http://news.rigzone.comThe latest upstream oil and gas news from around the world.Copyright 2009 Rigzone.com Inc. All rights reserved.http://www.rigzone.com/images/logo_rigz_131x20.gifhttp://www.rigzone.com/news/13120http://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82216&rss=trueHeading into the weekend on a sobering note, oil prices were knocked down to the lower end of their current trading range near $77 as U.S. jobs data left the market dazed and confused over the state of the economic recovery. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82215&rss=trueToday there are about 25 operators active in Southeast Asia with 46 rigs currently contracted.Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82212&rss=trueTropical depression Ida and adverse weather due to hit the southwestern Gulf next week could pose as a threat to operators in the Gulf of Mexico.Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82210&rss=trueExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell signed a deal with the Iraqi Oil Ministry on Thursday to develop a major field, marking the first foray by a U.S.-led consortium into Iraq's promising but uncertain oil industry. Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82184&rss=trueBaker Hughes announced that the international rig count for October 2009 was 983, down 3, and the US rig count for October 2009 was 1,044, up 35, from September's counts.Fri, 06 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82174&rss=trueOil futures traded slightly lower Thursday, dipping below $80 a barrel as doubts surfaced concerning an elusive pickup in oil demand while the economy is on the mend. Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82171&rss=trueAs Iran's conservatives tighten their grip on the oil industry, the replacement of the heads of two state-owned oil companies is expected to be followed by more personnel changes.Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82153&rss=trueCNPC, the parent of PetroChina and Chevron have signed an agreement to jointly develop the Luojiazhai gas field in Sichuan, CNPC said on Thursday.Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82149&rss=trueA consortium led by U.S. oil major ExxonMobil and Royal Dutch Shell Thursday signed an initial 20-year agreement with Iraq to develop the West Qurna-1 oil field.Thu, 05 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82138&rss=trueSettling above the $80 mark today, the price of crude oil has reached a level that makes many question just how stable the US economy is and whether the dollar is still to blame.Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82136&rss=trueVenezuelan Energy and Oil Minister Rafael Ramirez said on Tuesday that his country does not agree to increase the oil production of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) despite a rise in world oil prices. Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82109&rss=trueChevron's chief for Latin America and Africa says the company aims to keep business and politics separate as it views a possible multibillion dollar, decades-long investment to drill for oil in Venezuela.Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82108&rss=trueOpening the U.S. Gulf to Chinese oil companies for the first time, Statoil signed an agreement with CNOOC for stakes in four GOM oil fields.Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82101&rss=trueThe Maari oil field and its adjacent Manaia field offshore New Zealand contain more than 100 million barrels of recoverable oil, twice as much as originally estimated for the main Moki sands reservoir.Wed, 04 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82096&rss=trueDefying the dollar's strength and weaker equities, two underlying factors that would usually spur investors away from purchasing the energy commodity, the price per barrel of crude oil rallied above $79. Also up, natural gas settled just under $5.Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82051&rss=trueUTS Energy is selling its 50% stake in three oil sands leases in northeastern Alberta to Imperial Oil and ExxonMobil in a deal valued at $231 million.Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82050&rss=trueVenezuela's oil minister kicked off the World Heavy Oil Congress Tuesday, where he made the point that Venezuela's oil resources are defined by heavy grade crude.Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82049&rss=trueThe biggest energy innovation of the decade is natural gas -- more specifically what is called "unconventional" natural gas. Some call it a revolution.Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82040&rss=truePTTEP reported that the fire and oil and gas leak at the company's Montara project are now under control. All personnel are safe with no injury.Tue, 03 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMThttp://www.rigzone.com/news/article.asp?a_id=82034&rss=trueEntering a new month of trading, oil climbed to more than $78 as impressive manufacturing data from the world's top consumer helped push the commodity's price slightly higher than Friday's close. Conversely, natural gas tumbled to less than $5.Mon, 02 Nov 2009 00:00:00 GMT