Exclusive US firm HKN Energy takes over 7 oil fields from Syria's Kurds HKN Energy has begun operating seven oil fields under a 25-year agreement with Damascus, marking the first major production-sharing deal between Syria's new government and an international oil company. By Amberin Zaman Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture
Explainer US strategic oil stockpile nears four-decade low as Iran war drags on The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell to 349.2 million barrels amid the global energy shock caused by the war in Iran. United States
Syria says Iraqi oil shipments surge as Damascus courts foreign energy investment Speaking at the Atlantic Council Global Energy Forum in Washington on Tuesday, Syrian Petroleum Company CEO Yousef Qiblawy said Iraq's overland oil exports through Syria have expanded rapidly in recent months. Syria
Explainer Venezuela’s Delcy Rodriguez meets Erdogan in surprise Turkey visit: What to know Venezuelan acting President Delcy Rodriguez visited Turkey as part of Caracas' post-Maduro diplomatic outreach, seeking to deepen ties with Ankara in energy, trade and mining despite the continued constraints of remaining US sanctions. Turkey
How significant is latest US seizure of illicit Iranian oil shipment? The US government said entities affiliated with Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps had sought to smuggle the oil to China. Iran
Shipping company in Greece fined $2.4B for breaching Iran sanctions In an agreement with the US, the illegal oil export was kept secret for almost five months amid fears of retaliation from Tehran. Iran
Oil prices surge as Saudi Arabia, Russia extend 1.3 million barrel cut through December The production cuts by Saudi Arabia, Russia and the OPEC+ alliance have succeeded in keeping oil prices up but have also had some negative effects on the Saudi economy. Legacy: Gulf
Israel, Cyprus, Greece leaders enhance cooperation on gas infrastructure The leaders of Israel, Greece and Cyprus met in Nicosia to discuss strengthening the trilateral strategic alliance between the countries and exploring options for exporting Israeli natural gas via Cyprus to Europe. Israel
Iran's oil production bounces back as exports to China rise despite sanctions Iran's oil industry was hurt by the reimposition of US sanctions in 2018, but has largely recovered since then, in part due to increased exports to China. Iran
Egypt to drill 35 gas wells by 2025 as BP invests The energy giant pledged $3.5 billion in investment into gas exploration in Egypt over the next three years. Egypt
Saudi Arabia’s foreign reserves shrink by $16B in July amid oil cuts The kingdom’s net foreign assets declined to 1.53 trillion riyals ($407 billion), according to the central bank’s monthly report published on Monday. Saudi Arabia
Turkey, Saudi Arabia ink critical mineral cooperation deal Green energy investments will have an important share in cooperation between Turkey and Saudi Arabia, said the Turkish energy minister. Turkey
Fossil fuel subsidies in Middle East nearly doubled since 2020, says IMF The fund said that fossil fuel companies globally benefited from $13 million in subsidies per minute last year. Legacy: Gulf
Israel to export more gas to Egypt as cooperation grows Israeli-Egyptian cooperation on gas matters has increased significantly in recent years, despite Egyptian criticism of Israeli policy towards the Palestinians. Egypt
Turkey’s FM tackles long-held disputes with Iraq in first official visit Hakan Fidan chose Iraq for his first official visit as Turkey's new foreign minister, but the visit appeared to yield little progress on long-standing disputes between Ankara and Baghdad. Turkey
US shale giant to invest $1.4B in Egyptian fossil fuel projects At the end of last year, Apache Corp's main interests in Egypt were in the Western Desert with 5.3 million gross acres in six separate concessions. Egypt
