Oil & Energy
Big Oil Firms Now Ready To Boost Spending
All five oil and gas supermajors are looking to boost capital spending in 2022.
Despite some of the big oil timesreporting strongest earnings in years and record cash flows, capital discipline remains a key pillar of Exxon, Chevron, Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies are set to increase their combined capex programs in 2022 by at least $12 billion.
All five international oil and gas majors expect to boost their capital spending next year, although capital discipline and higher returns to shareholders will remain the top priorities for ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies.
Those oil majors—although Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies now prefer to be known as energy companies—have reported strong cash flows and earnings for the past two quarters as significantly higher oil and gas prices compared to last year boosted profits.
Despite some of Big Oil reporting strongest earnings in years and record cash flows, capital discipline remains a key pillar of all future strategies. Increased capex plans for 2022 and onwards are not surprising considering the fact that in 2020, all firms slashed as early as in March their capital allocation guidance in response to the crash in prices in the pandemic. Now budgets are slightly higher than in 2021 and incremental investments are specifically going to core growth oil and gas projects with low breakevens and high returns and to low-carbon energy.
Discipline Continues To Guide Spending
Despite $80 oil, no one is splurging on investment these days, unlike in the years prior to the 2015 price crash, when companies were spending as if oil would stay at $100 a barrel forever.
Sure, capex for 2022 is higher at all five majors compared to 2021 and 2020, but it’s nowhere near 2014 levels. Capital discipline is still the keyword in all earnings releases and calls, where higher dividends and share buybacks take precedence when it comes to allocating this year’s record cash flows.
Exxon, Chevron, Shell, BP, and TotalEnergies are set to increase their combined capex programs in 2022 by at least $12 billion, according to estimates from Energy Intelligence based on company reports and earnings calls. The increases are much smaller than the surge in the cash flow and earnings this year as the majors are set to primarily use the windfall to reduce debt and increase shareholder returns by raising dividends and repurchasing stock.
Higher Low-Carbon Spending
The five largest international firms are also raising capital spending on low-carbon energy, including the U.S. supermajors who differ from their European competitors in strategy by not being willing to invest in any solar and wind power generation. Instead, Exxon and Chevron plan to focus on renewable fuels and carbon capture and storage (CCS), both to cut their own carbon footprint and to develop in partnership regional CCS hubs in heavily industrialized areas.
Chevron, for example, said in September that it would triple its planned capital investment in lower carbon businesses to $10 billion through 2028, including $2 billion to lower the carbon intensity of its operations. Exxon said last week it expects its cumulative low-carbon investments to be around $15 billion from 2022 through 2027, a fourfold increase in a plan to raise total capex by at least $4 billion in 2022 compared to 2021.
Exxon Plans Highest Capex Hike
In reporting blockbuster earnings for Q3 last week, ExxonMobil’s said its 2021 capital program is expected to be near the low end of the $16 billion to $19 billion range. In the fourth quarter, the board of directors will formally approve the corporate plan, with capital spending anticipated to be in the range of $20 billion to $25 billion annually. The higher investment is underpinned by further appraisals and developments in Guyana and Brazil, Kathy Mikells, Senior Vice President and Chief Financial Officer, said on the Q3 earnings call last week. The Permian remains a top priority as well, where “we’re seeing that work that we’re doing out in the Permian deliver the same value for a lot less spend,” CEO Darren Woods said.
The other majors also plan higher capex in coming years, although less than Exxon’s increase in spending.
Shell, for example, said in its strategy day in February that it would boost its cash capex to $23 billion-$27 billion per year, from $19-22 billion annually, when it brings net debt down to below $65 billion. The company did that in Q3, with net debt down by $8.2 billion to $57.5 billion, thanks to improved macroeconomic environment and commodity derivatives inflows.
Shell’s higher capex was contingent on reducing debt and increasing shareholder returns first.
TotalEnergies, which sees net investments in 2021 at $13 billion—including $3 billion on renewables and electricity—expects to keep investment discipline, with its capex program at $13-15 billion per year for 2022-2025, the French firm said in September in its strategy presentation.
Chevron, which lowered 2021 capex guidance to $12 billion-$13 billion, has guidance of $15 billion to $17 billion for 2022 through 2025, CFO Pierre Breber said on the Q3 earnings call on Friday after Chevron reported its biggest quarterly profit since 2013 and its highest free cash flow on record.
“We do expect higher capex in the fourth quarter and next year,” Breber said.
Despite higher spending guidance, Big Oil continues to be conservative in capital allocation now that shareholders want returns and ESG investors want accountability.
“US$80/bbl oil gives companies options, and a chance to do it all – return cash to shareholders, maintain oil and gas investment, and accelerate investment in low carbon opportunities. The current upcycle presents a golden opportunity to reposition for a very different future,” Kavita Jadhav, research director at Wood Mackenzie, said last month.
Paraskova Reports for Oilprice.com
Traders have not been this bearish on oil in months or so bullish on United States natural gas in years.
The latest data on money managers’ positioning in the WTI and Brent crude and U.S. natural gas futures showed two contrasting trends—speculators are betting that oil prices would remain low or go even lower while increasing the bets that natural gas prices would continue marching higher.
So far this year, geopolitical and supply and demand factors have been increasingly bearish for the oil price outlook and increasingly bullish for natural gas prices.
In the oil market, hedge funds and other portfolio managers have been slashing their bullish bets since the end of January, when the U.S. sanctions on Russia’s oil trade were the primary bullish driver of managed money to bet on a tightening market.
With U.S. President, Donald Trump, now in office, the sentiment has quickly soured amid the president’s insistence on lower oil prices, his efforts to broker an end to the war in Ukraine, and – most of all – the enormous uncertainty about on-and-off tariffs and tariff threats and their potential impact on the American economy.
As a result, market participants are preparing for lower oil prices, even amid expectations of declining oil supply from Iran and Venezuela due to President Trump’s hawkish policy toward these OPEC producers.
Speaking of OPEC, the wider OPEC+ group has just said it would begin increasing supply as of April, adding further downward pressure on prices.
Faced with all these bearish drivers, money managers have been reducing their bullish bets on crude oil futures, with the U.S. WTI Crude hitting the lowest net long position – the difference between bullish and bearish bets – in 15 years at the end of February.
In the week to March 4, the latest reporting week with data released on March 7, speculators bought WTI amid a major selloff in all other commodities except for U.S. natural gas.
The net long in WTI rebounded from the 15-year low, but it wasn’t because the market suddenly started betting on higher prices going forward. The rise in WTI buying and the net long was the result of short covering in the U.S. crude futures contract.
In Brent, hedge funds cut their bullish-only bets in the week to March 4 for the biggest decline in longs since July 2024.
Unlike in crude oil, money managers have become increasingly bullish on U.S. natural gas after inventories dipped this winter to below the five-year average as demand surged in the coldest winter for six years.
The net long in natural gas further swelled in the week to March 4, as the number of new bullish bets was four times higher than the new short positions.
“Natural gas continues to benefit from rising demand, both domestically in the US and towards exports via LNG,” Ole Hansen, Head of Commodity Strategy at Saxo Bank, said, commenting on the latest Commitment of Traders report.
At the start of the winter heating season in November, U.S. natural gas inventories were higher than average for the time of the year as America entered the season with stocks at their highest level since 2016.
These stocks, however, were quickly depleted during the coldest winter for six years, with demand for space heating and power generation soaring. A month before the end of the winter heating season, U.S. natural gas inventories have now slumped to below the five-year average and well below the levels from the same time in 2024, at the end of a mild winter.
The lower inventories and the higher demand – both for domestic consumption and LNG exports – have pushed prices higher, encouraging producers to boost gas output this year. Traders bet that prices will go even higher as demand from LNG plants is set to accelerate with the ramp-up of new U.S. export plants.
Paraskova writes for Oilprice.com.
By: Tsvetana Paraskova
Renaissance Africa Energy Holdings says it has successfully completed the acquisition of 100 percent equity holding in the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).
Spokesperson of the company, Tony Okonedo, who disclosed this in a Press Release, Last Thursday, said Renaissance has completed all processes for the full transfer of ownership of SPDC to the consortium, adding that it will now operate as Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited.
“Renaissance Africa Energy Holdings today announced that it has successfully completed the landmark transaction between itself and Shell for the acquisition of the entire (100%) equity holding in the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC).
“This follows the signing of a sale and purchase agreement with Shell in January 2024 and obtaining all regulatory approvals required for the transaction. Going forward, SPDC will be renamed as ‘Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited.
“Going forward, SPDC will be renamed as ‘Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited’.
“Renaissance Africa Energy Holdings is a consortium consisting of four successful Nigerian independent oil and gas companies: ND Western Limited, Aradel Holdings Plc. FIRST Exploration and Petroleum Development Company Limited and the Waltersmith Group, each with considerable operations experience in the Niger Delta, and Petrolin, an international energy company with global trading experience and a pan African outlook”, the statement reads.
Speaking on the acquisition, the Managing Director/CEO, Renaissance Africa Energy Holding,Tony Attah, said Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited has a vision to be the leading oil and gas producer in Africa and to help the continent achieve energy security.
Attah expressed gratitude to the Federal Government for its support and pledged the company’s commitment to the Petroleum Industry Act.
“We are extremely proud to have completed this strategic acquisition. The Renaissance vision is to be ‘Africa’s leading oil and gas company, enabling energy security and industrialization in a sustainable manner’.
“We and our shareholder companies are therefore pleased that the Federal Government has given the green light for this milestone acquisition in line with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act”, he said.
The CEO acknowledged the contributions of Nigeria’s Minister of Petroleum Resources, the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) in facilitating the deal.
He said, “we extend our appreciation to the Honourable Minister of Petroleum Resources, the CEO of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and the CEO of Nigeria National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) for their foresight and belief, paving the way for the rapid development of Nigeria’s vast oil and gas resources as strategic accelerator for the country’s industrial development”.
The Statement further revealed that Renaissance partner companies collectively have an asset base of more than $3 billion and currently safely produce approximately 100,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) from 12 oil mining leases and operate two functioning modular refineries in Nigeria’s Niger Delta.
The Federal Government has cautioned oil-rich communities against infighting and disruption of oil production, saying it could hinder their access to the Host Community Development Fund.
Minister of State for Petroleum (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, made the appeal while speaking at the KEFFESO Stakeholders Forum, in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
Lokpobiri noted that the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) was enacted to bring stability to the oil sector and address longstanding grievances about underdevelopment in host communities.
He lamented, however, that internal disputes among stakeholders have made it difficult for these communities to access and utilize the funds meant for their development.
Lokpobiri insisted that host communities must overcome internal conflicts that hinder their access to the funds.
“This KEFFESO Stakeholders Forum is to see how host communities can maximize the benefits from the Host Communities Trust Funds as prescribed by the PIA.
“If oil production is disrupted, everyone loses — the Federal Government, oil companies, and the host communities themselves. That is why host communities must collaborate with the government and oil companies to ensure smooth operations” Lokpobiri stated.
The Minister called on Host Community Development Trusts (HCDTs) in the Niger Delta to effectively utilize the 3% operational funds allocated to them under the PIA 2021 to drive sustainable development.
He further called that oil-producing communities should take ownership of the oil and gas facilities within their domains and work with relevant stakeholders to ensure sustainable benefits.
“As stakeholders who have their respective stakes in oil and gas operations in the country, we should work together to ensure that we maximize the benefits of oil and gas.”
The minister also emphasized the global push for cleaner energy, warning that the relevance of fossil fuels depends on their extraction and marketability.
“Don’t forget there is a global campaign against the continuation of production of fossil fuel.
“Fossil fuel will never go away. Fossil fuel will not have any value unless you bring it out of the ground or from the sea to the market, that is why we need this collaboration,” he said.
In his remarks, the Executive Secretary, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Engr. Omotsola Ogbe, reaffirmed the board’s commitment to leveraging the provisions of the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act.
Represented by the Board’s Director of Legal Services, Naboth Onyesoh, Ogbe noted that the NCDMB’s Community Content Guidelines were designed to ensure sustained community engagement as local content is prioritized throughout the oil and gas value chain.
Ogbe praised the KEFFESO Host Community Development Trust for its efforts in ensuring that oil revenues benefit local communities.
Also speaking, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, First E & P, Ademola Adeyemi-Bero, described the KEFFESO Stakeholders Forum as a crucial platform for discussing and strategizing solutions to the challenges facing marginalized communities in the Niger Delta.
He reiterated the company’s commitment to fostering meaningful and sustainable development in the region.
The forum, themed “Envisioning Sustainable Community Development in Niger Delta Host Communities: Identifying Challenges and Actualising The PIA Paradigm Shift,” brought together key stakeholders to discuss strategies for maximising the benefits of the Petroleum Industry Act(PIA).