Opec may cut demand forecast

RIYADH: Opec will likely revise down its 2022 oil demand growth forecast on Monday when it publishes its monthly report, two Opec+ sources told Reuters, as the spread of the delta coronavirus variant puts the speed of a fuel use recovery in doubt.

Opec did not change its forecast in July and August reports.

About 1.4 million barrels/day of the US Gulf’s offshore oil production remained halted since late August. That amount is roughly equal to what the Opec member Nigeria produces.

China plans its first public auction of state crude oil reserves to a select group of domestic refiners, the reserves administration announced, as Beijing looks to cool high raw material costs for the manufacturers.

The US Department of Energy said that it had approved a second loan of 1.5 million barrels of oil to ExxonMobil from the Strategic Petroleum Reserve after damage from Hurricane Ida devastated offshore oil production.

The construction of the Nord Stream 2 subsea pipeline to Germany, completing Moscow’s project to increase its gas export capability and bypass Ukraine, is finished, but flows have yet to be cleared by the regulators, Gazprom said on Friday.

By constructing the pipeline, Russia has completed its plans to boost energy exporting capabilities toward Europe, both from the north in the Baltic Sea and from the south in the Black Sea, where it operates the TurkStream pipeline.

Santos sealed an agreement to buy Oil Search to create a global top 20 oil and gas company, it said on Friday, even as the Papua New Guinea government raised concerns that a takeover could harm national interests.

Brent crude rose $1.57, or 2.2 per cent, to $73.02 at 1:30pm GMT on Friday. US WTI crude added $1.58, or 2.3 per cent, to reach $69.72.