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President Barzani health scare: The office of President Nechirvan Barzani was forced to issue a statement on 10 December denying the Kurdistan Region of Iraq (KRI) leader had been suffering from ill health, amid rumours on social media of a health scare during his visit to Paris to attend the reopening of Notre Dame cathedral on 7 December. Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG) spokesperson Dilshad Shahab said such rumours were “unfounded” and “entirely false”.

Adnoc Gas, now under new chief executive Fatima Al-Nuaimi, broke ground at Ruwais in November and has since awarded contracts for an LNG pre-conditioning plant, compression facilities and pipelines.

Roc Oil Company has completed its Tethys Oil acquisition, giving the Australian firm a stake in five Omani blocks with production of some 8,800 b/d.

Abu Dhabi National Energy Company has appointed former BP chief executive Bernard Looney and Blackstone president Jon Gray, alongside Sultan Ahmed Al-Jaber and other senior local figures, to the board of its new mega-venture XRG.

A major commitment to clean energy was made during Emir Sheikh Tamim’s state visit to the UK in early December.

President Emmanual Macron had hoped to secure more contracts for French companies during his three-day visit to Riyadh and Al-Ula, but few significant announcements were made during the trip which coincided with his government being voted down in the French parliament.

An Omani government-backed consortium has acquired a 41% stake in Angolan diamond mining venture Catoca from Russian giant Alrosa. It is the second major deal this year by Maaden International Investment involving Russian-owned assets.

The start of services on the Riyadh Metro and hotel openings at the Red Sea Project are positive signs of progress in the kingdom’s ‘giga-project’ economy. But for all the hype about the government’s shift away from Saudi Arabia’s reliance on oil revenues, hydrocarbons are as vital to the economy today as they were when Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman launched his Vision 2030 diversification strategy in 2016. The turnover of key executives suggests the Saudi top team is unhappy with progress to date.

The 9.6m t/yr liquefied natural gas project was originally due to be developed in Fujairah, but was moved to Abu Dhabi emirate in early 2023. Once complete in 2029, it will more than double the UAE’s LNG production capacity to 15.6m t/yr.

QatarEnergy has added to its existing holdings in two promising areas off the coast of Namibia, where TotalEnergies made the giant Venus oil discovery in February 2022.

Saudi Power Procurement Company has awarded contracts to develop and operate four CCGT plants with 7GW-plus combined generating capacity to two consortia who will receive 25-year power purchase agreements.

Iranian officials have revived the idea of building a tunnel under the Gulf to Qatar – an idea that previously suggested in 2022. The megaproject would require a tunnel with an underwater section of at least 185km – almost five times further than the current longest submarine tunnel in the world. Officials are due to hold discussions in Doha in the coming weeks, but the limited levels of bilateral trade mean the megaprojects is unlikely to make economic sense.

QatarEnergy has bought a 23% interest in Egypt’s North El-Dabaa (H4) Block in the Mediterranean Sea for an undisclosed amount.

Oman’s state-owned energy group OQ is preparing to list a minority stake in its Base Industries subsidiary on the Muscat Stock Exchange, following the bourse debut of its OQ Exploration and Production division in late October.

In a sector reorganisation, Sharjah ruler Sheikh Sultan Bin Mohammed Bin Saqr Al-Qasimi has set up an Energy Council, renamed the Petroleum Council as the Petroleum Department and appointed Sharjah National Oil Corporation (SNOC) chief executive Hatem Mohammed Al-Mosa as director general of both bodies.