Exit

Devon Energy Corp.’s exit from the Gulf of Mexico last year and the recent sale of its Brazilian assets in order to focus on North American onshore drilling have begun to pay significant dividends for the Oklahoma City-based independent, including record high North American onshore production, CEO John Richels said.

Devon Energy Corp.’s exit from the Gulf of Mexico last year and the recent sale of its Brazilian assets in order to focus on North American onshore drilling have begun to pay significant dividends for the Oklahoma City-based independent, including record high North American onshore production, CEO John Richels said Wednesday.

A juggernaut of arctic air starting to exit the Northeast will leave temperatures close to normal Tuesday in the region, which was hit hardest pricewise by the latest winter storm. Temperatures were expected to stay largely static or grow slightly warmer in other market areas.

Chief Oil & Gas LLC, which was among the first companies to voluntarily disclose the chemicals used in their fracking operations, recently eliminated the storage of discarded drilling fluid in open reserve pits at drilling sites.

Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) said it plans to exit its investment in privately held East Resources Inc. in connection with the recent announcement that Royal Dutch Shell plc has agreed to pay $4.7 billion to acquire East Resources’ principal subsidiaries (see NGI, May 31). KKR invested $350 million in Warrendale, PA-based East Resources last year (see NGI, June 15, 2009). That investment “was a catalyst for the growth and development” of East Resources, according to KKR, which said the company succeeded in derisking a substantial part of the Northeastern Marcellus Shale area, developed a critical supply of natural gas to serve the region and saw its annual capital budget grow from $100 million to $350 million over the past year.

Natural gas futures got all the support they needed Thursday to exit the recent $3.800-4.490 trading range to the upside after a bullish Energy Information Administration (EIA) storage report revealed that a less-than-expected 88 Bcf was injected into underground storage for the week ending May 28, which allowed traders to push July futures easily through resistance at $4.500 in Thursday morning trade. News late Thursday that the federal government is shutting down all Gulf of Mexico (GOM) drilling until new rules are implemented could keep prices bolstered.

Private equity firm Kohlberg Kravis Roberts & Co. (KKR) said it plans to exit its investment in privately held East Resources Inc. in connection with the announcement last week that Royal Dutch Shell plc has agreed to pay $4.7 billion to acquire East Resources’ principal subsidiaries (see Daily GPI, June 1). KKR invested $350 million in Warrendale, PA-based East Resources last year (see Daily GPI, June 10, 2009). That investment “was a catalyst for the growth and development” of East Resources, according to KKR, which said the company succeeded in derisking a substantial part of the Northeastern Marcellus Shale area, developed a critical supply of natural gas to serve the region and saw its annual capital budget grow from $100 million to $350 million over the past year.

With litigation from California’s energy crisis a decade ago now settled and an exit from commodity trading imminent, Sempra Energy’s remaining businesses face a mixture of challenges and opportunities as outlined by Sempra senior executives last Tuesday during a conference call with financial analysts.

With litigation from California’s energy crisis a decade ago now settled and an exit from commodity trading imminent, Sempra Energy’s remaining nonutility businesses face a mixture of challenges and opportunities as outlined by Sempra senior executives Tuesday during a conference call with financial analysts. During the call the company reported greatly decreased first quarter earnings compared to the same period last year (see Daily GPI, May 5).