Daily News Energy Headlines from December 23, 2015

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News highlights gathered by Industrial Info and IIR Energy (Sugar Land, Texas) dealing with the energy markets.

CRUDE OIL
U.S. Crude Inventories Decline - Crude prices rose on Wednesday on news from the U.S. Energy Administration that U.S. crude reserves declined 5.88 million barrels to 484.78 million for the week ending December 18.

Enterprise Contracts Crude Oil for Export - Enterprise Products Partners (NYSE:EPD) (Houston, Texas) says that it is providing pipeline and marine terminal services to export a 600,000-barrel shipment of crude oil from the Houston Ship Channel during the first week of January.

OPEC Says Demand for Its Crude Will Decline Through 2020 - OPEC says that it expects demand for its crude to be 30.7 million barrels per day (BBL/d) in 2020, lower than the 30.9 million BBL/d it expects in 2016. This is about 1 million barrels less than the organization's current production.

FINANCIAL
Shell Reduces Capital Spending - After Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS-A) (The Hague, Netherlands) takes the reins from BG Group (Reading, England), the combined company is planning $33 billion in capital spending in 2016, down from previous guidance of $35 billion.

PRODUCTION
U.S. Oil Drillers Cut Rigs - Baker Hughes reports that U.S. oil drillers reduced the number of operating rigs by three last week to 538.

POWER
U.S. Southwest Leads in Power Generation Kickoffs for First-Quarter 2016 - Fueled by the nation's abundant supply of natural gas, an array of power plant projects are set to get under way early next year. Industrial Info is tracking 617 U.S. power generation projects worth $28.78 billion that are expected to kick off in first-quarter 2016. Well over half of the total investment value is located in just three regions, the Southwest, Northeast and West Coast.

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About IIR Energy
Energy asset information on power plants, oil refineries and natural gas infrastructure is now more important than ever. A unit of Industrial Info Resources, IIR Energy provides infrastructure information on these assets, as well as real-time tracking of planned and unplanned interruptions affecting the trading, logistics and marketing communities. We are the number one source for information about electricity outages, refinery turnarounds and midstream natural gas disruptions.

About Industrial Info
Industrial Info Resources (IIR), with global headquarters in Sugar Land, Texas, five offices in North America and 10 international offices, is the leading provider of global market intelligence specializing in the industrial process, heavy manufacturing and energy markets. Industrial Info's quality-assurance philosophy, the Living Forward Reporting Principle™, provides up-to-the-minute intelligence on what's happening now, while constantly keeping track of future opportunities.