Giant Oil Projects Fall Out of Favor at Eni: IP Week Update

(Bloomberg) -- Three of Europe’s largest oil companies spoke about fundamental shifts to their strategy amid the energy transition on the second day of International Petroleum Week.

Equinor ASA’s boss Anders Opedal detailed efforts to reduce the carbon intensity of its oil and gas output, while his counterpart at BP Plc acknowledged investors aren’t yet convinced by its strategies for the global shift to cleaner energy. Eni SpA said massive oil projects are now off the table.

IP Week, the industry’s flagship event in London, usually brings together scores of company executives and hundreds of traders for a week of lavish parties, dealmaking and market chatter, but this year it’s being held online.

At the 2020 event, discussions centered on China’s response to the coronavirus amid concern the disease was rapidly going global, causing oil prices to slump. This week’s gathering takes place as crude surges back to $65 a barrel following massive cuts to supplies and a strengthening outlook for demand.

IP Week, run by the Energy Institute, takes place through Thursday. All time stamps are GMT.

Eni Says Larger Projects No Longer in Strategy (11:20 a.m.)

Giant projects such as the Kashagan and Karachaganak fields in Kazakhstan -- previously central to Eni’s operations -- are not in its future strategy, Upstream Director Guido Brusco said. Kashagan, nicknamed by analysts “Cash-all-gone,” began pumping oil after 16 years in development and more than $50 billion of investments.

Eni will focus more on “incremental projects” to develop resources, according to Brusco, who said “we will be sanctioning projects in the range of $5-6 billion with a time-to-market which is shorter.”

Aramco Says Asia Demand Near Pre-Crisis Levels (10:20 a.m.)

Demand for oil in India is now close to pre-pandemic levels, while China’s consumption has recovered “significantly,” said Saudi Aramco’s senior vice president of downstream, Mohammed Al-Qahtani.

As economies recover and need more oil, the lack of investment in exploration and production has fueled concerns there’ll be a supply gap in the coming years, and it’s critical to ensure ample volumes are available, he said.

Equinor’s Sverdrup Pumping 500,000 Barrels a Day (10 a.m.)

Equinor ASA’s giant Johan Sverdrup field in the North Sea is producing 500,000 barrels a day with less than 1 kilogram of carbon dioxide per barrel, Chief Executive Officer Anders Opedal said.

Sverdrup’s production capacity is expected to increase to 535,000 barrels a day by mid-2021, Equinor said last month.

Opedal reiterated a target to reduce the CO2 intensity of its globally operated oil and gas production to below 8 kg per barrel by 2025. When Equinor announced that ambition a year ago, it said the global industry average was 18 kg per barrel.

Investors Not Yet Rewarding Climate Strategies (9 a.m.)

European oil majors with climate strategies are not yet being rewarded with premiums from investors, BP CEO Bernard Looney said.

Alongside European peers such as Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Total SE, BP announced last year that it would slash emissions and expand its low-carbon business over the next three decades. But its share price plummeted as the coronavirus pandemic pushed oil prices to record lows.

“We’ve outlined the ambition, we’ve redone our planning prices, we’ve done all the theoretical work,” Looney said. “I’m fully confident that over time that will be acknowledged. But I understand that investors have questions whether we can do it or not.”

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