OPEC+ Agrees New Oil Deal Without UAE Agreement, Source Says
OPEC+ agreed on Friday to add more oil to the market from August and extend the duration of their pact on their remaining production curbs for longer, even though the United Arab Emirates still opposed the extension, an OPEC+ source said.All OPEC+ deals require unanimous approval. The rare development on Friday means the UAE could still derail the plan.
OPEC, Russia Approve Biggest-Ever Oil Cut to Support Prices
OPEC and allies led by Russia agreed on Sunday to a record cut in output to prop up oil prices amid the coronavirus pandemic in an unprecedented deal with fellow oil nations, including the United States, that could curb global oil supply by 20%. Measures to slow the spread of the coronavirus have destroyed demand for fuel and driven down oil prices, straining budgets of oil producers and hammering the U.S. shale industry, which is more vulnerable to low prices due to its higher costs.
Lukoil 2020 Capex May Exceed $8 Bln
Russian oil producer Lukoil's capital expenditure may exceed $8 billion next year, the company's Vice President Pavel Zhdanov said on Thursday.The oil producer sees its capex at between 475 billion and 500 billion roubles this year, depending on the global oil deal between OPEC and its allies, he said on a conference call.(Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin, Olesya Astakhova; writing by Tom Balmforth)
Adnoc Inks Base Oil Deal with IOC
The Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) announced that it has signed another significant long-term sales agreement with Indian Oil Corporation (IndianOil) for its high-quality base oil called ADbase.IndianOil is the largest seller of finished lubricants in the Indian market with approximate volume of 450,000 tonnes per annum. The total Indian market for finished lubricants is 2 million tonnes and is growing at the rate of 2.4 per cent per annum.IndianOil will use the ADbase oils to manufacture high end engine oils for India’s growing automotive sector.Ahmad Bin Thalith…
Dutch Prosecutors Target Shell Over Nigeria Oil Deal
Dutch prosecutors are preparing criminal charges against Royal Dutch Shell over the $1.3 billion acquisition of an Nigerian offshore oilfield, ramping up pressure on the energy firm that already faces bribery charges in Italy over the case.Within hours of Friday's announcement on the Nigerian case, the Dutch prosecution said the oil and gas giant would also be charged in two domestic cases relating to an explosion at a petrochemical facility and emissions.Although the cases are unrelated…
Lukoil Opposes Prolonged Global Oil Output Cuts
The global oil output cut should not be prolonged, the head of Russia's second biggest oil producer, Lukoil, said on Wednesday, Interfax news agency reported.Lukoil would have to cut its output by 30,000 barrels per day by April under the OPEC and non-OPEC oil deal, but it could still maintain full-year oil output in 2019 at the same level as in 2018, Vagit Alekperov told reporters on the sidelines of the World Economic Forum in Davos, according to Interfax.Alekperov also…
Nigeria Sues Shell, Eni Over Oil Deal
Lawyers for the Nigerian government said they had filed a $1.1 billion lawsuit against Royal Dutch Shell and Eni in a commercial court in London on Thursday in relation to a 2011 oilfield deal.The OPL 245 oilfield is also at the heart of an ongoing corruption trial in Milan in which former and current Shell and Eni officials are on the bench."It is alleged that purchase monies purportedly paid to the Federal Republic of Nigeria were in fact immediately paid through to a company controlled by Dan Etete…
Shell Sees Nigeria Corruption Trial Lasting Many Months
Royal Dutch Shell expects a landmark corruption trial over a Nigerian oil deal to last many months, warning staff of continued critical media coverage in the $1.3 billion case, according to an internal memo seen by Reuters.Shell's Legal Director Donny Ching encouraged employees to study an internal web page that the Anglo-Dutch company set up for the case before responding to questions from relatives and friends.Shell and Italian peer Eni are defendants in a Milan bribery trial…
Russia to Decide on Oil Output Hike by Exxon-led Project
A decision on whether to allow the Russian ExxonMobil-led Sakhalin-1 project to raise oil output is expected by the end of April, a spokesman for Russia's Ministry of Natural Resources said on Friday. "The experts are working on the case ... A decision will be taken by the end of April," he told Reuters. ExxonNeftegaz, ExxonMobil's subsidiary in Russia, did not reply to a Reuters request for comment. The Sakhalin-1 oil project, off Russia's Pacific coast, has ditched plans to raise output to 250…
China's CEFC Investigation Hits $9 billion Russian Oil Deal
Chinese conglomerate CEFC had already started paying for a stake in Russian oil giant Rosneft when the economic crime police took its chairman Ye Jianming away, halting the $9.1 billion deal in its tracks, according to three sources close to the matter. The fate of the deal, one of the largest Chinese investments in Russia, has become a litmus test of how far President Xi Jinping's government is prepared to go with a crackdown on financially risky activities among big-spending conglomerates.
Azerbaijan Ratifies Oil Deal with BP-led Consortium
Azerbaijan's parliament on Tuesday ratified a new oil field development contract between the Caucasus nation and a BP-led consortium. BP and Azerbaijan agreed in September to extend to 2050 the contract to develop the country's biggest oilfields, Azeri-Chirag-Guneshli (ACG), a deal dubbed "the contract of the century" when first signed in 1994 until 2024. The new contract secures large investment in Azerbaijan's oil sector over decades and a one-off bonus of $3.6 billion for the government…
Novak Says Premature to Extend Global Oil Deal, Market is Being Balanced
It is premature to decide on extending the global deal to reduce oil production as the oil market has been rebalancing, Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak said on Thursday, according to the ministry's Twitter feed. He also said that if the market struggles to reach balance, "we would discuss the option of the deal extension" after it expires after March 31. Novak also said that the current oil price of over $54 per barrel is "optimal" for both producers and consumers and allows to make investments in the oil industry. Reporting by Vladimir Soldatkin and Olesya Astakhova
Vietnam Renews India Oil Deal In Tense South China Sea
Vietnam has extended an Indian oil concession in the South China Sea and begun drilling in another area it disputes with China in moves that could heighten tensions over who owns what in the vital maritime region. The moves come at a delicate time in Beijing's relations with Vietnam, which claims parts of the sea, and India, which recently sent warships to monitor the Malacca Straits, through which most of China's energy supplies and trade passes. Vietnam granted Indian oil firm ONGC Videsh a two-year extension to explore oil block 128 in a letter that arrived earlier this week…
Rosneft's Bid for Essar Delayed
Essar Oil deal is biggest foreign acquisition in India; over a dozen Indian banks must approve deal. The purchase of Indian refiner Essar Oil by a consortium led by Russian oil company Rosneft has been delayed by a few weeks, the two sides said on Friday, because some Indian lenders to Essar have yet to sign off on the deal. The $12.9 billion deal, in which Rosneft is set to take a 49 percent stake in Essar to pursue its global expansion, was expected to close by the end of this month.
Maersk, Denmark Close In On North Sea Oil Deal
Oil and shipping conglomerate A.P Moller-Maersk could land a deal with the Danish government on oil and gas operations in the North Sea within days, political sources with knowledge of the negotiations told Reuters on Tuesday. The deal will secure continued production in the Danish part of the North Sea and is seen as crucial for Maersk as it seeks to focus its operations on the North Sea and spin off its energy assets via a listing or merger. The Danish state has agreed to improved fiscal terms, the sources said.
Russia to decide on global oil deal extension in April-May
Russia will decided in April or May whether an agreement on global oil output cuts between OPEC and non-OPEC producers, set to end on June 31, should be extended, TASS news agency quoted Russian Energy Minister Alexander Novak as saying on Saturday. Novak also said that he planned to meet his Saudi Arabia counterpart Khalid al-Falih during the CERAWeek energy conference in Houston in March. (Reporting by Polina Devitt; Editing by Louise Ireland)
Venezuelan Ministers to Visit Algeria for Oil Price Talks
Venezuela's oil and foreign ministers will visit fellow OPEC member Algeria this weekend for consultations on dealing with oil price instability, Algeria's foreign ministry said in a statement. The two parties will discuss coordination over OPEC's agreement in September to reduce oil production by 1.2 million barrels a day to help support global oil prices, the statement from the APS state news agency said. A deal with non-OPEC members followed in December. The Venezuelan delegation is visiting a number of OPEC and non-OPEC countries to coordinate and discuss oil market conditions.
Glencore Raises Money for Kurdish Oil Deal, Likely Short of Target
Glencore will likely fall short of its target of raising $550 million to pre-finance the purchase of Kurdish oil, with investors exercising caution despite the offer of a 12 percent bond yield, industry sources told Reuters. Two sources familiar with the plans said that commodities giant Glencore will price the bond at 12 percent on Tuesday, having received investor commitments for between $200 million and $400 million. Glencore would have to cover the rest itself, though there is obligation to hit the full $550 million.
OPEC Makes Last-ditch Bid to Save Oil Deal as Tensions Grow
OPEC was trying on Monday to rescue a deal to limit oil output as tensions grew among the producer group and non-OPEC member Russia, with top exporter Saudi Arabia saying markets would rebalance even without an agreement. A gathering of OPEC experts failed to reach a compromise on how exactly the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries should reduce production when it meets on Nov. 30, according to several sources briefed on the matter. After more than nine hours of talks…
OPEC Tensions Grow as Oil Deal hopes Fade
Analysts predict sharp drop in oil prices if no deal. OPEC was trying on Monday to rescue a deal to limit oil output as tensions grew among the producer group and non-OPEC member Russia, with top exporter Saudi Arabia saying markets would rebalance even without an agreement. OPEC experts started a meeting in Vienna at 0900 GMT and were due to make recommendations to their ministers on how exactly the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries should reduce production when it meets on Nov. 30.
