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Gold/Mining/Energy : Lundin Oil (LOILY, LOILB Sweden) -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	3/26/1999 8:57:00 PM
From: Razorbak	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 2742

Majors Greywolf: Occidental, maybe? Didn't Oxy have an interest in the Jintan gas field development (Block SK-8) in Malaysia once upon a time? I think the development was intended to export gas via 36" trunkline to an onshore LNG 3 gas processing terminal at Bintulu in Sarawak. (I did some work on this project back in 1994.) Does anyone know if the PM3 field is anywhere near Block SK-8? Razor

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	3/26/1999 11:25:00 PM
From: Tomas	Respond to of 2742

The Falklands: Daily Telegraph, Saturday March 27 Brent crude continued a major comeback with barrels for May delivery up 40 cents to more than $14. A speech by the governor of the Falklands claiming this made renewed exploration in the South Atlantic economic for oil companies helped Desire Petroleum jump 62pc to 38p, while Westmount, which owns a 16pc stake in Desire, added 72pc to 30p.

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/2/1999 6:33:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2742

Hopes High for Libya Keeping Word UNITED NATIONS (AP) April 1 - Secretary-General Kofi Annan said he is still hopeful Libya will keep its promise and hand over two suspects in the 1988 bombing of an American jetliner by April 6. ''I think we've done lots of work, and I believe that there are signs that everybody's acting in good faith, and that they will be turned over,'' Annan told reporters at U.N. headquarters. The Dec. 21, 1988, bombing of the Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, claimed 270 lives, most of them Americans. Two Libyans, believed to be intelligence agents, are suspected of having planted a bomb in a suitcase on board the plane. After months of seeking clarification and assurances from the United Nations, Libya agreed March 19 to turn the men over by Tuesday for a trial under Scottish law in The Netherlands. The United States and Britain agreed in August to a trial in a third country after Libya complained that the men wouldn't get a fair trial in either U.S. or British courts. Details of the turnover are being kept strictly confidential - so much so that the United Nations isn't expected to announce it has taken place until after the men have left Libya. A U.N. envoy, believed to be Annan's legal counsel, Hans Corell, is expected to accompany the men to the Netherlands. Once they arrive, U.N. sanctions imposed in 1992 to compel Tripoli to turn the men over will be automatically suspended. The Security Council has pledged to lift sanctions entirely ''as soon as circumstances permit.'' dailynews.yahoo.com

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/4/1999 10:09:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2742

Financial Times Monday April 5: Libya- Stage set for trial of Lockerbie suspects By Gordon Cramb in Amsterdam Two Scottish prosecutors arrived in the Netherlands yesterday, as indications grew that Libya was preparing the immediate despatch of two nationals wanted for planting the 1988 suitcase bomb which brought down a PanAm aircraft. The crash of the Boeing 747 at Lockerbie in Scotland killed 259 on board and 11 on the ground. It brought the imposition five years later of United Nations sanctions against Libya - including an air embargo and foreign assets freeze - which are to be suspended if the extradition goes ahead. The Libyan government of Muammer Gadaffi, which said last month it would deliver the suspects by tomorrow, invited Arab and other delegations to the capital Tripoli at the weekend to witness the handover. The two are to be tried by a Scottish judicial bench sitting at Camp Zeist, a former US military base east of the Dutch city of Utrecht. For a decade Libya resisted western demands that the trial of Abdel Basset Ali Mohamed al-Megrahi and Lamen Khalifa Fhimah, both allegedly intelligence agents, should take place in the UK or US. The 100 acres (40 hectares) of Camp Zeist allocated to the hearing will, however, be Scottish soil for the duration of the procedure, which is thought likely to take well over a year. As the two will be charged with murder, Scottish law requires that a trial begin within 110 days. But either defence or prosecution can apply to have that time limit extended, "and that is a very big but", said a Scottish Office official. About 100 Scottish police as well as 20 prison officers, court officials and other staff are already billeted at the base. The three judges, who will sit without a jury, have yet to be selected. The suspects are due to be taken under UN escort to the Netherlands, where they will be detained by Dutch police before a formal extradition to Scottish jurisdiction. Under arrest at Camp Zeist, the two will be held in a makeshift Scottish police station while bomb-proof cells are completed. British officials described the site as "extremely secure". Another building is being converted into a courtroom, in an operation which has cost the UK £750,000 so far. That bill is expected to rise significantly as the procedure drags on, although Washington has indicated it will contribute. As Norman McFadyen and Jim Brisbane, the two public prosecutors, arrived at Amsterdam's Schiphol airport yesterday, Ahmed bin Hilli, assistant secretary general of the Arab League, was on his way to Tripoli. Hans Corell, chief UN legal counsel, was expected to arrive in the Libyan capital to arrange the handover.

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/7/1999 10:13:00 AM
From: Tomas	Respond to of 2742

Libya ready to let U.S. oil firms resume operations TUNIS, April 7 (Reuters) - Libyan Energy Minister Abdullah Salem al-Badri on Wednesday said his country was ready to let U.S. oil firms resume operations in Libya. ''We invite U.S. firms which were our associates in the past to return to the Jamahiriya (Libya) and continue their production,'' Badri told Reuters in a telephone interview. ''Our doors are open to talk with them and to facilitate their operations and their return in Libya,'' he added. United States maintains unilateral sanctions on trade and investment against Libya which pre-date the 1988 United Nation's Lockerbie sanctions which were lifted early this week. The U.S. State Department said on Monday that even though Libya has turned over suspects involved in the bombing of the Pan Am airliner over Lockerbie, Scotland, the U.S. won't lift the sanctions it has in place prohibiting oil trade with Libya. ''We need to have additional concerns alleviated (by Libya) before we will address modifying our sanctions,'' State Department spokesman James Rubin told reporters in Washington. U.S. oil companies left Libya following a U.S. trade embargo begun in 1981. ''This is for those who were here, but also for others with which we are ready to talk over the possibility of entering with us (in partnership) because this country is still virgin for exploration,'' Badri said. ''Libya is an important state in the oil activities regarding its reserves and its production, and a market which is very close to Europe and the European oil firms. We invite these (European) firms to enter much more (in Libya),'' Badri said. Several European oil companies are already exploring for and producing oil in Libya. They account for a third of Libya's 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil output. Oil exports account for about 95 percent of Libya's hard currency earnings. Currently, the country has 12 oilfields with reserves of one billion barrels of crude or more, and two others with reserves of 500 million to one billion barrels. Badri said his country was ''fully complying'' since April 1st with an oil output cut of 96,000 bpd as pledged under an oil producers' deal last month to restrain supply to improve prices. biz.yahoo.com

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/9/1999 5:36:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2742

Europe Oil Cos. To Gain in Libya. "Lundin Oil sees a great future in Libya" By BRUCE STANLEY, AP Business Writer LONDON (AP) -- The United Nations decision to end economic sanctions against Libya will give the country's underdeveloped oil industry access to the spare parts and money needed to expand production. That should also be a boom to foreign oil companies that do business in Libya, but American companies will be left at a competitive disadvantage because sanctions imposed by the U.S. government remain in place. The United Nations on Monday suspended its seven-year restrictions on trade with Libya, ending a ban on international flights there. The world body acted after Libya handed over two citizens suspected of blowing up a Pan Am jet over Lockerbie, Scotland, in 1988. ''We see a great future in Libya, and certainly the lifting of sanctions will make life a whole lot easier,'' said Andrew Harber, a manager in Britain for the Swedish company Lundin Oil. But the U.N. action is unlikely to unleash a fresh wave of European oil companies into Libya, analysts say, because most firms with an interest in the country are already operating there. For them, U.N. sanctions were more of an inconvenience than a real impediment. Still, new, direct flights to the Libyan capital will save time for visiting managers and drilling crews, who previously had to drive to Tripoli from the neighboring country of Tunisia, a five-hour journey. Only two days after the sanctions were lifted, British Airways announced it would start flying three flights a week from London to Tripoli. The new relations will also likely mean faster international money transfers that should help companies complete their projects more quickly. With proven reserves of 30 billion barrels, Libya has as much oil as Norway and Britain combined. Its reserves are smaller than Mexico's 50 billion barrels, but larger than those of fellow OPEC members Nigeria and Indonesia. And its low-sulfur crude fetches a premium on global markets. Libya also has natural gas reserves of 45.9 trillion cubic feet, comparable to those of Norway. The Libyans have managed to keep up steady levels of crude production despite U.N. and U.S. sanctions, pumping 1.39 million barrels a day last year, according to the International Energy Agency. Promising areas of the country remain to be explored. Lundin, the Swedish firm, is prospecting at En Naga in the Sahara, 620 miles southeast of Tripoli. Houston-based Conoco Inc. first struck oil in Libya in 1955. Since withdrawing from Libya 13 years ago, Conoco has had to forgo the production and sale of 300 million barrels of oil worth $5 billion, company spokesman Carlton Adams said. European energy companies such as Italy's ENI, Repsol of Spain and Austria's OMV helped fill the void created by the American exodus. The competitive position of U.S. companies will erode further if non-U.S. firms are the only ones allowed to do business in Libya, Adams said. ''No one likes to sit on their hands while their competitors are out there looking for oil. Libya is a proven producer, it has a lot of reserves and it's close to European markets,'' said Peter Bogin of Cambridge Energy Research Associates, a Paris-based consulting firm. For Libya's oil industry, sanctions have hurt most by blocking imports of certain types of equipment. The U.S. embargo continues to deny Libya access to specific technologies. Sanctions also have stifled investment. Since 1996, the U.S. Iran-Libya Sanctions Act has barred foreign firms from making new investments of $40 million or more -- a ceiling that European companies seem to be respecting. ''It's been a difficult environment in which to operate, but certainly not an impossible one,'' said Bogin, of the Paris consulting firm. Libya's production capacity will expand slowly, but in the long run, analysts say, the improvements may embolden it to pump more oil than its OPEC production limits allow. Libyan diplomats in London refused to comment when asked about this possibility. Leo Drollas, chief economist at the Center for Global Energy Studies in London, said Libya already has one of the worst records of compliance with OPEC production limits. ''Libya is one of those countries that pay lip service to an agreement but then don't comply fully,'' he said. biz.yahoo.com

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/13/1999 12:46:00 AM
From: Tomas	Respond to of 2742

Good news from Papua New Guinea: The pipeline project can now move forward! The key hurdle has been cleared. Gas reserves deal a boost for $5.5bn pipeline Sydney Morning Herald, Tuesday April 13 By KATE ASKEW, Resources Writer Sponsors of the $US3.5 billion ($5.5 billion) Papua New Guinea-to-Queensland pipeline are expected to announce as early as tomorrow completion of the integration of its gas reserves. The integration clears a key hurdle preventing the project from moving forward. The deal has been the subject of intense speculation during the past month, with investor scepticism increasing due to the lack of hard news. Nevertheless, a deal is understood to have been reached between owners of the Hides gasfield - Exxon, Oil Search and Santos - and partners in the Kutubu oil and gasfield. The conclusion of the reserves integration follows a difficult period of protracted negotiations that moved between the US, Queensland and PNG. It began in earnest when Santos agreed to buy part of Oil Search's interest in Hides in early February for as much as $US90 million. Integration of Hides gas with gas from Kutubu is vital in building the reserves to a level needed to provide enough security and longevity of supply to satisfy potential customers. The pipeline's key potential customer, Comalco and its proposed alumina refinery at Gladstone, had said publicly that it would not commit togas contracts with the PNG pipeline sponsors until the reserves integration had been completed. Tomorrow's expected announcement will clear the way for Comalco to make a decision on its alumina refinery - which has been another area of intense market speculation and scepticism. Comalco has previously said it expected to be in a position to make a formal announcement on the refinery by mid-year. The Brisbane-based miner will receive about $100 million worth of infrastructure incentives from the Federal Government if it agrees to push ahead with the project at Gladstone. _______________________________________ Comalco has yet to decide between a site in Gladstone, Queensland or one in Malaysia. It is playing off the respective governments for the best deal. Despite the posturing by Comalco, the Gladstone option is expected to win out. A commitment to Gladstone would also go a long way ensuring the development of the $3 billion PNG-Queensland gas pipeline by the Chevron-led consortium. smh.com.au (The last 2 paragraphs copied from smh.com.au )

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/13/1999 9:54:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2742

Queensland says Papua New Guinea gas pipeline project to proceed BRISBANE, April 14 (Reuters) - The A$3.8 billion Papua New Guinea-Australia gas project would proceed, a spokesman for the Australian state government of Queensland said on Wednesday. The spokesman told Reuters that the decision to proceed followed an agreement struck recently between PNG-based oil and gas producer Oil Search Ltd and pipeline operator Chevron Services Australia Pty Ltd. He did not specify the nature of the agreement. Oil Search recently took over negotiations from its Hides gas field partner Exxon Corp about the price for gas delivered to the pipeline. Queensland premier Peter Beattie has scheduled a 12.15 p.m. (0215 GMT) news conference on Wednesday to discuss the future of the project. Oil Search said in early February it was confident the Hides gas field would be tied into the proposed Papua New Guinea-to-Queensland pipeline project, otherwise the pipeline would not go ahead. Plans for the pipeline, which was due to be supplied from the Kutubu field, hinge on Comalco Ltd building an alumina refinery in the Queensland coastal city of Gladstone which would use gas from Papua New Guinea. Comalco's decision in turn hinges on the price and stable supply of gas from Papua New Guinea. The aluminium producer, which is majority owned by Rio Tinto Ltd/Plc has said the smelter could be built in either Gladstone or Sarawak, Malaysia, with a decision due in the early part of 1999. biz.yahoo.com

To: Greywolf who wrote (961)	4/14/1999 11:17:00 PM
From: Tomas	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 2742

Papua New Guinea: $5.5bn link: Foot on the gas - Sydney Morning Herald Sydney Morning Herald, Thursday April 15 By KATE ASKEW and ANTHONY HUGHES The $US3.5 billion ($5.5 billion) Papua New Guinea to Queensland gas pipeline cleared a major hurdle yesterday by securing enough gas reserves to underpin bankable agreements with customers, putting the onus on the sponsors to sign up customers. Yesterday's agreement, that adds gas from the Hides field in the PNG highlands to the nearby Kutubu reserves, was secured after protracted negotiations with Exxon that have pushed the project's timetable out by nearly a year. Yesterday's deal also throws the spotlight on one of the major players - Port Moresby-based Oil Search - which is being circled by Woodside Petroleum which is after a stake in Oil Search ahead of the pipeline being given the go-ahead. Woodside has made its interest in the gas market on Australia's east coast public, with the PNG-to-QLD gas pipeline the only major coming development that it, or its big brother Royal Dutch/Shell, does not have a slice of. Pressure has been mounting on Woodside to come up with a major new project as its earnings growth tapers after next year. Nevertheless, the pipeline sponsors now need to turn existing memoranda of understanding for gas supplies - there are four in place representing between 100 petajoules and 139 petajoules of gas, including an agreement with Comalco for its proposed but not yet agreed upon alumina refinery at Gladstone - into formal contracts before the project can be given the nod. It is estimated that the baseload needed to underpin the project is about 120 petajoules. With the Queensland Government backing up as a potential major customer through its energy agencies - it is seen to be keen to take part in a possible expansion of the pipeline through to Brisbane - the pipeline's future is becoming more certain. Discussions with the Queensland Government-owned energy agencies including Ergon and Energex are well advanced, with speculation that formal contracts representing about two thirds of the baseload requirement of the pipeline will be agreed to soon. "A number of these Government-owned corporations were close to finalising commercial negotiations regarding gas contracts and it was expected that these proposals would be formally presented to the Government over the next few months," Queensland Deputy Premier Mr Jim Elder told a press conference in Brisbane yesterday. If the Queensland Government agencies can agree on contracts, the need for Comalco's custom is substantially diminished. "As one of the key sensitivities of pipeline customers to sponsors was uncertainty about reserves, the agreements allow us to assure the market that there are adequate reserves to underpin the project," Oil Search managing director Mr Peter Botten said yesterday. As the preferred developer of the Australian section of the pipe, AGL has now also joined the project sponsors to market the gas to customers in Queensland. AGL managing director Mr Len Bleasel said securing Comalco to take gas from the pipeline was important but the project could still proceed without it. "It's easier with Comalco and we are going to try hard to get them," he said. smh.com.au