Page 8 - NorthAmOil Week 03 2021

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volatile oil pay in Santonian reservoirs.” If you’d like to read more about the key events
Keskesi-1 is the fourth discovery made at shaping the Middle East’s oil and gas sector then
Block 58. Total and Apache also found oil in the please click here for NewsBase’s MEOG Monitor .
first three wells drilled within their licence area:
Maka Central-1, Sapakara West-1 and Kwask- North America: Keystone XL on the chop-
wasi-1. The partners’ next target will be the Bon- ping block
boni section of the block. The future of the planned Keystone XL pipe-
line was decided this week. New US President
If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping Joe Biden cancelled the pipeline’s presidential
the Latin American oil and gas sector then please click permit via an executive order on his first day
here for NewsBase’s LatAmOil Monitor . in office. (See: Keystone XL’s fate sealed as Biden
takes office, page 9)
MEOG: H2 and climate on the agenda The sweeping executive order also contained
While concerns about the long-term demand other measures related to protecting the envi-
for oil have fallen from the headlines following ronment and mitigating climate change, includ-
the upside shock of Saudi Arabia’s decision to ing a moratorium on leasing activities in the
cut production for February and March, gov- Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
ernments in the Middle East are taking steps to The move was not surprising, given that for- New US
shore up long-term energy strategies that main- mer US President Barack Obama, under whom
tain their relevance as other countries reduce Biden served as vice president, had previously President Joe
their reliance on oil and gas. rejected the pipeline before it was approved by
With regional powerhouse Riyadh announc- outgoing President Donald Trump. In addition, Biden cancelled
ing NEOM’s highly publicised The Line ini- Biden is already moving swiftly to undo some of
tiative, the UAE and Qatar have followed by the Trump administration’s decisions. the Keystone
making their own statements of intent. Abu However, Keystone XL’s developer, TC XL pipeline’s
Dhabi unveiled the Abu Dhabi Hydrogen Energy, was still trying to save the project and
Alliance (ADHA), comprised of state oil firm unveiled a plan earlier this week for the pipe- presidential
ADNOC, investment company Mubadala and line to achieve net zero greenhouse gas (GHG)
holding firm ADQ. emissions if it was put into service, which was permit via an
This announcement followed the signing of a targeted for 2023. The company said net zero
wide-ranging collaboration deal between Japan emissions would be achieved by buying renew- executive order
and the UAE to jointly explore opportunities and able energy from electricity providers, and on his first day in
uses for fuel ammonia and carbon recycling with purchasing renewable energy credits or carbon
Tokyo looking to source supplies of blue ammo- offsets where direct access to renewable power is office.
nia for use in its power sector. not available.
The urgency for acting on the climate front TC Energy also pledged that additional
has not escaped Qatar whose NOC Qatar Petro- renewable sources would be developed along the
leum launched a new sustainability strategy last pipeline’s route by 2030, phasing out any poten-
week that aims to reduce the emissions intensity tial need for renewable credits or carbon offsets.
of its operations by 2030. Biden has a long-term goal of putting the US
Meanwhile, contracting appears to be resum- on the path towards net zero emissions by 2050,
ing in Saudi Arabia as Aramco has issued tender and in the immediate term, he will be focused
documents to its onshore LTA cohort for main- on driving an economic recovery following the
tenance and upgrade work at the vital Abqaiq coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic.
plant which handles up to 7mn bpd of oil. TC Energy had hoped that Keystone XL’s
The news follows the cancellation of tenders job creation potential, combined with these
for major expansion work at the Berri and Mar- new environmental goals, would help to sway
jan oilfields as well as slowing start-up at the flag- Biden in his stance on the pipeline but was dis-
ship Jafurah unconventional gas field. appointed on this.™

P8 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 03 21•January•2021