On 12 February 2020, BP’s new CEO, Bernard Looney, announced the company's new ambition – to become a net-zero company by 2050 or sooner, and help the world get to net-zero. Mr Looney said the world’s carbon budget is finite and running out fast; which is why a rapid transition to net-zero is needed. “We all want energy that is reliable and affordable, but that is no longer enough. It must also be cleaner. To deliver that, trillions of dollars will need to be invested in replumbing and rewiring the world’s energy system. It will require nothing short of reimagining energy as we know it.” He ... more

Wood Mackenzie (Wood Mac) consultant, Yujiao Lei, has provided commentary on the impact of the novel coronavirus on oil demand. The novel coronavirus (or COVID-19) was first reported in Wuhan, the capital city of the Hubei Province, China, in December 2019. The outbreak was declared a public health emergency of international concern by the World Health Organisation (WHO) on 30 January 2020. According to WHO's 27th Situation Report, as at 16 February 2020, there were 51,857 laboratory-confirmed cases of COVID-19, globally. Mr Lei says the ongoing COVID-19 outbreak and subsequent large-scale quarantine me... more

Data released by the International Energy Agency (IEA) indicates that, despite widespread expectations of another increase, global energy-related carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions stopped growing in 2019. After two years of growth, the IEA data outlines that global energy-related emissions flattened in 2019 at around 33 gigatonnes - even though the world economy expanded by 2.9 per cent. This was primarily due to declining emissions from electricity generation in advanced economies, thanks to the expanding role of renewable sources (mainly wind and solar), fuel switching from coal to natural gas, and higher n... more

In late January 2020, the Commonwealth and NSW governments revealed that a $2 billion energy agreement had been made that would help to ‘lower power prices for consumers, reduce emissions and strengthen grid reliability'. Through the partnership, both governments committed to delivering a number of initiatives that aim to: increase gas and electricity supply in NSW by encouraging investment; improve grid security by supporting transmission interconnection and network access; and support emissions reduction projects that deliver genuine abatement.   The more than $2 billion deal include... more

Explorers have been invited by the Queensland Government to 'stake their claim' on more than 7,000 square kilometres of land in Queensland’s world-class Bowen and Surat Basins. Member for Mackay, Julieanne Gilbert, said the 12 petroleum and gas exploration areas that are up for grabs as part of the 2020 Queensland Exploration Program are in prime spots located near infrastructure to get gas from the well to Queensland’s export ports. The tender areas provide opportunities for CSG and other unconventional gas, and for conventional oil and gas exploration. The areas are supported by a network of regional... more

Some of the largest resource and energy companies, downstream distributors and utilities operating in Australia have or have committed to donating to help provide support and relief for Australian’s suffering from the bushfire crisis. It is estimated that the 2019-20 Australian bushfires have already burned more than 10.3 million hectares of land, destroyed over 5,900 buildings (including over 2,000 homes) and killed at least 27 people. Chris Dickman, a professor of ecology at the University of Sydney, also estimates that more than one billion animals have been impacted by bushfires nationally. A numb... more

BP has agreed terms to sell its interests in the Andrew area in the central UK North Sea and its non-operating interest in the Shearwater field. BP operates the Andrew assets – comprising the Andrew platform, the Andrew (62.75 per cent), Arundel (100 per cent), Cyrus (100 per cent), Farragon (50 per cent) and Kinnoull (77.06 per cent) fields and associated subsea infrastructure. It also holds a 27.5 per cent stake in the Shell-operated Shearwater field. Under the terms of the new deal, Premier Oil will pay BP $625 million. In commenting on the news, BP North Sea regional president, Ariel Flores, said ... more