OUTAGES AND CURTAILMENTS Continued smelter outages and fresh capacity curtailments are keeping a lid on Western production even as new and old smelters ramp up.
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All three have supported ending curtailments as soon as possible.
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The Alberta government imposed mandatory production curtailments on producers effective Jan.
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Canadian crude was cheaper last year before the curtailments took effect.
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Alberta this week said it would now ease those curtailments slightly.
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It is unclear what impact the elections would have on planned curtailments.
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The Kenney government, which took office in April, has modestly eased curtailments.
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Curtailments do not apply to small companies producing less than 10,000 bpd.
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Suncor, which owns both oil production and refining facilities, had opposed the curtailments.
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Factbox on alumina curtailments: Alumina refineries are also taking their 30-percent cuts.
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That applies particularly in China itself where price-related curtailments have started to build.
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Imperial CEO Rich Kruger said the only positive from curtailments was higher crude prices.
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Environmental campaigns and safety checks will lead to more mine supply curtailments or closures.
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Curtailments have been reduced slightly since January and are expected to ease throughout the year.
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Moreover, there is the potential for more capacity curtailments over the coming winter heating season.
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Curtailments have been reduced slightly since January and are expected to ease through the year.
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Curtailments quickly changed the economics, boosting Canadian prices and diluting a major advantage for Husky.
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China is now acting to reduce curtailments by guaranteeing that grid companies purchase renewable power.
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The Alberta government on Tuesday extended production curtailments imposed to help relieve congestion on export pipelines.
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Both Suncor and Cenovus said easing curtailments would make those rail contracts more attractive to producers.
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Heavy crude has been in high demand after sanctions on Venezuela and production curtailments in Canada.
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He added that it's unclear whether the curtailments have meaningfully reduced a glut of oil in storage.
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Prolonged periods of high electrical demand also increase the risk of gas curtailments and electrical service interruption.
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China's aluminum production landscape remains a confused kaleidoscope of curtailments, ramp-ups and new-for-old capacity.
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Under the new rules, residential users will have priority over industrial users in cases of supply curtailments.
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Curtailments have been effective in draining Alberta's oil in storage and in averting job losses, McKay said.
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There may, however, be some powerful knock-on shocks from curtailments in aluminium's raw materials supply chain.
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China's aluminium production landscape remains a confused kaleidoscope of curtailments, ramp-ups and new-for-old capacity.
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He added that it is unclear whether the curtailments have meaningfully reduced a glut of oil in storage.
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The "winter heating season" with its associated curtailments of aluminium production is only now drawing to a close.
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He noted the burden of actual curtailments would likely fall on the Persian Gulf producers, especially the Saudis.
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These curtailments could interrupt service and affect millions of electric customers during as many as 14 summer days.
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The last round of curtailments, largely of U.S. capacity and largely from Alcoa, has now played itself out.
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These curtailments could interrupt service and affect millions of electric customers during as many as 14 summer days.
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He added that curtailments could end this year if the industry and government factored in expanding rail capacity.
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There has been no repeat of last year's blanket curtailments of aluminium capacity in this "winter heating season".
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The winter curtailments also apply to key inputs in the smelting process such as alumina and carbon anode.
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The "winter heating season" with its associated curtailments of aluminum production is only now drawing to a close.
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Premier Jason Kenney's government extended these curtailments into 2020 in August on slow progress in building new pipelines.
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That 15 bcf is being held to reduce the risk of gas curtailments and power interruptions this summer.
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According to the Aluminum Association, there are five U.S. smelting facilities that are operating with three partial curtailments.
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"Some combination of global demand improvement and/or supply curtailments could propel CAT higher if WTI starts to recover."
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Calgary-based Cenovus reduced its 2019 oil sands production guidance by 7 percent, reflecting the impact of the curtailments.
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It was the first monthly increase since the government of Canada's largest crude-producing province introduced curtailments on Jan.
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Alberta, which produces most of Canada's oil, last month ordered curtailments to drain bloated storage tanks and boost prices.
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The curtailments were applied fairly and saved jobs in the sector, said Mike McKinnon, spokesman for Alberta's energy minister.
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California agencies and others have said such curtailments could lead to blackouts on up to 14 days this summer.
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TO) supported curtailments because the move boosted prices, but it was criticized by integrated producers including Suncor Energy (SU.
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So how come Shanghai stocks have still increased by 20173,000 tonnes since the mid-November start of the curtailments?
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In August, Premier Jason Kenney's government extended those curtailments into 2020 because of slow progress in building new pipelines.
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The gain for the loonie on Friday came as the government of Alberta announced plans to ease oil curtailments.
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Premier Jason Kenney's United Conservative Party government, which took office in the spring, has steadily eased curtailments as inventories drained.
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As the chart on the right shows, solar curtailments would get increasingly frequent by the early 2020s without major changes.
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CHINA'S ENIGMA MACHINE China's aluminum production landscape remains a confused kaleidoscope of curtailments, ramp-ups and new-for-old capacity.
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CHINA'S ENIGMA MACHINE China's aluminium production landscape remains a confused kaleidoscope of curtailments, ramp-ups and new-for-old capacity.
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Of course, the single biggest "known unknown" is for how long Glencore will hold its 500,000 tonnes of production curtailments.
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Morgan Stanley argues that prices are unlikely to revisit the 2015-2016 lows precisely because of curtailments such as Lanfranchi.
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Production curtailments imposed by Alberta have propped up prices of Canadian heavy crude, reducing the benefit in refining the oil.
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The industrial curtailments during the winter heating season took a heavier toll of the country's alumina producers than its aluminium smelters.
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Even as Beijing draws up plans for more curtailments next winter, cities such as Tangshan are thinking of making them semi-permanent.
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A significantly narrower discount on Canadian crude compared with U.S. barrels as a result of the curtailments has made rail shipments uneconomic.
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Regulators said it was unclear if conservation measures will be sufficient to avoid service curtailments to noncore industrial customers and power plants.
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These winter restrictions represent a second wave of curtailments after Beijing's drive to close "illegal" aluminum capacity over the last few months.
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However, the industrial curtailments have not caused imported LNG prices to drop as much the ex-plant prices of domestically produced fuel.
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With a promise like that, China's aluminium sector, like many others, can only hope that this year's winter curtailments do the trick.
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Discounts on Canadian oil hit record-high levels in October, leading the Alberta government to order the curtailments, which Husky has criticized.
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The company said the production forecast does not include the impact of mandated production curtailments scheduled to take effect on Jan. 1.
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Continued smelter outages and fresh capacity curtailments are keeping a lid on Western production even as new and old smelters ramp up.
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Chinese production, a complex moving picture of price-induced curtailments, pollution controls and capacity swaps, edged 1.6 percent higher to 8.93 million tonnes.
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Meanwhile, the prospect of more forced curtailments is looming ever larger as the November start of the winter heating season comes around again.
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Genscape's Walls said that from a price perspective curtailments are working, but fundamental data suggested the discount on Canadian barrels should be wider.
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"Without withdrawals from Aliso Canyon, increased demand...may have resulted in further curtailments to non-core customers," SoCalGas said in a customer notice.
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Railways moved 285,873 bpd of Canadian crude in May, the most since January when curtailments took effect, according to the National Energy Board.
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He and others see little chance of a strong recovery in oil prices anytime soon without significant curtailments by major oil-producing countries.
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Little echoed recent comments by outgoing chief executive Williams in urging the Alberta government to end production curtailments and build new export pipelines.
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But oil sands operations are technically challenging to shut in and such curtailments can damage the reservoir or ore, the investment bank said.
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For that reason, lifting government-ordered curtailments from May until October makes sense, CNRL President Tim McKay said in an interview with Reuters.
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The curtailments will take place across the four provinces adjacent to the cities of Beijing and Tianjin, lasting until the middle of March.
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"From Argentina to Alberta, the oil market news is about supply curtailments," said Norbert Rücker, head of commodity research at Swiss bank Julius Baer.
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There is speculation that Beijing's war on smog may lead to more extensive curtailments of heavy industry, including aluminium smelters, in the months ahead.
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He turned a blind eye to human rights violations and curtailments of democracy, when he refused to criticize the post-coup crackdown in Turkey.
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The curtailments did not result in power outages because local electric companies and regional grid operators were able to get electricity from other sources.
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Aluminium semis exports fell in January after strong November and December levels, due in part to large smelter curtailments in late 2015, Citi said.
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There is speculation that Beijing's war on smog may lead to more extensive curtailments of heavy industry, including aluminum smelters, in the months ahead.
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The Alberta government curtailments, announced late last year, helped margins for struggling local producers but until transportation improves, Canadian crude prices will be squeezed.
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A narrower discount on Canadian heavy oil thanks to curtailments boosted resource revenues by C$164 million compared with the same period last year.
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The curtailments have dramatically reduced a painful discount on Canadian heavy crude, but investor confidence remains shaken and energy stocks are trading around historic lows.
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The extension of the curtailments on heavy industry that were enacted during the winter has also supported prices since they also apply to coke manufacturers.
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It is a crucial conduit for producers at a time when pipeline capacity is so constrained the Alberta government last week extended mandatory production curtailments.
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Alberta imposed the curtailments in January in an attempt to reduce hefty price discounts on Canadian crude that reflected production that far exceeded pipeline space.
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CANADIAN PACIFIC RAILWAY LTD CRUDE-BY-RAIL VOLUMES FELL SEQUENTIALLY TO 17,000 CARLOADS AS A RESULT OF PRODUCTION CURTAILMENTS & TOUGH OPERATING CONDITIONS - EXEC, CONF CALL
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Since the beginning of 2019, Alberta has imposed curtailments on the province's largest oil producers to ease congestion on export pipelines and support crude prices.
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The exemptions that protect refiners from rotating power outages do not exist for natural gas, and refineries are among the entities that could face curtailments.
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A missing part of the aluminium picture in China is the impact of the pollution curtailments on the downstream processing section of the supply chain.
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Its plan is to reduce the curtailments further to an average of 95,000 bpd through the end of 2019 once storage levels are sufficiently reduced.
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Husky's average quarterly production fell 9.2% to 268,400 barrels of oil equivalents a day in the reported quarter as the company complied with the curtailments.
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Canadian Natural Resources Executive vice Chairman Steve Laut said tying eased curtailments to more rail capacity would provide an "orderly" way to remove the limits.
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The impact of last year's blanket curtailments on heavy industries, including aluminium, in the region around Beijing over the winter heating months underwhelmed the market.
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The country may need to import a lot more still, but how much is unknowable, given the lack of visibility on the scale of curtailments.
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A missing part of the aluminum picture in China is the impact of the pollution curtailments on the downstream processing section of the supply chain.
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However, with prices still sliding and demand likely to slacken into the Chinese winter, "it's only a question of when" more curtailments happen, he said.
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The impact of last year's blanket curtailments on heavy industries, including aluminum, in the region around Beijing over the winter heating months underwhelmed the market.
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Producers that do not fully own refineries, such as Cenovus Energy Inc and Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, pressured Alberta last year to impose the curtailments.
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Chinese production and exports of semi-finished products (semis) hit six-month highs in May, after decade-low prices had caused widespread curtailments in December.
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Oil is one of Canada's biggest exports so the steady erosion of curtailments since the start of the year could improve prospects for the economy.
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Authorities in the Shandong city of Binzhou have allowed Hongqiao Group, the world's largest producer, to count "illegal" potlines already closed within its winter curtailments.
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That pushed the discount on Canadian crude versus global benchmarks to record levels last year and prompted the Alberta government to impose oil production curtailments.
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"We expect the largest curtailments to come from Australia followed by Brazil, but with cuts also expected from Canada, Iran, Russia, Chile, and elsewhere," it said.
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The full extent of the curtailments and their duration remains uncertain, meaning it is difficult to assess whether there will an impact on Chinese aluminium production.
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The Bank of Canada said last month it expects investment in the energy sector to contract because of low oil prices and production curtailments in Alberta.
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The full extent of the curtailments and their duration remains uncertain, meaning it is difficult to assess whether there will an impact on Chinese aluminum production.
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Alberta's move to scale back its curtailments came at the end of a volatile month, in which Canadian prices improved dramatically but producers were affected disproportionately.
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Easing the curtailments may encourage oil producers to sign contracts to ship more crude by rail, RBC Dominion Securities analyst Greg Pardy said in a note.
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Curtailments have resulted in producers shutting in output that would otherwise be profitable, and caused job losses for companies that provide services such as drilling, Peabody said.
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The CEO of integrated producer Suncor Energy also advised the incoming government to find a managed way to exit curtailments in an interview with Reuters on Thursday.
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Production is recovering from the mandated winter heating season curtailments and new capacity is still coming online even as the authorities try and force out "illegal" capacity.
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Shipping more crude by rail is seen as critical for Canadian oil producers due to congested pipelines that forced Alberta to order mandatory oil curtailments this year.
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Total production fell 9.5% to 448,496 barrels of oil equivalent per day(boe/d) from 495,592 boe/d as the company stuck to the mandatory production curtailments.
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Cenovus is the first of Canada's major crude producers to report results for the quarter, a period in which mandatory curtailments by the Alberta provincial government took effect.
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The state only allows SoCalGas to use Aliso Canyon as an "asset of last resort" after all other alternatives have been exhausted to avoid curtailments of electric load.
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SoCalGas also warned electric generation customers about gas supply curtailments over the past week and urged homes and businesses to conserve the fuel to avoid straining energy supplies.
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The previous government of Canada's major oil-producing province imposed curtailments in January in a rare step to drain a glut of oil in storage and lift prices.
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Those curtailments, which remain in effect, did not result in power outages because local electric companies and regional grid operators were able to get electricity from other sources.
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Quantifying the likely outcome of the winter curtailments is tricky work in progress, leaving prices beholden to the latest city to add its part to the production jigsaw.
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This month, Alberta Premier Rachel Notley took the rare step of ordering oil curtailments amounting to 325,000 barrels per day, starting in January, to reduce the province's glut.
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Storage levels have fallen by 5 million barrels to a total of 30 million barrels since curtailments were announced in December, faster than expected, the provincial government said.
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Another industry group, the Petroleum Services Association of Canada, revised higher its 2020 forecast for wells drilled in Canada, up 7% to 4,800 wells, due to eased curtailments.
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Another industry group, the Petroleum Services Association of Canada, revised higher its 2020 forecast for wells drilled in Canada, up 7% to 4,800 wells, due to eased curtailments.
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The curtailments are a rare government intervention into Canada's oil industry in an attempt to shore up prices and stem an exodus of frustrated investors and foreign companies.
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The volumes, however, started recovering after Alberta eased the curtailments in October and said it would allow companies to produce additional oil if they move it by rail.
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Congested export pipelines forced the Alberta government this year to order curtailments of oil production in the province to drain a glut of crude in storage and support prices.
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Kenney is expected to keep curtailments in place but has vowed to cancel the rail contracts, and the oil industry is watching closely to for his government's next move.
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The assets provide economies of scale and allow Canadian Natural to boost production even as Alberta has imposed mandatory oil curtailments this year due to pipeline constraints, Laut said.
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Canadian oil companies such as Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, Suncor Inc and Cenovus Energy say the projects are critical to lifting prices and ending government-ordered curtailments in Alberta.
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The backdrop: Putin told Assad that he's going to cut back Russia's military presence in Syria, though in the past, Moscow hasn't followed through on its announced military curtailments.
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The previous government of Alberta, Canada's major oil-producing province, imposed curtailments in January in a rare step to drain a glut of oil in storage and lift prices.
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In the quarter, the company received benefits worth about 500 million crowns from claims resolutions in its U.S. civil engineering business and the effect of pension curtailments in Britain.
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Although there will be winter curtailments of both operating aluminium and alumina capacity, the impact of lower prices on an already strained production chain is going to be greater.
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Exxon Mobil Corp-owned Imperial, which operates Alberta's biggest crude-loading terminal, is "not in the hunt" for new rail investments as the government curtailments create uncertainty, Kruger said.
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Although there will be winter curtailments of both operating aluminum and alumina capacity, the impact of lower prices on an already strained production chain is going to be greater.
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Canadian oil companies such as Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, Suncor Inc and Cenovus Energy say the projects are critical to lifting prices and ending government-ordered curtailments in Alberta.
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Notley's government, which faces an election this spring, has also ordered mandatory curtailments to clear a storage glut and said it planned to buy trains to move more oil.
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That would result in a shortfall of between 0.6 bcfd and 1.4 bcfd on that coldest day, which would require SoCalGas to use gas from Aliso to limit curtailments.
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"This week's trade has offered no significant surprises as price consolidation continues with the market adopting a wait and see attitude regarding OPEC's execution of planned production curtailments," Ritterbusch said.
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"From here, the market is likely to be taking a wait and see approach until evidence of actual OPEC curtailments is seen in about six or seven weeks," Ritterbusch said.
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In February 2011, extreme cold led to rolling blackouts and gas supply curtailments in the U.S. Southwest with up to 20143 million electricity customers at some point over three days.
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A couple of long-running outages together with curtailments in Europe caused production outside China to dip 13 percent to 6.37 million tonnes in the first three months of 2019.
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The previous government of Alberta, Canada's major oil-producing province, imposed output curtailments in January in a rare step to drain a glut of oil in storage and lift prices.
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Husky Energy Inc told investors on its quarterly earnings call it has been involved in some of the work to put proposals forth to the provincial government on loosening curtailments.
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The letter states that as the government has not had time to assess the claims, it would make a temporary adjustment to January production limits for operators facing higher curtailments.
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Alberta Premier Jason Kenney, who took office in April, has modestly eased the curtailments, with major Canadian oil companies also holding talks with the government on ending the mandatory cuts.
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A couple of long-running outages together with curtailments in Europe caused production outside China to dip 1.4 percent to 6.37 million tonnes in the first three months of 2019.
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CEO Rich Kruger said Imperial reduced rail shipments in January nearly in half, to 90,000 barrels per day, and plans volumes "near zero" in February due to the curtailments' impact.
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Company President Timothy McKay said increasing crude-by-rail capacity, natural production declines and the Sturgeon refinery in Alberta ramping up heavy oil consumption meant government curtailments could diminish markedly.
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Prices for Alberta oil fell in October to record lows compared with U.S. futures prices because of congested pipelines that backed up crude in storage tanks and prompted the curtailments.
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"We are going to take a hard look at whether the full 19-day and 25-day rail service curtailments are absolutely necessary," Senator Gordon said in a prepared statement.
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The French state is very willing to consider authoritarian measures, including extreme curtailments of civil liberties, to address the threat of radical Islam, and Belgian politicians may now do the same.
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Suncor's comments echo those of rival Imperial Oil Ltd, which said last week that it is ending nearly all crude by rail shipments because of the price impact of the curtailments.
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CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - The government of Canada's main crude-producing province Alberta eased oil production curtailments for September on Friday, setting the new limit at 3.76 million barrels per day (bpd).
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The city remains exposed to the national policy of cutting back deficit and debt, by means of revenue curtailments, while the national government contributes to financing unexpected events or large projects.
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While a number of integrated producers, including Suncor, have criticized the government intervention in the market, company profits improved this quarter after a rebound in prices as a result of curtailments.
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Last week the government extended mandatory oil production curtailments into 2020, a policy that has helped prop up oil revenues but attracted criticism from some major integrated producers like Suncor Energy.
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Oil output in 2019 was 3.7% below target while gas output dropped 15.2% below target due to field curtailments, pipe leaks and dozens of unplanned field shutdowns, according to SKK Migas.
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But traders said the economics of exporting more Canadian grades would be challenged given ongoing Alberta curtailments keeping prices tight, and a recent narrowing of the Brent-WTI spread .
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On Tuesday, the new United Conservative Party government extended curtailments through 2000, citing a delay to Enbridge Inc's Line 22020 replacement that could swell inventories again unless the limits remained in place.
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A Suncor spokeswoman said on Wednesday the company does not support government intervention in the markets, while a Husky spokeswoman said uncertainty about how long curtailments will last had dented investor confidence.
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"In zinc, the catalyst for further upside is that we expect a further substantial tightening of the concentrate market over the winter, which should result in zinc smelter production curtailments in China."
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Credit ratings agency Moody's warned of the potential for more curtailments to output from defaults arising from the low oil price, which in January was at its weakest in nearly 13 years.
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Supplies of heavy crude, similar to grades produced in Venezuela, have dried up around the world amid production curtailments in Canada due to pipeline bottlenecks and output cuts by Middle East producers.
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Fresh supply would also threaten a recovery for potash driven by steadily growing global demand, Nutrien's curtailments and a slow ramp-up at new mines owned by K+S AG and EuroChem.
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Market participants who were bearish 2019 WCS because of fundamentals like rising production and tight pipeline capacity were wrong-footed by the curtailments and ended up losing "a ton of money," he said.
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In the short-term curtailments have boosted prices, but in the medium- and long-term the intervention has made crude-by-rail shipments uneconomic and is deterring investment in the province, he said.
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Maintenance and production curtailments in its Canadian oil production, as well as weak oil and natural gas prices, pushed profits down in its oil and gas unit by 10.3 percent, the company said.
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Extending curtailments is modestly negative for integrated producers Suncor Energy Inc, Imperial Oil Ltd and Husky Energy Inc, as their operations, which include refineries, are less vulnerable to discounted Canadian prices, Morrison said.
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ALUMINA: Wood Mackenzie raised its global market balance for alumina by 100,22 tonnes to 2577 million tonnes as the increase in Alunorte's production was offset by curtailments in China, analyst Ami Shivkar said.
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Elsewhere, the government of Canada's main crude-producing province, Alberta, eased crude oil production curtailments for August on Thursday, setting the limit at 3.74 million bpd, compared with 3.71 million bpd in July.
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CALGARY, Alberta, July 26 (Reuters) - The government of Canada's main crude-producing province Alberta eased oil production curtailments for September on Friday, setting the new limit at 3.76 million barrels per day (bpd).
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"It is a temporary production restriction, but we may see more similar supply curtailments before the implementation of the (official winter) policy," said He Ming, a steel analyst at Wood Mackenzie in Beijing.
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Which is why, of course, Beijing policymakers have made aluminium a key target for curtailments in the region around the city over the next winter heating season, which runs from November to March.
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Which is why, of course, Beijing policymakers have made aluminum a key target for curtailments in the region around the city over the next winter heating season, which runs from November to March.
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" Mr. Richter added, "We go from hard-core conservation mode — curtailments, restrictions, all these regulations that are imposed on us, justifiably so — and now we've got more water than we can physically manage.
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The discount last year on Canadian heavy crude versus U.S. barrels widened to record levels, prompting the Alberta government to impose production curtailments to draw down crude storage inventories and help shore up prices.
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Closure or curtailments at Nickel West and Murrin Murrin could shave as much as six percent from this year's expected supply in addition to cuts already announced by Brazil's Votorantim and refineries in China.
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Under the existing protocol, the state only allows SoCalGas to use Aliso, its biggest storage field, as an "asset of last resort" after all other alternatives have been exhausted to avoid curtailments of electric load.
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The IAI's version of Chinese smelting reality is more internally consistent and tallies better with the accumulating evidence of smelter curtailments towards the end of last year as Shanghai prices sank to two-year lows.
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" According to an Aliso Canyon impact report released in April, "there are 2750 days this coming summer during which gas curtailments could be high enough to cause electricity service interruptions to millions of utility customers.
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Oil production curtailments imposed this year by the government of Canada's energy-rich province Alberta, as well as rising global oil prices, have allowed Canadian producers to rake in the highest revenues in five years.
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Elsewhere, the government of Canada's main crude-producing province, Alberta, eased crude oil production curtailments for August on Thursday, setting the limit at 3.74 million bpd, compared with 3.71 million bpd in July. GRAPHIC-U.
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Elsewhere, the government of Canada's main crude-producing province, Alberta, eased crude oil production curtailments for August on Thursday, setting the limit at 3.74 million barrels per day, compared with 3.71 million bpd in July.
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Crude-by-rail volumes rose to 21,21.3034 carloads in the second quarter, from 20,000 a year earlier, the company said in a post-earnings call, as production curtailments began to ease and the fundamentals improved.
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Such unintended consequences are happening faster than the Alberta government likely expected, and it should now plan for a "soft exit" from curtailments that is fair to producers, Williams said on a quarterly conference call.
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Canadian crude by rail has slowed since hitting record levels late last year, National Energy Board data shows, after the discount on Canadian crude shrank dramatically as a result of production curtailments, making rail uneconomic.
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Early this month, as the oil industry's ground shifted with Alberta's curtailments, Husky Chief Executive Rob Peabody did not accept an invitation from MEG CEO Derek Evans to negotiate a friendly agreement, according to MEG.
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"If OPEC and their non-OPEC partners can agree to extend their production curtailments through 2018, then we estimate the oil market will remain in modest under-supply until 2019," U.S. Investment bank Jefferies said.
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"The worst should be over for the energy industry as production curtailments are gradually scaled back and producers benefit from higher prices," said Josh Nye, senior economist with Royal Bank of Canada, in a note.
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Nutrien plans to wield its 673 million tonnes of unused capacity to protect its position, in a switch from its previous strategy of using curtailments to lift prices even at the cost of market share.
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WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - The Canadian province of Alberta will ease oil curtailments in February and March, earlier than expected, saying on Wednesday that its rare step to limit production had eased a glut of crude.
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"When considering the expected curtailments of the so-called 'illegal capacities', Rusal expects that the Chinese aluminium market balance will improve in 2H 2017 leading to a much tighter market situation in 2018," it said.
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And zinc has the "strongest bull case" of the metals markets, wrote Goldman Sachs' analysts in a note released Thursday, as mine depletion and production curtailments likely continue to tighten supply this year, further supporting prices.
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CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - The amount of oil in storage in Alberta rose in February, monthly data shows, despite moves by the government of Canada's largest crude-producing province to reduce inventories by imposing curtailments on production.
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New Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has yet to say what happens next with curtailments and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's government is due to decide by June 18 whether to expand the Trans Mountain pipeline it owns.
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The bank said it expects zinc to "significantly outperform" other metals and raised its outlook for 2016 to $1,713 per ton from $1,700 per ton on prospects for a supply deficit due to mine depletions and curtailments.
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Elsewhere, the government of Canada's main crude-producing province, Alberta, eased crude oil production curtailments for August on Thursday, setting the limit at 3.74 million barrels per day, compared with 3.71 million barrels per day in July.
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Once farmers hit their limit, they were cut off, says Janse Rabie, who represents the South African agriculture lobbying group Agri SA. "These strict water curtailments cost farmers dearly," Rabie says in an email to The Verge.
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Alberta's New Democratic Party (NDP) government has leased 4,400 rail cars to start moving 20,000 bpd of crude in July, ramping up to 120,000 bpd by the end of the year when it plans to end curtailments.
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The PUC said it increased the amount of gas that can be stored in Aliso Canyon to give SoCalGas time to inject fuel into the facility to reduce the potential for gas curtailments thiswinter when demand peaks.
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Reduced availability of Aliso coupled with limitations on several pipelines has caused gas supplies to be tight in Southern California for years, resulting in gas curtailments to power generators and higher power and gas prices for consumers.
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Kenney also warned on Tuesday that oil production curtailments, which were meant to wrap up by the end of this year, may have to continue into 2020 because of delays to Enbridge Inc's Line 3 pipeline project.
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Such unintended consequences are happening faster than the Alberta government likely expected, and it should now plan for a "soft exit" from curtailments that is fair to producers, Williams said on a quarterly conference call on Wednesday.
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CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - The government of Alberta, Canada's main crude-producing province, eased crude oil production curtailments for August on Thursday, setting the limit at 3.74 million barrels per day, compared with 3.71 million bpd in July.
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"Without supply available from Aliso Canyon, a loss of capacity or difference between expected supply and actual demand greater than 5 percent of the total demand is likely to lead to gas system curtailments," the agencies concluded.
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Reduced availability of Aliso coupled with limitations on several pipelines, however, has caused gas supplies to be tight in Southern California for years, resulting in gas curtailments to power generators and higher power and gas prices for consumers.
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This summer's projected system capacity is just enough to cover forecast peak demand of 3.511 bcfd, the report said, warning higher gas usage or loss of additional pipelines could result in curtailments of the fuel to electric generators.
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The outlook is not good:This technical assessment finds that if no gas can be withdrawn from Aliso Canyon during the coming summer months, a significant risk exists of natural gas curtailments during up to 16 days this summer.
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The Bank of Canada expected in January investment in the energy sector to contract because of low oil prices and production curtailments in Alberta, as it signaled the pace of future interest rate hikes could be more gradual.
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According to the report: This technical assessment finds that if no gas can be withdrawn from Aliso Canyon during the coming summer months, a significant risk exists of natural gas curtailments during up to 16 days this summer.
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CALGARY, Alberta, April 1 (Reuters) - The amount of oil in storage in Alberta rose in February, monthly data shows, despite moves by the government of Canada's largest crude-producing province to reduce inventories by imposing curtailments on production.
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OPEC's supply curtailments and the threat of new sanctions are occurring just as demand in Asia, the world's biggest oil consuming region, has risen to a record as new and expanded refineries start up from China to Vietnam.
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Right now, however, price is only part of a more complex landscape defined by "illegal" capacity closures, winter curtailments and, now, the longer-term viability of coal as a source of the power needed to produce the metal.
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That's certainly possible, but it's also possible that any rally in iron ore prices, if sustained, will allow weaker players to stay in the market, especially in China, which is expected to provide the bulk of output curtailments.
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CALGARY, Alberta (Reuters) - Canada's Suncor Energy produced record volumes of synthetic crude oil in the first quarter, the company said on Thursday, as it sought to maximize high-value production to offset the impact of Alberta government curtailments.
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Mark Little, who took over as chief executive from Steve Williams on Thursday, said on an earnings call that first-quarter oil sands production was down 11 percent from the prior quarter as a result of the curtailments.
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State regulators, however, ordered the company in January to reduce the amount of working gas in Aliso Canyon to just 15 bcf and use that fuel to reduce the risk of gas curtailments and power interruptions this summer.
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Canadian Natural Resources Ltd said on Wednesday it expects to spend C$4.05 billion in 2020, C$250 million more than in 2019, after the Canadian province of Alberta lifted some curtailments on new oil wells last month.
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It is unlikely that the latest curtailments will stabilize potash prices, and Potash Corp's decision may not be material if the company is simply advancing its usual summer maintenance period, said BMO analyst Joel Jackson in a note.
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Enbridge's plan to switch from a monthly nomination system to "contract carriage" comes at a time when Canadian export pipelines are so constrained the Alberta government has imposed oil production curtailments, and has drawn fierce criticism from small producers.
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Enbridge's plan to switch from a monthly nomination system to "contract carriage" comes at a time when Canadian export pipelines are so constrained the Alberta government has imposed oil production curtailments and has drawn fierce criticism from small producers.
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The assumption was that powerful, politically connected companies such as Chalco would lobby aggressively against the forced curtailments or, as has so often been the case in the past, just ignore Beijing's orders with the connivance of local authorities.
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Its re-entry is seen by analysts as a validation that Canada's biggest oil and gas company has catalysts - such as a new incoming CEO and the eventual removal of Alberta oil curtailments - that could propel the stock higher.
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Alberta is Canada's energy heartland but crude production has been limited since the start of 2019 when the provincial government imposed curtailments to ease congestion on export pipelines that had pushed the discount on Canadian crude to record lows.
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Under the previous withdrawal protocol, which had been in effect since November 2017, the state only allowed SoCalGas to use Aliso as an "asset of last resort" after other alternatives have been exhausted to avoid curtailments of electric load.
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"The ISO has moved quickly to put into place new mechanisms to reduce the impact of gas curtailments on electric reliability," he said, noting the ISO is also asking consumers to conserve energy when called upon to do so.
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The company also praised the Alberta government's recent decision to extend crude oil curtailments by one year, along with raising the amount of a producer's output that is exempt from curtailment to 20,000 bbls/d from 10,000 bbls/d.
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The company also praised the Alberta government's recent decision to extend crude oil curtailments by one year, along with raising the amount of a producer's output that is exempt from curtailment to 20,000 bbls/d from 10,000 bbls/d.
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CALGARY, Alberta, April 25 (Reuters) - The outgoing chief executive of Canada's Suncor Energy on Thursday urged the new Alberta government to find a way out of mandatory oil production curtailments that were imposed this year to help boost crude prices.
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The Calgary-based company maintained its plans to spend C$200 million in 2019 and confirmed that the discretionary budget of C$75 million will not be sanctioned due to Alberta's output curtailments and as the company prioritizes paying down debt.
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"This market's muted response to Gulf Coast storm activity appears to suggest that (Gulf of Mexico) production curtailments will prove minimal while any lost output could easily be offset," Jim Ritterbusch, president of Ritterbusch and Associates, said in a note.
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Congestion on export pipelines last year pushed the discount on Canadian heavy crude versus U.S. barrels to record levels as a glut of crude built up in storage tanks, hammering producer revenues and prompting the Alberta government to impose curtailments.
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Production in the latter contracted over the 2012-2014 period on a combination of closures and curtailments but it has been creeping higher since the start of last year and is up another 1.3 percent over the year to date.
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Alberta Premier Jason Kenney, who took office in April, has modestly eased the curtailments, with major Canadian oil companies also holding talks with the government on ending the mandatory cuts just as added rail capacity to move crude comes online.
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Williams said that the case for forced curtailments is likely to abate with seasonal maintenance shutdowns by oil producers during the second quarter, and with Enbridge Inc's Line 3 expansion likely to start filling for start-up later this year.
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The closure last year of "illegal" capacity, meaning that operating without all the correct permits, and mandated curtailments at some plants during the winter smog campaign have slowed production growth to just 0.3 percent in the first quarter of 2018.
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Canada is a top shipper of crops, fertilizer, oil and pulp, but has in recent years needed government intervention to keep commodities moving, from ordering railways to clear grain backlogs to Alberta's crude oil curtailments this month due to full pipelines.
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"With Canadian heavy crude restrictions being extended, we should see U.S. refiners ... struggle to fill the void from lowered shipments from Mexico and Venezuela," he said, referring to Canadian province of Alberta extending mandatory curtailments on crude production by an extra year.
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Making our transmission and distribution network infrastructure more robust is a superior way to deal with extreme weather conditions than increasing the frequency and geographic scope of electricity curtailments, which are likely to destroy an increasing amount of economic activity in the state.
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Warrick is the largest currently-operating smelter in the United States and the biggest shoe to drop in a string of recent curtailments and closures, potentially boosting prices and possibly bolstering some U.S. producers' claims they are harmed by subsidized Chinese production.
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That means SoCalGas will have to tap storage fields to make up the difference, which could hurt the utility's ability to stockpile enough fuel to avoid curtailments for some power and industrial customers on the coldest days during the winter heating season.
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Rusal, which last year was overtaken by China's Hongqiao as the world's biggest aluminium producer, said it expects demand to outstrip supply by 22015 million tonnes in 2585, following a 2000,0003-tonne surplus last year, led by strong Chinese demand and capacity curtailments.
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The start of operations of Enbridge Inc's Line 3 system extending from Alberta to the United States was recently delayed for a year until the second half of 2020, leaving producers no easy path to end production curtailments until then, during the conference.
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CALGARY, Alberta, July 9 (Reuters) - Major Canadian oil companies, who publicly disagreed over the Alberta government's forced curtailments this year, are in lock step over how to end the production limits, saying they should be eased as more rail capacity comes online.
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But Alberta Energy Minister Sonya Savage said that with delays in pipeline approvals such as Enbridge Inc's Line 603 replacement, production levels could exceed rail and pipeline capacity by 150,000 barrels per day, and greater price discounts could reappear, unless the province extended curtailments.
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While earnings from wind farms in operation increased by 18% in the first half year, driven by the ramp-up of generation from new wind farms, Orsted was not fully satisfied with output due to a number of outages and curtailments across its portfolio.
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With curtailments lasting longer, differentials between Canadian heavy and U.S. light crude look more stable, giving investors reason for greater comfort in heavy oil producers Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, Cenovus Energy Inc, MEG Energy Corp and Athabasca, CIBC analyst Jon Morrison said in a note.
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With curtailments lasting longer, differentials between Canadian heavy and U.S. light crude look more stable, giving investors reason for greater comfort in heavy oil producers Canadian Natural Resources Ltd, Cenovus Energy Inc , MEG Energy Corp and Athabasca, CIBC analyst Jon Morrison said in a note.
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China's national run-rate has picked up to 101,133 tonnes per day in June from 88,330 tonnes in November, the start of the forced winter curtailments in the regions around Beijing, but is still well short of the 107,700 tonnes registered in June 2017.
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As with other Italian regions, Marche benefits from national state aid, such as transfers and support in case of unpredictable events such as the recent earthquake, but remains subject to making contributions to Italy's consolidation efforts to balance the national accounts, with repeated revenue curtailments.
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WINNIPEG, Manitoba (Reuters) - Suncor Energy Inc, one of Canada's biggest oil producers, expects the province of Alberta to end mandatory production curtailments ahead of schedule as they have caused a price boost that makes rail shipments uneconomic, Chief Executive Officer Steve Williams said on Wednesday.
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Prices for coking coal, used primarily to heat iron ore during steel making, have more than doubled since the end of May, partly on large curtailments of China's supply after a reduction in its working week that has also fueled its appetite for imports.
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CALGARY, Alberta, July 25 (Reuters) - Canada's Suncor Energy is hopeful the Alberta government will decide "in the next month or so" to strike a deal that would allow oil producers to boost their output despite ongoing curtailments, the company's chief executive said on Thursday.
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WINNIPEG, Manitoba, Feb 6 (Reuters) - Suncor Energy Inc , one of Canada's biggest oil producers, expects the province of Alberta to end mandatory production curtailments ahead of schedule as they have caused a price boost that makes rail shipments uneconomic, Chief Executive Officer Steve Williams said.
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Taking advantage of the pass-through deduction by becoming a landlord might be especially enticing to those expecting a higher tax bill, thanks to the new curtailments on state, local and property taxes ($10,000) as well as mortgage interest ($750,000 for homes purchased after Dec.
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Despite the national government contributions to finance unexpected events or large projects, the city is exposed to the national policy of trimming its deficit and debt, by means of revenue curtailments or spending review, as Milan remains a net payer to municipalities' equalisation fund (about EUR143m in 2015).
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The province has been gradually easing curtailments on crude output but kept the January level unchanged due to external factors that have limited transportation, such as the temporary shutdown of TC Energy Corp's Keystone oil pipeline and a strike at Canadian National Railway Co, a spokesman for Alberta Energy Minister Sonya Savage said.
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NEW YORK (Reuters) - TransCanada Corp on Thursday filed with U.S. energy regulators to cut its spot rates to transport crude from Hardisty, Alberta, Canada to Port Arthur and Houston, Texas, just a month after filing to establish a new international tariff: The company said it would now charge uncommitted shippers $8.28 a barrel to ship light crude and $9 to ship heavy crude from Hardisty to Port Arthur and Houston, according to a filing with the U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory Commission In the initial January filing, Transcanada said it would charge uncommitted shippers $9.20 a barrel to ship light crude and $10 to ship heavy crude from Hardisty to Port Arthur and Houston The new rates would be effective March 1, the filing said Alberta curtailed 325,000 barrels per day (bpd) in January to drain a glut of crude in storage that was caused by congested pipelines, but has eased the curtailments modestly for February and March, citing faster-than-expected results as differentials narrowed rapidly from record lows "I think this was pre-emptive," one trader said, referring to the reduction in rates as a way for TransCanada to boost flows on Keystone.
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