Prices for EUROPE Gas remain firm as tensions between the U.S. and Iran continue
Dutch and British wholesale natural gas prices rose on Friday morning after a sharp increase in the previous session. This was due to tensions between Iran and the United States that could impact the shipping of LNG. Gas market concerns are any possible disruptions of LNG shipments via the Strait of Hormuz. This is especially true for Qatar, the second largest gas supplier in the world. In intraday trading on Thursday, the Dutch front-month contract jumped as high as 16%. Data from LSEG shows that the last time a price rose more than 27.54% in a single day was on Aug. 9, 2023, due to fears of 'Australian LNG strikers.
Norway oil investment set to decline by 2026, according to a survey
A 'quarterly survey' of the oil and gas industry revealed on Thursday that Norwegian investments in the sector are likely to?decline this year and next, as fewer new projects are being undertaken and more field?developments have been completed. Norway is the world's second largest oil producer and supplies about 30% of Europe’s gas after it became its biggest pipeline gas supplier in 2022, following Russia's invasion. Statistics Norway reported that the Nordic countries' largest business sector is expecting to invest 255 billion Norwegian crowns ($27billion) this year. This is down from 273 billion crowns, a record, in 2025.
In January, US LNG imports accounted for almost half of Spain’s gas supply.
Data released on Tuesday showed that liquefied natural gases from the United States accounted for 44.4% of Spain's total imports of gas in January. This is a significant increase from last year. As Europe tries to reduce its energy imports from Russia following the invasion of Ukraine, the U.S. is now the dominant LNG supplier. Tariffs and the President Donald Trump's move to take over Greenland have raised concern among some officials regarding the?growing dependence on U.S. Energy. According to Enagas, the Spanish gas grid operator, Spain imported the equivalent of 15,259 gigawatt hours (GWh) from the United States in January.
RWE looks to buy LNG from ADNOC in Germany as it moves to diversify its supply
RWE signed a preliminary agreement with Abu Dhabi National Oil Company on Friday. The German utility stated that it could purchase LNG for European markets as Berlin strives to diversify their energy partners. The German Chancellor Friedrich Merz has been visiting the Gulf region to look for new energy sources, and to reduce the country's dependency on the United States, its dominant supplier. RWE is not only a power producer but also a trader of gas and LNG and an energy 'importer. RWE is exploring the possibility of buying up to 1 million metric tonnes of LNG per year for Germany and other European countries under the framework agreement signed with ADNOC.
Greek joint venture seeking 20-year US Liquefied Natural Gas deal to boost Southern Europe's gas supplies
Atlantic Sea LNG Trade is a joint venture of Greece's gas supplier DEPA and the construction group Aktor. It is currently in negotiations to secure 15 billion cubic metres (bcm), or LNG, from the United States every year for 20 years, to supply southern Europe. Greece is seeking to strengthen its role as a gas transit route into Europe, and the continent is preparing to stop Russian gas imports in late 2027. This will intensify competition for long-term LNG supplies and increase pressure on governments so they don't get caught short.
In March, a Greek-led joint venture will provide US LNG to Ukraine
It was announced?on a Monday that a Greek joint venture had signed its first contract to'supply U.S. Liquefied Natural Gas to Ukraine in March.' Greece is seeking to strengthen its role as a gas transit route into Europe, which has plans to ban Russian imports by the end of 2027. Ukraine is facing its worst energy crisis since the end of World War II as its 'energy sector' crumbles due to Russian strikes, bitter cold and accumulated damage. Last week, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy claimed that the country had "significantly diversified" its natural gas supplies.
EU countries approve the final Russian gas ban
The European Union gave its final approval on Monday to the bloc's plan that would ban Russian gas imports until?late 2027. This will allow it to become law. This policy gives legal force to the EU's promise to cut off ties with Russia, its former largest gas supplier. It comes nearly four years after Russia invaded Ukraine in full scale 2022. At a meeting held in Brussels on Monday, ministers from the?EU approved the bill. Slovakia and Hungary however voted against it. Hungary announced that it would be taking the case to European Court of Justice. The ban was designed to be approved by an 'enhanced majority' of countries.
Norway will outline future oil and gas drilling in its 2027 policy update
The Norwegian government announced 'on Monday' that it would present to the parliament a document next year on 'the future of oil and gas', which will include companies' access rights to exploration land. In a speech, Prime Minister Jonas Gahr Stoere stated that the oil and gas sector is vitally important to Norway and should not be?phased out. The official forecasts indicate that Norway's offshore oil production will be roughly constant in 2026. As major fields slowly deplete, we will see them disappearing by the end of the decade and into the next.
Turkey extends Russia Gas Contracts by an additional year with a view to US Investment
Turkey has finalised an extension of one year to its two gas import contracts that expire with Russia, totalling 22 bcm. It is also considering investing in U.S. production, as part of its efforts to diversify sources of energy. Turkey, Russia's final major gas market in Europe has steadily reduced the proportion of Russian gas in its gas supply mix. It has now fallen below 40%. Both contracts with Gazprom expire this year. Ankara signed separate deals to buy long-term liquefied gas (LNG), with a large part coming from the United States. This was done in order to take advantage of the expected abundance of LNG globally over the next couple of years.
Venture Global and Tokyo Gas Sign 20-year LNG Supply Deal
Venture Global announced on Tuesday that it had signed a 20 year sales and purchase agreement (or SPA) with Tokyo Gas, the gas supplier for Japan's capital, Tokyo Gas. The agreement will see Tokyo Gas supply 1 million metric tons of liquefied gas per annum, beginning in 2030. Venture Global said that this is the fourth long-term agreement it has signed with a Japanese firm. The U.S. LNG Exporter also announced in a press release that in the past six months, they have signed SPAs to purchase 7.75 million tonnes of supercooled gas per year. According to LSEG data, Venture Global was the second largest LNG exporter in the U.S. last month.
Norway oil companies raise 2026 investment outlook, survey shows
A survey by the Norwegian Statistics Office of industry participants showed that their estimated investments for 2026 have increased compared to three-month estimates. Norway is the world's second largest oil producer, and after Russia invaded Ukraine in February of 2022 it became Europe's leading natural gas supplier. According to estimates made in August, the country's largest business sector is expecting to invest a record amount of 275 billion Norwegian crowns (approximately $27.38 billion) by 2025. This represents an increase of 7.3% over last year.
The US wants Europe to continue using oil and gas instead of renewable energies
The world's investments in renewable energies aren't paying off and should be focused on securing a reliable supply of fossil fuels. This was the message from U.S. Energy and Interior Secretaries this week, as they tried to convince Europe to purchase more U.S. gas and oil. On the back of U.S. shale gas boom, the U.S. is now Europe's largest oil and natural gas supplier. Its companies are trying to increase their share at a time when the European Union is attempting to cut off all remaining Russian energy imports. The message of U.S. officials during an energy conference held in Athens, Greece this week highlighted the shift in U.S.
Shell Finance Chief flags unpredictability in the timing of global LNG supply
Shell, the largest LNG trader in the world, announced on Thursday that there is uncertainty regarding the long-term supply of LNG due to the uncertain timing of new LNG projects around the globe. Shell CFO Sinead Gorman's comments suggest caution, as forecasts indicate ample LNG supplies in the future. However, she wasn't concerned by the European Union’s decision this month to prohibit Russian liquefied gas (LNG), imports, from January 2027. This is a year sooner than originally planned. According to some estimates, LNG supply will have risen by many times by 2030, mainly due to the U.S.A. and Qatari volumes.
Equinor anticipates a tighter European gas markets this winter
Equinor's chief financial officer said on Wednesday that the outlook for Europe's gas market is tighter this winter than most had anticipated, as storage levels in Europe are 12 percentage points less than they were a year earlier. In 2022, the Norwegian company will overtake Russia's Gazprom to become Europe's largest natural gas supplier when Moscow's invasion of Ukraine disrupts decades-old energy ties. He said that Europe was entering winter, the time of highest demand, and gas storages were 83% full. This is 12 percentage points less than last year.
Equinor Q3 core profits fall more than expected
Equinor announced a 9.9% decline in its third quarter profits, which was higher than expected. Oil and gas prices have fallen since a year earlier. The company has maintained its production forecast. Equinor's poll of 21 analysts predicted that the Norwegian energy group would earn $6.31 billion in adjusted earnings for July-September, a slight drop from $6.89. The company's forecast for 2025 capital expenditure of $13 billion was not changed. Equinor, like rivals Shell and BP, promised in February to increase oil and gas production while reducing investment in renewables. The company cited the challenging market conditions of the green energy transformation.
Prime Minister says Bulgaria will stop Russian gas transit in 2026 for short-term agreements.
According to Bulgarian news agency BTA, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said that Bulgaria will stop Russian gas transit contracts for short-term agreements in 2026. This is part of the European Union's plans to completely cut off Russian imports. The European Union originally planned to stop imports of Russian natural gas by 2027. This would have ended decades of energy relations with the country, which was once Europe's largest gas supplier. Last week, EU officials stated that the bloc was in negotiations to find a way to advance this by an additional year. The EU's proposal for sanctions still needs unanimous support from all EU members.
Prime Minister says Bulgaria will stop Russian gas transit in 2026 for short-term agreements.
According to Bulgarian news agency BTA, Prime Minister Rosen Zhelyazkov said that Bulgaria would suspend Russian gas transit contracts for short-term contracts by 2026. This is part of the European Union's plans to completely cut off Russian imports. The European Union originally planned to stop imports of Russian natural gas by 2027. This would have ended decades of energy relations with the country, which was once Europe's largest gas supplier. Last week, EU officials announced that the bloc would bring this forward by one year.
Santos, Australia's gas supplier, signs a deal with Orica to supply Narrabri to Orica
Santos, Australia's second largest gas producer, announced on Thursday that it had signed an agreement to discuss a possible domestic gas supply contract from its Narrabri Gas Project located in New South Wales. Santos will supply Orica with up to 15 petajoules per year and for ten years. Kevin Gallagher, Santos managing director and chief executive officer, said that the memorandum of agreement highlights Santos’s interest in domestic supply from Narrabri. It builds on an earlier deal made with Engie's supply utility company in August. A tribunal in Australia approved a project worth A$3.6 billion (2.38 billion dollars) earlier this year.
Sources say that Italy is seeking guarantees for a potential sale of IP refiners to Azerbaijan SOCAR.
Two sources confirmed on Thursday that Italy wants guarantees from Azerbaijan on the security of fuel supplies if the founding families of Italiana Petroli accept a sale to Azerbaijan’s state energy company SOCAR. Separate sources have previously stated that IP's private owners, the Brachetti peretti family, are currently in negotiations with SOCAR and seeking an enterprise valuation of approximately 2.5 billion euros (2.93 billion dollars) for the refiner. According to the same sources, an Abu Dhabi investor also expressed interest in purchasing the refinery. SOCAR and the Azerbaijani government were not available for comment outside of business hours.
Indonesia regulator announces that the delivery of 27 BBTUD gas from West Natuna Supply Group will begin
SKK Migas, Indonesia's upstream oil regulator, said that a gas exchange delivery by West Natuna Supply Group of 27 Billion British Thermal Units per Day (BBTUD), which will help maintain domestic industry supplies, began on Friday. SKK Migas announced that the gas will be delivered by Medco E&P Grisssk Ltd and PetroChina International Jabung Ltd to the state-owned gas utility company Perusahaan Gas Negara. In a press release, SKK Migas Chairman Djoko Siswanto stated that the multi-party swap arrangement would ensure that domestic industrial requirements for additional gas supplies are met.