NEWS RELEASE                                   JUNE 2009

Hundreds Oil, Gas, Shale, LNG and Refining Projects Moving Forward

As the oil prices recover numerous projects valued at hundreds of billions of dollars are moving forward.  The progress of each of these projects is chronicled in Oil, Gas, Shale and Refining markets and projects published online by the McIlvaine Company.  Some refining projects are designed to meet new environmental requirements while others are to increase capacity.

Oil shale investment has slowed but is still significant.  Oil and gas projects are being developed to meet the world’s increasing demand for fossil fuels.  LNG projects include liquefaction at the source, tanker transport, and then regasification.

Refining: Holly Corp.'s $65 million deal to acquire Sunoco's West Tulsa refinery is part of the buyer's $215 million plan that upgrades the 96-year-old facility to meet stricter environmental standards.

Pakistan’s oil refineries will require $1.5 billion for upgrading to achieve de-sulferization and isomerization in order to meet Euro-II specifications.

Mexico’s state-owned Pemex has launched a $12.2 bln plan to add new refining capacity to deal with the country's growing dependence on imported fuels.  The company will now build a new refinery near an existing plant at Tula, north of Mexico City, as well as overhaul its Salamanca refinery, outside Guadalajara.

Construction work on a US$6 billion oil refinery in Vietnam has started.  Vietnam Oil & Gas Group is building the 200,000 barrel-a-day Nghi Son Refinery and Petrochemical LLC with Kuwait Petroleum Corp, Idemitsu Kosan Co. and Mitsui Chemicals, Inc.

Oil Shale: The present oil price level has slowed down activity but there are still projects moving forward.  Canada's s oil sands sector would get a big boost if Imperial Oil Ltd. proceeds with its 100,000-barrel-per-day Kearl oils sands project.  The integrated major supplier has said it will decide on the $8-billion mining proposal before the end of the second quarter.  Suncor has a $20 billion expansion plan.  Petro-Canada expects to invest $985 million this year.

Canadian production of synthetic crude from oil sands is expected to reach 3.3 million bbl/d in 2020 up from 1.2 million bbl/d in 2007.  Huge investments will be needed to make this big increase in production.

Oil and Gas: Activity has slowed but many projects are moving forward.  ExxonMobil Corp. is rigging up to begin drilling at the big Point Thomson gas and condensate field 60 miles east of Prudhoe Bay and is on schedule to begin production  by the end of 2014. The $1.3 billion project involves development of a gas cycling and condensate that will initially produce 10,000 barrels per day of liquid condensates.

Iraq has qualified nine international oil companies to take part in its second bidding round to develop 11 oil and gas fields.  The Oil Ministry has recently issued tenders to drill nearly 100 new wells and install production surface plants in a number of oil fields in the south as part of an accelerated plan to add 300,000 to 500,000 barrels per day by the end of 2010.  Iraq's target over the next four to six years is to reach a production level of 4 million to 4.5 million barrels a day.

Petrofac has been awarded a $2.2 billion engineering, procurement and construction contract for the El Merk central processing facility in the Berkine Basin of Algeria.  The facility is to be completed over the next 44 months with significant volumes from the project expected in 2012. The El Merk central processing facility (CPF) will be operated by Sonatrach and Anadarko on behalf of the El Merk partners including Maersk Oil, Eni, ConocoPhillips and Talisman Algeria.

LNG:  Investment continues to be made in upgrades of regasification facilities, launching of new liquefaction plants and construction of tankers.

Dominion subsidiary, Dominion Cove Point LNG, Richmond, Va., recently started up its 1.8 MMcfd expansion of the terminal on the Maryland shore of Chesapeake Bay.  The company said the project expands the terminal capacity by 80 percent and LNG storage capacity by nearly 100 percent to 14.6 bcf (equivalent).

APLNG is proposing a large coal seam gas (CSG) to liquefied natural gas project in Australia which will result in investment in the order of US$24.9 billion (A$35 billion) in Queensland through to 2020.  APLNG is co-owned by Australia's leading integrated energy company, Origin and U.S. integrated energy company, ConocoPhillips.