Several European powers are rapidly progressing plans to expand their nuclear energy sectors, despite a lack of support from major EU powers, such as Germany. The U.K. recently announced plans for its biggest nuclear expansion in 70 years, as well as plans to extend the life of several existing facilities. …
Read More »China Hits 5.2% Growth Target despite Population Challenges
China faced a complex economic landscape as its economy expanded by 5.2% in 2023, while the population saw a decline of 2 million. These contrasting figures underscored the ongoing challenges posed by a slowing property market and demographic pressures on the world’s second-largest economy. Official data released on Wednesday revealed …
Read More »China’s 2023 Oil Refinery Output Rises to Record on Fuel Demand Recovery
China’s oil refinery throughput in 2023 rose 9.3 per cent from a year earlier to a record, reversing a rare decline in 2022, as new plants in the world’s second-largest crude consumer bolstered production to meet a post-pandemic recovery in fuel demand. Refiners processed 734.8 million metric tons of crude …
Read More »Chevron CEO Warns of Serious Risks to Oil Flows from Red Sea Crisis
As the world’s eyes are keenly focused on the escalating crisis in the Red Sea, Chevron’s CEO, Michael Wirth, has voiced his concern over the potential disruption to oil flows. Speaking at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, Wirth painted a worrisome picture of the current situation, expressing surprise …
Read More »Turkmenistan Looks to Woo Investors at EU-Central Asia Transport Forum
Later this month, senior representatives of Central Asian governments and European Union peers will meet in Brussels for an Investors Forum for EU-Central Asia Transport Connectivity. At the January 12 Cabinet meeting, Mammetkhan Chakiyev, the head of Turkmenistan’s state agency for transport and communications, delivered a briefing on ongoing preparations …
Read More »Norway Boosts Oil, Gas Drilling, Including in Arctic
Norway on Tuesday awarded stakes in 62 offshore oil and gas exploration licences to 24 energy companies, including state-controlled Equinor , boosting the amount of acreage offered as the country seeks to pump for decades to come. The annual award was up from 47 licences a year ago when 25 …
Read More »China Awarded Major Contract by Iraq for Supergiant Oil and Gas Field
There are two key reasons why China, Russia, and the U.S. have long been scrambling to secure control over Iraq’s gas sector, and these are its massive potential size and its huge geopolitical importance. Last week’s awarding of the major build-own-operate-transfer contract to a subsidiary of Chinese flagship gas firm …
Read More »Shell Halts all Red Sea Shipments as Tensions Rise
Shell has suspended indefinitely all its shipments via the Red Sea/Suez Canal route amid rising tensions in the region and fears of escalating Houthi attacks on commercial shipping, The Wall Street Journal reported on Tuesday, citing sources with knowledge of the supermajor’s decision. An oil tanker that Shell had chartered …
Read More »Offshore Oil is Booming with Vessel Markets Near all-Time High
The U.S. oil and gas sector has kicked off the new year on the backfoot with market sentiment as bearish as it was a year ago. Commodity analysts at Standard Chartered have reported that demand pessimism is once again dominating, with traders worried that oil demand will weaken in the …
Read More »Oil Price up with Ongoing Middle East Tension
Both crude benchmarks continued to rally on Monday, with rising tension in the Middle East after the US and the UK carried out strikes on multiple Houthi targets in Yemen last week. The international benchmark crude Brent traded at $78.51 per barrel at 11 a.m. local time (0800 GMT), a …
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