• Iran discovers giant shale oil reserves in several regions: NIOC

    Tehran, Iran -- The National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) has said that shale oil deposits have been discovered in 10 different locations across the country. The director of exploration at the NIOC, Mehdi Fakour, announced that the company's specially designed model will enable the extraction of oil from these resources....
  • Egypt’s exports to China increase by nearly 21 percent in 2022

    Cairo, Egypt -- Egyptian exports to China rose by 20.8 percent to $1.7 billion in the first 11 months of 2022, up from $1.4 billion in the same period in 2021, Egypt's Central Agency for Public Mobilization and Statistics (CAPMAS) said. The trade exchange between Egypt and China increased by...
  • Aramco reports bumper profits

    It posted $161bn profits last year on high oil prices.
  • UN buys ship to remove oil from decaying tanker off Yemen coast

    The 47-year-old ship has not been serviced since Yemen's devastating civil war broke out in 2015 and was left abandoned off the rebel-held port of Hodeida, a critical gateway for shipments into the country heavily dependent on emergency foreign aid. UN officials have voiced fears that the ship would crumble,...
  • Saudi Arabia’s GDP grows 8.7 percent in 2022, reaches $1 trillion for first time

    The growth rate is also the highest in the last decade, with crude oil and natural gas contributing 32.7%, government services 14.2%, and manufacturing other than oil refining 8.6%.
  • Energy sector vital to solving climate challenge: Dr Al Jaber

    Emphasizing that the oil and gas industry was vital in the fight against climate change, Dr. Sultan bin Ahmed Al Jaber, Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology, said that energy leaders have the knowledge, experience, expertise and the resources needed to address the dual challenge of driving sustainable progress while...
  • Norway earns record oil, gas revenue after Ukraine war prices rise

    Norway earned 1.5 trillion kroner ($140 billion) in revenues from oil and gas, according to estimates by Statistics Norway (SSB). It was "by far the highest ever recorded in the statistics" and almost three times the 498 billion kroner earned in 2021, according to SSB.
  • Wall Street Journal’s report UAE considering leaving OPEC not true: sources

    Dubai, UAE--A media report that the United Arab Emirates is considering leaving OPEC is "far from the truth," two sources with direct knowledge of the matter told media. Earlier on Friday, the Wall Street Journal reported that the UAE is having an internal debate about leaving the Organization of the...
  • ADNOC Drilling to buy hybrid power land rigs for $252m

    The purchase is part of the company’s “rigorous decarbonisation strategy,” the company noted.
  • ADNOC Gas announces final IPO pricing, to raise $2.5 billion

    The ADNOC Gas offering was set at 2.37 dirhams ($0.65) per share, towards the top of its range, implying a market capitalization of about $50 billion. Total demand topped $124 billion, making it more than 50 times oversubscribed, ADNOC said, calling it the biggest demand yet seen for an IPO...
  • Egypt raises fuel prices amid spiraling economic crisis

    The Egyptian pound has lost half of its value, propelling annual inflation in the import-dependent country to 26.5 percent in January, figures in February showed. Of the $34.2 billion in Cairo's foreign reserves -– a 20-percent drop from February 2022 –- some $28 billion are deposits from wealthy Gulf allies....
  • Aramco completes acquisition of Valvoline’s products business

    Dubai, UAE-- Saudi energy giant Aramco has completed the acquisition of US motor and oil maker Valvoline's global products business for $2.65 billion. Under this acquisition, which comes after the two companies signed the share purchase agreement announced on 1 Aug 2022, Aramco hastens its aim to enter the integrated,...
  • What’s keeping CIOs across Middle East up at night?

    Lack of relevant skills, constant innovation in a highly disruptive world while keeping in mind budget constraints and cybersecurity remain their key concerns, says an expert.
  • French court sets aside NGOs lawsuit against TotalEnergies

    PARIS, FRANCE - A French court on Tuesday dismissed a landmark case against TotalEnergies for a massive oil project in Uganda and Tanzania after several NGOs filed a suit to suspend the controversial project. The six NGOs argued the development of the East African Crude Oil Pipeline (EACOP) failed to adhere...
  • Iraq, OPEC’s second largest producer, imports oil products

    Dubai, UAE-- Iraq has imported oil derivatives - gasoline, kerosene and gas oil - worth more than $5 billion in 2022, the state-run Iraqi Oil Marketing Company (SOMO) said Tuesday. The company's data showed that Iraq's imports of kerosene (white oil) amounted to 167,433 metric tons valued at $159.27, according...
  • Saudi economy to grow 3% in 2023: Riyadh Capital

    Riyadh, Saudi Arabia--Saudi Arabia’s economic growth is expected to accelerate by 3 percent in 2023 backed by a robust non-oil sector.  According to a forecast by Riyad Capital, the output from this part of the economy will rise by 5 percent this year. The growth will be driven by a...
  • Commodities hurt by a crisis of confidence

    Inflationary pressures, meanwhile, have eased by less than expected. Continued strength in the numbers has forced the Fed to turn up the hawkish rhetoric, and the market has responded by raising the expected terminal Fed funds rate while at the same time sending bond yields and the dollar higher, he...
  • Iraq’s Tigris, Euphrates rivers plummet as water crisis looms

    NASIRIYAH, IRAQ - Iraq's Tigris and Euphrates rivers have witnessed a sharp decrease in their levels in the south of the country, officials said Sunday, pledging to take urgent measures to ease water shortages. In Nasiriyah, capital of the southern province of Dhi Qar, an AFP photographer saw the river bed...
  • Non-oil trade between UAE and Kuwait up 87 percent in 10 years

    Abu Dhabi, UAE--- Non-oil foreign trade between the UAE and Kuwait has grown 87 percent over the past ten years to reach AED43 billion ($11.70 billion) by the end of 2022, compared to AED23.3 billion in 2013, according to UAE's Federal Competitiveness and Statistics Centre (FCSC). The FCSC data showed...
  • Eni posts record profit in 2022

    Sales jumped 73 percent to 132.2 billion euros.
  • G7 mulls more sanctions on Russia ahead of invasion anniversary

    A senior US official said last week that the United States and its G7 allies planned to unveil "a big new package of sanctions" around the February 24 anniversary, including measures to crack down on the evasion of existing sanctions.
  • UAE-Azerbaijan non-oil trade up 270% in five years: Thani Al Zeyoudi

    Abu Dhabi, UAE-- The non-oil trade between the UAE and Azerbaijan has risen threefold during the past five years, said Thani bin Ahmed Al Zeyoudi, UAE's Minister of State for Foreign Trade. Al Zeyoudi told WAM that the non-oil trade between the two countries totaled more than AED10.2 billion over...
  • Non-oil trade between Saudi Arabia and UAE up 9 percent in 2022

    Abu Dhabi, UAE – The non-oil trade between the UAE and Saudi Arabia in 2022 increased by 9 percent, reaching AED136.09 billion ($37.05 billion), compared to AED124.6 billion at the end of 2021, the Federal Center for Competitiveness and Statistics said. Over the period of 2013-2022, non-oil trade between the...
  • Dubai airport arrivals double in 2022 as more Russians pour in

    The UAE has maintained a neutral stance towards Russia's war in Ukraine, which is nearing its one-year anniversary. The Gulf nation has emerged as a top destination for rich Russian emigres fleeing the impact of Western sanctions.
  • Saudi non-oil exports down by 24 percent to $6 billion in Dec 2022

    Riyadh, Saudi Arabia-- Saudi Arabia's non-oil exports (including re-exports) fell by 24.4 percent to SAR 22.7 billion ($6.05 billion) in December 2022, from SAR 30.1 billion in December 2021, according to the kingdom's General Authority for Statistics. Non-oil exports (excluding re-exports) decreased by 17 percent as re-exports also fell by...
  • Oil prices little changed in early Asian trade

    The benchmarks closed lower by about 4 percent last week after the United States reported higher crude and gasoline inventories.
  • GCC gas stations expand as global oil demand surges

    The annual expansion of more than 100 fuel stations in the Gulf countries add around US$500,000 per day to companies' revenues in each country in the region, say experts.
  • Repsol’s profit up on high oil prices

    The oil firm posted a net profit of $4.55 billion in 2022.
  • UAE pledges $50 million more in assistance for quake-hit Syria

    Emirati President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan "has ordered the provision of an additional US$50 million as relief aid for quake-affected people in Syria", reports said.
  • Oil demand to hit record as China reopens, air travel recovers: IEA

    Demand is expected to reach 101.9 million barrels per day on average in 2023, an increase of two million barrels per day from last year, the IEA said. It would be up 1.4 million barrels a day from the pre-pandemic level in 2019 as consumption of fossil fuels behind global...
  • Oil rises as Russia cuts output after Western price cap

    Brent, the international benchmark, and its US counterpart WTI, which had been down earlier in the day, jumped more than two percent after Russian deputy prime minister Alexander Novak said production would be cut by 500,000 barrels per day, or five percent of output, in March. "Crude prices reacted positively...
  • Russia to slash oil output by 5% over Western price cap

    Russia is part of an alliance with OPEC that meets regularly to decide on oil output levels. As a result of Moscow's military operation in Ukraine, the West has capped the price at which Russia can sell its crude. News of Russia's cut to output gave strength to world oil...
  • ‘Dubai among key global maritime destinations’

    The emirate has achieved record growth in the service of refuelling vessels during in 2022, as it recorded about 1.1 million metric tonnes, with a growth rate of 30 percent compared to 2021, Sheikh Saeed adds while speaking at the Middle East Bunkering Convention (MEBC) 2023.
  • ADNOC Distribution 2022 net profit $748m

    The EBITDA grew by 15 percent to reach AED3.52 billion.
  • Unicorns benefit as KSA, UAE diversify investments

    The two Gulf countries expect new strategy to result in a rapid economic transformation and offer new revenue stream, allowing them to cut down reliance on crude oil income.
  • Equinor posts record profit

    Output slipped by 2% to 2.04 million barrels per day of oil equivalent.
  • Stocks steady, dollar higher on US rate-hike expectations

    Stock markets largely steadied and the dollar rose with traders forecasting US interest rates to keep climbing following last week's blockbuster American jobs report. Oil prices extended gains after Iraqi Kurdistan suspended crude exports through Turkey as a precaution after a deadly earthquake rocked its northern neighbor and Syria.
  • Hong Kong looks to encourage Aramco to list in city

    Hong Kong-- Hong Kong is looking to persuade oil giant Aramco and its units to consider a secondary listing in the Asian financial hub. Hong Kong Chief Executive John Lee is embarking on his first official visit to the Middle East, according to the South China Morning Post. Lee is...
  • Iraqi Kurdistan suspends oil export via quake hit Turkey

    "The Kurdistan Regional Government confirms the halt of oil exportation through #Turkey's Ceyhan due to the #earthquake that struck several areas in the country," tweeted Lawk Ghafuri, head of foreign media relations in Kurdistan.
  • Iraq is a key trade partner of Jordan, says Kingdom’s Commerce Chamber head

    AMMAN, JORDAN - Chairman of the Jordan Chamber of Commerce (JCC), Khalil Haj Tawfiq said Iraq is an "important" trade partner and gateway for Jordan's economy. Haj Tawfiq said, "Jordan and Iraq have wide, prolific potentials, fields and grounds to build economic integration, in light of the strong brotherly relations,...
  • Iraq hopes talks can resolve hitches in US$10bn Total deal

    Iraq admitted it had differences with France's TotalEnergies over a US$10-billion contract, including over the distribution of investments, but expressed hope they can be resolved through talks. "We have given ourselves time to continue the dialogue and reach a satisfactory solution for the parties involved regarding certain points of contention,"...
  • Iraq calls for more economic cooperation with Saudi Arabia

    Baghdad is currently heavily dependent on neighboring Iran for its electricity and gas and has sought to diversify its energy sources.
  • Shell annual profit hits $42bn

    The post-tax figure was more than double the amount.
  • Kuwait projects widening $16 bn budget deficit

    The budget deficit will swell to five billion dinars (more than $16 billion) for the year starting in April, up from the $10.3 billion predicted for the current fiscal year, the finance ministry said. Kuwait, a major oil producer and member of the OPEC cartel, has the Gulf's only fully...
  • Major UAE solar plant to go online before COP summit, says energy firm

    ABU DHABI, UAE - One of the world's biggest solar plants will become fully operational this year in the oil-rich United Arab Emirates, months before it hosts UN climate talks, a partner company said Tuesday. The UAE, a major oil exporter, is spending billions to develop enough renewable energy to cover...
  • Kuwait budget deficit could surge to $16 bn, oil revenues fall by 19.5%

    Spending will rise by 11.7 percent to more than $86 billion, with 80 percent going on civil service wages and public subsidies.
  • ExxonMobil 2022 profit at $55.7bn

    Results reflect higher production of oil, natural gas.
  • Marketwatch: Demand may pick up as China reopens

    Supply of diesel to Europe from the US and the emerging refinery hub in the Middle East may make up some of the missing barrels from Russia, but a shortfall seems likely, not least considering the prospect for a strong recovery in China leading to lower export quotas, he adds.
  • ‘Saudi to invest US$266bn in cleaner energy’

    Saudi Arabia plans to invest more than US$266 billion to produce cleaner electricity and expand its power grid, the kingdom's energy minister said. Speaking at a forum organized by Saudi oil giant Aramco, Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman said the world's biggest crude exporter was also looking to become a global...
  • Fight global warming without harming economic growth: COP28 chief

    The UAE is pushing the merits of carbon capture -- removing carbon dioxide as fuel is burned, or from the air.
  • Tourism in Iraq can be a success, says First Deputy Speaker of Parliament

    BAGHDAD, IRAQ -  First Deputy Speaker of Parliament Mohsen Al-Mandalawi said that the tourism sector in Iraq has all the ingredients for success. Al-Mandalawi made the statement while meeting with the Association of Travel and Tourism Companies in Iraq, a statement issues by the  media office of the First Deputy...