Putin Says Russia Doing Fine in Face of Tumbling Crude Prices

Even as Western sanctions over Ukraine bite, crashing oil prices are hitting Russia's economy and government finances.

Brent and West Texas Intermediate crudes fell to the lowest level in more than four years after OPEC failed to cut its output in response to a glut.

The International Energy Agency’s chief economist on Friday urged oil producers to boost investment in new projects to meet an anticipated rise in demand, a move that he said may avoid oil price spikes in coming years.

Battered by sanctions and oil’s accelerating price crash, OAO Rosneft (ROSN) has lost 38 percent of its market value this year in dollar terms and today the whole company, TNK-BP and all, is worth $50 billion.

OPEC 166th Meeting concludes

According to a review of financial statements released in recent weeks and despite lower crude oil prices, companies drilling in North American tight oil formations recorded improved financial results in third-quarter 2014 as compared with third-quarter 2013

U.S. retail regular-grade gasoline prices continue to decline, averaging $2.82 per gallon (gal) as of November 24.

Real gross domestic product -- the value of the production of goods and services in the United States, adjusted for price changes -- increased at an annual rate of 3.9 percent in the third quarter of 2014, according to the "second" estimate released by the Bureau of Economic Analysis.

Over the past five years, rapid growth in U.S. onshore natural gas and oil production has led to increased volumes of natural gas plant liquids (NGPL) and liquefied refinery gases (LRG). The increasing economic importance of these volumes, as a result of their significant growth in production, has revealed the need for better data accuracy and transparency to improve the quality of historical data and projections for supply, demand, and prices of these liquids, co-products, and competing products. To reduce confusion in terminology and improve its presentation of data, EIA has worked with industry and federal and state governments to clarify gas liquid terminology and has developed the term Hydrocarbon Gas Liquids, or HGL.

Europe must wean itself off Russian gas and look to places like the Caspian Sea or the Middle East for alternative supplies, as the conflict in Ukraine underscores the importance of energy independence

US Vice-President Joe Biden claimed Russia is using energy as 'a weapon' and urged European countries to diversify sources for the purposes of energy security.

Winter natural gas prices expected to remain high

Shale gas provides largest share of U.S. natural gas production in 2013

The South Stream project is continuing as planned, an official of the Russian Energy Ministry's pool and gas department said on Monday