Oil firms worldwide plan investments worth $375 billion this year

World's largest national oil companies (NOCs) and international oil companies (IOCs) are planning investments worth more than $375 billion (Dh1,377bn) despite ongoing concerns about oil demand, consultant Ernst & Young (E&Y) said in a report.

The view comes close on the heels of an International Energy Agency (IEA) statement, which warned that upstream oil investments will fall more than 21 per cent this year due to projections of low demand. That would be a reduction of almost $100bn, the IEA said. While Opec has forecasted an year-on-year decline of 1.6 mb/d in 2009, IEA said oil demand will fall by 3.5 per cent this year.

NOCs are on course to invest more than $275bn in the development of their businesses at home and abroad in 2009, E&Y said. Of this almost 70 per cent of total investment would come from NOCs in Asia and South America, the report said.