New base 24 april 2017 energy news issue 1021 by khaled al awadi

Copyright © 2015 NewBase www.hawkenergy.net Edited by Khaled Al Awadi – Energy Consultant All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, redistributed,
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NewBase 24 April 2017 - Issue No. 1021 Senior Editor Eng. Khaled Al Awadi
NewBase For discussion or further details on the news below you may contact us on +971504822502, Dubai, UAE
UAE: Space May Be Next Frontier for Earth's Crude Oil Giants
Bloomberg - Dan Murtaugh
The Middle East has an outsize impact on energy here on Earth. One analyst thinks some
regional powerhouses may leverage that role into the development of natural resources in space.
Countries like the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia are developing space programs and
investing in nascent private space commodity initiatives, said Tom James, a partner at energy
consultant Navitas Resources. Doing so could give them a foothold in building extraterrestrial
reserves of water -- a substance likely to fuel travel within space -- and other resources that could
be used for in-space manufacturing.
“Water is the new oil of space,” James said in Singapore. “Middle East investment in space is
growing as it works to shift from an oil-based to a knowledge-based economy.”
Prospecting satellites can be built for tens of millions of U.S. dollars each and an asteroid-
harvesting spacecraft could cost $2.6 billion, in line with mining operations on Earth, Goldman
Sachs Group Inc. analysts including Noah Poponak said in an April 4 research note. Most
resources would be processed and used in space although it may be economic to ship some
commodities, such as platinum, back to Earth, according to James and Goldman.

“Space mining is still a long way from commercial viability, but it has the potential to further ease
access to space,” Poponak wrote. “Water and platinum group metals that are abundant on
asteroids are highly disruptive from a technological and economic standpoint.”
Water as Fuel
Navitas expects companies to launch satellites searching for rare gases and metals in asteroids
within five years, with actual mining happening within eight. A single asteroid might contain 175
times more platinum than the Earth mines in a year, Goldman said, citing a project associated with
the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. That much platinum could be worth $25 billion to $50
billion, although it would likely crater the market for the metal.
“You could go massively short on platinum and then show up at settlement with an asteroid, but
you probably could only do that once,” James said in an interview after a presentation at the
National University of Singapore’s Middle East Institute. “I don’t think the counter-party would take
that trade a second time.”
Platinum futures for July delivery fell 0.6 percent to $972.10 an ounce on the New York Mercantile
Exchange on Monday.
In the long term, most of the commodities mined in space will stay in space to power a low-orbit
space economy built around satellites and space stations, James said. In that scenario, water
accumulated in space would become valuable as it could be used for rocket fuel for interstellar
voyages. The substance is too heavy and costly to transport from Earth.
Low-Orbit Economy
Water can be used as a propellant in space or split into hydrogen and oxygen, and then
recombined and combusted. Deep Space Industries Inc., an asteroid mining company, has
developed a thruster that heats water into a steam propellant, according to Goldman.
The U.A.E. and Saudi Arabia already
have space programs, with the Saudis
signing a pact with Russia in 2015 for
cooperation on space exploration,
according to a report from Arab News.
Abu Dhabi is an investor in Richard
Branson’s space tourism venture, Virgin
Galactic. In addition to money, the
Middle East also has geography on its
side.
The closer a country is to the equator,
the more surface velocity there is from
spinning around the Earth’s axis,
meaning space ships need to burn less
fuel to exit the atmosphere. That benefits some Middle Eastern countries as launch sites, James
said.
“The Middle East builds the tallest buildings, the biggest shopping complexes,” said James.
“Certainly they’re having a big impact on the space and satellite industries as well.”

Oman: Groundbreaking of LPIC Fahud plant on April 27
Oman Observer
Orpic will celebrate the ground breaking of its Natural Gas Extraction Plant, representing the
Engineering and Procurement and Construction (EPC) Package 3 of its $6.4 billion Liwa Plastics
Industries Complex (LPIC) Project, at Fahud in the Wilayat of Ibri on Thursday, April 27, 2017.
The event will be held under the patronage of Sultan bin Salim al Habsi, Secretary-General,
Supreme Council for Planning, who is also Chairman of Orpic. Also in attendance will be a
number of local dignitaries from the Wilayat of Ibri.
A consortium of two corporations GS Engineering and Construction and Mitsui & Co Ltd has been
awarded the contract to execute the EPC Package 3 at a cost of $688 million. The package
represents the upstream component of the giant scheme which has its downstream elements
located within the industrial port at Suhar.
LPIC will firmly reinforce Orpic as a recognized player in the international petrochemicals
marketplace, enabling Oman, for the first time, to produce polyethylene – a form of plastic that
rates highest in terms of global demand, while also increasing the current production of
polypropylene.
LPIC is the largest of the three strategic growth projects undertaken by Orpic to fulfil its vision of
building an Omani integrated refining and petrochemical business. This project will be the first-of-

its-kind in the Sultanate and will enable Oman to take the downstream plastics industry to the next
level.
Upon commissioning in 2020, LPIC will transform Orpic’s product mix and business model, double
company profit, create new business opportunities, generate significant employment opportunities
and support the development of a downstream plastics industry in Oman.
Following commissioning, plastics production is forecast to have increased by more than 1 million
tons, giving Orpic a total of 1.4 million tons of polyethylene and polypropylene production. With the
highly integrated complex in Suhar consisting of Orpic’s Refineries, Aromatics plant,
Polypropylene plant, steam cracker and the downstream Polypropylene and Polyethylene units,
the operation will be considered as one of the finest integrated refinery and petrochemical facility
combinations in the world, and will achieve the maximum value-added for Oman’s hydrocarbon
resources.
Liwa Plastics Industries Complex
Liwa Plastics Industries Complex is a transformational project that will improve Orpic’s product mix and
business model, double its profit and support the development of a downstream plastics industry in Oman.
Taking advantage of the growing global market for plastics, it will create new business opportunities and
employment in the Oman, and firmly reinforce Orpic as a significant player in the international
petrochemicals marketplace. This project will bring new business development opportunities for the
Sultanate in the fast growing plastics industry.
The project’s physical hub centres on the existing Orpic facility in the Suhar Industrial Port Area. Land
within the zone has already been allocated to allow for LPIC and the 2016-scheduled Suhar Refinery
Improvement Project. The Port Zone and the businesses within it have contributed to phenomenal growth in
Suhar over the past 10 years, and LPIC will augment and encourage that trend.
The Project
LPIC is a steam cracker project which will process light ends produced in Orpic’s Suhar Refinery
and its Aromatics plant as well as optimize Natural Gas Liquids (NGLs) extracted from currently
available natural gas supplies. Its concept lies in rerouting elements of existing production in
combination with additional purchased feedstocks to deliver high value polymer products for the
local and international marketplaces. Its primary goal is to further increase the value-added that
can be derived from Omani crude oil and natural gas. One of the first key milestones has already
been passed with the Ministry of Oil and Gas’ agreement to the natural gas allocation for the
project.
The project has six core components to it:
A natural gas extraction plant in Fahud
• 300km pipeline between Fahud and Suhar Industrial Port Area for gas transportation
• An 800+kTA Steam Cracker Unit
• HDPE Plant and • LLDPE Plant
• Polypropylene Plant

More Chinese investments in Duqm SEZ on anvil
Oman Observer -Conrad Prabhu
Having snagged commitments in excess of $3 billion in Chinese industrial investments in the
China-Oman Industrial Park at the Duqm Special Economic Zone (SEZ), master developer Oman
Wanfang LLC says it plans to line up further investors eager to leverage Oman’s geographical
proximity to markets in the Middle East, Africa and south Asia. On Wednesday, Oman Wanfang
LLC — which has a deal with the Duqm SEZ Authority (SEZAD) to develop and manage a
sprawling 1,172-hectare site at the zone — inked sub-usufruct agreements with 10 Chinese firms
that have together pledged $3.062 billion in industrial, petrochemical, utility-based, manufacturing,
hospitality, fabrication and other investments.
A 150-strong contingent of Chinese dignitaries, investors, executives and officials turned out for
the agreement signing, which took place in conjunction with the ceremonial breaking of the ground
on the China-Oman Industrial Park at Duqm.
“This represents the first phase of investor commitments,” said Ali Shah, CEO — Oman Wanfang
LLC. “We hope to have more such signings on a continual basis, although we may not do it on
the scale (and with the fanfare) that we see today. Going forward, we hope to have agreement
signings with individual investors.”
Speaking to the Observer, Ali Shah said last week’s agreement signings will signal the start of
work on the infrastructure development of the industrial park. “These 10 projects, which include a
number of mega ventures, will require basic infrastructure before they can get started with their

construction. Once the infrastructure is in place, they will come here directly to start work on their
individual projects.
In the meanwhile, they will undertake the pre-construction planning, design and other groundwork.
They will also work on registering their companies in Oman.”
Asked about commitments, if any, by the Omani government to allocate natural gas for the gas-
dependent ventures due to come up in the China-Oman Industrial Park, the official voiced
optimism that the issue would be resolved by the time the proposed Duqm gas pipeline project is
completed by the year 2019.
“We are hopeful that gas will arrive in Duqm by the end of 2019, and if we have supply
commitments from the Omani government before then, (it will bode well for the early execution of
some of our projects). However, as construction of these projects will usually take around two
years to complete (there is still time to resolve the gas issue).”
However, as a fallback plan in the event that supply commitments from Omani authorities are not
forthcoming, the industrial park will consider gas imports, he added.
Of late, the import of liquefied natural gas (LNG) is being weighed as a potentially viable option to
help offset any short-term or long-term gas supply shortfalls. The Duqm SEZ Authority as well as
Port of Duqm have both alluded to the potential for LNG imports to meet gas demand — as a fuel
resource for power generation as well as feedstock for petrochemicals.
State-owned Oman Shipping Company has said it can pitch in with a Floating Storage
Regasification Unit (FSRU) to arrange for the transport, storage and regasification of LNG should
there be takers for this service.
Notable among the gas-dependent projects signed up last week is an integrated methanol
scheme and methanol-to-olefins (MTO) scheme entailing an investment of around $2.3 billion.
Plant capacity is envisioned at 1.8 million tonnes of gas-to-methanol and methanol-to-olefins in
the first phase, expandable to an aggregate capacity of 10 million tonnes over several phases.
Likewise, gas is also presumed to be a requirement in the establishment of a 300 MW power plant
that will meet the electricity requirements of tenants operating within the China-Oman Industrial
Park.

South Sudan:Oil companies exploiting famine and financial ruin
© James Akena / Reuters
South Sudan’s vulnerable financial state is making the civil-war-torn state easy prey for
opportunistic oil and gas companies that could be offering Juba a fraction of the energy profits
they would earn under stable circumstances.
The South Sudanese government and
three humanitarian agencies declared
a famine in some parts of the country
in February, while the newly
independent nation is desperately
trying to bring its oil back online. A
string of deals signed by President
Salva Kiir over the past four months
has demonstrated the country’s
desperation for fresh streams of
revenue as the civil war now
approaches its four-year anniversary.
“The government is working hard to
reinvigorate the petroleum industry in
South Sudan by creating an enabling
environment for international oil and
gas companies to invest and
operate,” according to Petroleum
Minister Ezekiel Lul Gatkuoth. “It is up
to the oil companies to come in,
explore and produce. Partnership is
what fuels the oil industry.”
The East African reported this week
that oil companies with regional
headquarters in Kampala, Nairobi,
Addis Ababa, as well as several
European cities are setting up
meetings with top South Sudanese
officials, and Kiir’s administration is
happy to oblige the invitations.
Toward the end of last year, Suiss
Finance Luxembourg AG announced
a $10.5 billion deal that could rise to $105 billion in value when joint ventures in infrastructure and
transportation are taken into account. While some may view this as a large stepping stone toward
bringing back its oil revenues, Kiir’s critics were quick to attack the leader over the deal once news
broke, referring to what they called “shadowy” businessmen from Kampala who had brokered the
contract.
Another recent deal involves Oranto Petroleum, which has committed to a $500
million “comprehensive exploration campaign, starting immediately” to evaluate oil prospects in
the 25,150 kilometers that make up Block B3.

Juba approved the block a couple of weeks ago, giving Oranto a 90 percent share, while keeping
only 10 percent for the government’s Nile Petroleum (Nilepet). Oranto is a subsidiary of Nigeria’s
Atlas Petroleum International Ltd (“Atlas”).
The East African said the deal with Oranto has drawn harsh criticism due to a report from
technical officials in the Ministry of Petroleum in which claims were made that the company lacked
the technical expertise and financial capacity to manage the Block B3 project.
Oranto Petroleum Chairman Prince Arthur Eze offered a rebuttal, telling reporters that his
company stood “at the vanguard of African firms exploring and developing African assets,” adding
that the company would elaborate with “partners to bring to light the immense potential of Block
B3.”
“We believe the petroleum resources of Block B3 are vast. To reach our target of more than
doubling current oil production, we need committed new entrants like Oranto,” Petroleum Minister
Ezekiel Lul Gatkuoth said in defense of his department’s decision. Later addressing Bloomberg,
he added: “Anybody who is willing to do business with us, they must actually show that they are
ready and we will sign and if you are not ready to do business with us, get out of the way.”
World Oil described Oranto’s investment as a “bet” that South Sudan could end its civil war within
three years to attract new investments to its ailing oil sector.
Atlas owns and operates 20 oil and gas fields in Africa, making it the largest African explorer. Its
influence spans Benin, Côte d’Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Ghana, Liberia, Namibia, Nigeria, São
Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, and South Sudan.
Oranto has a history of finalizing oil deals with governments, and later selling oilfield rights to
larger international corporations, effectively serving as a middleman.
A 2006 report by the Liberian Auditing Commission named the company in a bribery scandal as it
aimed to unduly influence parliament members tasked with ratifying oil and gas concessions.
Oranto had already planned to sell rights to the concessions to another firm and was using bribes
to expedite the governmental process, according to the report.
In Mali, Oranto saw its exploration contract cancelled in 2014 as part of 12 exploration
agreements that were cancelled over “various offences”.
Despite the allegations to the contrary, Eze characterized Oranto’s venture in South Sudan last
month as a “long-term collaboration,” suggesting the company may not be planning to abscond.
The recent attacks on foreigners working on South Sudan’s oil and gas facilities serve as
a warning for multinationals to stay away from the new country’s national resources, just as oil
prices recover enough for Juba to begin profiting from the oil sector. This means South Sudan will
have to offer a premium to companies willing to work in the country. Middlemen may not appear to
be the perfect partners for struggling governments, but they are giving Juba a means to reach
multinationals that can bankroll the development of its energy resources.

Energy reforms needed in Middle East, North Africa
Saudi Gazette
The launch of the first phase of Saudi Arabia’s 9.5GW National Renewable Energy Program
(NREP) early this year provides the latest illustration of the major changes occurring in the Middle
East and North African power sector.
This has led to a raft of alternative energy projects being planned or implemented in the region.
MENA Power 2017, a new research report from Middle East business intelligence service MEED,
shows that governments across the MENA region are making increasing commitments to achieve
diversification in their power sectors to improve energy security and reduce reliance on gas
imports, including detailed analysis on more than 60GW of planned renewable energy projects.
The move towards integrating renewable energy into development programs has been facilitated
by the sharp drop in photovoltaic (PV) solar technology costs in recent years.
The cost of installing PV solar has fallen by 80 percent since 2007, and the three major PV solar
projects tendered in the UAE since 2015 have all achieved, at the time, word record low tariffs. In
particular, the 2.99 $cents a kilowatt hour ($c/KWh) tariff selected for Dubai’s 800MW PV project
in 2016 was the first time that the cost of renewables had fallen below conventional fossil fuel
plants. In addition to renewables, state utilities are also moving forward with plans for alternative
energy, from nuclear power to clean coal.
Another key shift in the region’s power sector is the move towards increased private investment
and privatization in the generation of electricity as governments cut budgets in response to the
lower oil price. Saudi Arabia, the largest utilities market, is the leading example of this, with Riyadh
preparing to sell off the first 20GW of its generation assets to private investors in 2017. Egypt and
Oman are also undertaking preparations to significantly restructure and privatize large parts of
their electricity markets.

The power sector is one of the most active segments in the MENA projects market at present, with
few issues more pressing than the need to meet rising demand for electricity. Rapid population
growth coupled with industrial and economic expansion are driving a sharp increase in
consumption, with peak demand growth averaging 5.2 percent across the region in 2015.
The pressure on governments to deliver uninterrupted electricity for residents and businesses
increased further following the political uprisings in 2011, so utilities cannot afford to allow supply
to fall out of step with demand.
While the collapse in oil prices since mid-2014 has caused the scaling back or cancelling of many
projects deemed nonessential, investments in the power sector have continued to move ahead.
In 2015, the total available capacity reached an estimated 289,861MW for the countries analyzed
in the MENA Power 2017 report, which was 15 percent more than the peak demand of
246,742MW. While the total nameplate installed capacity for the 14 countries was 307,164MW,
the actual available power was much lower due to out-of-operation plants in countries such as Iraq
and Saudi Arabia.
With a minimum 15 percent recommended reserve margin, representing the amount of unused
available capacity at peak load as a percentage of total capacity, the region as a whole is in a race
to build new capacity to keep ahead of peak demand growth and maintain sufficient reserve
margins.

In the GCC, all of the utilities were able to meet demand in 2015. However, some were in a less
comfortable place than others. Abu Dhabi, Bahrain, Kuwait and Saudi Arabia all had reserve
margins of less than 15 percent during peak periods. Kuwait in particular, with a reserve margin of
less than 9 percent, is a race to ensure installed capacity remains ahead of demand.
In the rest of the MENA region, several utilities are facing financial problems, while civil conflict is
the main concern for others. Iraq, usage in the short term, faces by far the biggest challenge in
meeting demand. In 2015, peak for electricity rose by 21 percent to reach 21,000MW, 46 percent
higher than the peak output of 13,400MW.
Reserve margins will be put under hotter pressure in the coming years, with nearly all states
across the MENA region recording an increase in peak demand in 2015. Libya was the only
country that recorded a drop in peak demand in 2015, but it is expected to grow at an average of 5
percent a year or higher until 2022.
To keep pace with demand forecasts and to restore or maintain reserve margins of at least 15
percent, most utilities across the region will have to undertake an extensive capacity-building
program in the period up to 2020.
According to MEED estimates, installed official generation capacity in the MENA countries
analyzed will have to rise by almost 150GW to reach 440GW by 2020, an increase of just over 50
percent on the current available capacity of 290GW.
MEED’s MENA Power 2017 report states that the
largest requirement will be in Egypt, where an
estimated 27,985MW of new capacity is needed as
a result of its rapidly growing population and
economic expansion. While Saudi Arabia and
Kuwait will require additional capacity of 20,239MW
and 5,758MW respectively, the actual newbuild
requirement will be much higher because of the
need to replace or upgrade existing units on
account of age. This will also likely be the case in
Libya, where much of the power infrastructure is
outdated or has been damaged by fighting.
Iran’s requirement for an estimated 25,600MW of new capacity by 2018 is also due to a
combination of rapid population and industrial growth. As Tehran seeks to increase oil exports and
encourage private investment in to its development program, it is likely to require significant
additional capacity to meet future demand.
Reducing consumption
In addition to utilizing renewable energy to meet growing demand for power, the region’s utilities
are looking at ways to improve energy efficiency and reduce consumption. Efforts are being made
to improve efficiency on both the supply and demand side. Curbing electricity consumption and
reducing feedstock usage will help preserve gas reserves and also reduce pressure on
government finances, which in many cases have been severely reduced by lower oil prices.
On the supply side, utilities are beginning to invest significant capital into improving and upgrading
existing power infrastructure. Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Egypt are all pushing ahead with schemes
to upgrade plants to combined-cycle facilities, boosting capacity while using less fuel. There is
now a growing trend to choose combined-cycle configurations for new capacity so that the most
efficient technology is in place

Qatar Awadrs India's L&T $817m power contract
Larsen & Toubro unit is hired by Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation to build
substations
The Power Transmission and Distribution Business of L&T Construction has won its single largest
order in the Middle East from the Qatar General Electricity & Water Corporation, also known as
Kahramaa.
The order relates to Kahramaa's
ongoing electricity transmission network
expansion plan which aims to meet the
ever-increasing demand for power in the
Gulf state.
The $817 million order will involve the
engineering, procurement and
construction of 30 new substations of
varying voltage levelsand approximately
560km of underground cables, a
statement said.
The project is scheduled for completion
in phases from 15 to 32 months, it
added.
“The development drive in Qatar is in
high gear and we are proud to be
partnering in it by bagging yet another
prestigious project from Kahramaa,” said
SN Subrahmanyan, deputy managing
director and president, Larsen & Toubro.
After being involved in previous phases of the network expansion plan, this mandate from
Kahramaa represents a repeat order for phase 12. Previously, L&T was awarded deals for more
than 40 substations and approximately 100km of high-voltage cabling.

Nigeria cracks down on illicit oil refineries, worst economic
AFP / STEFAN HEUNIS
Nigerian commander Remi Fadairo points to the roiling plume of black smoke blotting the morning
horizon in the Niger Delta -— the unmistakable sign of an illicit oil refinery. "Let's see if we can go
eat them for breakfast," he says with an ominous chuckle.
The 44-year-old colonel, a man with broad shoulders wearing his fatigues tucked into gumboots,
is standing in the middle of a destroyed illicit refinery in Kana Rugbana, an area in the
swamplands some 20 nautical miles from Port Harcourt.
Fadairo is part of the Joint Task
Force Operation Delta Safe, a
coalition of Nigerian security
forces tasked with protecting the
country's oil and gas
infrastructure.
Last year, militant attacks cut oil
production to 1.4 million barrels
per day in August, triggering
Nigeria's worst economic slump in
25 years.
Following talks with the
government, the militants have
suspended their sabotage. But
Nigerian troops on the ground say
the battle isn't over, it's just changed. Today, the military says one of its priorities is to crack down
on the illicit refineries that they claim fund the operations of the militants.
"The two are interwoven, if they aren't doing militancy, they are doing this," Fadairo tells AFP as
he wades through crude-soaked muck. Despite the site looking like a scrap yard, Fadairo says it
actually is being rehabilitated, showing new silver pipes welded to a rusted metal container.

On the ground between iridescent oil puddles lay little sachets of gin, empty packets of instant
noodles and cigarette butts left by the bush distillers. "We just destroyed all this but they are
back," says Fadairo. "They are trying to revive it."
- Mangrove skeletons -
The illicit refineries are just one component of oil theft in Nigeria, a mammoth industry estimated to
be worth as much as $8 billion a year, according to a 2013 report by Chatham House, a London
think-tank.
"The principal security concerns are endemic corruption, which creates economic discontent,
breakdown of the rule of law, which allows for criminality to be normalised, and the funding of
militancy," said Ian Ralby, founder of the I.R. Consilium, a security advisory firm.
In the past month, Fadairo's troops have destroyed more than 10 illicit refineries, which process oil
stolen from the pipelines of multinational companies, including Shell and Eni, by heating it in car-
sized metal containers.
The waste is dumped into the surrounding swamplands, turning what should be a wetland
paradise into a monochrome nightmare dominated by the white skeletons of dead mangrove
trees.
AFP / STEFAN HEUNISThe artisanal refineries employ men living in extreme poverty in the Niger Delta
These artisanal refineries, as they are sometimes called, employ upwards of 50 men each, who
work through the night to avoid detection. They offer a rare job opportunity to thousands of
unemployed men in the Niger Delta suffering from extreme poverty.

For militants like the Niger Delta Avengers, who say crude is their birthright, refining represents
something bigger — a chance to take back oil profits from corporations and the Nigerian
government.
Perhaps recognising that fighting illicit refineries is an exercise in futility, as part of the
government's Niger Delta outreach program Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has proposed
legalising the "modular refineries".
"There is a way out of violent agitation, but it is by creating opportunities and the environment
where the people in the communities can benefit," Osinbajo said in early April.
- 'Wild waters' -
As an olive-branch to the Niger Delta, Osinbajo's plan has been welcomed by community leaders.
Making it a reality is more complicated. Too many people, ranging from the refiners to militants to
corrupt officials, have got used to enjoying the untaxed spoils of the land.
Any disturbance to the delicate balance in the region may result in violence and, in the worst-case
scenario for cash-strapped Nigeria, further disruptions to oil production. Going into presidential
polls in 2019, analysts say the likelihood of more unrest is high, especially once electioneering
begins in earnest.
"Rival theft networks can lapse into turf wars and the proceeds from stolen oil could continue to be
used to finance election bids," explains Gillian Parker, a Nigerian analyst at the Control Risks
consultancy. Until then, Nigerian forces will continue playing the cat-and-mouse game in the
creeks.
For Fadairo and his team by mid-morning they have arrived in gunboats at the site of another illicit
refinery. Landing on a sandy shore gently lapped by oily waves, the troops spot a group of men
fleeing from the bush and disappearing into the creeks in a speed boat.
"Sometimes they can out-manoeuvre us," says an officer, squinting his eyes as the men make
their getaway. "The water is very wild."

NewBase 24 April 2017 Khaled Al Awadi
NewBase For discussion or further details on the news below you may contact us on +971504822502 , Dubai , UAE
Oil recovers lost ground, but market remains under pressure
Reuters + NewBase
Oil prices recovered ground on Monday following last week's big losses, driven by expectations
that OPEC will extend a pledge to cut output to cover all of 2017, although a relentless rise in U.S.
drilling capped gains.
U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures CLc1 added 26 cents, or 0.5 percent, by
0401 GMT (12:01 a.m. ET), but were still below the $50 mark pierced on Friday at $49.88 a
barrel.Brent crude futures LCOc1 rose 30 cents, or 0.6 percent, to $52.26 per barrel.
Oil prices fell steeply last week on the back of stubbornly high crude supplies, despite a pledge by
the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and some other producers to cut
production by almost 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) for six months from Jan. 1 to support the
market.
U.S. drillers added oil rigs for a 14th week in a row, to 688 rigs, extending an 11-month recovery
that is expected to boost U.S. shale production in May by the biggest monthly increase in more
than two years.
"Since its trough on May 27, 2016, producers have added 372 oil rigs (+118 percent) in the U.S.,"
Goldman Sach said in a note following the release of the data. U.S. crude production is at 9.25
million barrels per day (bpd) C-OUT-T-EIA, up almost 10 percent since mid-2016 and approaching
that of OPEC's top exporter Saudi Arabia.
"WTI oil slipped back below the $50 per barrel level, amid concerns that the lack of inventory
drawdown since the OPEC production cuts is a sign that the cuts are not enough to rebalance
supply and demand and put a floor under prices," said William O'Loughlin, investment analyst at
Rivkin Securities in a note on Monday.
Oil price special
coverage

Both the Brent and WTI oil benchmarks are down more than 7.5 percent since the end of last
year. Keen to halt a further decline in prices, a panel made up by OPEC and other allied
producers has recommended an extension of output cuts by another six months from June, a
source said.
This, and an expected fall in Iranian production lent markets some support on Monday, traders
said. Iran's crude oil exports are set to hit a 14-month low in May, suggesting the country is
struggling to raise exports after clearing out stocks stored on tankers.
Iranian oil exports, especially to its core markets in Asia, had soared since the ending of most
sanctions against it in January 2016.
U.S. Drilling Cooling Off
U.S. oil drillers slowed the pace of a months-long expansion as investors worry that growing shale
production will ruin OPEC’s efforts to prop up prices.
Drillers added 5 rigs targeting crude this week, bringing the total to 688, according to Baker
Hughes Inc. data reported Friday. While all four of the biggest oil basins boosted activity this
week, the handful of rigs added is the smallest amount of growth in nearly two months.
The number of working rigs has more than doubled from a 2016 low of 316 in May, often
expanding weekly by double digits, with as many as 29 rigs added during one week in January.
Crude dropped below $50 Friday on concerns that surging U.S. production could undermine
OPEC’s efforts to reduce global supplies.
"It’s not surprising to see the rig count continue to build from the carryover from recently higher
commodity prices," Luke Lemoine, an analyst at Capital One Securities in New Orleans, said
Friday in a phone interview. "But the rate of change has slowed over the past several weeks. If
commodity prices persist here, we expect the rig count to flatten out fairly soon."
Citigroup Inc. joined Goldman Sachs Group Inc. this week in retaining a strong outlook on
commodities, saying oil will probably rally to the mid-$60s by the end of the year.
Market Recovery
While U.S. shale output came “roaring back” as prices shifted higher earlier this year, the
production curbs led by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries should help offset that
increase over the next six to nine months, Citi analysts including Ed Morse and Seth Kleinman
wrote in an April 17 report. The producers need to extend their deal to cut supplies through the
end of the year amid concerns that Russia is lagging behind on its pledged reductions, the bank
said.
U.S. crude output may rise by 455,000 barrels a day in the fourth quarter from a year earlier
across the Permian, Eagle Ford, Bakken and Niobrara shale plays, assuming the rig count
remains at current levels, according to Goldman Sachs.
Production climbed by 17,000 barrels a day to 9.25 million barrels a day last week, the highest
since August 2015, according to the Energy Information Administration. U.S. supplies of crude are
still near records and more than 100 million barrels higher than the five-year average for this time
of the year, data compiled from the EIA show.

Shale oil ‘a form of non-Opec competition’, says al-Attiyah
Gulf Times BUSINESS Eco./Bus. News
Shale oil is “a form of non-Opec competition just as any other non-Opec oil producer is”, said HE
Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah, former Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Energy and Industry.
On a global liquids supply level of around 95mn barrels a day, shale (tight crude and
unconventional NGL) represents around 7%, al-Attiyah said at the ‘Abu Dhabi Roundtable’ hosted
by New York University (NYU) Abu Dhabi Institute in collaboration with the University of Oslo.
The chairman of Abdullah Bin Hamad Al-Attiyah International Foundation for Energy and
Sustainable Development noted this share would increase and expected to reach 9% in the long
run.
“But in absolute terms it is substantial as it will evolve from the current 6.5mn barrels per day to
nearly 9mn bpd by 2025 and potentially 10mn bpd in 2030, only to decline later,” he said. “What
matters is the breakeven price of this new supply and how the shale producers can value their
product and make it available to the market. And it is at this level where strategies of different
market players will be defined.
“What is even more important is not shale itself but the driving force behind it, which is technology.
Thus, we have to be very careful in future (near and far) on how technology will evolve and bring
down the cost of shale and its corresponding breakeven price,” al-Attiyah emphasised.
On the durability of the current Opec cooperation with some non-member countries, he said, “The
current cooperation can stand as long as the compliance to the cuts will be satisfactory. This will
depend on how the market will react, if the implied glut will be resorbed, and if the cooperation will

not lead to the worst situation, where other non-Opec producers might profit from this setting to
increase their market share and undermine the Opec/non-Opec deal.
“In the past, the compliance was not always perfect from both sides, this is why it is very important
to keep the current momentum with actually remarkable levels of conformity to the commitments,
with 86% compliance level in January and 94% in February this year, of the agreed total cut of
Opec and non-Opec countries of about 1.8mn bpd (1.2mn bpd for Opec and 0.6mn bpd for non-
Opec).”
Asked how the shift in emphasis from “peak oil” to “peak demand” change the strategy of Opec
countries, al-Attiyah said, “Who can tell what the demand – supply balances will be? However, it is
starting to look as if there will not be neither ‘peak oil’ or ‘peak demand’.”
He said, “So far, the reference cases – either of the IEA or Opec do not show any peak demand,
rising currently from around 95mn bpd to a range between 110 to 120mn bpd by 2040.
It is only in extreme scenarios related to an aggressive penetration of renewables into the world
energy mix that this demand could really peak before 2040. As the environmental issues get more
and more importance and the consensus towards the Paris agreement gets more momentum, it is
likely that a more sluggish growth of the global oil demand could be experienced in the future.
“The main driver that can lead to this kind of peak demand is a revolution in the road
transportation sector, which represents nearly 45% of overall oil demand, where a bigger
penetration of electric vehicles can be the real threat and undermine the growth of global oil
demand.”

GCC oil producers agree to seek extension of output deal
The national - Anthony McAuley
The six-member GCC countries, which include Saudi Arabia, have agreed to push for an
extension of the oil output deal between Opec and 11 other countries when it expires at the end of
June.
The energy ministers, meeting in Abu Dhabi for the
GCC Media Forum, agreed that they will seek
consensus among all 24 countries participating in the
deal, and if that is reached they will back an extension,
although possibly for a period of just three months
rather than another six months, according to Essam Al
Marzouq, Kuwait’s energy minister and the chief
architect of the original deal, which commenced in
January.
"Our decision [in the GCC] was to push for the deal if
we see consensus among the others," Mr Al Marzouq
said, referring to the 11 non-Opec countries, which
include Russia and Oman.
Khalid Al Falih, the Saudi energy minister, earlier
confirmed that the kingdom had given its backing to the preliminary deal.
Saudi Arabia has been bearing the biggest load of Opec’s pledged 1.2 million barrels per day of
cuts, having agreed to trim 500,000 bpd to just above 10 million bpd, but in fact has been
producing below that level in the January through March period to ensure a high level of
compliance.
Mr Al Falih had previously been reluctant to commit to a deal extension because of worries that
other producers would get a "free ride" from the kingdom’s efforts, while his country suffers
economically from the cuts it has made.
The IMF last week downgraded its forecast for economic growth in the region’s oil-producing
countries, cutting its real GDP growth forecast of the seven oil-exporting countries in the Middle
East to 1.9 per cent this year, a full percentage point below its forecast before the deal was struck
at the end of last year.
Saudi Arabia is expected to grow at 0.4 per cent versus a forecast for 2 per cent before the deal,
the direct result of lower revenue from reduced oil exports.
Compliance from Russia, which has pledged to cut 300,000 bpd, the largest slice of the nearly
600,000 bpd from the non-Opec group as a whole, has fallen behind its pledge but it has
improved, Mr Al Marzouq said.
"Compliance [by Russia] has risen from 120,000 bpd in the first month to almost 230,000 bpd right
now and compliance from non-Opec from 40 per cent to 60 per cent and we are looking at above
80 per cent this month," he said.
Mohammed Al Rumhy, Oman’s energy minister, said he expected the entire non-Opec group to
agree to an extension, noting that Russia and Iran have made preliminary pledges.

"We all joined – non-Opec joined with Opec – to solve a problem and in our opinion the problem is
not fully solved," Mr Al Rumhy said. "So, I’m sure they will want to complete the job."
Oil prices are up about 20 per cent from last year’s average of US$45 per barrel for North Sea
Brent, although they have not been able to push past the mid-to-high $50s because of worries that
inventory levels remain stubbornly high.
But the UAE energy minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said there was too much concentration only on
US inventory levels, which have stayed high because of a surge in shale output there, with total
US production back above 9 million bpd from 8.4 million bpd last September.
Kuwait’s energy minister said despite the US output surge, the maths meant that inventories
looked at globally would fall if their output deal holds – "I’m an engineer and I know one plus one
equals two. We’ve cut by 1.8 million bpd, we are seeing a rise this year in demand of about 1.4
million bpd and an increase of 500,000 bpd from shale oil, that still leaves us in the proximity of a
2 million bpd shortage," he said.
Analysts broadly think that oil prices will rise further this year if the deal holds. Citibank and
Goldman Sachs are among those expecting mid-$60s per barrel oil if that happens.
"Our global crude balance shows implied stock draws in July and August even in the event of a
halt to the cuts," said Eugene Lindell, senior oil analyst at JCB Energy consultants in Vienna.
"Therefore an extension, even for three months, would give the market a bullish injection, likely
propelling crude prices above $60 per barrel, albeit temporarily, as pressure should build as 2018
draws closer."
Extention not necessarily for another six months
Saudi Arabia’s energy minister Khalid Al Falih said the oil output restraint deal between 24
producers from within and outside of Opec may need to be extended beyond June of this year.
Mr Al Falih said the deal, which commits the producers to cut about 1.8 million barrels per day in
the six months to the end of June, may not need to be extended for another six-month term but
might require another 3 months.
The comments, made at the GCC Petroleum Media Forum in Abu Dhabi, were the first by the
Saudi minister to indicate that the deal might require more time to work.
During a panel discussion, the Kuwaiti minister, Essam Al Marzooq, who was the chief architect of
the deal and the most vocal proponent of an extension of the deal, said he expected his Saudi
counterpart to support an extension: "Perhaps we will have an extension of this deal and I think
brother Falih knows this," Mr Al Marzooq said.
The deal has led to a rise in oil prices of about 20 per cent from last year’s average for benchmark
North Sea Brent crude of US$45 to the mid to high $50s.
But even with near full compliance by Opec members, prices have stalled at this level and last
month dropped and then recovered by 10 per cent, on worries that Russia – the main non-Opec
partner in the deal – would not fully meet its pledged cuts, and also by a resurgence in US shale
oil output of 400,000 bpd from last September’s trough of 8.6m bpd.
In a survey of the oil industry professionals and ministers at the forum before the ministers
interview, a large majority felt that oil prices would drop back to the $40s later this year if there
was no extension of the deal.

NewBase Special Coverage
News Agencies News Release 24 April 2017
Gas stations are going away sooner than you think
Brian LaKamp, CEO of Totem Power
When new technology comes to market, the first deployment tends to emulate the closest
comparable iteration. So, it makes sense that people would expect electric vehicle charging to
start as a new "pump" at existing gas stations. But, the truth is, traditional city gas stations will not
be where/how we "energize" our cars in the future. And all but the most necessary ones on
highways may eventually go away.
To really jump start electric vehicle
use, we need to stop focusing on
wired super charging at gas stations
and focus more on wireless charging
everywhere else. Because people
aren't going to go a place to charge.
They're going to charge at the places
they go.
Let's talk numbers to frame this
assertion.
Coming out of 2017, with the Tesla 3
and the Chevy Bolt, we'll have two
electric vehicles priced in the mid-range that feature well over 200-mile range. The number of
models with comparable range will certainly grow, and we'll see range improvements to boot. EV
owners generally have home charging stations, and the majority of EV drivers will leave their
house every morning with a "full tank" that supports a range over 200 miles.
Looking at Statistic Brain, over 95 percent of commuters have daily, round-trip commutes that are
less than 150 miles. Ninety-two percent are under 70 miles. A 200-mile range easily covers most
Americans' daily routes and needs.
Short story, most EV drivers will not need to charge up during the day. Instead, we're likely to see
behavior similar to that of cell phones, whereby EV drivers will seek to "top off" where convenient
or compelling on their daily route. These charges will be "energy snacks," with little need for a
supercharge.
What is convenient and compelling?
Convenient is pulling into Whole Foods and having the car charge wirelessly while you shop.
Compelling is Whole Foods topping off the battery for free while you shop because you're a
Rewards member.
Convenient is pulling into the commuter train station and having the car charge wirelessly,
reflecting the "roaming charges" on your electrical utility bill.

Compelling is the utility maximizing your self-consumption of solar by coordinating charging to
occur when your solar panels are producing excess energy in the middle of the day.
What's not convenient or compelling is getting out the car, connecting a plug, executing a
commercial transaction and waiting. For that reason, we won't see much EV charging at the gas
stations around town. Around highways for long distance support, sure, but not around town.
Based on convenience, we are also going to start seeing wireless charging develop in the EV
charging landscape. Dave Roberts from Vox had it right when he referred to wireless EV as his
"pet dark horse" in a recent article.
Yes, wireless charging is early in its tech life cycle, but it's real. And it's coming because it's
convenient and compelling.
Up to this point, the analysis here has been from the perspective of the EV driver, but wireless
charging is compelling for commercial property owners as well. If you're IKEA or Target and 20
percent of your consumers (eventually) have EVs, do you want an array of visible charging
stations with a bunch of grimy cords in your parking lots? They're unattractive, and that's before
the hazard from the cords turns into liability.
On the manufacturer side, Mercedes has already announced wireless charging to be built into its
S500e plug-in hybrid sedan. BMW is working on it, and most of the rest are rumored to be. Nissan
just announced a collaboration with WiTricity around EV charging.
It is also worth noting that wireless charging is likely a requirement for autonomous vehicles to
proliferate. (Admittedly, there are other solutions. There's the Tesla charging snake. Cars could
also conceivably drive themselves to a place where humans plug in wired chargers.)
Back to the point.
People aren't going to go a place to charge. They're going to charge at the places they go. EV
charging isn't likely to happen at upgraded gas stations around town. It'll be overnight at home and
at locations that feature in daily rounds. And, it will likely be increasingly wireless in the coming
years.
For a broad range of businesses - retailers, utilities, oil companies, parking facilities, auto
manufacturers and entrepreneurs - there are exciting opportunities to offer new consumer
convenience and create business opportunity based on the way that EV charging evolves.
The companies that move quickly to build alliances around convenient and compelling charging
networks will secure a long-standing asset of value and stand to capture business differentiating
capability. There are incredible opportunities ahead to deliver consumer delight with big upside.

NewBase For discussion or further details on the news below you may contact us on +971504822502, Dubai, UAE
Your partner in Energy Services
NewBase energy news is produced daily (Sunday to Thursday) and
sponsored by Hawk Energy Service – Dubai, UAE.
For additional free subscription emails please contact Hawk Energy
Khaled Malallah Al Awadi,
Energy Consultant
MS & BS Mechanical Engineering (HON), USA
Emarat member since 1990
ASME member since 1995
Hawk Energy member 2010
Mobile: +97150-4822502
khdmohd@hawkenergy.net
khdmohd@hotmail.com
Khaled Al Awadi is a UAE National with a total of 25 years of experience in
the Oil & Gas sector. Currently working as Technical Affairs Specialist for
Emirates General Petroleum Corp. “Emarat“ with external voluntary Energy
consultation for the GCC area via Hawk Energy Service as a UAE
operations base , Most of the experience were spent as the Gas Operations
Manager in Emarat , responsible for Emarat Gas Pipeline Network Facility &
gas compressor stations . Through the years, he has developed great
experiences in the designing & constructing of gas pipelines, gas metering &
regulating stations and in the engineering of supply routes. Many years were spent drafting, &
compiling gas transportation, operation & maintenance agreements along with many MOUs for the
local authorities. He has become a reference for many of the Oil & Gas Conferences held in the
UAE and Energy program broadcasted internationally, via GCC leading satellite Channels.
NewBase : For discussion or further details on the news above you may contact us on +971504822502 , Dubai , UAE
NewBase April 2017 K. Al Awadi

New base 24 april 2017 energy news issue 1021 by khaled al awadi

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