Business & Finance homework help

Business & Finance homework help.  
 
 
 
 
The objective of this assignment is to familiarize you with the sites and sources of information on energy information, as well as some of the basic terminology and units of measurement. We will also analysis this information in class, and it is so much meaningful if you do the work to get the information than if I simply provide it to you![1]
 
Also, reflect on what this information is telling you – this will assist you in writing your final paper.
 
 

  1. In 2013 The World Energy Council[2] (WEC) released its World Energy Scenarios which built two possible energy futures, Jazz and Symphony, which could describe the world in 2050. We now have seven years of real world experience against which to assess these two scenarios. https://www.worldenergy.org/assets/downloads/World-Energy-Scenarios_Composing-energy-futures-to-2050_Full-report1.pdf

 
Which of the three do you believe will turn out to be the most accurate view of the future (2050)? Explain your choice.
 
 

  1. How much land does a typical wind farm occupy per megawatt – this can vary so you can either provide the range or a specific number if you state all the requisite assumptions. Provide the total area necessary to permit the turbines to operate, not the footprint of the actual turbine.

 

  1. If all the current coal fired capacity of Saskatchewan was replaced with wind powered capacity how much land would this, on average, take up?

 

  1. List the top 10 oil (petroleum) producing countries (also indicate the level of production in either thousands or millions of barrels/day) for the most recent year you can find the data and provide the corresponding level of production.

 
Now, in a column beside the latest production figures put a column indicating what each country’s respective production was about 10 years (2005-06) earlier. Which country has had the largest growth in production? Explain what caused this shift.
 

  1. From what five (5) countries does the USA currently import the most oil? Were they the same top five (5) 10 years earlier? Is this what you expected, in other words in what way did any of this information surprise you? Explain.

 

  1. List the top 5 energy consuming countries (total, not per capita) – most recent data. Are they the same as the top 5 energy consuming countries on a per capital basis? What does this tell you?

 

  1. You are responsible for making the investment decision for Dybwad Oil’s exploration program for the upcoming drilling season. You know that any investment in exploration is highly risky due to a number of uncertainties and risks. You are also aware that exploration is costly, and as the company undertaking the exploration activity bears the prospect of risk, strategies are required are based on an evaluation of the costs and benefits of the exploration program.

 
The company engineers and geologists have provided you with the following exploration prospects. Also, the finance department has given you a budget of $20 million, this is all that the company cash flow will permit.
 
Using the decision-making rule/process developed in class[3] that uses the expected monetary value rather than net present value, what drilling program will you propose to Executive Management for the upcoming year. Justify/explain your proposal.
 
Prospect #1
The probability of failure is 70%. The cost drilling (after tax) is $10 million.
 
In the case of success the probability of a low volume find is 50%; a regular find of 30% and a high volume find of 20%.
 
The net present value (millions of $) for the low volume find is 10, regular 20 and high 80.
 
Prospect #2
The probability of success is 30%. The after tax cost of drilling is $20 million.
 
The probability of a low volume find is 20% whereas the probability of a high volume find is 30%.
 
The NPV of a low find is $20 million, a regular find $60 million and a high volume find $120 million.
 
Prospect #3
Probability of failure 80%. After tax drilling cost of $10 million.
 
In the case of success the probability of a low volume find is 90%. The probability of a regular or high volume find is 5% each.
 
The associated NPVs are: low 40 million dollars; regular 60 million dollars, and high 100 million dollars.
 
Prospect #4
The after tax cost of drilling the prospect is $20 million. But the probability of success is the greatest. In this case the probability of success is 50%.
 
The NPV of a low volume find is $5 million (probability in the case of success is 20%). In the case of a regular find the probability in the case of success is 45% with and NPV of $10 million. There is probability, in the case of success, of 35% of a high volume flow find with a NPV of $20 million.
 

  1. As discussed in class all oil reservoirs experience production declines. This happened because reservoirs experience a decline in __________. What are two methods of tertiary recovery that can be used to extend reservoir life during the decline phase?

 

  1. What is the current price for WTI? (please site the source you used, and since oil prices are volatile the date that you pulled this information) Does WCS demand the same price? Why is this the case?

 
 
[1] Note:     For each of the questions please identify the source of your data. This is important because even among reputable sources there may be slight differences in the data given different methodologies. Also, each source may be reporting for a different year.  So for example OPEC  (Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries) data may say the UAE’s annual oil production in 2015 is 2,794 (thousand barrels a day) whereas the IEA (International Energy Agency) may say it is 2,760 (thousand barrels a day).  Hence comparisons within sources should be okay since the same methodology will be applied – between sources may yield some differences. REMEMBER Wikipedia is NOT an acceptable source, citing it will yield you a grade of 0%.
 
[2] Apropos of nothing, I was once the President of the Energy Council of Canada. It was a fun job. Paid well and I got to travel all over the world.
[3] This is also the process identified in the text.

Business & Finance homework help