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Morocco natural gas reserves emerging

Sands of Morocco yielding good results for energy companies working in frontier territory. (UPI Photo/Mohammad Kheirkhah) . LONDON, Dec. 22 (UPI) — Morocco could be emerging as a major regional player in terms of potential natural gas production, companies working on fledgling campaigns there said Monday. Morocco is one of the West African countries that have drawn interest from international energy companies eager to tap into unexploited reserves. Circle Oil, a British energy company focused on Middle East and North Africa, announced what it considers to be a significant natural gas discovery in Morocco . The company said it achieved production from its Sebou permit area in the country at a sustained test rate of 8 million cubic feet per day. "We believe that this well will add significant volumes to our reserves for potential gas production and at rates not subject to oil price fluctuation," Circle Oil Chief […]

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War hurting Libyan oil, but NATO rules out intervention

Conflict in Libya endures after civil war, with oil production well below pre-conflict levels. NATO says its mindful of the situation, but rules out military action. File Photo by Tarek Alhuony/UPI BRUSSELS, Dec. 19 (UPI) — With conflict curbing Libya’s oil potential, NATO officials said they’ve reviewed the situation, but have not discussed any military role in the country. Last weekend, the oil ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf were shuttered because of armed clashes in the region. Combined, the two ports can handle 560,000 barrels of oil per day, about half of the country’s total export capacity. Libyan stability since the end of civil war in 2011 has faltered amid clashes between armed groups fighting for more control over the oil-rich country. Pre-conflict oil production was higher than 1 million barrels per day, though output has slumped recently to as low as 330,000 bpd because of clashes […]

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Libya Imposes Force Majeure on 2 Oil Ports After Clashes

Libya ’s National Oil Corp. declared force majeure on the oil ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, and is taking measures to halt output at some oil fields because of armed clashes in the politically-divided North African country. Fighting factions should spare energy infrastructure in Libya, the state-run National Oil Corp. said in a statement yesterday on its website. Force majeure is in place at Es Sider and Ras Lanuf, Libya’s largest and third-largest oil ports with a combined capacity of 560,000 barrels a day. The measure is a legal step that protects a company from liability when it can’t fulfill a contract for reasons beyond its control. National Oil, known as NOC, didn’t say which oil fields are being halted. NOC is adopting measures to protect wells, pumps and pipelines. “Force majeure has been declared at the oil ports of Es Sider and Ras Lanuf because of […]

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OPEC oil production: still swinging on Libya

Oil production from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) totaled 30.01 million barrels per day (b/d) in November, down 290,000 b/d from October, and down for a second consecutive month as Libyan production went into reverse after several months of steady gains, according to the latest Platts survey of OPEC and oil industry officials and analysts. The November level compared to October output of 30.3 million barrels per day and is within a few hundred thousand barrels of the 30-million-b/d ceiling that OPEC, at its recent end-November meeting, decided to maintain despite multiple projections that such production could create a significant supply overhang in the market. Libyan production had climbed to an average 860,000 b/d in October, almost double the July level. But a new security-related shut-in at the Sharara field in early November resulted in a month-on-month drop of 210,000 b/d. “This is the great irony […]

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Islamic State setting up Libya training camps, US says

Islamic State militants have set up training camps in eastern Libya, the head of the US Africa command says. Gen David Rodriguez said there could be "a couple of hundred” IS fighters undergoing training at the sites. He said the camps were at a very early stage, but the US was watching them "carefully to see how it develops". Libya has been in turmoil since Muammar Gaddafi was overthrown in 2011, with various tribes, militias and political factions fighting for power. Several Islamist groups are competing for power in the east of the country, with some militants recently declaring allegiance to IS. Syria connection Speaking in Washington on Wednesday, Gen Rodriguez said it was not yet clear how closely aligned the trainees were with IS. "It’s mainly about people coming for training and logistics support right now, for training sites," he said. "Right now it’s just small and very […]

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Algeria Able to Cope With Impacts of Sliding Oil Prices, Says Djellab

Algiers — Algeria’s financial balances will not be affected by sliding oil prices, Minister of Finance Mohamed Djellab declared Monday in Algiers. In a statement to the Algerian television on the impact of oil price fall on the national economy’s financial balances, the minister stressed that Algeria has "mechanisms likely to cope with such situations" and thanks to the "cautious policy" the country has adopted for more than 10 years. Thanks to its policy, Algeria succeeded to refund its debts and therefore, have a "bigger capacity" to prepare for the new economic picture and accumulate huge foreign exchange reserves, Djellab said while insisting on the contribution of the Oil Revenues Fund to face the oil price drop. Oil prices reached their lowest level in the international market for almost five years. The Minister recognized the impact that the fall of oil prices can have on the national economy, saying, […]

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Egyptian court sentences 185 to death for attack on police

CAIRO (Reuters) – An Egyptian judge sentenced 185 Muslim Brotherhood supporters to death on Tuesday over an attack on a police station near Cairo last year in which 12 policemen were killed. The ruling is preliminary and subject to a lengthy appeals process. It also goes to the country’s top religious authority for approval although his opinion is not binding. The sentence comes days after another court dropped charges against Hosni Mubarak over the killing of protesters during the 2011 uprising that ended his 30-year rule. The attack on the Kerdasa police station took place on Aug. 14, 2013, the day that Egyptian security forces cleared two Brotherhood protest camps in Cairo, killing hundreds of people in one of the bloodiest episodes in Egypt’s modern history. Of those sentenced, 151 are in custody, with the others being tried in absentia, a judicial source said. Egyptian authorities have rounded up […]

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Egypt militant group says it killed US oil worker

CAIRO (AP) — An Egyptian militant organization allied with the Islamic State group has claimed responsibility for the killing of an American oil worker. Ansar Beit al-Maqdis, which now refers to itself as the Sinai Province, said on its official Twitter account late Sunday that it killed William Henderson. It published pictures of his passport and two identification cards. It did not say when or how it killed him. The passport said he was a 58-year-old from Texas and his identification cards said he worked for Texas-based energy company Apache Corp. and Qarun Petroleum Co., a joint venture with Egypt. Apache said in August that one of its supervisors had been killed in an apparent carjacking in Egypt’s Western Desert. The company did not identify the man. The Enid News & Eagle in northwestern Oklahoma published an obituary for a man named William Henderson in August, saying he had […]

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Libya: Rival Government Wants To Attend Oil Meeting

Both Libya’s internationally recognized government and a rival government want to attend the Nov. 27 OPEC meeting in Vienna, Reuters reported Nov. 26. Libya’s internationally recognized government will send three delegates to the meeting, a spokesman said. The rival government, which operates out of Tripoli, says it will refuse to comply with any production decisions if it is denied access to the meeting. An OPEC representative said the group’s only role is to facilitate the meeting, and it does not send invitations to member countries.

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Libya Producing 700,000 B/D of Oil — Energy Official

By Benoit Faucon Libya is currently producing 700,000 barrels a day of oil, a top energy official said Wednesday. The country’s current production, less than half of its normal level of about 1.5 million barrels a day, has been hit by frequent unrest and strikes. Speaking to reporters, Mohamed Oun, a deputy vice-prime minister for energy, also said his government decided to replace the head of the National Oil Co. Mustafa Sanallah with Almabrouk Abuseif Alahirish. Mr. Sanallah couldn’t be reached for comment. It’s unclear how Libya’s internationally recognized government could enforce the decision. A rival rebel cabinet is in control of NOC’s offices in Tripoli. Mr. Oun is part of a team sent to Vienna by the internationally recognized government for a meeting of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. Deputy-Prime minister Abdulraman al-Taher Alahirish told reporters he would lead the Libyan delegation at the gathering. Under […]

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