Margin

A write-down on U.S. natural gas resources, a decision to cancel a flagship drilling project offshore Alaska, and the continuing impact of the Macondo well blowout pummeled BP plc’s profits in the second quarter.

The House Monday overwhelmingly passed two bills that would exempt commercial end-users from margin requirements and ease regulations for affiliate transactions.

The upstream industry could see its drilling inventory grow if horizontal drilling opportunities being explored by several companies pan out, according to analysts at Raymond James & Associates Inc.

The House late Thursday passed by a wide margin an energy measure (H.R. 3408) that would allow for expanded oil and natural gas drilling in federal offshore and onshore land that has historically been closed to producers.

The House late Thursday passed by a wide margin an energy measure (H.R. 3408) that would allow for expanded oil and natural gas drilling in federal offshore and onshore land that has historically been closed to producers.

Demand for drilling equipment in North America’s onshore continues to be strong, with the backlog of capital equipment orders in rig technology in the final three months of 2011 double year-ago levels, National Oilwell Varco Inc. (NOV) reported Thursday.

Abundant natural gas, including shale, is playing a significant role in continuing the three-year slide in electric power prices and the downbeat outlook for independent power producers, say analysts.

MarkWest Energy Partners LP, which teamed up with private equity fund The Energy & Minerals Group (EMG) three years ago to create one of the largest natural gas processing companies in the Marcellus Shale, now sees a “critical” need to create similar midstream infrastructure in the emerging Utica Shale, CEO Frank Semple said late Monday.

Nexen Inc. has made good on a promise to find a joint venture (JV) partner by the end of this year for its extensive shale acreage in northeastern British Columbia (BC) after agreeing to sell a 40% stake for C$700 million to a consortium led by Japan’s Inpex Corp.