Oil prices rose by more than 1% early on Thursday as the market expects a U.S.-UK trade deal announcement later today and the start of U.S.-China ice-breaker talks later this week. As of 8:35 a.m. EDT on Thursday, the U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, was up by 1.89% at $59.15. The international benchmark, Brent Crude, was trading 1.62% higher at $62.12 per barrel. Oil and equity markets were buoyed on Thursday by the announcement from U.S. President Donald Trump that the United States would sign the first post-tariff trade deal with the United Kingdom.…

Nigeria’s government has set a new, significantly higher, production target for the national oil company, aiming for 2.5 million barrels daily by the end of this year. “When the new NNPC management visited me, I increased their oil production target to 2.5 million bpd from the initial two million barrels given to them by the President,” Nigeria’s petroleum resources minister, Heineken Lokpobiri told the Sun on the sidelines of the Oil Technology Conference Africa Energy Forum. Lokpobiri believes the new target would be easy…

According to StanChart, the path of least resistance for oil prices is lower, with prices likely to remain low in the coming months before beginning a gradual recovery due to a sharp fall in U.S. oil output. The eight OPEC+ countries that provided additional voluntary output cuts in 2023 met again on Saturday, with the May meeting ending with a resolution similar to the April meeting. Once again, OPEC+ agreed to accelerate the pace of unwinding of production cuts, with output targets for June (excluding compensation cuts) increased by 411,000 …

Alberta could vote next year on whether to separate from Canada if a citizen-led petition gathers the requisite number of signatures requesting such a question to be put to a referendum. That’s what Danielle Smith, the Premier of the Alberta province, which is the heart of Canada’s oil industry, said this week, just after the Liberals led by Mark Carney won the federal election and ahead of Carney’s meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump in the White House. Smith stressed that the provincial government itself would not be seeking…

Natural gas is gradually going to overtake coal and crude oil as the biggest source of primary energy in Southeast Asia, with a share of 30% by 2050. This is according to a new Wood Mackenzie report, which has become the latest to admit the inevitable: hydrocarbons will be around for much longer than transition advocates want. Currently, Southeast Asia is partial to coal-powered generation thanks to abundant local resources and price considerations. Also, demand for electricity has been on a strong rise in the region, prompting more coal power…

The European Union is preparing to impose up to €100 billion ($113 billion) in tariffs on US goods if trade talks fail, according to a new report by Bloomberg this morning. The draft list of retaliatory measures will be circulated to member states as early as Wednesday, with a one-month consultation period before finalization. “These import taxes are unjustified and cause economic harm on both sides of the Atlantic,” said EU trade chief Maros Sefcovic. “This situation is not acceptable and we cannot afford…

Despite posting consensus-beating core earnings for the first quarter, Orsted, the world’s biggest offshore wind project developer, on Wednesday warned of a continued challenging environment for the industry with mounting near-term headwinds. “The offshore wind industry is challenged in the short term with headwinds relating to supply chain, regulatory, and macroeconomic developments,” Orsted said in its Q1 results release today. “We are following the developments in the regulatory landscape closely and continuously assess…

Tesla's China-made vehicle sales dropped sharply in April, bucking the trend of strong growth among major Chinese EV competitors, according to CNEVPOST. According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla sold 58,459 vehicles last month (including exports), down 5.96% year-over-year and 25.84% from March’s 78,828 units. From January to April, Tesla China's total sales fell 18.31% year-over-year to 231,213 units. The report says that in contrast, local rivals posted strong gains. Nio delivered 23,900 vehicles in April—up…

Tesla's China-made vehicle sales dropped sharply in April, bucking the trend of strong growth among major Chinese EV competitors, according to CNEVPOST. According to the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA), Tesla sold 58,459 vehicles last month (including exports), down 5.96% year-over-year and 25.84% from March’s 78,828 units. From January to April, Tesla China's total sales fell 18.31% year-over-year to 231,213 units. The report says that in contrast, local rivals posted strong gains. Nio delivered 23,900 vehicles in April—up…

“Wind turbines in the Great Lakes have the potential to produce huge amounts of clean energy in one of the most populated regions in North America,” states a recent article by the Canadian Broadcasting Company. But it remains highly uncertain if that dream could become a reality anytime soon. Offshore wind energy development is facing major headwinds in the United States and Canada thanks to a mix of public and political opposition. Wind energy proponents argue that this has to change for the sake of energy security and climate concerns. …

Harbour Energy has slammed the government’s “punitive fiscal position” as it announced plans to cut 250 jobs in Aberdeen. The London-listed company, which is the largest oil and gas producer in the North Sea, blamed the Energy Profits Levy and a challenging regulatory environment for the decision. It also noted delays in the ramp-up of carbon capture projects in the UK. The Energy Profits Levy, also known as the windfall tax, was first introduced in 2022 under Boris Johnson’s government and imposed a 75 per cent tax on oil…

The Rockefeller Foundation is launching a Coal to Clean Credit Initiative (CCCI), with which it will aim to support 60 projects by 2030 to help close coal-fired power plants in developing countries. As part of the first efforts of the new initiative, the Rockefeller Foundation will collaborate with ACEN Corporation, GenZero, Keppel, and Mitsubishi for a pilot project in the Philippines, the foundation said on Wednesday. The Rockefeller Foundation, set up by John D. Rockefeller in 1913, said back in 2020 that it had decided to divest from…

The Rockefeller Foundation is launching a Coal to Clean Credit Initiative (CCCI), with which it will aim to support 60 projects by 2030 to help close coal-fired power plants in developing countries. As part of the first efforts of the new initiative, the Rockefeller Foundation will collaborate with ACEN Corporation, GenZero, Keppel, and Mitsubishi for a pilot project in the Philippines, the foundation said on Wednesday. The Rockefeller Foundation, set up by John D. Rockefeller in 1913, said back in 2020 that it had decided to divest from…

If India and Pakistan spiral into war, there will be consequences for Central Asia. A war between Pakistan and India would likely have significant ripple effects on Central Asia, given the region's proximity to Afghanistan and flourishing economic ties across the region. The conflict could disrupt trade and energy routes, increase militancy, and draw in major powers like China, Russia, and the U.S., potentially straining Central Asian stability. Intervention by external powers: The Central Asian republics (Kazakhstan, Uzbekistan, Turkmenistan,…

Energy Transfer is targeting a final investment decision on its Lake Charles LNG export project in Louisiana by the end of the year as it is progressing with contracting LNG offtake volumes, the U.S. pipeline giant said during the Q1 earnings call. Energy Transfer is developing the project, which will convert its existing Lake Charles LNG import and regasification facility into an LNG export facility. The Lake Charles LNG project is fully permitted, uses existing infrastructure, and benefits from an abundant natural gas supply through existing…

Energy Transfer is targeting a final investment decision on its Lake Charles LNG export project in Louisiana by the end of the year as it is progressing with contracting LNG offtake volumes, the U.S. pipeline giant said during the Q1 earnings call. Energy Transfer is developing the project, which will convert its existing Lake Charles LNG import and regasification facility into an LNG export facility. The Lake Charles LNG project is fully permitted, uses existing infrastructure, and benefits from an abundant natural gas supply through existing…

Energy Transfer is targeting a final investment decision on its Lake Charles LNG export project in Louisiana by the end of the year as it is progressing with contracting LNG offtake volumes, the U.S. pipeline giant said during the Q1 earnings call. Energy Transfer is developing the project, which will convert its existing Lake Charles LNG import and regasification facility into an LNG export facility. The Lake Charles LNG project is fully permitted, uses existing infrastructure, and benefits from an abundant natural gas supply through existing…

Freeport LNG in Texas is set to take more feedgas on Wednesday in a sign that the U.S. liquefied natural gas export plant is gradually resuming service after an outage on Tuesday, per LSEG gas flow data cited by Reuters. Freeport LNG, the company owning the plant, told the Texas environmental regulators on Tuesday that the interruption of power feed led to the shutdown of the three liquefaction trains at the export facility. Over the years, Freeport LNG has suffered more outages than other U.S. export facilities because it uses only electric motors…

Crude oil inventories in the United States saw a decrease of 2 million barrels during the week ending May 2, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration released on Wednesday. Crude oil prices were trading down prior to the crude data release by the U.S. Energy Information Administration. On Tuesday, the American Petroleum Institute (API) reported a sizeable build in US crude oil inventories of 4.49 million barrels in U.S. crude oil inventories with draws in gasoline and distillate stocks. At 11:01 am in New York, the…

Slovakia criticized on Wednesday the European Commission’s roadmap to phase out imports of all kinds of Russian energy by 2027, particularly natural gas, claiming that it is “economic suicide” that will hurt the EU more than Russia. The European Union’s executive arm, the European Commission, on Tuesday unveiled a roadmap to fully end EU dependency on Russian energy. The roadmap will see a gradual removal of Russian oil, gas, and nuclear energy from the EU markets in a coordinated and secure manner as the EU transitions…