Oil Daily | BP Partners with Iraq, OPEC Maintains Quotas, US Shale Firms Face Lawsuits, China Diesel Demand Dips

**Oil-Producing Countries Dynamics**

BP will team up with the government of Iraq to rehabilitate and develop four oil and gas fields in Kirkuk. The deal includes the rehabilitation of existing facilities and the construction of new ones, aiming to stabilize production. The agreement follows a previously suspended deal from 2013 due to regional conflicts.

OPEC members achieved high overall conformity to production quotas in May and June, as reported by OPEC's Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC). The committee noted the commitment of Iraq, Kazakhstan, and Russia to achieve full conformity and acknowledged their compensation plans for overproduced volumes. OPEC will continue monitoring production adjustments and retain the authority to convene additional meetings based on market conditions.

**Latest Oil Policies**

A judicial panel has grouped together over a dozen lawsuits alleging that U.S. oil companies conspired to limit shale oil production to drive up fuel prices. The case will be heard by Albuquerque judge Matthew Garcia. The lawsuits target multiple companies, including Hess Corp. and Pioneer Natural Resources, alleging coordinated production decisions leading to lower growth rates than a competitive market would produce.

**Industry News**

High energy costs and uncertainty about energy supply have prompted many German manufacturing firms to consider relocating production abroad or limiting it in Germany, according to a new survey. Over half of Germany’s industrial firms employing 500 or more people are now considering these steps, reflecting severe damage to the trust in energy policy.

The property sector crisis and the rise of LNG use in trucking have weighed on China’s diesel demand this year, dampening the prospects of oil demand growth in the world’s top crude importer. Analysts expect Chinese oil demand growth to be just below 3% this year, with diesel demand set to decline by 2% to 7% in the latter half of 2024.

**Company News**

Vitol has agreed to buy Noble Resources Trading Limited for $209 million. The transaction is expected to close before the end of 2024 and includes the sale of Noble Resources' trading business, excluding certain non-core assets. Noble Resources is a leading independent energy products and industrial raw materials supply chain manager in Asia.

Occidental Petroleum disclosed that Colombia's Ecopetrol has pulled out of a deal to buy a 30% stake in its CrownRock assets. Occidental had planned to use funds from the Ecopetrol deal to pay down debt. The company is also close to an agreement to sell assets in Texas's Barilla Draw region to Permian Resources for about $1 billion.

ConocoPhillips reported higher-than-expected earnings for the second quarter of 2024, with oil and gas production rising to a record. The company announced adjusted earnings of $2.3 billion and a 34% increase in its ordinary dividend starting in the fourth quarter. ConocoPhillips is also in the process of acquiring Marathon Oil in an all-stock deal valued at $22.5 billion.

Cenovus Energy booked a second-quarter net profit higher than the previous year, driven by increased oil and gas production and higher refining throughput at its U.S. refineries. The company reported a net income of US$723 million and plans to return 100% of excess free funds flow to shareholders, starting in the third quarter.