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In the evolving global energy landscape, renewable sources are becoming increasingly cost effective. Even without subsidies, renewables are often the cheapest option available. This chart, created by Visual Capitalist's Selin Oguz and Ryan Bellafontaine, in partnership with the National Public Utilities Council, shows which electricity sources are the most and least expensive in 2024, using data by Lazard. Onshore Wind and Solar: A Bargain with Subsidies Onshore wind power effectively costs $0 per megawatt-hour (MWh) when subsidies included in…
With Donald Trump back in the presidential race, many are wondering what his winning would mean for the U.S. energy sector following three yeas of strong climate policies and restrictions on new oil and gas development. Would Trump pursue greater oil and gas investment in the coming years, or would he continue the path President Biden is forging for a green transition? During his term in government, Trump continually voiced his aims for greater energy independence. This meant approving widespread oil and gas production, aimed at enhancing…
The race is on to unlock a technology capable of creating scalable, commercial nuclear fusion. Nuclear fusion has been viewed as the elusive ‘holy grail’ of energy for a century now, always growing closer to reality, but always just out of reach. But now, advances in nuclear fusion experiments are increasing rapidly, and success is in sight. As such, deep-pocketed superpowers around the world are heavily investing in fusion research in a bif to become the first nation to harness the form of energy that powers our own sun, providing…
Interest in Argentina’s mineral resources has risen significantly in recent years, as demand for critical minerals continues to increase, which has attracted high levels of investment in the country’s mining industry. The South American country is also pursuing the expansion of its oil and gas industry, as home to the second-largest reserve of shale gas and the fourth-largest reserve of shale oil worldwide. In addition, Argentina is steadily growing its renewable energy resources to help diversify the energy mix and support a green…
We have previously noted the early indicators of the sun's upcoming 11-year solar cycle. Currently, Solar Cycle 25 is at its peak, known as the 'solar maximum,' characterized by intense solar activity such as sunspots, flares, and coronal mass ejections. This results in a significant surge in electromagnetic energy hurtling towards Earth, and now new data shows Washington, DC, is the most vulnerable US city to space weather. The Royal Astronomical Society reports that researchers at the British Geological Survey (BGS) found that Washington, DC,…
Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky is set to attend a UK Cabinet meeting to discuss strategies aimed at further disrupting Russian oil sales as the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict continues to reverberate through global oil markets. While critics of Western sanctions against Russia have argued against their effectiveness, Zelensky's presence at such a high-level meeting speaks to Ukraine’s push to weaken Russia’s economic foundation, which is heavily reliant on its oil exports. The timing of this initiative is curious. Russia, in…
Turkey has said it is prepared to significantly increase natural gas exports to the European Union, desperate to further wean itself off Russian gas, but it won’t be easy or cheap: In order to do that, the most likely route is to re-export Azeri natural gas from Turkey. That, in turn, would require Turkey to take in more Russian gas to make up for the shortfall. In terms of reducing the amount of natural gas revenue for Moscow’s war coffers, then, it’s a wash. Money spent by the EU on Russian natural gas would simply be shifted…
China has long dominated the renewable energy space, as the government has been investing in ramping up the country’s green energy capacity for several decades. It is already the biggest solar and wind producer, as well as the biggest lithium miner, in the world, and its expansion plans show no signs of slowing. A recent report by Global Energy Monitor (GEM) showed that China’s wind and solar power project pipeline is almost twice as big as the rest of the world combined. China currently has 180 GW of solar energy and 159…
Fossil fuels will remain part of the energy mix for decades to come – if we don’t extract our own resources from the North Sea, our loss will be other polluters’ gain, says Andy Mayer The new government’s plans to capitulate to the likes of Just Stop Oil by banning new drilling licences in the North Sea will do nothing to prevent climate change. Global warming is driven mainly by the consumption of fossil fuels for energy not their extraction. The UK currently consumes 75-80 percent of our primary energy in the form of fossil…
Global liquefied natural gas markets (LNG) are in a prolonged state of flux. The ongoing Russian war in Ukraine has continued to create waves in global energy markets, and the instability has resulted in significant price volatility across markets. While LNG prices have fallen recently, they are still extremely high, at double the average price for liquified natural gas over the last five years, placing a major squeeze on net importers of the fossil fuel. Just this week, the International Energy Agency (IEA) announced that it will introduce…
Global superpowers are circling as Ghana prepares to build its first nuclear power plant. The small nation is poised for a major uptick in electricity demand over the next few years, and has grand plans to become a net exporter of energy to other nations within the African continent. Ghana plans for nuclear energy to play a significant role in achieving those targets. At this year’s COP28 United Nations climate conferences, the West African country joined a multinational pledge to triple current levels of nuclear power production…
Rising demand for raw materials coupled with meagre new supply could spur a surge in mining takeover deals and acquisitions, analysts said today. The potential mining takeover boom has emerged against a background of reluctance within the sector to drill and develop new projects, following a decade of limited capital expenditure as companies paid down debt accumulated in the late 2000s. But with decarbonisation trends driving increased demand for raw materials to build electric cars, batteries and energy storage, Russ Mould, investment director…
Maritime Strategies International (MSI) has scaled back its Middle East Gulf region jackup drilling demand growth after Saudi Aramco suspended contracts for over 20 jackups. Saudi Aramco's surprise move came in the wake of the country’s decision to pause further expansion of its oil production capacity. MSI now expects growth in the region to clock in at 1%, down from its previous estimate of 4%, thanks to healthy levels of activity in Qatar and the UAE as they look to meet their respective oil and gas production targets. The…
Despite increasing pressure to defund oil and gas firms in support of international decarbonisation efforts, many major banks are continuing to provide financing to fossil fuel companies. A recent report from the U.S. organisation Rainforest Action Network (RAN) and partners revealed that in the years following the 2015 Paris Agreement, the 60 largest private banks in the world provided $6.8 trillion in funding to fossil fuels. Over the past eight years, approximately $3.3 trillion went to fossil fuel expansion. These banks supported over…
Via Metal Miner Zimbabwe’s got itself a brand new iron and steel manufacturing plant, courtesy of the Chinese. This U.S. $1.5 billion Chinese-built plant’s blast furnace recently came online and is already producing pig iron, a crucial ingredient for making steel. The team over at Dinson Iron and Steel Company (Disco), the Zimbabwean subsidiary of Chinese steel giant Tsingshan Holding Group, announced the production of their very first batch of pig iron on June 13. The Mvuma steel plant, situated about 120 miles south of Zimbabwe’s…
Big Oil is quietly investing in the renewable revolution – not through solar and wind power, but through lithium. The ‘white gold’ is an essential ingredient in a laundry list of clean energy technology components, most notably the lithium-ion batteries used in electrical vehicles and for short-term energy storage – an essential stop-gap for variable renewable energy production. Just last month, ExxonMobil inked a preliminary deal to provide lithium to South Korean electric vehicle battery manufacturer sk On. Just…
Over the last year, it has become clear that deep-sea mining for metals and minerals is likely to be approved in some regions of the world, as companies fight for the right to invest in innovative mining projects. There are huge critical mineral reserves worldwide under the seabed, which have made companies increasingly eager to commence deep-sea mining activities to extract the minerals as demand continues to rise. The push for a global green transition has sent the global demand for minerals, such as nickel, copper, and cobalt sky-high. Onshore…
Via Metal Miner The Rare Earths MMI (Monthly Metals Index) took a steep dive in price action after a month of relative stability, dropping 14.4%. Terbium (both metal and oxide) yanked the index down tremendously, falling more than 16%. However, the rare earths index could yet experience some rebound from now until October, when China’s recent set of brand new rare earth restrictions are set to take effect (stay posted on shifts in the rare earths market due to China’s new export restrictions with MetalMiner’s weekly newsletter).…
By John Kemp, senior energy analyst at Reuters China's record-breaking deployment of wind and solar capacity has worsened regional power imbalances, forcing the country to idle increasing amounts of renewable generation when it overwhelms local consumption. New government regulations aim to reduce the amount of renewable generation that has to be abandoned by increasing long-distance transmission links and better coordinating generation plans across provinces. Since the end of 2018, China's total generating capacity has increased by 1.137 billion…
Last week, a significant political crisis unfolded in Bolivia after soldiers led by Army Commander General Juan José Zúñiga engulfed the Bolivian government palace using armored vehicles, calling to “restore democracy and free political prisoners.” The attempted coup lasted only a few hours with leftist President Luis Arce quickly installing a new brass who called off the troops. However, the authenticity of the coup has come into question, with former president and Arce’s onetime mentor Evo Morales…
Editor's Note: This is a complimentary free numbers report for Oilprice.com readers. Global Energy Alert members receive a Numbers Report plus the latest geopolitical intelligence and vetted energy stock picks from our top traders. Click here to sign up for a 30-day risk-free trial. In the latest edition of the Numbers Report, we will take a look at some of the most interesting figures put out this week in the energy and metals sectors. Each week we’ll dig into some data and provide a bit of explanation on what drives the numbers. …
Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban will travel to Moscow on July 5 to meet with Russian President Vladimir Putin, days after meeting with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy in Kyiv, a Hungarian government source told RFE/RL. Foreign Minister Peter Szijjarto will also accompany Orban to the Kremlin, the government source said on July 4. Szijjarto has visited Russia more than five times since Moscow invaded Ukraine more than two years ago. News of the Moscow visit comes days after Hungary took over the rotating presidency of the European…
As governments worldwide push for a green transition, companies around the globe are investing heavily in research and development into innovative ways to improve renewable energy production. New technologies are making conventional renewable energy projects, such as solar and wind farms, far more efficient as companies build stronger panels and bigger turbines. Now, one German team believes it has found a new light-harvesting system that could massively increase solar energy production. Conventional solar panels rely on silicon-based solar…
A British business that trades in Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) by operating an “unusual ship”, has not been breaching the sanctions put in place after the Russian invasion into Ukraine. An investigation by Sky News revealed that one of the largest owner-operators of liquefied gas vessels, Seapeak, has its headquarters based in Glasgow. The company owns five LNG icebreakers including the Yakov Gakkel, which Sky focuses on. The skip can carve through ice enabling it to travel up into the Arctic Circle and back even in the depths…
