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Energy

The latest news, analysis and opinion on energy in the Middle East

Analysis & opinion

AlUla Old Town. The heritage site is one of Saudi Arabia's flagship tourism projects

Volatility of crude markets masks Saudi non-oil momentum

Volatility in global oil markets, which led to Saudi Arabia’s GDP shrinking last year, is masking the strength of the kingdom’s non-oil economy, analysts have said.  Its non-oil revenue is forecast to rise by more than 5 percent in each of the next two years, according to Jadwa Investment. The 2023 contraction was driven by […]

Workers work at Majnoon oil field in Iraq. The country aims to increase output to 7 million barrels per day.

Saudi Arabia hits brakes as others push oil output capacity

Saudi Arabia may have shelved plans to raise oil output capacity but the UAE, Kuwait and Iraq believe global crude demand will grow and are gearing up for expansion, according to industry observers. Although Opec is implementing production cuts to stabilise the market over the near term, its core members are focused on longer-term commitments, […]

Latest Energy News

Iranian Oil Minister Javad Owji Iran oil contracts

Iran gives local companies $13bn to lift oil output

Iran has announced contracts with local companies worth more than $13 billion to boost its oil output. The sanctions-hit country wants to develop six oil fields to add around 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) and will rely on domestic expertise, Iran’s official news agency, Shana reported on Sunday. The agency said that the deals were […]

Kuwaiti oil major to buy 50% of Italian biodiesel producer 

The Italian subsidiary of Kuwait Petroleum International (KPI), the international downstream subsidiary of state-owned Kuwait Petroleum Corporation (KPC), has signed an agreement to purchase 50 percent of Eco Fox, an Italian biofuel producer. The deal will help develop, produce and distribute sustainable biofuels that will reduce carbon emissions in the transportation sector, state-owned Kuna news […]

Leila Benali, Morocco's minister of energy transition and sustainable development at the 6th United Nations Environment Assembly. She says the country is aiming for 7GW of renewable energy by 2030

Morocco offers new incentives for green hydrogen investors

Morocco has launched new incentives to attract investors in green hydrogen projects. The Rabat government has allotted 1 million hectares (almost 3,900 square miles) of land for new projects as part of its “hydrogen offer,” the office of Morocco’s prime minister, Aziz Akhannouch, said in a statement. The first phase involves making 300,000 hectares of […]

The IEA predicted that world oil demand will grow by 1.3 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2024, but down from growth of 2.3 million bpd in 2023

IEA predicts oil supply will turn to deficit in 2024

Global crude markets supplies will shift from surplus into deficit in 2024, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has predicted, implying higher hydrocarbon prices. The Paris-based watchdog raised its forecast for this year’s oil demand on Thursday on an improved outlook for the US economy and increased bunker fuel use, as attacks by the Houthis on […]

Bahrain's Bapco signed the Cop28 oil and gas decarbonisation charter, aiming to achieve net-zero operations by 2050 and end routine flaring by 2030

US approves $500m loan for Bahrain oil project

The US export credit agency has approved a $500 million loan guarantee for Bahraini state-backed Bapco Energies. The Export-Import Bank of the United States (Exim) board of directors greenlit the project after voting last month to notify Congress about potentially supporting the expansion of an oil and gas field in the Gulf nation. JP Morgan […]

Crowd, Person, Electrical Device

Turkey to conduct new oil explorations in Black Sea

Turkey will undertake three hydrocarbon explorations in the Black Sea this year, the country’s energy and natural resources minister, Alparslan Bayraktar, has confirmed. “One of the goals in the vision of 2053 is to end Turkey’s energy dependency. This is such a great goal that it will affect the face of Turkey and the future […]

A pump jack in Yates Oilfield in Texas. West Texas Intermediate prices rose to more than $78 a barrel

Oil prices edge up following crude outlook reports

Oil prices rose early on Wednesday, supported by Opec’s encouraging outlook for crude demand and a report by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA) forecasting tighter world oil supplies. Brent prices traded up 1 percent, close to $83 per barrel, while West Texas Intermediate was up the same at just over $78 per barrel. Saudi […]

Adnoc BP NewMed deal

Adnoc and BP suspend bid for Israel’s NewMed Energy

Abu Dhabi state oil company Adnoc and BP have suspended a proposed $2 billion bid to buy a major stake in Israel’s NewMed Energy as a result of the ongoing conflict in Gaza. The Tel Aviv Stock Exchange-listed natural gas operator, part of the Israeli conglomerate Delek Group, said on Wednesday that the deal was […]

Uzbekistan's retail sector is moving away from traditional markets and towards retail chains

Cenomi’s Uzbekistan debut a sign of Saudi trade ambitions

Saudi retail major Cenomi has announced its debut in Uzbekistan in tandem with the kingdom’s efforts to expand bilateral trade with the Central Asian nation. Uzbekistan is Cenomi’s 11th-largest international market, and it has signed a deal to open eight international brands – including a flagship Zara store – at the newly developed Tashkent City […]

A solar installation in Morocco. The $20bn Xlinks Morocco-UK renewables project should be operational by 2030

XLinks reaffirms UK is priority for Morocco power project

British renewable power company Xlinks is “100 percent committed to the UK” despite reports suggesting it was refocusing its attention on Germany. Xlinks is overseeing the $22 billion Morocco-UK renewables project, which involves building solar panel and wind farms in the desert of the North African country. Via the installation of high-voltage direct current (HVDC) […]

An LNG ship loads gas on to a cruise liner. The Ruwais plant is set to have a total capacity of 9.6 million mtpa

Adnoc starts work on ‘green’ LNG plant at Ruwais

Early engineering, procurement and construction work has started on Adnoc’s low-carbon liquefied natural gas (LNG) project at Al Ruwais Industrial City in Abu Dhabi. Abu Dhabi’s state oil company has awarded the contract to a joint venture between France’s Technip Energies, Japan’s JGC Corporation and Abu Dhabi’s National Petroleum Construction Company. The final investment decision […]

Executives at the foundation-stone ceremony for United Solar Polysilicon's factory in Sohar

Oman closer to solar goal with new Sohar factory

United Solar Polysilicon has started work on a $1.3 billion polysilicon factory in Oman’s Sohar Port and Freezone, believed to be the first of its kind in the Middle East. Polysilicon, a high-purity form of silicon, is a key raw material in the production of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels. Operations at the 160,000-square-metre Sohar factory […]

Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser said no LNG would be produced from Saudi Arabia's natural gas output

Aramco to focus all LNG efforts on overseas projects

Saudi Aramco intends to expand its liquefied natural gas (LNG) business internationally, as it plans to use all its natural gas production domestically. CEO Amin Nasser told investors on Monday that the energy major has no intention of building LNG capacity in the kingdom and is discussing opportunities with different entities in the US, Australia […]

Masdar's hurricane-resistant solar power plant on the island of Barbuda

Masdar opens solar energy plant in the Caribbean

A hurricane-resistant solar power project developed by Abu Dhabi’s clean energy company Masdar for Antigua and Barbuda is now operational. Situated on Barbuda, the plant is designed to survive 265 km-per-hour winds and provide a safe and sustainable supply of electrical power for the island. The Green Barbuda project is part of the $50 million […]

Aramco says its resilience and agility contributed to healthy cash flows and profitability

Aramco profit drops 24% to $121bn on lower crude prices

Saudi Aramco said net profit fell 24 percent year on year to SAR455 billion ($121.3 billion) in 2023. The profit drop was due to lower crude oil prices and volume sales, as well as reduced refining and chemicals margins, despite decreased production royalties and lower income taxes. Free cash flow reached $101 billion last year, […]

Adnoc Ruwais LNG

Ruwais LNG will push UAE up the energy table

Abu Dhabi is planning to increase its presence in the liquefied natural gas market, helping it to diversify away from oil. Ruwais LNG, a new terminal located in Al Ruwais Industrial City, will increase the emirate’s capacity from 5.7 million tonnes per year (mpta) to 15 mpta.  The project features two 4.8 mtpa LNG trains, […]

Masdar to build solar plants for UAE defence ministry

Abu Dhabi’s clean energy giant Masdar and the UAE defence ministry have agreed to develop multi-solar plants across Abu Dhabi.  Emerge, a joint venture between Masdar and France’s EDF Group, will provide a full turnkey solution for the projects for 25 years, including finance, design, procurement, construction, operations, and maintenance. No other project details were […]

Solar PV power station Renewable energy capacity

Abu Dhabi moves ahead on new renewable project 

UAE state-owned Emirates Water and Electricity Company (EWEC) is seeking expressions of interest for the development of a greenfield 400-megawatt battery energy storage system (BESS) project. The BESS technology aims to diversify EWEC’s energy portfolio, as its total solar photovoltaic power generation capacity will reach 7.5 gigawatts by 2030, the UAE state-run Wam news agency […]