Four expatriate workers lost their lives, and two others sustained injuries in a recent drone attack on the Khor Mor gas field in Iraq's Kurdistan region. This attack, reported by an advisor to the Iraqi Kurdish Prime Minister and a senior Kurdish political source, has also resulted in the suspension of production at the site. The ramifications of the assault extend beyond casualties, impacting electricity generation in the region. Kurdistan's electricity ministry stated that the drone attack disrupted gas supplies to power plants... Читать дальше...
ExxonMobil continues to expect that the U.S. antitrust authority will give the green light to its proposed $60-billion all-stock acquisition of Pioneer Natural Resources by the end of the second quarter, Exxon’s chief financial officer Kathy Mikells told Bloomberg in an interview on Friday. Exxon said in its Q1 earnings release today that it expects the transaction, which has been approved by Pioneer shareholders, to close in the second quarter of 2024, pending regulatory approval. The Federal... Читать дальше...
TotalEnergies (NYSE: TTE) saw its first-quarter adjusted net income drop by 22% from a year ago, but the French supermajor’s adjusted earnings beat the consensus estimate. Stable oil prices and healthy refining margins failed to fully offset a decline in natural gas prices, but helped TotalEnergies beat analyst forecasts as it reported Q1 earnings on Friday. The company announced additional share buybacks and an increase in the first interim dividend for 2024. TotalEnergies posted an adjusted net... Читать дальше...
TotalEnergies CEO, Patrick Pouyanne, disclosed plans for a potential New York listing during an analyst briefing on Friday, citing the desire to attract a larger share of U.S. investors. With 47% of institutional shareholders and 39% of global investors based in the United States, TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) aims to strategically position itself within the American financial landscape. While a definitive decision awaits board deliberations, Pouyanne emphasized the importance of adapting to investor preferences... Читать дальше...
The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States fell this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday. The total rig count fell by 6 to 613 this week, compared to 755 rigs this same time last year. The number of oil rigs fell by 5 this week, after gaining 5 in the week prior. Oil rigs now stand at 506--down by 85 compared to this time last year. The number of gas rigs fell by 1 this week to 105, a loss of 56 active gas rigs from this time last year. Читать дальше...
Mining giant Anglo American has rejected BHP Group’s £31.1bn proposal after it concluded the plan would undervalue its future prospects. The talk of a potential mega-deal between BHP and London-listed miner Anglo American had the mining world’s attention this week, and it seems to have attracted the attention of activist investor Elliott Investment Management. Bloomberg has reported that the hedge fund, known for its activist campaigns, has acquired a $1bn (£800m) stake in the miner. The news…
As governments focus on developing their renewable energy capacity, many are overlooking a vital element to boosting clean energy security –energy waste management. Countries worldwide must fix their existing systems to ensure that energy is not lost in transit and use and that electricity grids are prepared for the influx of new clean energy projects expected over the coming decades. The founder and chairman of the environmental non-profit organization Solar Impulse Foundation, Bertrand Piccard... Читать дальше...
The Hammerfest LNG export plant offshore Norway is expected to remain offline until Saturday, April 27, following a gas leak earlier this week, according to the latest data from gas infrastructure operator Gassco published on Friday. The gas treatment plant at Equinor’s Hammerfest LNG, the only large-scale LNG export plant in Europe, was taken offline on Tuesday in an unplanned outage after a gas leak prompted evacuation at the facility. The current assessment provided by Gassco is that the LNG... Читать дальше...
Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) booked slightly higher earnings for the first quarter than analysts had expected, thanks to higher oil and gas production that offset part of the weaker refined product margins and low natural gas prices. Chevron reported on Friday earnings of $5.5 billion, or $2.97 per share, for the first quarter of 2024, down from $6.6 billion, or $3.46 per share, for the first quarter last year. Analysts had expected earnings per share of $2.92 for January to March 2024. The... Читать дальше...
Oil prices are set to post a gain this week as a combination of inventory declines, a slowdown in U.S. manufacturing, and escalating tensions in the Middle East boost bullish sentiment. Friday, April 26th 2024Even if headed towards the first weekly gain since early April, oil prices have so far failed to break out above the psychologically important $90 per barrel mark. A higher-than-expected draw in US crude inventories, a notable slowdown in US manufacturing that sparked hopes of a June interest rate cut... Читать дальше...
By the time you read this, it is likely that the two largest American oil companies, Exxon Mobil (XOM) and Chevron (CVX), will have reported their calendar Q1 results, due out on Friday morning. We cannot know at this point exactly what they will say, but based on analysts’ estimates we can be pretty sure that both will report EPS that is significantly less than they showed in the same quarter last year. That is a dynamic that is expected to apply to most of the energy sector, and yet, as this chart... Читать дальше...
Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict The UN envoy for Libya, Abdoulaye Bathily, has resigned from his post, slamming the country’s rival parties and external meddlers for making it impossible to work toward elections and political stability. Bathily sees further instability on the horizon in Libya. He also struck out against dangerous external actors who are meddling in other countries from Libya. While Bathily’s resignation is not hugely significant, the reasons for it are, and his absence is likely... Читать дальше...
June West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures have experienced significant volatility this week, ultimately poised to close higher following a late-week recovery. This recovery was significantly influenced by positive economic remarks from U.S. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, which countered earlier market fears driven by economic data and geopolitical developments. Economic Weakness and Market Sentiments Throughout the week, oil markets were beleaguered by concerns over a slowing economy exacerbated by persistently high interest rates.
1. BHP-Anglo Merger Could Create World’s Largest Copper Miner - The global mining sector might see a whirlwind of M&A activity over the upcoming weeks should the world’s largest miner BHP Group succeed in taking over Anglo American, its UK-based peer. - Potentially creating the world’s largest copper mining company, BHP’s power move is conditional upon AngloAmerican first splitting off its South African platinum and iron ore units. - AngloAmerican shareholders, with the company currently boasting... Читать дальше...
China’s dominance over EV supply chains risks making U.S. subsidies for the industry unusable, South Korea has said. Subsidies for EV manufacturing, including components, under the Inflation Reduction Act seek to reduce sourcing from China. Yet China controls almost the entire EV supply chain. This means few if any companies involved in EV manufacturing in the U.S. would be able to benefit from the incentives, South Korea’s trade minister told the Financial Times. According to data from Benchmark Minerals Intelligence... Читать дальше...
Crude oil prices may end this week in the green as the U.S. Treasury suggested the weak first-quarter GDP data may be revisable and as supply concerns persisted. If the benchmarks do indeed end the week with gains, it would be the first positive week in three. "The U.S. economy continues to perform very, very well," Janet Yellen told Reuters yesterday commenting on the latest economic reports out. Those showed a GDP growth rate of just 1.6% for the first quarter and an accelerated inflation rate... Читать дальше...
The entire base metal complex has been bullish in the current year, led by a 37% surge by tin and 17% by copper despite a weaker Chinese market and the U.S. dollar strengthening against major world currencies. Last week, copper prices soared to a two-year high just shy of $10,000 per ton largely spurred by a combination of positive investor interest--as evidenced by increasing bullish positions in Comex futures--and supply concerns due to mine-supply downgrades. Still, the Chinese market continues to send mixed signals. Читать дальше...
U.S. natural gas producers and shippers could be one of the big winners of the latest advances in Artificial Intelligence. The surge in data centers amid the booming AI technology development is set to lead to higher U.S. natural demand and prices by the end of the decade, according to investment bank Tudor, Pickering, Holt & Co. Natural Gas To Meet Some of Power Demand Spike Electricity demand to power the data centers is soaring and so is demand for grid connections. While many tech companies... Читать дальше...
Heat pumps are hotting up as governments worldwide search for alternatives to gas boilers. They can both warm and cool buildings and are powered by electricity, rather than fossil fuels, helping to decarbonise homes and offices. Governments worldwide are beginning to invest heavily in the technology as they strive to trade old boilers out for innovative heat pump technology to support a green transition. We have long relied on fossil fuels to heat residential and office buildings. Most boilers continue to be powered by natural gas... Читать дальше...
