Russian Oil and Gas Industry: News

Ships worth around $36 bln to be built at Russia's Zvezda shipyard from 2016

"Rosneft" plans to place in the complex "Star" orders for 41 ships and 12 platforms

http://tass.ru/ekonomika/2244290

Austin wrote:Ships worth around $36 bln to be built at Russia's Zvezda shipyard from 2016

"Rosneft" plans to place in the complex "Star" orders for 41 ships and 12 platforms

http://tass.ru/ekonomika/2244290

This is wicked cool. The amplifier effects from the $36 billion are likely to double or triple this amount in terms of its impact on the
regional economy. Spending such money on foreign shipyards would have been a crime.

Russian oil drillers outperform Western competitors due to cheaper Ruble and tax system connected to global oil prices

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-07/move-over-exxon-russian-drillers-are-oil-world-s-top-performers

zg18 wrote:Russian oil drillers outperform Western competitors due to cheaper Ruble and tax system connected to global oil prices

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-09-07/move-over-exxon-russian-drillers-are-oil-world-s-top-performers

“Production costs in Russia are still among the lowest globally,” because not so much advanced technology is applied to boost extraction as in other parts of the world, Philipp Chladek, a London-based oil-sector analyst with Bloomberg Intelligence, wrote in a Sept. 2 report. “Rather than trying to increase the recovery rate in mature fields to keep the oil flowing, Russian companies can still tap new resources.”

I smell BS. Western analysts can't have it both ways: that Russia is in long term decline as new discoveries are tapped out and
that no significant reworking of old fields is at play. It is a fact that Russia has increased its production over the last 15 years
by reworking old fields with new technology:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-03-18/russia-adopts-texas-drilling-to-revive-soviet-oil-fields-energy

kvs wrote:I smell BS.  Western analysts can't have it both ways: that Russia is in long term decline as new discoveries are tapped out and
that no significant reworking of old fields is at play.   It is a fact that Russia has increased its production over the last 15 years
by reworking old fields with new technology:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-03-18/russia-adopts-texas-drilling-to-revive-soviet-oil-fields-energy

Yep , it`s even miracle that they reported Russian drillers outperform their Western peers.

zg18 wrote:

kvs wrote:I smell BS.  Western analysts can't have it both ways: that Russia is in long term decline as new discoveries are tapped out and
that no significant reworking of old fields is at play.   It is a fact that Russia has increased its production over the last 15 years
by reworking old fields with new technology:

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2013-03-18/russia-adopts-texas-drilling-to-revive-soviet-oil-fields-energy

Yep , it`s even miracle that they reported Russian drillers outperform their Western peers.

Indeed, thanks for the link.

sepheronx wrote:You guys will laugh.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
In the Kostroma region opened a new plant for the production of drilling rigs

Large-scale investment project implemented by the American company National Oilwell Varco (NOV). The total investment in the establishment of enterprise "NEW Kostroma" amounted to more than 4.2 billion rubles. Just will create more than 300 jobs. Average monthly salary in the factory oil drilling equipment will be from 40 to 57 thousand rubles.

The plant will produce drilling rigs of various capacities, the installation for repair of wells and other drilling equipment. The products manufactured at the plant will be supplied to the Russian market of oil and gas equipment and exported to the broader European market.

The factory organized a workshop on the production of drilling rigs and downhole equipment, Assembly shop, and the shop blasting and painting. Installation of technological equipment is in its final stage.

Read more on link above.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

So essentially, the US and EU sanctions Russia to obtain new drilling equipment, yet they opened up (an American company) a manufacturing and assembly site in Russia to produce drilling rig equipment.  This investment was from years ago but the shop opened recently.  Did they not notice this?  This went under their radar?  Makes them look and sound very incompetent.

Point is, the very people who banned them from obtaining the equipment, opened up a site for them to produce it.

Awesome news but not as surprising as it may seem at first glance. US business sector was adamantly against sanctions on Russia from the get go, they even lobbied in office and press against sanctions.

I guess after all this time they simply decided to solve the problem by going back to basics-which is doing business. Good for them and all the rest of us with exception of neocons and ultraliberals.

PapaDragon wrote:

sepheronx wrote:You guys will laugh.
_______________________________________________________________________________________________
In the Kostroma region opened a new plant for the production of drilling rigs

Large-scale investment project implemented by the American company National Oilwell Varco (NOV). The total investment in the establishment of enterprise "NEW Kostroma" amounted to more than 4.2 billion rubles. Just will create more than 300 jobs. Average monthly salary in the factory oil drilling equipment will be from 40 to 57 thousand rubles.

The plant will produce drilling rigs of various capacities, the installation for repair of wells and other drilling equipment. The products manufactured at the plant will be supplied to the Russian market of oil and gas equipment and exported to the broader European market.

The factory organized a workshop on the production of drilling rigs and downhole equipment, Assembly shop, and the shop blasting and painting. Installation of technological equipment is in its final stage.

Read more on link above.

_______________________________________________________________________________________________

So essentially, the US and EU sanctions Russia to obtain new drilling equipment, yet they opened up (an American company) a manufacturing and assembly site in Russia to produce drilling rig equipment.  This investment was from years ago but the shop opened recently.  Did they not notice this?  This went under their radar?  Makes them look and sound very incompetent.

Point is, the very people who banned them from obtaining the equipment, opened up a site for them to produce it.

Awesome news but not as surprising as it may seem at first glance. US business sector was adamantly against sanctions on Russia from the get go, they even lobbied in office and press against sanctions.

I guess after all this time they simply decided to solve the problem by going back to basics-which is doing business. Good for them and all the rest of us with exception of neocons and ultraliberals.

This is a classic result from my favourite Law of Unintended Consequences. The decision to sanction Russia would have been taken at the highest level and almost in a conceptual manner. All the details of who is working with who on what projects, based on closer relations between the two countries over 20 years, would have probably barely entered the minds of those in the White House. They may well have talked about the Russian reaction on the big projects like Exxon in the Arctic, Boeing and its titanium parts, NASA and the rocket motors as they all had political (read lobbyists with re-election funds) power as well as the most important companies to the politicians, the big US banks.

It is only now that the implications of probably dozens of contracts like this start to surface. All good knock about cut off your nose to spite your face stuff.

Related News

http://carnegieeurope.eu/strategiceurope/?fa=61207

Europe’s Energy Companies Go Back to Business With Russia

It was just like the old days before the European Union imposed sanctions on Russia in 2014. At the Eastern Economic Forum in Vladivostok on September 3–5, Gazprom clinched three major deals with some of Europe’s biggest energy companies.

Nice write up on India -Russia energy deal

Indian company to boost Rosneft revenues

Yes, sanction my **s.

http://sputniknews.com/business/20150910/1026813275/europe-energy-cooperation-russia.html

Major European companies are actively seeking ways to bolster energy cooperation with Russia despite the ongoing Ukrainian crisis and Western anti-Russian sanctions, an article on the Polish website Defense24.pl read.

Knock me down with a feather, how about this then

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Transit of Russian gas via Ukraine will be continued in certain volumes after 2019, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a meeting with the European Commission in Vienna.

"We have never said we would stop transit via Ukraine. The more so as there are such countries like Moldova where gas will be transported via Ukraine. It means that certain volumes of gas will be transited via Ukraine after 2019," Miller said.


Closely followed by this gem, the EU basically giving Russia money as Ukraine is unlikely to pay them back.

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Ukraine will spend $500 million borrowed from the European Union to buy only Russian gas, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a Russia-European Commission meeting in Vienna. "Yes, the draft protocol provides for that. It envisages that the $500 million will go to buy gas only from Russia’s Gazprom. It is clearly said," he said.

Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said after consultations that Russia will grant Ukraine a gas price discount for the fourth quarter of 2015 and the first quarter of 2016. "On our part, like in the previous periods, we are ready to give a gas price discount for the fourth quarter and the first quarter of 2016, i.e. for the autumn-winter season, to ensure pricing at the level of adjacent countries, such as Poland," the Russian energy minister said.

As for the next trilateral meeting on gas, Alexey Miller said it may take place already next week. "We have planned that the next trilateral meeting may take already the next week. If Ukraine began to buy Russian gas and inject it to its underground storage facilities in the third decade of September, that would be very good," Miller said.

JohninMK wrote:Knock me down with a feather, how about this then

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Transit of Russian gas via Ukraine will be continued in certain volumes after 2019, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a meeting with the European Commission in Vienna.

"We have never said we would stop transit via Ukraine. The more so as there are such countries like Moldova where gas will be transported via Ukraine. It means that certain volumes of gas will be transited via Ukraine after 2019," Miller said.

The feck?

First Russia says one thing than another?

Never said we would stop transit via Ukraine? Yes you did. Why else would the European Commission have brought it up if you didn't say it, you sly snake?
What 'certain volumes'?
This is an incredibly weak move, backtracking on one's own vital interest, and it will only encourage the West to demand more.

I don't want those free-loaders to get a single kopejka from Russia, and screw the EU and their pet imperial project, the anti-Russian nationalist scum that they installed in the Ukraine. All of them are enemies, Russia owes nothing to them. If the EU wants to buy Russian gas; it can do so, but not through the Ukraine; that transit route is closed.

I sincerely hope that Russia comes to its senses in regards to the Ukraine and recognizes the necessity of evacuating all capital, investments and money from there. There is absolutely no necessity in transiting any gas through there that the Ukrainians seem to think belongs to them by right and thieve whenever convenient - it's perfectly clear that they will steal more and more as their economy continues to head into the abyss.
No, no gas through this territory.

sepheronx wrote:I think it is far better of an Idea that they can keep transit through Ukraine, but it no longer becomes Gazprom's issue as soon as the gas hits Ukraine.  So in other words, let EU control the transit of the gas from Ukraine, and including, all gas being syphoned and or lost, or fees.

That would mean that the EU would be able to demand a single gas price for the whole European Union; Russia would have no more control over where and to whom its gas goes, it won't be able to sign individual contracts, it would only be able to negotiate with the EU as a unified bloc - and naturally that means that its negotiating position would be weakened too. It would also be robbed of all potential influence.

Russia can live without the gas profits from the sales that its currently making via the Ukraine pipeline, at least I hope that by 2019 it will be diversified enough in its customer base and also that gas would account for a smaller share of the total economy than now.

If Russia cannot assume at least joint-control of the pipelines, and have control over its own supply networks (and thus bilateral contracts with countries, storage facilities, transit agreements, supply redirection, etc...) there is no reason for it to supply gas through those networks.
It would ultimately be more profitable for it to build its own new pipelines, than to use someone else's.
And if Europe doesn't want new pipelines.. well then, there are always other customers to be found.

flamming_python wrote:

JohninMK wrote:Knock me down with a feather, how about this then

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Transit of Russian gas via Ukraine will be continued in certain volumes after 2019, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a meeting with the European Commission in Vienna.

"We have never said we would stop transit via Ukraine. The more so as there are such countries like Moldova where gas will be transported via Ukraine. It means that certain volumes of gas will be transited via Ukraine after 2019," Miller said.

The feck?

First Russia says one thing than another?

Never said we would stop transit via Ukraine? Yes you did. Why else would the European Commission have brought it up if you didn't say it, you sly snake?
What 'certain volumes'?
This is an incredibly weak move, backtracking on one's own vital interest, and it will only encourage the West to demand more.

I don't want those free-loaders to get a single kopejka from Russia, and screw the EU and their pet imperial project, the anti-Russian nationalist scum that they installed in the Ukraine. All of them are enemies, Russia owes nothing to them. If the EU wants to buy Russian gas; it can do so, but not through the Ukraine; that transit route is closed.

I sincerely hope that Russia comes to its senses in regards to the Ukraine and recognizes the necessity of evacuating all capital, investments and money from there. There is absolutely no necessity in transiting any gas through there that the Ukrainians seem to think belongs to them by right and thieve whenever convenient - it's perfectly clear that they will steal more and more as their economy continues to head into the abyss.
No, no gas through this territory.

Relax my friend.
What do you think "certain volumes" mean?
It means that Ukraine is no longer a transit route after 2019. That is now confirmed.
A small quantity may use the old transit route to Transniestria (or Moldava) as these regions/countries will not be part of EU

flamming_python wrote:

JohninMK wrote:Knock me down with a feather, how about this then

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Transit of Russian gas via Ukraine will be continued in certain volumes after 2019, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a meeting with the European Commission in Vienna.

"We have never said we would stop transit via Ukraine. The more so as there are such countries like Moldova where gas will be transported via Ukraine. It means that certain volumes of gas will be transited via Ukraine after 2019," Miller said.

The feck?

First Russia says one thing than another?

Never said we would stop transit via Ukraine? Yes you did. Why else would the European Commission have brought it up if you didn't say it, you sly snake?
What 'certain volumes'?
This is an incredibly weak move, backtracking on one's own vital interest, and it will only encourage the West to demand more.

I don't want those free-loaders to get a single kopejka from Russia, and screw the EU and their pet imperial project, the anti-Russian nationalist scum that they installed in the Ukraine. All of them are enemies, Russia owes nothing to them. If the EU wants to buy Russian gas; it can do so, but not through the Ukraine; that transit route is closed.

I sincerely hope that Russia comes to its senses in regards to the Ukraine and recognizes the necessity of evacuating all capital, investments and money from there. There is absolutely no necessity in transiting any gas through there that the Ukrainians seem to think belongs to them by right and thieve whenever convenient - it's perfectly clear that they will steal more and more as their economy continues to head into the abyss.
No, no gas through this territory.

Easy man, they said "certain volumes after 2019". Like Armenian said, symbolic amounts just to cover Moldova.

They are probably throwing diplomatic bone to EU and Germans and are also lubricating Nord Stream expansion in the process.
Also, keeping Kiev in play, at least on paper, gives them some extra leverage with Turks. And we all know talk is very cheap.

Ukrops are just getting a little courtesy kiss before very involuntary sodomy...

PapaDragon wrote:

flamming_python wrote:

JohninMK wrote:Knock me down with a feather, how about this then

VIENNA, September 11. /TASS/. Transit of Russian gas via Ukraine will be continued in certain volumes after 2019, CEO of Russia’s gas giant Gazprom, Alexey Miller, said on Friday after a meeting with the European Commission in Vienna.

"We have never said we would stop transit via Ukraine. The more so as there are such countries like Moldova where gas will be transported via Ukraine. It means that certain volumes of gas will be transited via Ukraine after 2019," Miller said.

The feck?

First Russia says one thing than another?

Never said we would stop transit via Ukraine? Yes you did. Why else would the European Commission have brought it up if you didn't say it, you sly snake?
What 'certain volumes'?
This is an incredibly weak move, backtracking on one's own vital interest, and it will only encourage the West to demand more.

I don't want those free-loaders to get a single kopejka from Russia, and screw the EU and their pet imperial project, the anti-Russian nationalist scum that they installed in the Ukraine. All of them are enemies, Russia owes nothing to them. If the EU wants to buy Russian gas; it can do so, but not through the Ukraine; that transit route is closed.

I sincerely hope that Russia comes to its senses in regards to the Ukraine and recognizes the necessity of evacuating all capital, investments and money from there. There is absolutely no necessity in transiting any gas through there that the Ukrainians seem to think belongs to them by right and thieve whenever convenient - it's perfectly clear that they will steal more and more as their economy continues to head into the abyss.
No, no gas through this territory.

Easy man, they said "certain volumes after 2019".  Like Armenian said, symbolic amounts just to cover Moldova.

They are probably throwing diplomatic bone to EU and Germans and are also lubricating Nord Stream expansion in the process.
Also, keeping Kiev in play, at least on paper, gives them some extra leverage with Turks. And we all know talk is very cheap.

Ukrops are just getting a little courtesy kiss before very involuntary sodomy...

That's similar to my take. Announcing this has a few effects:
- it reduces any potential counter pressure should anyone suggest that the NordStream2 will threaten supplies to South EU
- by taking away 'little country pleading' it increases pressure on Turkey and/or Bulgaria to allow a bigger pipe through to supply the main supplies of South EU
- it gives hope to Ukraine to reduce their inclination to cut up rough towards 2019
- it plays positive diplomatically within the EU.

Note how Russia is always looking to the long view. Every announcement seems to be along the lines of 'you can trust us to supply you with gas even tho you are nasty to us', so minimising the risk of a large increase in LPG plants in the EU. Why spend the billions of Euros, which they don't have, when they don't need to? Politicians love the easy way out. At the same time Russia in increasing its capability to pump that gas East, protecting its negotiating position with both the EU and China.

They are doing the same with coal and electricity in the Ukraine, never giving anyone an 'energy' stick to beat them with. Always aware that there is a pipe system that is spraying money out from it over its whole route, so crucially important that no-one but no-one dares mention let alone threaten it, the jugular artery with no alternative running East to West through the continent, oil.

You got to hand it to Moscow, this is a very subtle yet top strategic move.

Kerry’s Double Assisted Suicide: Russia Oil Gains, America Loses from Sanctions

Russian Arctic shelf recoverable reserves reach 447 Mt of oil, 10 trillion cub m. of gas

http://tass.ru/en/economy/821073

Gazprom Banks on China

so it seems 2nd pipeline price is still not resolved

sepheronx wrote:

Austin wrote:Gazprom Banks on China

so it seems 2nd pipeline price is still not resolved

As much as I hope it will eventually, I have a feeling China is holding out till they re-orientate their economy in the next couple of years.  They won't know what the demand is, and for them, no point inking a long term contract that they may not need.  Power of Siberia one pipeline is good already and this would just benefit Russia now with maybe possibility to China in the future.

I hope that one day they can eventually build a pipeline through China to India.  If only India and China can get along.

How are China and India not getting along?