2005
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Aramco to increase oil wells
Saudi Aramco has announced a plan to double the number of oil drilling rigs in the Kingdom next year, and boost the number of oil wells by 61%, reported Gulf News, citing a recent meeting of the oil giant's executive committee. More than 150 projects are nearing completion, including a 500,000 bpd processing facility at Khursaniya and the 1.2m bpd Al Khurais oil project.
AD repairs hit Jan oil output
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company is to cut Murban crude exports by 10% from contracted volumes in January due to repairs at a natural gas facility, reported Reuters citing refiners in Japan and South Korea. This will take 150,000 bpd of light-sour grade crude off the market adding to pressure on prices.
Topaz offloads Mezon
Japan's Sumitomo Corporation has acquired an 80% stake worth $10m in Dubai-based Mezon Stainless Steel, a subsidiary of leading oil and gas services company Topaz Energy and Marine. Topaz will use the sale proceeds to push a major vessel construction programme and develop its market presence in the offshore oil and gas sector.
Energy consumption to grow 60%
Global energy consumption will grow 60% over the next 25 years, according to a forecast by ExxonMobil cited by AP. Oil consumption is set to grow 1.4%, and gas 1.8% annually, and Opec will have to produce more than 47m bpd of oil by 2030 to satisfy growing demand, it was reported.
Aramco plans on track
Saudi Aramco says it is expecting a 61% increase in the number of development wells during 2006, to support current production and future increase in demand. The company also has four mega-projects in the pipeline while looking to pursue new opportunities in petrochemicals and other derivative products.
Alstom $510m Sohar deal
Alstom has won a $510.6m contract from Sohar Aluminium for the turnkey construction of a 1000 MW gas-fired combined cycle power plant in Oman, according to Reuters. The project is expected to start in mid-December 2005 and is due for completion in June 2008. The plant will supply electricity to power a new aluminium smelter.
Strong oil demand expected
World oil demand will grow at an average 1.8m to 2m bpd through 2010 despite record high oil prices, according to the monthly International Energy Agency report. Big oil consumers, such as China, are in a phase of rapid energy-intensive industrialisation, the report said.
Kuwait sets oil debate
Kuwait's parliament will hold a special session on January 23 to discuss an $8.5bn plan to boost the country's oil production capacity by upgrading four major northern oilfields. The plan, known as Project Kuwait and which contemplate the help of international oil companies, has been consistently opposed by some MPs since first announced in the early 1990s.
Shell, Mistubishi CO2 recovery
Shell and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries have agreed to cooperate in the CO2 capture and recovery business in the Middle East. They will link CO2 capture to enhanced oil recovery projects, based on using CO2 in miscible flood techniques to improve the flow and recovery of oil from developed reservoirs.
Iran to examine oil deals
Iran's new oil minister says foreign oil firms are still welcome in the country, but the world's fourth largest oil producer is planning to re-examine the buy-back deals it signs with them, reported Reuters. Some contractual disputes have arisen in the past after the state has repurchased oilfields under the agreements.
Al Nasser, AD transformer plant
Al Nasser Industries Enterprises has signed an agreement with UK-based Brush Transformers to establish a plant for the manufacture of power transformers in the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi, reported Gulf News. The plant will turn out the largest transformers produced in the Gulf and reduce the reliance on imports of mid-sized units from Europe and Japan.
Opec maintains crude levels
Opec has agreed to keep crude oil supplies at their current level of close to 30m bpd for the time being, and will make a decision about when to make cuts in a few weeks. US crude rose 91 cents to $60.30 a barrel, recovering from a 2.1% dip on Friday, while London Brent was up $1.04 to $58.00 a barrel.
Kuwait mulls US refinery venture
Louisiana is one of three US states interested in forming a joint venture oil refinery with Kuwait, Kuwait's oil minister Sheikh Ahmad Fahd Al Sabah told Bloomberg. Kuwait is seeking a mid-sized US. partner like Marathon Oil for a refinery in the US with 400,000 bpd of output, he said, with Texas and New Mexico also interested.
UAE, $3bn Fujairah refinery plan
UAE Minister of Energy Mohammed bin Dha'en Al Hamili told Bloomberg that a study for a $3bn refinery in Fujairah would be completed next May. He said the refinery would produce 300,000 bpd of fuel products and would be mainly for export and the local market if it needs it.
Opec set to keep output stable
Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali Al Naimi yesterday said that there was probably no need to do anything to the ceiling or the level of production of oil. His remarks to reporters came ahead of the 138th Opec conference being held in Kuwait.
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