Maley's Energy Blog

http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/08/17/us-atpoilgas-idUSBRE87G0ZL20120817

(Reuters) – Gulf of Mexico producer ATP Oil & Gas Corp (ATPG.O) filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection on Friday, blaming the financial fallout from the deep sea drilling moratorium that followed the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

ATP, which reported total debts of $3.49 billion and assets of $3.64 billion, said it planned to continue operating while restructuring its finances, using $618 million in debtor-in-possession funding.

The Houston-based company said in a filing in Texas court that its development plans and cash flows had been "dramatically impacted" by the deepwater drilling stoppage which continued for many months after the BP Plc (BP.L) well blowout off the Louisiana coast on April 20, 2010.

"While the moratorium adversely affected all companies involved in deepwater drilling in the Gulf of Mexico, the impact was especially profound on ATP, which is a smaller company than its principal competitors, with a heavier concentration of operations in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico," ATP said.

The company said the U.S. government’s stoppage blocked its plans to drill and develop six wells in 2010 and 2011, after it spent more than $1 billion on infrastructure construction related to five of them, largely funded by debt.

http://www.dailynk.com/english/read.php?cataId=nk01500&num=9680

Rule on Bicycles Repealed at Last

By Choi Song Min [2012-08-15 19:59 ]

The North Korean authorities have formally repealed a 20-year old public order forbidding women from riding bicycles in urban areas, Daily NK has learned. A source from North Pyongan Province reported the news today, explaining, “This August, approval for women to ride bicycles was handed down by the state.” It is not clear upon whose authority the public order has been withdrawn; nevertheless, according to the source, “People have welcomed it, saying that ‘penalties imposed by the father are being lifted by the son.’” The repressive measure was first imposed by the regime of Kim Jong Il in the 1990s. Kim is said to have decreed it after hearing news of the death of Oh Hye Young, the daughter of Gen. Oh Geuk Ryeol, a vice-chair of the National Defense Commission. Oh had been hit by a car while riding a bicycle in downtown Pyongyang.

Americans Rate Computer Industry Best, Oil and Gas Worst

http://energytomorrow.org/blog/the-united-states-of-red-tape/#/type/all

In terms of energy development – we are a nation bound up in red tape. The graphic below hardly exaggerates the current state of play: By federal policy and regulation we’re self-limiting the dynamic potential of America’s domestic energy wealth.

API President and CEO Jack Gerard:

“We hear talk about an ‘all of the above’ energy strategy, but in practical terms of removing the obstacles that are standing in the way of American made energy, this strategy has translated into ‘none of the below.’ We need action today to make sure we have the energy we will need tomorrow. There are dozens of measures, large and small, that Washington could and should pursue.”