ExxonMobil makes another oil discovery offshore Guyana

MOSCOW (MRC) -- ExxonMobil, the largest private US company, has made an oil discovery at the Uaru-2 well in the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana, reported Reuters.

Uaru-2 will add to the previously announced gross discovered recoverable resource estimate for the block, which is currently estimated to be approximately 9 billion oil-equivalent barrels.

“The Uaru-2 discovery enhances our work to optimally sequence development opportunities in the Stabroek Block,” said Mike Cousins, senior vice president of exploration and new ventures at ExxonMobil. “Progressing our industry-leading investments and well-executed exploration plans are vital in order to continue to develop Guyana’s offshore resources that unlock additional value for the people of Guyana and all stakeholders.”

In January 2020, ExxonMobil announced that Uaru-1 was the 16th discovery in the Stabroek Block.

In March 2021, ExxonMobil secured a sixth drillship, the Noble Sam Croft, for exploration and evaluation drilling activities offshore Guyana. A fourth project, Yellowtail, has been identified within the block with anticipated start up in late 2025 pending government approvals and project sanctioning. This project will develop the Yellowtail and Redtail fields, which are located about 19 miles (30 kilometers) southeast of the Liza developments.

ExxonMobil anticipates at least six projects online by 2027 and sees potential for up to 10 FPSOs to develop its current recoverable resource balance.

The start-up of Liza Phase 2 remains on target for 2022, as the Liza Unity FPSO prepares for sail away from Singapore to Guyana later this year. The Unity FPSO has a production capacity of 220,000 barrels of oil per day at peak rates. The hull for the Prosperity FPSO vessel, the third project at the Payara Field, is complete, and topsides construction activities have commenced in Singapore with a startup target of 2024.

As MRC informed previously, Sinopec Engineering (Group) and ExxonMobil (Huizhou) Chemical (EMHCC) have just entered into a BEPC (basic design, engineering, procurement and construction) contract for the proposed Huizhou Chemical Complex Project (Phase I). The main units of the project include a 1.6 million tonnes/year ethylene flexible feed steam cracker, downstream polymer and derivative units and utilities. The main product units include two performance polyethylene (PE) lines and two differentiated performance polypropylene (PP) lines.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated polyethylene (PE) consumption totalled 356,370 tonnes in the first two month of 2021, down by 9% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market was 246,870 tonnes in January-February 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.

ExxonMobil is the largest non-government owned company in the energy industry and produces about 3% of the world"s oil and about 2% of the world"s energy.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- SIBUR, Russia’s largest integrated petrochemicals company and a leader in sustainable development, has approved its Policy on Circular Economy and Climate Impact Mitigation at the meeting of its Board of Directors, said the company.

The Policy sets out the main principles, strategic goals and objectives of SIBUR in these areas and outlines the key activities at each stage of product life cycle to achieve the above objectives. The petrochemical industry is well positioned to develop circular economy due to the unique properties of polymers, including recyclability and reusability. This enables reducing the use of primary feedstock and cutting greenhouse gas emissions, while the development and improvement of polymer waste recycling helps build on these effects.

The Policy spans such business areas as risk management and strategic goal setting, supplier and customer relations, R&D and investment planning, operational efficiency and contribution to regulatory environment. SIBUR realises that achieving global tasks is only possible through awareness and joint efforts of a wide range of stakeholders. Therefore, the Policy focuses, in particular, on building partnerships as well as sharing experience and educational initiatives in environmental awareness and responsible consumption.

By approving and implementing the Policy, the Company also declares its commitment to the UN Sustainable Development Goals, the UN Global Compact, circular economy principles, the goals of the Paris Agreement, and Russia' Long-term Development Strategy with Low Greenhouse Gas Emissions to 2050. The progress in implementing the Policy will be the subject of regular discussions at meetings of the Company’s Board of Directors and its Sustainable Development Committee.

On April 23, SIBUR and theTAIF Group announced plans to merge their petrochemical businesses. As a result of the transaction, a merged company will be created on the basis of SIBUR, in which the existing shareholders of the Taif group will receive a 15% stake in exchange for the transfer of a controlling stake in the group, which consists of petrochemical and energy enterprises. The remaining stake in Taif may subsequently be bought out by the combined company. After the completion of all ongoing investment projects, the combined company will enter the top 5 world leaders in the production of polyolefins and rubbers.

Earlier it was reported that SIBUR increased sales of polypropylene and polyethylene last year amid growing utilization of the ZapSibNeftekhim complex. This led to an increase in the company's revenue in the olefins and polyolefins segment by 77.1% to Rb187.3 bn. This growth was mainly due to an increase in sales of polypropylene and polyethylene as a result of increased utilization of the ZapSibNeftekhim complex and was partially offset by a decrease in prices for these types of products.

SIBUR is the largest vertically integrated gas processing and petrochemical company in Russia, uniting a number of production sites in various regions of the Russian Federation. The company sells products to consumers in the fuel and energy complex, automotive, construction, consumer goods, chemical and other industries in more than 80 countries around the world.

MRC

1. BP forecasts further reduction in oil, gas output in 2021 due to impact of asset sales on its portfolio

MOSCOW (MRC) -- On April 27, BP, the world's oil and petrochemical major, forecast a further drop in its upstream production in 2021 due to the impact of asset sales on its portfolio, as it reported a 14% year-on-year fall in upstream oil and gas output for the first quarter, reported S&P Global. In a results statement, the UK major said second-quarter production would be even lower than first-quarter production in both its conventional operations and newly created 'gas and low carbon' unit due to a combination of asset sales and maintenance, the latter in the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico as well as Trinidad and Tobago. The downbeat production outlook follows a 10% drop in the company's 2020 output, mainly attributed to asset sales in its US shale business and Alaska. Upstream production in the first quarter hit 2.22 million b/d of oil equivalent, excluding the company's near-20% stake in Rosneft, due to the asset sales, reduced investment and asset decline, BP said.

MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- Crude oil futures ticked lower during mid-morning Asian trade April 28, as data from the American Petroleum Institute showed a build in US crude inventories, and the OPEC+ Joint Ministerial Meeting Committee recommended to uphold the earlier OPEC+ decision to increase production from May onwards, reported S&P Global.

At 10:55 am Singapore time (0255 GMT), the ICE Brent June contract fell 6 cents/b (0.09%) from the April 27 settle at USD66.36/b, while the June NYMEX light sweet crude contract was down 12 cents/b (0.19%) at USD62.82/b.

Data from the API took the market by surprise as it showed a significant 4.32 million-barrel build in US crude inventories in the week ended April 23. Market analysts had expected a marginal draw in crude oil inventory amid an uptick in refinery demand.

A dip in sentiment was, however, tempered by indications that downstream demand remained strong, with US gasoline and US distillate inventories falling 1.29 million barrels and 2.42 million barrels, respectively. Market participants will be looking to the more comprehensive US Energy Information Administration data, due to be released later April 28, for corroboration of the inventory changes, and for fresh pricing cues.

Meanwhile on April 27, the OPEC+ JMMC, co-chaired by Saudi Arabia and Russia, backed the coalition's earlier decision to gradually taper crude production cuts from May onwards, delegates told S&P Global Platts. As per the decision reached during the April 1 OPEC+ meeting, the producer group is due to raise its collective output by 350,000 b/d in May, another 350,000 b/d in June, and 441,000 b/d in July. Saudi Arabia, which is currently in the middle of an additional 1 million b/d cut, will also ease the cut by 250,000 b/d in May, 350,000 b/d in June and 400,000 b/d in July.

Delegates said the full OPEC+ meeting scheduled for April 28 will also be canceled, and that ministers will convene online again on June 1 to review their decision.

The endorsement from the JMMC comes after the OPEC+ Joint Technical Committee had raised its 2021 crude demand growth forecast on April 26 from 5.6 million b/d to 6 million b/d, bringing it in line with the 5.95 million b/d forecasted in the April 13 OPEC oil market report.

The OPEC+ coalition's rosy demand outlook is predicated on robust vaccination programs in the US and Europe, which are expected to fuel their respective economic rebound. OPEC+ is confident that the increased demand brought upon by an economic expansion in these regions will outweigh the demand-destruction caused by an escalation of the pandemic in countries such as India, Japan and Turkey.

As MRC informed earlier, COVID-19 outbreak has led to an unprecedented decline in demand affecting all sections of the Russian economy, which has impacted the demand for petrochemicals in the short-term. However, the pandemic triggered an increase in the demand for polymers in food packaging, and cleaning and hygiene products, according to GlobalData, a leading data and analytics company. With Russian petrochemical companies having the advantage of access to low-cost feedstock, and proximity to demand-rich Asian (primarily China) and European markets for the supply of petrochemical products, these companies appear to be well-positioned to derive full benefits from an improving market environment and global economy post-COVID-19, says GlobalData.

We remind that in December 2020, Sibur, Gazprom Neft, and Uzbekneftegaz agreed to cooperate on potential investments in Uzbekistan including a major expansion of Uzbekneftegaz’s existing Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex (SGCC) and the proposed construction of a new gas chemicals facility. The signed cooperation agreement for the projects includes “the creation of a gas chemical complex using methanol-to-olefins (MTO) technology, and the expansion of the production capacity of the Shurtan Gas Chemical Complex”.

Ethylene and propylene are feedstocks for producing polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP).

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated polyethylene (PE) consumption totalled 356,370 tonnes in the first two month of 2021, down by 9% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market was 246,870 tonnes in January-February 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC

MOSCOW (MRC) -- On April 27, BP, the world's oil and petrochemical major, forecast a further drop in its upstream production in 2021 due to the impact of asset sales on its portfolio, as it reported a 14% year-on-year fall in upstream oil and gas output for the first quarter, reported S&P Global.

In a results statement, the UK major said second-quarter production would be even lower than first-quarter production in both its conventional operations and newly created 'gas and low carbon' unit due to a combination of asset sales and maintenance, the latter in the North Sea, Gulf of Mexico as well as Trinidad and Tobago.

The downbeat production outlook follows a 10% drop in the company's 2020 output, mainly attributed to asset sales in its US shale business and Alaska. Upstream production in the first quarter hit 2.22 million b/d of oil equivalent, excluding the company's near-20% stake in Rosneft, due to the asset sales, reduced investment and asset decline, BP said.

"For full-year 2021 we expect reported upstream production to be lower than 2020 due to the impact of the ongoing divestment program. However, underlying production should be slightly higher than 2020 with the ramp-up of major projects, primarily in gas regions, partly offset by the impacts of reduced capital investment and decline in lower-margin gas assets," BP said, noting its startup of two gas projects in recent days, in Egypt and India.

BP responded to the global price crash and pandemic by slashing its capital expenditure by 21% last year, starting in the second quarter, and has since said it expects to see its oil and gas output fall by 40% by 2030 as it shifts toward lower-carbon energy production.

However, in a broadly optimistic results statement, CEO Bernard Looney hailed the company's success in lowering its net debt and reviving its cash generation, and forecast an improvement in oil market conditions.

"The oil market is set to continue its rebalancing process. Global stocks are expected to decline and reach historical levels (in terms of days of forward cover) at the end of 2021," BP said. "Oil demand is expected to recover in 2021 due to strong growth in US and China and as the distribution of vaccinations gains momentum and lockdown restrictions are gradually lifted," it added, noting also that OPEC+ decisions would play a significant role.

In the downstream, "industry refining margins are expected to improve over the course of 2021 compared to the first quarter, with the recovery in demand and the closure of some capacity supporting higher utilization rates compared to the exceptionally low levels seen last year. However, refining margins are expected to remain weaker than pre-COVID-19 levels," BP said.

As MRC informed earlier, Rosneft together with BP will develop the hydrogen business. Together they will study the prospects for new projects using renewable energy sources (RES), as well as the use of technologies for capturing, utilizing and storing CO2. Earlier in Russia, Gazprom and Novatek spoke about their intention to create a hydrogen business and new technologies for the disposal of harmful emissions.

Ethylene and propylene are the main feedstocks for the production of polyethylene (PE) and polypropylene (PP), respectively.

According to MRC's ScanPlast report, Russia's estimated polyethylene (PE) consumption totalled 356,370 tonnes in the first two month of 2021, down by 9% year on year. Shipments of exclusively low density polyethylene (LDPE) increased. At the same time, polypropylene (PP) shipments to the Russian market was 246,870 tonnes in January-February 2021, up by 30% year on year. Supply of homopolymer PP and PP block copolymers increased.
MRC