MADRID / Reuters A Spanish consortium which is building a high-speed rail link between Mecca and Medina has reached a preliminary deal with Saudi Arabia to finalise the works after a series of delays and setbacks, Spain’s public works ministry said. The Al Shoula consortium comprising 12 Spanish companies including OHL and Indra as well as two Saudi firms …

  KIRKUK / Reuters Iraq’s exports from the Kirkuk oil field through an export pipeline to Turkey have dropped because of power outages, an official at state-run North Oil Co. said. Export are currently running at 100,000 barrels per day (bpd), compared with 133,000 bpd in October, the official said. The pipeline delivers crude to Turkish terminal of Ceyhan, on …

  Bloomberg The Obama administration’s decision to forgo auctions of new oil and gas drilling rights in U.S. Arctic waters deals a blow to energy companies seeking to lock up new territory beyond the long-explored Gulf of Mexico. Interior Secretary Sally Jewell said the move, announced on Friday, strikes the right balance, by sustaining oil and gas development in the …