The total U.S. trade deficit peaked at $762 billion in 2006, prior to the surge in U.S. oil and natural gas production. By 2014, it had dropped to $508 billion.

The six nations that make up Central Asia hold at least 11% of the world’s proven natural gas reserves, as well as substantial deposits of oil and coal, according to data compiled by BP. Afghanistan says its mineral wealth is valued at $1 trillion to $3 trillion.

“Russia sits on 25% of the world’s gas reserves and is very, very close to markets that we are very familiar with,” Van Beurden said July 30, on the sidelines of the company’s earnings presentation. Shell is also pushing “to see how we can work with Gazprom internationally.”

The Arctic has become a theatre for rival claims over a sea floor believed to be rich in minerals, oil and gas.

The United States is now the world’s leading producer of natural gas. With LNG exports scheduled to begin within the next six months, America’s oil and gas renaissance will soon provide both substantial domestic and foreign economic benefits. If US LNG can be imported into regions where there is only a single, monopolistic producer, then strategic benefits could accrue as well.

In the medium term, Iran’s gas will not be able to compete with the Russian gas in the European market.

On Aug. 3, US crude prices fell to $45 a barrel. In July, the average price was $60 a barrel. Banks are starting to tighten up their lending standards, further draining liquidity out of the market.

Seven months after Russia made the latest changes to its oil tax regime, the industry seems to have been able to adapt more easily to the new landscape than had been expected at the turn of the year. However, market experts have warned that the government must consider more fiscal reforms as the current system is continuing to distort the sector. The so-called tax maneuver, which includes a phased reduction in export duty for crude and oil products over 2015-2017 and an increase in oil extraction tax, was introduced in January.

Oil and gas production from the North Sea is expected to increase for the first time in 15 years despite a global slump in the price of crude and hundreds of job losses in the industry.

US LNG export projects face an uncertain future despite continued discoveries and production growth, a Brookings Institution analyst said. “More liquefaction capacity may be coming than markets can absorb,” warned Tim Boersma, acting director of Brookings’s Energy Security and Climate Initiative.

In May 2008, the company’s market capitalization reached $367.27 billion, making it one of world’s most valuable companies, according to a survey compiled by the Financial Times. Gazprom’s deputy chair, Alexander Medvedev, repeatedly predicted at the time that within a decade the Russian energy giant could be worth $1 trillion.

Nabors Industries Ltd. ("Nabors")(NYSE: NBR)today reported second-quarter revenue and earnings from unconsolidated affiliates of $862 million, compared to $1.42 billion in the first quarter of 2015, and $1.62 billion in the second quarter of last year. The comparable quarters included $367 million and $535 million respectively, in revenue from Completion and Production Services, a business line that merged with C&J Energy Services on March 24, 2015. Beginning in the second quarter, Nabors' results reflect equity-method accounting for this investment on a quarter-lag basis.

On a reported basis, due to a non-cash, full-cost ceiling charge, Devon had a net loss of $2.8 billion, or $6.94 per diluted share, for the second-quarter 2015. This compares with second-quarter 2014 reported net earnings of $675 million, or $1.64 per diluted share.

Gazprom's gas prices are pegged to oil with a six-month lag, which means its customers are currently paying the equivalent of $45-$50 per barrel seen in January 2015 when oil prices crashed following a decision by OPEC not to reduce output.

Russia's economy is showing signs of stabilisation after slumping under pressure from Western financial sanctions and Russian counter-measures. Low international prices for its oil exports have added to pressure on the rouble and government finances.