The total number of total active drilling rigs in the United States fell by 4 this week, according to new data from Baker Hughes published on Thursday—a day earlier than usual due to the Good Friday holiday this week. The total rig count fell to 751 this week—62 rigs higher …
Read More »Crude Stabilises as Market Weighs Economy and OPEC+ Cuts
Oil prices were stable on Wednesday as the market weighed gloomy economic prospects against expectations of US crude inventory declines and plans by OPEC+ producers to reduce output. Brent crude futures fell 22c, or 0.26%, to $84.72 a barrel by 10.53 an GMT. West Texas Intermediate was down 20c, or …
Read More »QatarEnergy to Acquire 25% Stake in Major Iraqi Gas Project
QatarEnergy, the Gulf country’s state-run petroleum firm, said Wednesday it has agreed to buy a 25% stake in a massive gas project in Iraq, marking the rare entry of a major producer into a market that Western firms have pulled back from in recent years. The Gas Growth Integrated Project, …
Read More »Emerging Markets Grapple with Rising Solar Panel Costs
With high energy prices and supply chain disruptions creating shortages of key renewable energy components and materials, emerging markets are reassessing how to build out utility-scale solar power to accelerate their energy transitions. After more than a decade of decline, the cost of solar photovoltaic (PV) panels has risen around …
Read More »China and Russia Look to Challenge the Petrodollar
The increasingly closer relations between China and Russia and the Chinese push to make its currency more relevant on the global markets are challenging the dominance of the petrodollar. The U.S. dollar, which has been the currency of choice in oil trade since the 1970s, is still the dominant currency …
Read More »Oil Prices Rise on Anticipated US Stockpile Draw in US
Oil prices climbed on Wednesday over rebounding demand in the US after data revealed that US crude stockpiles decreased by more than anticipated, coupled with supply side concerns driven by the recent output cut decision by OPEC and other oil-producing countries. International benchmark Brent crude traded at $85.36 per barrel …
Read More »TotalEnergies Confirms Deal with Iraq on $27bn Energy Project
French oil major TotalEnergies confirmed it had reached an agreement with the Iraqi government on a long-delayed $27 billion energy project, reviving a deal which Baghdad hopes could lure back foreign investment in the country. The deal was signed in 2021 for TotalEnergies to build four oil, gas and renewables …
Read More »What Fast-Growing Oil Demand in Asia Means for the Rest of the World
When earlier this year, prices slumped following the series of bank collapses in the United States, their subsequent recovery was attributed to one factor: China. The world’s largest oil and gas importer and Asia’s biggest economy, China, has become a staple in analysts’ oil and gas price forecasts. It is …
Read More »Western Oil Companies are not Welcome in Iraq but Russian and Chinese Ones are
Last week’s banning by the Baghdad-based Federal Government of Iraq (FGI) of oil sales made independently by the government of the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan (KRG) in northern Iraq should be seen in the context of the Saudi Arabia-Iran relationship resumption deal done on 10 March. And that context is …
Read More »New Ceramic Battery could Replace Lithium-Ion Batteries
Scientists at Vienna University of Technology have invented a new oxygen ion battery chemistry based on ceramic materials. If it degrades, it can be regenerated, therefore it potentially has an extremely long lifespan. Also, it does not require any rare elements and it is incombustible. For large energy storage systems, …
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