Oil and gas

A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on February 9, 2026. (Photo by Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

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.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Scott Olson/Getty Images

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.

A long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the highway Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026.

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.

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/06/will-pashinyans-victory-armenia-be-enough-unlock-peace-turkey-azerbaijan

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.

Latest News

Algeria begins work on Trans-Saharan gas pipeline to Europe

BOUREIMA HAMA/AFP via Getty Images

Oman denies disruption at key oil hub after reported drone attack

AFP via Getty Images

Explainer

How Iran war created unexpected economic beneficiaries

Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images

After Gulf attacks, Rubio faces pushback on 'war is over' claim

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio testifies during a House Committee on Foreign Affairs hearing in the Rayburn House Office Building on June 03, 2026, in Washington. The hearing was held to examine the State Department's budget request for fiscal year 2027.

US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud.

Blinken heads to Saudi Arabia with Israel ties on agenda

Secretary of State Antony Blinken’s much-anticipated visit to the kingdom comes after years of strain over the price of oil and human rights.

Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro waves as he leaves Itamaraty Palace in Brasilia on May 30, 2023, after a summit with other South American leaders. Brazilian President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is hosting his fellow South American leaders Tuesday for a "retreat" aimed at strengthening ties in a region where left-wing governments are newly back in style. (Photo by Sergio Lima / AFP) (Photo by SERGIO LIMA/AFP via Getty Images)

Why is Venezuela's Maduro visiting Saudi Arabia?

The Venezuelan president's visit to the kingdom is the first since 2015, on his way back from Turkey where he attended Recep Tayyip Erdogan's inauguration.

Israeli gas fields

Israel announces new natural gas field off its coast

The official announcement on the discovery of the Katlan-Orca natural gas field off Israel's coast paves the way for hydrocarbon exploration company Energian to seek development and exploitation permits.

Qatar Economic Forum

Qatar forum warns of economic downturn, shift in cryptocurrency

One Qatar Economic Forum participant says it will take at least a generation to reach a point where the world can depend on clean power.

Saudi Arabia's Foreign Minister Faisal bin Farhan Al Saud (L) shakes hands with German Foreign Minister Annalena Baerbock.

Germany, Italy hold talks with Saudi Arabia, Qatar to strengthen energy ties

Italy is looking for capital from Saudi Arabia's Public Investment Fund for a new fund Rome is setting up to help domestic companies in strategically important sectors.

NATALIA KOLESNIKOVA/AFP via Getty Images

Russia’s Tatneft makes new oil discovery in Libya

Russia and the controversial military contractor Wagner Group have longstanding interests in Libya’s oil, but instability has hurt the ability of Russian oil companies to operate in the North African country.

Iraq's Foreign Minister Fuad Hussein gives a joint press conference with his German counterpart at the foreign ministry headquarters in Baghdad on March 7, 2023. (Photo by Murtaja LATEEF / AFP) (Photo by MURTAJA LATEEF/AFP via Getty Images)

Iraqi FM expects continuity in ties with Turkey, no matter who wins election

Fuad Hussein says TotalEnergies deal “would change character of Iraqi economy,” discusses relations with the United States, Iran, Syria and Arab states.

Workers at the Northern Oil Company carry out maintenance work at the pumping station in the northern Iraqi city of Kirkuk.

Iraq asks Turkey to resume oil exports as firms in Kurdistan region scale back

Turkey has still yet to restart oil flows from northern Iraq following a controversial court ruling despite efforts by Iraqi and Kurdish authorities. The stoppage is threatening the Kurdistan Region’s oil sector.

A general view shows 09 March 2004 the Shaybah mega-project, the first, and so far sole, oilfield development in Saudi Arabia's vast Al-Rub al-Khali desert, some 800 kilometers (500 miles) southeast of the eastern oil center of Dhahran. The Shaybah mega-project, which sits on top of some 15 billion barrels of proven oil reserves, more than a drop in the ocean of Saudi Arabia's estimated total reserves of about 260 billion barrels, has been producing oil to the tune of 600,000 barrels per day (bpd) for less

Saudi Aramco profit drops 19% on lower oil prices

Aramco has signed major deals with companies in China, the United States and South Korea recently, and OPEC+ recently announced a supply cut.

Israel's Defence Minister Yoav Gallant (L).

Israel's defense chief: Iran has enough uranium for five nuclear bombs

On an official visit in Greece, Israel’s Defense Minister Yoav Gallant warns against Iran’s continued efforts to advance its nuclear program.

Turkish nergy and Natural Resources Minister Fatih Donmez

Turkey says Russia agreed to delay gas payment ahead of elections

The deal marks another economic boon from Moscow to Ankara ahead of Turkey's fateful elections.

A picture taken on April 4, 2023 shows the Nahr Bin Omar oil field and facility near Iraq's southern port city of Basra. - Major oil powers led by Saudi Arabia announced a surprise production cut of more than one million barrels per day on April 2, calling it a "precautionary" move aimed at stabilising the market. (Photo by Hussein FALEH / AFP) (Photo by HUSSEIN FALEH/AFP via Getty Images)

Analysis

Saudi-led OPEC turns deaf ears on oil cuts amid global slowdown

Predictions for GDP growth in the Gulf look more optimistic than those for the rest of the world, and the region is resisting calls to stop cutting oil production.

By Salim A. Essaid