$16.5 million Settlement Reached in Crude Oil Commodities Antitrust Litigation

Published in Oil Industry News on Friday, 5 June 2015

Two London-based companies and certain employees involved in trading West Texas Intermediate crude oil (WTI) and oil futures have agreed to pay $16.5 million to settle a lawsuit accusing the defendants of artificially manipulating the price of oil in order to reap huge profits.

Parnon Energy Inc., Arcadia Petroleum Ltd. and other defendants will pay the $16.5 million into a fund to compensate oil futures traders and others who lost money as a result of the scheme, although the companies continue to deny the plaintiffs' claims.

"We believe that this is a very good outcome for those businesses and individuals who were harmed by this market manipulation," says Warren Burns, co-lead counsel for the plaintiffs and name partner in Dallas' Burns Charest. 

"This was an extremely hard fought case. Settling now ensures that class members will receive compensation once the court approves the settlement." Attorneys Christopher Lovell and Christopher McGrath of New York's Lovell Stewart Halebian Jacobson LLP also represented the plaintiffs. 

The case, which was filed in 2011, is In re: Crude Oil Commodity Futures Litigation, No. 11-cv-3600, in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

In early 2008, according to the plaintiffs, the defendant companies held futures positions in WTI when they bought large amounts of the actual crude to artificially drive prices higher. After taking profits, the companies allegedly sold all of their physical WTI, driving down prices so they could profit on the difference in the spread once again, through another market position.

Plaintiffs claimed that the scheme violated both the Sherman Antitrust Act and the Commodity Exchange Act. In 2014, a parallel investigation by the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission ended when the defendant companies agreed to pay a $13 million settlement.

The money from the recent settlement will be placed in a fund, and details for potential claimants will be available on a website that the fund plans to have in operation soon.

Burns Charest is a Dallas-based trial law firm with a national practice representing consumers and businesses in large complex class actions and antitrust cases. The firm is composed of trial lawyers who handle high stakes cases and other complex litigation on behalf of individuals and businesses.
Source: www.youroilandgasnews.com

Baker Rig Count Down Again in May; the Oil Price has Stabilized

Published in Oil Industry News on Friday, 5 June 2015

Baker Hughes Incorporated announced today that the international rig count for May 2015 was 1,158, down 44 from the 1,202 counted in April 2015, and down 192 from the 1,350 counted in May 2014.

The international offshore rig count for May 2015 was 284, down 16 from the 300 counted in April 2015, and down 42 from the 326 counted in May 2014.

The average U.S. rig count for May 2015 was 889, down 87 from the 976 counted in April 2015, and down 970 from the 1,859 counted in May 2014.

The average Canadian rig count for May 2015 was 80, down 10 from the 90 counted in April 2015, and down 82 from the 162 counted in May 2014.

The worldwide rig count for May 2015 was 2,127, down 141 from the 2,268 counted in April 2015, and down 1,244 from the 3,371 counted in May 2014.
Source: www.offshoreenergytoday.com

Being prepared for a marine emergency will save lives: Lessons learned from the tragic sinking of the fishing vessel Five Star

Being prepared for a marine emergency

May 7th, 2015

Posted by: Glenn Budden

On June 12, 2014, the small fishing vessel Five Star was returning from a 3-day crabbing trip to Kelsey Bay, British Columbia. The trip had been good, and with the largest catch of the year loaded on deck, the Five Star left the sheltered waters of the mainland inlets and entered Johnstone Strait. However, the ebb current was building and a near gale northwest wind was blowing. 

As the vessel neared Kelsey Bay, it broached in 1 meter seas, the line securing the catch broke and everything on deck shifted to the port side of the vessel. Water quickly shipped on deck, and the vessel capsized and sank. Prior to the capsizing, a Very High Frequency (VHF) radio call was made to a nearby fellow fisherman for help, but it was unsuccessful. The Digital Selective Calling (DSC) function was not available and there was no equipment on board to send an automatic distress signal.

Although both crew members abandoned the vessel, the only one who survived was wearing a lifejacket. This person was subsequently able to reach the shore and called 9-1-1.

Our TSB Investigation Report M14P0121 (Five Star) noted that the master, who is presumed to have drowned, had recently participated in FishSafe’s Safest Catch program and that, as a result, he had applied some of the tools obtained during the program to improve emergency preparedness aboard the Five Star.

This included purchasing immersion suits and personal floatation devices (PFDs), and developing a safety procedures manual. However, the conducting of emergency drills—which are both required by regulation and encouraged by the Safest Catch program—had not been done. The program provides training on how to conduct emergency drills but its success relies on fishermen taking ownership of safety, and conducting drills on a regular basis.

Regulations aside, drills are an effective means of assessing emergency preparedness and can save lives. They can simulate a variety of situations, provide masters and crew members with an opportunity to identify problems, and show them how to take necessary action. This includes, but is not limited to, the need for lifesaving equipment (immersion suits, PFDs, and life jackets) to be in good shape and accessible at all times, and knowing how to use equipment such as VHF radio, DSC function, and Emergency Position Indicating Radio Beacon (EPIRB) to notify authorities in an emergency.

A lot of good work has been done in the past few years by fishermen and the fishing community. But there is still a long way to go. In many cases, fishermen have still accepted the risk of not wearing a PFD and in British Columbia, individuals were found not to be wearing PFDs in 44% of fishing-related fatalities since 2004.

Many vessels might also benefit from the carriage of an EPRIB. Although not always required by regulation, they can automatically transmit a distress signal when crew members cannot, preventing any delay in search-and-rescue operations. In fact, between February 2010, and June 2014, the TSB received reports from across Canada of six other fishing vessels of less than 12 m that capsized and/or sank without being equipped with an EPIRB or successfully transmitting a distress message. These occurrences resulted in a total of 16 crew members having to abandon their vessels, and only seven of whom survived.

A lack of emergency preparedness was just one of several factors contributing to the Five Star accident. A 2012 TSB report into fishing safety across Canada identified 10 safety issues that frequently contribute to accidents—four of which were present to some degree in this occurrence:

• Stability in which the vessel’s
  • original construction included a stern extension
  • stability limits were never established
  • top-side weight was increased
  • route led to following sea conditions
  • stability was affected but not appreciate
• Fisheries resource management in which fishermen compete for their share of the resource, which in turn may encourage risk-taking activities such as operating in poor weather or overloading their vessel
• Training in which fishermen do not often practice learned skills and apply knowledge and experience
• Safe work practices in which fishermen need to develop safe work practice such as ensuring cargo is secured

There is a complex relationship and interdependency among these issues. Removing one contributing factor may have saved a life but only reduces the risk of losing others. Hopefully, tragedies like the Five Star will provide lessons to be learned, including the importance of emergency preparedness, and prompting the fishing community to take further action. Until then, the TSB will continue to push for change—investigating accidents and making recommendations, and communicating what we learn—so that more and more fishermen make it home safely.

The American crew of the RoRo M/V Courage are reported safe after fighting a blaze using the ship’s CO2 system when a cargo fire broke out on board. 100 Charred Vehicles Expected

M/V Courage Arrives In Southampton, 100 Charred Vehicles Expected

June 4, 2015 by John Konrad

American Flagged RoRo M/V Courage’s Arrival in Southhampton

A transporter ship that caught fire off the coast of Essex has arrived in Southampton.

The American crew of the RoRo M/V Courage are reported safe after fighting a blaze using the ship’s CO2 system when a cargo fire broke out on board Tuesday night. The vessel spent Wednesday afternoon anchored off the Isle of Wight before continuing to Southampton, her previously scheduled destination.

100 damaged vehicles, out of a total 600, are expected to be found when Hampshire Fire and Rescue enters the ship’s cargo hold. No pollution related issues are expected. The fire department will wait until Friday to inspect the vessel’s cargo hold because firefighters ” first must confirm there were no remaining pockets of fire”.

A Hampshire Fire and Rescue spokeswoman told the BBC: “The ship was monitored last night with no obvious signs of fire and the compartment remaining cool. This situation remains the same with no immediate danger or threat of fire. The next steps are to asses the damage, confirm there are no remaining pockets of fire and start the ventilation process to make the vessel safe for other agencies and crews.”

The UK Maritime and Coastguard Agency (MCA) has issued a “prohibition notice” to stop the ship being moved until deemed safe.  

The M/V Courage is a 52288 GRT Pure Car Truck Carrier (PCTC), built-in 1991. PCTC is a class of RoRo characterized by a highly optimized system of altering strength and liftable decks which join the main cargo section. This system enables the vessel to be reconfigured quickly to accommodate different cargoes and maximize lift capacity. Our ramp systems are permanently attached thus making them truly self-sustaining.

The ship is owned by American Roll-On Roll-Off Carriers (ARC). The company provides Ro-Ro shipping services in the United States and offers ocean services for the transport of automobiles, trucks, military vehicles, helicopters, and break-bulk cargos and has a space charter arrangement with Wallenius Wilhelmsen Logistics. The company was founded in 1990 and is based in Woodcliff Lake, New Jersey. American Roll-On Roll-Off Carriers LLC. is a subsidiary of American Rollon Roll-off Carrier Holding LLC.

In October ARC signed  a five- year contract with TOTE Services to provide ship management services. Tote services is headquartered in Jacksonville, FL.

ARC told the BBC that it does not know how much damage the ship or the cargo had sustained but that it was carrying a mix of commercial and US military vehicles, it added.

Almost 400 dead, as the capsized cruise ship Eastern Star is pulled out of the Yangtze: the ship was not overloaded and had enough life vests on board

Official Death Toll In China's 'Eastern Star' Disaster Rises To Nearly 400

June 06, 2015

Rescuers work in the hull of the upright ship Eastern Star to launch rescue work in the section of Jianli on the Yangtze River, central China's Hubei Province, on Saturday.

Bai Yu/Xinhua /Landov 

 

The death toll in the capsize of a cruise ship in China's Yangtze River has risen to just under 400, making it the deadliest maritime disaster in seven decades in the country.

China's state-run Xinhua news agency says hundreds more bodies have been recovered since the overturned Eastern Star was righted on Friday, bringing the total confirmed dead to 396. Among the newly recovered bodies was of a 3-year-old girl.

Only 14 people have been found alive and that another 46 remain missing of the 456 aboard when the sudden, severe winds on Monday caused the disaster, according to Xinhua. Even so, authorities have placed the captain and his first engineer in custody.

The Associated Press says: "Passengers' relatives have raised questions about whether the ship should have continued its cruise after the storm started in a section of Hubei province and despite a weather warning earlier in the evening."
The Wall Street Journal adds:

"The Eastern Star's captain, Zhang Shunwen—a three-decade veteran of Chongqing Eastern Shipping Corp., the ship's owner, which named him one of its outstanding employees last year—told Xinhua in his first reported comments released Friday that he was struggling in moderate northward winds at 9:20 p.m. when the gusts suddenly intensified. ...

"The satellite data show the Eastern Star moving northwest across the river at 9:21 when it suddenly took a sharp turn to the east. A minute later it appears to have spun around violently and begun moving slowly downriver, presumably carried by the current."

 //------------------//

Raising The Eastern Star – China Cruise Ship Righted But Hundreds Still Missing

June 5, 2015 

Rescue workers stand on the river bank as the capsized cruise ship Eastern Star is pulled out of the Yangtze against sunset, in Jianli, Hubei province, China, June 5, 2015. REUTERS/China Daily

JIANLI, China, June 5 (Reuters) – An irate relative of two passengers missing aboard a Chinese cruise ship Eastern Star which capsized on the Yangtze River publicly accused the government of treating its people like enemies, as officials struggled to contain public anger over the disaster.

Only 14 survivors, one of them the captain, have been found after the ship carrying 456 overturned in a freak tornado on Monday night. A total of 103 bodies have been found.

Frustration over the lack of information has grown among families of the missing. Seventy-year-old Xia Yunchen burst into a just finished news briefing with senior officials on Friday, screaming and demanding answers.

“Is it necessary to treat the common people, one by one, as if you are facing some kind of formidable foe?” said Xia, whose sister and brother-in-law were aboard the Eastern Star.

Xia, from the eastern city of Qingdao, told reporters she had wanted to get into the news conference to hear for herself what the government was saying, and that she wanted an honest investigation because family members doubted the weather was the real cause of the disaster.

“You view the common people as if we are all your enemy. We are tax payers. We support the government. You had better change your notion of this relationship. You are here to serve us. You need to be humane,” Xia said, before being escorted out.

Police then kept reporters back behind a closed gate while they moved away relatives and passersby on the street outside.

About 1,200 relatives have converged on Jianli county in Hubei province where the disaster happened.

“My most important hope in coming here is still the same – to lay eyes on my mother,” said Zhang Junmin.

Another relative, who asked not to be identified, sent a Reuters reporter a picture from their hotel room showing three police cars parked outside, by way of explaining why they were too nervous to meet.

Aware of the sensitivity of the disaster, the ruling Communist Party’s Politburo Standing Committee, China’s apex of power, called on local authorities to take measures to help grieving families and to “earnestly safeguard social stability”.


“NO COVER-UP”

Rescuers, many from the military, worked through the night to right the four-deck ship. Pictures on state television showed the ship, which had capsized completely, sitting upright in the water. Large dents and gashes scarred its blue roof.

Rescuers will continue searching for the victims as they bail out water from the ship for the next five to six hours, said Xu Chengguang, a spokesman for the transport ministry, at a news conference.

Dozens of relatives gathered in front of the crematorium, demanding to be allowed inside. Many carried bouquets of flowers.

The crematorium gates were manned by uniformed police, who initially refused to let them inside. They were later allowed in after foreign reporters arrived on a government-organised bus tour.

Relatives have asked the government to release the names of survivors and the confirmed deaths, and questioned why most of those rescued were crew members.

Some have demanded to know why the boat did not dock in the storm, and how the rescued captain and crew members had time to put on life vests but did not sound any alarm.

Beijing has pledged there would be “no cover-up” in the investigation.

Police have detained the captain and chief engineer for questioning, though authorities have given no details. An initial investigation found the ship was not overloaded and had enough life vests on board.

On Thursday, more than 200 divers had groped through murky water after cutting through the hull, searching every cabin on board, but found no more survivors.


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