FACTBOX - Financial crisis hits global oil investment

(Reuters) - The growing financial crisis and plunging energy prices have forced oil companies to scale back spending and delay projects, with expensive ventures in the Canadian oil sands hardest hit.

Below is a list of projects that have been delayed or scaled back in recent months, as well as other related news.

November 6 - ConocoPhillips and Saudi Aramco halt bidding on the construction of a 400,000 barrel per day joint-venture Yanbu refinery in Saudi Arabia, citing uncertainties in the financial and contracting markets.

Saudi Aramco previously sought to renegotiate contracts for equipment for Yanbu as well as for a refinery joint venture with France's Total.

Nov 5 - Saudi Arabia may renegotiate contracts for long-term oil and gas field projects, an oil official told the International Oil Daily. The giant Moneefa oilfield expansion and the Karan gas scheme had been put out to bid when the cost of labour and materials were soaring.

November 5 - Sunoco Inc to save $375 million by scrapping upgrade of refinery in Tulsa, Oklahoma; still looking to sell the refinery, which accounts for just under a tenth of the U.S. company's 910,000 barrels per day capacity.

October 30 - Royal Dutch Shell Plc said it would delay its investment decision on a second expansion of its Athabasca oil sands project.

October 29 - Thai refiner and petrochemical firm IRPC: reviews a $1.5 billion investment plan. Has delayed a refinery expansion to 260,000 barrels per day and cut its run rate by 10,000 barrels per day to about 160,000-170,000.

October 23 - Suncor Energy: delays construction of oil sands upgrader for C$20.6 billion Voyageur expansion by one year to 2013. Expansion boosts production from Suncor's oil sands operations near Fort McMurray, Alberta, to 550,000 bpd from 350,000.