Regional News

Bloomberg Russia’s oil production rose to a post-Soviet high last month as the country completely rolled back the output cuts it had agreed on with Opec, then pumped some more. The country produced a record 11.356 million barrels of oil and condensate a day in September, according to data released on Tuesday by the Energy Ministry’s CDU-TEK statistical unit. That’s ...

Bloomberg Iraq exported more than 4 million barrels a day for a second consecutive month in September as buyers sought alternative supplies to Iran ahead of US sanctions. Shipments from Opec’s No. 2 producer were 4.062 million barrels a day, the highest since November 2016 and compared with 4.061 million a day in August, according to Bloomberg calculations from tanker ...

Bloomberg In the race to solve a fuel-import crisis in Nigeria, Africa’s richest person faces competition from a swarm of tiny challengers. Billionaire Aliko Dangote is building a 650,000 barrel-a-day refinery in Nigeria that will help cut the nation’s $7 billion annual fuel-import bill. Such is the pressure on its finances, the government is pursuing another option, giving licenses to ...

Bloomberg South Africa’s Eskom Holdings SOC Ltd. is still running low on fuel at more than half of its power stations and expects to finish supply contracts in October that will replenish the stockpiles. There are 10 of Eskom’s 15 baseload stations throughout the country that have less than three weeks of coal, Khulu Phasiwe, a spokesman for the utility, ...

Bloomberg YPF SA, Argentina’s state-run energy producer, is closing the tap on some of its natural gas wells as the nation’s second recession in three years curbs demand, according to people with direct knowledge of the matter. The company had been investing heavily in shale gas as the government subsidized production to reverse a costly energy trade deficit. But the ...

Bloomberg Royal Dutch Shell Plc and its four partners have agreed to invest in a multibillion-dollar liquefied natural gas project in western Canada — the largest new one of its kind in years that would carve out the fastest route to Asia for North American gas. LNG Canada — comprised of Shell, Malaysia’s Petroliam Nasional Bhd, Mitsubishi Corp., PetroChina Co. ...

Bloomberg Oil extended gains in London after the longest quarterly rally in a decade as a slowdown in American drilling added to concern that supply losses around the world will lead to a tight market. Brent crude rose as much as 0.7 percent, after front-month futures climbed for a fifth straight quarter. As concerns over a global crunch due to ...

Bloomberg Bahrain’s credit risk declined to the lowest level in five months on optimism the nation’s neighbours will soon come to the island-state’s rescue with an aid package. The cost of insuring Bahrain’s debt against default fell 34 basis points last week on relief that Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Kuwait were said to be considering a $10 ...

Bloomberg The best-performing stock in Egypt this year might be about to reward investors even more as a turnaround plan moves forward and the company completes a long-awaited project. Qalaa Holdings SAE, the Egyptian investment firm formerly known as Citadel Capital, is pushing to end annual losses by selling underperforming assets and lowering debt before its flagship oil refinery venture ...

Bloomberg It seems hedge funds are jumping on the $100 crude bandwagon. As speculation increases that global oil prices could again trade that high, money managers are piling on bullish wagers, while short-selling shrinks. They are the most optimistic on a rally of Brent crude in over four months. This week, the benchmark closed above $80 for the first time ...