Shell Has No Firm Date for Return to Full Crude-Oil Production in Nigeria

(Bloomberg) -- Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Europe's
largest oil company by market value, has no firm date for when
it can return to full production in Nigeria.

Shell is the biggest international oil producer in Nigeria,
a country that has lost hundreds of thousands of barrels in
daily production from the western Niger Delta since early 2006.
Militants are demanding a greater share of surging oil revenue.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Oil Rises Above $72 on Nigerian Supply Concerns, U.S. Gasoline Shortfall

(Bloomberg) -- Crude oil rose above $72 a barrel in
New York, a 10-month high, on concern that unrest in Nigeria may
curb oil shipments and unexpected shutdowns at U.S. refineries
will cut fuel production.

Nigerian gunmen kidnapped a three-year-old daughter of a
British expatriate on her way to school in the southern oil city
of Port Harcourt, a police spokesman said. Five contractors were
seized yesterday from a rig operated by Royal Dutch Shell Plc's
Nigerian venture. Futures pared gains after the Energy Department
reported that U.S. oil and fuel supplies rose last week.


Read more at Bloomberg Commodities News

PetroChina May Raise $6 Billion in Shanghai Share Sale to Fund Expansion

(Bloomberg) -- PetroChina Co. is planning the
nation's biggest share sale this year to raise as much as $6
billion in Shanghai for overseas acquisitions, increased oil
drilling and refinery construction.

The stock rose 5 percent in Hong Kong on expectations the
revenue will help develop the nation's largest oil find in almost
50 years. Beijing-based PetroChina, which said today it plans to
offer a maximum of 4 billion shares, overtook Royal Dutch Shell
Plc as the world's second-largest oil company by market value.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News

Total shares hit new high on profit, output hopes

(Reuters) - Shares in the French oil and gas giant were up 1.5 percent at 1300 GMT, bringing its rise to 6 percent over the past four days, nearly twice the gains clocked by rival majors Exxon Mobil




and Royal Dutch Shell during the same period.


Read more at Reuters.com Hot Stocks News

Bernstein Raises 2007 Crude Forecast to $59 a Barrel on Gasoline Supply

(Bloomberg) -- Sanford C. Bernstein & Co. raised its
forecast for average oil prices in New York this year by 18
percent to $59 a barrel because an increase in gasoline demand
may outpace supply growth.

Bernstein raised its ratings on Royal Dutch Shell Plc and
ConocoPhilips to outperform on the expectation that their shares
will gain ground on competitors.


Read more at Bloomberg Energy News