2006
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Total, Qatargas II Train 5 deal
Qatar Liquefied Gas Company II has revealed Total has bought a 16.7% stake of its Train 5 development. This follows the signing of sales and purchase agreements by Total to buy liquefied natural gas from Qatargas II. Total will purchase up to 5.2m tonnes of LNG per year for a period of up to 25 years; Total intends to sell the LNG to France, the UK and the Gulf of Mexico.
Opec cut to lift oil prices
Oil prices could be set to rise again due to another imminent output cut by Opec and the failure of non-Opec producers to compensate for the shortfall according to a report by Barclays Capital and cited by Bloomberg. The UK bank has predicted that US benchmark West Texas Intermediate will average $67.5 per barrel in Q1 next year and rise to $80.2 by Q3.
Marubeni, QP, QEWC in tie-up
Japan's Marubeni Corporation, Qatar Petroleum and the Qatar Electricity and Water Company have officially signed an agreement to establish the Mesaieed Power Company in order to develop the Mesaieed A-Power Project in Mesaieed Industrial City, reported The Peninsula. The project's total capacity will be 2,000MW with the first phase due for completion during 2008 with an initial capacity of 1,000 MW. The deal was first reported in October.
Kuwaiti official, oil boom over
Kuwait's Finance Minister Bader Meshari Al Humaidhi has said he believes the oil price boom is coming to an end, reported Gulf News. Al Humaidhi added that, despite the region's liquidity, the GCC faces some major issues, including the need to diversify economies away from oil as well as finding employment opportunities for locals. While countries like the UAE have focused on diversification, 94% of Kuwait's budget comes from oil.
IEA, no to oil cut
Opec should not make further cuts to oil production when it meets on December 14 but should wait until it has analysed winter demand data at the end of January, according to Claude Mandil, the Executive Director of the International Energy Agency and cited by Reuters. Mandil said any cut this month would be 'unfortunate'. But many Opec members feel another cut is necessary as the market remains oversupplied.
Siemens sets up regional centre
Siemens, which makes electrical engineering products, has opened a specialist regional business centre in Abu Dhabi to consolidate its presence in the oil and gas industry in the GCC region, the company said. Siemens is anticipating a huge growth in demand for its equipment and services, as global oil and gas production climbs.
Adnoc to shortlist gas plant bids
Abu Dhabi National Oil Company will shortlist pre-qualified proposals by March 2007 for the development of a sour gas treatment plant, Gulf News reported. Shell, BP, ExxonMobil and Bechtel Corporation are among the 12 firms that have put in letters of intent for the project.
Oil pushes at $63
Oil prices nudged towards near $63 a barrel Tuesday as the market contemplated a further Opec cut against high US inventory levels and mild northern hemisphere weather, Reuters reported. Most Opec ministers favour further output cuts, arguing the market is over supplied.
China, Opec suppy talks
China wants to tie-up crude supplies with Opec producers to help fuel its industrial growth. A senior Chinese official told delegates at the Arab Strategy Forum that it will soon start talks with Opec members to ensure steady oil supplies, Gulf News reported. China imported 136m tonnes of oil last year, in addition to 131m tonnes produced locally.
Dollar slump worries OPEC
OPEC will discuss the threat of a falling US dollar on its oil revenues, when the cartel meets next week, Reuters reported. Oil is priced in dollars, and the greenback has slumped to a 20-month low against the euro. Members will decide whether to make further cuts to crude supplies above the 1.2m bpd agreed to in October.
Shazand refinery gets $2bn
Iran's Economy Council has approved the use of $2bn worth of foreign finance in the project to develop Arak's Shazand Refinery, reported the Iran Daily. Iranian contractors will undertake 57.7% of the work, with foreign firms permitted to carry out 33.3%.
McDermott, Maersk Qatar deal
J. Ray McDermott has won a contract from Maersk Oil Qatar to engineer, procure, construct and install two wellhead decks for the Block 5 Field Development Plan 2005 project. The two decks have a combined weight in excess of 4,800 metric tonnes.
Power outage hits rainy RAK
A ten hour power outage hit parts of northern Ras Al Khaimah yesterday as the emirate bore the brunt of the wet weather which swept across the country, reported Gulf News. Local emergency services including the police, Air Wing and the RAK Civil Defence Department handled hundreds of distress calls.
Oman eyes Al Duqm complex
Oman's government is contemplating building a refinery-cum-petrochemical complex at Al Duqm, where a port and ship repair facility are also planned, reported the Oman Daily Observer. The refinery would have a capacity of 200,000 to 300,000 barrels per day with the petrochemical complex using the by-products of the refinery as feedstock. The government will make a final decision next year.
Geopolitical issues to hit prices
Oil experts believe that geopolitical concerns are once again taking centre stage with regards to pricing and increases could soon follow, reported Reuters. The last few months have been overshadowed by supply and stockpile issues but continued tensions between the West and Iran, violence in Nigeria and the worsening situation in Iraq could soon stoke prices, which have been in the $55-62 range for two months.
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