China’s CNOOC Enters Key Abu Dhabi Concessions

...ES.   CHINA’S GROWING PRESENCE IN UAE UPSTREAM CHINESE EXPANSION               China is a key buyer of Emirati crude, ranking as the UAE’s fifth largest client last year. But Chinese firms were absent from the country’s upstream until CNPC dipped its toe into the waters in 2014 with the es...

Neutral Zone’s Wafra: Exports Restart

...spended since 2014 (MEES, 29 May 2015). Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have long had disagreements over PNZ-management, with Kuwait especially disgruntled that Chevron represents Saudi Arabia at Wafra. Despite their disagreements, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait reached an agreement to restart PNZ output in December 20...

Audit For Libya’s Central Banks

...the Libyan financial system and creating the conditions for the eventual unification of the Central Bank of Libya (CBL),” says UNSMIL. Libya has effectively had two central banks since 2014 when a political crisis split the country into two rival eastern and western administrations. In the me...

Iran’s Petropars Wins $1.3bn South Azadegan Contract

...rst phase of North Azadegan, but was kicked off of the South Azadegan development for slow progress in 2014 (MEES, 9 May 2014). Since then, Pedec has been responsible for its development. After the previous round of sanctions was eased in 2016 and Iran set about courting IOCs, a number of high pr...

Kuwait’s Ailing Emir

...bah. But both have been tarnished by their rivalry and appear out of the running (MEES, 4 July 2014). More recently, Sheikh Jaber al-Mubarak’s resignation as Prime Minister last year ended any faint prospect of his potential elevation – he is from a more minor branch of the family. The new PM Sh...

Israel’s Delek Drilling Eyes $2.5bn Leviathan RBL Facility

...th which to meet fixed debt repayments. Exactly this pattern bankrupted Mena-focused Irish independents Circle Oil and Petroceltic in the wake of the halving of crude prices from $100/B-plus in the second half of 2014 (MEES, 19 June 2015). And it has near-bankrupted the Delek Group, which has be...

Opec Oil Revenues Set For 17-Year Low In 2020

...8% annual increase, but also the highest figure since 2014. This was thanks to a 19% increase to 207,000 b/d in crude export volumes as Gabon paid little, if any, heed to its Opec commitments. Gabon is also one of the very few Opec members to have shown little sign of improving compliance during the cu...

Korea Crude Imports Fall 9% In 1h 2020 Despite Saudi June Boost

...*Global number five crude importer South Korea has been hit less hard by Covid-19 than several key western economies. But its crude imports still fell 9% to 2.72mn b/d for 1H20. As yet there is no sign of a rebound, June imports at 2.47mn b/d were the lowest monthly figure since 2014, whilst Q2...

Iraq: Is China’s UEG Finally Ready To Realize Block 9’s Potential?

...ERGY GROUP: IRAQ ASSETS DEVELOPMENT STRATEGY    When first discovered in 2014 Faihaa – itself an extension of Iran’s 112,000 b/d Yadavaran field (see map) – was touted as the “largest discovery in Iraq in the last ten years” (MEES, 12 September 2014), although it has since been eclipsed by Lu...

Satorp Gets Cracking With Amiral Petchems Integration

...el, LPG, aromatics, propylene and petroleum coke. It was started up in two phases and reached initial full crude distillation capacity of 400,000 b/d in 2014 (MEES, 24 October 2014). Satorp has since been debottlenecked, first to 440,000 b/d in 2018 and again to 460,000 b/d throughput capacity ea...

Saudi-Kuwait Neutral Zone Back Online

...Saudi Arabia and Kuwait have brought production at their Partitioned Neutral Zone (PNZ) back online after a one-month hiatus (MEES, 22 May). There is now production from both onshore and offshore fields for the first time since October 2014 (MEES, 24 October 2014). After production wa...

US Output Bottoms Out As Exports Target China

...e result of the kingdom’s decision to hike output to record levels in April, saw arrivals in the US average 1.5mn b/d for the five weeks to 19 June – substantially higher than any monthly figure since 2014 – before dipping to 826,000 b/d for the week ending 26 June (see chart). ARMADA RECEDES: US...

Italy Crude Imports: Record Saudi Volumes, Overall Collapse

...2,000 b/d the highest monthly figure since 2014. Given the collapse in overall volumes, this was also enough to see Saudi surge past the top three 2019 suppliers Iraq, Russia and Azerbaijan (MEES, 6 March) to take the top supplier spot for the first time in at least six years. Iraq volumes slumped to 10...

Egypt’s Economy & Energy Sector Reel From Covid-19

...w for April (see chart, p7).  With the power sector accounting for 55% of Egypt’s gas consumption, and industrial activity also down, it is no surprise that overall gas use is also at the lowest level since 2016 (see chart 3). From a chronic gas shortage for 2014-17, Egypt rapidly switched to...

Saudi Arabia Oil & Gas Rig Count*: Gas Drilling Slashed In June, Rigs Down 10 To 41, Lowest Since October 2014. Oil Rigs See Minimal Rebound, Up One To 54

Kuwait-Saudi Talks Spark Renewed Speculation Over Neutral Zone Restart

...tween the neighboring states, but was shut in over the course of 2014 and 2015 due to disputes over its management. Kuwait’s state news agency Kuna reported that the 24 July talks came amid a series of consultations and coordination over how to restart PNZ production. These discussions have resolved al...

Qatar Boosts Eni, Total Links With Kenya Entry

...isting work in Oman. QP works less with Total internationally, it has a 15% stake in Total Congo since 2014, while the pair made a discovery offshore South Africa in February (MEES, 8 February). More importantly, Total has a 30% stake in Qatar’s 300,000 b/d Al Shaheen field. CEO Saad al-Kaabi is ad...

Oman Cuts Deficit, But Oil Dependence Remains

...til the crash in oil prices in 2014, Oman ran near balanced budgets and only had around $4bn in gross debt, or 5% of GDP.  But after four hard years of hard borrowing to cover costs and avoid civil unrest (MEES, 23 November 2018), the IMF projects that Oman will exit the year with $49bn in debt (61% of...

Mauritania: Tullow Quitting

...bsequent finds (MEES, 5 July). Prior to Tortue, Mauritania’s key (albeit more modest) gas find was the 1.5tcf Banda field. However then-operator Tullow shelved development plans after oil prices crashed in late 2014 (MEES, 13 February 2015). The firm hasn’t looked forward in Mauritania since....

Algeria: Fresh Output

...19 averaged 1.025mn b/d, and while this is up 5,000 b/d year-on-year, it still represents a 15% fall over the past five years. Output averaged 1.209mn b/d in 2014, but has declined each year since amid investment declines. The picture on the gas front is also worrying. In the first four months of 20...