REUTERS - Brent crude futures LCOc1 were at $74.22 per barrel at 0455 GMT, down 1.8 percent from their last close. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $68.42 a barrel, down 0.2 percent, supported more than Brent by a slight drop in U.S. drilling activity and a Canadian supply outage.

REUTERS - Venezuela has the ability to boost crude output by 1 million barrels per day (bpd) by end of the year in its bid to recover lost production, but the oil minister also said on Friday this goal would be “a challenge” for state oil firm PDVSA.

NOVATEK - According to the MOU, the parties agreed to explore opportunities for KOGAS to enter the Arctic LNG 2 project and possible LNG off-take from the project, participate in the LNG transshipment project in Kamchatka and other infrastructure projects, as well as develop cooperation in LNG trading and logistics optimization, including swap operations.

PLATTS - The Libyan National Army has retaken the key eastern oil terminals of Ras Lanuf and Es Sider that shut 450,000 b/d of crude production, the head of the state-owned National Oil Corp. said Friday.

OPEC Ministers React to Trump's Tweet at OPEC in Vienna

IMF: Austria’s economy is robust. Supported by expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, growth has picked up markedly, to 3 percent in 2017 and 3.1 percent (y/y) in Q1 2018. A recovery in private investment and a favorable external environment as growth in Europe accelerated more broadly, have underpinned growth. Concomitantly, unemployment has declined recently. Inflation remains broadly stable, at 2 percent (y/y) in April.

IEA - Global gas demand will grow at an average rate of 1.6% a year, reaching just over 4,100 billion cubic meters (bcm) in 2023, up from 3,740 bcm in 2017,

OGJ - Sandra Oudkirk, deputy assistant secretary for energy diplomacy at the US Department of State, confirmed that the Trump administration has received several requests to sanction the proposed Gazprom-sponsored pipeline that would extend from Russia beneath the Baltic Sea to Germany.

AOG - Sheikh Abdullah said: “This agreement strengthens the already close ties between the UAE and the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and between the UAE and India. The UAE is unwavering in its commitment to its strategic multi-lateral relationships with both Saudi Arabia and India, as well as being a reliable partner in India’s energy security. We look forward to exploring further opportunities to expand our energy partnerships and to collaborating on new, broader, opportunities that will further strengthen and deepen the long-standing economic links between our three countries.”

ARAB NEWS - The United States warned countries that they must stop buying Iranian oil before Nov. 4 or face a renewed round of American sanctions.

REUTERS - “We met. We discussed energy issues, among other things. We touched upon questions related to sanctions,” Novak said in a press briefing in Washington. “We can’t sidestep these difficult questions, so of course we touched upon them during our contact.”

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - в ходе переговоров был актуализирован статус реализации совместных инфраструктурных проектов «Северный поток-2» и «Турецкий поток», направленных на диверсификацию маршрутов транзита газа и повышения энергетической безопасности ЕС.

REUTERS - Indonesia’s deputy energy minister said on Tuesday Chevron Corp intended to cut planned investment in the Indonesia deepwater development (IDD) gas project to around $6 billion from $12.8 billion.

REUTERS - French oil and gas company Total SA expects the global natural gas market to grow far faster than that for crude oil over the next two decades thanks to booming demand for the cleaner-burning fuel in Asia, an outlook that underpinned Total’s recent big investments in the space, Chief Executive Patrick Pouyanne said.

REUTERS - Brent crude futures LCOc1 had climbed 61 cents, or 0.8 percent, from their last close to $76.92 per barrel by 0650 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures CLc1 were at $70.88, up 35 cents, or 0.5 percent.

REUTERS - Norway, which shares an Arctic border with Russia, lacks a “credible plan” how to meet NATO’s spending target, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a letter to the country’s prime minister, the Norwegian daily VG reported on Tuesday.

WNN - For the foreseeable future, most new nuclear power technologies will still run, wholly or partially, on uranium, so it is important that this vital resource is mined, produced and managed sustainably, International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) Director General Yukiya Amano said this week. It is also essential to take full account of environmental concerns, "both to ensure public acceptance today and to avoid troubling legacy issues in the future", he added.

WNN - A group of 75 senior US figures, including former statesmen, military, industrial and academic leaders, have written to Energy Secretary Rick Perry imploring him to take immediate action to prevent the closure of reactors, citing the contribution of nuclear power to national security. Meanwhile, the US Senate has passed a 2019 appropriations bill providing USD1.2 billion for nuclear energy programmes and supporting nuclear innovation.

WNN - GE and EDF have signed a strategic cooperation agreement for the planned construction of six EPR reactors at the Jaitapur site in Maharashtra, India. The document was announced by Xavier Ursat, senior executive vice president of EDF in charge of new nuclear projects and engineering, and Andreas Lusch, president and CEO of GE's Steam Power business.

ROSATOM - June 22, 2018 in Moscow ROSATOM and the Ministry of Infrastructure of the Republic of Rwanda signed a Memorandum of Understanding on cooperation in the field of peaceful uses of atomic energy.