Zelenskiy calls on allies to continue pressure on Russia before talks with US
The Ukrainian president Volodymyr Zelenskiy urged his allies on Sunday to continue to exert sanctions and pressure on Russia. This comes ahead of the'second day' of talks between Ukrainian?and U.S.?delegations to discuss ways to end a four-year war that was sparked by Russia?s invasion of Ukraine. The latest talks in Florida, which began on Saturday, did not include any Russian participants. Originally, they were expected to attend the Abu Dhabi negotiations. The U.S.
In February, Russia's oil revenues and gas revenues are expected to have halved y/y.
Calculations showed that the Russian state's?oil?and?gas revenue in February 2025 will be almost half as much at 410 billion roubles (5.35 billion dollars) due to a stronger currency and lower oil price. The Kremlin's main source of revenue is oil and gas revenues, which account for more than a quarter of the federal budget. However, this amount has been drained since Russia started its military campaign against Ukraine in February 2022. Calculations are based upon data on production…
Russia's oil & gas revenues halved y/y in January to the lowest level since July 2020
According to data from the Finance Ministry, Russian state oil revenues and gas revenues fell by half in January, compared with the same period last year. They reached their lowest level since July 2020. The drop was attributed to a?lower price of crude oil and a stronger currency. The oil and gas revenues are vital for Russia's budget. In 2025, the state budget had a deficit of 2.6% or 5.6 trillion roubles. The figure of 393.3 billion Russian roubles (5.10 billion dollars) for January was lower than the 447.8 billion in December.
Sources say that the US will soon issue a general license for oil extraction in Venezuela
Three sources said that the U.S. is preparing to issue a general license allowing oil and gas companies to operate in Venezuela as soon as 'this week'. Washington aims to encourage increased production in the OPEC country since capturing the president. Sources said that the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the Treasury would allow companies to explore for and pump crude oil and gas. OFAC has already granted U.S. companies permission to store, refine and sell Venezuelan oil under a general license that was issued last month.
Sources say that OPEC+ will not increase oil production in March due to the price spike.
Three OPEC+ delegates said that OPEC+ will likely?keep its planned pause for oil production increases in?March?" when it meets on Sunday. This is even though crude prices have reached six-month highs due to fears the U.S. might launch a strike against OPEC member Iran. The eight OPEC+ member countries met as Brent crude prices closed at $70 a bar on Friday. This was close to the?six-month peak of $71.89 on Thursday. Despite speculation about a glut of supply in 2026, it is expected that prices will fall.
Mozambique and TotalEnergies launch $20 billion LNG project
TotalEnergies and Mozambique agreed to restart construction of the French energy giant's $20 billion "liquefied natural gas" project in the country on Thursday, even though they are still negotiating over the additional costs associated with delays. Construction on the project was stopped in 2021 after a series of jihadist attacks in Cabo Delgado in northern Mozambique. TotalEnergies has added equity to its partners' projects after some investors pulled out. It announced late last year that it was ready for work to resume.
Trump blocks courts from seizing Venezuelan Oil Revenue in US Accounts
The White House announced on Saturday that U.S. president Donald Trump had signed an executive order to prevent?courts and creditors from impounding revenues tied to the sale of Venezuelan oil in U.S. Treasury accounts. The order stated that the money held in foreign government deposits should be used to create "peace and prosperity" in Venezuela. The emergency order was signed Friday, a little more than a week after U.S. troops captured Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro at Caracas. Many companies have had long-standing claims against Venezuela.
Sources say that Chevron Vitol Trafigura are all competing to control Venezuelan oil imports.
Sources familiar with the situation say that Chevron, Vitol, Trafigura and other companies are competing to get deals from the U.S. Government to export crude oil from Venezuela. Venezuelan officials are trying to control oil sales in the United States. This competition is a reflection of the desire for many oil companies to gain access to Venezuela's crude oil stocks and production. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has demanded Venezuela grant the United States access to the oil sector. This comes just days after the U.S.
Sources: Vitol, Trafigura and US in talks on Venezuelan oil sales
Vitol, Trafigura and the Trump administration are in "talks" about marketing Venezuelan oil. European trading houses dominate the global oil trade and could assist the U.S. in facilitating oil sales from Venezuela, even though Washington prefers U.S. majors to take the lead. One source said that U.S. officials would meet with trading representatives at White House on Friday, as well as U.S. oil giants. Trafigura declined to comment. The White House didn't immediately respond to an e-mail sent outside of U.S. office hours asking for comment.
ROI-Trump's Venezuela oil grab revives 'petrodollar' debate: McGeever
The arrest and capture of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro by the United States on Saturday was likely motivated by many factors, but one that has been little discussed is the White House's concern about the declining global prominence of "petrodollar". Venezuela's oil production is modest, at just 1 million barrels a day. However, its reported reserves are huge - around 300 billion barrels or 17% of global stocks. Donald Trump has made it clear the U.S. wants to tap this huge potential. He plans to get U.S. energy companies?revitalize?
Russia's monthly oil revenue is set to reach its lowest level since August 2020
Calculations showed that the Russian state's oil and gas revenues in December are likely to drop by almost half from a year ago, reaching 410 billion Russian roubles (5.17 billion dollars), due to lower crude prices and stronger roubles. Calculations showed that oil and gas revenues are the Kremlin's main source of income. They account for a quarter the federal budget, which has been depleted by heavy defence and security expenditures since Russia started its military campaign against Ukraine in February 2022.
Russia's oil & gas revenues are expected to drop by half in December, reaching their lowest level since August 2020
Calculations showed that the Russian state's oil and gas revenue is likely to drop by almost half in December, compared to a year earlier. This will be due to lower crude prices as well as a stronger rouble. The Finance Ministry had forecast 8.65 trillion roubles for the year. Calculations based on official statistics and data from industry sources suggest that the total revenue will fall by nearly a quarter, to 8.44 trillion. In August 2020, the month when oil prices plummeted during the COVID-19 pandemic…
The central bank of Russia says that the discount on Russian Urals oil prices has increased to 23% by November.
In its latest review, the Russian Central Bank said that the discount between the price of the Urals oil blend and Brent global benchmark has increased by six percentage points to 23% this month. Although the discount is less severe than what was seen in the first wave of Western sanctions, which began in 2022; it still reflects mounting pressure on Russian Oil revenues, which are a vital lifeline for Moscow’s budget. Last month, the United States imposed strict restrictions on Russian oil companies Lukoil & Rosneft.
China Suspends Russian Oil Purchases Due to Sanctions
Chinese state oil majors have suspended purchases of seaborne Russian oil after the United States imposed sanctions on Rosneft and Lukoil, Moscow's two biggest oil companies, multiple trade sources said on Thursday.The move comes as refiners in India, the largest buyer of seaborne Russian oil, are set to sharply cut their crude imports from Moscow, to comply with the U.S.
Nigeria is considering giving control of oil contracts to regulator
According to a draft of a legislative amendment, Nigeria may decide to have the state oil company take over the control of existing oil contracts in the country, instead. The regulator could become both an umpire as well as a participant, blurring the line between participation and regulation, and raising concerns about potential conflicts of interests. This also raises concerns about corporate governance, as it takes away the power from NNPC's state-owned company board to approve budgets and formulate strategies.
Guyana elects a leader amid controversy over oil wealth
Guyanese voters head to the polls Monday to elect members of parliament and the president who will decide how the hydrocarbon boom in the South American nation will be spent. Since ExxonMobil began pumping offshore oil late in 2019, Guyana has seen its economy grow at a rate of 7.5 billion dollars. Irfaan Ali is running for reelection as the leader of the People's Progressive Party. He has been in office since 2020. His government has used oil revenue to build roads, hospitals and schools. It also made studying at the state-run university free.
Petrobras CEO: Africa will be the main exploration region for Petrobras outside Brazil.
Petrobras wants to develop Africa as its primary region outside Brazil. The CEO of the state-run oil company said this in a broad interview on Thursday. Petrobras CEO Magda Chabriard said that Ivory Coast extended the "red-carpet" to Petrobras when it granted the company the preference for buying nine offshore exploration blocks on Wednesday. She said that Nigeria, Angola and Namibia also expressed an interest in working with Brazil's giant. Chambriard said…
Saudi Arabia will 'take stock of' its spending priorities following a drop in oil revenues, reports FT
The Financial Times reported that Saudi Arabia's Finance Minister Mohammed Al-Jadaan stated the kingdom will "take stock" in its spending priorities as a result of a significant drop in oil revenues. The FT reported that Riyadh intends to maintain the current pace of its government spending despite widening deficits in the budget and current accounts, as well as increasing debt levels. Reports last month indicated that Saudi Arabia's wealth is inextricably linked to its oil revenues…
EOG Resources exceeds profit expectations for the fourth quarter on higher production
EOG Resources surpassed fourth-quarter profit expectations on Thursday as higher production helped offset lower oil price. The company's shares were down 3.5% in after-hours trading as the net income fell by more than half, to $1.25 Billion from $1.998 Billion the previous quarter. The overall quarterly revenue dropped 12%, to $5.59 Billion. This was due to lower oil revenues as well as losses on derivative contracts. Operating expenses rose by 3.6% compared to last year.
Nigeria's NNPC and partners to build 5 mini-LNG for local gas usage
A company spokesperson announced late Thursday that the state-owned Nigerian National Petroleum Company has started construction on five mini-liquefied gas plants (LNG). This is part of government initiatives to boost economic growth and gas consumption. Nigeria, Africa's leading energy producer, has the continent's largest reserves of gas, with more than 200 trillion cubic foot. It aims to develop this commodity in order to boost supply to industries, power stations, and exports and to stop routine flaring by the year 2030.