2002
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Jordan stockpiles
Jordan has purchased an oil tanker in order to stockpile fuel supplies, in case of war against Iraq, its sole energy supplier. The Jordanian oil minister told Reuters that the Kingdom now has enough crude oil to meet two months' supply, andother energy products stockpiled to last longer.
Chinese to bid for Russian oil firm
The China National Petroleum Corporation has made a surprise move to bid for Slavnest, the Russian state oil company at an auction on December 18, reported Reuters. This could drive up the price beyond the expected USD1.7bn. The move came just hours after Russian president Vladimir Putin returned from Beijing.
Moroccan refiner reoffers Gulf crude
Moroccan refiner Samir is offering to resell Saudi and Iranian crude oil after a fire that shutdown its Mohammedia refinery. The plant normally imports crude oil from these countries. Officials said it will return to half capacity by December 8 but will take almost a year to return to full capacity of 125,000 bpd.
ENOC, Philippines LPG stake
Emirates National Oil Company has purchased a 20 per cent equity stake in Petronas Energy Philippines, a well-established distributor of liquid petroleum gas in the Southern Philippines. This is ENOC's first venture with Petronas, the Malaysian state oil giant. PEP has a 10 per cent LPG market share.
KPC keeps LPG prices static
The Kuwait Petroleum Corporation has announced that its prices for liquefied petroleum gas will be unchanged after raising prices in October and November. A company statement said that propane and butane will stay at USD327 per tonne. Higher winter demand has pushed LPG prices upward.
Lukoil share sale to go ahead
The Russian federal property fund has confirmed that the sale of 50m shares in Lukoil, the country's largest oil company will go ahead with Morgan Stanley as lead manager. The sale of a 5.9 per cent sale in Lukoil was withdrawn in August due to poor market conditions. No date for the renewed sale was given.
Riyadh assumes USD17.50 oil price
The 2003 Saudi budget is based on a USD17.50 per barrel oil price, compared with this year's average of USD23.30, according to a report from Saudi American Bank chief economist Brad Bourland. Last week the kingdom announced a USD55.7bn budget for 2002 with a forecast deficit of USD10.4bn. For fiscal 2002 the deficit was USD5.6bn compared with a forecast of USD12bn thanks to better than expected oil revenues and good private sector growth with no inflation, said Mr Bourland.
Iran-US oil sales mooted
Former Iranian president Hashemi Rafsanjani told the official Islamic Republic news agency that Iran should resume oil sales to the United States. He said the Americans want to buy oil and we want to sell it. Trade between the two countries has been embargoed since the 1979 takeover of the US embassy in Tehran by Islamic militants.
AOC, Kuwait deal next month
Japan's Arabian Oil Company will ink a techical services agreement next month with the Kuwait government, reported Bloomberg. The company said it expects the supreme petroleum council to approve a new services contract mid-month. Arabian Oil loses its oil production rights in the Neutral Zone at the end of the year, but in October agreed to buy up to 170,000 bpd from Kuwait as a replacement.
Mid-East, oil reserves latest
Saudi Arabia sits on oil reserves estimated at 260bn barrels, or 26.7 per cent of global reserves, according to figures published by the organisers of the 11th Arab Oil and Gas Show. Iraq is next with 112bn barrels or 11.5 per cent, then the UAE with 98bn barrels or 10 per cent, and Kuwait with 96.5bn barrels or 9.8 per cent. There is then a big gap to the next largest producer, Qatar with 15.2bn barrels, but a lot of gas.
Opec chief calls for output curbs
Opec secretary general Alvaro Silva-Calderon has openly called for the reduction of oil output due to oversupply in the market, reported AFP. Opec sources said that the organisation was still unlikely to take any action before a summit in Vienna on December 12.
Iraq loads oil under new UN deal
The Iraqi government has yet to accept a United Nations' decision to extend its oil-for-food deal until December 4, reported Reuters. But this has not prevented the loading of two tankers in an apparent acceptance of this short extension of the current six-month agreement. The present oil-for-food programme expired on Monday.
Kuwaiti exports not hit by Burgan fire
The fire at Kuwait's giant Burgan oil on Sunday was quickly extinguished and has not affected oil exports, reported Reuters. Officials said the fire was caused by a leak in a pump line and ruled out any question of sabotage. Any lost production will be compensated for by production from other areas, they added.
USD400m Qatar plant, Exxon, Total
ExxonMobil and TotalFinaElf have signed an agreement with Qatar Petroleum to build a USD400m plant to process light oil into kerosene, diesel and other products, reported Bloomberg. The two foreign oil giants will take a 10 per cent stake each in the project which will be completed by 2006. Construction contracts will be awarded in 2004.
Takreer, NPCC sign unleaded project
The Abu Dhabi Oil Refining Company has signed an agreement with the National Petroleum Construction Company to implement the second phase of the unleaded petrol project at the Umm Al Nar refinery, according to Gulf News. The lump sum, turnkey project includes expansion of the tank farm, new ULG blending systems, and electrical work.
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