Shell poised to sign $800m deal for Ukrainian shale gas August 31, 2011 ROYAL DUTCH Shell, the world’s largest oil producer, is poised to sign an $800m (£492m) deal to explore and develop shale gas fields in the Ukraine, a presidential official told journalists yesterday. President Viktor Yanukovich’s chief of staff said Shell and Naftogaz, the Ukrainian state-run gas and oil company, intend to sign a deal today [...]
Higher taxes hurt profit at JKX Oil as the firm forgoes dividend August 31, 2011 SHARES in FTSE 250-listed JKX Oil and Gas fell more than four per cent yesterday after the energy group posted a drop in first-half operating profit, weighed down mainly by higher taxes in Ukraine. Pre-tax profits at the eastern Europe-focused oil group fell 32 per cent to $32.7m (£20.1m) for the six months to 30 [...]
FTSE edges up as investors eye US strategy August 31, 2011 The FTSE 100 opened solidly this morning as investors kept their eyes on the situation across the Atlantic with hopes still alive that the US Federal Reserve will trigger stimulus measures to boost the struggling economy. US stocks rose for a third straight day yesterday in a volatile session, after minutes from the latest Federal [...]
Bailiffs raid Moscow office of BP unit August 31, 2011 Bailiffs raided BP’s Moscow offices on Wednesday, causing new problems for the oil company a day after ExxonMobil signed a deal that ended BP’s hopes of developing Arctic offshore oil fields with Russia. The morning raid, in which about 15 black-clad special force officers entered the central Moscow headquarters of BP Trading and sealed it [...]
Britain’s golden girl Ennis settles for silver August 30, 2011 BRITAIN’S wait for a first World Championship gold medal in Daegu will stretch into a fourth day after London 2012 poster girl Jessica Ennis surrendered her heptathlon crown to Russia’s Tatyana Chernova. The Sheffield-born athlete held a 151-point advantage over Chernova heading into the second day of competition, but a disappointing performance in the javelin [...]
BP out in the cold as Exxon inks deal with Rosneft August 30, 2011 EXXONMOBIL has won a highly coveted contract with Russia’s Rosneft to develop offshore oil fields in the Arctic. The $3.2bn (£1.96bn) deal comes as a major blow for British rival BP, who just seven months ago announced “a groundbreaking strategic global alliance” with Russia’s state-owned oil company that was later abandoned after objections from shareholders [...]
Miners and bankers lead rush to share in European success August 30, 2011 BRITAIN’S top shares advanced yesterday, playing catch-up with Europe after a long holiday weekend, led by miners and banks as brokers argued that the recent stock market sell-off has thrown up bargains in the two sectors. JP Morgan highlighted opportunities among miners following their poor performance in August, seeing rewards for those prepared to buy [...]
Exxon ties up Arctic deal with Rosneft August 30, 2011 US oil giant Exxon and Russian peer Rosneft are to jointly develop oil and gas reserves in the Russian Arctic, opening up one of the last unconquered drilling frontiers to the global industry No.1. The deal has ended any hope of BP reviving its own pact with Rosneft to develop the same Arctic territory – [...]
Rusal profit drops by 70pc as costs soar August 29, 2011 RUSAL, the world’s third largest aluminium producer, reported a sharper than expected drop in second-quarter profits after rising costs and a weaker US Dollar outweighed price rises and increased production at the company. The Russia-based company, controlled by billionaire Oleg Deripaska (pictured), said its second-quarter net profit fell 70 per cent to $339m (£206.8m) from [...]
Turner prize: Brit claims surprise bronze after Robles is disqualified August 29, 2011 BRITAIN’S Andy Turner claimed bronze in the 110m hurdles at the World Championships in Daegu after he profited from the second high-profile disqualification in the space of 24 hours. Olympic champion Dayron Robles made contact with China’s Liu Xiang and was disqualified, just as 100m world record holder Usain Bolt was on Sunday for a [...]