TASI starts flat as investors assess the lower oil prices and higher inflation: Opening bell

RIYADH: Oil prices fell on Tuesday as bleak economic data from top crude buyer China renewed fears of a global recession.

Brent crude futures fell 73 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $94.37 a barrel by 0313 GMT.

WTI crude futures dipped 44 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $88.97 a barrel.

Oil futures fell about 3 percent during the previous session.

Petroecuador seeks investor boost in 23 oil fields

Ecuador’s state oil company, Petroecuador, announced on Monday two separate bidding processes to seek partners to invest in one of its largest oil blocks and almost two dozen other, smaller, fields in a quest to boost the Andean nation’s production.

Ecuador President Guillermo Lasso has said that he hopes to double Ecuador’s crude production, which currently stands at 495,000 barrels per day, with strong private investment in the strategic sector.

The first tender will be for the Sacha field, considered one of Ecuador’s most productive, pulling in 70,000 bpd. The private partner must provide financing to increase reserves and improve extraction levels in the area, Petroecuador said in a statement.

The state-run company said it will continue to operate the Sacha block jointly with the selected partner through a contract for specific integrated services, with financing from the other party.

Petroecuador did not disclose the amount of investment required or the goals for increasing production in the block.

With the second bidding process, Petroecuador is seeking financing from a contractor to increase the output of 22 oil fields located throughout the country’s Amazon region. The fields are operational but require further investment to reach their potential.

Oil output in Permian to rise to a record high in September: EIA

Oil output in the Permian in Texas and New Mexico, the biggest US shale oil basin, is due to rise 79,000 bpd to a record 5.408 million bpd in September, the US Energy Information Administration, also known as EIA, said in its productivity report on Monday.

Total output in the major US shale oil basins will rise 141,000 bpd to 9.049 million bpd in September, the highest since March 2020, the statistical arm of the Department of Energy projected.

In the Bakken in North Dakota and Montana, the EIA forecast oil output will rise 21,000 bpd to 1.157 million bpd in September, the most since November 2021.

In the Eagle Ford in South Texas, the output will rise 26,000 bpd to 1.230 million bpd in September, its highest since April 2020.

(With input from Reuters)