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New Iraqi crude meets cool reception in Asia

SINGAPORE Asia has given Iraq’s launch of its new Basra Heavy crude oil grade a poor reception after the No. 2 OPEC producer appears to have misjudged demand, supplying too much, too soon. Sellers of the new grade have struggled to find buyers, with at least one Malaysian-based trader taking a deep discount to offload 2 million barrels, while others have complained about a lack of pre-marketing and slow delivery of technical details to refineries. The problems, which have increased shipping and marketing costs for term buyers and Iraq’s equity partners in its southern oilfields, may hamper the country’s efforts to ramp up exports and could lead Asian buyers to look closely at Iranian oil if sanctions are lifted. "Asian refiners are conservative. You cannot bring new crude overnight and expect it to be taken up quickly," a trader with a western firm said. Iraq – which sells more […]

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Assad’s Forces May Be Aiding New ISIS Surge

ISTANBUL — Building on recent gains in Iraq and Syria, Islamic State militants are marching across northern Syria toward Aleppo, Syria’s largest city, helped along, their opponents say, by the forces of President Bashar al-Assad . In the countryside northeast of Aleppo on Tuesday, Islamic State fighters fought rival Syrian insurgents amid fears that the Islamic State was positioning itself to make Aleppo its next big prize. Syrian opposition leaders accused the Syrian government of essentially collaborating with the Islamic State, leaving the militants unmolested as they pressed a surprise offensive against other insurgent groups — even though the government and the Islamic State are nominal enemies — and instead striking the rival insurgents. At the same time, the rebels complained that the United States has refrained from contributing air support to help them fend off simultaneous attacks by the government and the Islamic State. The United States has […]

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Anti-ISIS Coalition Makes Little Progress at Paris Meeting

PARIS — With Islamist militant fighters on the ground in Syria and Iraq moving faster than the international coalition arrayed against them, a meeting in Paris by coalition members on Tuesday seemed unlikely to reverse the momentum anytime soon. With the French and American governments playing host, 24 foreign ministers or their representatives have been meeting here in the aftermath of serious losses to the Islamic State in both Iraq and Syria last month and the possibility that more territory will be lost in the coming days. The group did not embrace any major changes and appeared set to continue on its current course, even though over the past few weeks Syria’s government had lost control of the strategically important city of Palmyra and the Iraqi government has lost control of Ramadi, the capital of Anbar Province, to the Islamic State. Both of those cities have strategic and symbolic […]

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Saudi Arabia to boost defence spending

Saudi Arabia is on track to become the world’s fifth-largest military spender by 2020 as it boosts its defence budget by 27 per cent over the next five years despite lower oil prices. With regional conflicts worsening the oil-rich kingdom‘s neighbours, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar, are also planning to increase spending on their militaries, said consultancy IHS Jane’s Aerospace, Defence & Security. By contrast, smaller Gulf states are reacting to the lower oil-price by making deeper cuts to defence plans. The IHS forecasts assume oil prices will recover to $80 a barrel by 2017, rising to $100 a barrel by the end of the decade. IHS says Saudi defence spending will be $48.7bn in 2015, a 2 per cent contraction over last year. It will rise slightly to $49.5bn next year before jumping to $52bn in 2017 and reaching $62bn by 2020. Riyadh’s defence budget had been […]

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IHS: Arab defense spending influenced little by oil

Military budgets for some Arab countries in the Middle East remains strong despite low prices for crude oil. File photo by Mohammad Abdullah/UPI LONDON, June 2 (UPI) — Despite the heavy influence oil revenue plays for some Middle East countries, spending on defense remains positive, a review from IHS Inc. finds. IHS in its review of defense spending by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and United Arab Emirates finds upward momentum despite a weakened crude oil market. "Despite Saudi Arabia’s heavy exposure to oil price fluctuations, there have been very few signs of any severe reactionary adjustments to government spending trends," Craig Caffrey, principal defense budget analyst at IHS Jane’s Aerospace, Defense and Security, said in a Tuesday statement. "The Kingdom has only cut defense and security expenditure once over the last 15 years." IHS finds Saudi Arabia’s defense budget has accelerated to a rate of 19 percent a year since […]

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How Saudi Arabia’s 79-year-old King Salman is shaking up the Middle East

CAIRO — When King Salman became Saudi Arabia’s ruler this year, few people expected much change. He was 79 and reputedly in ill health. The longtime governor of Riyadh province, Salman was known as a capable administrator and skilled mediator, not as a man who challenged the status quo. But since taking the throne in January, Salman has shaken up Saudi Arabia’s foreign policy and the royal family’s succession plans. He has launched a bombing campaign against Shiite rebels in Yemen and increased support for rebels in Syria , signaling a more assertive role for an oil-rich kingdom that traditionally relied on the United States for security. Salman’s goal, analysts say, is to guard Sunni Muslims against what he sees as the growing influence of Shiite Iran. “This is a Saudi moment for the region,” said Nawaf Obaid, a former adviser to the Saudi royal court who is now […]

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Oasis at Risk: Oman’s Ancient Water Channels Are Drying Up

Since pre-Islamic times, Oman’s water systems known as aflaj have brought water from the mountains and made the desert bloom. But now, unregulated pumping of groundwater is depleting aquifers and causing the long-reliable channels to run dry. It was 47 degrees Celsius. Make that 117 degrees Fahrenheit. In mid-May, the desert of northern Oman may have been the hottest place on the planet. But in the shade of the oasis, the temperature was dramatically cooler. Ali Al Muharbi, in his white robes and beard, beamed as he showed me around the date palms. All were irrigated by water gurgling down a channel dug many centuries ago to tap underground water in the nearby Hajar mountains. In Oman, a country on the shores of the Arabian Sea, these magical waters conjured from the most arid land imaginable are called “unfailing springs.” Image by Fred Pearce: Ali Al Muharbi (right) says […]

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Could Middle East Switch From Oil to Renewables?

Decreasing prices in solar power could provide opportunities for oil-poor countries “Costs have halved in just three years,” energy consultant Robin Mills noted last week , “meaning solar can now beat all conventional generation apart from the very cheapest gas.” Mills cited the bids in Jordan’s recent solar auction, which were just over 6 US cents per kilowatt-hour. These were just slightly above the record 5.84 cents from Acwa Power last November for the 200 MW second phase of Dubai’s Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum solar park. It could be Egypt’s turn next, Mills suggested, as the North African country struggles with a gas and power crisis and is reportedly working on 6,500 MW of solar deals. “Petroleum-poor countries such as Jordan should seize the opportunity now to boost their economic and energy security,” Mills, the head of consulting for Dubai-based Manaar Energy, urged in an article for Abu […]

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Nigeria: Fuel Crisis Persists Despite FG, Marketers’ Assurances

Abuja — Despite the assurances by stakeholders in the petroleum sector on the resolution of the crisis in the sector, fuel scarcity has persisted in Abuja with widespread sharp practices recorded across almost all the petrol stations. Of note is the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, mega stations along the Kubwa Expressway, where some officials of the outlet connived with some policemen and security agents to frustrate motorists and heighten the suffering of Nigerians. Specifically, when Vanguard visited the petrol station, some policemen stationed outside the entrance were collecting N1,000 from some motorists and allowing them to enter into the petrol station through the exit gate, thereby, leaving other motorists who had queued for hours stranded. Only 9 out of 40 pumps dispensing Also, of the over 40 pumps in the station, only about nine were dispensing to motorists. Two of the pumps were selling to the hundreds of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple