SEC sues 2 Lewisville oil-gas companies

The Securities and Exchange Commission has sued two Lewisville-based oil and gas companies, alleging that they improperly raised $11 million for projects.
The SEC says that Overland Energy Inc. and Acorn Energy Inc. used unregistered sales representatives to market investments in the companies and that the investments contained misleading information for potential buyers.
The suit filed Wednesday in federal court in Dallas also names Gary B. Smith, Robert J. Nelson and Steven M. Ray. According to the suit, Smith ran both Overland and Acorn, Nelson supervised the sales process at Overland and Ray was a salesman for Overland.
The investing documents said 82 percent of the proceeds would go toward developing oil and gas assets while only half did, the suit said.
Investor money was used for international travel and other undisclosed purposes, and the companies promised returns that were unachievable, the SEC contends.
Attempts to reach the companies and the named individuals weren't successful Thursday; calls and messages left for the men and the companies weren't returned.
The SEC has won a restraining order that freezes assets of the companies, and seeks civil penalties and payback of investor funds.
http://www.dallasnews.com/sharedcontent/dws/bus/stories/DN-secsuit_12bus.ART.State.Edition1.3caa909.html

Nifty surges further; oil & gas, financials lead

At 12:01 hours IST - the 50-share NSE Nifty surged further and started trading above 5450 on support from heavyweights. Financial, oil & gas, FMCG, realty, select metal and technology companies' shares were helping the Sensex to gain nearly 150 points.
Asian markets also gained further; Shanghai was up 0.9% and Nikkei up 0.4%. Kospi was up 1.4%, Taiwan up 0.8% and Straits Times rose 0.7%.

However, the sell-off continued in Sterlite Industries (down over 3% post confirmation that Vedanta Resources is in talks to buy assets or stake in Cairn Energy PLC), Reliance Communications (ahead of numbers today), Tata Motors (profit booking after rallied in last four days), M&M, Ranbaxy Labs, Infosys, Idea, Ambuja Cements and Siemens.
The Sensex was trading at 18219, up 145 points and the Nifty was at 5464, up 48 points. Even the broader indices inched up further; gained 1% each.
Heavyweight Reliance Industries gained 1.8% and even Cairn India up 1.8%. ONGC, BPCL and GAIL went up 0.7-1%.
In financial space, SBI rallied 2.5% after strong set of numbers in Q1, showed jump of 25% in net profit; stock shot up 7% yesterday. ICICI Bank, IDFC and Kotak Mahindra Bank were up 1.8-2.4%. Axis Bank, HDFC, HDFC Bank and PNB moved up 0.8% each.
Raymond, Bombay Dyeing, SBI, Patni Computer and Reliance Industries were the most active shares on exchanges.
Patni rallied 8%, as the company announced special dividend of Rs 63/share. Patni had cash of around Rs 167/share on books. Patni Promoter holding is at 46.2% and they will get Rs 378 crore via special dividend.
In the midcap space, Bombay Dyeing, Info Edge, Indian Bank and Jai Corp were up 5.5-10% while Essar Shipping, KGN Industries, Edelweiss Capital, Dalmia Cement and Whirlpool lost 2-7.4%.
In the smallcap space, Raymond shot up 19.99%. Minda Inds, Aqua Logistics, Nirlon and Lok Housing went up 10-15.5% while Ramsarup Inds fell 15.8%. Talwalkars Fitness, REI Six Ten, Ankur Drugs and Rico Auto slipped 5-6.5%.

http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/local-markets/nifty-surges-further-oilgas-financials-lead_477814.html

ONGC gas fields to meet future energy needs

Facing the prospect of a turnaround in the hitherto loss-making natural gas business, state-run ONGC is planning aggressive investments for developing its gas fields to “meet the nation’s energy needs”, the company’s CMD R S Sharma said.
R S Sharma said the price increase from $1.79 to $4.2 per million British thermal unit or mmBtu will give the company relief from the estimated under-recovery (revenue loss) of about Rs 5,400 crore for this financial year.
Sharma said ONGC has never hesitated in making investments to develop its fields in the interest of the nation, but the latest price increase gives the company the necessary relief to do more in the risky business of gas exploration and production.
“From a business perspective, there would be some profits too,” Sharma said. He said the company may be in a better position to give more discounts to state-owned oil retailers IOC, BPCL and HPCL, who buy crude from ONGC. According to him, ONGC’s earning per share, an indicator of profitability, is expected to go up by 10-12% on account of the increased price.
Calls made to the chairman and other senior officials of Oil India Ltd, the other state-owned company selling gas at administered price, remained unanswered.
Fertiliser companies, who would be hit by the higher cost of feedstock, welcomed the spirit of the price increase of gas and expected a similar move in the price of urea, which is now controlled by the government. Producers of urea get government subsidy for selling the fertiliser below cost and would not be affected, although delayed subsidy grant may cause them temporary cash flow problems.
Fertiliser major Iffco’s managing director and CEO U S Avasthi said that $ 4.2 mmBtu is a fair price to both gas producers as well as consumers in the fertilizer industry. “We (the country) want investments in the gas sector as well as in the fertilizer sector. It is a fair price to both the sectors. We expect the government to take a similar step (increasing sale price) in the case of urea too,” Avasthi said. According to agriculture experts, urea is excessively used by farmers because it is cheaper, leading to severe imbalances in the soil’s constitution.
http://www.financialexpress.com/news/ONGC-gas-fields-to-meet-future-energy-needs/621563/

Big oil boosts gas holdings

Canada’s biggest energy companies are quietly boosting their natural gas holdings, with EnCana and Canadian Natural Resources snapping up properties at a time when the commodity
EnCana, focusing on unconventional gas plays after spinning out its heavy oil holdings last year, revealed on Friday that it built a sizable 250,000 acre holding in an area of Michigan known as the Collingwood shale play. A promising, 9,500 foot-deep exploration well has been drilled. BMO Nesbitt Burns analyst Randy Ollenberger said in a report on Friday that EnCana’s average acquisition cost of $150 an acre is well below the price that rivals have paid on eastern U.S. shale plays.
Over at Canadian Natural Resources - a company commonly known by its stock symbol, CNQ - investors found out late Thursday that their company dropped a total of $1-billion in the past three months to buy a raft of natural gas properties near its existing holdings in B.C. and Alberta.
The news came with the release of quarterly earnings, and in CNQ’s conference call with analysts - covered by Reuters - company president Steve Laut said: “We believe gas prices will come back to reasonable levels. It might take two or three years before that happens.”
Natural gas is changing hands for $4 (U.S.) per million BTUs, a third of the price it fetched two years ago, ahead of the recession.
The relatively low price for natural gas is spurring property sales to the oil patch’s biggest players, as oil patch experts say many junior energy plays borrowed money to buy and develop properties over the past five years. Weak gas prices means those debts cannot be services, so lenders are either forcing sales by existing owners, or taking over properties and selling them off.
One of the lenders pushing natural gas-heavy junior companies to pay back loans is government-owned ATB Financial - better known as the Alberta Treasury Branch. Financing energy companies is a priority for the agency, and it built its entire loan portfolio during the recession.
ATB Financial’s most recent financial report showed the agency had $24-billion of loans outstanding at the end of 2009, up 8 per cent from the previous year. ATB Financial raised its loan loss provisions in the most recent quarter by $6.3-million to $20.2-million.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/globe-investor/markets/streetwise/big-oil-boosts-gas-holdings/article1560656/

Rex Energy Corporation to Present at IPAA Oil and Gas Symposium

STATE COLLEGE, Pa., April 9, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Rex Energy Corporation ("Rex Energy") (Nasdaq:REXX) will present at the IPAA Oil and Gas Investment Symposium in New York at the Sheraton New York Hotel and Towers on Wednesday, April 14, 2010 at 10:25 a.m. Eastern time with a breakout session to follow. The company's presentation at the conference will be webcast and available through the Rex Energy website, www.rexenergy.com. The slide presentation that will be used at the conference will be available on Rex Energy's website beginning Monday, April 12, 2010.
About Rex Energy Corporation
Rex Energy is an independent oil and gas company operating in the Illinois Basin and the Appalachian Basin of the United States. The company has pursued a balanced growth strategy of exploiting its sizable inventory of lower risk developmental drilling locations, pursuing its higher potential exploration drilling prospects and actively seeking to acquire complementary oil and natural gas properties.
http://money.cnn.com/news/newsfeeds/articles/globenewswire/188448.htm

CNC machine tools boost oil/gas part manufacture

Manufacturer of oil and gas sector components in difficult to machine metals and alloys has invested in a GBP 1,25 million expansion programme, including five CNC machine tools.

Manufacturer of oil and gas sector components in difficult to machine metals and alloys has invested in a GBP 1,25 million expansion programme, including CNC machine tools.

Dundee, Scotland-based precision subcontractor - GA Engineering - is a company on a mission.
The mission, in the words of company managing director Gordon Deuchars is, quite simply, "To be the best in everything we do".
Mission statements are easy to say - but are much more difficult to put into operation.
However, with GA Engineering, fuelled by the drive and determination of Deuchars, there is no difference between the rhetoric and what goes on in practice at the company's 30,000ft2 facility in West Pitkerro - where an extensive GBP 1,250,000 expansion programme has just been completed.
First established in 1992, GA Engineering is today a major player in the oil and gas sector.
The company also provides specialist subcontract manufacturing services to the petrochemical, electronic and medical sectors and other manufacturing processing industries.
The company, throughout its history has made (and continues to make) strategic and pragmatic investments in the latest and most advanced machine tool technologies.
In 2006 alone GA Engineering purchased five Doosan CNC machines from Leamington Spa-based machine tool specialist - Mills Manufacturing Technology.
These consisted of the following.
* Two Puma 400 turning centres with 800mm chuck capacity.
* One Puma 700L lathe with 3.2m bed length capacity.
* Two Mynx 540 box-guide-way constructed vertical machining centres.
Since their installation, all five machines, in the words of Deuchars: "Have never missed a beat.
GA Engineering has an enviable reputation built on quality, reliability and value.
The company manufactures high-precision complex components from one-offs and prototypes through to medium volume batch series production.
Components, especially for the oil and gas sector, are manufactured from hard and difficult machine materials - Inconels, Monel, Duplex Steels, and Exotic Alloys etc.
ContinuedDeuchars: "The company has considerable expertise in machining complex components from difficult-to-machine materials.
This know-how plus the investments we have made in advanced machine tools means that we can provide customers with proven and reliable manufacturing solutions for machining parts from 3mm - 900mm diameter and up to 3.2m in length.
The types of components we manufacture vary considerably.
Typical parts include - valves, seals, rings, housings, pump and centrifuge components and assemblies etc.
for the oil and gas sector.
In addition to component part manufacture - we also design and manufacture (in-house) specialist jigs and fixtures for complex jobs too.
Success and growth in the global and highly-competitive oil and gas sector are never guaranteed.
But without the necessary robust business processes and systems, manufacturing technologies and highly-trained, dedicated staff in place - for many companies it is a definite non-starter.
By contrast GA Engineering has made/is making significant investment in its processes, people, plant and equipment.
The company is accredited to BS EN ISO 9000: 2002 and, over the next 12 months, is introducing 'lean manufacturing' based on Kaizan and Six Sigma principles across its operations.
To ensure that it does not suffer from the continuing manufacturing skills shortage - GA Engineering also operate an in-house modern apprenticeship programme for 16-20 year old trainees.
The substantial refurbishment of the company's facility is impressive.
State of the art offices and work stations, re-vamped production facilities plus world-class customer conference and meeting rooms, not to mention a fully-equipped gym for staff - all provide tangible evidence of a company that is dead-set on achieving its 'best-in-class' ambitions.
Concluded Deuchars: "The old adage that you're only as good as your last job is true.
At GA Engineering we want to make sure that every job we do is as good if not better than the last.
We have embarked on a programme of continuous improvement - and it is delivering real business benefits.
Increased sales turnover (year on year), improved margins and profitability, reduced lead times, improved part quality, higher staff retention, greater customer satisfaction all demonstrate the success of our business strategies.
http://www.manufacturingtalk.com/news/mil/mil167.html

Europe aims to cut Rs 60 bn euros of oil, gas imports

The European Union's energy strategy could cut a total 60 billion euros (USD 81.5 billion) off the bloc's oil and gas imports over the next decade, a leaked document from the EU executive shows.
The 27-country EU could also reduce its wider dependence on commodity shipments from overseas in the hope of bolstering economies and security.
The draft, titled "Europe 2020", gives a preliminary view of the EU's strategy for economic growth, jobs and energy over the next 10 years. A final version will be unveiled on March 3 by European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.

"Meeting our energy goals could result in 60 billion euros less in oil and gas imports by 2020," said the draft, seen by Reuters on Tuesday. "This is not only financial savings — this is essential for our energy independence."
Curbing dependence on fossil fuel imports became a priority for the EU in January last year when a price row between Moscow and Kiev led to a cut in Russian gas flowing through Ukraine's pipelines to Europe during two weeks of freezing weather.
Moscow's 2008 invasion of Georgia also came perilously close to key pipelines and highlighted Europe's import dependence.
The 27-country EU aims to improve energy efficiency by a fifth by 2020, and is on track to source around a fifth of its energy needs from domestic renewable sources such as the sun, wind and farm waste.
The new strategy goes beyond cuts to fossil fuels.
"We should aim to decouple growth from energy use and become a resource-efficient economy, which will not only give Europe a competitive advantage, but also reduce its dependency on foreign sources for raw materials and commodities," says the draft, which could still change.
It reiterates the EU's commitment to curbing the carbon emissions that most scientists blame for climate change, despite sluggish progress in U.N. talks on global warming. It predicts that the value of the market for low-carbon technology will triple over the next 20 years.
"The EU was largely a first mover in green solutions, but its advantage is being challenged by strong growth in other markets, notably China and North America," it said.
Most European environmentalists have welcomed the emergence of a "Europe 2020" strategy with green growth at its heart, but Green politician Claude Turmes said it fell short on concrete policy measures.
"The EU risks failing again on integrating environment into the general socio-economic policy," he said.
"This would not only be a waste of precious time to address the environmental crises like climate change and biodiversity losses, but will also fail to keep the EU leading in the global race for green technologies," Turmes added.
http://www.moneycontrol.com/news/commodities/europe-aims-to-cut-rs-60-bn-eurosoil-gas-imports_443465.html

StockSource.us Reports USOG Sees Subsidiary Post Strong 4Q

Turnbull Oil, the United States Oil & Gas Corp (usog) subsidiary is expected to post strong financials for 2009. This after the company released its fourth quarter results from 2009 recently.

Turnbull generated $4.400,000 in sales revenue and posted $278 000 in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization. The annual audit for the full year 2009 are busy being finalized by a certified Public Company accounting Oversight Board and will be available when ready.

Alex Tawse, CEO of USOG, commented: "Turnbull's sales exceeded forecasts in large part due to increased demand for its fuels as colder weather gripped much of the Midwest. Despite missing five business days due to winter storms, Turnbull was able to deliver another excellent performance. Because it has strong and consistent margins on its fuels and a relatively large, established customer base, the business is able to turn a profit and increase revenue even in a down economy. We are extremely proud of USOG's growth to date and have targeted a third acquisition of a regional oil and gas distribution company by year-end."
http://www.emailwire.com/release/32917-StockSourceus-Reports-USOG-Sees-Subsidiary-Post-Strong-4Q-.html