Worsening refining margins in China and the wider Asian region and weaker Dubai benchmark prices could make the world’s top crude oil exporter, Saudi Arabia, reduce the price of its crude loading for Asia in October, a Reuters survey of refining industry sources showed on Monday. Saudi Aramco, the world’s …
Read More »U.S. Battery Storage is Booming
Battery storage installations are soaring in the United States thanks to incentives in the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which offers, for the first time, tax credits for standalone storage capacity. Total costs of batteries and storage systems have also dropped significantly over the past decade to incentivize more installations across …
Read More »Germany Set to Extend Trusteeship of Local Rosneft Assets
Germany expects to extend for another six months its trusteeship over the German assets of Rosneft while Qatar and the Russian oil giant are reportedly in talks over a sale to the gas-rich Gulf nation, sources with knowledge of the situation told Reuters on Monday. Schwedt is the fourth-largest refinery …
Read More »Turkey’s Gas Hub Plans Boosted by 10-Year LNG Deal with Shell
On Monday, Turkey signed a ten-year agreement with Shell under which the supermajor will supply Turkish state energy firm BOTAS with LNG for ten years starting in 2027, in a boost to Turkey’s plans to become a regional gas hub for Europe and the Mediterranean. The agreement envisages Shell supplying …
Read More »Russia Looks to Scale up Arctic LNG Exports as Shadow Fleet Grows
Russia appears to be preparing for an increase in exports from its US-sanctioned Arctic LNG 2 project, prompting warnings of an uptick in the use of high-risk “shadow” tankers. Article LNG 2, a US$20bn facility located in the Gydan Peninsula in northern Russia and developed by Russian energy company Novatek, …
Read More »OPEC+ Likely to Proceed with Planned Output Hike from October
OPEC+ is set to proceed with a planned oil output hike from October, as Libyan outages and pledged cuts by some members to compensate for overproduction counter the impact of sluggish demand, sources from the producer group told Reuters. Eight OPEC+ members are scheduled to boost output by 180,000 barrels …
Read More »SOMO: Iraq Cancels 1M Barrels of Crude, Defers more to Meet OPEC+ Targets
Iraq has canceled a 1-million-barrel spot crude sale and will defer two more shipments as part of efforts to comply with its OPEC+ production targets, following overproduction in the first half of the year, a senior official from the state oil marketer SOMO said on August 29 and reported by …
Read More »Libya’s Oil Production Plunges 63% due to Oilfield Closures
Libya’s National Oil Corporation said on Friday that recent oilfield closures have caused the loss of approximately 63% of the country’s total oil production, as a conflict between rival eastern and western factions continues. The North African country’s oil blockade has widened, with eastern leaders demanding western authorities back down …
Read More »Shell Plans 20% Cut in Oil and Gas Exploration Workforce
Shell is looking to reduce its oil and gas exploration workforce by 20%, reported Reuters, citing sources. The news comes as CEO Wael Sawan makes cost-saving measures to the upstream division, which significantly contributes to the company’s earnings. According to sources, the planned cuts will affect offices globally, notably in …
Read More »Indian Refiner Expects Domestic Fuel Demand to Rise by 5% Annually
Fuel demand in the world’s third-largest crude oil importer, India, is set to rise by between 4% and 5% per year for the “foreseeable” future, G. Krishnakumar, chairman of India’s state-controlled refiner Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL), said on Friday. At the same time, Indian consumption of petrochemicals is expected …
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