is likely to pick up momentum in the 1990s, helping to "reintegrate" the international majors and lower worldwide oil taxation rates. That's the general consensus among state, privatizing ...
Officials debate fate of Canada's Hibernia project. (offshore drilling project in Newfoundland)
Mar 05, 1992; ... OTTAWA -- The Canadian and Newfoundland governments say they are in no hurry to mothball the $4.4-billion Hibernia project, despite a prediction that time is running out. Petro-Canada chairman Bill Hopper says the huge offshore project is on a "60-day countdown" to find a ...
Chevron planning sharp reduction of fields in U.S. (Brief Article)
Mar 05, 1992; ... HOUSTON -- Chevron plans to get rid of 70 percent of the fields it had in 1990 and significantly reduce the size of its U.S. production department as soon as possible. In 1990, the company planned to reduce its inventory of U.S. producing properties from about 1,800 to 700 by ...
Lawmakers to press for drilling ban off the entire Florida coast.
Mar 05, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- The Florida delegation in the House will attempt to include in pending energy legislation a measure similar to the failed Graham-Mack proposal that would have outlawed oil and gas drilling off the entire coast of Florida, congressional aides say. Sources indicate ...
Bush team declares support for tax reform as producing states' primaries draw near. (alternative minimum tax for petroleum industry)
Mar 05, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- Bush administration officials are telling everyone in sight that they do care about the domestic oil and gas industry. The profession of faith comes less than a week before Super Tuesday, which includes key primaries in the major oil and gas producing states of ...
IEA trims North America demand estimates. (International Energy Agency report on world petroleum demand)
Mar 06, 1992; ... World and U.S. oil demand is recovering somewhat more slowly than expected and oil company stocks worldwide remain high despite recent strong drawdowns. The projected gain in North American demand for the first three months of 1992, versus abnormally low deliveries a year ...
Chevron's closing of neighborhood service station stirs public wrath. (San Francisco)
Mar 06, 1992; ... SAN FRANCISCO -- Despite protests from neighborhood residents, and a city law that aims to prevent service station closures, Chevron U.S.A. last week closed its Monterey Boulevard service station here. The move drew opposition from residents who see the station as part of a ...
Status of major legislation: 102 Congress. (petroleum legislation)
Mar 06, 1992 ...PENDING LEGISLATION: Alternative Minimum Tax Reform OUTLOOK: Left out of House tax bill, but included in Senate Finance Committee package. (H.R. 4210) The Democrat's 1992 tax bill was narrowly approved Feb. 27 by a partisan vote of 221-210. The ...
Diamond M-Odeco consolidates equipment, jobs to handle the world drilling market.
Mar 06, 1992; ... NEW ORLEANS -- Opening the Outer Continental Shelf is the single most important act which would encourage domestic exploration, Robert E. Rose, president and CEO of newly merged Diamond M-Odeco said at a recent IAD/SPE Drilling Conference here. Rose described how the company ...
Industry vows to press fight against new attempt to create 'buffer' zone off Florida coast. (petroleum industry)
Mar 06, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- Oil industry groups plan to parry any attempts by Florida House lawmakers to insert in pending energy legislation language similar to the failed Graham-Mack measure that would have banned oil and gas leasing off the coast of Florida until the year 2000. "We'll ...
Chevron plans cutbacks at Texas refinery. (Brief Article)
Mar 06, 1992 ... SAN FRANCISCO -- Chevron U.S.A. says it will cut 700 jobs and reduced planned five-year capital spending of $1 billion by two-thirds at its Port Arthur, Texas refinery. The cutbacks will reduce the refinery's rated crude oil processing capacity to 200,000 barrels a day from ...
Royalty rate on stripper wells to be slashed. (oil wells on federal lands) (Brief Article)
Mar 06, 1992 ... WASHINGTON -- President Bush directed the Interior Department Thursday to reduce the 12.5 percent royalty rate that stripper wells on federal lands pay to the government. The Department of Energy estimates the lower royalty rate will increase domestic oil production by 4.7 ...
Independents see Senate tax bill as partial victory. (tax deduction on intangible oil well drilling costs) (Brief Article)
Mar 06, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- The Senate Finance Committee's tax bill does increase the deductibility of intangible drilling costs, but it does not go as far as most independent oil and gas producers would like. It makes no changes in percentage depletion, nor does it extend the Section 29 tax ...
Energy issues in spotlight on eve of 'Super Tuesday.' (presidential candidates stump Oklahoma, Texas, Louisiana; worry about California)
Mar 09, 1992 ... Presidential candidates have crisscrossed the South in advance of Super Tuesday, unleashing a barrage of suggestions and recommendations on energy policy. On Tuesday, 11 states, including major oil and gas producing states, hold primaries and caucuses. Following are ...
Regulators advance emissions trading plan in Southern California.
Mar 09, 1992; ... LOS ANGELES -- Southern California air quality regulators have given their conceptual approval to a plan aimed at providing the region's businesses more flexibility in controlling pollution. By an 8 to 1 vote, the board of the South Coast Air Quality Management District last ...
Standard and Poor's to review gas pipelines' paper, preferred. (debt rating of several gas pipeline companies placed on CreditWatch, subject to downgrade)
Mar 09, 1992; ... Citing what it considers sub-par financial profiles relative to their current debt and limited near-term prospects for significant improvement, Standard and Poor's placed the ratings of several interstate natural gas pipelines and their parent companies on Credit Watch for possible ...
Director watchdog idea may reflect a new wave of shareholder activism.
Mar 09, 1992; ... Just as most oil companies were able to relax as they escaped this year's major stockholder attacks on excessive executive compensation, the Securities and Exchange Commission opened up a whole new can of worms. The SEC unexpectedly ruled last week that Exxon Corp. must include ...
Active rig list shrinks to 660. (Baker Hughes report on oil well drilling rigs for week of March, 6, 1992) (Brief Article)
Mar 09, 1992 ... HOUSTON -- U.S. drilling has dropped to the second lowest level since the Hughes Tool Co. began keeping records in 1940. This week, the Baker Hughes survey found 660 rigs working in the U.S., down 13 from the previous week and only seven higher than the all time low set last ...
Gas prorationing gains in Oklahoma. (state legislation would set production limits on gas wells) (Brief Article)
Mar 09, 1992; ... TULSA -- The Oklahoma Legislative has taken another step toward a law which would slash the allowable production from the state's large natural gas wells. Senate Bill 663, which also would allow future adjustment in statewide gas production allowables, was approved by the House ...
Administration unveils relief plan for natural gas industry. (Brief Article)
Mar 09, 1992; ... WASHINGTON -- The Bush administration has announced a package of regulatory relief measures to improve the troubled domestic natural gas industry. "We've got a real problem in that industry," Energy Secretary James D. Watkins remarked at a Friday news conference. "We ...
Bush son and Harken Energy occupy pre-election spotlight. (George W. Bush, son of President Bush, sold off stock 1 week before poor earnings report) (Brief Article)
Mar 10, 1992 ... George W. Bush--the oldest son of President Bush--and his involvement with Dallas-based Harken Energy Corp. are in the national spotlight again, on the eve of the "Super Tuesday" primary elections. Reports of the younger Bush having sold $848,560 worth of stock in Harken ...
Parker to begin drilling program in South Yemen. (Parker Drilling Co.) (Brief Article)
Mar 10, 1992 ... TULSA--Parker Drilling Co. says subsidiary has contracted to begin a multi-well program in the active Yemen oil and gas drilling market. Sun Oil Shabwa Yemen Ltd. will ...
Administration may scrap auto canister rules. (vapor recovery canister on automobiles) (Brief Article)
Mar 10, 1992 ... With the Michigan primary a week away, the Bush administration apparently is ready to unveil regulatory plans that may give a boost to the auto industry. President Bush may make the announcement himself in a few days. The unofficial word is that those plans include: ...
Texas Railroad Commission post draws hopefuls. (Lena Guerrero expected to defeat challengers) (Brief Article)
Mar 10, 1992 ... AUSTIN--Texas Railroad Commission Chairman Lena Guererro is seeking election to the commission post to which she was appointed earlier by Gov. Ann Richards in today's (Tuesday) "Super Tuesday" voting in Texas. Guerrero, a Democrat, faces opposition on the primary ballot from ...
Debate ignites as House eyes energy proposal. (proposed amendment on gas pipeline rate refunds stopped)
Mar 10, 1992; ... WASHINGTON--The House Energy Committee is expected to begin its markup today (Tuesday) on the comprehensive energy bill, but one of the battles on natural gas pipeline rate reform may be over before the markup starts. Chairman John Dingell and three other powerful members of the ...
Cambodia open to investment by U.S.-based oil companies.
Mar 10, 1992 ... Lifting of a U.S. trade embargo earlier this year opens the way for investment in oil and gas exploration in Cambodia by U.S.-based companies. But offshore prospects appear to be modest and focused primarily on natural gas, while onshore areas are extremely high risk with ...
Election-year promises don't address industry's real problems. (petroleum industry seeks regulatory and tax relief)
Mar 10, 1992; ... Nothing concentrates the mind of a politician like an election. Cries for help from the severely depressed domestic oil industry have been largely falling on deaf ears in Washington for years. But with the approach of primaries in oil-producing states, the Bush administration ...
Prospects for Russia oil investment improve as some uncertainties removed. (price controls and currency reforms)
Mar 10, 1992; ... Russian oil has lost some of its attractiveness for foreign investors, following a rash of recent decrees. But the worst of the uncertainty may be nearing an end. New batches of legislation are in the pipeline, aimed at least in part at reassuring foreign investors. ...
Venezuela's Orimulsion encounters U.S. environmental controls. (bitumen-water emulsion fuel)
Mar 10, 1992; ... It is too soon to tell whether Venezuela's Orimulsion will find a U.S. market, but one of the primary obstacles clearly is the cost of environmental protection. Where the right balance of price, cost and access favors Orimulsion over other fossil fuels, it may yet sell in the ...
European blues over green regs: more sulfur, CO2 cuts possible. (regulations on sulfur dioxide and carbon dioxide emissions)
Mar 10, 1992; ... At times it may seem as if Europeans are in a contest with the United States to see who can prove the toughest on environmental regulations. In fact, that competitiveness really is one of the European motivations, says Gilvert Portal. Portal, secretary general of the European ...
Fearless forecasts vary, but era of falling prices ended, one analysts says. (natural gas prices) (includes related article)
Mar 10, 1992; ... NEW YORK--Forecasts for natural gas prices are all over the map, with at least one analyst predicting that the era of falling energy prices in 1992 is setting the stage for a future rebound. Marion B. Stewart of National Economic Research Associates says that paradoxically, the ...
Enron chief Lay uses U.K. cogen plant as model for worldwide expansion plan. (Enron Corp.; Kenneth L. Lay; cogeneration power plant)
Mar 10, 1992; ... WASHINGTON--Enron Corp's Kenneth L. Lay believes cogeneration is the real growth market for natural gas, and he plans on using Enron's experience in Britain as a model for doing business around the world. Enron currently is building the world's largest cogeneration facility, ...
Dropping demand key problem facing Canada's refinery sector. (petroleum refineries)
Mar 11, 1992; ... OTTAWA--Even Canada's national energy company--created in 1976 to be a "made in Canada" oil company--is buying inexpensive American gasoline. Petro-Canada, Canada's second largest integrated oil company, was caught red-faced shipping a tanker load holding 6,000 gallons of ...
San Francisco area refiners to bear brunt of new leakproofing regulations. (Bay Area Air Quality Management District; California)
Mar 11, 1992; ... SAN FRANCISCO--In a move that is expected to cost refiners here heavily, the Bay Area Air Quality Management District (BAAQMD) has ordered oil and chemical plants to plug leaks from valves, pumps and other devices that it says emit the pollution equivalent of 425,000 automobiles. ...
Vapor ruling could be knockout punch for many retail gasoline marketers.
Mar 11, 1992; ... The apparent decision by the Bush administration to force gassline service stations, rather than automakers, to deal with evaporative hydrocarbon emissions is seen by oil companies, jobbers and dealers as forcing many stations to close down in return for relatively small clean air ...
Canister decision faces legal fight. (large on-board canisters for vapor recovery during refueling may not be needed)
Mar 11, 1992; ... WASHINGTON--The Bush administration is expected to announce this week that vehicles need not be equipped with larger on-board canisters for vapor recovery during refueling. The decision may be illegal, however. The Clean Air Act Amendments of 1990 place responsibility for the ...
Lawmakers split over set-aside proposal for SPR. (Strategic Petroleum Reserves)
Mar 11, 1992; ... WASHINGTON--There will be a mandatory set-aside of domestic and imported crude oil to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve, a key lawmaker vowed in the first day of markup on the House energy bill. But the Bush administration and most of the oil industry strongly oppose the ...
Panel advances mineral leasing act. (House Interior Subcommittee on Mining and Natural Resources)
Mar 11, 1992; ... WASHINGTON--The House Interior Subcommittee on Mining and natural Resources Tuesday marked up several mineral development measures, three of which deal with the extraction of oil and gas from federal lands. Of interest to the oil and gas industry were three measures that would ...
Gas transport facilities seen growing faster than expected. (report by Soll Sussman of the Texas General Land Office)
Mar 11, 1992 ... HOUSTON--The infrastructure to compressed natural gas and liquefied petroleum gas to vehicles is growing faster than anticipated, says Soll Sussman, director of the Texas Land Office's alternative fuels program. Sussman says Texas has 30 fueling stations, not all public, and ...