Low oil price leads to pay cut for Islamic State fighters
IS (Islamic State) are said to have reduced the salaries of fighters – because of the low oil price.
Middle East
BP, Oman Oil agree to develop second phase of Khazzan project
Oil major BP and its partners Oman Oil have agreed to develop a second phase of the Khazzan natural gas field bringing investment in the project to an estimated $16billlion.
Oil resumes drop as Iran loads Europe cargo, China imports fall
Oil resumed its decline below $30 a barrel as Iran loaded its first cargo to Europe since international sanctions ended and Chinese crude imports dropped from a record.
Video: Coalition forces strike IS oil and gas plant
Fresh footage from the Pentagon has shown air strikes on an IS (Islamic State) gas and oil plant in Syria.
RSK looks to expand graduate program in UK and Middle East
RSK Group plans to expand its graduate program this year and beyond.
Kuwait Petroleum Corp to sell loss making assets
Kuwait Petroleum Corp (KPC) said it plans to sell loss-making assets to cut costs as low oil prices pressure its finances.
Aberdeen seminar will open the door to Iran
North-east firms will be urged to get into Iran at a seminar in Aberdeen later this week.
Oil climbs as OPEC, producers expected to meet
Oil climbed to a three-week high after Russia’s Energy Minister was reported to say that OPEC and other producers will meet next month to discuss a potential production cut.
Iran says low oil prices will not last long
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said on Thursday that oil prices would not stay low for long as producers restore market balance. "The price of oil is at a low level ... I don't think it will last in the long term ... The pressure on oil-producing nations means balance will be restored in the short term," Rouhani, whose country is the third-largest producer in OPEC, said at the French Institute of International Relations.
Israel claims ISIS funded by “Turkish money”
Israel’s defence minister has alleged ISIS (Islamic State) has been funded with “Turkish money”. Moshe Ya’alon made the claim as he said the Turkish government was not pulling its weight in the fight against the network.
Coalition forces destroy six IS rigs
Coalition military forces say they have destroyed six IS (Islamic State) rigs near Raqqah as efforts to against the terrorist group continue.
Iraq sees some flexibility for OPEC, non-OPEC to tackle oil glut
Iraq, OPEC's second-largest oil producer, sees some flexibility for a deal between the exporter group and rival producers to tackle a supply glut that has pushed prices to a 12-year low, Oil Minister Adel Abdel Mahdi said on Tuesday. His comments, made in Kuwait, briefly boosted world oil prices further above $30 a barrel, although such an idea has been repeatedly mooted and dismissed for over a year.
Opinion: What does the rollback of Iranian sanctions mean?
Iran is one of the most significant producers of crude oil and natural gas in the world. According to the OFAC Annual Statistical Bulletin 2015, Iran has proven crude oil deposits equating to 157,530 million barrels and natural gas reserves of 34,020 billion cubic/meters. While subject to comprehensive international sanctions, the Iranian natural resources sector had severely limited access to international markets both for export and inward investment.
Lamprell Energy signs MOU for maritime complex
Lamprell Energy said it has signed an MOU (Memorandum of Understanding) with Saudi Aramco, Bahri and Hyundai Heavy Industries for a collaboration on creating a maritime complex in Saudi Arabia.
Gazprom boosts production from Iraqi Badra oilfield
Russia's Gazprom said this week production at its Iraqi Badra oilfield reached 85,000 barrels per day (bpd).
Craig Group heralds Middle-East expansion with contract award
A global oil field procurement firm headquartered in Aberdeen said yesterday it had opened its first Middle-East bases after tying up a deal to manage a Qatari operator’s budget. Craig International, part of family-owned energy service and shipping company Craig Group, will be handed about £7.5million every year for five years to provide the operator with a range of procurement services. Craig International, which has a network of more than 60 buyers in six countries, did not disclose the name of the client.
In Saudi Aramco IPO talk, some see age of oil coming to end
For all the talk of Saudi Arabia’s oil company becoming the first trillion-dollar business if it goes public, some see the chatter as a sign of oil’s weakness. The Saudis, they say, know it’s time to start hedging their bet on fossil fuels. While the Saudi Arabian Oil Co. sits on a preposterously large reserve of 260 billion barrels of oil, the kingdom’s discussion of a share sale amid a global collapse in crude prices suggests another motive to those who preach about the financial risks of climate change: The Saudis may want to capitalize on an asset that’s only going to lose value if the world gets serious about global warming.
Iran’s crude oil exports could reach nine-month high
Iran's crude oil exports are said to be on target to reach a nine-month high this month.
Shell, Iran reach deal on $2.3billion outstanding debt
Oil major Shell and the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) have reached a final deal on how the Anglo-Dutch company must clear its debt of $2.3billion outstanding since 2011. The head of the NIOCs international affairs, Mohsen Qamsari, said the two sides had reached an agreement on a mechanism after several round of negotiations.
Kurdistan Government pays out millions to exporters
The Kurdistan Regional Government has dished out its latest round of payment for oil exports.
Iran, Saudi Arabia square up across world’s busiest tanker route
There are several reasons why escalating tensions between Iran and Saudi Arabia make markets nervous. One of them is that they sit on either side of the Persian Gulf, the world’s biggest concentration of oil tankers.
Forum Energy Technologies product line wins string of new orders
A product line owned by Forum Energy Technologies has won a string of new multi-million dollar contracts in just one month. AMC Engineering has been given multiple orders for the manufacture and supply of its fully rotational torque bucking unit, scheduled for delivery next year. The units have been bought by a number of multinational oil companies in the Middle East, South America and Caspian regions.
Dozens killed in air strikes on fuel market in Syria
Air strikes on a fuel market in a village in northern Syria have killed and wounded dozens of people and destroyed several tanker trucks, according to opposition monitoring groups. Activists said war planes also struck another market in the northern village of Maskaneh which is under the control of Islamic State, killing at least 12 people and wounding many others. It was not immediately clear whose war planes carried out the strikes, although the monitoring groups said the Russians targeted both markets.
Experts warn Syria oil field bombings could alienate local population
The bombing of oil fields in Syria robs civilians of the infrastructure they depend upon in their day-to-day lives and will further alienate the local people from the Western cause, experts on the Middle East have warned.
Deep Casing Tools wins $4.7million Middle East contract
Deep Casing Tools has won a $4.7million tool order from an unnamed operator in the Middle East.