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Oil & Gas

Oil and gas news from the Middle East and beyond. All the important stories, exclusive interviews, plus authoritative opinion and analysis

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Oil & Gas news

While lower oil prices may squeeze some Mena producers, Gulf nations are expected to maintain long-term investment plans

Gulf oil investment ‘can weather price slump’

International oil prices may have fallen to their lowest in four years but that is unlikely to disrupt the exploration and production investment plans of Gulf national oil producers, energy analysts have said. But Middle East and North Africa producers outside the GCC may not be so lucky. Crude oil fell below $60 a barrel […]

Sultan Al Jaber, the group CEO of Adnoc

Adnoc to raise $1.5bn with Islamic bonds

Abu Dhabi state oil giant Adnoc will raise $1.5 billion from a debut sale of Islamic bonds, or sukuk, according to a document seen by Reuters on Monday. Abu Dhabi National Oil Company, acting through its primary debt capital markets entity Adnoc Murban, is selling the sukuk at 60 basis points over US Treasuries, the […]

An LNG pipeline will link Nador in Morocco to the to the Maghreb Europe Gas Pipeline

Morocco invites bids to build its first LNG plant

Morocco has invited companies to bid to build the country’s first liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal as it seeks to diversify its sources of fuel, Morocco World News reported. A gas pipeline will also be built to link the terminal at Nador West Med Port on Morocco’s Mediterranean coast to the Maghreb Europe Gas Pipeline, […]

Opec+ has already agreed to increase oil output by 411,000 barrels per day in May

Opec+ to consider further oil output increase for June

Several Opec+ members are to suggest the group accelerates oil output hikes in June for a second consecutive month, as a dispute worsens between members over compliance with production quotas. Oil prices hit a four-year low in April, dragged down by a US-China trade war and an unexpected decision by Opec+ to increase output by 411,000 barrels per day […]

Morocco’s energy minister Leila Benali said the pipeline project has "made considerable progress" and is in the execution stage

Morocco and Nigeria agree terms for $25bn gas pipeline

Morocco and Nigeria have agreed to create a joint venture to manage a long-planned $25 billion pipeline which will ship gas to Europe, a Moroccan minister has said. Leila Benali, minister of energy transition and sustainable development, told Morocco’s parliament that a floating gas storage terminal would also be installed at Nador on the Mediterranean […]

alalah Port, Oman. Oman's hydrocarbon exports jumped by $6.5 billion in 2024, primarily due to the explosive growth in refined product sales from the Duqm Refinery

Duqm refinery fuels $6.5bn growth in Oman’s oil exports

Oman’s hydrocarbon exports swelled by nearly $6.5 billion last year due to a surge in sales of refined products following the commissioning of the sultanate’s largest oil refinery. The Gulf country’s hydrocarbon exports surged from OR13.8 billion ($35.8 billion) in 2023 by nearly 18 percent to OR16.3 billion ($42.4 billion) in 2024. Crude exports edged […]

A Russian oil rig in the Caspian Sea. India's increasing reliance on cheaper Russian oil erodes the dominance of traditional Middle Eastern suppliers like Saudi Arabia and Iraq

Gulf share of India oil market slides on Russia gains

India’s pivot toward discounted Russian crude oil has accelerated, eroding the dominance of traditional Middle Eastern suppliers in one of the world’s fastest-growing oil markets. In the Indian fiscal year ending March 31, Russia retained its position as India’s top oil supplier for a third year in row, Reuters reported, based on ship tracking data […]

Aramco's oil field in the Empty Quarter, Shaybah. Saudi oil exports rose in February

Saudi crude oil exports rise to 6.5m barrels per day

Saudi Arabia’s crude oil exports in February rose to 6.55 million barrels per day (bpd) from 6.07 million bpd in January, official data showed on Tuesday. The world’s largest oil exporter’s crude output for February was at 8.95 million bpd, up from 8.92 million bpd in January. Saudi refineries’ crude throughput was at 2.62 million bpd […]

Oil Terminal Pipes Stop Valve Guest Workers Men In Hard Hats Storage Tank

Iraq to cut oil spending after fall in crude prices

Iraq is seeking to cut operational spending on oil projects while trying to maintain investment in increasing crude production, following a steep fall in prices, the official news agency reported on Tuesday. Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani sent a letter to the oil ministry and state-owned oil companies asking them to reduce spending on projects […]

An LNG carrier. A tariff war with the US has pushed Chinese buyers to resell US-sourced cargoes and secure new supply deals

Adnoc strikes another LNG deal with Chinese energy major

China National Offshore Oil Corporation (Cnooc) has agreed a term deal to buy liquefied natural gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc), according to two Chinese trading sources and a state media report. It is the third supply contract Adnoc has signed with Chinese buyers recently, following the deals over the weekend with ENN […]

Adnoc CEO Sultan Al Jaber attended the opening of the company's new Beijing office on Friday

Chinese energy companies sign LNG deals with Adnoc

China’s privately controlled ENN Natural Gas and state-run Zhenhua Oil have each signed deals to buy liquefied natural gas from Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc). ENN Natural Gas said on its official WeChat account on Saturday that the deal covers annual supplies of about 1 million metric tonnes for 15 years, marking Adnoc’s largest LNG […]

Shell has about 10 percent of South Africa’s fuel retail market.

Adnoc on shortlist to buy Shell South Africa fuel stations

Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (Adnoc) has been shortlisted to acquire Shell’s fuel stations and other downstream assets in South Africa for as much as $1 billion. Shell’s portfolio in South Africa includes about 600 fuel stations and local trading operations, Bloomberg reported, without identifying its sources. Shell has appointed Rothschild to run the sale […]

Amman, Jordan. Most of the increased production from the Risha gas field will be for domestic use

Jordan to increase gas production from Risha field

Jordan is planning to build a 320km pipeline to distribute gas for the domestic market from the Risha field in the northwest of the country, according to an official. The project also includes the construction of a gas treatment plant near Risha, where the country’s largest reserves are located. Officials have said Risha holds nearly […]

An oil tanker docks at Qingdao Port in China's Shandong province, where most of the crude imported from Iran is delivered

Seaborne oil exports from Iran to China hit record levels

Chinese imports of oil by sea rose in March to their highest in 17 months, with imports from Iran hitting a record, according to tanker tracking consultancy Vortexa. Seaborne crude arrivals – which account for about 85 percent of total Chinese oil imports – rose to 10.6 million barrels per day in March, up from […]

Iraq's prime minister Mohammed Shia Al Sudani Sudani was hosted in London Sir Keir Starmer in January

Old adversaries cut deals in the new Iraq

Strange things are happening in Iraq. Opec’s second-largest oil producer has a capacity of almost 5 million barrels per day and wants to increase that to 6 million bpd over the next three years. In May last year, our columnist Robin Mills noted that in an auction of oil and gas blocks, Chinese companies won 10 bids and a local […]

Flames emerge from flare stacks at Nahr Bin Umar oil field, north of Basra, Iraq. The seven Opec members making the cuts are Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, the UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan and Oman

Saudi Arabia and UAE to cut oil output in Opec’s latest plan

Opec has received updated plans for seven countries including Saudi Arabia and the UAE to make further oil output cuts to compensate for pumping above agreed quotas, the group said on Wednesday. Opec+, which includes Opec plus Russia and other allies, has implemented a series of output cuts since late 2022. Its compensation plan is […]

A drone view shows the Aquatica carrying Russian oil on March 25

Turkey’s largest refiner buys Russian oil after price drop

Turkey’s largest oil refiner Tupras has returned to buying Russian Urals crude cargoes, after it stopped doing so earlier this year due to stronger US sanctions on Moscow, according to three trading sources and shipping data. Tupras did not immediately reply to a Reuters request for comment. The three sources said Tupras resumed its purchases […]

A tanker in the Straits of Hormuz. Kuwait state oil companies are targetting 4 million bpd

Kuwait starts merging state oil companies to cut costs

Opec producer Kuwait has started to merge its state oil companies to reduce their number, improve efficiency and trim costs, according to the official news agency, Kuna. The Kuwait National Petroleum Company (KNPC), the Gulf emirate’s downstream investment arm, has started to take over the Kuwait Integrated Petroleum Industries Company (KIPIC), which manages the Al-Zour […]

Fatih Birol, Executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), attends the plenary session of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Action Summit at the Grand Palais in Paris, France, February 11, 2025. REUTERS/Benoit Tessier

IEA slashes oil demand outlook as trade tensions bite

The International Energy Agency (IEA) slashed its 2025 oil demand growth forecast on Tuesday, citing rising trade tensions and a weakening global economy. The forecast widens the gap with Opec’s more upbeat outlook. The Paris-based watchdog now expects demand to grow by just 730,000 barrels per day in 2025, down from 1 million bpd previously […]