Total, the fifth largest international integrated oil and gas company, and IDT Corporation today announced that Total will acquire a 50% stake in IDT's American Shale Oil, LLC (AMSO) subsidiary.
Under the terms of the agreement, Total and IDT will jointly develop a research and demonstration program to produce and commercialize shale oil utilizing a new in-situ technology on AMSO's federal leasehold in western Colorado. Total will provide a majority of the funding during the research, development and demonstration (RD&D) phase of the project, and technical assistance throughout the life of the project. AMSO will continue to manage operations during the RD&D phase of the project. Total will assume management responsibilities during the subsequent commercial phase. The transaction is subject to customary closing conditions and is expected to close during the first quarter of this year.
AMSO is one of three holders of 10-year leases granted by the U.S. Bureau of Land Management to assess, test and demonstrate the potential for commercial shale oil production in western Colorado. Once AMSO has demonstrated that its technology is economically viable and environmentally acceptable, it will have the opportunity to expand its lease to 5,120 acres for commercial development. The rights covered by the commercial preference lease are estimated to contain multi billion barrels of recoverable shale oil.
"Our investment in AMSO furthers our commitment to developing unconventional hydrocarbons", said Yves-Louis Darricarrère, Total's E&P President. "Given the magnitude of oil shale resources we believe that this project has an important long-term potential for global energy markets. AMSO has a strongly skilled technical team, as well as interesting original ideas. We look forward to working with them to develop sustainable and environmentally responsible extraction and processing technologies".
"We are extremely pleased to partner with Total, one of the largest and most technologically sophisticated oil and gas companies in the world", said Howard Jonas, IDT's Chairman and AMSO's Chairman and CEO. "Total complements our team's technical capabilities with unparalleled expertise and depth in a variety of petroleum research and production disciplines. We particularly value their dedication to finding an approach to oil shale production that respects the unique environment of western Colorado".
Chair to Lead New Advances in Energy Efficiency; Endowment Furthers Chevron Commitment to Conservation and Efficiency
SAN RAMON, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Jan. 13, 2009--Chevron Corporation (NYSE:CVX) today announced a $2.5 million endowment for a permanent chair to head the Energy Efficiency Center (EEC) at the University of California, Davis (UC Davis).
The Chevron Chair in Energy Efficiency will direct the world's first university center of excellence in energy efficiency, created at UC Davis in 2006. The center is focused on developing and commercializing advanced technologies to enable energy efficiency in buildings, agriculture and transportation.
"Advancing energy efficiency, which is the cheapest, cleanest and most abundant form of new energy, is critical to the challenge of meeting the world's growing energy needs," said John McDonald, Chevron vice president and chief technology officer. "California has been a pacesetter in energy efficiency, so it's fitting that one of the state's leading universities and California's largest company should partner on the next generation of energy efficiency."
The Chevron Chair will expand the impact of the center's research programs through interdisciplinary collaboration, education, outreach and commercialization of technologies. The Chevron Chair will focus on developing strong links with state and federal government, as well as with international programs, to advance energy efficiency.
"Chevron's endowment will ensure long-term strategic leadership for the Energy Efficiency Center," said Larry Vanderhoef, UC Davis chancellor. "By bridging long-term research with real-world applications, the director will guide the center in its goal of commercializing groundbreaking technologies, powering economic progress and helping to conserve resources."
Chevron develops energy efficiency and renewable power projects for public institutions and businesses through its subsidiary, Chevron Energy Solutions. The endowment for the Chevron Chair complements Chevron's ongoing support for UC Davis, which includes a $500,000 grant for the EEC announced in 2008 and a $25 million biofuels collaboration developing technology to convert non-food agricultural waste into next-generation transportation fuels.
"Chevron is a proven leader in energy efficiency," said Ralph Cavanagh, Natural Resources Defense Council energy program co-director. "The Chevron Chair will be a major catalyst in moving the work of the EEC forward and making significant contributions to energy efficiency worldwide."
The exhibit showcases ExxonMobil’s proactive approach to reducing its own energy use as well as assisting consumers of hydrocarbon-based fuels in reducing their energy use. On display will be a prototype automobile featuring parts made from ExxonMobil lightweight plastics and rubber. Lighter vehicles use less fuel; for every 10-percent drop in vehicle weight, fuel economy improves by seven percent.
The exhibit will also contain information from ExxonMobil’s Outlook for Energy that examines the importance of accelerating gains in energy efficiency, expanding all commercially viable energy sources, and developing and deploying technology to help mitigate the growth of emissions associated with energy use.
Frank J. Kemnetz, president, Exxon (Al-Khalij), Inc., said, “ExxonMobil and its affiliate companies in the UAE are pleased and honored to participate as a platinum sponsor in the 2009 World Future Energy Summit and to share information on ExxonMobil’s actions to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. At the ExxonMobil exhibit, we will present some details of our long-standing effort to develop and deploy technologies that improve energy efficiency, both in our operations and in the consumer use of our products.”
As a speaker on the Automotive Panel on Tuesday, January 20, Nazeer Bhore, senior technology advisor, Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), will discuss advanced vehicle and fuel technologies that will be important to meeting global demand for transportation fuels. They will also help address the risk posed by rising greenhouse-gas emissions.
ExxonMobil participates in two oil concessions in the United Arab Emirates, one onshore and one offshore. The offshore Upper Zakum (ExxonMobil interest, 28 percent), is one of the world’s largest oil fields, with approximately 50 billion barrels originally in place, and less than 10 percent of the resource produced to date. In 2007, The ExxonMobil Technology Center opened in Abu Dhabi to allow staff working on Upper Zakum access to industry’s most advanced technology in areas of reservoir management, well management and production operations. ExxonMobil downstream affiliates or joint ventures in the UAE market jet fuel, lubricants, and chemical products in the UAE and the Middle East.
CAUTIONARY STATEMENT: References to barrels of oil include quantities not yet classified as proved reserves but that we believe will ultimately be recovered.
WASHINGTON--(BUSINESS WIRE)--National and international energy and environmental security can be achieved through policies that support innovation, competition and free trade, Rex Tillerson, chairman and chief executive officer of Exxon Mobil Corporation (NYSE:XOM), said today.
In a speech to the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars, Tillerson outlined the energy challenge facing America and the world: global energy demand is expected to be 35 percent higher in 2030 than it was in 2005 despite the current economic slowdown, efficiency improvements and growth in alternative energy sources such as wind and solar.
Providing energy to meet that demand, which is driven by economic expansion largely in developing countries, while protecting the environment will require development of all viable sources of energy and multiple technology breakthroughs, he said.
“Meeting our many energy challenges requires a multidimensional approach,” said Tillerson.
“We need to put in place policies that support an integrated set of solutions that help us find new energy supplies, increase energy efficiency, and discover the innovations that can address climate risks in the most effective manner. By combining energy, efficiency and environmental goals, integrated solutions help us develop and deploy new technologies at every point in the energy chain. In this way, we can meet our multiple energy challenges with multiple solutions.”
One example of a policy challenge provided by Tillerson is the current discussion about whether a cap-and-trade system or a carbon tax would be a more effective option for reducing carbon dioxide emissions.
A cap-and-trade system, which allows businesses to trade emissions allowances set by government, has problems with verification and accountability and requires new market infrastructure -- “a Wall Street of emissions brokers” -- as well as a costly and substantial expansion of regulatory and administrative oversight, he said.
“A carbon tax strikes us as a more direct, transparent and effective approach,” said Tillerson. It is easier to apply globally, avoids the establishment of new markets for trading emissions and new regulators to monitor them, can be implemented through the existing tax infrastructure and made revenue neutral to mitigate the impact on the economy.
“It is the most efficient means of reflecting the cost of carbon in all economic decisions -- from investments made by companies to fuel and product choices made by consumers,” said Tillerson.
Tillerson said Americans increasingly understand that there is no single answer to our energy, efficiency and environmental needs, as illustrated by public support and Congressional action in favor of lifting the moratorium on development of the country’s vast offshore oil and natural gas resources.
“Opening up U.S. supplies of oil and natural gas would boost our economy by simultaneously lowering the cost of energy, increasing employment and providing a new source of government revenue,” he said, referencing a recent study’s conclusion that developing areas of the United States that have been kept off limits would generate more than $1.7 trillion in new government revenue and create 160,000 jobs.
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