SHANA - Zangeneh said Iran had outdone Qatar in recovery from the giant offshore South Pars gas field and surpassed Iraq in production from jointly owned oil reservoirs.

KHALEEJ TIMES - "Dewa, Expo 2020 Dubai and Siemens are working together to help realise His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice-President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai's, vision to identify new energy resources and provide sustainable power as part of a balanced approach that prioritises the environment. Our aim is to make Dubai a model of energy efficiency and safety," said Sheikh Ahmed.

PLATTS - Qatar's plan to double its LNG carrier fleet by 60 vessels will be one of the largest fleet expansions the industry will witness to date and will be critical to the evolution of LNG trade flows and market dynamics in the next decade.

REUTERS - Saudi Arabia’s economy grew at a pace of 2.21 percent in 2018, buoyed by strong oil sector growth and recovering from a contraction in 2017 when the economy was hurt by weak oil prices and austerity measures, government data showed on Thursday.

IMF - The economy is starting to recover from the 2015–16 slowdown caused by a decline in oil prices. Growth momentum is expected to strengthen in the next few years with increased investment and private sector credit, improved prospects in trading partners, and a boost to tourism from Expo 2020. Non-oil growth is projected to rise to 3.9 percent in 2019 and 4.2 percent in 2020. The oil sector’s prospects have also improved with higher oil prices and output. Overall real GDP growth is projected at around 3.7 percent for 2019–20.

GULF TIMES - Turkey’s top economic body ruled out seeking support from the International Monetary Fund, in an effort to end market speculation that Ankara is in touch with the Washington-based lender to negotiate a rescue package.

PLATTS- Russian energy minister Alexander Novak said Wednesday that he does not currently see a need to take any extra measures or call for an extra meeting by the OPEC/non-OPEC group over the crisis in Venezuela. "We haven't discussed the situation with [Saudi energy] minister Falih, or other ministers," Novak told reporters. "The markets are currently calm ... and the volatility is insignificant. So there is no need for the extra meeting of OPEC+, at least the Russian side thinks so."

BLOOMBERG - Saudi Arabia expects to reduce oil output once again in February and pump for six months at levels “well below” the production limit it accepted under OPEC’s oil-cuts accord, Energy Minister Khalid Al-Falih said.

IMF - Kuwait's growth is expected to strengthen. The mission has assumed an average oil price of US$57 per barrel in 2019–20, increasing to US$60 per barrel over the medium term. As capital project implementation accelerates, non-oil growth is projected to increase to about 3.5 percent in 2020. The recent OPEC decision to cut production is expected to hold oil output to 2 percent growth in 2019, which could rebound to 2.5 percent in 2020 given the spare capacity. Inflation is expected to rise in 2019–20 to about 2.5 percent as the deflationary factors in 2018 unwind.

REUTERS - Italy’s Eni and Austria’s OMV have agreed to pay a combined $5.8 billion to take a stake in Abu Dhabi National Oil Company’s (ADNOC) refining business and establish a new trading operation owned by the three partners.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - “Проект строительства газопровода «Турецкий поток» – один из флагманских проектов российско-турецкого сотрудничества. В настоящий момент продолжаются работы по строительству приемного терминала морского участка в Турции”, - добавил Александр Новак.

SHANA - Composed of two 930-km pipelines, TurkStream is able to supply over 30bcm/year of natural gas from Russia to supply Turkey's needs. After the construction of the offshore section, the onshore section on Turkey's soil remains to be constructed for this project to be completed. According to schedule, Russia's gas is planned to be exported to Turkey via this pipeline by end-2019.

REUTERS - Saudi Aramco, the world’s top oil producer, is looking to acquire natural gas assets in the United States and is willing to spend “billions of dollars” there as it aims to become a global gas player, the company’s CEO said on Tuesday.

AN - Saudi Arabia and the UAE have launched a joint cryptocurrency during the first meeting of the Saudi-Emirati Coordination council Saturday in Abu Dhabi, UAE’s national press agency WAM said.

OPEC - The JMMC calls on all participating countries of the ‘Declaration of Cooperation’ to redouble their efforts in the full and timely implementation of the supply adjustments to ensure that the oil market remains in balance in 2019.