Asian crude oil imports fell in April from March, according to estimates by LSEG Oil Research, suggesting sluggish growth in Asia’s crude purchases so far this year. Last month, Asia – the bellwether of crude imports and implied import demand – saw imports averaging 26.89 million barrels per day (bpd), per LSEG Oil Research data cited by Reuters’s Asia Commodities and Energy Columnist, Clyde Russell. The April imports declined from 27.33 million bpd of crude oil Asia imported in March and were flat compared to…

Asian crude oil imports fell in April from March, according to estimates by LSEG Oil Research, suggesting sluggish growth in Asia’s crude purchases so far this year. Last month, Asia – the bellwether of crude imports and implied import demand – saw imports averaging 26.89 million barrels per day (bpd), per LSEG Oil Research data cited by Reuters’s Asia Commodities and Energy Columnist, Clyde Russell. The April imports declined from 27.33 million bpd of crude oil Asia imported in March and were flat compared to…

The looming threat of cyberattacks from China is intensifying in the United States. Already, incidences of attacks from Chinese spy agencies are increasing in the West, and Beijing could seriously escalate its cyber warfare tactics if it sensed any heightened threat from the U.S. or its allies. As such, increased planning and investment in cybersecurity is more important than ever across key U.S. industries. However, one of the quickest growing sectors in the country – the clean energy sector – has dedicated worryingly little attention…

While 'hard' data has been improving recently (albeit then downwardly revised a month later), it is the 'soft' survey data that has collapsed amid Bidenomics. Source: Bloomberg And this morning continued that trend as S&P Global's US Manufacturing PMI (survey) fell from 51.9 in March to 50.0 as the final print for April (49.9 flash). ISM's Manufacturing survey also missed, dropping from 50.3 to 49.2 (contraction). Source: Bloomberg Chris Williamson, Chief Business Economist at S&P Global Market Intelligence, said: “Business conditions…

Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory (PPPL) idea follows the Japanese art of kintsugi, an artist takes the broken shards of a bowl and fuses them back together with gold to make a final product more beautiful than the original. Image Credit: Princeton Plasma Physics Laboratory. Click the press release link for the largest view and more images. That idea is inspiring a new approach to managing plasma, the super-hot state of matter, for use as a fusion power source. Scientists are using the imperfections in magnetic fields that confine a reaction…

France has revealed an ambitious strategy to amplify its offshore wind capacity, signaling a determined effort to make as much progress as neighboring nations in meeting climate objectives. In an announcement during a visit to Saint-Nazaire on the Atlantic coast, Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire unveiled a comprehensive plan encompassing tenders and incentives aimed at increasing its offshore wind capacity sixfold by 2035. This ambitious endeavor comes as a response to the wind industry's recent struggles with escalating costs and supply-chain bottlenecks.…

  Russia’s energy behemoth Gazprom announced with great fanfare in early 2024 that it had overtaken Turkmenistan as China’s largest supplier of natural gas in terms of volume. But when it comes to export earnings, Ashgabat still tops Moscow. The Turkmen portal, Oil & Gas, reports that during the first quarter of this year, Ashgabat generated $2.4 billion in income from gas exports to China. That figure was confirmed by Daryo, Uzbekistan’s most popular news website. The Daryo report noted that Russia earned $2 billion…

Russia's Gazprom Group, a state-controlled energy giant, has disclosed its first annual net loss in 23 years, signaling a significant shift in financial performance attributed to dwindling gas shipments to Europe and pricing pressures. In the wake of restricted gas flows to Europe, historically Gazprom's primary market, and plummeting gas prices exacerbated by geopolitical tensions, Gazprom Group, which encompasses oil and power ventures alongside its core gas operations, reported a substantial 629 billion-ruble ($6.84 billion) loss for the fiscal…

Russia's Gazprom Group, a state-controlled energy giant, has disclosed its first annual net loss in 23 years, signaling a significant shift in financial performance attributed to dwindling gas shipments to Europe and pricing pressures. In the wake of restricted gas flows to Europe, historically Gazprom's primary market, and plummeting gas prices exacerbated by geopolitical tensions, Gazprom Group, which encompasses oil and power ventures alongside its core gas operations, reported a substantial 629 billion-ruble ($6.84 billion) loss for the fiscal…

As host of COP27 two years ago, Egypt saw a flurry of announcements for large scale green hydrogen production mostly in the huge Suez Canal Economic Zone (SCZone) that straddles the ship canal from Port Said to the Gulf of Suez. The proposals draw upon Egypt’s rich solar and wind resources to power electrolysis, anticipating ammonia and other hydrogen derivative exports. At COP27, the government hailed the signing of eight framework agreements with companies including ACWA Power, Alfanar, Masdar, Scatec, TotalEnergies, and others. The hydrogen…

The Taliban, who govern Afghanistan, are working with Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to create a regional energy trade hub that would facilitate oil sales from Russia to South Asia, Taliban acting commerce minister Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters this week. Representatives of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan have recently discussed in Kabul the idea of creating an energy and logistics hub in the Herat province in western Afghanistan. The three countries plan to invest in the hub, which is expected to be a hub for oil from Russia to the…

The Taliban, who govern Afghanistan, are working with Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to create a regional energy trade hub that would facilitate oil sales from Russia to South Asia, Taliban acting commerce minister Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters this week. Representatives of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan have recently discussed in Kabul the idea of creating an energy and logistics hub in the Herat province in western Afghanistan. The three countries plan to invest in the hub, which is expected to be a hub for oil from Russia to the…

The Taliban, who govern Afghanistan, are working with Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan to create a regional energy trade hub that would facilitate oil sales from Russia to South Asia, Taliban acting commerce minister Nooruddin Azizi told Reuters this week. Representatives of Afghanistan, Kazakhstan, and Turkmenistan have recently discussed in Kabul the idea of creating an energy and logistics hub in the Herat province in western Afghanistan. The three countries plan to invest in the hub, which is expected to be a hub for oil from Russia to the…

Having adversely intervened in virtually every other M&A deal in the past 3 years, the Biden FTC will reportedly allow Exxon's $60 billion purchase of Pioneer to go through after the companies agreed to minor concessions, Bloomberg reported citing people familiar with the matter. The announcement of the deal will likely come any moment, and the resulting deal will make Exxon - a company which Biden once said makes money money than god - far and away the biggest oil and natural gas producer in the Permian Basin, North America’s largest…

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE: CNQ), the top oil and gas producer in Canada, reported lower-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, dragged down by weaker prices for synthetic crude oil and natural gas. Canadian Natural Resources reported on Thursday adjusted net earnings per share of US$1.00 (C$1.37), compared to the average analyst estimate of US$1.08 (C$1.48) per share, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters. While realized prices for crude were slightly higher than in Q4 2023, the realized natural gas prices and synthetic…

Canadian Natural Resources (NYSE: CNQ), the top oil and gas producer in Canada, reported lower-than-expected earnings for the first quarter, dragged down by weaker prices for synthetic crude oil and natural gas. Canadian Natural Resources reported on Thursday adjusted net earnings per share of US$1.00 (C$1.37), compared to the average analyst estimate of US$1.08 (C$1.48) per share, according to LSEG data cited by Reuters. While realized prices for crude were slightly higher than in Q4 2023, the realized natural gas prices and synthetic…

The United Arab Emirates state-owned oil company, Adnoc, has updated its maximum crude oil production capacity figure—and without much fanfare. ADNOC has quietly updated the figure on its website but did not make an official announcement. The new capacity is 4.85 million barrels per day (bpd)—up from the 4.65 million bpd that it published in 2023. Its published natural gas production capacity is 11.5 bcf per day. ADNOC has plans to increase its oil production capacity to 5 million bpd by 2027—a target the state-owned…

Norway saw cash flow from its stakes in oil and gas fields nearly halve in the first quarter of 2024 compared to the same period of 2023, as natural gas prices slumped and gas consumption in Europe was below expectations, said state company Petoro, which manages field holdings of Western Europe’s top oil and gas producer. In the first quarter of the year, Petoro delivered a cash flow of $5.4 billion (60 billion Norwegian crowns) from the State's Direct Financial Interest (SDFI) to Norway. The cash flow was $5.14 billion (57 billion…

Energy markets have kicked off the new month on the back foot, with oil prices sliding 3% in Wednesday’s intraday session following a surprise U.S. inventory build amid lingering uncertainty about future oil demand growth.  Weekly data by the Energy Information Administration (EIA) reveals crude stockpiles of 7.3 million barrels for the week to April 26, a sharp swing from a draw of 6.4 million barrels posted the previous week.   That marks the highest inventory levels since last June. Meanwhile, the Fed is expected…

We are nearly halfway through the earnings season, with 46% of S&P 500 companies having returned their first quarter scorecards. According to FactSet data, 77% of S&P 500 companies have exceeded earnings expectations while 60% have reported a positive revenue surprise.  Unfortunately, the energy sector has underperformed the market, thanks in large part to lower oil and gas prices. The Energy sector is reporting the second-largest (year-over-year) earnings decline of all 11 market sectors at -25.5% while Q1 2024 revenue growth…