New Zealand to build LNG import facility for energy security
Simon Watts, New Zealand's Energy Minister, announced on Monday that the country has selected contractors to build a LNG import facility. This will boost energy security and provide a reliable backup source of power, as well as support economic growth. By the middle of the year, the government hopes to sign a deal for an LNG import facility to be built in Taranaki on New Zealand's North Island. The facility will be ready in 2027, or even earlier in 2028. The model allows LNG to be imported only in large quantities and when required, thus limiting the exposure to global gas prices.
Equinor sold around 30% of its US Gas on the spot market during January's price spike
Equinor, a Norwegian company, sold 30% of its U.S. natural gas assets in January on a'spot basis,' capitalizing on a chilly snap which boosted demand and prices. A January Arctic blast sent U.S. heat demand skyrocketing and frozen oil and gas wells. This cut gas production to a 2-year low, pushing prices at some Northeast gas hubs to record levels. Equinor has stakes in onshore gas production on the U.S. east coast, and the Marcellus position is its largest natural gas asset. Equinor's CFO Torgrim Reitan said that while the?field was operated by the partner…
Australia reaches new renewable milestone over 50%
The Australian Energy Market Operator (AEMO), a'statement made on Thursday,' said that Australia had achieved a clean energy milestone in the quarter ending December, despite a rise of over 2,2% in power demand from a year earlier. The gas-fired generation has fallen to its lowest levels since 2000. Meanwhile, the total electricity production across the National Electricity Market grew 3.1% from one year ago to just under 25,000 megawatts. The share of generation from renewables increased by 5 percentage points compared to a year earlier, and now exceeds 50%.
PJM, the largest US power grid, issues alerts when storms increase energy demand
The largest U.S. grid PJM announced on Tuesday that it had issued additional alerts to transmission & generation firms, as a'monster winter -storm' looked to be bringing unprecedented energy demand. The operator, who serves 13 states and District of Columbia, sent out Maximum Generation and Load?alerts to companies, asking them to determine if maintenance or testing could be postponed or cancelled to keep the units online during this critical period. These alerts let other systems 'know' that PJM could'reduce its electricity exports. The storm?dumped one foot of snow between New Mexico and New England.
Australia now offers three new offshore wind licenses
The government announced on Friday that Australia had offered offshore wind licenses for projects off the coast of Western Australia's southern coast. These projects could bring 4 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy to the state's isolated power system. The offer comes after several other offshore wind project on the east coast Australia have been pulled in the last 18 months, slowing down the sector's progress. The state has extended the subsidy for a coal mine by five more years, citing energy security.
Sunrise Wind, Orsted, challenges US suspension of wind lease
Denmark's Orsted said on Wednesday that its unit Sunrise Wind will challenge the U.S. Government's 'decision' last month to suspend their offshore wind project lease, and seek a court order. On December 22, the U.S. East Coast announced that it had leased five large offshore wind projects currently under construction. Orsted stated that the Sunrise Wind Project was?about 45%complete. At the time of the lease suspension order the project would have been expected to start generating electricity as early as October 2026. The complaint was filed at the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. The U.S.
Equinor challenges US Order to Suspend Empire Wind Project
Norwegian energy group Equinor announced on Friday that it had filed a civil lawsuit in the U.S. district?court for the District of?Columbia?challenging a U.S. Department of the Interior's order to suspend the Empire Wind project. Equinor added: "As part in that case, Empire will seek a preliminary order and allow construction to proceed while the litigation continues." The Trump administration has suspended five large offshore wind projects currently under construction near the U.S. East Coast due to 'national security concerns.' Shares of offshore wind companies have plunged.
Orsted contests US stoppage of its $5 Billion offshore wind project
Orsted, a Danish company, said it would seek an injunction to stop its $5 billion offshore wind project after the U.S. government suspended the lease of its Revolution Wind joint-venture. The Trump Administration suspended on Monday leases?for?five large offshore projects that are currently under construction off of the U.S. East Coast due to what it called "national security concerns", sending shares in offshore wind companies plummeting. The suspension is the latest blow to offshore wind developers who have been repeatedly disrupted in their multibillion dollar projects under?U.S.
Democratic Governors ask Trump Administration to lift the freeze on offshore Wind Projects
Four Democratic Governors wrote to U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum wrote to the Trump Administration on Wednesday, requesting that it lift the halt placed on 'five offshore wind project on the U.S. East Coast. On Monday, the Department of the Interior attributed the suspension of leases on the projects to concerns about national security. New York Governor Kathy Hochul and Connecticut Governor Ned Lamont as well as Massachusetts Governor Maura healey, and Rhode Island Governor Dan McKee, however, rejected these claims.
US Natural Gas Futures Rise Alongside LNG Export Demand
U.S. natural gas futures rose 4% on Tuesday, boosted by record gas flows to liquefied natural gas export plants and forecasts for more demand than previously expected over the next two weeks.Front-month gas futures for January delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 15.3 cents, or 4%, at $4.105 per million British thermal units by 08:59 AM ET. Priced ended 0.5% lower on Monday. "The demand for LNG is very strong and they're keeping those numbers near record high. So, that's definitely supporting the market right now…
Wall Street Journal, December 23,
These are the most popular stories from the Wall Street Journal. The Wall Street Journal has not verified these stories, and cannot vouch for the accuracy of their content. Trump's administration has suspended the leases for?five? large offshore wind farms that are currently under construction off of the U.S. East Coast due to what they called national security concerns. This sent shares in offshore wind companies plummeting. Oracle co-founder Larry Ellison personally guaranteed $40.4 billion to entice Warner Bros Discovery to stop selling its prized Hollywood assets.
Australia requires LNG exporters to retain a minimum for the home market
Australia's new scheme will require exporters of liquefied?gas to keep up to 25% of their output for domestic use. The plan was announced on Monday in an effort to curb price spikes and fill a supply gap that has been predicted. The government of Anthony Albanese, a centre-left Prime Minister, said that it would work closely with exporters to create a system which limits the amount of domestic gas. A minimum allocation at local level is between 15 and 25 percent. The government announced the number of a policy that it had flagged for 2025…
Australian regulator expects a balanced gas market on the east coast in Q2; South will rely on Queensland
Australia's east-coast gas market will be in balance by the second quarter of 2026. Southern states are likely to rely heavily on?gas stored in Queensland and surpluses from Queensland to meet demand, according to the competition regulator. According to the Australian Competition and Consumer Commission's (ACCC) latest gas inquiry report, the east coast market will have a balance between supply and demand of 15 petajoules (PJ) and an 8 PJ deficit in the second quarter 2026. The'southern states' are also expected to require an extra 26 PJ over the same period.
Tokyo Gas CEO: More than half of investments in overseas markets will be directed to the US within 3 years.
Tokyo Gas, Japan’s largest city gas provider, will direct more than half the 350 billion yen ($2.3billion) it has set aside for overseas investments in the next three years to the U.S., according to CEO Shinichi Sasayama. Tokyo Gas announced a plan in?October to invest 1.3 trillion yen by March 2029. This included 350 billion yen to fund overseas projects, such as U.S. Shale Gas Development. Sasayama said in an interview that "North America was our top priority" in terms of our overseas strategy. He cited a combination of a growing U.S.
Australia is preparing to review its gas market, which could affect LNG exports
Australia will soon issue a review of the gas market that could limit exports from its east coast. Three operators, led by Shell and Santos, send cargoes to Asia. They said that the review, which they expect Canberra to release this week, may 'include a plan for LNG exporters to prioritize local supply in the populous east, the main source of domestic demand. Tony Wood, energy analyst at Melbourne's Grattan Institute, said that the government is trying to solve a difficult problem. They want the domestic and international markets to be able access gas at a reasonable price.
ConocoPhillips finds gas off Australia
ConocoPhillips, the oil giant, announced on Monday that it had discovered gas off of the coasts of southeast Australia. The company began its first exploration drilling in November. Two targets located off the coasts of Victoria were identified by wireline logs. The work will continue for another two weeks, before the second exploration well is drilled to confirm that there are large gas reserves in Australia's east-coast market. Jan-Arne Johannsen, the country president of the company, said that the discovery was encouraging, and it was the first to be made in the area in four years. The U.S.
VEGOILS - Palm up on Chicago soyoil's strong performance; weather concerns and weak export data cap gains
The market was supported by a stronger Chicago soyoil and concerns about inclement weather, but a lackluster November export report and the looming threat of bad weather weighed heavily on the market. At midday, the benchmark palm oil contract on Bursa Derivatives Exchange for January delivery gained 65 ringgit or 1.58% to 4,177 Ringgit ($988.87). According to Paramalingam Supramaniam of Selangor brokerage Pelindung Bestari, the uptrend in Chicago Soyoil Prices is helping sustain the palm Market.
ConocoPhillips launches natural gas drilling offshore eastern Australia
ConocoPhillips, a U.S.-based independent company, has begun drilling its first exploration hole as part of a larger campaign to search for natural gas off the eastern Australian coast, 3D Energi its junior partner said on Monday. 3D Energi announced in a filing with the ASX that work began on the Essington-1 oil well over the weekend. It will take 32 days for the drilling to reach 2,650 metres (8.694 feet). The company stated that this is the first well in the Otway Exploration Drilling Program for the development of new gas for Australia’s eastern domestic market.
Santos' GLNG facility will stop purchasing Australian domestic gas by 2027
Santos' Gladstone Liquefied Natural Gas plant (GLNG) in Australia will cease buying gas produced domestically to meet export contracts, according to its CEO on Tuesday. This could help ease the supply shortages on Australia's east coast. GLNG's CEO Stephen Harty stated that the company spent about A$1billion ($650m) a year on developing its own tenements, building its own supply and eventually would cease all domestic purchases of gas. "We have been on the path of phasing out purchases for a while…
Sources claim that Colonial Pipeline will cut jobs.
According to two sources with knowledge of the situation and a statement from the company, The Colonial Pipeline Company informed its employees that it plans to reduce some positions this week. In response to questions about job cuts, the company stated: "We informed our employees that a recent evaluation to ensure our organization was best aligned in order to continue meeting our business strategies and priorities safely will result in some changes to team structures and individual roles." It was not possible to determine the extent of the job reductions immediately.