By REUTERS
NEW YORK (Reuters) – Oil climbed back to $72 a barrel on Friday, reversing a two-day slide, as problems at a handful of U.S. refineries and the kidnapping of foreign oil workers in Nigeria renewed concern about risks to supply.
U.S. crude oil rose $1.71 to $72.05 a barrel by 1810 GMT, having reached as high as $72.14. London Brent gained $1.33 to $70.72 a barrel.
Five oil refineries in Texas and Delaware reported outages since Thursday, most of them due to the impact of foul weather and lightning strikes — ramping up concerns over gasoline supply at the start of the summer driving season.
“At this time of the year you want all the refineries running,” said Bill O’Grady, analyst at A.G. Edwards. “The fact that there are these outages is a big deal.”
Valero said Friday it was restarting normal production at its Corpus Christi, Texas, and Delaware City, Delaware, refineries after brief weather-related outages. It added that repairs on its Port Arthur, Texas refinery, would cut into gasoline output for another 10 days.
Refining companies Citgo and Flint Hills also reported refinery production cuts in Corpus Christi, which was battered by severe thunder storms on Thursday.
U.S. gasoline futures jumped 7.58 cents, or more than 3.5 percent, to $2.2030 a gallon.
The kidnappings of eight workers in a raid on an oil rig off the coast of Nigeria on Friday added to concerns, and followed news on Thursday of a further cut to Nigerian oil output after a pipeline leak.
“Rather than Nigerian supply recovering, losses are deepening,” said Deborah White of SG CIB in Paris. “The geopolitical risks are on the supply side. Security is worsening in Nigeria and Iraq.”
In the night-time raid on a rig off the country’s coast, some 20 to 30 attackers fired shots as they boarded from four speed boats.Royal Dutch Shell said on Thursday it cut Nigerian production by 50,000 barrels per day due to a pipeline leak. The leak brings Shell’s output loss in Nigeria to 505,000 bpd, after militant attacks this year shut several facilities.
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, as expected, agreed in Caracas on Thursday to keep pumping close to full capacity. But prices held within sight of the record high of $75.35, hit on April 21, frustrating oil ministers worried that sustained high prices could slow economic growth.
Strong demand from the United States and China, a shortage of refineries to produce motor fuels, supply cuts in Iraq and Nigeria and the international dispute over Iran’s nuclear work have fed into a 4-1/2-year rally that has added $50 to the price of a barrel of oil.
Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi told reporters in Caracas that oil markets were “oversupplied and overpriced.”
In an interview with Arab daily Al Hayat, he said fundamentals did not support a price above $50 and forecast rising interest rates would hurt demand.
“Interest rates are rising and inflation is increasing. Attempts to control (inflation) today should raise interest rates. If interest rates rise, liquidity will decrease, which will affect demand for fuel,” Naimi said.
Prices had fallen by $2 on Wednesday after the United States offered to start talks with Iran, the world’s fourth biggest oil exporter, provided it suspended uranium enrichment.
But a top Iranian official said on Friday Tehran would not stop enrichment activities, despite international pressure.
This website and sisters royaldutchshellplc.com, shellnazihistory.com, royaldutchshell.website, johndonovan.website, and shellnews.net, are owned by John Donovan. There is also a Wikipedia segment.
Royal Dutch Shell conspired directly with Hitler, financed the Nazi Party, was anti-Semitic and sold out its own Dutch Jewish employees to the Nazis. Shell had a close relationship with the Nazis during and after the reign of Sir Henri Deterding, an ardent Nazi, and the founder and decades long leader of the Royal Dutch Shell Group. His burial ceremony, which had all the trappings of a state funeral, was held at his private estate in Mecklenburg, Germany. The spectacle (photographs below) included a funeral procession led by a horse drawn funeral hearse with senior Nazis officials and senior Royal Dutch Shell directors in attendance, Nazi salutes at the graveside, swastika banners on display and wreaths and personal tributes from Adolf Hitler and Reichsmarschall, Hermann Goring. Deterding was an honored associate and supporter of Hitler and a personal friend of Goring.
Deterding was the guest of Hitler during a four day summit meeting at Berchtesgaden. Sir Henri and Hitler both had ambitions on Russian oil fields. Only an honored personal guest would be rewarded with a private four day meeting at Hitler’s mountain top retreat.
IN JULY 2007, MR BILL CAMPBELL (ABOVE, A RETIRED GROUP AUDITOR OF SHELL INTERNATIONAL SENT AN EMAIL TO EVERY UK MP AND MEMBER OF THE HOUSE OF LORDS: 
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A head-cut image of Alfred Donovan (now deceased) appears courtesy of The Wall Street Journal.
