Energy Blast – Aug 26, 2008

Another TNK-BP executive has quit. Anthony Considine, the head of refining, trading and marketing operations, has resigned after five years with the venture due to “present volatile circumstances”. BP says operations at the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline will resume this week. Responding to the recent fall in global oil prices, Russia is likely to cut oil export duty for October and November. Prana has sued Rosneft for $30 million in a case thought to be related to debts stemming from Rosneft’s acquisition of Yukos’ former headquarters in 2007. Korea’s state-run oil company has denied that it ever expressed interest in buying Imperial Energy, “leaving it more likely that either China’s Sinopec or India’s Oil and Natural Gas Corp. will succeed in taking control of the firm”. ONGC has just finalized the terms of its $2.8 billion bid. Canada is weighing in on the battle for Arctic energy. Kuwait expects to raise production by about half a million barrels a day in early 2009 – a production rise of about 20%.