MEES - Weekly Oil & Gas News Analysis

1 week ago | mees.com | Jamie Ingram

Saudi Arabia may have to prepare for a much higher than expected budget deficit this year, with freshly-released data from the Ministry of Finance showing that a quarter of the way into the year the deficit is already more than half way to the expected full year figure of $26.9bn. Ominously, the figures relate to the period before oil prices dropped sharply in early April when US President Donald Trump unveiled his tariff plans (MEES, 4 April), with more economic pain likely on the way for Q2.

1 week ago | mees.com | Jamie Ingram

Saudi petrochemicals giant Sabic posted a first quarter loss of $320mn amid a weak market characterized by continued oversupply. This marked Sabic’s second consecutive quarterly loss, the firm’s worst spell since the end of 2023, although it attributes this to “one-time restructuring costs that position us for long term value creation.” The company benefits from advantaged feedstock costs domestically, although Saudi Arabia has been steadily increasing prices recently.

1 week ago | mees.com | Jamie Ingram

Fresh off the back of a year of record profits, Adnoc Gas has put itself in position for another record breaking year with Q1 profits up 7% year-on-year to $1.27bn. The gains were largely driven by an increase in domestic gas sales, coupled with a flexible approach to LNG sales which enabled the firm to capitalize on a strong LNG spot market. “The growth is across the board,” Adnoc Gas CFO Peter van Driel told the firm’s 6 May earnings call.

1 week ago | mees.com | Yesar Al-Maleki

Opec began the unwinding of voluntary production cuts last month but the impact on actual production was limited. Output edged up by just 10,000 b/d to 26.98mn b/d, largely because previous unfettered overproduction by a handful of producers limited the scope for actual gains. The broader Opec+ alliance began unwinding 2.2mn b/d of voluntary cuts being made by eight core members in April, with combined quotas increasing by 138,000 b/d. Five of these eight producers are part of Opec.

1 week ago | mees.com | Peter Stevenson

Much of Chevron’s East Mediterranean attentions focus on Egypt and Israel (MEES, 9 May) but development activities have also commenced offshore Cyprus this quarter CEO Mike Wirth revealed during his firm’s Q1 call on 2 May. “We entered pre-FEED activities in the first quarter,” he said.