ÿþ<html xmlns:xsi="http://www.w3.org/2000/10/XMLSchema-instance" xmlns:my="http://localhost/namespace"> <head> <title>Annual Oil Market Chronology Energy Data, Statistics and Analysis - Oil, Gas, Electricity, Coal</title> <meta name="description" content="Annual Oil Market Chronology Energy Data, Statistics and Analysis - Oil, Gas, Electricity, Coal" /> <meta name="keywords" content="Annual Oil Market Chronology Energy Data, Statistics and Analysis - Oil, Gas, Electricity, Coal" /> <meta http-equiv="pragma" content="no-cache" /> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=iso-8859-1" /> <script language="JavaScript" src="../scripts/printme.js" type="text/javascript"></script> <map name="Map"> <area shape="rect" coords="3,4,73,59" href="http://www.eia.doe.gov" alt="Energy Information Administration Home " title="Energy Information Administration Home" /> <area shape="rect" coords="76,10,379,48" href="../index.html" alt="Country Analysis Briefs" title="Country Analysis Briefs" /> </map> <LINK HREF="../cabs.css" TYPE="text/css" REL="StyleSheet" /> </head> <body style="margin: 0px;"> <table summary="" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" width="100%" border="0"> <tr> <td colspan="3"> <map name="EIALogoMap"><area shape="rect" coords="7,5,111,55" href="http://www.eia.doe.gov" alt="return to EIA home" title="return to EIA home" /></map><table border="0" width="100%" cellspacing="0" cellpadding="0" title="Search" summary="Contains EIA logo, FirstGov.gov Affiliates search form, glossary"><tr><td align="left" width="65%"><IMG src="http://www.eia.doe.gov/images/eia_new.gif" height="55" width="680" usemap="#EIALogoMap" border="0" alt="Energy Information Administration (EIA) Logo - Need Help? 202-586-8800" /></td><td align="center" width="35%"><form action="http://www.firstgov.gov/fgsearch/index.jsp" name="query" id="query" target="results" style="display: inline;"><input type="hidden" name="db" value="www-fed-all" /><input type="hidden" name="domain" value="www.eia.doe.gov" /><input type="hidden" name="pl" value="domain" /><input type="hidden" name="adv" value="0010" /><input type="hidden" name="fr" value="0" /><input type="hidden" name="de" value="detailed" /><input type="hidden" name="nr" value="10" /><input type="hidden" name="ms0" value="should" /><input type="hidden" name="mt0" value="all" /><input type="text" name="mw0" id="label_for_mw2" size="20" maxlength="256" title="enter the information you are searching for" /><input type="image" name="search" alt="enter terms to search" src="http://tonto.eia.doe.gov/search_buttonS.gif" align="absmiddle" border="0" title="click to search EIA" /></form><br /><A href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/glossary/index.html"><FONT face="Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif" size="2">Glossary</FONT></A></td></tr></table> </td> </tr> <tr> <td width="595" style="background:url(../images/R4_03.jpg)"> <div class="cssBreadcrumbs"> <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov">Home</a> &gt; <a href="http://www.eia.doe.gov/international">International</a> &gt; <a href="../index.html">Country Analysis Briefs</a> &gt; Annual Oil Market Chronology</div> </td> <td width="9000" style="background:url(../images/R4_04.jpg)"><img src="../images/R4_04.jpg" alt="Country Analysis Briefs" /></td> <td style="background:url(../images/R4_04.jpg)" align="right"><a href="../index.html"><img src="../images/R4_05.jpg" alt="Country Analysis Briefs" border="0" /></a></td> </tr> <tr> <td style="background:url(../images/R4_06.jpg)" id="header_text"><img src="../images/Blank.gif" width="595" height="1" /><br /><span class="cssCountryTitle">Annual Oil Market Chronology</span></td> <td style="background:url(../images/R4_07.jpg)"></td> <td style="background:url(../images/R4_07.jpg)" align="right"><a href="../index.html"><img src="../images/R4_08.jpg" alt="Country Analysis Briefs" border="0" /></a></td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td colspan="2" style="background:#FFFFFF" id="main"> <table summary="" width="100%"> <tr valign="top"> <td></td> <td align="left"><span class="cssHeader1">2000s</span></td> </tr> <tr valign="top"> <td></td> <td class="cssContent"> <span class="cssSubheading1">Jump <a name="backtotop0009"> </a>to a Specific Year</span><br /> <div> <table> <tr> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2000"> <span style="">2000</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2001"> <span style="">2001</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2002"> <span style="">2002</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2003"> <span style="">2003</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2004"> <span style="">2004</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href="#a2005"> <span style="">2005</span> </a> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> <a href=""> </a> <span style="">2006</span> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> </p> </td> <td> <p style="font-size:0.75em;"> </p> </td> </tr> </table> <p /> </div> <span class="cssSubheading1">2000</span><br /> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 7</span> Energy<a name="a2000"> </a> companies and countries around the world report that they have passed into the year 2000 without significant problems from the "Y2K Bug." There was concern that the inability of some computers and embedded control systems to recognize the year 2000 could create serious problems. (DJ, WP)<p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 26</span> The United Nations Security Council reaches agreement on the appointment of Hans Blix of Sweden, the former head of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), to lead the new United Nations weapons inspection organization for Iraq. Iraq has indicated that it does not intend to accept the new Security Council resolution. (DJ)<p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">February 2</span> The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) acts to block the proposed merger between BP Amoco and Atlantic Richfield, saying the merger would unduly restrict competition along the West coast of the United States. (WSJ, WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">February 9</span> The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issues a group of policy changes which extend the deregulation of the interstate natural gas pipeline system begun under Order 636 in 1992. Among the changes is a lifting, for a trial period of 30 months, of the price ceiling on secondary market exchanges of short-term gas pipeline capacity. FERC's lifting of the ceiling is meant in part to encourage gas shippers to use longer-term contracts which would promote market stability. (DJ)<p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 6</span> The United States Supreme Court overturns the State of Washington's law establishing state regulation of oil tankers, ruling unanimously that federal laws take precedence. The attempt to impose tougher regulatory standards came in the wake of the 1989 Exxon Valdez disaster in Alaska. (WP, NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 7</span> New York Mercantile Exchange front-month West Texas Intermediate crude oil futures contract closes at $34.13 per barrel, the highest level in nine years. (WSJ)<p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 15</span> Phillips Petroleum announces that it has agreed to purchase Atlantic Richfield's assets in Alaska for $6.5 billion. The sale is being made in an effort to secure approval from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for the merger of Atlantic Richfield with BP Amoco. Earlier the same day, the FTC announced that it had suspended its antitrust lawsuit seeking to block the merger, citing progress in talks with the companies involved. (DJ, NYT, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 20</span> EPA Administrator Carol Browner announces that the Clinton Administration intends to push for a phase out of the use of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) as a gasoline additive. The administration wants Congress to pass legislation which would end the requirement for the use of MTBE in gasoline sold in some smog-prone urban areas, and instead require nationwide use of ethanol. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 26</span> Vladimir Putin is elected president of Russia on the first ballot, winning 53 percent of the popular vote. Putin took office as acting president in December 1999 after the resignation of Boris Yeltsin. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 28</span> After two days of meetings, OPEC oil ministers agree on an increase in oil production of 1.452 million barrels per day by its members, excluding Iran and Iraq. Iraq, has not been subject to OPEC production agreements while under U.N. Security Council sanctions. Iran, though not formally signing on to the agreement, stated its intention to raise its production in order to avoid loss of its market share. This would represent about a 1.7 million barrel per day increase in OPEC production targets, if Iran was included. Several major non-OPEC producers, including Mexico and Norway, also have indicated an intention to raise production. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 12</span> Several Chief Executive Officers (CEOs) of major United States oil companies meet with senior Saudi Arabian officials to discuss possible investments in natural gas and petrochemical projects. The firms represented at the meetings include Chevron, Conoco, ExxonMobil, Marathon Oil, Phillips Petroleum, and Texaco. The Saudi government announces, in conjunction with the meetings, a package of legal changes that will make Saudi Arabia more open to foreign investors. Complete foreign ownership will be allowed for some types of projects, and the maximum corporate tax rate for foreign enterprises will be reduced to 15 percent. (WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 14</span> BP Amoco receives approval from the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) for its $28 billion takeover of Atlantic Richfield Corporation (ARCO). As part of the approval, ARCO has agreed to sell its crude oil production operations in Alaska to Phillips Petroleum in a deal valued at $6.5 billion. (WP, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 16</span> Several sources, including the Washington Post, report a major oil find at the Kashagan field offshore from Kazakhstan, with reserves reportedly greater than 8 billion barrels. If these early reserve estimates prove correct, the additional production volumes could boost chances for construction of the proposed Baku-Ceyhan pipeline. (WP, DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 17</span> The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) formally proposes a rule which, if finalized, would reduce allowable sulfur levels in diesel fuel by 97 percent over the next five years. The move is opposed by major refiners. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 17</span> The Energy Information Administration releases a study of oil reserves in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR), which currently is off-limits to oil exploration. The study estimates that there are between 5.7 and 16 billion barrels of recoverable oil in the ANWR. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 6</span> The World Bank executive board votes to approve a loan of $193 million to support a project to build a crude oil pipeline from Chad to the coast of Cameroon. The countries will collect an estimated $2 billion in revenues from the project over a period of 25 years. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 8</span> The Brazilian government conducts an auction of oil exploration and production concessions covering a total of 21 blocks, both onshore and offshore. The auction represents an important step in the opening of Brazil's oil industry to international competition and investment. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 9</span> The United States and Mexico sign a treaty resolving the issue of economic rights over the deepwater "doughnut hole" area in the Gulf of Mexico between the two countries. The agreement is based on measuring distances from each country's coast, and gives the United States rights to 38 percent of the area. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 15</span> The German government announces an agreement with utilities for the complete phaseout of nuclear power. Nuclear power plants will be closed after a lifespan of 32 years. Nuclear power supplies about one-third of Germany's electricity, and the phaseout plan may complicate Germany's plans to reduce fossil fuel consumption to curb greenhouse gas emissions. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 19</span> The Energy Information Administration reports a one-week rise of five cents in the average price of regular gasoline, to $1.681. This is the seventh straight week of increasing prices. Gasoline prices in the Midwest are the nation's highest, at $1.874. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 21</span> OPEC oil ministers, meeting in Vienna, agree to raise crude oil production quotas by a total of 708,000 barrels per day. OPEC's total production quota (excluding Iraq) will rise to 25.4 million barrels per day as of July 1, 2000. The next day, crude oil futures rise, with the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) August West Texas Intermediate contract closing June 22 at $32.19. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 12</span> The Kuwaiti parliament ratifies a treaty with Saudi Arabia resolving competing claims to offshore mineral rights. The two countries will share revenues from the Khafji, Dorra, and Hout oil and gas fields. The treaty will allow the two governments to begin negotiations with Iran to settle conflicting claims, which have again surfaced as Iran has begun drilling in the Dorra offshore gas field. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 27</span> Italy's ENI signs a deal with Iran worth $3.8 billion for the development of the country's South Pars gas field in the Persian Gulf. The project will take five years to become operational, and will eventually produce 530 million cubic feet of gas per day. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 30</span> Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez wins reelection with 60 percent of the popular vote. His Patriotic Pole party also wins a controlling majority in the country's new unicameral legislature. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">August 10</span> Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez meets with Iraqi President Saddam Hussein in Baghdad as part of a tour of OPEC member states.  Chavez is the first head of state to visit Saddam Hussein since the 1990 Iraqi invasion of Kuwait. (NYT, WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">August 23</span> The Energy Information Administration reports that crude oil stock levels in the United States have fallen to their lowest level since 1976. Crude oil for October delivery closes at $32.02 on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), up 80 cents. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">August 30</span> The Department of Energy awards contracts to create a two-million-barrel reserve of heating oil. The oil will be stored in privately owned facilities in Woodbridge, New Jersey, and New Haven, Connecticut. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 8</span> Truck drivers in Britain begin a blockade of oil refineries to protest high fuel prices. The blockade follows a similar protest in France. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 10</span> At a meeting in Vienna, OPEC agrees to raise production quotas by 800,000 barrels per day (to 26.2 million barrels per day, not counting Iraq) in an attempt to push crude oil prices back under $28 per barrel. The quota increases become effective October 1. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 20</span> Oil prices close at $37.20 on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), after trading as high as $37.80 during the day's trading session. The price spike comes amid an increase in tensions between Iraq and Kuwait. This level sets a new ten-year high for NYMEX crude oil. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 22</span> President Clinton authorizes the release of 30 million barrels of oil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) over 30 days to bolster oil supplies, particularly heating oil in the Northeast. The release will take the form of a "swap," in which crude oil volumes drawn from the SPR will be replaced by the recipients at a later date. Crude oil for November delivery falls four percent, to $32.68, on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 26</span> A summit of OPEC heads of government opens in Caracas, Venezuela. The summit is only the second OPEC meeting held at that level. The summit ends on a conciliatory note, with the communique calling for increased dialogue between OPEC and consuming nations. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 28</span> The United Nations Compensation Commission, which handles claims for reparations arising from Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait, approves by consensus a $15.9 billion claim by Kuwait for compensation for lost oil production and damage to oil reserves and equipment. The proportion of revenues from Iraqi oil sales under the "oil for food" program which are used for payment of claims is reduced from 30 percent to 25 percent. Iraq condemns the decision, but states that it will not call a halt to oil exports, as had earlier been feared. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 12</span> Oil prices rise sharply on news of a terrorist attack on an American warship, the USS Cole, in the Yemeni port of Aden, as well as escalating violence between Palestinians and Israeli security forces. November crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) rises $2.81 to close at $36.06 per barrel. Prices for Henry Hub natural gas hit a record high of $5.78 per million British thermal units (BTU) before falling back slightly to close at $5.63 per million BTU. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 15</span> Chevron agrees to purchase Texaco for $35.1 billion in stock. The deal would create the fourth largest oil and gas company in the world, and follows a general trend toward consolidation among the major oil companies over the last two years. Analysts expect the merger, like other recent mergers, to face intensive antitrust scrutiny, especially as a combined ChevronTexaco would have a heavy share of both refining capacity and retail outlets on the west coast of the United States. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 30</span> The president OPEC, Venezuelan oil minister Ali Rodriguez, announces that the cartel will raise production quotas by 500,000 barrels per day, beginning November 1st. OPEC's action comes as a result of its "price band" mechanism, which triggers an increase in production quotas when the price of the OPEC Basket of crude oils closes over $28 per barrel for twenty consecutive trading days. Many analysts voice doubt as to whether the OPEC quota increase will lead to an actual increase in production of that magnitude, given the lack of spare production capacity of most OPEC members. (DJ, WP, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 31</span> The United Nations Sanctions Committee approves an Iraqi request to be paid in Euros, rather than United States dollars, for oil exported under the "oil for food" program, which is part of the sanctions regime stemming from Iraq's 1990 invasion of Kuwait. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 3</span> Russia's Lukoil announces that it will purchase Getty Petroleum Marketing of the United States for $71 million. Lukoil eventually intends to switch Getty's 1,300 retail outlets in the Northeastern and Middle Atlantic states to the Lukoil brand name. The purchase represents the first takeover of a publicly traded American company by a Russian firm. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 12</span> OPEC oil ministers, meeting in Vienna, announce a decision to put any further production increases on hold until their next meeting scheduled for January 17, 2001. The move effectively ends OPEC's "price band" mechanism, which called for automatic increases in production quotas of 500,000 barrels per day when the price of the OPEC Basket of crude oils remained over $28 per barrel for 20 consecutive trading days. OPEC also selects the Venezuelan oil minister, Ali Rodriguez, as its new Secretary General. He will formally take over from Nigeria's Rilwanu Lukman on January 1, 2001. (NYT, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 16</span> Iraq's State Oil Marketing Organization (SOMO) demands that companies lifting cargoes of Iraqi crude oil begin paying a fifty cent per barrel surcharge starting on December 1, 2000. The surcharge would be paid directly to the Iraqi government rather than being channeled into the account administered by the United Nations under the "oil for food" program, and would constitute clear violation of sanctions. The Iraqi move leads to concerns over a possible Iraqi cutoff of oil supplies beginning December 1. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 26</span> The sixth Conference of Parties (COP-6) of the Kyoto Protocol in The Hague ends without an agreement between member states on implementing cuts in emissions of greenhouse gases. One of the main issues under negotiation at the conference was the possibility that member states could claim credit for "carbon sinks," forests and farmland which absorb carbon dioxide, as part of their overall commitment to reducing carbon dioxide emissions. Another main issue was "emissions trading," which would allow member states to purchase "emissions credits" from other member states whose carbon dioxide emissions were below their targets. (WP, WSJ, NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 1</span> Vicente Fox is inaugurated as Mexico's president. Ernesto Martens takes office as the new Minister of Petroleum. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 4</span> California utilities are forced to cut off electricity supplies to some "interruptable" customers due to a supply shortage. California has suffered shortages and high wholesale electricity prices since May 2000. The immediate shortage stems, in part, from a reduction in electricity imports from the Pacific Northwest as a result of cold weather in the area. Other problems include: gas supply problems, low availability of hydroelectric and nuclear generating capacity, and high power demand. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 5</span> The United Nations Security Council approves a six month extension to the Iraq "oil for food" program. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 16</span> Ukraine permanently shuts down the last reactor at its Chernobyl nuclear power plant, which gained notoriety for a major accident and radiation leak in 1986. The facility will still be the location of a major cleanup effort, as Ukraine tries to contain continuing radiation leakage from the containment structures around the reactors damaged in the accident. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 21</span> The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announces new regulations which will drastically reduce the allowable sulfur content in diesel fuel in the United States. The new diesel sulfur standard will be 15 parts per million (PPM). Oil industry trade groups have opposed the new standard. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 27</span> Natural gas prices in the United States surge above $10 per million British Thermal Units (BTUs) first time ever in response to cold weather and stockdraws reported by the American Gas Association (AGA). Henry Hub natural gas closes at $9.978, after falling slightly from its intraday peak price. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 27</span> Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez appoints Alvaro Silva Calderon to replace Ali Rodriguez as Minister of Petroleum. Calderon had previously served as a deputy minister. Rodriguez had recently been chosen as the new OPEC Secretary General. Both will assume their new posts effective January 5, 2001. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 31</span> Saudi oil minister Ali Naimi says that OPEC will cut production when ministers meet in Vienna on January 17, 2001. Oil prices have fallen sharply in recent weeks, with the OPEC basket reaching $21.50 per barrel on December 25th, down one-third from highs reached in October 2000. Despite the recent decline, average oil prices for 2000 were the highest (not adjusted for inflation) in seventeen years. (DJ)<p /> </div> <div> <a href="#backtotop0009"> <span style="">Back to top</span> </a> <p /> </div> <span class="cssSubheading1">2001</span><br /> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 10</span> The<a name="a2001"> </a> White House announces that President Clinton will not designate the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR) as a national monument prior to his departure from office. Environmentalist groups had been pressing for national monument status for the ANWR to prevent oil drilling. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 17</span> OPEC agrees at a meeting of ministers in Vienna, to reduce members' production quotas by 1.5 million barrels per day. The move comes in response to OPEC members' concerns about declining prices. Analysts expect the actual production cuts to total somewhat less than 1.5 million barrels per day, as some OPEC members had quotas above their actual production capacity. (NYT, WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 20</span> George W. Bush is sworn into office as the President of the United States. Later in the day, the Senate votes to confirm Spencer Abraham as the new Secretary of Energy. (WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">February 20</span> The United States Supreme Court declines to consider an appeal by five major oil companies against Unocal's patent on production of cleaner "reformulated" gasoline sold in California, allowing a lower court ruling in favor of Unocal to stand. The ruling may eventually have effects beyond the California market, as tighter environmental standards for fuels take effect across much of the country.(DJ, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">February 28</span> The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announces that it intends to proceed with implementation of tighter restrictions on sulfur content in diesel fuel, which were proposed by the Clinton administration. The rule, which will require a reduction of 97% in sulfur content by 2006, has been opposed by many in the refining industry. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 4</span> Tests in recent days confirm the world's largest oil find in three decades in the Kashagan field in the Caspian Sea. Kashagan is a single reservoir at least 25 miles across, and two-and-a-half times the size of the nearby Tengiz field. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 6</span> United States Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham formally establishes the Northeast Home Heating Oil Reserve, a two million barrel government-owned reserve to be used in emergency circumstances. (US Department of Energy) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 15</span> The world's largest oil rig, located 80 miles offshore Brazil and operated by the Brazilian state oil company Petrobras, suffers three explosions. This one platform accounted for more than 5% of Petrobras' total production. On March 20 Petrobras' Platform-36 sinks with 400,000 gallons of fuel and crude oil aboard. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 17</span> OPEC (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) decides to cut output by 4% or 1 million barrels per day, effective April 1. The cut is aimed at preventing a price collapse in a time of weakening demand. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 26</span> Kazakhstan's Prime Minister opens an oil pipeline from the giant Tengiz field to the Russian port of Novorossiisk on Monday, giving the Central Asian producer its first direct link to international markets. The 900-mile pipeline will carry 600,000 barrels of oil per day by the end of the year, and eventually 1.5 million barrels per day. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 17</span> A letter from U.S. Department of the Interior Secretary Gale Norton to Florida Governor Jeb Bush is released, stating that the Bush administration has decided to go ahead with plans to auction six million acres of potentially oil-and-gas-rich seabed in the Gulf of Mexico. The U.S. Department of the Interior estimates that the area contains 396 million barrels of oil and 2.9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. (USAT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 30</span> U.S. Vice-President Dick Cheney previews the administration's energy plan in a speech in Toronto, Canada. Cheney, stating that conservation alone cannot solve America's energy needs, calls for increased domestic production of fossil fuels and increased usage of nuclear power to meet America's energy demand. He also calls for construction of new coal and gas power plants, as well as upgrading and expanding of the country's transmission grid. (WSJ, USAT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 17</span> President Bush issues the administration's new energy policy. Among the plan's 105 specific recommendations are calls for reduced regulations to encourage more oil, gas, and nuclear production, tax incentives to boost coal output, and other tax incentives to promote conservation and alternative fuels. The plan also calls for increasing energy assistance to low-income households and for making the electricity grid more interconnected, both domestically and with Mexico and Canada. (LAT, WP, WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 18</span> Saudi Arabia selects the eight foreign companies to take part in its "Gas Initiative," three core venture gas projects that have an anticipated worth of $25 billion. They are: Core Venture 1: ExxonMobil (lead), Shell, BP, and Phillips; Venture 2: ExxonMobil (lead), Occidental and Enron (a joint bid); Venture 3: Shell (lead), TotalFinaElf, and Conoco. The Gas Initiative is the first major reopening of Saudi Arabia's upstream hydrocarbon sector since nationalization in the 1970s. (WMO) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 21</span> The Enron Corporation's power generating venture in India, the Dabhol Power Company, serves formal notice that it will terminate its power supply contract and pull out. The $2.9 billion Dabhol project represents the single largest foreign investment in India. The gas-fired plant already had a generating capacity of 740 megawatts and another 1,444 megawatts was scheduled to go on line in June. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 29</span> Natural gas futures plunge 6% to a 10-month low on speculation that growing U.S. inventories will help power plants meet summer demand for air-conditioning. The price for June delivery fell 23.5 cents, to $3.738 per million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Natural gas prices had reached a high of $10.10 per million Btu on December 27, 2000, but then fell sharply beginning in late January 2001. (LAT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 3</span> Iraq announces that it will halt crude oil exports in response to a United Nations Security Council resolution, approved May 31, that extends the oil-for-food program by only one month, instead of the normal six-month period. The oil-for-food program affects revenues from Iraqi sales of about 2.1 million barrels per day. However, it has been reported Iraq will continue to sell several hundred thousand barrels per day to its neighbors through sales that are outside of the oil-for-food program. OPEC announces that, if need be, it will make up for lost Iraqi production. Oil prices do not change greatly in response to either announcement. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 5</span> OPEC ministers agree to leave the cartel's oil production quotas unchanged for at least a month, until a scheduled emergency meeting July 3. OPEC had been expected to leave the quotas unchanged until September, but Iraq's suspension of oil exports on June 3 created uncertainty.(LAT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 7</span> BP announces that it will build a new $600-million platform offshore Trinidad that is expected to double the company's production of natural gas there by 2004. BP currently produces one billion cubic feet per day in Trinidad. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 11</span> Saudi Arabia announces that it has seized ownership, effective June 7, of the 1.6-million barrel-per-day IPSA pipeline that had carried Iraqi crude oil to the Saudi Red Sea port of Mu'jiz prior to Iraq's invasion of Kuwait. The seizure includes pumping stations, storage tanks, and the maritime terminal. Saudi Arabia claims that the asset was confiscated as a result of aggressive Iraqi actions. Iraq insists that it still owns the pipeline. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 15</span> ExxonMobil and Qatar Petroleum sign a letter of intent for a natural gas to liquids (GTL) project that would be the largest in the world. The plant would have a production capacity of 80,000 to 90,000 barrels per day, and would use about 640 million to 720 million cubic feet of natural gas per day as feedstock. The project is expected to cost between $1.6 billion and $1.8 billion to construct. (OD) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 30</span> ENI of Italy signs a $550 million contract to develop Iran's Darquain (Darkhovin) field, with expected production of 160,000 barrels per day. This deal may be seen as a test of the U.S. government's resolve to enforce sanctions against foreign companies investing in Iran's energy sector. (LAT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 2</span> U.S. Secretary of the Interior Gale A. Norton states that the Bush Administration will seek to let oil companies drill on about 1.5 million acres of the Gulf of Mexico out of the 6 million originally under consideration. This removes acreage closest to the shores of Alabama and Florida. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 2</span> The United Nations (U.N.) Security Council, facing an almost certain Russian veto, agrees to postpone indefinitely a vote on the U.S.-led "smart sanctions" package for Iraq, despite support by the four other council members. Instead, it will extend, most likely through the end of the year, the program that allows Iraq to export oil and import food and other commodities under U.N. supervision (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 3</span> At a meeting of its oil ministers, OPEC agrees to maintain current production quotas. Ministers indicate that, if Iraqi oil returns to the market, they may cut production in response to maintain their desired level of prices. (WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 5</span> Australia and East Timor sign an agreement to share royalties from oil and natural gas production in the Timor Sea, which separates the two countries. The deal supercedes the former agreement between Australia and Indonesia that divided royalties 50-50, with a new arrangement of 90% for East Timor and 10% for Australia. This agreement clears the way for $7.25 billion in proposed energy projects for the area and further downstream projects for Australia. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 10</span> Amerada Hess agrees to acquire Triton Energy for $2.7 billion in cash. Both companies' boards have approved the transaction. Triton Energy is an international exploration and production company with major oil and natural gas assets in West Africa and Latin America. Triton's total proved reserves are estimated at 293.5 million barrels of oil equivalent. Amerada Hess' total proved reserves are estimated at 1.1 billion barrels of oil equivalent. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 11</span> Iraq resumes oil exports, ending a 5-week halt in protest of a U.S. and British-sponsored United Nations (U.N.) Security Council resolution that would have overhauled U.N. sanctions, after this resolution did not come to a vote (see July 2). The oil-for-food program will be extended for five months. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 24</span> An Iranian warship in the Caspian Sea threatens a BP oil exploration ship off the coast of Azerbaijan. This prompts BP to suspend exploration in the area. The two vessels were in the Araz-Alov-Sharg field 90 miles southeast of Baku. Iran claims the field is in Iranian waters. Caspian Sea region countries have been unable to agree on a division of the Sea. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 25</span> Faced with declining oil prices, OPEC ministers agree to cut crude oil production quotas by about 4%, or one million barrels per day. The cut will take effect September 1, and is aimed at maintaining the price of the OPEC basket of crude oils at around $25 per barrel. Crude oil futures for September delivery climbed 47 cents per barrel, to $26.78, on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) after the announcement. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">July 26</span> Former Indonesian President Abdurrahman Wahid leaves the presidential palace and the country, ending a 2-day standoff and clearing the way for his successor, Megawati Sukarnoputri, the former vice-president, to take over. The National Assembly had voted on July 23 to remove Wahid from office and install Sukarnoputri in the presidency. (AP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">August 3</span> U.S. President George Bush signs into law the Iran and Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA) Extension Act of 2001. This Act provides for a 5-year extension of ILSA with amendments that affect certain of the investment provisions. ILSA sanctions foreign companies that provide new investments of over $40 million for the development of petroleum resources in Iran or Libya, or that violate existing United Nations prohibitions against trade with Libya. The law allows the president to waive sanctions against a foreign company if doing so is deemed to be in the U.S. national interest. U.S. companies are prohibited by U.S. law from engaging in any commercial or financial transactions with Iran or Libya. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">August 10</span> The United States and Great Britain reject a proposal by United Nations Secretary General Kofi Annan to permit the Iraqi government to use $1 billion per year to fund infrastructure improvements and to increase oil production capacity. It has been suggested that without infrastructure investment, Iraq's production could fall significantly over the next few years. (WMO) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 7</span> The U.S. Federal Trade Commission approves Chevron's bid to buy Texaco. Texaco must sell its Equilon Enterprises and Motiva Enterprises units in order to complete the $39-billion deal. The new company, ChevronTexaco, will have a market value of over $100 billion, assets of $83 billion, net proven reserves of 11.5 billion barrels of oil equivalent (boe), and daily production of 2.7 million boe.(DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 11</span> The largest terrorist attack in world history occurs as 2 hijacked airplanes crash into the twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City, one hijacked plane crashes into the U.S. Department of Defense's Pentagon headquarters, and another hijacked plane crashes into a rural part of Pennsylvania. The World Trade Center is destroyed, and the Pentagon is heavily damaged. Thousands of people die and economic damage is estimated to be in the billions. Aviation is halted in the United States and all major trading markets (including energy) are closed for the remainder of the week. The U.S. government blames the attack on Osama Bin Laden's terrorist network (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 13</span> Relative calm returns to world oil markets as U.S. retail gasoline prices return to normal levels and Brent crude oil futures fall back to $28.02 per barrel for October delivery after spiking to above $31.00 in the aftermath of the September 11 attacks. Also, energy trading by Houston energy companies resumes and limited commercial aviation starts. (WMO) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 17</span> Major trading markets in the United States, including the New York Stock Exchange and the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), reopen for the first time since September 11. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 24</span> Crude oil and petroleum products futures fall to their lowest levels in nearly two years amid fears that a recession will reduce energy demand. At the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX), crude oil set for October delivery falls $3.96 to $22.01 per barrel, and crude oil for November delivery falls $3.82 to $22.44 per barrel. Over the past six trading sessions crude oil and gasoline futures have fallen more than 26% and heating oil futures have fallen nearly 29%. (NYT, DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">September 27</span> At its two-day meeting in Vienna, OPEC decides to keep its production quotas unchanged at 23.2 million barrels per day, despite crude oil being at its lowest price levels since 1999. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 7</span> Crude oil resumes flowing through the trans-Alaska pipeline after workers welded shut a bullet hole that caused 260,000 gallons of oil to spill out. The pipeline, which carries about 17% of the United States' oil production, had been shut down on October 4 after being pierced with a bullet in an apparent act of criminal mischief. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 15</span> The first tanker loading of the new $2.5-billion Kazakh-Russia Pipeline takes place. This is a trial run that informally inaugurates the pipeline. Initial capacity of the pipeline is expected to be 28.2 million metric tons per year (around 560,000 barrels per day). The Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), led by ChevronTexaco, runs the pipeline. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 16</span> The U.S. Coast Guard lifts a ban on liquefied natural gas (LNG) tankers entering Boston Harbor to makes deliveries to Distrigas' Everett LNG terminal that had been imposed on September 26 in response to the terrorist attacks of September 11. LNG regasified at the Everett terminal normally provides 15%-20% of the natural gas that heats homes and businesses in New England, with the percentage rising to 35% on the coldest days. On October 26, the Mayor of Boston asks a federal court to prevent tankers from entering because he claims there are inadequate disaster response plans. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 18</span> Crude Oil for November delivery falls to its lowest level since August 1999 on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX). Light, sweet crude falls 50 cents per barrel to settle at $21.31 per barrel. Brent crude for December delivery closed at $20.36 at London's International Petroleum Exchange (IPE), down 37 cents per barrel. Poor economic prospects in the next few months, and OPEC's inability to respond so far are seen as factors contributing to the sliding prices of crude oil. (OD) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">October 29</span> ExxonMobil announces that a consortium it leads will spend $4 billion over 5 years to develop large offshore oil and natural gas fields in Russia's far eastern Sakhalin region. The fields are estimated to contain 2.3 billion barrels of oil and 17 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. ExxonMobil will be the operator and own a 30% interest in the fields. Sakhalin Oil and Gas Development of Japan will own 30%, ONGC Videsh of India 20%, Sakhalinmorneftegas-Shelf of Russia 11.5%, and RN-Astra of Russia 8.5%. The total investment could grow to $12 billion over the 30-40 year project life. This is the single largest foreign investment in Russia, as Russia continues to undertake market reforms. (WSJ, NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 6</span> Crude oil for December delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) falls to a two-year low after OPEC members warn that a downward price spiral could occur if major non-OPEC oil exporters do not reduce oil production. The NYMEX price settles at $19.92 per barrel, down 10 cents per barrel from the low of November 5, and the first time it has been under $20 per barrel since mid-1999. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 9</span> Enron, the world's largest electricity and natural gas trading company, agrees to an all-stock takeover by former competitor Dynegy. ChevronTexaco, a 27% stakeholder in Dynegy, will immediately inject $1.5 billion cash into Enron, and an additional $1 billion into the combined entity. The merged company will be called Dynegy Inc., and Dynegy executives will occupy all top positions. The deal is expected to take at least six months to close. (Note: On November 28, 2001, Dynegy withdraws from the merger deal) (WMO) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 10</span> An agreement is reached at talks in Marrakech, Morocco, on rules for implementation of the Kyoto climate change treaty. Rules for joint implementation projects, the Clean Development Mechanism, and funding for less developed countries are elaborated. The United States does not participate actively in negotiations or agree to the rules. (OD) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 13</span> U.S. President George Bush orders that the Strategic Petroleum Reserve be filled to capacity over the next few years. The reserve has a capacity of about 700 million barrels of oil, and now contains about 545 million barrels of oil. The Strategic Petroleum Reserve is intended, in the short run, to smooth out price spikes and shortages caused by a supply disruption. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 14</span> At its meeting in Vienna, Austria, OPEC announces that it intends to cut its crude oil output quotas by 1.5 million barrels per day effective January 1, but only if non-OPEC producers cut their output by 500,000 barrels per day as well. The production cuts are an effort to steady or raise world oil prices, which have fallen markedly since September. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 18</span> Phillips Petroleum and Conoco agree to merge into a new company to be called ConocoPhillips, which would be the third-largest oil and natural gas company in the United States, and the sixth-largest in the world, in terms of production. The company also would be the largest gasoline retailer in the United States and the fifth-largest refiner in the world. Combined total reserves of the new company would be 8.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent, and production would be 1.7 million barrels of oil equivalent per day. The new company expects to be able to compete more effectively with its larger rivals and to achieve significant cost savings. The new company will be based in Houston, Texas. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">November 29</span> The United Nations Security Council unanimously approves a resolution extending the Oil-for-Food program in Iraq for another six-month period. This resolution allows Iraq to sell unlimited quantities of oil on the condition that the proceeds are used to buy food, medicine, and other humanitarian goods, and to pay war reparations. This resolution also calls on members of the Security Council to agree by May 31, 2002, on a list of "dual use" items that would require United Nations approval before Iraq could import them through the program. (DJ, WP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 2</span> Enron files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy in the Southern District of New York for 14 affiliated entities, including Enron, Enron North America, Enron Energy Services, Enron Transportation Services, Enron Broadband Services, and Enron Metals &amp; Commodity Corporation. Enron was formerly the world's largest electricity and natural gas trading company, and the seventh-largest publicly-traded energy company in the world. Enron also files a $10 billion lawsuit against Dynegy, alleging breach of contract, in connection with Dynegy's November 28 termination of its proposed merger with Enron. (DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 26</span> Crude oil prices on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) record one of their largest one-day jumps of the year as traders become convinced that OPEC will follow through on production cuts. Prices per barrel for February delivery settle at $20.27 per barrel, an increase of $1.65, or 8.4% higher than the December 21 closing price (the last day of trading before the holiday weekend). Also contributing to the price increase was the return of cold weather to the northeastern United States and forecasts that show that the cold weather pattern may continue. Nevertheless, prices are still considerably lower than one year ago. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">December 28</span> OPEC oil ministers meeting in Cairo agree to reduce their crude oil output quotas by a combined 1.5 million barrels per day (about 6.5%) for a six-month period beginning January 1, 2002. OPEC ministers also announce that they will meet again in March. OPEC received commitments for 462,500 barrels per day of the 500,000 barrels per day in cuts that it had requested from non-OPEC exporters, close enough to the target for OPEC to go ahead and implement its concomitant cuts. This month, Russia announced an export cut of 150,000 barrels per day on December 5. Oman announced a cut of 25,000 barrels per day on December 11, and raised it to 40,000 barrels per day on December 20. Angola announced a cut of 22,500 barrels per day on December 14. Norway announced a cut of 150,000 barrels per day on December 17. Mexico had already announced an export cut of 100,000 barrels per day in November. (DJ, Reuters)<p /> </div> <div> <a href="#backtotop0009"> <span style="">Back to top</span> </a> <p /> </div> <span class="cssSubheading1">2002</span><br /> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 1</span> The <a name="a2002"> </a>OPEC crude oil production quota cuts of 1.5 million barrels per day, announced on December 28, officially go into effect for six months. Crude oil production or export cuts of 462,500 barrels per day by five non-OPEC oil exporters also go into effect. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 9</span> U.S. Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham announces that the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles program, started in 1993 in an effort to develop mass-produced vehicles that would get 80 miles per gallon of gasoline by 2004, will be replaced by a new program called Freedom Car. The Freedom Car program will emphasize developing fuel-cell vehicles, powered by oxygen and hydrogen, by an unspecified later date.(WP, NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 22</span> The U.S. Department of Energy opens the bidding process for oil companies to deliver 22 million barrels of crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve instead of making cash royalty payments. The royalty-in-kind oil is the first phase of the Bush administration's plan, announced last November, to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its capacity of 700 million barrels. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">January 29</span> U.S. President George Bush delivers his State of the Union address. In his speech he identifies Iraq, Iran, and North Korea as part of an  axis of evil that supports terrorism. President Bush also states,  The United States of America will not permit the world s most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world s most destructive weapons. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">February 13</span> Iraq says that it will not allow United Nations (U.N.) arms inspectors to return to Iraq. Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan states, "There is no need for the spies of the [U.N.] inspection teams to return to Iraq since Iraq is free of weapons of mass destruction." The United States has hinted that actions may be taken against the Iraqi government if U.N. arms inspectors are not allowed to return. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 6</span> At a joint news conference, oil ministers of major non-OPEC oil exporters Mexico and Norway announce that they plan to maintain their respective export and production cuts through the end of the second quarter of 2002. This same day, non-OPEC Persian Gulf exporter Oman announces that it is willing to maintain its relatively small production cut through the end of the year. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 7</span> Light, sweet crude oil for April delivery on the NYMEX closes at $23.71, the highest price since September 21, 2001, when oil prices had temporarily spiked because of the September 11 terrorist attack. Oil prices have been on the rise because of OPEC and non-OPEC production cuts, an improving U.S. economy, and concern over U.S. intentions toward Iraq. (OD) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 12</span> Shareholders of Conoco and Phillips Petroleum approve a proposed $15.6-billion merger of the two major oil companies. The new company would be the third-largest oil company in the United States and the sixth-largest investor-owned oil company in the world. The company would also be the largest oil refiner in the United States. Joint reserves of the two companies are about 8.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent. (AP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 15</span> OPEC oil ministers meeting in Vienna decide to maintain their quota restrictions, established January 1, 2002, through the end of the second quarter of the year. On January 1, 2002, OPEC cut its crude oil production quotas by an aggregate 1.5 million barrels per day. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">March 20</span> Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov announces that Russia will extend its voluntary crude oil export cuts of 150,000 barrels per day through the end of the second quarter of 2002. Russia, the biggest non-OPEC oil exporter, had agreed to implement the cuts beginning on January 1, 2002 as a cooperative move with OPEC. Many analysts question whether Russia has complied at all with its pledged cuts, and some data actually points to Russian exports rising since the beginning of January. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 1</span> India liberalizes its oil and natural gas sector by putting in place a series of market reforms, including: the end of government-fixed prices for gasoline and diesel; the end of subsidized cooking gas and kerosene prices; market competition for state-run downstream companies; and assigning the Oil Ministry the role of energy watchdog. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 2</span> Royal Dutch/Shell agrees to buy Enterprise Oil for $5 billion in cash. This will increase Royal Dutch/Shell's production in the North Sea by 30% and overall production by 6%, according to the company. The acquisition will also add 1.5 billion barrels of oil to Royal Dutch/Shell's reserves. The company is also assuming $1.15 billion in Enterprise's debt. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 3</span> Venezuela sends out its first commercial shipment of 550,000 barrels of synthetic crude to a U.S. Gulf Coast refinery. Venezuela's Sincor heavy crude upgrade plant, which was inaugurated last month, refines ultra-heavy crude oil into 32 degree API syncrude. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 4</span> The Angolan army signs a ceasefire accord with rebels of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (Unita). The agreement includes amnesty for former Unita soldiers and their demobilization and reintegration into society. The civil war, which began in 1975, has killed thousands of Angolans and taken much of the government's revenues from Angola's substantial oil production and exports. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 5</span> Thousands of workers at Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA stay home, close gates of facilities, and engage in protests. This is the largest disruption of PdVSA's operations in 2002, though it is not a full-blown strike by all PdVSA workers. Oil production and refining slows, and two of Venezuela's five main oil export terminals are unable to operate. The government of President Hugo Chavez threatens to militarize PdVSA's operations. (AP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 8</span> Iraq announces that it will halt its "oil-for-food" exports for 30 days as a "gesture of support" for the Palestinians' struggle with Israel. Iraq also requests that other OPEC countries do not raise production to make up for lost Iraqi exports. Iraqi "oil-for-food" exports had averaged about 1.7 million barrels per day to date in 2002. Major Arab OPEC exporters Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar have expressed unwillingness to join in any embargo. (WSJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 9</span> A general strike begins in Venezuela, shutting down many stores and factories and nearly halting oil production, refining, and export terminals. On April 12, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is ousted by the country's military after three consecutive days of general strikes during which oil production, refining, and exports-the mainstays of the Venezuelan economy-were seriously affected. Pedro Carmona is named interim President of Venezuela by the military high command. PdVSA operations that had been halted start up again, but rioting begins again the following day. On April 14, Interim President Carmona announces that he has resigned following large, and sometimes violent, pro-Chavez protests and a lack of support among many military officers. Several hours later, Hugo Chavez returns to power in Caracas and states that he never resigned the presidency. (WP, WSJ, Reuters, AP) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">April 24</span> A summit of the leaders of the five littoral states of the Caspian Sea ends without an agreement on how to divide the Caspian's resources among the five countries. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 8</span> Iraq starts pumping crude oil to its export terminals, following the country's announcement on May 5 that it would end its oil export embargo after one month, i.e., May 8. Iraq also submits price proposals for May crude oil loadings to the United Nations for approval. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 14</span> The United Nations (U.N.) Security Council approves an overhaul of the "oil-for-food" program for Iraq that makes use of an extensive list of "dual-use" goods (goods that could have a military as well as civilian use). Iraq will be able to use its oil revenues, which go into a U.N. escrow account out of which suppliers exporting products to Baghdad are paid, in order to purchase items not on the list. The resolution renews the U.N. program until November 25, 2002. On May 16, official Iraqi news agency INA announces that it will comply with the new six-month tranche of the "oil-for-food" program voted by the U.N. Security Council on May 14, despite condemning the Security Council resolution in the same statement. Iraq officially accepts the U.N. proposal on May 29. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 17</span> Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov announces that Russia will not extend its 150,000-barrel-per-day crude oil export cut, agreed to with OPEC, into the third quarter of 2002 and furthermore, that Russia will gradually phase out the export cut in the remainder of the second quarter of 2002. Russia is the world's second-largest oil exporter. (WMRC) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 24</span> U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin agree to a major new energy partnership that will entail more investment from the United States in Russia's oil and natural gas sector. The leaders also agree to joint efforts to improve ports, pipelines, and refineries in order to expedite export flow. This could mean more Russian hydrocarbon exports to North America. (NYT) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">May 28</span> The U.S. government decides to buy back leases for oil and natural gas drilling on the Florida coast and in the Everglades for $235 million because of environmental concerns. Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton has asserted that there are only 40 million barrels of oil equivalent in the area to be protected, about two days' worth of U.S. consumption. (OD) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 20</span> Norway's Oil and Energy Ministry states that, "The Norwegian government has decided not to extend the restriction on oil production into the second half of 2002." Norway had agreed with OPEC to reduce its crude oil production by 150,000 barrels per day for the first two quarters of 2002. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 25</span> Russia formally announces that it will raise its crude oil exports by 150,000 barrels per day in the third quarter of 2002 and thereby, end its agreement with OPEC to limit crude oil exports by 150,000 barrels per day for the first and second quarter of 2002. Many analysts believe that Russia has already been exporting near capacity for some months. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 26</span> OPEC ministers meeting in Vienna decide to leave their combined output quota, excluding Iraq, unchanged at 21.7 million barrels per day for the third quarter of 2002. It is estimated that OPEC-10 countries (i.e. excluding Iraq) are producing between 1 million and 1.5 million barrels per day above the quota agreement. OPEC members also agree to appoint Venezuelan Oil Minister Alvaro Silva as the cartel's new secretary general, replacing Ali Rodriguez, who will now head Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA. At the meeting, Algeria requests a larger share of OPEC's total quota, but the issue will not be taken up until the OPEC Board of Governors meeting in August. (NYT, DJ) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 27</span> Mexico announces that it will continue its agreement with OPEC to limit crude oil exports to 1.66 million barrels per day into the third quarter of 2002. A statement from the Energy Ministry said that the decision was "based on national interests and conditioned upon the future conduct of the world oil market." Mexico is among the five largest oil exporters to the United States. (Reuters) <p /> </div> <div> <span style="font-weight: bold;">June 29</span> An official at Oman's Oil and Gas Ministry announces that the non-OPEC country will con