The Belarusian national oil company Belarusneft is pulling out of developing Iran’s Jofeir oilfield over differences with the state National Iranian Oil Co.(NIOC), the semi-official Mehr news agency announced.

Aker Solutions second quarter consolidated revenue was US$ 1.42 billion, compared with US$1.47 billion in the same period in 2010. Profits in the quarter were negatively affected by operational challenges.

Iran has signed a contract worth US$1.5 billion with a consortium of local firms to develop the third phase of the south-western Darkhovin oil field, Oil Ministry website SHANA reported.

The International Energy Agency (IEA) warned that a double-dip recession could reduce global energy demand enough to push global oil markets into surplus next year and could see oil prices decline further.