Reuters LONDON – OPEC oil output has risen for a seventh month in January, a Reuters survey found, after the group and allies agreed to ease record supply curbs further, although an involuntary drop in Nigerian exports limited the increase. The 13-member Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries is pumping 25.75 million barrels per day (bpd) in January, the survey
Reuters PORT HARCOURT/LAGOS – Oil companies have asked security services to tighten surveillance as violent anti-police brutality protests and the expected sacking of hundreds of workers worsen desperation in the region, industry sources told Reuters. Already unemployment is above 40% in Nigeria’s energy regions and observers say further job losses could aggravate problems of pipeline tapping, illegal oil refining and
Reuters MOSCOW/DUBAI – OPEC and its allies led by Russia will meet on Saturday to discuss extending record oil production cuts and to push laggards such as Iraq and Nigeria to comply with existing curbs. The producers known as OPEC+ previously agreed to cut supply by 9.7 million barrels per day (bpd) during May and June to prop up prices
Reuters MOSCOW/LAGOS/LONDON – The coronavirus pandemic has disrupted maintenance at oil and gas projects and refineries from Russia’s Far East to the coast of Canada, storing up problems for an industry already reeling from slumping prices, analysts say. Lockdowns to stop the spread of COVID-19, the flu-like infection caused by the virus, have snarled the supply of spare parts and
Reuters LONDON – OPEC+ has cut its oil exports sharply in the first half of May, companies that track the shipments said, suggesting a strong start in complying with a new production cut agreement. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, Russia and other allies, a group known as OPEC+, are cutting supply by a record 9.7 million barrels per
CNBC The historic plunge in oil prices earlier this week has left some major exporters of the commodity scrambling to shore up their economies. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude contract for May delivery fell by more than 100% to settle at negative $37.63 per barrel on Monday and expired on Tuesday at $10.01 a barrel. Futures contracts trade by the
Houston Chronicle Oil majors including Exxon Mobil Corp. and Royal Dutch Shell Plc are facing uphill battles to convince U.S. courts to enforce multi-billion dollar arbitration awards they secured against Nigeria’s state oil company. The companies accused the Nigerian National Petroleum Corp. of taking more crude than it was entitled to under four deals that were signed in 1993 to
Houston Chronicle Speculation is mounting that OPEC and its allies may agree to a deeper production cut at their meeting in Vienna on Thursday, but market watchers shouldn’t take any such announcement at face value. Even a sizable “new” cut like the 400,000 barrel-a-day reduction Iraq’s Oil Minister Thamir Ghadhban was suggesting wouldn’t necessarily remove any oil from the market.
Source: Reuters LAGOS/LONDON (Reuters) – Chevron is seeking to sell several Nigerian oilfields as part of a global drive to reshape its portfolio as it focuses on growing its U.S. shale output, banking and industry sources said. Chevron joins rivals including Exxon Mobil and Royal Dutch Shell in a drive by foreign oil companies to reduce their footprint in Africa’s
Source: Reuters OPEC has granted Nigeria a higher oil output target under an OPEC-led deal to limit oil supply in a move unannounced by the group, following efforts by Africa’s largest exporter to tweak the agreement to accommodate its expanding oil industry. The country’s allocation was increased to 1.774 million barrels per day (bpd) from 1.685 million bpd at the
From Reuters The rising tide of light U.S. shale oil has largely swept away comparable grades of Nigerian oil from American shores and is putting them under pressure in Europe. But steady Indian and Indonesian demand has helped lift price indications for two of Nigeria’s top grades to near five-year highs, according to traders and shipping data. “It’s only because
From Reuters Exxon Mobil recently held talks on the sale of a suite of oil and gas fields in Nigeria as the company focuses on new developments in U.S. shale and Guyana, industry and banking sources told Reuters. The potential disposals are expected to include stakes in onshore and offshore fields and could raise up to $3 billion, two sources
