Awl Bidness



Not only does that affect the Mackenzie but it also puts a (temporary) end to a potential "over the top" pipeline connection to the Mackenzie to provide a transportation outlet for the 17 TCF of stranded Prudhoe Bay gas.



The Canadians only want that gas in order to crack the tar sands.
 


For Big Oil Reserve Size Matters Less

By Ron Bousso


http://pdf.reuters.com/pdfnews/pdfnews.asp?i=43059c3bf0e37541&u=2018-05-14T021636Z_GFXEE5E13NOJP_1_RTRGFXG_BASEIMAGE.jpg


...An analysis by Reuters and Guinness Asset Management of the annual reports of those eight companies shows that the size of their oil and gas reserves, when added together, fell to 91 billion barrels in 2017. That was the lowest since the same amount in 2005.

The reserves of Exxon Mobil, the largest company, shrank by 16 percent since the slump began in 2014. Shell's reserves fell 6.5 percent since then despite the $54 billion acquisition of BG Group in 2016. BP and Chevron's oil and gas reserves increased by a small 5 percent since 2014. Eni was the only one to significantly boost its reserves by over 20 percent thanks to the discovery of the giant Zohr gas field off the coast of Egypt. The cumulative reserve life - the number of years a company can sustain its current production levels with existing reserves - of the eight companies fell to 11.7 years in 2017. That was the lowest level in at least 20 years although that drop is also the result of a sharp increase in production. Reuters does have access to data going back beyond 1998.

Exxon's reserves life shrank from 17 years in 2014 to 15 in 2017. Eni's from 10.6 to 10.1 years despite its discoveries. Shell slipped from 12 to 9 years over the period.

"There is clear deterioration (in reserves) and this will be a problem in time," according to Jonathan Waghorn, manager of the energy fund at Guinness Asset Management. But for now, "10-12 year's reserve life should be fine, so it is not a materially important component between the Majors."



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