Natural Gas Daily

• China and Tajikistan hold talks over energy cooperation
  21 May 2013 11:26 GMT
  

  Tajikistan’s President Emomalii Rahmon met top officials from China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) in Beijing on Monday to discuss oil and gas cooperation, in a sign Tajikistan is moving closer to its neighbour after an independent petroleum consultancy estimated the country’s gas resources could rival those of Turkmenistan.

• YPF to explore Bolivian blocks
  21 May 2013 10:48 GMT
  

  Argentine state-controlled company YPF will sign a deal this week with Bolivian counterpart YPFB to explore three exploration blocks in Bolivia.

• Brazil’s imports show no sign of slowing
  21 May 2013 10:01 GMT
  

  Brazil’s spending on gas imports in the first four months of 2013 soared by 88% compared with the same period last year, according to data on the website of the country’s Ministry of Development, Industry and Foreign Trade.

• Wildcat’s Pick of the Week
  20 May 2013 15:44 GMT
  
  
  Evert Monday, Wildcat gives you a headstart on the coming week, as well as a round-up of what mattered last week.
• China mulls fragmented gas pricing system
  20 May 2013 13:43 GMT
  
  
  China may implement a fragmented natural gas pricing system to suit different market conditions across the country, as it contemplates findings from an ongoing pilot scheme.
• Pertamina CEO expected to head Indonesia board
  20 May 2013 13:42 GMT
  

  Pertamina Chief Executive Karen Agustiawan is the leading candidate to head Indonesia’s Coordinating Board for Investment, after board’s current chief…

• BP board members meet in India for first time
  20 May 2013 13:40 GMT
  

  BP board members convened in India for the first time this month, in a visit that highlighted the importance of…

• Minor outages arrest spot contracts’ decline
  20 May 2013 13:14 GMT
  

  European prompt gas contracts firmed over the week as a number of minor transportation issues caused temporary supply concerns at the continent’s largest hubs.

• NZ government criticised for offshore spill preparedness
  20 May 2013 12:48 GMT
  

  New Zealand’s Green Party has accused the government of pushing for an expansion of its deep-sea drilling programme despite knowing the country does not have the capacity to handle a subsea leak.

• Indonesia puts 21 blocks up for bidding
  20 May 2013 12:43 GMT
  

  Indonesia has offered 21 on- and offshore blocks for bidding, including two unconventional oil and gas areas, in an attempt to boost exploration and production in the country, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources has announced.

• DOE issues second LNG export approval
  20 May 2013 12:33 GMT
  
  
  The United States Department of Energy has granted approval for a second project to export LNG to nations without US free trade agreements, but this approval comes with conditions.
• Medvedev backs LNG export liberalisation
  20 May 2013 12:07 GMT
  

  Russian Prime Minister Dmitry Medvedev has said the time has come for liberalising LNG exports. The announcement adds increasing weight to growing pressure from state gas producer Gazprom’s rivals and implies increased foreign involvement.

• Wintime to start exploring Guizhou shale gas block in June
  20 May 2013 11:58 GMT
  

  Chinese coking coal miner Wintime Energy will start surveys of the Fenggang 2 shale gas block in Guizhou province in June and complete them within three years, company representative Li Jun told Interfax last week.

• PetroChina makes $3.2 billion loss on Rudong LNG imports
  20 May 2013 11:57 GMT
  

  LNG imports into PetroChina’s first terminal on China’s east coast accounted for nearly half of the company’s total losses from sales of imported gas last year, underscoring the urgent need for higher prices in the thriving but tightly regulated Chinese gas market.

• Japan’s nuke timetable is ‘overly optimistic’
  20 May 2013 11:41 GMT
  
  
  Further delays in restarting Japan’s shuttered nuclear fleet are threatening to keep utilities hooked on expensive LNG, causing more headaches for Japan’s largest importers.