Oman Oil Minister Slams OPEC Policy On Prices, Market Share

The minister said that OPEC’s policy might temporarily force high-cost producers out of the market but they would eventually come back.

Kuwait Oil Minister: Better Economic Growth Needed To Absorb Oversupply

Ali al-Omair also said the Kuwait’s budget for the next fiscal year was expected to be based on an average oil price of $40 to $45.

Spain’s Abengoa Wins Deal For Solar-Powered Desalination Plant In Saudi

Abengoa will jointly develop the project with AWT, the commercial arm of King Abdulaziz City of Science & Technology.

Dubai Raises Renewable Energy Targets On Cheaper Solar – DEWA CEO

Renewable energy targets have been revised to 2.3 per cent by 2017 and 15 per cent by 2030.

Oman Oil Minister: 2015 Crude Oil Output Expected To Rise About 20,000 bpd

Lower oil prices are not affecting Oman’s upstream strategy, and there is no change in its 2015 energy plans, the minister said.

Kuwait Petroleum Corp Chief Says Expects Oil Below $100 For Next Few Years

Oil minister Ali al-Omair said that Kuwait would nevertheless continue developing its production and refining capacity.

Brent Crude Inches Above $48, But Outlook Remains Weak

Analysts said they expected low prices to continue for the next half-year.

Saudi Ma’aden Swings To Q4 Net Profit, Misses Estimates

The company reported a net profit of SAR376 million for the last quarter of 2014.

Oil Steady At $49 After IMF Cuts Growth Forecast

Global growth is projected at 3.5 per cent for 2015, the IMF said, reducing its forecast by 0.3 percentage points.

Saudi Aramco To Cut Drilling Costs, Hold Rig Count Steady

Aramco deployed 210 oil and gas rigs in 2014.

UAE, France Ink Deal To Fund Renewable Energy Projects

The countries are looking to announce their first project this year and are currently reviewing project proposals in the Middle East, a joint statement said.

UAE Energy Minister: Lesson Of Oil Price Drop Is Diversification

Oil prices have dropped almost 60 per cent since June 2014, when they stood at $115 per barrel.

Saudi Arabia’s Nuclear, Renewable Energy Plans Pushed Back

The country was initially looking to install 17 gigawatts of nuclear power and 41 gigawatts of solar capacity by 2032.

Dubai Refiner ENOC Says Seeking $1.5bn Long-Term Loan

The company said that the loan was for general corporate purposes.

Oil Prices Slip On Record Iraq Output

Oil prices have dropped by more than half since last June as output around the world has soared while demand growth has slowed.

Saudi’s Sipchem Q4 Profit Falls 33% As Production, Sales Drop

Sipchem made a profit of 132.4 million riyals ($35.28 million) in the last quarter of 2014.

UAE’s ADNOC Seeks 288,000 T Gasoline For March-April Delivery

The specified amount is slightly higher than the usual volumes that the company buys, a Singapore-based trader said.

UAE Firm Bids For Egypt’s Renewable Plants

Access Infra Africa plans to invest over $500 million in renewable power assets in Africa over the next three years.

SABIC Sales Drop 10% As Profits Plunge – CEO

SABIC’s chief executive Mohamed al-Mady told reporters that the outlook for 2015 was unpredictable and contingent on oil prices.

Oil Slump Slashes Saudi Basic Industries Q4 Profit 29%

The company earned SAR4.36 billion ($1.16 billion) in the last quarter, a statement said.

UAE To Fund Solar Projects In Four Pacific Island Countries

The Emirates will fund solar-powered projects in the Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, and the Solomon Islands through its $50m renewable energy fund.

No Oil Price Recovery Yet Despite US Shale Slowdown-IEA

For the whole of 2015, the IEA raised its estimate of the demand for OPEC crude by 300,000 bpd to 29.2 million bpd.

Bahrain’s BAPCO To Decide On Refinery Expansion Next Year, Sees Tough 2015

The proposed expansion would boost the capacity of the Sitra refinery by 100,000 barrels per day, BAPCO’s CEO said.

Kuwait Controls Minor Fire At Shuaiba Refinery

There were no casualties and limited damage was caused, state news agency KUNA said.

Qatar May Fund Energy, Other Projects In Venezuela -Sources

Industry sources in Qatar said that the country was still studying the possibility of investing in Venezuela’s energy, real estate and tourism sectors.

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OPEC To See Market Share Drop Even As Oil Slump Slows Shale Boom

OPEC forecast demand for the group’s oil will drop to 28.78 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2015.

ACWA Power, TSK Win Contract To Build Power Plant In Dubai’s Solar Park

The project has a net power capacity of 200 MW and is the largest utility scale solar plant in the world to be tendered in a single phase

New Saudi-Sinopec Oil Refinery Starts Exports

The company did not specify where the shipment was headed to.

Dubai Utility DEWA Names Preferred Bidder For Upsized Solar Plant

A consortium of Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power and Spain’s TSK had been selected as the preferred bidder to build the 200MW solar power plant.

MENA To See Solar Projects Worth $2.7bn In 2015

Solar projects having capacity to produce up to 1,800 megawatts of power are to be awarded over the next 12 months in the region.