Particular attention was given to the Nord Stream 2 project. The parties noted that in light of the declining European gas production, the construction of this gas pipeline was crucial for meeting the growing Russian gas demand in Europe in the future.

Iran is in a good position to deliver on its target to raise oil output by 500,000 b/d within six weeks and by a further 500,000 b/d six months after that.

Flint Hills Resources LLC, the refining arm of billionaire brothers Charles and David Koch’s industrial empire, said it offered to pay $1.50 a barrel Friday for North Dakota Sour, a high-sulfur grade of crude, according to a corrected list of prices posted on its website Monday. It had previously posted a price of -$0.50. The crude is down from $13.50 a barrel a year ago and $47.60 in January 2014.

Russia’s OJSC Rosneft has entered a deal with BP PLC to dissolve their Ruhr Oel GMBH (ROG) joint venture as part of a plan by the companies to restructure their refining and petrochemical businesses in Germany.

Russia’s OJSC Rosneft has entered a deal with BP PLC to dissolve their Ruhr Oel GMBH (ROG) joint venture as part of a plan by the companies to restructure their refining and petrochemical businesses in Germany.

Nord Stream-2 project would develop rapidly in 2016. The pipeline extension project continues to move ahead, despite opposition to from several European countries

Russia's Gazprom and a group of European companies agreed on the project last year, raising protests mostly among central and southern European countries.

Companies like BP, which said Tuesday it is cutting 4,000 jobs, are slimming down to cope with the slump in oil, whose price has plummeted to its lowest level in 12 years and is not expected to recover significantly for months, possibly years. California-based Chevron said last fall that it would eliminate 7,000 jobs, while rival Shell announced 6,500 layoffs.

“Companies have to be prudent in the face of what’s happening,” says Daniel Yergin, vice-chairman of consultancy IHS. “It’s a wrenching period for the industry.”

Global LNG output is expected to rise by a third to about 330 million metric tons annually by 2018, according to Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. Most of the new fuel will come from the U.S. and Australia, which is poised to topple Qatar as the biggest supplier. Unlike Saudi Arabia, the largest oil shipper, Qatar won’t be fighting for market share at the expense of earnings.

Oil companies including Royal Dutch Shell and Chevron have already slashed tens of thousands jobs globally to deal with a near 75 percent drop in oil prices since June 2014 that has seen earnings collapse.

The IPO proposal is consistent with the broader direction of economic reform in the kingdom, including state asset sales and market deregulation, Aramco said. Bringing in investors would also strengthen the company’s focus on long-term growth and the prudent management of its reserves, according to the statement.

Even if E&P clients are able to negotiate more favorable terms for their debt, the industry’s overextended balance sheets will put a cap on activity — even if oil prices rise. On the producer side, companies will most likely de-lever before they drill should some extra cash come in the door. For OFS, building all the new equipment such as walking rigs and big frac spreads to meet strong client demand has some players in this sector significantly over-levered.

More than $60 billion in unsolicited corporate takeover bids during 2015 were rejected, causing deal value to drop to a 10-year low. Aside from the Shell-BG deal, there were no corporate takeovers exceeding $5 billion. Fewer than 10 asset deals valued at greater than $1 billion occurred, following more than 30 annually during each of the previous 2 years.

Iran's deputy oil minister for commerce and international affairs, Hossein Zamaninia, said Tehran had identified nearly 50 oil and gas projects worth $185 billion that it hoped to sign by 2020.