The Oil Man: Oil price, SOCO, Sirius

WTI $53.30 +24c, Brent $55.35 +43c, Diff -$2.50 -30c, NG $3.26 -13c

Trading continues to quieten down ahead of the Christmas break but the inventory figures should remain reasonably supportive. The API reported a 4.2 million draw yesterday and the market expects something similar tonight from the API.

Gasoline futures, often strong at this time of the year have also risen as retail demand picks up and the API stats showed a bigger than expected 2 million barrel draw in gasoline stocks. Iran have entered the party of those proving they are cutting production by announcing lower January liftings and therefore sales to clients.

Proving that he can still throw a spanner in the works, Barry has, along with Trudeau Jnr, set a ban for arctic drilling, part of a series of scorched earth policies he plans to implement before he leaves the White House.

SOCO

SOCO announced yesterday that it had received $10 million from Daqing as part of the proceeds of the sale of its Mongolian assets, there is no sign of the remaining sum but SOCO plan to chase for it. The two TGT infill wells have both encountered hydrocarbons and are being analysed which is further good news.

Readers know that I have long been positive about SOCO, with reservations about some of its African portfolio, and with cash of $90 million odd and a strong balance sheet, not to mention a trophy asset in the Far East makes some E&P companies look shabby. I hope to catch up with the company in the new year, which is well overdue to see if I can identify any plans going forward.

Sirius Petroleum

I have been keeping an eye on Sirius as it builds its position in Nigeria, an area that I am not the only person to mistrust. Sirius is, however, continuing to build its Vendor Finance Consortium and recently announced that it had signed an Integrated Services Agreement with Schlumberger for a multi-well campaign in its shallow water offshore concession in Nigeria.

Schlumberger will provide a comprehensive package of products and services for the Ororo field starting in the first quarter of 2017. The company also announced that it raised $1 million through an oversubscribed placing which keeps the company ticking over and pays the G&A. I expect to hear more from Sirius next year and whilst the venue is far from stable if San Leon can do it, then so can Sirius…

And finally…

A short retirement for Massa as he returns to Williams only weeks after retiring as Bottas signs a contract at Mercedes after Niko abruptly called it a day.

This article is for information and discussion purposes only and does not form a recommendation to invest or otherwise. The value of an investment may fall. The investments referred to in this article may not be suitable for all investors, and if in doubt, an investor should seek advice from a qualified investment adviser.