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DONALD TRUMP SIGNS EXECUTIVE ORDER EASING OFFSHORE DRILLING REGULATIONS
President Donald Trump signed an executive order to ease regulations on offshore drilling, particularly in the Arctic Ocean, writes Erin Ailworth.
“The order, which takes aim at last-minute Obama administration actions restricting drilling in the Arctic and Atlantic oceans, will likely have limited immediate impact owing to low oil prices, which make drilling in the affected areas economically unattractive,” the Journal reports.
In a signing ceremony, Mr. Trump touted the order as a way to move the country toward energy independence and lift restrictions that have curtailed job and economic growth. Environmentalists criticized Mr. Trump’s action as a damaging reversal of necessary protections for sensitive federal waters.
“Some places are too precious to drill, foremost among them all the Arctic Ocean,” said Jamie Williams, president of the Wilderness Society. “The Arctic Ocean itself is too fragile to develop safely for oil and gas.”
Given low energy prices—after a prolonged downturn U.S. crude is trading under $50 a barrel—it is unclear how much immediate interest oil and gas producers have in developing such expensive-to-drill areas.
Oil prices edged down on Monday.
Brent crude, the global oil benchmark, fell 0.37% to $51.85 a barrel on London’s ICE Futures exchange. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, West Texas Intermediate futures were trading down 0.24% at $49.22 a barrel.
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EXXON, CHEVRON EARNINGS POINT TO SIGN OF STRENGTHENING OIL INDUSTRY
The world’s biggest oil companies are seeing their highest profits in more than a year, reports Bradley Olson.
“Exxon Mobil Corp. on Friday reported its best quarter since 2015, more than doubling profit from the first three months of 2016 when crude prices fell to the lowest level in more than a decade. The company also generated enough cash to pay for new investments and dividends, an increasingly important measure of resilience for big oil companies, which have been piling on debt,” the Journal reports.
Chevron Corp., which reported a quarterly loss last year, on Friday posted a profit of $2.7 billion. The positive results came a day after French energy company Total SA TOT reported a 77% rise.
Royal Dutch Shell PLC and BP PLC, which will report next week, are expected to show sharp increases.
May 01, 2017 at 03:58PM
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from Neanda Salvaterra
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