NOVATEK - In 2018, NOVATEK’s hydrocarbon production totaled 548.4 million barrels of oil equivalent (boe), including 68.81 billion cubic meters (bcm) of natural gas and 11,800 thousand tons of liquids (gas condensate and crude oil), resulting in an increase in total hydrocarbons produced by 35.1 million boe, or by 6.9% as compared with the twelve months 2017.

U.S. EIA - EIA forecasts Brent prices will average $61 per barrel (b) in 2019 and $65/b in 2020. In 2018, Brent prices averaged $71/b.

SHANA - the OPEC Conference that unanimously decided on December 7 to adjust OPEC overall production by 0.8 mb/d from October 2018 levels, effective as of January 2019, for an initial period of six months.

PLATTS - Russia has already lowered its oil output by around 30,000 b/d compared with October volumes, used as a baseline under the latest OPEC/non-OPEC crude production agreement, and still plans to reach a cut of 50,000 b/d by the end of January, Russian energy minister Alexander Novak said Friday.

CNBC - Saudi Arabia has additional reserves in an area along the border with Kuwait that has sat idle due to a dispute between the neighbors. Including this so-called Neutral Zone, Saudi oil reserves total 268.5 billion barrels, DeGolyer and MacNaughton concluded. That compares with an earlier estimate of 266.3 billion barrels.

REUTERS - India’s oil imports from Iran fell by 41 percent in December to 302,000 barrels per day oil (bpd), ship tracking data reviewed by Reuters showed, as pressure from U.S. sanctions took effect.

U.S. EIA - Crude oil production in Iraq averaged 4.5 million barrels per day (b/d) through August 2018, up from 4.4 million b/d in 2017. Iraq’s crude oil production has been steadily increasing since declines in the late 1990s and early 2000s, and it has nearly doubled over the past decade.

BHGE - U.S. Rig Count is unchanged from last week at 1,075 rigs, with oil rigs down 4 to 873 and gas rigs up 4 to 202. Canada Rig Count is up 108 rigs from last week to 184, with oil rigs up 83 to 103 and gas rigs up 25 to 81.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - “В нефтяной отрасли мы в 2018 году по итогам года добыли 556 миллионов тонн нефти. Это на 10 миллионов тонн больше, чем в 2017 году. Прирост составил 1,6 процента. Было введено в эксплуатацию 54 месторождения. В газовой отрасли также побит 18-летний рекорд по добыче – 725 миллиардов кубических метров газа добыто. Это составляет примерно пятипроцентный прирост к 2017 году”, - сообщил Александр Новак.

NPD - The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate’s forecasts show that, after a minor decline in 2019, oil and gas production will increase from 2020 and up to 2023. Overall production will then approach the record year of 2004.

The worldwide rig count for December 2018 was 2,244, down 22 from the 2,266 counted in November 2018, and up 155 from the 2,089 counted in December 2017.

PLATTS - OPEC crude production in December tumbled 630,000 b/d month on month, an S&P Global Platts survey of industry officials, analysts and shipping data showed Tuesday, but the organization still has much more cutting to do to reach its new quotas for 2019.

MEOG - Saudi Arabia reportedly cut its crude production by more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) in December 2018. Saudi crude production sat at 10.65 million bpd (mbpd) that month, down from 11.07 mbpd in November.

PLATTS - The US Energy Information Administration forecasts that Venezuelan oil production will fall below 1 million b/d in the second half of 2019, according to Erik Kreil, an international energy analysis team leader with the EIA.

REUTERS - Iraq said on Friday it was committed to the OPEC+ output-cutting deal and would keep its oil production at 4.513 million barrels per day for the first half of 2019.