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Qatar Petroleum and GdF sign MoU
Qatar Petroleum and Gaz de France (GdF) have signed an agreement to deepen their ties in the energy sector, reported Gulf News. Under the agreement, GDF will invest Qatar, and the two parties will conduct joint operations in Europe, Asia, and the Gulf, said GDF CEO Jean-Francois Cirelli. GDF has been prequalified by the Qatari authorities to participate in the bidding process for the exploration of new wells in Qatar.
Petrogas signs oil search deal in Egypt
Oman's Petrogas said it acquired a 30 per cent stake in an onshore block in Egypt from Australia-listed Oil Search, as part of an expansion into North Africa, reported Reuters. A Petrogas statement said it signed an agreement last week to acquire the stake in Area A with the block's owner, Oil Search, in a deal comprising two exploration concessions and four development leases located along the western side of the Gulf of Suez.
GCC to invest $50bn in energy sector
Bill Walker, director of Pennwell Corporation, which organises energy exhibitions, said Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will need an estimated 100,000 megawatts (MW) of additional energy in the next 10 years to meet the rising demand, reported Gulf News. Walker added that energy corporations and institutions in the UAE and GCC countries will participate in the 12th Middle East Energy Conference (Power-Gen 2008), to be hosted by Bahrain from February 4-6.
UAE and France to sign nuclear power deal
France will sign a framework agreement on nuclear power with the UAE during a visit by French President Nicolas Sarkozy, reported Reuters. Sources close to the situation had earlier said that a cooperation agreement was expected to be signed when Sarkozy goes to Abu Dhabi on Tuesday, after a visit to Saudi Arabia on Sunday and Qatar on Monday.
Egypt picks site for its first nuclear reactor
Egypt's first nuclear reactor will be built at Dabba on the Mediterranean coast west of the main port of Alexandria, Electricity and Power Minister Hassan Younis, reported AFP. He added that his ministry had worked out a draft bill to be put to parliament in March that sets a legal framework for cooperation with the UN's nuclear watchdog the International Atomic Energy Agency until 2030.
UAE firms ink $2bn Libya deal
Two UAE firms have signed a $2bn deal with Libya's National Oil Corporation to upgrade a Libyan oil refinery, reported the Peninsula. The Star Consortium of TransAsia Gas International and Star Petro Energy signed the 50-50 joint venture agreement with NOC in Tripoli covering a two-stage improvement of the 220,000-barrel per day Ras Lanuf export refinery. The upgrades are expected to take five years to complete.
Italy's Edison wins concession in Iran
Edison SpA, Italy's second biggest power generator, has won a concession to explore for oil and gas in Iran, reported Bloomberg citing the Iranian oil ministry press agency Shana. National Iranian Oil Co. and Edison will sign a contract today, Wednesday, to explore in the Dayyer area.
Iraq refinery resumes production
Iraq has resumed resumed production at the Baiji refinery after an explosion on Tuesday killed one engineer and injured several other people, reported Bloomberg. Iraqi Oil Ministry spokesman Asim Jihad said the refinery was operating at 200,000 barrels a day after firefighters extinguished the blaze. The fire was caused by a 'technical fault' at the plant's liquid petroleum gas unit, which was undergoing maintenance.
Oil markets remain 'well supplied'
UAE Oil Minister Mohamed al-Hamli said he believes crude oil prices rose to $100 a barrel because of market speculation and geo-political factors and not due to a shortage of supply, reported Bloomberg. He said OPEC is ready to provide more oil to the market if it's needed. Prices have fallen 4.5% from $100.09 a barrel reached on Jan. 3 after a report showed U.S. unemployment jumped to a two-year high last month.
Yemen discusses LNG project progress
Prime Minister Ali Mujawar held talks with Regional Director for the Middle East of the French TOTAL Company on the implementation progress of the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) project in Yemen, which is expected to be finalized this year, reported Saba. The talks also focused on the company's activities in exploration and drilling oil in addition to the joint relations between Yemen and the company in fields of oil and gas.
Aramco will increase its capacity
Saudi Arabia's largest oil company, Saudi Aramco, has said it plans to expand the capacity of its Ras Tanura refinery to 950,000 barrels per day by 2012 from 550,000 bpd to serve the Kingdom's demand for oil products in both the Eastern and Central provinces, reported Gulf News. In addition, the company is constructing two state-of-the-art 400,000-barrel-per-day deep-conversion refineries in Yanbu and Jubail, with partners ConocoPhillips and Total, as demand for energy surges in the world's second-largest oil producing country.
UAE firms sign $2bn deal with NOC
Two UAE firms signed a deal worth around $2bn with Libya's National Oil Corporation (NOC) to give the Libyan oil refinery a facelift, reported Reuters. The Star Consortium of TransAsia Gas International and Star Petro Energy signed the 50-50 joint venture agreement with NOC covering a two-stage improvement of the 220,000-barrel per day Ras Lanuf export refinery, they said. They forecast the upgrades would take five years to complete.
Dana's Egypt output exceeds target
Abu Dhabi-listed Dana Gas said petroleum output from its Egyptian operations at the end of last month exceeded its expectations on early production from two discoveries, reported Gulf Daily News. The company pumped the equivalent of 32,000 barrels of oil per day, it said yesterday, without saying what its expectation had been. The first oil from Dana's Al Baraka well in southern Egypt was delivered last month. While the Dabayaa-2 well in the Nile Delta added eight million cubic feet per day of natural gas production and 240 barrels per day of condensate, Dana said. Revenue rose to 276m dirhams in the three months to September 30, compared with 241m dirhams in the three months to June 30.
IPG wins $1.2bn contract
Kuwait's International Petroleum Group has received a $1.2bn two-year oil supply contract from Zambia, reported Reuters. IPG will supply 1,440,000 metric tonnes of crude oil over a period of two years, with the first batch of 90,000 tonnes scheduled to arrive on or before 9 February. The firm was selected ahead of four other international companies, including Russia's Lukoil.
Qatar plans IPO in new company
Qatar's deputy prime minister has said the country's oil ministry plans to sell shares next month in a new oil services company made up of three of its units, reported the Peninsula. Abdullah bin Hamad al-Attiyah said the initial public offering, which will group Gulf Helicopters, Al Koot Insurance and Reinsurance Co. and Gulf Drilling International, will only be open to Qatari nationals.
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