REUTERS - On Thursday, the regional price of crude was at a $1.10 a barrel premium to U.S. crude futures, the strongest in more than a year as companies including Parsley Energy, Pioneer Natural Resources, Goodrich Petroleum Corp have pared their exploration budgets, easing the constraints.

CNBC - Asked how much BP could spend in Egypt in 2019, Dudley said the amount would be significant. "There will be a third phase we're spending on, we're exploring today with other companies ... (So we'll be spending) $1.8 billion give or take. That's a lot," he said.

REUTERS - Steel pipe maker Tenaris will team up with Severstal, one of Russia’s largest steel producers, to make steel pipes in the heart of Russia’s oil and gas sector in Siberia, they said on Tuesday.

KHALEEJ TIMES - "Dewa, Expo 2020 Dubai and Siemens are working together to help realise His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai's, vision to identify new energy resources and provide sustainable power as part of a balanced approach that prioritises the environment. Our aim is to make Dubai a model of energy efficiency and safety," said Sheikh Ahmed.

BLOOMBERG - Investment in oil and gas production collapsed by about $350 billion, or more than 40 percent, from 2014 to 2016 -- the sharpest contraction since the 1980s -- after crude fell from over $120 a barrel to less than $30, according to the International Energy Agency. The number of new projects approved in 2017 dwindled to the lowest in 70 years, the Paris-based agency said.

PLATTS - Libya's state National Oil Corp. is targeting a $60 billion overhaul of its oil and gas sector as it strives to reach a pre-civil war output level of around 1.6 million b/d by the end of this year.

REUTERS - “There is no doubt - and there is a consensus coming here in various meetings in Davos - that our industry is literally under siege and the future of oil is at stake,” said Mohammed Barkindo, secretary-general of oil producer group OPEC.

REUTERS - China has lent over $50 billion to Venezuela through oil-for-loan agreements over the past decade, securing energy supplies for its fast-growing economy.

REUTERS - Italy’s Eni and Austria’s OMV have agreed to pay a combined $5.8 billion to take a stake in Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) refining business and establish a new trading operation owned by the three partners.

POWERMAG - China continues to finance new coal plants in more than two dozen countries, even as the country has taken the lead in global renewable energy investment, according to a report from a U.S. group of energy analysts.

REUTERS - Saudi Aramco, the world’s top oil producer, is looking to acquire natural gas assets in the United States and is willing to spend “billions of dollars” there as it aims to become a global gas player, the company’s CEO said on Tuesday.

PLATTS - US onshore E&P capital investments in 2019 are likely to be flat to slightly down from last year, with international activity outside North America picking up slowly over the next several months, Schlumberger's top executive said.

ENCA - Saudi Arabia's planning to build an oil refinery and a petrochemicals plant in South Africa. It's part of a $10-billion (R138-billion) investment in the country.

ENA - Mohammed Saif Al Suwaidi, Director-General of ADFD, said, "The Abu Dhabi Fund for Development believes in the vital role the renewable energy sector plays in attaining the sustainable development goals in developing countries. This important sector stimulates economic growth, creates employment opportunities, drives innovation, supports the advancement of other key sectors, and optimises the use of natural resources – all crucial factors in improving people’s lives."

PLATTS - The companies plan to invest around $1.4 billion for the project with Sonatrach and and Total sharing 51% and 49%, respectively.