Russian oligarch Mikhail Fridman’s investment fund said Wednesday it sent a “detailed response” to U.K. government objections to its deal to take over offshore natural-gas fields amid a period of icy relations between Moscow and the West.

UK oil and gas companies expect to create thousands of jobs over the next two years despite the dramatic slide in oil prices.

Not long ago, oil looked like a black gold mine for General Electric. The company known for toaster ovens and lightbulbs wrapped up a three-year, $10 billion buying spree in 2013 to bolster the growing oil and gas equipment unit that helped GE recover from the financial crisis. The company bulked up with the expectation that crude prices would remain at about $100 a barrel for years.

Moscow and Beijing will sign an agreement on the pipeline shipping gas from Western Siberia to China by the end of the year, Foreign Minister Wang Yi said on Monday, adding that his government will intensify trade ties with Russia in the coming months.

The Bulgarian Government reportedly launched a €33,000 tender for the offshore section of the South Stream project, in order to better understand some financial implications of the project.

Towns in the northern province of Groningen sit atop the continent’s biggest gas field, where the Dutch government says exploration by Royal Dutch Shell Plc and Exxon Mobil Corp. has triggered 196 earthquakes since 2013, damaging buildings and making home sales difficult. Lawmakers, seeking support in provincial elections March 18, have responded to residents’ complaints with a proposed cut in gas production, the second since December, in the hope that less output means fewer tremors.

Significantly lower crude oil prices have reduced foreign companies’ interest in developing oil and gas resources in sub-Saharan Africa nations, speakers at a Woodrow Wilson Center for International Studies seminar agreed. Lower prices also could give governments some time to develop better frameworks so economic and social benefits reach their countries’ general populations, they added.

Chevron Corporation executives, at the company's annual security analyst meeting in New York, expressed confidence in the long-term energy business and highlighted its growth outlook through 2017. At the same time, company executives outlined near-term actions to address the recent decline in commodity prices.

The US drilling rig count plunged 75 units—all on land—to settle at 1,192 rigs working during the week ended Mar. 6, according to data from Baker Hughes Inc. That total is the lowest since Dec. 11, 2009, and 600 fewer units compared with this week a year ago. The count has now fallen in 14 consecutive weeks, losing 728 units during that time

The oil and gas industry may cancel about $1 trillion of planned projects globally in the next two years due to the fall of the oil price.

Ex-BP boss aims to build major energy industry player from scratch Lord Browne heads new oligarch-backed $10bn fund L1 which is buying up energy industry assets while price of oil is low

CNOOC announces production start at offshore exploration project

GE announced on March 6 its new oil and natural gas facility in Broome, Western Australia, is finished and operational. The location includes a custom-build workshop, a warehouse, office space and an equipment hardstand area.

Whiting Petroleum, the largest oil producer in the Bakken shale of North Dakota, has hired bankers to seek potential buyers after coming under financial pressure due to plummeting crude prices, according to people familiar with the matter.

The European Union should share the cost of filling Ukraine’s natural-gas storage if it wants to prepare for worst-case scenarios next winter, the country’s energy minister said in an interview, highlighting a potential clash in coming negotiations between the EU, Kiev and Moscow.