Energy / Automotive News As Reported to 17 Feb 2023

WTI Crude stood at $77.04/bl, OPEC basket price at US$83.76/bl. Crude prices are softening
The International Energy Agency has raised its estimate of global oil demand growth for this year by 100,000 b/d to 2 million b/d on the back of a “resurgent” China and an aviation recovery. In its latest monthly oil market report published Feb. 15, the IEA raised its demand growth estimate for 2023 for the third month in a row, noting a more optimistic tone to markets. It raised the estimated “call” on OPEC crude oil — or requirement for OPEC crude — for the first quarter by 200,000 b/d to 28.4 million b/d, and for the second quarter by 100,000 b/d to 29.3 million b/d. Read More


Dana Incorporated announced that its board of directors has declared a dividend on its common stock.
The board declared a quarterly dividend of $0.10 per share, payable March 24, 2023, to holders of Dana common stock as of March 3. Read More


U.S. forces on Tuesday took down an Iranian-made drone that was flying near a base in northeastern Syria in an attempt to conduct reconnaissance of the area.

U.S. Central Command said the drone was shot down around 2:30 p.m. local time near Mission Support Site Conoco.

Both the U.S. and Iran conduct counterterrorism operations in Syria and support groups in the county’s ongoing civil war. Read More


Oil and gas upstream capital expenditures increased by 39% in 2022 to $499 billion, the highest level since 2014 and the largest year-on-year gain in history. Higher costs primarily drive the increase in investment, but activity has also started to recover. The global rig count is up 22% from a year ago but remains 10% below 2019 levels.Annual upstream investment will need to increase from $499 billion in 2022 to $640 billion in 2030 to ensure adequate supplies. This estimate for 2030 is 18% higher than we assessed a year ago primarily because of rising costs. A cumulative $4.9 trillion will be needed between 2023 and 2030 to meet market needs and prevent a supply shortfall, even if demand growth slows toward a plateau. Read More


Honeywell announced that the next installment of its live leadership webcast series for investors will feature a conversation with Honeywell’s Anne Madden, senior vice president and general counsel, Suresh Venkatarayalu, senior vice president and chief technology and innovation officer, Evan van Hook, chief sustainability officer, and Gavin Towler, chief technology officer of Performance Materials and Technologies. The discussion will be hosted by Bank of America’s Savita Subramanian, head of global ESG research and head of U.S. equity and quantitative strategy, and Andrew Obin, managing director and multi-industry senior analyst, on Monday, March 6, 2023, from 10:00 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. EST. Read More


ExxonMobil plans to deploy one of Honeywell’s technologies enabling carbon capture, the CO2 Fractionation System, at its facility in Baytown, Texas, the second-largest refinery in the US based on production. The technology is expected to enable ExxonMobil to capture about 7 million tons of CO2 per year at the facility – the equivalent of the emissions of 1.5 million cars for one year. Read More


Air India, part of Tata Sons, has signed a firm order for 40 GEnx-1B and 20 GE9X engines, plus a multi-year TrueChoice™ engine services agreement. The deal was signed in coordination with the airline’s firm order for 20 Boeing 787 and 10 Boeing 777X aircraft.

“All of us at Tata Group and Air India are delighted to have this partnership with GE Aerospace, where we will build Air India to be a world class airline and one of the most technology-advanced airlines,” said Mr. N. Chandrasekaran, Chairman of Tata Sons and Air India.Air India also announced a CFM order for more than 800 LEAP engines, the largest LEAP order ever, to power its entire narrowbody purchase of 210 Airbus A320/A321neo aircraft and 190 Boeing 737 MAX-family aircraft. The announcement includes a multi-year CFM services agreement. CFM is a 50/50 joint business between GE and Safran Aircraft Engines. Read More


Toyota Research Institute (TRI) opened its doors for the first time to members of the media to showcase the research taking place at its headquarters in Silicon Valley. During the TRI Expo, the company’s CEO and Toyota Motor Corporation’s Chief Scientist, Gill Pratt, explained TRI’s high-risk, high-reward approaches to tackle three major societal challenges: 1) aging society, 2) climate change, and 3) human understanding.TRI introduced its five core research areas – energy and materials, human-centered AI, human interactive driving, machine learning, and robotics – and outlined why these pursuits were selected, how they strengthen each other, and how they address societal problems. Read More


Lithium-pellets-metal-

India reportedly uncovered vast reserves of lithium in the Reasi district of the northern union territory of Jammu and Kashmir (J&K).The Geological Survey of India (GSI) estimated that around 5.9 million metric tons of lithium could be found there. Lithium is one of the world’s most critical scarce resources. It’s used to make rechargeable batteries found in the world’s smartphones, tablets, computers, and electric vehicles.Lithium is a metal that is known for its low density, high energy-to-weight ratio and its ability to store large amounts of energy. lithium has been a central player in the development and production of renewable energy technology. Its ability to store energy has been crucial in capturing and storing energy created through wind, solar and hydro power, and many pieces of machinery or technology have lithium batteries to maintain and distribute that energy long after the source has stopped producing energy. Read More


On 16 February, production started on the Vito platform in the US Gulf of Mexico (GoM).

Operated by Shell Offshore Inc., a subsidiary of Shell plc, the deep-water Vito platform will produce an estimated 100,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day at peak. Equinor has a 36.89% interest in the field.Vito employs a simplified and cost-efficient host design that was rescoped in 2015, resulting in an ~80% reduction in lifetime CO2 emissions and more than 70% reduction in costs versus the original concept. Estimated recoverable resources are approximately 290 million barrels of oil equivalent.

Equinor is committed to long-term value creation in a low-carbon future. An optimised oil and gas portfolio is part of Equinor’s strategy to provide Always safe, High value, and Low carbon energy. Read More


Teledyne FLIR Defense, part of Teledyne Technologies Incorporated (NYSE:TDY), announced that it has been awarded a $13.3 million contract by the U.S. Department of Defense to further expand the capabilities of its R80D SkyRaider™ unmanned aerial system to autonomously perform chemical, biological, radiological and nuclear (CBRN) reconnaissance missions. Teledyne FLIR Defense will integrate flight control software that enables the SkyRaider Unmanned Aerial System (UAS) to autonomously fly CBRN missions currently performed by soldiers hand-carrying detection sensors into hazardous areas. Blending the new technology with SkyRaider’s existing capabilities will allow soldiers to complete these missions without directly controlling the drone – and without exposing themselves to toxic substances.

Teledyne FLIR also will design and build prototype chemical and radiological sensor payloads for the R80D SkyRaider, as well as integrate existing detectors in the U.S. Army’s inventory. This effort builds on three years of investment by several joint program offices to develop new and improved UAS capabilities for CBRN missions. Read More


Siemens and Swinburne University of Technology have agreed to set up the most advanced future Energy Transition Hub of its kind in Australia in at the University’s Hawthorn campus in Melbourne. Featuring some of the most advanced digital energy technology from Siemens and the technical, R&D and teaching expertise of Swinburne, the $5.2 million Hub aims to build a future energy grid laboratory accessible to students and industry. When fully operational, the Hub will also offer researchers and industry the opportunity to work on solutions for greener, more efficient future energy systems using Siemens Xcelerator, a new open digital business platform and marketplace. Read More


ADNOC Drilling Company PJSC announced that it has signed an agreement to acquire an additional three brand new high-specification offshore jack-up drilling units (the “rigs”). The cost of the acquisition is part of the Company’s three-year guidance on capital expenditure and its strategic growth plans.

The acquisition underpins the company’s accelerated fleet expansion and enterprising growth strategy. Earlier sale and purchase agreements were signed on 30 May (for two rigs), 10 June (one rig) and 24 August (one rig). The latest three rigs have a combined cost of $320 million and are premium high-specification jack-up rigs. Read More


The Iraqi Prime Minister’s press office announced on Thursday that a memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the Ministry of Electricity and General Electric. The MoU signed with General Electric is part of the government’s program aiming to develop the electricity sector in Iraq, the statement mentioned.

The MoU will contribute to developing the electrical system in terms of production efficiency, transmission, maintenance, staff training, and the reduction of carbon emissions to support the energy transition in Iraq. Al-Sudani emphasized the government’s commitment to fully support the Ministry of Electricity in order to increase the electrical production and maintain power plants, in a way that contributes to addressing the electricity problem and alleviating the suffering of citizens. Read More


Oil and Gas BlendsUnitsOil Price $change
Crude Oil (WTI)USD/bbl$77.06Down
Crude Oil (Brent)USD/bbl$83.65Down
Bonny LightUSD/bbl$85.30Up
Saharan BlendUSD/bbl$85.25Up
Natural GasUSD/MMBtu$2.35Down
OPEC basket 16/02/23USD/bbl$83.76Up
At press time 17 February 2023

Renault and Nissan have announced a new long-term vision for India, increasing production and R&D activities, introducing electric vehicles, and transitioning to carbon-neutral manufacturing. From their base in Chennai, the companies will collaborate on six new production vehicles for domestic and international customers, including two new fully electric vehicles, uplifting the Renault-Nissan centre into an international export hub. An initial investment of around $600m USD / ₹5300 crores INR is planned to support the new projects, which will see an up to 2,000 additional new jobs created at the Renault Nissan Technology & Business Centre in Chennai. At the same time, the RNAIPL factory will become carbon-neutral with a significant increase in renewable energy generation. Following last week’s announcement of new high-value-creation operational projects for the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance, the future for Renault and Nissan’s Indian operations was outlined today at an official ceremony in Chennai by Nissan’s Director, Chief Operating Officer, Representative Executive Officer and member of Alliance Board Ashwani Gupta, in the presence of Thiru M.K. Stalin, the Honourable Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu, and alongside officials from the Tamil Nadu Government. Read More


MEPs approved including REPowerEU measures in national plans to be more independent from Russian fossil fuels, speed up the green transition and tackle energy poverty. Plenary confirmed with 535 votes to 63 and 53 abstentions a deal reached with the Council in December 2022. Under the agreement, member states applying to receive additional funds through an amended recovery and resilience plan will be required to include measures to save energy, produce clean energy and diversify energy supplies, as foreseen in the EU’s REPowerEU plan.

Boost independence and fight energy poverty

The new rules will cover measures retroactively from 1 February 2022, with some limited exceptions. MEPs made sure that these measures are designed to support investments to tackle energy poverty for vulnerable households, SMEs and micro-enterprises.

Cross border measures, transparency and climate

MEPs convinced EU countries to allocate at least 30% of their spending under REPowerEU to multi-country measures, addressing existing bottlenecks in energy transmission, distribution and storage as well as increasing cross-border flows, even if carried out by one EU country. Read More


EnBW and Equinor today announce their interest in developing offshore wind together.
“In a tough international field, we are delighted to be working together with a strong partner like Equinor and combining the individual strengths of the two companies to develop German offshore wind. EnBW is among today’s leaders in offshore wind in Germany. In partnership with Equinor, a global offshore wind major, we will continue to significantly contribute to a climate-friendly energy future in Germany and Europe”, said Michael Class, Head of Portfolio Development Renewablesat EnBW. Read More



OilandGasPress Energy Newsbites and Analysis Roundup | Compiled by: OGP Staff, Segun Cole @oilandgaspress.

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