Oil and gas exploration is back. Energy giants are hunting to replenish reserves
Executives at the CERAWeek Conference in Houston, Texas, this week declared that global energy companies have returned to the basics, focusing their efforts on finding?new oil and gas sources. This marks the end of years of underinvestment. The'shale revolution' in the U.S. in recent years promised a flexible, abundant supply. However, growth in renewable energy sources like wind and sun raised doubts over long-term demand for oil. Oil and gas drillers have chosen to 'flood profits into dividends and stock buybacks rather than exploration. Production?in the Permian Basin of the U.S. will plateau as energy demand continues to grow.
Dallas Fed survey shows first quarter oil activity is up
Activity in?U.S. The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas released a report on Wednesday that showed the oil and gas industry in Texas, Louisiana, and New Mexico, the three 'key producing states,' increased during the first quarter of the year 2026, although production was stable. The Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas said that oil executives are waiting to see how prices will settle over the next six month following the volatility and disruption caused by the Iran War. However, they expect the focus to rise on energy security. Kunal Patel said that large companies need to wait two to three months before they adjust their plans.
Oil and Gas Industry urge EU to stop methane emission law
Oil and gas companies warned that the European Union's methane emission law could disrupt Europe’s fuel imports if it is implemented next year. The?industry's call comes after the U.S. The?government asked the EU to exempt U.S. gas and oil from the rules. Brussels has offered more flexible options for companies to comply with the rules, but refused to rollback this policy. It is a key pillar in its climate strategy. A study commissioned by the industry and published on Monday by Wood Mackenzie said that up to 43% of EU imports of gas and 87% EU imports of crude oil could struggle to meet EU regulations from 2027.
Venezuela tensions are set to ease, resulting in a rise in the oil production potential of Guyana
Experts in geopolitics and oil said that the tiny oil-producing country of Guyana, which is already one of the fastest-growing economies in the world, has a window for expansion due to the ongoing U.S. activities in Venezuela. The growth potential of the oil and gas industry will be at the forefront of a four-day conference beginning Tuesday in Georgetown. Government officials and executives will discuss how to increase investment, build an downstream sector, and train local workers. The oil promise of Guyana has been a hot topic for years. However, the events in Venezuela have brought the region into the spotlight after U.S.
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.
Presidio, a US energy company, plans to use a Goldman Sachs debt facility worth $1 billion to finance deals.
Presidio Investment Holdings and Goldman Sachs are working on a debt?facility of up to $1 billion, which will give the U.S. Oil and Gas Producer a war chest to pursue acquisitions when it becomes a public listed company. Energy producer EQV Ventures Acquisition Corp. will list the company in a few weeks through a merger with blank-check firm EQV Ventures Acquisition Corp. Presidio's model is to improve production by improving operations at existing oil and gas fields, instead of prospecting new drilling sites, in order to offer steady returns to investors. The debt facility allows Presidio, based in Fort Worth, Texas, to finance the purchase of new assets.
Australia's biggest takeover bids never came to fruition
The merger talks between Rio Tinto & Glencore failed after both sides could not resolve their differences on valuation. This ended months of negotiations about a tie up that would have created?the world's largest mining firm with a value market exceeding $200 billion. The following is a list containing some of the biggest failed mergers and purchases involving Australian companies in the last three years. After months of discussions, the takeover talks between mining giant Rio Tinto and Glencore came to an end. This ended a deal that could have transformed the global mining industry.
Trinidad Minister: BP and Shell are seeking US licensing for shared gas fields with Venezuela.
Shell and BP seek?U.S. Shell and BP are seeking?U.S. Trinidad is Latin America’s largest liquefied gas exporter, and also one of the largest exporters in the world of ammonia and methane. However, the Caribbean island is aiming to develop offshore oil and gas fields near the border with Venezuela to secure its supply and counteract the declining reserves. In recent years, despite frequent U.S. changes in policy towards Venezuela, its gas projects have made slow progress. Venezuela, under the leadership of President Nicolas Maduro, suspended its energy cooperation with Trinidad and?Tobago in 2013, including joint natural-gas projects that were being planned. The U.S.
Sources say that the US will issue a general license to lift some sanctions against Venezuelan oil industry
Four sources said that the U.S. is preparing to issue a license to lift sanctions against Venezuela's energy industry. This would be a shift from the previous plan of granting individual exemptions for companies wishing to do business with Venezuela. After the capture by the U.S. of Venezuelan president Nicolas Maduro in early this month, U.S. official have stated that Washington will ease sanctions on Venezuela's Energy Industry to facilitate a $2 Billion oil supply deal between Caracas Washington and an ambitious 100 billion dollar reconstruction plan for Venezuela's Oil industry.
Venezuelan oil reform encourages immediate investments, but executives still need to go deeper
Foreign and local executives and attorneys said that a proposed reform to Venezuela's oil laws is sufficient to encourage existing companies to expand, and to start investing. However, deeper reforms are needed to attract the $100 Billion the U.S. estimates is necessary to overhaul the nation's energy industry. The U.S. now controls Venezuela's oil revenue and exports after a military invasion to capture President Nicolas Maduro in early this month and a naval blockade since December to stop oil shipments from sanctioned ships. Venezuela's government relies heavily on oil revenue.
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.
Why US producers are paying attention to Canada's most popular shale play
Executives, analysts, and advisors say that U.S. producers of oil and gas are seeking new drilling territories in Western Canada's Montney Basin, an enormous shale play in a remote area. The basin is already a hub of M&A and may see even more deals in the near future. The United States has become the largest oil producer in the world as a result of extensive drilling on shale deposits over the past 15 years. After a period of rapid expansion, oil producers are less interested in drilling prospects within the Permian oilfield, which extends across Texas and New Mexico. This is because the remaining area with high-production potential has shrunk.
Dallas Fed energy survey shows little change in oil and gas production during Q4
According to a Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas survey, oil and?gas production in Texas, Louisiana, and New Mexico?edged down in the fourth quarter as executives expressed concerns about low oil prices, which are rendering some wells uneconomical, and the ongoing geopolitical uncertainties. The oil and gas industry's production was essentially unchanged over the quarter, while costs rose at a lower rate than in the previous quarter. Oilfield service firms reported a modest decline in a number of indicators, including equipment usage and operating margin.
Canada announces new rules for reducing oil and gas methane emission
Canada has announced rules that have been promised for years to reduce methane emissions in the country's oil & gas sector. The regulations set out a way?for?Canada, the fourth largest oil producer in the world to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 75% from 2014 levels by the year 2035. The new rules fulfill the promise made by Mark Carney, Prime Minister of Canada to strengthen Canada's methane regulations. However, they allow for a slightly extended timeframe than that announced in previous drafts under Justin Trudeau's predecessor. Trudeau’s never-implemented regulations called for a reduction of 75% in methane emission by 2030.
Canada's new oil tycoon is shaking up the sector with a bold expansion plan
Canadian banker-turned-oil-tycoon Adam Waterous, an industry outsider who lives in a Rocky Mountain tourist town, not energy hub Calgary, has a plan to cement his company's status as one of ?North America's fastest-growing oil companies. Waterous wants to expand the company more aggressively and more efficiently than its competitors after Strathcona Resources' hostile bid for MEG Energy was unsuccessful. He wants Canada to be the fourth largest oil producer to increase oil and gas production to boost economic growth during a time of tensions between the U.S. What am I doing if I say that a country as a whole should double its oil production?
Documents show that Alberta oil regulators stopped enforcing gas flare limits after government pressure.
Documents seen by have revealed that the regulator responsible for environmental enforcement in Canada’s largest oil-producing province, bowed to pressure from both the provincial government and major oil companies in order to remove a limitation on natural gas flare ups as Canadian oil production increased. Alberta's decision to remove its 20-year old flaring limit, after companies exceeded the limit twice in a row with no objections by the federal government is a good example of Canada's challenges in reconciling environmental commitments and a renewed focus of economic growth.
Chevron explores'strategic West Africa' after Guinea Bissau offshore
Chevron wants to increase its land area in West Africa. This is a strategic part of the world for the U.S. major oil company. A senior executive revealed this on Monday, after striking an agreement to explore oil in two offshore blocks off Guinea-Bissau. The blocks are located in the Mauritania-Senegal-Gambia Bissau and Conakry basin (MSGBC), a geological area in West Africa which has been a focus of the oil and gas industry after recent large discoveries such as GTA and Sangomar. Liz Schwarze is Chevron’s vice president of exploration. She added…
First Solar's robust sales beat expectations in the third quarter
First Solar's shares rose more than 5% on extended trading after it beat third-quarter expectations. This was due to robust demand for the company's products. Solar-generated electricity has been growing at a rapid rate in the U.S. Energy Industry, driven by the strong desire of corporations and government to use cleaner energy sources and fight climate change. The company announced that it would build a new production facility of 3.7 GW in the U.S. Production is expected to begin at the end 2026, and increase through the first half 2027. The company posted a profit for the third-quarter of $455.9 millions, or $4.24 a share.
Equinor abandons offshore electrification due to rising costs
Equinor, citing rising costs, informed the Norwegian government that it had scrapped its plans to reduce greenhouse gas emissions through the connection of several offshore platforms with the onshore grid. Norway's oil and gas industry is the largest contributor to climate change emissions. It accounts for about one quarter of all emissions. Gas turbines that power offshore installations account for 80% of all industry emissions. The key strategy for decarbonisation has been to replace them with renewable energy from the shore. Equinor will no longer pursue the electrification for its Snorre A…
Shell's US executive claims Trump's halting wind projects damages investment, FT reports
Colette Hirstius, president of Shell U.S. in a Financial Times report published Sunday, said that the decision by President Donald Trump's administration to halt offshore wind projects which have been fully approved is "very harmful" to investment. The executive told the paper that energy projects which have been granted the proper permits, should continue. He also warned against the possibility of the U.S. political pendulum swinging back to the oil and gas industry. I think that uncertainty in the regulatory climate is damaging. She told the newspaper that no matter how far the pendulum swings in one direction, it is likely to swing the same way the other way.