NEWS (Mar 31, 2010) BP CNOOC JOINT VENTURE SELECTS AL KHORAYEF. Source: BP press release, Houston Chronicle, & member reports. Al Khorayef is awarded the major BP contract to supply critical ESP production equipment and related artificial lift services for the Rumaila field in Iraq. Baker Hughes Centrilift is to share in a portion of the $100 million award. BP most impressed with Al Khorayef Middle East factory infrastructure, regional engineering and service support, and operations logistics. "Thumbs up to Al Khorayef and their advanced capabilities to regionally manufacture world class ESP equipment. Local service support is also key." A member's opinion - if not already, Khorayef is destined to be the #1 ESP product and service provider in the Middle East. BP and CNNOC's investment in ordering Al Khorayef technology and services for the vital Rumaila field is further evidence of big changes in the ESP market landscape.

UPDATE IRAQ (Mar 27, 2010) Basrah – The Rumaila oil fields, North and South, are getting their biggest face lift in a long time and at a rate which will see the fields doubling their production within three years to some 2 million barrels per day. At a joint management committee (JMC) meeting last week, the second so far since the Rumaila service contract won by BP and CNPC in June 2009 became effective Dec. 17, several major contracts worth over $600 million were awarded. Drilling contractor awards confirmed to us today : Contracts for the drilling of 56 wells went to a Chinese company which will provide 3 rigs, Iraq Drilling Co. (IDC) jointly with Schlumberger will provide another 3 rigs and a seventh rig is to be provided by Weatherford. An Iraqi based source to ESPlift.com tells us that two ESP suppliers apparently have been awarded contracts totalling what is expected to be over $120 million during the duration of the contract. As soon as we can further confirm, ESP awards news will be posted. Reference, click here for a list and map of Iraqi oilfields and the respective operator / partner.

NEWS - GOM PRODUCTION FACTOID (Mar 26, 2010). Despite all the billions spent on offshore development, US oil production in the Gulf of Mexico has not grown in the half-decade since Hurricane Katrina left her mark. In fact, production in the region has only recently climbed back to its pre-Katrina mark of roughly 1.6 million b/d.

NEWS - Al Qaeda planning Saudi oil attack (Mar 25, 2010) Source: Alert Net and member reports. The al Qaeda chief target is Abqaiq, the largest producing reservior in the world, and most prolific of the Saudi Ghawar field (5 million b/d!). Major attack foiled - 113 militants arrested, almost half were Yemenis. Henry Wilkinson, a counter-terrorism expert at Janusian security consultants in London, said the arrests showed the Saudi oil sector remained a priority target for al Qaeda. Their regional arm, al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), in Yemen "represents a consistent, if not growing threat to the oil sector and Western interests in the region", he said.

NEWS - Wall Street ponders - Halliburton looking for Artificial Lift acquisitions? (Mar 5, 2010) Source: Business Week. "Schlumberger’s purchase (of Smith Int'l) may pressure Halliburton to accelerate or more aggressively pursue acquisitions it’s been working on," said Tom Curran, an analyst at Wells Fargo Securities. "Artificial lift may become a “must-have” business for Halliburton," Curran said in a note to clients.

NEWS - Caspian CPC update. (Mar 3, 2010) Source: CPC website data. Kazakh and Russian oil exports via the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) fell 10.3 percent to 713,400 barrels per day (bpd) in February from 796,100 bpd in January. The consortium transported 20,002,463 barrels of CPC Blend CPC-E in February versus 23,680,144 barrels in January. The pipeline group is led by U.S. major Chevron and includes Russian pipeline company Transneft, ExxonMobil, Shell Oil, and LUKOIL. CPC state shareholders Russia and Kazakhstan own 31 percent and 19 percent of CPC respectively. The group exports CPC Blend from a terminal near the Russian port of Novorossiisk. Russian companies such as Rosneft, Surgutneftegas, & TNK-BP also ship crude via CPC. In 2009, CPC transported 34.574 million tonnes of oil, up from 31.470 million tonnes in 2008.

NEWS Kuwait to import gas by 2019 (Mar 1, 2010) Source: BMI. The latest Kuwait Oil & Gas Report from BMI forecasts that the country will account for 2.68% of Middle East (ME) regional oil demand by 2014, while providing 10.65% of supply. Regional oil use of 8.24mn barrels per day (b/d) in 2001 rose to an estimated 11.38mn b/d in 2009. It should average 11.66mn b/d in 2010 and then rise to around 12.68mn b/d by 2014. Regional oil production was 22.87mn b/d in 2001 and in 2009 averaged an estimated 24.79mn b/d. It is set to rise to 28.65mn b/d by 2014. Oil exports are growing steadily because demand growth is lagging the pace of supply expansion. In 2001, the region was exporting an average 14.63mn b/d. This total had fallen to an estimated 13.41mn b/d in 2009, but is forecast to reach 15.96mn b/d by 2014. Iraq has the greatest production growth potential, followed by Qatar. Between 2009 and 2019, expect an increase in Kuwaiti oil production of 45.1%, with crude volumes rising steadily to 3.65mn b/d by year 2019. Domestic Kuwaiti oil consumption between 2009 and 2019 is set to increase by 33.0%, with growth slowing to an assumed 3.0% per annum towards the end of the period and the country using 403,000b/d by 2019. Gas production is expected to climb to almost 27bcm by the end of the period. This translates to a demand growth of 167.6%, so expect actual gas import requirements of more than 16bcm by 2019.

NEWS (Feb 3, 2010) Source: WSJ. CNOOC 2010 Investments: US$1.47 billion will go toward exploration, US$4.81 billion will be used to develop oil and gas fields and US$1.50 billion will be spent on production. CNOOC is targeting production of 275 million to 290 million barrels of oil equivalent this year, up from 226 million to 228 million BOE in 2009. The 2010 output forecast is based on an estimated West Texas Intermediate crude price of $75 a barrel this year. The company targets growth in oil and gas output at a compound annual rate of 6%-10% between 2011 and 2015. In 2010, CNOOC plans to drill more than 95 exploration wells, and its exploration will continue to focus on offshore China. Two to three deepwater wells are planned in China and nine new projects are expected to come onstream this year, including major projects in Bohai Bay and areas in the western part of the South China Sea.

NEWS (Jan 25, 2010) Source: Member reports. Update - Ongoing Centrilift personnel matters. Confirming rumours from late last year, local news media in the Tulsa area (click here) have announced that about 100 Centrilift factory employees in Claremore are being moved to Baker Hughes Houston in what appears to be the first big wave of transfers. Members opine that Baker Hughes would move all operations from Claremore to Houston immediately if possible not to disrupt manufacturing. Is it only a short time before Claremore loses its Centrilift factory? Within a day of these news releases, there'd been a turn of events. Media interview with Gary Flaharty of parent company Baker Hughes in Houston apparently repudiates, click here. ESPlift.com welcomes Centrilift to tell us the whole story directly, and we'd be pleased to publish it.

NEWS (Jan 14, 2010) Source: Members and Saudi Arabian news sources. Update - YEMEN. The intensified campaign against al-Qaeda comes as Yemen's government seeks even more economic and development aid to combat extreme levels of poverty, unemployment and illiteracy. World leaders are scheduled to meet in London on Jan. 28 to discuss ways to combat Islamic radicalization in Yemen. The government is besieged with multiple emergencies, including a civil war in the north and a secessionist movement in the south. Even as the government takes on al-Qaeda, its five-month-old offensive against Shiite rebels in the north is intensifying. Yemeni Interior Ministry officials said yesterday that at least 15 rebels were killed in clashes over the past two days; a day earlier, a Saudi defense official said the kingdom's forces had killed hundreds of Yemeni rebels inside Saudi territory. Saudi Arabia entered the conflict in November after a Yemeni rebel raid into its territory. Saudi Arabia's assistant defense minister, Prince Khaled bin Sultan, told reporters that clashes with the Yemeni rebels have killed 82 Saudi soldiers, underscoring the toll the kingdom is enduring even as it conducts airstrikes and uses heavy firepower against the rebels.

NEWS (Dec 4, 2009) Source: Lucia Kassai & Helder Marinho. --- Petroleo Brasileiro plans to expand its $174.4 billion investment program as it develops offshore fields in the so-called pre-salt region. Petrobras is to announce the expanded 2009-2013 plan in the first quarter, Chief Executive Officer Jose Sergio Gabrielli said at an event in Sao Paulo today. He said the company may increase investments in “all areas,” including oil exploration, production and refining, as well as fertilizer output and electricity projects. Petrobras is investing to boost production by more than half and develop the Tupi field, the Americas’ largest oil discovery in more than three decades. Goal is to increase total output to 3.7 million barrels a day by 2013, up 52 percent from 2.4 million at the end of last year. By 2020, Petrobras expects to have more than doubled oil production to 5.7 million barrels a day.

NEWS (Nov 17, 2009) Source: Company news. ATCO Oil & Gas Integrated Services has opened a first of its kind downhole & surface gauge factory and service facility in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia's 2nd Industrial City. Located adjacent to Abqaiq, the facility comprises over 2500 sq meters of plant space for assembly, repairs, parts inventory, factory acceptance testing, and laboratories. Mr. Bill M. Moses, General Manager of ATCO's Oil & Gas Service Division comments, "Our objective is to provide the highest level of service to our customers in the Middle East region. Our location next to the most prolific production reserviors in the world is an investment to best serve our customers. It's about getting close to our customers to help them solve problems, improve their operations, and optimize their performance. For example, Saudi Aramco production operations require a high value service package, and that is exactly what we deliver. Our objective it to be the best, and meet Aramco's requirements 100%. And it's not just our continuing investment in our local presence and our people, it's also our commitment to quality and service. These are our top goals."

NEWS (Nov 10, 2009) Source: Member reports. Another one gone. John Kenner is no longer an employee of Centrilift or Baker Hughes, having only recently been named product line president at Centrilift, of Claremore Oklahoma. Hired by bit manufacturer Hughes Christenson, he was recently transferred to Centrilift from Houston. (Update Feb 2010: Good news: Having left the oil & gas industry, Kenner has landed work in a management position with a New York City based building escalator and elevator company named Schindler Elevator.) Who knows? Member reports cite that Baker is combining Baker Oil Tools, Centrilift and BJ Services into one operating division, naming Neil Harrop, President - Completions and Production. Luis Moncada is now the Vice President of Artificial Lift - in essence what previously may have been the top executive position of ex-Centrilift. Expect further changes, as more upcoming layoffs from Baker Hughes are said to be around the corner during the latest round of downsizing and shared services.

NEWS (Oct 20, 2009) Source: Sydney Morning Herald. China's economy will need more than 11 million barrels of oil a day in five years, 38 per cent more than last year, according to Paul Ting, a Chinese oil and gas consultant."Chinese oil companies are very keen to gain stakes in large oilfields that are nearing production or are in the development stages,'' Thomas Grieder, a London analyst at the market intelligence firm IHS Global Insight, said. "The Government is keen to secure long-term supplies."

NEWS ( Oct 12, 2009) click on photo to enlarge. Source: AK. ALKHORAYEF OPENS NEW FACTORY IN LIBYA. Continuing its commitment to invest in ESP service and manufacturing close to its loyal oil & gas company customers whom Alkhorayf serves, AK's latest global expansion now includes the largest ESP factory and service center of its kind in North Africa. The new build facility is the center for training, service, manufacturing and full repair support, and has the capacity to manufacture more than 3600 submersible pumps annually. The area on which the factory is built is about 11,000 sq meters including a headquarter's building on 1200 sq meters, main maintenance building on 1250 sq meters, a dedicated engine propelling building on 350 sq meters- first of its kind in Libya, a bonded warehouse on 375 sq meters, a 9000 sq meter area for storage, a residence area for staff, a cafe and entertainment & exercise facility space. Editor's notes: Evidence that Al Khorayef is becoming one of the leading ESP manufacturing and service companies in the world. This type of 24/7 service and mfg investment directly in the markets it serves is right on target with operators' requirements. Customers around the world are now realizing the benefits of a new and experienced ESP service and supply provider.

NEWS (Oct 11, 2009) Source: Royal Dutch Shell. Royal Dutch Shell PLC plans to make gas roughly half of its total production by 2012, its chief executive officer said on Oct. 8. “This is not merely a shift in our portfolio. Increasing natural gas production and transportation by liquefying it and shipping the LNG to global markets means that more natural gas will be available to displace coal as the fuel for power plants,” Peter Voser said in an address at the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars. “In the United States, new technology has opened up abundant gas resources contained in dense rock formations, increasing supplies dramatically,” Voser said, adding, “So you can see why I’m sometimes tempted to say: Nothing beats natural gas.” Responding to questions following his talk, Voser said Shell will expand gas’s share of its total production beyond 2012. Shell is negotiating to capture gas that currently is flared in southern Iraq and export it as LNG, he said.

NEWS- IRAN LOOKS TO JOIN NABUCCO (Oct 10, 2009) Source - Russia Today. Iran says it will supply half the capacity for the Nabucco international gas pipeline & invite foreign firms to overhaul its decrepit gas infrastructure.Two years ago, Nabucco developer OMV said it would make "no sense" not to source from Iran. But Tehran's failure to engage with the project has shifted focus to the likes of Azerbaijan, and Iraq. Until now. At the World Gas Conference in Argentina, the Irananian state's energy holding pledged to pump $5 billion in the next 5 years to bring its network to world standards. Azizollah Ramazani, Managing Director of the National Iranian Gas Company, says a key focus is Nabucco.

OPINION POLLS - 91% SAY TO END THE FED! (Oct 2, 2009) Source: B. Beers CNBC report. A recent poll of 19,867 sampled voters indicated that 91% of Americans want the Federal Reserve abolished! Wouldn't that indicate that the "emergency interventions" of the past year or so are not appreciated? The leading nemisis of the Federal Reserve, U.S. Congressman Ron Paul writes, "The Fed is using all its power to drive the monetary base to unprecedented heights, creating trillions in new money out of thin air. From April 2008 to April 2009, the adjusted monetary base shot up from $856 billion to an unbelievable $1.749 trillion. Was there any new wealth created? New production? No, this was the Ben Bernanke printing press at work. If you and I did anything similar, we would be called counterfeiters and be sent away for a lifetime in prison. But, when the Fed does it - complete with a scientific gloss - it is seen as the perfectly legal and responsible conduct of monetary policy." On the inflation front, Paul adds "It's as if we still believe that money can be grown on trees, and we don't stop to realize that if it did grow on trees, it would take on the value of leaves in the fall, to be either mulched or bagged and put in a landfill. That is to say, it would be worthless." IT'S NO WONDER THAT INVESTORS WORLDWIDE ARE FLEEING TO HARD ASSETS LIKE OIL AND GOLD! When will Americans wake up and do something about their Federal government?

RECAP (Sept 3, 2009) Source - BP.Thunder Horse / Gulf of Mexico - Deepwater horsepower. Production engineering excellence. Read a superb project summary about BP and co-owner Exxon Mobil challenges and successes, by clicking here.

NEWS (Sept 2, 2009) Source - Arab News. Economy up, up, up in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The Saudi Arabian Monetary Agency (SAMA) announced Monday the following stats: GDP growing at 4.5%, money supply rose 17.7%, non-oil exports rose 23.2% year to year.

NEWS (Sept 1, 2009) Source - BBC. Eurozone jobless at 10-year high. Unemployment levels across the 16 countries that use the euro hit a 10-year high in July, as the impact of the recession continued to be felt. The number of people 'officially' unemployed across the eurozone region totalled 15.1 million people. "Even though some eurozone countries returned to growth in the 2nd quarter, and others are likely to follow in the 3rd quarter, we suspect that economic activity will remain too weak to actually generate net jobs until at least the 2nd half of 2010," said economist Howard Archer of IHS Global Insight. The unemployment rate in July was again highest in Spain, where it rose to 18.5% from 18.2% in June.

NEWS (Aug 28, 2009) Source - Piovano. Is the oil rally actually a flight from the dollar? To a lot of big investors, oil looks like a pretty safe place to park money right now. "Oil became a safe haven as traders lost confidence in the U.S. banking system (and) ran to oil to protect themselves from the deteriorating economic world around us," said PFGBest analyst Phil Flynn. "Now some critics call that excessive speculation but what I call it is reflection of the reality. You have to remember the value of any commodity when expressed in a currency will ultimately be determined by the confidence and faith (or lack of confidence & faith) in that underlying instrument(i.e. - the dollar)." Meanwhile, the gap between natural gas prices and oil continues to widen. It seems nothing can prop up prices for natural gas, which hit seven-year lows this week. There is so much gas being pumped into the ground that the U.S. is running out of places to store it. That is largely because big energy users, like manufacturers, have cut back severely on operations as they ride out the recession. Natural gas prices fell 11 cents to $3.095 per 1,000 cubic feet.

NEWS (Aug 23, 2009) Source - Member reports. Under the radar, CNPC has signed a MOU with the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC), in which CNPC promised to pay 90% of the development costs of South Azadegan Oil Field, and would take a 70% stake in the project. The oil field is one of Iran's largest onshore oil fields, as well as one of the world's largest finds in the past 30 years according to proven reserves. Just two months ago, CNPC took over Total's equity in a gas field in South Pars, an off-shore field shared between Iran and Qatar, and become the developer of the project. The gas field is not only the largest in Iran, but also the largest in the world. Including the deal for the Rumaila Oil Field, whose oil production will account for 74% of China's total in future, within two months, CNPC has been involved in three world level projects in the Middle East.

NEWS (Aug 22, 2009) Source -Dallas News - Forbes names Exxon Mobil its Green Company of the Year - and tells why. Exxon Mobil is spending billions of dollars to boost production of natural gas, a cleaner fuel than oil or coal. Natural gas emits less carbon dioxide than other fossil fuels, offering an immediate solution to cutting greenhouse gas emissions. Without natural gas from the likes of Exxon, the U.S. couldn't meet the greenhouse gas restrictions Congress is contemplating.

NEWS (August 8, 2009) Source - Forbes. Deleveraging vs Inflation - The cost of escaping an economic Depression, - HYPERINFLATION will roar ahead following a brief calm in the storm. Short term interest rates likely to be higher than in the 1970's. How will oil prices be affected?

NEWS (August 7, 2009) Source - Member reports. Latest regarding the Russian oil & gas equipment consortium, Yury Maslyukov is now Chairman and leading the Association of Oil and Gas Equipment Producers (AOGEP). The association's strategy is to secure and regain market share from Western service companies and assist to 'manage' profits amongst Russian business members. The association unites major enterprises such as “Uralvagonzavod”, “Barrikadi”, “Voronezhski mekhanitcheski zavod”, “Zvezdochka”, “Votkinski zavod”, “Krasnoyarski mashinostroitelni zavod”, “UralAZ”, “ElAZ”, “Tcheliabinski traktorni zavod”, “Atommash”, “Izhorskie zavodi”, and “Nizhegorodski mashinostroitelni zavod”. In addition, the association is targeting consortium activities in world markets, - looking to joint venture and partner with local enterprise in order to compete with Western mfgs / service companies in certain lucrative markets such as Venezuela, China, and the Middle East. Mr Maslyukov held high level state planning positions during the USSR Soviet Bloc days, key positions in the Duma, and has been awarded the Order of Lenin, Order of October Revolution, Order of Red Banner of Labor, Order of Honor, and other government awards.

NEWS (July 25, 2009) Source - Estrella Mexicana. Mexico's state oil company says production fell 7.5 percent in the first six months of the year. Petroleos Mexicanos, known as Pemex, says its oil output averaged 2.6 million b/d, compared to 2.8 million b/d during the same period of 2008. Exports dropped 15 percent to 1.2 M b/d. According to Raúl Muñoz Leos, a former Pemex director, the primary problem lies in the rapid decline of Cantarell reserves and the failure to develop other fields. Muñoz said production levels rose steadily from 2002 to 2004, encouraging company directors to predict a continuation of this trend. "We established a production goal of 4 million b/d by 2006, but by mid-2005 production levels began to decline," he said.

NEWS (July 23, 2009) Source - member reports. Heard on the Street section of ESPlift.com - confirm rumours that Schlumberger Reda looking at acquisition of Alnas.... Storyline developing. Schlumberger, Alnas and members invited to post latest news and updates.

NEWS (July 14, 2009) Source IEA. David Fyfe, head of the International Energy Agency's oil industry and markets division has said the worldwide consumption of crude oil will increase by 1.4 million barrels a day, or 1.7%, to 85.2 million barrels a day next year. The growth will be concentrated in emerging economies outside the Organisation for Economic Cooperation and Development. 'There's still a strong note of caution. Demand data coming in for 2009 is still weak on a trend basis,' Fyfe said.

NEWS (July 4, 2009) Source - Member reports. CHINA SOFT MONEY IN HUNT FOR OIL. Chinese state-owned oil company Sinopec is negotiating its first oil exploration and production deal in Brazil with Petrobras. Sinopec ownership in oil exploration projects was a condition of the $10 billion loan obtained last month by Petrobras from China. The soft loan, the largest yet obtained by Petrobras, was arranged with China Development Bank and calls for the Brazilian company to increase its oil sales to Sinopec subsidiary Unipec Asia to 150,000 bpd in 2009 and 200,000 bpd over the following nine years.

NEWS (July 2, 2009) Source - KSA reports. Iraq plans a quick second bidding round after the disastrous first round this week. Foreign operators will obviously have another chance to bid. The country's second major bidding round for oil deals was supposed to be at the end of the year....

NEWS (July 2, 2009) Source - South China Morning Post. CHINA IN A TORRENT TO ACQUIRE OIL. China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC) plans to revive a $17 billion bid for the Argentinian unit of Spanish oil major Repsol-YPF. CNPC may offer to buy up to three-quarters of YPF, tapping into soft money from Chinese banks. China National Offshore Oil Corporation was also eyeing a 25% stake. A Repsol spokesperson said the company has received “lots of proposals, ideas and suggestions from companies in China, India and Russia” but no “firm offer”. Only last month, the largest foreign takeover by a Chinese company was announced, with Sinopec’s $7.2bn agreed bid for Addax Petroleum, active in west Africa and Iraqi Kurdistan. Heads up, China rapidly shifting investments into direct hard consummable commodities, and away from newly printed dollars and US Treasury bonds sending a firm message to the US Federal Reserve and Obama Administration.

NEWS (July 2, 2009) Source - Member reports. Reda terminated 60 employees a couple of weeks ago in Bartlesville. SLB claims this was done as part of the overall oilfield service sector slowdown. Quoting & PO activity is slow. REDA in Bartlesville is going to a 4-day work week beginning July 6.

NEWS (July 2, 2009) Middle East Member reports. Iraq rejects ALL foreign oil deals from bids submitted two days ago! Details: Bai Hassan oilfied - ConocoPhillips offered $26.70 per barrel payback after investment to work the field, Iraq wanted to give them only $4 ! Group bid by Sinopec, ENI Medio Orient, OXY,& Kogas for the Zubair oilfield - bid $4.80 barrel payback, Iraq offered to give them $2. China's CNOOC and Sinopec wanted $25.40/barrel for oil extracted from the Maysan field, but Iraq countered to pay them only $2.30. In the case of $2 a barrel offered by Iraq, companies would only receive 95 cents after paying 35% in taxes and 25% of after tax income to their associated national oil company. Ouch!

NEWS (July 1, 2009) Member reports - Baker Hughes Centrilift fires many long-time experienced employees last week - over 40, including senior engineering staff. Among engineering staff, 20 fired since January alone. Yet, many young grads are expected to be hired the next few weeks. Out with the old, in with the new. Member reports cite that the much ballyhooed BAKER1 program mandated by Houston corporate already off on wrong foot. Members reminisce previous corporate failures - ever heard of BHI Project Renaissance? Among other service companies, SLB Reda has fired undisclosed number of employees, and WORKWEEK REDUCTIONS TO FOUR DAYS A WEEK is to be implemented to save costs, and improve the bottom line. Borets WFT also instigated RIF. Looking for work? www.OilGas.pro

NEWS (June 18, 2009) . Source - Reuters and member reports. Chinese President Hu Jintao and Russia's Dmitry Medvedev met privately in Moscow, following BRIC meetings this week. Medvedev said the two sides had agreed to a record $100 billion in oil & gas deals.Coinciding with Hu's visit, Russia's Economic Development Ministry released figures showing that in the first months of 2009, China had become Russia's biggest trading partner, overtaking Germany and the Netherlands. Hu invited Putin to visit Beijing in October. The two leaders know each other well, having met several times when Putin was president of Russia from 2000-2008.

NEWS (June 15, 2009) . Source - BP. The latest edition of the BP Statistical Review of World Energy, published last week, shows that, for the first time, total oil demand in the emerging markets now outstrips the West. That's an important milestone. From now on, the Western world can slump but global oil prices can stay "fundamentally" strong. As the graphs in the report show, - Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) now account for over 20pc of global GDP – the same share as the US, the world's largest crude importer. Over the next few years, the BRICs' share of global commerce, along with that of all the other emerging markets, continues to rise sharply. So what's the effect on oil futures? In each of these fast-industrialising, energy-hungry societies, per capita oil use will continue to crank up from its current low base. That's why global crude demand will soar over the medium-term, even if Western growth barely recovers....

NEWS (June 3, 2009) . Source - SABC & Member reports. Chevron has recently completed the first phase of testing its new steam flooding technique in the Neutral Zone between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait. Chevron plans to continue with a second phase of testing in July. In the upcoming second testing phase, steam will be injected into 16 wells. The testing will run for three years to assess the oilfield’s recovery potential and could then go full field in 2017. ESPLIFT members are invited to submit follow up reports.

NEWS (May 28, 2009) . Source - CNBC interview. Investment is not economically plausible below $70 a barrel, said OPEC’s Secretary General Abdalla El-Badri. He did not think $50 a barrel oil would permit investment in the future, he said. "I think we can live with 75, 85, 90 dollars, more or less, but we don't want to see a very high price because it's not to our benefit," he said. Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi has been stressing that investment is crucial at this time.

NEWS (May 20, 2009) GREEN COUNTRY ESP SOLD FOR $26M. Source - Member reports and GOS website. Global Oilfield Services will acquire Green Country Submersible Pumps from Oklahoma City-based Chaparral Energy LLC - deal to close on June 6. Revenue goal - $250M in 5 yrs. Chapparal had purchased Green Country for about $9M a few years back. Member reports - Larry Crow, previously of Baker Hughes, had led an unsuccessful effort by Baker Hughes to acquire Green Country. The acquisition includes the Hominy, OK manufacturing operations, which employs about 80 people, and service and operations centers in Pauls Valley and Gillette, Wyoming. GOS also announced a new $100 million line of equity from Pine Brook Road Partners LLC. The Houston company eventually plans to invest a portion of that new line of equity on expanding the Green Country operations. Watch out for your core Reda, ESPI and Centrilift. How will yet another well capitalized ESP vendor affect valuations in the ESP industry?

NEWS (March 10, 2009) PETROBRAS - 2 MILLION B/D. Source - PR News. Petrobras set a daily oil production record in Brazil on March 6th: 2,012,654 b/d. Three new production platforms have gone on stream in the past few months, in the Campos Basin (state of Rio de Janeiro): the P-53 and Cidade de Niteroi, in the Marlim Leste field; and the P-51, in Marlim Sul.

NEWS (March 6, 2009) EUROPE'S BANKS FACE A $2 TRILLION SHORTAGE. Source - Daily Telegraph. What's the effect on oil prices as the recession unfolds worldwide, and as the see saw of current deflation and anticipated inflation rocks the market? See member ESPLIFT editorials for comments. The BIS said European and British banks have relied on an “unstable” source of funding, borrowing in their local currencies to finance “long positions in US dollars”. Much of this has to be rolled over in short-term debt markets. “The build-up of large net US dollar positions exposed these banks to funding risk, or the risk that their funding positions could not be rolled over,” said the BIS. The report, entitled “US dollar shortage in global banking”, helps explain why there has been such a frantic scramble for dollars each time the credit crisis takes a turn for the worse. Many investors have been wrong-footed by the powerful rally in the dollar against almost all currencies, except the yen.

NEWS (March 2, 2009) IRAN SAYS OPEC HAS NO PLANS TO CUT PRODUCTION Source- China Post. Iran's official news agency says the Iranian Oil Ministry said OPEC would not make any decision to cut production in its March meeting. The Sunday report by IRNA quotes Iran's Oil Minister Gholam Hossein Nozari as saying member countries of the organization, “will make no decision for further cuts of production of their crude.”

OUCH !
NEWS (Feb 26, 2009) TAXES - OIL & GAS INDUSTRY. Source - OMB. Obama's new budget for coming decade - tax increase changes to bite the industry. What will be the effects on you, your business and future oil production?
• $5.3 billion - excise tax on Gulf of Mexico oil and gas
•$3.4 billion - repeal expensing of tangible drilling costs
•$62 million - repeal deduction for tertiary injectants
•$49 million - repeal passive loss exception for working interests in oil and natural gas properties
•$13 billion - repeal manufacturing tax deduction for oil and natural gas companies
•$1 billion - increase to 7 years geological and geophysical amortization period for independent producers

NEWS (Feb 25, 2009) Source-Member reports. EUROPEAN PROTESTS GROWING. Yesterday - over 100,000 in Dublin, Ireland take to the streets. See past reports previous months below.

NEWS (Feb 24, 2009) Source-Member reports. BATTEN DOWN THE HATCHES. Round 2 - More firings on the way ? Phase II of esp industry layoffs planned for next 3-4 weeks. All three major ESP manufacturers preparing. Who remembers all throughout the 80's and late 90's ? Old guard core talent base in peril.

NEWS (Feb 20, 2009) Source-Member reports. Updates on OXY layoffs - OXY had staff reductions of 100 last week. 30 in Houston, the rest worldwide. Many offered early retirement packages, etc. Paring down, as new rumors say the cut will approach 5% of worldwide workforce.

NEWS (Feb 19, 2009) Source-RIA Novosti & Tehran Times. Russia is seeking two loans worth a total of $25 billion from China for its state-controlled oil firm Rosneft and Transneft pipeline operator. Speaking in Beijing today, Russia’s deputy prime minister, Igor Sechin insists “This is our third meeting as part of our energy dialogue in the last seven months, and it must bring results,” opening the talks. The proposed deal would allow energy-hungry China to secure an annual supply of 110 million bbls of crude for 20 years. China is seen turning to Russia, Kazakhstan, and countries in Africa and South America, to ensure energy security.

NEWS (Feb 18, 2009) Source- OMB 2009 US Budget - over $11,500 per person! Massive increase in debt to GNP ratio. The Obama administration forecasts a budget deficit of $1.75 trillion in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30. That’s 23% higher than a forecast by economists at primary debt dealer Goldman Sachs Group Inc., and equivalent to about 12 percent of the nation’s gross domestic product. What will be the affect of coming inflation on oil prices. Assuming success of recovery, how will demand side of equation affect oil prices, concomitant with supposed inflation? Who predicts $200 - 300 + b/d oil to come? Far fetched? - look at the late 1960's and 1970's for precedent. From $3 to $32 per barrel - over ten fold increase.

NEWS (Feb 15, 2009) Source-Iran Daily South Korea will deliver 16 oil tankers to Iran in the first four months of 2009, managing director of National Iranian Tanker Company (NITC) said, adding that with the addition of the new vessels, the country’s oil tanker capacity will reach 4.78 million tons. With all these new billion $ tankers, won't Iran be shipping more oil to market?

NEWS (Feb 11, 2009) Source - OECD. Non-OPEC oil supply is expected to grow by 150,000 b/d in 2009 and 130,000 b/d in 2010. The expected growth in non-OPEC supply over the next 2 years comes in stark contrast to the 330,000 b/d decline seen in 2008, which was the result of longer than expected delays in key projects, larger than expected decline rates in mature basins, and supply disruptions in the Gulf of Mexico and Central Asia. The largest sources of growth are the United States, offshore Brazil, and Azerbaijan, offset by large declines in production in Mexico, the North Sea, and Russia. The expected decline in Russian output in 2009 will be minus 160,000 b/d. Russian oil production grew by 3 million b/d from 2000 through 2007, representing 75 percent of total non-OPEC oil production growth over that period.

NEWS (Jan 8, 2009) In Beijing to secure Asian financing, Dr. Mohammad Emadi, director of National Iranian Oil Co., states that Iran is targeting 5.0 million b/d of oil production capacity by 2010, up from 4.2 million b/d now. Recent cuts of 200 k b/d in line with OPEC agreements, "will be sent to storage and sometimes we use this opportunity for overhaul and maintenance".

NEWS (Jan 8, 2009) Confirming ESPlift member reports in December, Schlumberger Ltd., the world’s largest oilfield-services company, eliminated 1,000 jobs in North America yesterday to cut costs and improve ROI. Those fired include contractors, operating and support employees in a number of locations, Stephen Harris, a Houston- based spokesman, said today in an interview. Schlumberger, with headquarters in Houston and Paris, had about 19,000 full-time North American employees, he said. This morning, analysts from Pritchard Capital Partners said in a report they had heard rumors Schlumberger was planning to cut 10 percent of its work force. Is this 5% cut just the beginning? The WSJ reports that Halliburton Corp. said today that it also will be cutting jobs, but provided no details. Substantial Baker Hughes cuts are also imminent according to members. SLB,HAL,& BHI share prices rallied in after market trading on the news, all trading up.

NEWS (Jan 7, 2009) A new wave of protectionism. It may be early, but no doubt in sight. How may it affect world trade, oil & gas, and the oil service industry manufacturing base? Will Chinese yuan pegs and sanctions threaten supply and prices of core industrial stock? - vis a vis Russian gas curtailment. "History may not always repeat but it often rhymes", Mark Twain. See ESPlift.com editorials for more.

NEWS (Jan 7, 2009) NATCO lowers 2009 earnings projections. Natco said its current 2009 outlook was premised on commodity prices for U.S. natural gas averaging $5.50 per thousand cubic feet and oil prices averaging $55 per barrel for the year. Based on these assumptions, the company said it expects U.S. rig count to fall to about 1,450 rigs for 2009, compared with a high of 2,449 in 2008. Note: see mirror image forecast by investment banker G. Allen Brooks, in his mid-December 2008 subscriber report.

NEWS
(Jan 5, 2009)
Putin states new Russian gas policy, "The expenses necessary for developing fields are rising sharply, and this means that despite the current problems in finances the era of cheap energy resources, of cheap gas, is of course coming to an end".

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