Petroleum industry

US oil giant ExxonMobil intends to send two surveying vessels to Cyprus's exclusive economic zone in the face of Turkish pressure that has temporarily prevented Italian company Eni's drilling in Block 3.

The US Ambassador to Greece Geoffrey Pyatt will join US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson, Assistant Secretary of State for European and Eurasian Affairs Wess Mitchell and several of his regional counterparts in Ankara on Thursday and Friday for consultations on a range of topics, including the energy agenda, where coordination with αmbassadors from Baku to Belgrade is intrinsic to the US strate

U.S. State Secretary Rex Tillerson starts his two-day visit to Ankara on Feb. 15, as the two NATO allies seek ways to ease disagreements, particularly over Syria policies.

The United States is “keenly aware” of Turkey’s security concerns, U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson said on Feb. 13, adding that it remained concerned over recent events in northwestern Syria.

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson blamed Russia for failing to honor its commitment to the elimination of chemical weapons in Syria, TASS reported, quoted by Focus. The Russian agency refers to a Tillerson interview given to the American television channel Fox news.

Senior Turkish officials have expressed Ankara’s willingness to re-build a trust-based relationship with the United States but have underlined its expectations to see concrete measures taken from its ally, particularly on its cooperation with a terror-affiliated group in Syria, in a direct message on the eve of two key visits from Washington in the coming days.

U.S. President Donald Trump’s national security advisor, H.R. McMaster, will visit Istanbul this weekend and Secretary of State Rex Tillerson will visit the Turkish capital Ankara next week, it was announced on Feb. 6. 

OPEC member Kuwait plans to spend more than half a trillion dollars by 2040 to boost its oil and gas output and refining capacity, a top executive said on Jan. 31.

Crude oil exports by Iraq state-oil marketer SOMO ran at an average rate of 3.5 million barrels per day in January, an Iraqi oil official have said.

Iraq plans to build an oil refinery at the port of Fao on the Gulf with two Chinese companies, and is seeking investors to build three more, the oil ministry said on its website on Jan. 29.