Author: Rigs & Barge World

US oil giant Chevron is reviewing potential opportunities to acquire international assets owned by sanctioned Russian producer Lukoil, five sources told Reuters on November 17. This move follows a US Treasury waiver issued last week that allows potential buyers to engage with Lukoil regarding its overseas holdings. If Chevron proceeds, it will join Carlyle and other interested bidders competing for the portfolio. The portfolio is valued at a minimum of $20 billion. The US imposed sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, Russia’s top two oil firms, for their role in supporting Moscow’s war financing. These measures have severely disrupted Lukoil’s operations…

Karim Badawi, Minister of Petroleum and Mineral Resources, shed light on a series of major achievements in the sector during a celebration commemorating the Golden Jubilee of National Petroleum Day, which marks the anniversary of the 1975 recovery of Egypt’s Sinai oil fields from Israeli control. A statement by the ministry noted that Badawi honored 196 employees during the ceremony held at the Abu Rudeis production fields in South Sinai. The minister praised the sector’s workers for their dedication to sustaining production levels and securing energy supplies for the domestic market. He noted that since the launch of the ministry’s…

The launch of the IEA’s annual World Energy Outlook (WEO) this week was a much-watch event for the energy sector. The IEA’s reinstatement of its Current Policies Scenario (CPS) attracted the most attention, showing that the world is on course for a 12.8mn b/d increase in oil consumption by 2050 absent a change of direction. But arguably the most important takeaway is that energy security risks are on the rise due to the world’s growing dependence on China for critical minerals. The energy transition has unleashed heated debates over the continued role of oil and gas in the global economy,…

TotalEnergies will appeal a decision by the French Competition Authority that imposes a fine on the company for alleged anti-competitive practices in the supply of petroleum products in Corsica. The Authority’s ruling follows a four-year investigation. However, TotalEnergies maintains that the decision is not supported by evidence of any negative competitive impact on the island.The case’s core is a 2016 contractual clause governing access to Corsica’s fuel depots for shareholder-investors. TotalEnergies argued that the clause did not harm market dynamics, stating that non-shareholder distributors already had access through a separate supply arrangement.According to the company, the Corsican distributor that filed…

Production from the Opec+ Group of Eight (G8) countries increased by just 17,000 b/d last month according to the Secondary Sources aggregate, just 12% of the agreed 137,000 b/d quota increase. A number of G8 members are unable to continue raising production in line with quota increases due to capacity constraints, while others are compensating for previous overproduction. In this instance, the main driver was a 154,000 b/d drop from Kazakhstan due to field maintenance. As a result, combined G8 output of 32.86mn b/d was 160,000 b/d below the cumulative quota, the highest such figure since producers began unwinding the…

National Drilling Company (NDC), an Egyptian oil and natural gas services provider, recorded a net profit of $6.61 million for the nine months ending on September 30, 2025, marking an 11.85 % increase from the level recorded in the same period of 2024, according to figures released to the Egyptian Stock Exchange (EGX). The company also saw its net profit for the first half of the year ending in June 2025 reaching  $3.699 million, up from $3.185 million in the previous year. Established in 1981, NDC specializes in land drilling and workover activities, along with associated services and technical support…

The Ordinary General Assembly of Maridive & Oil Services has approved the setting up of a AED 1 million company in the UAE. The wholly owned new company will provide a wide range of marine-related activities, including maintenance, installations, construction, and marine salvage operations, both underwater and above water. It will also provide industrial services for onshore and offshore facilities, such as cleaning, maintenance, construction, transportation, supply, and provisioning of equipment and spare parts. Founded in 1978, Maridive is an Egyptian offshore and marine services company specialising in providing engineering, diving, and logistical support for the oil and gas industry…

Fuel smuggling operations involving state and foreign actors have escalated into a “major national crisis” in Libya, costing the state more than $20bn in lost revenue between 2022 and 2024, according to a new report by investigative and policy organization The Sentry. Published on 13 November, the report claims that while fuel smuggling is not new in Libya (MEES, 6 October 2023), the worsening crisis reached “unprecedented levels” during the tenure of former NOC chief Farhat Bengdara, who led the state firm from July 2022 (MEES, 15 July 2022) until his controversial departure early this year (MEES, 31 January). Officially…

 The price stagnation of crude oil continues amid evolving tariff issues between the United States, the world’s largest economy, and the rest of the world.As of Monday at 15:00 GMT, WTI and Brent, the two main benchmarks, were recorded at $60.30 and $64.28 respectively.Although the US and China, the world’s two top economies, took steps not to escalate the ‘tariff war’ from where it was a few weeks ago, the tension has taken its toll on both countries. For the US, recent polls indicated affordability issues for ordinary citizens, exacerbated by the tariff disputes. Inflation remains a major concern that…

TotalEnergies has signed an agreement with Czech energy group Energetický a průmyslový holding (EPH) to acquire a 50% stake in its flexible power generation platform, as reported in TotalEnergies’ press release. The partnership, valued at €10.6 billion, will create a joint venture (JV) to expand flexible power assets, including natural gas-fired plants, biomass facilities, and battery storage across Western Europe. The new 50/50 JV will operate the existing assets and drive future growth across the UK, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, and France. The platform is valued at €10.6 billion, which equates to 7.6 times its expected 2026 Earnings Before Interest,…