-Pemex said its Miguel Hidalgo refinery near Tula, Mexico, is back to normal operations after a fire this morning, Reuters reports. The fire started in a leaking hydrogen compressor at the refinery’s residual hydrodesulfurization plant. No workers were injured and the refinery sustained only minor damage.
-California lawmakers on Thursday questioned ExxonMobil about the Feb. 18 explosion at the company’s Torrance refinery. Via the Los Angeles Times, refinery Manager Brian Ablett apologized for the accident and emphasized that there were no health consequences. Excess pressure in the refinery’s electrostatic precipitator triggered the blast. State senators are expected to ask the U.S. Chemical Safety board to investigate the incident.
-Enbridge will shave CAN$400 million off the cost to expand two of its Alberta oil sands crude pipelines. The project includes the expanding the diameter of the Wood Buffalo Extension between Cheecham and Kirby Lake and connecting the line to the Athabasca Twin at Kirby Lake. Enbridge also plans to expand the Athabasca Twin from 450,000 barrels per day to 800,000 barrels per day.
-The federal government is mulling Shell’s request for more time to explore for oil in the Beaufort and Chukchi Seas. Via FuelFix, the leases will begin to expire in 2017 and 2019, respectively. Shell is planning to resume activity in the Chukchi Sea this summer after drilling two half-completed wells in 2012. Sen. Lisa Murkowski (R-Alaska) noted that the 75-day window for drilling in the Arctic limits Shell’s ability to complete exploratory wells before its current leases expire.
-Meanwhile, BP signed a deal to develop 5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas and 55 million barrels of condensates in Egypt’s West Nile Delta gas fields. Production is expected to start in 2017 and ultimately reach 1.2 billion cubic feet per day — the equivalent of 25% of Egypt’s current gas output.