Exxon Mobil Corp. may lose its top-notch credit rating from Moody’s Investors Service as the oil-market collapse imperils cash flow needed to cover debt payments and investment in new discoveries. Seven of the other largest U.S. energy explorers also were put on notice or downgraded by Moody’s Thursday after the rating company concluded crude prices will... Continue Reading →
Fluor Consortium Delivers Natural Gas Development Project in Brazil
Project completed safely, on time and on budget The Gavião Branco facility in the state of Maranhão, Brazil (Photo: Business Wire) February 25, 2016 IRVING, Texas & SÃO PAULO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Fluor Corporation (NYSE: FLR) announced today that its consortium has met substantial completion on the Gavião Branco facility in the state of Maranhão, Brazil, turning it... Continue Reading →
Halliburton Cuts Another 5,000 Workers to Cope with Oil Downturn
David Wethe February 25, 2016 Halliburton Co. said it’s cutting another 5,000 workers, or 8 percent of its global workforce, to cope with the worst crude market downturn in 30 years. The world’s second-largest oilfield services provider said last month it cut nearly 4,000 jobs in the final three months of 2015. With the latest... Continue Reading →
Brazil’s January Primary Budget Surplus Beats Analyst Estimates
The central government’s primary budget surplus exceeded analyst estimates last month, as a jump in tax revenue pulled Brazil out of deficit territory for the first time since April 2015. The surplus, which excludes interest payments as well as municipalities and government-run companies, was 14.8 billion reais ($3.8 billion) in January, the Treasury said Thursday. The... Continue Reading →
Technip Shares Post Record Gain as Oil-Services Orders Increase
Technip SA climbed the most on record in Paris trading after orders received by Europe’s largest oilfield-services provider exceeded analyst expectations. The order intake was 2.8 billion euros ($3.1 billion) in the fourth quarter, bringing its backlog to 17 billion euros at the end of the year, Paris-based Technip said Thursday in a statement. The... Continue Reading →
Seadrill Jumps as Profit Beats Estimates Amid Deeper Cuts
Seadrill Ltd., the oil-rig company controlled by billionaire John Fredriksen, beat profit estimates as it deepened cost cuts to counter a slump in demand for offshore drilling. The stock rose as much as 10 percent in Oslo. The company, which is struggling with debt in a dismal rig market, said it would announce a funding... Continue Reading →
Pemex, Badly in Need of Cash, Works on Plan to List Some Assets
With oil prices stuck near a 12-year low and output in free-fall, speculation is mounting that Petroleos Mexicanos will seek to raise cash by selling stakes in pipelines and oil terminals that might have otherwise been off limits. The state-owned oil company will probably take advantage of new rules creating master limited partnerships in Mexico,... Continue Reading →
Brazil Credit Ratings Cut to Junk by Moody’s
Brazil’s sovereign rating was cut to junk by Moody’s Investors Service, the last of the major ratings companies to strip the country of its investment grade, as President Dilma Rousseff struggles to shore up fiscal accounts amid deepening political turmoil. The country’s benchmark stock gauge declined the most in two weeks and the currency weakened... Continue Reading →
Peru’s president linked in court papers to Brazil bribery scheme
Brazilian police have uncovered evidence that Peruvian President Ollanta Humala may have received $3 million in bribes from engineering and construction conglomerate Odebrecht, according to federal court filings in Brazil. The court papers, made public on Monday, show that documents seized from Marcelo Odebrecht, the jailed former chief executive of the Brazilian company, list $3... Continue Reading →
For Exxon and Shell, Age of Ultramajors Comes at the Wrong Time
This may not be the best time to be bigger than big. The $64 billion tie-up of Royal Dutch Shell Plc with BG Group Plc and the steady growth of Exxon Mobil Corp. are creating a new league of two: the ultramajors. Executives at smaller companies are even starting to joke that Chevron Corp., Total SA,... Continue Reading →
Brazil Energy Insight 