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RIYADH: Oil losses extended on Wednesday after plunging 5 percent in the previous session as investors priced in expectations for interest rate hikes in the US and Europe and waited for clarity on future policy developments.
Brent futures dipped $1.12, or 1.49 percent, to $74.20 a barrel at 11:35 a.m. Saudi time, while West Texas Intermediate crude fell $1.18, or 1.65 percent, to $70.48.
Both benchmarks closed on Tuesday at their lowest levels since March 24, when they also recorded their biggest one-day percentage declines since early January.
The US Federal Reserve is expected to hike interest rates by an additional 25 basis points on Wednesday to combat inflation, while the European Central Bank is also expected to raise rates at its regular policy meeting on Thursday.
TotalEnergies to begin exploration in Lebanon’s offshore Block 9
French oil major TotalEnergies, in agreement with its partners ENI and QatarEnergy, announced on Tuesday it has signed a contract with Transocean to hire a drilling rig for an exploration well on Block 9 offshore Lebanon as soon as possible.
The Transocean Barents, a semi-submersible drilling rig, will be mobilized in the continuity of its current operations in the British North Sea.
BP braced for $1bn payment under the UK’s windfall tax
BP expects to pay $1 billion under the UK’s windfall tax on the oil and gas sector between May 2022 and April 2023, the company said on Tuesday.
BP paid a total of $650 million in tax in the UK in the first quarter of 2023, of which $300 million came under the Energy Price Levy, a company spokesperson said after the firm reported a $5 billion quarterly profit.
Last year BP paid $700 million under the EPL, bringing the total to $1 billion, it said.
The UK government imposed a 25 percent windfall tax on oil and gas producers last May in the wake of soaring energy prices after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The government increased the EPL in November to 35 percent, bringing Britain’s total tax rate on the sector to 75 percent, one of the highest in the world.
Iran’s oil production above 3m bpd
Iranian oil production has surpassed 3 million barrels per day, the country’s oil minister said on Tuesday according to the Oil Ministry’s website.
“Over the last 20 months, Iran’s oil production has reached levels above 3 million barrels per day and natural gas output has reached more than 1 billion cubic meters,” Javad Owji said.
Iran pumped 2.4 million bpd on average in 2021 and has been under US sanctions since 2018 when then-President Donald Trump withdrew from a 2015 nuclear deal allowing Tehran to sell oil globally.
(With input from Reuters)