The report addresses the question on how the shale boom could affect the creditworthiness of GCC oil and gas companies over the short, medium, and long term, in Standard & Poor's opinion; what does Standard & Poor's consider to be the most significant effects for Gulf states arising from shale oil and gas extraction in North America; how GCC countries and their national oil company-backed incumbents countering the challenge of the shale boom in the US; and what factors triggered the shale boom in North America.

China and other Asian countries that are experiencing rapid economic and demographic growth are quickly increasing their demand for oil, even though they produce various fuel sources, such as petroleum and coal, and are in the process of searching for and producing shale oil. But they rely heavily on Gulf oil, as in the case of Japan and Asia countries such as Thailand, Korea and India.

Chart 1: Shale Oil Production Growth Eclipses Other U.S.

The IEA suggests: "OPEC producers will be squeezed by US shale until the mid-2020s, and OPEC's loss of market power to what was once its biggest customer will continue until the middle of the next decade as US shale oil thrives."

Meanwhile, National Oil and Gas Authority (Noga) is set to launch a promotional campaign next month to attract international companies specialised in shale oil to expedite the process of exploration and move on to production in the shortest possible time, sources said.

Further, speaking about the recent fall in oil prices despite the announcement of Saudi Arabia to decrease its oil production by 500,000 barrels per day and the expected decline of oil supply by Iran, Mills noted that the price fell because of an expectation of very strong US shale oil supply, more negative demand outlook, and because of the waivers on US sanctions on Iran granted by the US in November.

Reports on the liquefaction of oil shale in ethanol for shale oil production are rare.

In its first assessment, the US Agency for International Development (USAID) estimated that Pakistan had massive deposits of 10,159 trillion cubic feet of shale gas and 2.3 trillion barrels of shale oil - figures that were several times higher than those released by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA).

Now, however, two additional factors have emerged that will have a profound impact on oil prices in the future: Improvements in technology are lowering the cost of shale oil production in the US and elsewhere, and electric vehicles (EVs) are emerging as viable substitutes for cars powered by internal combustion engines.

shale oil and gas company in its move to expand its presence in the U.S.

14 (Petra)-The Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources on Wednesday signed with Karak International Oil (KIO) and the Saudi Arabian Corporation for Oil Shale (SACOS), two 40-year concession agreements to exploit shale oil with surface distillation for oil production in the Lajoun and Umm Ghadran regions.