September 2015

Russia and China continue walking hand in hand toward stronger energy cooperation, with several Russian companies - Gazprom, Rosneft and Novatek - signing documents with Chinese partners over the last hours.

The October crude oil contract on the New York Mercantile Exchange gained 84¢ to $46.25/bbl on Sept. 2 while the November crude oil contract also climbed 84¢ to $46.86/bbl. The natural gas contract for October declined 5¢ to a rounded $2.65/MMbtu. The Henry Hub, La., gas price dropped 3¢ to $2.71/MMbtu. The October ICE contract for Brent crude climbed 94¢ to settle at $50.50/bbl, and the November contract gained 93¢ to $51.29/bbl. The ICE gas oil contract for September dropped $10.25 to $471.50/tonne. The average price for the OPEC basket of 12 benchmark crudes declined $2.24 to $45.53/bbl on Sept. 2.

Buying crude oil from Russia allows China to ensure security of supply as cooperation between the two countries is likely "to gain new momentum," China National Petroleum Corp. Chairman Wang Yilin said Friday.

Russia can increase its oil production to as much as 700 million tonnes of oil per year (14 million barrels of oil per day) and export 300 billion cubic meters of gas to China annually, Rosneft Chief Executive Igor Sechin said on Friday.

German chemicals group BASF and Gazprom agreed to revive a deal that collapsed in late 2014 to swap gas assets that will see BASF exit gas trading and storage and the Russian energy giant expanding into Western Europe, BASF said on Friday.

Сегодня во Владивостоке в рамках Восточного экономического форума Председатель Правления ПАО «Газпром» Алексей Миллер, Председатель Правления BASF SE Курт Бок, член Правления E.ON SE Клаус Шефер, заместитель генерального директора ENGIE Пьер Шарейр, Председатель Правления OMV AG Райнер Зеле, Главный управляющий директор Royal Dutch Shell Бен ван Берден подписали Соглашение акционеров для создания газопроводной системы «Северный поток 2» для увеличения поставок природного газа в Европейский союз.

Rosneft and Indian ONGC Videsh Limited during the Eastern Economic Forum signed the agreement of sale and purchase of 15% in Vankorneft and shareholders agreement in regard of the enterprise management. The document was signed by the Chairman of Rosneft Management Board Igor Sechin and Managing Director of ONGC Videsh Limited Narendra Verma.

Oil prices fell more than 7 percent on concerns about global demand for petroleum, reversing a three-day rally that had pushed U.S. crude up 27.5 percent.

Although unrestricted exports of U.S. crude oil would leave global crude prices either unchanged or falling slightly compared to parallel cases that maintain current restrictions on crude oil exports, other factors affecting global supply and demand will largely determine whether global crude prices remain close to their current level, as in EIA's Low Oil Price case, or rise along a path closer to the Reference case trajectory. Global price drivers, as well as resource and technology outcomes, will affect growth in U.S. crude oil production regardless of decisions about future U.S. crude oil export policies.

German Ministry of Finance informed on 30 July that the Minister Wolfgang Schäuble would like to deprive the European Commission of part of its powers in two fields, namely antitrust proceedings and, currently particularly important for Germans, enforcing compliance with the budgetary discipline by the member states.