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Anbar Tribal Leader: Maliki Is ‘More Dangerous’ Than ISIS

Chief of the powerful Dulaim tribe in Ramadi, Sheikh Hatem al-Suleiman. Photo: Rudaw Chief of the powerful Dulaim tribe in Ramadi, Sheikh Hatem al-Suleiman. Photo: Rudaw Sheikh Hatem al-Suleiman, 43, is one of Anbar province’s most influential tribal sheikhs and is chief of the powerful Dulaim tribe in Ramadi. Suleiman is founding member of the Anbar Salvation Council, a key group in the Sunni Awakening that collapsed after Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki refused to include the group in state and military institutions. As the leader of Anbar’s Tribes Revolutionary Council, he is a key leader in the Anbar insurgency and a sharp critic of Maliki. As early as 2006, he became a leader in mobilizing Sunni Arab rebels against Al-Qaeda. In an exclusive interview with Rudaw , Suleiman claimed the Islamic State (formerly the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, or ISIS) and Iraq’s Sunni Arab tribes have drastically […]

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Libyan oil exports on potential rebound

More than half of Libya’s oil export potential may be back online after rebel forces handed over control of two key ports, the Libyan National Oil Co. said. Ras Lanuf and Es Sider, two oil ports that account for as much as half of Libya’s full export potential of 1.3 million barrels per day, were handed over to government control last week. Mohammad el-Harari, a spokesman for the state-owned National Oil Co., said a legal clause over the terminals, force majeure, was lifted Sunday. Force majuere frees a company from its contractual obligations because of circumstances beyond its control. Combined, the two ports can ship as much as 560,000 barrels of oil per day. The spokesman said it was unclear when new Libyan oil would find its way to the international market. The Libyan government brokered a deal April 6 with eastern rebel leaders to re-open two other export […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran expecting some sanctions relief

The company transporting Iranian crude oil to export markets should return to the European stage following an EU court decision last week, its director said. Ali Akbar Safaei, managing director of the National Iranian Tanker Co., said his company should make a strong recovery following a ruling from the European courts last week. "NITC could regain its status in the European markets," he said Sunday . The General Court of the European Union said last week it "committed a manifest error of assessment and failed to discharge the burden of proof which rests on it" when imposing sanctions on certain Iranian entities tied to the nuclear sector. The managing director said the ruling means EU sanctions against NITC are annulled. NITC transports Iranian crude oil to export markets and is responsible for the distribution of oil products to Iranian ports. "If the European Commission does not appeal against the […]

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Production Resumes at Libya's Largest Oil Field

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has resumed production, a top oil official said Wednesday, the latest sign of an improvement in the country’s troubled oil sector. The move follows the lifting of a force majeure on two Eastern terminals that account for nearly half of Libya’s oil export capacity, following a deal with militants who had occupied them. The 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spanish oil company Repsol SA is a partner, has resumed output after protests ended there, a spokesman for the state-run National Oil Co. said. He confirmed that exports could still take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s oil industry has been disrupted frequently by strikes and armed occupations since a civil war toppled former leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Together with the reopening of the two oil ports, Sharara’s resumption could bring oil production […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Production Resumes at Libya’s Largest Oil Field

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has resumed production, a top oil official said Wednesday, the latest sign of an improvement in the country’s troubled oil sector. The move follows the lifting of a force majeure on two Eastern terminals that account for nearly half of Libya’s oil export capacity, following a deal with militants who had occupied them. The 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spanish oil company Repsol SA is a partner, has resumed output after protests ended there, a spokesman for the state-run National Oil Co. said. He confirmed that exports could still take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Libya’s oil industry has been disrupted frequently by strikes and armed occupations since a civil war toppled former leader Moammar Gadhafi in 2011. Together with the reopening of the two oil ports, Sharara’s resumption could bring oil production […]

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Indian Refiners to Finish Paying Iran $1.65 Billion for Oil This Month

Indian refiners will finish paying Iran $1.65 billion by the end of this month as payment for crude-oil imports, two people with knowledge of the matter said Tuesday. "Indian refiners have paid two installments of $550 million each. A third installment of an equal amount will be paid later this month," said one of the people, who asked not to be named. The second installment was paid Tuesday, he said. Since February last year, after the U.S. sanctions blocked payments to Iran, India has been paying 45% of its Iran oil dues in rupees through state-owned UCO Bank Ltd. For the remaining amount, which came to around $4 billion in May, India had to create a payment mechanism. Both India and Iran now have mechanisms in place to process the accumulated dues. To transfer the money to Iran, Indian refiners paid what they owed for Iranian oil to […]

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Iran Nuclear Negotiations Hit Fresh Hurdle

Nuclear negotiations between Iran and six major powers hit a fresh hurdle this week when the country’s Supreme Leader said Iran needs significantly greater enrichment capacity. Ayatollah Ali Khamenei’s comment in a speech Monday to senior level technocrats and military personnel came as negotiators in Vienna struggle to complete a final nuclear agreement by the July 20 deadline. Western diplomats have said progress in the talks has been very slow. The negotiations aim to win commitments from Iran to limit its future nuclear program in exchange for a gradual end to international sanctions. Western officials have said an Iranian insistence on a bigger program would be a deal-breaker. A U.S. official said on Tuesday that negotiators for the six powers—China, France, Germany, Russia, the U.K., and the U.S.—focus on what Iran’s diplomats say at the negotiating table. But the comments by Mr. Khamenei, considered the final arbiter of Iran’s […]

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Libya's Largest Oil Field Sharara Restarts Operations-Manager

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has restarted operations and may resume production later Wednesday, a manager at the facility said, the latest sign of improvement in Libya’s troubled oil sector. The news come after Libya lifted force majeure on two Eastern terminals that amount to nearly half of its exports capacity following a deal with rebels that had occupied them. The pipeline connected to the 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spain’s Repsol SA is a partner, reopened after protests ended there, said the manager, who declined to be named. He added that, once production has restarted, exports could take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Write to Benoit Faucon at [email protected]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Libya’s Largest Oil Field Sharara Restarts Operations-Manager

Libya’s largest oil field Sharara has restarted operations and may resume production later Wednesday, a manager at the facility said, the latest sign of improvement in Libya’s troubled oil sector. The news come after Libya lifted force majeure on two Eastern terminals that amount to nearly half of its exports capacity following a deal with rebels that had occupied them. The pipeline connected to the 340,000-barrels-a-day Sharara oil field, where Spain’s Repsol SA is a partner, reopened after protests ended there, said the manager, who declined to be named. He added that, once production has restarted, exports could take a week to restart because the oil flows will first have to supply the Zawiya refinery. Write to Benoit Faucon at [email protected]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Egypt Would Approve BG's Israel Gas Deal If Local Demand is Met

Egypt is willing to approve a potential deal allowing BG Group PLC to import natural gas from Israel for its local facility if the parties involved agree to help meet the country’s domestic demand at a reasonable price, officials familiar with the matter said Monday. "Things are different in Egypt now and we see no issue in this deal if it is beneficial for the country," a senior oil official told The Wall Street Journal, referring to the recent change in government in Egypt that saw Abdel Fattah Al Sisi elected president. "We will give our approval on the deal if some of the gas is fed to the domestic market and is reasonably priced," the official said. The partners in Israel’s giant Leviathan natural gas field said last month they had signed a preliminary agreement with BG Group, a British oil and gas company, to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple