Russia-Saudi oil cooperation is still going strong as part of the OPEC+ alliance, which will do “whatever necessary” to support the market, Saudi Energy Minister Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman told a conference on Wednesday.
The discovery was made by Saudi Aramco, a leading company in the production of energy and chemical products. This company is already recognized for locating new gas reserves in times of national decline.
Saudi Arabia’s government transferred a further $164 billion stake in Aramco to the Public Investment Fund, a move aimed at bolstering cashflow at the state-backed investor that’s ramping up spending on huge local projects.
In an oil market update sent to Rigzone late Tuesday, Rystad Energy Senior Vice President Jorge Leon outlined that OPEC+’s extended production cuts of 1.7 million barrels per day into the second quarter have resulted in an increase of $5 per barrel to Rystad Energy’s previous price projection.
Since commencing oil production in 2019, Guyana’s fortunes have changed dramatically. With a population of just 800,000, this small South American nation is on track to become one of the world’s leading oil producers per capita in 2024, potentially surpassing major oil-producing nations like Saudi Arabia and Qatar shortly.
Rising geopolitical risk pushed Brent well past $80 last week, but the brief price rally has been dampened by continued economic concerns and a strong supply situation.
Saudi Arabia is exporting crude oil via the Red Sea as usual despite Houthi attacks on vessels in the region, a senior Aramco official told Bloomberg.
“We’re moving in the Red Sea with our oil and products cargoes,” Mohammed Al Qahtani, head of Aramco’s refining, oil trading and marketing division said, adding that the risks were “manageable”.
Saudis Continue Sending Oil via Tense Red Sea
by Bloomberg|Matthew Martin & Anthony Di Paola|Friday, January 26, 2024
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Saudis Continue Sending Oil via Tense Red Sea
Aramco is bucking threats on Red Sea vessels from Yemen’s Houthi rebels.
Image by sandsun via iStock
Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil company, is continuing to send tanker loads of crude and fuels through the southern Red Sea, where Houthi militants have for months been menacing merchant ships in response to Israel’s war in Gaza.
Saudi Arabia reduced the official selling price of its flagship crude by $0.50 per barrel for Asian buyers in January.
This is the first price reduction in seven months, although it is a smaller reduction than analysts had expected.
The move was in response to intensified international competition after OPEC production cuts pushed Middle Eastern oil prices higher.
Part of the reason oil prices went lower rather than higher last week despite the OPEC+ announcement was the suspicion that some of the cuts will remain so only on paper.