Oil Prices Fall Amid Market Oversupply. Oil fell below $49 a barrel Tuesday morning, slowing the strong rally seen in August. [Reuters]
China Becomes Biggest Crude Operator In North Sea. A state-owned Chinese company now runs two of the biggest oilfields in the area and one of its subsidiaries now produces around 200,000 barrels a day. [Daily Mail]
Iran Looks For Stronger Financial Ties With Russia. With sanctions pressures starting to fade, a representative from oil-rich Iran said the financial doors for cooperating with Russia were starting to open. Officials in Tehran are reexamining oil deals and swaps amid a desire to facilitate oil-related trade between the two nations. [UPI]
Bullish Outlook For UK Gas Market. A sharp uptick in LNG imports and recovery in demand in 2015, along with the plan to phase out coal, has increased the need for the UK to build more gas storage to hedge against supply risk from mainland Europe. [NewsBase]
Iraq Asks Companies To Increase Oil Output. Iraq’s oil minister is calling on foreign oil companies to increase their oil output and exports ahead of OPEC talks next month. [Reuters]
Feds Set To Livestream Oil & Gas Lease Sale. “Five months after protesters disrupted an oil and gas lease sale for tracts in the Gulf of Mexico, the government is livestreaming a lease sale. Four protesters opposed to federal oil lease sales were arrested Tuesday at New Orleans where the leasing agency has offices” [ABCNews]
EPA: North Texas Earthquakes Likely Linked To Drilling. Based on the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s annual evaluation of Texas oilfields, Federal regulators believe “there is a significant possibility” that recent earthquakes in North Texas are linked to oil and gas activity, even if state regulators won’t say so. [The Texas Tribune]
The Last Gasp For U.S. Summer Gas? Natural gas futures posted what appears to be one final summer rally on speculation that a final spurt of hot weather before the end of summer will curtail fuel stockpiles, helping to erode a supply surplus. [Bloomberg]
Pakistan Signs Deal For Second LNG Terminal. Pakistan is taking another step towards becoming a key buyer of liquefied natural gas (LNG), signing a deal to purchase a Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) for its second import terminal. The country is seen as an up-and-coming demand outlet for the oversupplied LNG market. [Fortune]
Transocean Winner Towed Successfully. This was a fortnight after the semi-submersible drilling rig Transocean Winner was blown ashore in bad weather.The 17,000-tonne structure has been safely towed off the rocks by two tug boats. The tugboats are towing the rig to the east side of Lewis, where experts will assess the condition of the rig. [The Guardian]