The United States produced a record amount of energy from various sources in 2018, reaching 96 quadrillion British thermal units (quads), an 8% increase from 2017. This increase in production outpaced the 4% increase in U.S. energy consumption, which also reached a record high of 101 quads.

China's refinery crude throughput rose 5.1% year on year to 52.1 million mt, or 12.73 million b/d in April, a record high on barrel per day basis, preliminary data released Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics showed.

ROSNEFT - Net income growth of 61.7% YoY to RUB 131 bln

Hydrocarbon production in Q1 2019 amounted to 5.90 mmboed (71.7 mmtoe), exceeding Q1 2018 level by 3.4%. Average daily hydrocarbon production decreased by 0.6% QoQ due to the Company’s compliance with its obligations under the OPEC+ Agreement.

In the first quarter of 2019 LUKOIL Group's average hydrocarbon production excluding the West Qurna-2 project was 2,379 thousand boe per day, which is 4.1% higher year-on-year and 0.3% higher quarter-on-quarter. The increase was mainly driven by the development of gas projects in Uzbekistan.

Brent spot prices will average $70/b in 2019 and $67/b in 2020, compared with an average of $71/b in 2018.

The Arab Petroleum Investments Corporation (APICORP), a multilateral development financial institution, forecast in its MENA Annual Energy Investment Outlook 2019 that current and planned energy investments in the region add up to $1trn for the next five years.

Total world demand for the year is now expected to reach 99.91 mb/d and exceed the 100.00 mb/d threshold during 2H19. OECD oil demand growth is projected to reach 0.21 mb/d, with OECD Americas leading the increase, while oil demand in the non-OECD region is projected to rise by around 1.0 mb/d, with Other Asia and China being the primary contributors to growth.

U.S. EIA - In January 2019, for the 21st consecutive month, dry natural gas production increased year to year for the month. The preliminary level for dry natural gas production in January 2019 was 2,746 billion cubic feet (Bcf), or 88.6 Bcf/d. This level was 10.7 Bcf/d (13.7%) higher than the January 2018 level of 77.9 Bcf/d.

Saudi Aramco announced the signing of a share purchase agreement to acquire a 70% majority stake in Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC) from the Public Investment Fund of Saudi Arabia, in a private transaction for $69.1bn.

Aramco’s gas expansion strategy needs $150 billion of investment over the next decade as the company plans to increase output and later become a gas exporter, Nasser had said in November.

Abu Dhabi Crown Prince and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan and Chancellor of Austria Sebastian Kurz attended the signing ceremony of Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) and OMV and Borealis to explore new opportunities for collaboration in the downstream sector.

The Gazprom Board of Directors expressed its approval the Company’s ongoing work on its major investment projects.

In 2018, world oil demand is estimated to have grown by 1.43 mb/d, down by 0.04 mb/d from the previous estimate amid downward revisions in both OECD and non-OECD regions.

OGJ - Saudi Aramco has signed a $10-billion agreement to form a joint venture with China North Industries Group Corp. (Norinco) and Panjin Sincen to develop a fully integrated, grassroots refining and petrochemical complex in Panjin, in China’s Liaoning province.