Oil Stocks: Plenty of Fuel Left

 The House voted late Tuesday to open waters off the Atlantic and Pacific coasts to oil and gas drilling but only 50 or more miles out to sea and only if a state agrees to energy development off its shore.

"We'll see two effects come out of Sept. 11," says Allen Brooks, analyst at CIBC World Markets. "One is a recognition that North American BTUs [British thermal units, a measurement of energy] are probably more valuable today than they were prior to Sept 11. We're also likely to change our relations with various countries around the world as they decide which side of the table they are going to be on in our war against Taliban terrorism." 

After operators and service companies' post-hurricane assessments of assets and the safety of offshore personnel on Tuesday, an update has been issued underscoring the affects of Gustav on rigs and vessels located in the Gulf of Mexico.

Transocean Inc. (NYSE: RIG) shares began the week lower as oil prices dropped and the dollar strengthened. Any sustained drop in oil prices could make deepwater drilling projects less viable and decrease business for companies like Transocean. Meanwhile, a higher dollar tends to hurt pricing points for companies based in the United States. However, many experts remain bullish on the stock given their solid operating results and hefty backlog.

Shares of refiners Valero Energy (VLO) and Tesoro Corp (TSO) have tanked badly over the past few months, falling 60% and 77% respectively from their 52 week highs.

The Bakken is the largest domestic oil discovery since Alaska's Prudhoe Bay, and has the potential to eliminate all American dependence on foreign oil. The Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimates it at 503 billion barrels. Even if just 10% of the oil is recoverable... at $107 a barrel, we're looking at a resource base worth more than $5.3 trillion. It's a formation known as the Williston Basin, but is more commonly referred to as the "Bakken." And it stretches from Northern Montana, through North Dakota and into Canada. MGRN, WLL, MDU, CLR, KDKN, BSIC, XTO

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Halliburton Co (HAL.N) the world's second-largest oilfield services company, does not expect crude oil's 17 percent slide this quarter to reduce demand for its exploration and drilling services, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday, citing the company's chief executive.

Lundin Petroleum sets date for oil search

Report to show impact of high prices and declining economy, mentioned in Bernanke testimony.

Stocks ended a volatile session in the red on Tuesday, despite a sharp drop in oil prices, after economic policy makers issued dour predictions and skepticism arose about the government’s efforts to shore up the nation’s financial sector.

Oil fell sharply on Wednesday after U.S. government data showed a rise in crude oil and gasoline stocks last week.

ZN 6.25, +0.06, +1.0%) of Dallas, Texas and Caesarea, Israel announced today that the founding members of the charitable foundations now being established by Zion held their initial organizational meetings in Caesarea, Israel on June 23, 2008. One of the stated goals of Zion Oil & Gas, Inc.

Panhandle Oil & Gas today announced that it has filed an application to list its common stock on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) and expects to begin trading on the NYSE on July 22, 2008 under its current symbol "PHX". Until that time, Panhandle's shares will continue to trade on the American Stock Exchange.

Stocks fell Wednesday as a mild recovery in oil prices sapped the momentum from the previous day's stock rally. Following Tuesday's 152-point gain in the Dow Jones industrial average, investors were cautiously watching oil again. Having dropped by more than $9 a barrel over the last two days, crude rose $1.19 to $137.23 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Crude oil futures rose to a record above $144 a barrel in New York after a U.S. government report showed an unexpected decline in inventories.

Crude oil prices will probably hit $160 a barrel by December and will remain high through the middle of 2009 before dropping as global demand wanes, economists for Global Insight said Wednesday.

North American equity markets fell sharply as oil prices touched another record high near $144 US a barrel on Wednesday.