Western Europe

Exxon Mobil's CEO Darren Woods raised concerns last week about the risk that an insurgency could pose to a $30 billion proposal. Gas terminal The Financial Times reported that the Mozambique government sought assurances of security from President Daniel Chapo prior to approving the project. Woods and Chapo discussed TotalEnergies' plans to resume work at a nearby liquefied gas (LNG), which is being developed by this French oil major, and lift a "force majeure", the FT reported, citing people familiar with the talks. In 2017, militants linked to the Islamic State launched an insurgency against the gas-rich northern province of...

Energy companies may be retrenching due to a poor outlook for oil and natural gas in the near future, but their investment plans indicate that they are confident the situation will change dramatically by the end decade. The spending plans of energy companies are a good indicator of their confidence about the long-term prospects for this sector, as it can take years to develop a new oil or gas field. It also takes many years before any profits come from these investments. In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult to accurately predict the future fortunes of the oil and...

Energy companies may be retrenching due to a poor outlook for oil and natural gas in the near future, but their investment plans indicate that they are confident the situation will change dramatically by the end decade. The spending plans of energy companies are a good indicator of their confidence about the long-term prospects for this sector, as it can take years to develop a new oil or gas field. It also takes many years before any profits come from these investments. In recent years, it has become increasingly difficult to accurately predict the future fortunes of the oil and...

The price of Asian spot liquefied gas fell this week due to a lacklustre market. Prices are expected remain low as Chinese gas production and ample stocks limit the interest in spot purchases. Average LNG price for delivery to North-east Asia in November Industry sources estimate that the price per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu) was $11.20, down from $11.50/mmBtu in the previous week. Go Katayama is an LNG and gas analyst with data analytics firm Kpler. He said that Asian LNG prices will remain somewhat bearish through next week due to increased domestic gas production, higher underground storage withdrawals...

Two representatives of the CGT union stated on Friday that workers at French LNG terminals would continue to block ships until they receive their salaries. This week, the blockade of three of four terminals in the country has led to a reduction of gas exports and a rise in prices. Elengy, the LNG terminal operator in France, has declared force majeure on its three sites due to the strike that lasted a month and says no ships will be discharged until October 2. Analysts said that reduced deliveries from French LNG facilities contributed to a rise of 1.3% in the...

As part of its plan to increase its global presence on the liquefied gas market, U.S. oil giant Chevron has begun early-stage discussions to explore potential opportunities in European Regasification Terminals. Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russia in 2022, Europe has drastically reduced its Russian gas imports. Chevron has increased its LNG trading activities significantly. The company is under contract to export 7,000,000 tons of LNG per year from the U.S. beginning in 2026. Although not operating on the same scale as Shell or TotalEnergies yet, the company is still a major global energy firm. Freeman Shaheen is the...

It might seem audacious to the world's biggest natural gas producer that it demands its largest market stop purchasing from a rival. This is exactly what happened this week in Milan at the annual meeting of the global gas industry. U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum delivered a clear message at the beginning of the Gastech Conference. Doug Burgum, the Interior Secretary of the United States, delivered a message that was clear: Europe should cease purchasing gas from Russia. The United States will gladly replace it. Burgum said that American energy dominance is a key part of Donald Trump's agenda in...

It might seem audacious to the world's biggest natural gas producer that it demands its largest market stop purchasing from a rival. This is exactly what happened this week in Milan at the annual meeting of the global gas industry. U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum delivered a clear message at the beginning of the Gastech Conference. Doug Burgum, the Interior Secretary of the United States, delivered a message that was clear: Europe should cease purchasing gas from Russia. The United States will gladly replace it. Burgum said that American energy dominance is a major part of Donald Trump's agenda in...

Alparslan Bayraktar, the Energy Minister, said that Turkey had signed LNG supply agreements with international energy companies. The deals will secure around 15 billion cubic meters (bcms) of gas over the period 2026-2028. Gastech 2025, a conference held in Milan by the Turkish state energy company BOTAS and eight suppliers, saw contracts signed over two days. The initial agreements with BP ENI Shell covered 8.7 bcm. Five additional deals were signed on Wednesday to expand the portfolio, including deliveries from companies based out of Britain, Germany, Japan, and Norway. Hartree, a UK-based supplier, will provide 600 million cubic metres over...

The Asian spot LNG prices remained stable this week, as regional demand was muted. Meanwhile, a gas supply agreement between Russia and China could curb future LNG shipments by the largest Asian importer. Average LNG price for delivery in October to Northeast Asia Industry sources estimate that the price per million British Thermal Units (mmBtu) was $11,30, a slight increase from $11,15/mmBtu in the previous week. Masanori Odaka of Rystad Energy said that east Asian importers showed a muted interest in purchasing cargoes, although some Japanese and Korean firms offered to deliver them by the fourth quarter. Current prices are...

The U.S. Department of Energy has granted the final export authorization for Commonwealth LNG's export facility in Louisiana. The United States is making an effort to consolidate its position as the largest exporter of LNG after replacing Qatar and Australia, who were previously LNG export leaders. Soon after taking office, Donald Trump lifted the pause placed by the previous administration on the new LNG export permits in 2024. This was to allow for an assessment of the criteria of public interest. The United States could triple their export capacity by 2030, with new projects currently under construction or awaiting financial...

Venture Global's regulatory filings indicate that it could produce liquefied gas at Plaquemines in the near future from all of its blocks. The facility produces 27.2 million metric tonnes per year. According to a Federal Energy Regulatory Commission order, the company was granted permission to introduce nitrogen to Block 15 as a first step towards natural gas production. The move by the regulator followed an authorization on Wednesday to introduce natural gases at Block 18. Each block has two trains, which are also known as trains. According to regulatory filings, it had skipped Block 15 at first after being granted...

Expand Energy, a natural gas producer, said on Tuesday that it expects U.S. Gulf Coast Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) export capacity to nearly double by 2030 to 28 billion cubic feet per day. Expand Energy, one of the largest U.S. producers of gas, expects the demand for gas used to power AI and data centres to reach between 4 and 5 billion cubic feet (bcf) per day by the end the decade. CEO Domenic Del'Osso spoke at a conference on energy in Austin. Dell'Osso said that LNG markets would experience periods of excess supply before tightening. This is in line...

The French Navy said on Tuesday that authorities were investigating an alleged infraction committed by the Benin flagged oil tanker Boracay. This vessel is listed as a Russian sanctioned vessel under British and European Union sanctions. A report was sent to the Brest public prosecutor office following a suspected offense by the Boracay vessel. The Navy announced in a press release that an investigation was underway. The crude oil tanker was sanctioned separately by the UK and EU in October 2024, and again in February 2025. The EU stated that the vessel was involved in the transportation of Russian crude...

The oil prices dropped on Tuesday, as another OPEC+ production increase was anticipated. Also, the resumption in the Kurdistan region of Iraq via Turkey has reinforced the prospect for a looming surplus. Brent crude futures expiring Tuesday fell by 54 cents or 0.8% to $67.43 per barrel at 0320 GMT. The December contract, which is the more active, was down by 53 cents or 0.8% at $66.56 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was trading at $62.95 per barrel, down by 50 cents or 0.8%. These drops are a continuation of Monday's drop when Brent and WTI both settled...

Wael Sawan, the CEO of Shell Europe, said that liquefied natural gases (LNG) would be the biggest contribution in value to the energy sector over the next ten years as the company aims to reduce emissions from fossil fuels production. Since taking over as CEO of Shell in January 2023 Sawan has increased Shell’s focus on natural gases to improve its financial performance compared to its peers in Europe, the U.S., and elsewhere. He has also shifted away from renewables, pulling out of several wind, solar, and other low carbon ventures. Sawan believes that LNG can be a very effective...

The oil prices dropped on Tuesday, as OPEC+ increased production and resumed exports of Iraqi Kurdistan via Turkey. This reinforced the view that a supply surplus is imminent. Brent crude futures expiring Tuesday fell by 47 cents or 0.69% to $67.50 per barrel at 0012 GMT. The contract for December, which is the most active, was down 43 cents or 0.64% at $66.66 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was trading at $63.05 per barrel, down by 40 cents or 0.63%. These drops are a continuation of Monday's decline when Brent and WTI both settled over 3% lower, after...

The oil price fell more than 1% Monday, as OPEC+ announced plans to increase oil production in November. Also, the Kurdistan region of Iraq resumed oil exports via Turkey. This increased the outlook for global oil supply. Brent crude futures fell $1.01 or 1.4% to $69.12 per barrel at 1019 GMT, after reaching their highest level since Friday, July 31. U.S. West Texas Intermediate Crude was down $1.11 or 1.7% at $64.61. OPEC+ (the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, its allies and the group known as OPEC+) is expected to approve a further increase in crude oil production during its...

Iraq's oil minister said that crude oil began flowing through the pipeline on Saturday for the first time since two and a half years after a deal was reached to break the deadlock. According to a ministry statement, the resumption began at 6 am local time (0300 GMT). The ministry reported that "operations started quickly and without any technical issues." Iraq's oil ministry told Rudaw that the agreement between Iraq's Federal Government, the Kurdistan Regional Government (KRG), and foreign oil companies operating in the area will result in 180,000 to 190,00 barrels of oil per day flowing to Turkey's Ceyhan....

Three sources with knowledge of the plans said on Friday that crude oil exports to Turkey from Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdistan Region were set to resume at 0600 local (0300 GMT) Saturday. On Wednesday, eight oil companies that represent over 90% of the production in Iraqi Kurdistan reached an agreement in principle with both the Kurdistan Regional Government and Iraq's Federal Government. The state oil company of Iraq, SOMO, that will transport crude oil by pipeline to Ceyhan Port in Turkey was not available for immediate comment. According to one source, the Kurdistan Ministry for Natural Resources notified oil companies in...

Companies and analysts have reported that some natural gas producers are cutting production aggressively to reduce a glut of fuel, which this week sent prices into negative territory. The daily spot price at the Alberta Energy Company's (AECO) storage facility averaged minus five cents per million British Thermal Units on Thursday after trading at record-low levels of minus eighteen cents earlier this week. According to LSEG data, the benchmark has averaged $1.03/mmBtu in 2025. Analysts expect the prices to continue to decline as pipelines are congested, in part due to increased production from producers in Alberta and British Columbia. This...

DNO, a Norwegian company, said that it has no immediate plans of shipping oil via the Iraq-Turkey pipe, which is set to resume after a suspension of two years. Instead, DNO will continue to supply directly to Iraq's semiautonomous Kurdistan region. On Thursday, two Iraqi officials from the oil ministry said that the pipeline linking Iraq's Kurdistan to Turkey would resume its operations on Saturday after a tripartite deal between the federal government and the Kurdistan Regional Government. DNO, which is the largest international oil company in the KRG and did not sign the agreement because it wanted to know...

It was announced on Thursday that the Norwegian Offshore Directorate, or NOD, had granted permission to build a new gas pipeline from Troll B. This will reduce the decrease in production of natural gas in the coming years. The NOD stated that the tie-in will connect Troll B with the Kvitebjoern export pipeline which leads to the Kollsnes onshore processing plant. It is expected to start up in the fourth quarter this year. It was revealed that some of the gas from Troll B had been re-injected and exported via Troll A to Kollsnes. According to the statement, gas injection...

The Dutch government announced on Wednesday that it would sell a 46% share in the German division of power grid operator TenneT to a group of investors, for up to 11.3 billion euros. This is a departure from an enterprise it had been trying to get rid off for years. The sale of the assets to a consortium consisting of APG, Norges Bank, and Singapore's sovereign fund GIC is taking place as funding needs for power lines on the continent are increasing, forcing owners to look elsewhere for new capital. Last year, TenneT Germany was unsuccessfully sold to Berlin. The...