Announcing

Speculation was growing Friday that China Offshore Oil Co. Ltd. (CNOOC) was only waiting for Congress to recess before boosting its bid for Unocal and announcing a U.S. partner to take over its U.S. assets.

Royal Dutch/Shell Group’s share price tumbled Friday after announcing it would recategorize nearly 20% of its proved hydrocarbon reserves — about 3.9 billion boe. More than 90% of the total comes from a reduction in proved undeveloped reserves; the remainder in proved developed. The changes would trim proved reserves to 15.6 billion boe from the 19.5 billion boe.

Washington Gas Light Co. (WGL) drew the ire of Dominion Resources last week by announcing that a recently conducted study blames vaporized LNG from Dominion’s Cove Point import terminal in Maryland for widespread leaks on the WGL distribution system in Prince Georges County, MD.

The Coast Guard and the Maritime Administration (MARAD) issued a Federal Register notice on Friday announcing the availability of a draft environmental impact statement (DEIS) on Freeport-McMoRan Energy LLC’s proposed Main Pass Energy Hub liquefied natural gas (LNG) deepwater port license application. The port would be located in the Gulf of Mexico in Main Pass Lease Block 299 at a former sulphur mining facility about 16 miles southeast of Venice, LA, in a water depth of 210 feet. It would utilize four existing platforms, bridges and other structures and would include construction of two additional platforms to support LNG storage tanks (totaling 145,000 cubic meters) and a ship berthing area. The project also would include construction of 192 miles of 12-36 inch diameter pipelines. Main Pass Energy Hub would be developed over an existing salt formation in which storage caverns will be developed with a capacity to store 28 Bcf of natural gas. The terminal is expected to vaporize and deliver 1 Bcf/d of natural gas. Three public meetings will be held on the project on July 18, 19 and 20 in Alabama, Mississippi and Louisiana. A copy of the DEIS is available at http://dms.dot.gov under docket number 17696.

Within an hour of announcing the consummation of a Mitsubishi-ConocoPhillips partnership last week to build a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal in the Port of Long Beach, CA, the backers received some support — albeit qualified — from a leading environmental/renewable energy advocate in California.

Within an hour of announcing the consummation of a Mitsubishi-ConocoPhillips partnership Tuesday to build a proposed liquefied natural gas (LNG) receiving terminal in the Port of Long Beach, CA, the backers received some support — albeit qualified — from a leading environmental/renewable energy advocate in California.

Its claim to fame may be heavy oil production, but Calgary-based Husky Energy Inc. also is strengthening its upstream portfolio, announcing last week that it may consolidate through acquisitions or sales to improve its production output in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB).

Its claim to fame may be heavy oil production, but Calgary-based Husky Energy Inc. also is strengthening its upstream portfolio, announcing Monday that it may consolidate through acquisitions or sales to improve its production output in the Western Canada Sedimentary Basin (WCSB).

TransCanada Corp., the main Canadian natural gas pipeline operator, is looking to move into the oil pipeline business, announcing Wednesday a proposal to convert a 770-mile loop of its natural gas mainline to transport oil and to add on a 1,100-mile extension to Illinois. The $1.7 billion Keystone Pipeline project would transport growing oilsands production in northern Alberta.