Gazprom’s activities in the Caspian Sea region and its negotiations with China show that Russia is increasingly looking for opportunities to strengthen its position in other regional energy markets, even though this is connected with high political and economic costs.

Nord Stream 2 project will be commissioned in the fourth quarter of 2019, in line with previous declarations that forecasted the new pipeline to be commissioned in 2019.

The selloff marks a sharp shift in Wall Street sentiment from earlier in the year, when investors piled into energy-company debt and firms sold new bonds as the price of oil appeared to stage a comeback.

The US drilling rig count dropped 7 units to 737 during the week ended Dec. 4, marking its lowest point since Oct. 15, 1999.

В ходе обсуждения европейских инфраструктурных проектов Панагиотис Скурлетис заявил, что греческая сторона не подписывала обращение министров ряда европейских стран относительно проекта третьей и четвертой ниток газопровода «Северный поток – 2», которое было направлено в адрес Еврокомиссии в конце ноября.

В 2015 году спрос французских потребителей на российский газ активно растет. За 11 месяцев «Газпром» экспортировал в республику 8,7 млрд куб. м газа. Это почти на 32% больше, чем за аналогичный период 2014 года (6,6 млрд куб. м).

OMV and Gazprom are two of the shareholders in the contentious Nord Stream-2 expansion project. BASF, E.ON, ENGIE, and Shell are the four other stakeholders.

Norway traditionally vies with Russia to be the EU’s top gas supplier, providing about 30 per cent of import demand. In terms of energy security, EU officials hail Norway as a model of stability compared with the political and commercial risks associated with Russia and Algeria.

“Relatively low gas prices, combined with low oil prices, have slowed drilling in the Marcellus (Shale) so production from new wells is only offsetting the decline in old wells,” said EIA lead upstream analyst Dana Van Wagener.

"I will defend the position for the construction of Nord Stream II and (a) gas hub in Bulgaria - it is advantageous for the country and nobody can reproach me for that," Borisov told reporters.

“We are interested to come back to Iran when the sanctions are lifted and if the contracts are interesting,” Stephane Michel, Total’s head of exploration and production in the Middle East said at the conference. “We have worked in this country for a long time, so we know specific fields on which we’ve worked.”

The development of economic relations starting with the so-called suitcase trading of the early 1990s when Russian and Turkish tourists began to visit each other’s country, engaging in cross-border commerce, and ending with complex investment project such as Russia’s planned Akkuyu nuclear power plant in Turkey contributed to the softening of those rivalries.

Nowadays the proven shale gas reserves across the globe were estimated at about five trillion cubic meters, which was less than three per cent of the world's aggregate proven gas reserves.

The government hopes international companies will commit at least $100 billion that Iran says it needs to boost oil-production capacity by more than 1 million barrels a day.

“The regional potential is being realised, and the Israeli gas discoveries look to play a key role in shaping the regional energy market,” said Yossi Abu, chief executive of Delek Drilling, in a statement announcing the Egyptian agreement. “The deal with Dolphinus is further proof of the political and economic benefits that may be derived through regional co-operation between states and energy companies.”