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BP Announces Offshore Gas Discovery in Egypt

LONDON–BP PLC said Monday it has made a significant gas discovery offshore Egypt days after announcing plans to help invest around $12 billion to develop gas and condensate from its West Nile Delta project in the country. The discovery and investment in Egypt’s energy sector is welcome news for the country, which is facing its worst energy crisis in decades amid rising demand and falling gas production. BP said Monday its Atoll-1 deepwater exploration well in the East Nile Delta had hit 50 meters of gas-bearing rock, the company’s second major discovery in the area since 2013 and a promising sign for the potential commercial development of the concession. The company estimates that the potential volume of gas in the area could exceed 5 trillion cubic feet. The discovery follows BP’s decision last week to go ahead with development of the West Nile Delta project, in which it holds […]

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Four Filipinos nabbed from Libyan oil field

The government in Manila announced the repatriation of more than six dozen nationals from Libya one day before Islamic State abduction of four Filipinos. Photo courtesy of Filipino Foreign Ministry Seven foreign workers were abducted and 11 guards were killed when militants raided the Ghani oil field in Libya. Fighters loyal to the group calling itself the Islamic State took credit for the Friday attack, the latest to stifle oil operations in Libya. The Filipino government confirmed four of its nationals were among those seized, the Libya Herald reported Saturday. The confirmation came after the Filipino Foreign Ministry said 77 of its citizens were repatriated March 5 after they crossed the border into Tunisia. "The Department of Foreign Affairs estimates that there remain approximately 4,000 Filipinos in Libya despite the call by the Philippine government for their mandatory evacuation as a result of the deteriorating security situation in that […]

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Libya to export over 2 million barrels of oil from east this week

BENGHAZI, Libya (Reuters) – Libya is set to export more than two million barrels of crude oil this week from two ports in the east where output has topped 245,000 barrels per day, oil officials said on Monday. Rising exports from the ports of Hariga and Zueitina offer some hope for the OPEC member state’s oil sector, which has been battered by Islamist militant attacks and fighting between rival factions. Output from four fields including Sarir, the country’s largest, has reached 243,000 to 245,000 bpd, said Omran al-Zwai, spokesman for state firm Arabian Gulf Oil Company (AGOCO) which dominates production in eastern Libya. AGOCO restarted output at the Sarir and Messla oilfields after a pipeline blast cut off supplies to Hariga last month. The two fields pump around 180,000 bpd, while AGOCO also runs the Hamada and Nafoura fields. A fifth field, Bayda, has been closed to an outage, […]

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New Attacks on Libya’s Oil Assets Shake Nation’s Stability, Energy Markets

Fighters from Libya Dawn take a position outside Tripoli on Thursday. ENLARGE Photo: mahmud turkia/Agence France-Presse/Getty Images Deadly attacks on Libyan oil installations in recent days have resulted in what could be long-lasting damage to the industry that affects oil markets and alters the battle for dominance in the country. Western and Libyan officials said they suspected the Libyan affiliate of Islamic State, the radical group that has taken over parts of Iraq and Syria, was responsible for assaults on Friday that left at least eight people dead and seven foreign workers missing. The attacks targeting oil fields and their employees point to a new pattern in Libya’s violence: Lacking the strength and expertise to capture and use oil installations, militant groups are destroying them to prevent rivals from profiting from the oil. Islamic State’s “engagement with Libya’s hydrocarbons sector is not about capturing fields,” said Geoff Porter, an […]

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Libya declares force majeure on 11 central oilfields

The El Sharara oil field in Libya resumed operation in December after being shut down by militants in November. Photo by Javier Blas/CC WASHINGTON, March 5 (UPI) — Libya declared force majeure on 11 oilfields after a series of Islamic State attacks on facilities in the country’s central region. The state-owned National Oil Corp. posted a statement on its website declaring force majeure, saying it could no longer ensure production at the facilities due to the deteriorating security situation. The move frees the company of liability. Two fields, Bahi and Mabruk, had been attacked last month and were seized again Monday and Tuesday by unknown militants. Gunmen at Mabruk claimed to represent the Islamic State militant group. A third field, Dahra, was attacked late Tuesday. Col. Hakim Maazab, who commands oil guards in the region, said Wednesday the militants had withdrawn from Mabruk , after destroying oil tanks and […]

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Libya Declares Force Majeure Over Oil Fields in Central Region

Libya on Wednesday declared a force majeure related to 11 oil fields in the center of country, after a string of attacks against the facilities by the radical group calling itself Islamic State. In a statement posted on its website, state-owned National Oil Co. said it was no longer able to ensure security in the 11 fields and declared force majeure on them, a move guaranteeing legal protections from claims against any future disruptions. In recent weeks, the North African country’s oil industry—once the lifeblood of its economy—has been in the cross hairs of an armed conflict. The country is pumping about 500,000 barrels of crude oil a day, three times less than its peak output. The Dahra oil field, about 500 kilometers (310 miles) southeast of Tripoli, was attacked late on Tuesday, hours after two other oil facilities were targeted by the militants. Col. Hakim Maazab, a commander […]

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Libyan Oil Guards Prepare to Take on Islamic State

By Benoît Faucon Oil guards in Libya are getting ready to take on suspected Islamic State militants, their commander said Wednesday, following a third attack on oil fields overnight. In recent weeks, the North African country’s oil industry–once the lifeblood of its economy–has been in the cross hairs of an armed conflict. Colonel Hakim Maazab, who heads the brigade that is in charge of guarding oil fields in central Libya, told The Wall Street Journal that the Dahra oil field, about 500 kilometers southeast of Tripoli, was attacked Tuesday night by suspected Islamic State militants, hours after two other oil facilities were targeted by the same group. Col. Maazab said his brigade had sent reinforcements to the nearby Zella airport and a military aircraft had arrived to assist them. "We will go to Dahra today," he said. A Libyan oil official familiar with the situation in the fields said […]

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Egypt to Pay Back Its Oil-Company Debt by Mid-2016 – Minister

By Summer Said Egypt plans to repay its $3.1 billion debt to international energy companies operating in the country by mid-2016, almost a year later than initially planned, the country’s oil minister said. "We have already reduced the debt from $6.3 billion at the start of 2013 to $3.1 billion at the end of last year," Oil Minister Sherif Ismail told The Wall Street Journal in an interview. "We have no certain timetable for the next payments but we plan to pay back the entire amount by mid next year." Since the ouster of President Hosni Mubarak in 2011 and the turmoil that ensued, Egypt has struggled to pay foreign energy companies that provide oil and gas for its domestic market, including: BP PLC (BP), Apache Corp. (APA), BG Group (BG.LN) and Dana Gas PJSC (DANA.AD), an energy company based in the United Arab Emirates. Egyptian officials hope the […]

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U.N. meets rivals in oil-rich Libya

Sign up for our daily Energy Newsletter German energy company Wintershall said it’s using Libyan staff to get operations going again at oil fields. Photo courtesy: Wintershall TRIPOLI, Libya, March 2 (UPI) — Though some oil operations in the country have resumed, the U.N. Support Mission in Libya said it was calling for a peaceful solution to divisive crises. Disputes between rival Libya governments, coupled with increased violence attributed to Islamic State militants, have spilled over into the oil sector. British energy company BP said in a much-watched annual report published last month that long-term production issues may result from the lingering violence. The U.N. Support Mission in Libya said it met with rival leaders to discuss ways to advance political dialogue and cease-fire proposals . "The participants agreed on the principle of a ceasefire and underlined the need to end the bloodshed in Libya and engage in dialogue," […]

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Algeria: Sonatrach – Three Oil Fields Discovered Since Early 2015

Oran — Three oil fields were discovered by the national hydrocarbon group Sonatrach since the beginning of 2015, said Wednesday in Oran Chief Executive Officer of the oil company Said Sahnoun. "Sonatrach discovered for the year 2015, on its own account, three oil fields of extremely important quality," Sahnoun told APS on the sidelines of the festivities commemorating the 40th anniversary of the nationalization of hydrocarbons, hosted by the petrochemical zone of Arzew. The first oil discovery was made in the region of Touggourt while the second in Ghardaia. The third gas field was discovered in El Bayadh, said the official. These discoveries are being assessed by Sonatrach, followed by an appraisal programme that will start very shortly, added the source. Sahnoun said that the flows are "extremely encouraging ," adding that they range between 3,000 and 4,000 barrels/day.

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