N. Murray Edwards, who has acted as a sector standard-bearer in Canada for more than a decade, has decamped to London and lowered his profile
Alberta, which lured tens of billions of dollars in investments from the world’s biggest oil producers during a decade of heady growth from about 2003 to 2013, is now viewed as one of the places least likely to recover from the price rout because of high investment costs, long development time and looming limits on carbon emissions.
.. Royal Dutch Shell PLC took a $2 billion write-down last year after abandoning a major oil-sands project, and Exxon Mobil Corp. said earlier this year it may be forced to remove billions of barrels of oil-sands reserves from its books.
Exxon CEO Now a Contender for Donald Trump’s Secretary of State
President-elect widens circle of candidates for top diplomatic job and will interview more prospects
Though Mr. Trump’s transition team said last week that the search had narrowed to four finalists, new candidates have emerged, including Rex Tillerson, chairman and chief executive of Exxon Mobil Corp., one transition adviser said.
.. He’s very fortunate to have interest among serious men and women who, all of whom need to understand that their first responsibility as secretary of state would be to implement and adhere to the president-elect’s America First foreign policy, if you will, his view of the world.”
.. So far he has chosen to largely freestyle his engagement with foreign leaders, rather than rely on the State Department’s guidance for such conversations.
.. Choosing a secretary of state with scant foreign policy background, such as Exxon’s Mr. Tillerson, could further unnerve government officials serving in an institution that functions on strict protocols.
.. As Exxon’s chief executive, he has spoken against sanctions on Russia, where the company in 2012 signed a $3.2 billion deal that Mr. Putin said could eventually reach $500 billion in investments.
.. Mr. Tillerson has some of the closest CEO ties to Mr. Putin and Russia, with his work there dating back to when Mr. Putin rose to power after Boris Yeltsin’s resignation. The 2012 deal gave Exxon access to prized arctic resources. Later that year, the Kremlin bestowed the country’s Order of Friendship on the American businessman.
Oil-Price Rebound Gives Banks New Reason to Cheer
The higher oil prices stemming from OPEC’s agreement to cut crude production should give some banks a boost.
.. In particular, higher oil prices could mean that banks will release some of the reserves they set aside earlier this year to protect themselves against soured energy loans. Such releases would increase banks’ earnings.
.. Bank of America Corp. rose more than 4% on the day, Wells Fargo—2%, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co.—1.6% and Citigroup Inc.—1.6%.
.. Fifteen of the largest U.S. banks amassed a combined $6 billion in reserves for energy loans, according to a Barclays analysis.
OPEC May Give Trump Energy Goals a Boost
An agreement to cut production could lead to higher global oil prices
Overall, the net amount of energy brought into the country fell to 11.2% of domestic need in 2015 from 30.1% in 2006, according to Gregor Macdonald, an independent energy analyst.
.. Energy experts say the biggest barrier to additional increased domestic oil production today is the low price of crude, not red tape.