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OPEC Ministers See No 2014 Glut Amid Signs of Demand Growth

Oil ministers from OPEC’s three biggest members rejected the possibility of a glut in global crude supply next year amid an increase in U.S. output and efforts by Iran and Libya to add barrels to the market. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, which provides about 40 percent of the world’s oil, won’t need to cut production in 2014 because growth in demand can absorb the additional crude, the ministers from Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Kuwait said yesterday after a meeting of Arab oil exporters in Doha, Qatar. U.S. benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude climbed to a two-month high on Dec. 20 after a report showed the U.S. economy expanded in the third quarter at a faster rate than previously estimated. WTI for February delivery rose 28 cents to $99.32 a barrel in New York. “Do you know why WTI traded near $100 […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran Nuclear Talks to Resume Before New Year

Talks between Iran and six major powers on implementing last month’s nuclear deal will resume after Christmas, a spokeswoman for European Union foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Monday. Baroness Ashton spoke with Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif on Sunday, the spokeswoman said, after experts held three days of fresh implementation talks in Geneva. "There will be a break in technical talks over Christmas," said the spokeswoman, Maja Kocijancic. "We expect that technical talks will resume before the new year." The Nov. 24 confidence-building deal saw Iran agreeing to curtail some of its nuclear activities in exchange for a modest relaxing of international sanctions on the country. The agreement was seen as a first step toward a comprehensive accord the two sides hope to sign within 12 months. However, a number of issues must still be completed from the November agreement including when the confidence-building deal enters into force […]

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For Iraq's Kurds, Only Baghdad Foils Energy Windfall

;Just two decades ago, Erbil was a dangerous town, attacked on one side by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and on the other by warring Kurdish tribes. Today, this vibrant capital of Kurdistan, a semi- autonomous region in Iraq, is peaceful as expectations of an energy windfall are creating a boom and helping to refashion a traditional society and an ancient landscape. Hoteliers including Hilton and Kempinski are erecting buildings that now soar above the city’s 7,000-year-old Citadel. New shopping malls compete with the medieval bazaar. And Erbil’s historic downtown is ringed by luxury villas, residential towers and commercial offices, driven by a 20-fold surge in property prices since U.S. forces invaded Iraq in 2003. "A decade ago, Erbil was more like a big village," said Tahir Osman, deputy governor of Erbil Province who helped forge an urban development plan that calls for a Grand-Prix race track. "My dream […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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For Iraq’s Kurds, Only Baghdad Foils Energy Windfall

;Just two decades ago, Erbil was a dangerous town, attacked on one side by Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein and on the other by warring Kurdish tribes. Today, this vibrant capital of Kurdistan, a semi- autonomous region in Iraq, is peaceful as expectations of an energy windfall are creating a boom and helping to refashion a traditional society and an ancient landscape. Hoteliers including Hilton and Kempinski are erecting buildings that now soar above the city’s 7,000-year-old Citadel. New shopping malls compete with the medieval bazaar. And Erbil’s historic downtown is ringed by luxury villas, residential towers and commercial offices, driven by a 20-fold surge in property prices since U.S. forces invaded Iraq in 2003. "A decade ago, Erbil was more like a big village," said Tahir Osman, deputy governor of Erbil Province who helped forge an urban development plan that calls for a Grand-Prix race track. "My dream […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Libya Should Use Force to Reopen Seized Oil Ports -Minister

Libya should use force to reopen oil ports closed since July by a tribal autonomy movement, the country’s oil minister said Saturday, confirming that closed Marsa al-Hariga terminal near Tobruk will resume shipments soon. "This is my opinion as an oil minister…force should be used," Abdelbari al-Arusi said on the sidelines of an energy meeting in Doha, but he didn’t say when such action might be taken. Libya, which is currently producing around 250,000 barrels a day, could struggle to regain its market share once it restores output to 1.6 million barrels a day, he said. Earlier this month, government officials and lawmakers said an agreement had been reached between tribal leaders to reopen the port in exchange for greater regional oversight of oil exports. But on Sunday Ibrahim al-Jathran, the leader of a large militia that is blocking several ports, said his group wouldn’t reopen […]

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South Sudan Unrest Threatens Oil Flow

Two United Nations peacekeepers were killed in an assault on their base in South Sudan along with 20 civilians who were sheltering there. They were the first U.N. casualties in a week of violence that has spread from the capital to energy-producing regions, spurring Beijing to move to evacuate some Chinese oil workers. What began Sunday night as a clash between army factions has spiraled into nationwide ethnic fighting that threatens to chase away foreign oil companies and choke the lifeblood of the fledgling nation’s economy. Some 500 people have been killed and more than 30,000 forced from their homes. Many civilians, including hundreds of oil workers, have sought shelter in bases belonging to the U.N. peacekeeping mission, which has reported fighting in six of the country’s 10 states. The U.N. said Friday that its base in the town of Akobo, in Jonglei state, had been attacked overnight "by […]

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Americans Evacuated From South Sudan

; American citizens were evacuated from a contested area of South Sudan on Sunday after a local rebel commander provided assurances that there would be no interference, Western officials said. The evacuation, which involved about 15 Americans, was carried out by helicopter from the United Nations compound in Bor, in Jonglei State, which is surrounded by 2,000 armed youths. It came one day after American Special Operations forces tried to evacuate the Americans there, only to turn back after the three Osprey aircraft being used for the mission ran into heavy small-arms fire. Four American service members were wounded in that episode . “We were able to evacuate all Americans who presented themselves at the U.N. camp in Bor,” a State Department official said. “We will continue to work to confirm whether there are any remaining American citizens in Bor who need to be evacuated.” The Sunday evacuation […]

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South Sudan Aid Agencies Need $1.1 Billion, Official Says

South Sudan will need $1.1 billion of humanitarian aid in 2014 after violence in the past week displaced 62,000 people, the United Nations said. The escalating crisis in South Sudan makes it “crucial that aid agencies get money needed to respond early in the year,” UN Assistant Secretary-General Toby Lanzer said on his Twitter page from Juba, capital of the nation that was split off from Sudan in 2011, becoming independent. The fighting in South Sudan, which broke out on Dec. 15, has already claimed as many as 500 lives, including UN peacekeepers. A rebel force linked to deposed Vice President Riek Machar and led by General James Kong Chol last week captured Bor, the capital of Jonglei state, and said it has taken control of the oil-rich nation. Machar, who is being hunted by security forces, has called for President Salva Kiir to step down for failing to […]

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Saudi Oil Minister Naimi Sees Crude Stable in 2014

Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi said Saturday that he is optimistic crude-oil prices will remain stable next year after the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries decided earlier this month to keep its output ceiling unchanged. "The ceiling of the group was kept unchanged because the oil market is in a stable condition and oil prices are suitable for everyone," Mr. Naimi said at an energy meeting in Doha. "I’m optimistic about the future, as I see that the stability of the petroleum market will continue next year." Some officials from OPEC, a group of some of the world’s largest oil producers, have been publicly and privately jostling over whether the group should collectively cut back production in the event that global oil output rises significantly, threatening to weaken prices. Gulf OPEC officials have said that Saudi Arabia, the cartel’s kingpin, won’t unilaterally cut oil […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple