• French Bank Pulls Funding for Two LNG Projects

    French lender Credit Agricole has declared it will no longer finance the Rovuma LNG project in Mozambique and the Papua LNG project in Papua New Guinea. The bank cited its commitments to reduce exposure to the oil and gas industry as the basis for its decision, according to a Reuters report on the news. Rovuma LNG and Papua LNG are two of the largest liquefied natural gas projects in progress, with the companies involved including Exxon, TotalEnergies, Eni, and Australia’s Santos. ...

  • Black Sea Disruptions, Oil Prices Threaten Kazakhstan's Growth

    Kazakhstan is expected to remain on a stable growth trajectory for the next two years, driven by continued carbon use and increased consumer spending, according to World Bank projections. At the same time, the bank suggests a new reform approach is needed to improve prosperity. The bank outlined Kazakhstan’s prospects in a recently published report, titled Preparing for Tomorrow Reform for Long-Term Prosperity. As Kazakhstan continues to adapt to the shock created by Russia’s unprovoked...

  • World's Top Oilfield Services Provider Not Leaving Russia

    SLB, the biggest oilfield services firm in the world, is not planning to abandon its business in Russia, chief executive Olivier Le Peuch told the Financial Times in an interview published on Monday.    Pressure has mounted on companies, especially in the oil and gas industry, to withdraw from Russia after the invasion of Ukraine in February 2022. Many energy majors and oilfield services companies – including Exxon, Shell, BP, Baker Hughes, and Halliburton – have either announced plans to quit...

  • Azerbaijan Charts New Energy Course Amid Caspian Uncertainty

    Azerbaijan could prove a winner as the war in Ukraine continues to reshuffle the Caspian Basin energy-supply deck. But uncertain investment and financing prospects, as well as questions about production capacity, are holding Baku back at present.  When it comes to oil exports, it seems Kazakhstan’s pain can be Azerbaijan’s gain. Before the Kremlin’s unprovoked invasion of Ukraine in 2022, Kazakhstan relied on Russia for transiting the bulk of its oil exports to market. In 2022, for example,...

  • Saudi Arabia's Non-Oil Revenue Hits 50% Of GDP

    For decades, Saudi Arabia has been regarded as the de facto leader of OPEC and a swing-producer critical to curtailing large price overshoots in either direction. Over the past few years, the Arab nation has borne the lion’s share of OPEC production cuts after recently agreeing to cut 1 million barrels per day or nearly half of the group’s 2.2 mb/d in pledged cuts. Well, it appears that Saudi Vision 2030 is already bearing fruit, and Riyadh might not be feeling the pinch from those cuts as much...