Page 14 - AsianOil Week 25

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OPEC+ puts pressure on Kazakhstan Despite slashing spending by 40% in April,
Kazakhstan is reportedly being pressed by its Block says it remains “enthusiastically active on
OPEC+ partners to better comply with agreed many fronts.” It has formed a partnership with
oil output quotas. The Central Asian state failed international consultancy EPI to help draw up
to stick to its May quota, which it will have to development plans for both its existing pro-
compensate for through deeper cuts later this jects and others it is looking to acquire from
year. Schlumberger.
Kazakhstan faced accusations of disregard-
ing its commitments under the previous OPEC+ If you’d like to read more about the key events shaping
deal, which expired in April. While its share of the former Soviet Union’s oil and gas sector then please
the cuts is far smaller than the likes of Russia and click here for NewsBase’s FSU OGM Monitor.
Saudi Arabia, OPEC+’s lead members will want
to ensure that all parties keep to their promises. Carbon neutral LNG
The stakes are high, after all, as the deal’s collapse Royal Dutch Shell announced this week that it
would derail the market recovery and cause oil had agreed to deliver two cargoes of carbon-neu-
to spiral downwards once again. tral LNG to a subsidiary of China National Off-
Downstream, Russian refineries cut their shore Oil Corp. (CNOOC). The delivery, to
gasoline output to a 15-year low in May in CNOOC Gas & Power Group, will mark the
response to a slump in fuel demand triggered first carbon-neutral LNG to reach the Chinese
by coronavirus-related travel restrictions, the mainland.
country’s energy ministry estimates. The speed Shell said all emissions from exploring for
at which fuel demand collapsed in Russia has and producing the natural gas used as feedstock
been matched by how quickly it has recovered, for the LNG, as well as the use of the fuel by the
catching suppliers unaware. At the start of June, final consumers, are offset by credits from a
Russia’s energy ministry called on producers to variety of nature-based projects. These include
cut gasoline exports and send more fuel to the afforestation projects in China’s Qinghai and
domestic market. Xinjiang provinces that the company supports.
In Georgia, there is progress at the West Shell has been supplying a small number of
Rustavi gas field, with London-listed operator carbon-neutral LNG cargoes to buyers since
Block Energy reporting the arrival of an early June 2019. The first buyers of these cargoes were
production facility. This brings the company Tokyo Gas and South Korea’s GS Energy. Shell
one step closer to launching gas sales from the supplied a third carbon-neutral cargo to Taiwan’s
field in the second half. CPC in March.

P14 www. NEWSBASE .com Week 25 25•June•2020