Regional News

Bloomberg Sometimes, you need a little help from your friends. As Gulf Coast refiners restart their plants in the wake of Hurricane Harvey, they must step through a complex process that can take days to weeks to complete, even if they were largely unscathed by the storm’s flooding rains. But first, they need the support of others — third-party suppliers, …

Bloomberg Australia’s government is keeping the pressure on AGL Energy Ltd. to extend the life of its Liddell coal-fired power station. Energy Minister Josh Frydenberg and Treasury Scott Morrison separately reiterated on Sunday the importance of the Liddell plant continuing to operate past 2022, when the Sydney-based company has said it will close. The government is scheduled to meet AGL …

Reuters A group of independent Chinese oil refiners is clubbing together to survive an onslaught by state-owned giants and the rise of private chemical giants, but industry analysts said the new alliance may find it hard to stick. Less than two years after becoming some of China’s newest crude oil importers, around 20 independent plants in the eastern industrial heartland …

Bloomberg A closely-held Chinese oil company agreed to buy a minority stake in Rosneft PJSC for about $9 billion, deepening energy and political ties with Russia amid increasing tensions with the US. The deal sees Glencore Plc and Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund selling most of their holding in Russia’s biggest crude producer, which they acquired to much fanfare in December. …

DUBA / Reuters Saudi Arabia will cut crude oil allocations to its customers worldwide in October by 350,000 barrels per day (bpd), an industry source familiar with Saudi oil policy told Reuters. The cuts in allocations are in line with Saudi Arabia’s commitments to the OPEC-led supply reduction pact, under which the top oil exporter is required to cut 486,000 …

Bloomberg Plans to sell a stake in Saudi Arabian Oil Co. are “well underway,” the government said on Saturday, as the kingdom redrafts one of its key economic blueprints to eliminate overlap with other reform programs. The government’s privatization program “continues to gain traction,” the Ministry of Culture and Information said in a statement. Officials have said the kingdom plans …

Bloomberg Oil declined the most since July as Hurricane Irma threatened to slash energy demand that had only just begun to recover from the wrath of Harvey. Futures slid 3.3% in New York. While Valero Energy Corp. and other refiners resumed fuel production after Harvey roared ashore two weeks ago, demand for gasoline and other transportation fuels may falter across …

ASTANA / Reuters Kazakhstan is aiming for a standalone deal with leading global oil producers on restraining its crude production due to a need to crank up output at its Kashagan field, a Kazakh official said. The Central Asian nation increased oil and gas condensate output by 9.9 percent in January-July to 49.907 million tonnes, or 1.724 million barrels per …

ALGIERS / Reuters Algeria’s government has approved draft amendments to a law aimed at securing new funding sources to cover budget deficits as it struggles to cope with a sharp fall in energy earnings. Amendments to the Money and Credit Law were endorsed at a cabinet meeting, chaired by President Abdelaziz Bouteflika, that discussed plans for the newly appointed government …

Riyadh / Emirates Business The health of the non-oil private sector in Saudi Arabia continued to improve during August. Growth was supported by sharp expansions in new orders and output. Moreover, international demand for Saudi Arabian products and services picked up, as highlighted by a renewed increase in new export orders. Growth of staffing levels was sustained during August, as …