Iran self-sufficient in petrol production, aims to export

01 May 2017, Tehran — Iran said it was now self-sufficient in petroleum production as President Hassan Rouhani opened a refinery in the southern city of Bandar Abbas. The Persian Gulf Star refinery has the capacity to produce 12 million litres of Euro IV petrol. Once fully operational, the refinery will produce 36 million litres […] More »

BP to sell $1.7bn stake in China chemical unit

01 May 2017, London — BP Plc has agreed to sell its stake in a Chinese petrochemical venture to a unit of China Petroleum & Chemical Corp for $1.7bn. The British company will divest its 50% interest in Shanghai SECCO Petrochemical Co to Gaoqiao Petrochemical Co, it said. The sale, likely to be completed by […] More »

Iran to back OPEC deal extension

01 May 2017, Tehran — Oil Minister Bijan Zangeneh voiced Iran’s support for a recent decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries to extend OPEC’s oil freeze deal. “If a majority of OPEC and non-OPEC states agree to extend the oil freeze deal, Iran will go with other members similar to the past,” Zangeneh […] More »

Saudi Arabia losing oil market share to Iran — BP

01 May 2017, London — Christof Ruhl, a German academic who specializes in energy economics and has been with BP (British Petroleum) since 2005, said Saudi Arabia is losing its oil market share to Iran and Iraq. “If you’re talking about winners, you can count Iran and Iraq,” Christof Ruehl said recently at a conference […] More »

Oil price optimism wears off as Texas Wildcatters drill on

*Money managers slash WTI net-long position by most in 6 weeks *U.S. benchmark slips below key $50 level during report period 01 May 2017, Houston — The relentless drilling ramp-up in America’s top shale plays is making investors more skeptical that an oil price rebound is on the horizon. After increasing their bets on rising […] More »

Saudi Arabia may cut June light crude prices to nine-month low

01 May 2017, Dubai — Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia is expected to cut the price of its flagship Arab Light by 40-50 cents a barrel in June to the lowest in nine months, a survey of Asian refiners showed. Official selling prices (OSPs) are expected to fall across the board for Saudi crudes sold […] More »

Oil slips below $52 as U.S. drilling, China worries weigh

01 May 2017, London — Oil edged below $52 a barrel on Monday as rising crude output and drilling in the United States countered OPEC-led production cuts aimed at clearing a supply glut. U.S. drillers added nine oil rigs in the week to April 28, bringing the count to the most since April 2015, energy […] More »