Business - Energy & Oil Industry

SAO PAULO (AFP) - Petrobras has announced a new find of light crude oil in the huge Campos basin area in the southeast, potentially as much as 25 million barrels. Full Story »

PHOENIX - Gov. Jan Brewer on Monday announced plans for a Chinese-owned solar panel maker to build its U.S. headquarters and a manufacturing plant in the Phoenix area, propelling one of the nation's sunniest states toward a bigger global presence in the renewable energy industry. Full Story »

HOUSTON - Smith International Inc., a provider of products and services used by operators during the drilling, completion and production phases of oil and natural gas development activities, said Monday it has launched a public offering of 28 million shares of its common stock. Full Story »

OKLAHOMA CITY - Independent oil and gas producer Devon Energy Corp. said Monday it will divest its Gulf of Mexico and international assets. Full Story »

DALLAS - Independent oil and gas company Pioneer Southwest Energy Partners LP said Monday it raised an estimated $61 million in a previously announced public offering of 3.1 million common units. Full Story »

DEARBORN, Mich. - AAA Michigan says gasoline prices are down 9.4 cents per gallon over the past week to a statewide average of $2.57. Full Story »

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Prices at Ohio gasoline pumps are down 10 cents this week amid a slump in oil prices. Full Story »

ABU DHABI (AFP) - Seventy-five to 80 dollars a barrel is a satisfactory price for oil, the president of OPEC said on Monday, adding that the cartel may leave production unchanged at its meeting next month. Full Story »

NEW DELHI (AFP) - Iranian Foreign Minister Manouchehr Mottaki arrived in New Delhi Monday for talks on a stalled trans-national gas pipeline and a possible Indian prime ministerial visit to Iran, officials said. Full Story »

HOUSTON - John Eckel Jr., who turned a 23-mile pipeline into a midstream natural gas company with more than 6,000 miles of pipeline and seven processing plants, has died at the age of 58, Copano Energy LLC said Sunday. Full Story »

BEIJING (AFP) - As resource-hungry China scours the world for crude oil and natural gas supplies, it has managed to corner the global market for a group of obscure metals used to make iPods, wind farms and electric cars. Full Story »

BISMARCK, N.D. - The burning glow over North Dakota's oil patch is slowly dimming as companies work to capture and sell natural gas instead of flaring it. Full Story »

NOVO-OGAREVO, Russia (AFP) - Slovenia signed an agreement on Saturday for the massive South Stream gas pipeline from Russia to Europe to pass through the country. Full Story »

NOVO-OGARYOVO, Russia (Reuters) - Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin won Slovenia's approval on Saturday for the South Stream pipeline, undermining European Union efforts to reduce dependency on Russian gas supplies. Full Story »

COLUMBUS, Ohio - Ohio's largest natural gas company says next month's rates will be the lowest for December in eight years. Full Story »

DENVER - Federal officials have sold oil and gas leases on a total of about 6,000 acres in Colorado for $112,969. Full Story »

NEW YORK (Reuters) - U.S. consumer sentiment soured in early November on grim job prospects while a larger-than-expected trade deficit had analysts scaling back estimates for third-quarter U.S. economic growth. Full Story »

LONDON - Oil company Total UK has pleaded guilty to three charges stemming from a massive oil depot fire in 2005, the biggest conflagration in Europe since World War II. Full Story »