REUTERS - Oil prices were firm on Friday, supported by OPEC’s ongoing supply cuts and hopes that Washington and Beijing may soon end their trade dispute.

МИНЭКОНОМРАЗВИТИЯ РОССИИ - Комментируя ситуацию вокруг трубопровода "Северный поток – 2", Максим Орешкин сказал, что поправки к газовой директиве ЕС не должны помешать реализации проекта. "Немецкая сторона считает, что те изменения, которые сейчас применяются, не помешают проекту. Немецкая сторона активно его поддерживает – он экономически выгоден и для Германии, и для ЕС в целом", – отметил глава Минэкономразвития.

REUTERS - Nigeria has ordered foreign oil and gas companies to pay nearly $20 billion in taxes it says are owed to local states, industry and government sources said, in a move that could deter investment in Africa’s largest economy.

WNN - India and Argentina have agreed to boost cooperation in the nuclear energy sector with the signing of a Memorandum of Understanding on 18 February by India’s Global Centre for Nuclear Energy Partnership and Argentina's National Atomic Energy Commission during Argentine President Mauricio Macri's state visit to Delhi this week.

IMF - Australia has advanced further in its economic rebalancing after the end of the mining investment boom of the 2000s. Economic growth picked up to rates above that of potential output in the first half of 2018, with solid private and public consumption and residential investment more than offsetting the drag from delays in public investment plans and drought.

THE KOREA BIZWIRE - Seven out of 10 South Koreans voted in favor of using atomic power, a survey showed Wednesday, amid the Moon Jae-in government’s nuclear phase-out policy.

GAZPROM NEFT - Revenue for FY2018 amounted to RUB 2,489 billion , a 28.7% increase year-on-year.** Adjusted EBITDA grew by more than 45.1% year-on-year to RUB799.5 billion.

NOVATEK - Profit attributable to shareholders of PAO NOVATEK increased to RR 163.7 billion (RR 54.33 per share), or by 4.7%, as compared to 2017.

SANTOS - Santos reports record annual underlying profit of $727 million and record free cash flow of $1,006 million

REUTERS - International Brent crude futures were at $66.41 per barrel, down 4 cents from their last close, though still not far off their 2019 high of $66.83 per barrel, hit on Monday. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures hit 2019 highs of $56.39 per barrel on Wednesday but had slipped back to $56.16 per barrel by 0746 GMT, which was slightly above their last settlement.

PLATTS - Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi King Salman bin Abdulaziz confirmed they are ready to continue cooperation on hydrocarbons during a phone call Tuesday, the Kremlin said in a statement.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - По словам Александра Новака, энергетическая отрасль всего мира сегодня нуждается в высококвалифицированных специалистах: «Мы знаем, что потребление энергии в мире будет постоянно увеличиваться, поэтому нам необходимы новейшие технологии и подготовленные специалисты», - подчеркнул значимость Центра компетенций глава Минэнерго России.

U.S. EIA - Crude oil production from the major US onshore regions is forecast to increase 84,000 b/d month-over-month in March from 8,314 to 8,398 thousand barrels/day , gas production to increase 858 million cubic feet/day from 77,109 to 77,967 million cubic feet/day .

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - В будущем Россия вполне сможет обеспечить значительную часть растущих мировых потребностей в нефти и газе, в том числе за счет Арктической зоны, ресурсный потенциал которой составляет более 35 млрд тонн нефти и 210 трлн м3 газа.

AP - The expansion of the regional electricity grid cannot be undertaken without foreign investment, thus presenting a lucrative win-win opportunity for foreign investors. Numbers by the International Energy Agency (IEA) indicate that the region would require US$1.2 trillion in investments between now and 2040 in order to modernise and expand its electricity grids.