For us it is a principal issue. Gazprom has launched a programme to optimise expenses in the central corridor which now has free capacities which also cost us money. We will hence liquidate 4,300 km of pipes and close 62 compressor stations.

Iran is regaining market share at a faster pace than analysts had projected since sanctions were lifted in January, helped by securing more tankers through a temporary shipping insurance fix.

Last year, Norway’s derived half of its oil and gas revenue from production taxes, 43% from the government’s direct ownership in oil and gas assets, and 7% from dividends paid by Statoil ASA, in which the government has a 67% stake.

The two companies signed the contracts after very difficult negotiations on Saturday evening. Managing Director of Sadaf Petrochemical Assaluyeh Company Ahmad Jazayeri said the Swiss company will help his company to build a plant for production of the synthetic polymer ESBR, a strategic product used in the petrochemical industry and rubber manufacturing.

The new discovery is 12 km off shore, and 10 km north of last year’s find, Nooros. The well was drilled in water depth of 25 m and reached a total depth of 3,750 m and found about 62 m of net gas pay in high quality Messinian sandstones and with "excellent reservoir properties," according to Eni.

Oil companies BP (BP.L) and Det norske (DETNOR.OL) have agreed to merge their Norwegian businesses in a $1.3 billion all-share deal to cut costs, challenge Statoil's (STL.OL) dominance of the local industry and look for more acquisitions.

As many as 120,000 oil workers will have lost their jobs in Britain by the end of the year compared to mid-2014 when oil prices started declining and unleashed sector-wide cost cuts, the industry's lobby group said on Friday.

In 2015 global demand for primary energy grew by only 1%, significantly slower than the 10-year average. This reflected continued weakness in the global economy and lower growth in Chinese energy consumption as the country shifts from an industrial to a service-driven economy.

Nord Stream 2 will offer a secure, reliable connection to the world’s biggest gas reserves in Siberia, where investments from Russian and international energy companies over the last decades have ensured that the gas fields are amongst the most cost-effective sources from which to supply Europe. At the same time, Russian gas supplies are available and deliverable at short notice, making Russian piped gas the best option for Europe’s gas supply - economically and ecologically.

“We believe Nord Stream 2 is a good project, it provides infrastructure for importing gas to the EU, which will need. Russia is a major gas supplier to the EU.”

Еврокомиссия продолжает войну с «Газпромом», считает портфельный управляющий GL Asset Management Сергей Вахрамеев. По мнению заместителя гендиректора Фонда национальной энергобезопасности Алексея Гривача, газовые соглашения намеренно политизированы Брюсселем.

While in Germany and Austria, the promoters of Nord Stream 2 are quite outspoken, in the Netherlands and France, there is recognizable, but more silent support in government circles. Here, as well, the main line of argu­mentation is based on the added value of infrastructure di­versification and the neutrality of political actors on eco­nomic activity in the market.

Russia's Gazprom plans to export a record 165 billion cubic metres (bcm) of gas to Europe this year, the company's deputy chief executive Alexander Medvedev told reporters on Thursday.

Россия уже 20 лет является крупнейшим экспортером энергоресурсов на греческий рынок и обеспечивает 60 процентов потребностей Греции в газе и свыше 15 процентов в нефти.

Leviathan, one of the largest offshore discoveries of the past decade, was found in the eastern Mediterranean in 2010 and has been mostly earmarked for exports.