Oil & Gas Iran sanctions help push oil prices to second weekly gain Oil prices rose on Friday and were heading for a second consecutive weekly gain as fresh US sanctions on Iran and the latest output plan from the Opec+ producer group raised expectations of tighter supply. Brent crude futures were up 12 cents, or 0.2 percent, at $72.12 a barrel by 08:50 GMT. US West Texas […] March 21, 2025
Oil & Gas Iraq ramps up LNG import projects after US ends Iran waiver Iraq is ramping up development of an offshore liquefied natural gas terminal and a 40km pipeline, as Baghdad seeks to import more LNG following a US decision to end the country’s exemption to restrictions of the purchase of gas from Iran, according to local media. Ali Shaddad, a member of the parliament’s oil and gas […] March 10, 2025
Opinion Aviation Schedule shift signals a busy summer for Middle East airlines As airlines prepare to switch timetables, the Gulf looks set for growth, new routes and cautious optimism March 10, 2025
Editor's Insight Health Gulf fertility: falling short of replacement rates Your starter for 10. The demographics of Tehran most closely resemble those of which city? a) Damascus b) Riyadh or c) Zurich. The answer of course, as any fule kno, is c). True, Zurich lacks a prison with the reputation and commodiousness of Evi... Register now: It’s easy and free This content is available for […] March 6, 2025
Opinion Oil & Gas The Riyadh summit will shape global energy geopolitics Diplomatic pressure is rising and so is the volatility of black gold February 26, 2025
Opinion Energy Iraq must act fast to avoid a domestic energy crisis Things are never simple in the land of the two rivers but Baghdad needs solutions now February 18, 2025
Oil & Gas Two new LNG terminals in Iraq to replace Iran gas Iraq is planning to build two offshore liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals to tackle a persistent electricity supply shortage, its oil minister said on Monday. One facility to receive imported LNG needed to run its power stations will be located in the Faw port under construction in southern Iraq. The other will be at the […] February 17, 2025
Opinion Oil & Gas Trump’s maximum pressure will squeeze Iran’s oil exports It’s becoming increasingly difficult for Iranian oil sellers to secure tankers and it may get even harder February 17, 2025
Oil & Gas Iraq-Turkmenistan gas deal unlikely to happen A gas supply agreement signed by Iraq and Turkmenistan in 2023 may never begin because of challenges with transiting the gas through neighbouring Iran, Iraqi analysts say. The deal was for nearly 20 million cubic metres of natural gas per day to supply Iraq’s power facilities, but Iraq and Turkmenistan do not share a border. […] February 13, 2025
Oil & Gas Iraq to stop taking Iranian gas by 2028 Iraq will phase out gas imports from neighboring Iran within three years because of persistent supply disruptions. It will instead increasingly rely on more domestic production to fuel its power stations, and electricity from other neighbours including Saudi Arabia and Jordan. Mohammed Al-Sudani, the Iraqi prime minister, said Iraq’s decision to end Iranian imports in […] February 7, 2025
Finance Iran inflation rises as fuel price and rents surge Inflation in Iran rose month on month in January, driven by a surge in housing rents and fuel prices, official data showed. Annual inflation reached 32 percent this month, a rise of 2.9 percent month on month, local media outlets said, citing data released by the Statistical Center of Iran. The annual inflation rate was […] January 23, 2025
Oil & Gas ‘It’s costing huge sums’ – Iraq may stop buying Iranian gas Iraq may stop importing natural gas from its neighbour Iran when projects to develop the country’s unexploited gas resources are complete, the country’s oil minister has hinted. Hayan Abdel Ghani told the official Iraqi news agency that the bill for Iranian gas imports was sapping Iraq’s coffers, and the Iranian supplies were no longer secure, […] January 20, 2025
Oil & Gas Oil may hit $90 on Russia curbs and Iran output cut Brent crude oil prices could rise above $85 a barrel in the short-term if the latest round of US sanctions against Moscow leads to lower Russian oil output, Goldman Sachs said on Sunday. Prices could touch $90 a barrel if the decline in Russian output coincides with a reduction in Iranian production, the bank said. US president Joe Biden imposed the broadest package of sanctions so […] January 13, 2025
Oil & Gas Iran seeks to free 25m barrels of oil stuck in Chinese ports Iran is pushing to free 25 million barrels of the country’s oil that has been stuck for six years in Chinese ports because of sanctions imposed by Donald Trump during his first presidency, sources have said. Trump is expected by analysts to tighten sanctions again on Iranian oil exports tolimit Tehran’s income when he returns […] January 8, 2025
Analysis Oil & Gas Iraq turns to Turkmenistan to plug Iranian gas gap Iranian gas flow halted Iraq claims loss of 9,000MW New deal with Turkmenistan Iraq has always considered neighbouring Iran as a stable and reliable supplier of natural gas needed to run its power facilities, but experts now believe tha... January 6, 2025
Opinion Trade Gulf is not immune to Trump’s tariff threats President-elect’s de-dollarisation warnings are likely to flounder amid complex economic realities December 5, 2024
Trade Beijing ‘exploits’ Iran, says US advisory panel American officials have identified the Middle East, and particularly the GCC, as crucial turf in superpower competition between the US and China, singling out energy and advanced technology as the main fields where a tug-of-war is taking place. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission, a 25-year-old Congressionally-mandated independent US government agency, dedicated an entire […] November 20, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas Top of Trump’s to-do list: sanctions against Iran Donald Trump’s second term as US president, which is due to start in January, is likely to bring a significant strengthening of sanctions against Iran and a resumption of the “maximum pressure policy”, industry experts believe. In his first term as president, Trump withdrew from the Joint Collective Plan of Action, a 2015 accord which […] November 7, 2024
Editor's Insight Oil & Gas Iran’s mission to make the most of oil wealth Despite some predictable vapouring from hardliners, the Islamic regime in Tehran will mainly be heaving a sigh of relief that Israel did not attack Iran’s oil infrastructure. The IAF avoided the main oil terminal at Kharg Island in the north of ... November 1, 2024
Opinion Trade Europe needs to revisit Gulf relations or lose out to Asia The recent EU-GCC summit could not have come at a more critical moment October 28, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas US sanctions unlikely to stop Iran’s oil smugglers Tighter US economic sanctions are unlikely to disrupt Iran’s oil exports in the long run because Tehran has developed a sophisticated system of oil smuggling, using a dedicated fleet of tankers and middlemen in multiple countries, industry observers say. The regime in Tehran has been under US sanctions since the Islamic revolution of 1979. But […] October 23, 2024
Oil & Gas Oil steadies despite Middle East uncertainties Oil prices inched higher in early trade on Wednesday on uncertainty over what may happen next in the Middle East conflict. Earlier, demand concerns knocked the market to its lowest since early October in the previous session. Brent crude oil futures rose 14 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $74.39 a barrel by 02:50 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate […] October 16, 2024
