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by Stockwatch Business Reporter

West Texas Intermediate crude for August delivery added 84 cents to $81.74 on the New York Merc, while Brent for August added $1.14 to $86.39 (all figures in this para U.S.). Western Canadian Select traded at a discount of $14.90 to WTI, down from a discount of $14.10. Natural gas for August lost six cents to $2.69. The TSX energy index added 3.57 points to close at 284.02.

One of the sector's busiest traders was Sean Guest and Yacine Ben-Meriem's Valeura Energy Inc. (VLE), which tumbled 46 cents to $4.26 on 3.24 million shares, after suspending production from its offshore Wassana field in the Gulf of Thailand. An underwater inspection crew found a crack in one of the steel jack-up legs of the field's MOPU (mobile offshore production unit). Out of an "abundance of caution," Valeura has decided to suspend Wassana's operations pending further inspections.

Caution cannot be too abundant in this case. Besides its processing capabilities -- which involve separating oil, gas and water produced from the wells, with oil being the main target (the gas becomes fuel for onboard generators and the water gets pumped back into the reservoir) -- this MOPU also provides accommodations for more than three dozen crew members. Valeura did not mention that, but presumably all have been brought to safety. The company emphasized that there has been "no adverse impact" to its people or the environment.

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