Oil and gas

A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on Feb. 9, 2026.

Explainer

Oil’s slide wavers as Trump warns US-Iran deal ‘not final’

Brent crude prices briefly jumped back above $80 per barrel on Wednesday as traders digested conflicting signals about efforts to end the war and reopen Hormuz.

Amirhossein KHORGOOEI / ISNA / AFP via Getty Images

3 Iranian tankers with 4.8M barrels of oil pass US blockade: What to know

At least three US-sanctioned Iranian-flagged tankers have exited the Gulf of Oman as the Trump administration eyes Tehran's moves ahead of sanctions waivers expected to begin Friday.

Jared Szuba

In Washington, DC, reporting on defense, national security, military

A general view shows the Awad oil field in the eastern Qamishli countryside in northeastern Syria, on February 9, 2026. (Photo by Amjad Kurdo / Middle East Images / AFP via Getty Images)

Exclusive

US firm HKN Energy takes over 7 oil fields from Syria's Kurds

HKN Energy has begun operating seven oil fields under a 25-year agreement with Damascus, marking the first major production-sharing deal between Syria's new government and an international oil company.

Amberin Zaman

By Amberin Zaman

Reporting on geopolitics, minorities, human rights, culture

Scott Olson/Getty Images

Explainer

US strategic oil stockpile nears four-decade low as Iran war drags on

The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve fell to 349.2 million barrels amid the global energy shock caused by the war in Iran.

Latest News

Syria says Iraqi oil shipments surge as Damascus courts foreign energy investment

A long convoys of Iraqi diesel-laden tanker trucks line up along the highway Tartus-Baniyas highway as they wait to unload their cargo at the Baniyas port refinery on the Mediterranean Sea, on April 15, 2026.

Explainer

Venezuela’s Delcy Rodriguez meets Erdogan in surprise Turkey visit: What to know

https://www.al-monitor.com/originals/2026/06/will-pashinyans-victory-armenia-be-enough-unlock-peace-turkey-azerbaijan

Algeria begins work on Trans-Saharan gas pipeline to Europe

BOUREIMA HAMA/AFP via Getty Images

Oman denies disruption at key oil hub after reported drone attack

AFP via Getty Images

The sun sets behind road lamps along a highway in El-Shorouk.

Egypt’s power cuts persist amid heat, declining natural gas production

Egypt wants to export more natural gas, including in cooperation with neighboring Israel, but domestic production is declining amid the government’s efforts to reduce consumption.

From Beijing to Chengdu, UAE’s ENOC establishes first China jet fuel network

The Dubai government-owned oil and gas company said the expansion will extend to strategic cities including Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Shenzhen and Chengdu.

United Arab Emirates

ATTA KENARE/AFP via Getty Images

Iran inks deal with Pakistan as pipeline project drags

The five-year partnership seeks to facilitate and double the current bilateral trade, which has been complicated by US sanctions on doing business with Tehran.

A picture shows the headquarters of UAE's state oil company ADNOC in Dubai on July 27, 2022.

UAE’s ADNOC buys stake in Azerbaijan gas field

The move follows a wind and solar energy deal between an Emirati firm and Azerbaijan.

MAHMUD TURKIA/AFP via Getty Images

Eni ends 9-year force majeure status for Libyan gas exploration sites

Eni is Libya’s largest gas producer and domestic market supplier with an 80% share of national production.

pumpjacks in Syria

Canadian energy firm to develop major oil field in Turkey’s Kurdish southeast

A Canadian firm will help Turkey develop its new oil field in Sirnak province.

This aerial photo taken on August 4, 2019 shows tugboats berthing an oil tanker at Qingdao port in Qingdao in China's eastern Shandong province. - China's good shipments abroad beat expectations to rise in July while its purchases continued to shrink, official data showed on August 8. (Photo by AFP) / China OUT (Photo by STR/AFP via Getty Images)

Iran's oil shipments to China triple in 3 years despite sanctions

Iran’s strengthening ties to China have prompted some senators to call for more sanctions.

A young boy carries home a battery-powered fan amid a heatwave and electricity shortage in Gaza City, Gaza Strip, July 19, 2023.

In Gaza, pressure builds on Hamas to solve power crisis amid heat wave

Palestinian activists in the Gaza Strip are launching campaigns to pressure Hamas into resolving the power crisis, which has worsened this past month due to a severe heat wave.

A file picture shows Kuwait's largest oil refinery at Al-Ahmadi complex, about 40 kilometers (25 miles) south of the capital Kuwait City, Kuwait, Nov. 21, 2014.

Kuwait to begin drilling in disputed gas field with Iran

Kuwait and Saudi Arabia’s dispute with Iran over the Durra gas field is coming amid improved ties between Iran and the Gulf.

OPEC President UAE Energy Minister Suhail al-Mazrouei (C) speaks as he sits with Minister of Energy of Russia Alexander Novak (left) and OPEC Secretary General Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo (r) of Nigeria during a meeting at the headquarters of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) with OPEC members and non-OPEC members in Vienna, Austria on December 7, 2018. (Photo by JOE KLAMAR / AFP) (Photo credit should read JOE KLAMAR/AFP via Getty Images)

UAE joins India's Global Biofuel Alliance on clean energy ahead of COP28

The UAE minister of energy and infrastructure announced Wednesday that his country is a willing participant in the global alliance and has been investing heavily in biofuels.

A flame from a Saudi Aramco oil installion known as "Pump 3" is seen in the desert near the oil-rich area of Khouris, 160 kms east of the Saudi capital Riyadh, on June 23, 2008. Oil producers are at war with speculators but they have been left speculating themselves over the future of their precious commodity after a unique summit, analysts said. Government ministers and traders alike are anxiously waiting to see which way prices go in coming weeks after Sunday's summit of consumers and producers, which Sau

Saudi oil exports hit new low, dropping by more than one-third

In May of this year, Saudi Arabia’s value of oil exports hit a low of just over $19 billion, reported the kingdom’s General Authority for Statistics. This includes both crude and refined products.

The Vladimir Rusanov, a liquefied natural gas (LNG) Russian tanker ship.

Dampened China demand driving up Middle East purchases of Russian oil

China's appetite for fuel oil has been slowly increasing since the COVID-19 pandemic when the country implemented some of the strictest lockdowns in the world.