US to revise offshore oil and natural gas bonding rules era Biden
The Trump administration is revising a Biden era rule which required the oil and natural gas industry to provide new financial guarantees of nearly $7 billion to cover the costs of decommissioning older infrastructure. This was announced by the Interior Department on Friday. The agency stated in a press release that it would be developing a new regulatory framework, but gave no specifics. This move aligns with the efforts of President Donald Trump to reduce federal regulation and increase domestic energy production. A spokesperson for the Interior Department declined to comment further.
French and Benelux stocks: Factors to watch
Here are some company news and stories that could impact the markets in France and Benelux or even individual stocks. ASM International, a manufacturer of computer chip equipment, announced that it would launch a 150 million euro share buyback. Casino, a French retailer, reported a 1.2% decline in first-quarter revenue at 2,00 billion euros. Credit Agricole, a French bank, announced that it would propose Jerome Grivet as its sole deputy CEO. UMG, the world's largest music label, reported a first-quarter adjusted EBITDA of 661 million euro and streaming revenues up 2.9% from year-over-year.
Government committee calls for India to accelerate nuclear power projects
According to a meeting of India's Power Ministry advisory committee held on Monday, the country must speed up nuclear project execution, raise awareness about their safety, and create a strong vendor list. India announced in early February that it would amend its nuclear liability laws to encourage foreign and private investment. The aim is to increase the nuclear capacity from 9 GW to 100 GW or more by 2047. The country is looking to replace coal-based energy with more environmentally friendly sources. India has a high reliance on nuclear energy to meet its growing energy demands without compromising its net-zero pledges.
Britain Emphasizes Collaboration on Energy Security at Global Summit
Britain urged closer international cooperation to improve energy security on Thursday, telling dozens of other governments and business leaders that they would otherwise be vulnerable to those who were willing to weaponise supplies.Security of energy supply shot up the agenda of countries around the world after Russia's full-scale invasion of Ukraine in 2022 drove up global prices and pushed the EU to curb its reliance on Russian fuels."Energy security is national security...
Baker Hughes' first-quarter profits beat expectations on the back of strong demand for natural Gas Technology
Baker Hughes, a U.S. oilfield technologies firm, beat Wall Street expectations for the first-quarter profits on Tuesday thanks to a robust demand for natural Gas technology. The positive results are coming as oilfield service firms prepare for the impact of the tariffs introduced by the President Trump. These are expected to increase costs and disrupt sourcing of materials that are used in equipment such as drill pipes and artificial lifting systems. As Big Tech invests billions in AI, demand for electricity has increased to power data centres. This demand for LNG is also increasing.
US finalizes tariffs against Southeast Asian solar imports
U.S. Trade officials finalized tariffs on solar panels and cells from Southeast Asia. This is a major step in settling a trade dispute that has been raging for a year, with American manufacturers accusing their rivals overseas of flooding the market unfairly with cheap goods. The Commerce Department imposed preliminary antidumping, antisubsidy, countervailing duty on solar equipment imported from Malaysia, Cambodia Thailand and Vietnam last year. Hanwha Qcells from Korea, Arizona's First Solar Inc., and a number of smaller producers filed the case to protect their billions in investment in U.S. Solar Manufacturing.
Chevron will triple-frac half of Permian wells by 2025 in order to reduce costs and time
HOUSTON, 9 April - U.S. Oil Major Chevron plans on increasing the use of a method that allows it fracture subterranean rocks in three wells simultaneously in the Permian Basin, according to the company. This is in an attempt to reduce the time and costs of oil production. Chevron, the second largest U.S. producer of oil, is expanding the triple-frac technique as it expects to increase production in the Permian oilfield - the largest U.S. field - even though the company has begun to reduce spending. The United States' shale revolution has been driven by technology.
LNG Canada begins cooling down of the plant as a final step to producing LNG
Two people have confirmed that LNG Canada is cooling down its Kitimat liquefied gas plant, British Columbia. This is a last step before the company begins producing super-cooled gas. LNG Canada will be the first LNG export facility in Canada. It is expected to export 14 million metric tons per year (MTPA). People said that the company began using refrigerants on Tuesday as part of its cooling process. Tomorrow, it is expected to add natural gas to the plant. The cooling of an LNG plant prior to its production will help to reduce the…
Indonesia makes trade concessions to the US before talks
Indonesia made a series of concessions to the U.S. on Tuesday. These included reducing taxes on steel and electronic goods, in advance of negotiations with Washington regarding President Donald Trump's tariffs. Next week, the largest economy in South East Asia will send a delegation of high-level officials to the United States to seek a deal that would ease the impact on Wednesday's 32% tariff. Airlangga Hartarto will lead Indonesia's delegation to the U.S. and said that Indonesia intends to purchase liquefied gas, liquefied gas natural, and soybeans as part of its negotiations.
Chevron will pay $740 Million to restore Louisiana's coastline, reports AP
The Associated Press reported that Chevron had been ordered to pay $740m to repair damages caused by the oil and gas giant to the coastal wetlands of southeast Louisiana. Report: The jury's verdict awarded $575,000,000 for compensation for land losses, $161,000,000 for contamination, and $8,000,000 for abandoned equipment. The original lawsuit was filed in 2013 by the Plaquemines Parish in Louisiana. The AP reported that jurors determined that Texaco, a company purchased by Chevron back in 2001, violated state regulations governing coastal resource management by failing to restore wetlands impacted from dredging…
Stocks of tech and bank companies plummet as China's retaliation fuels fears of a wider trade war
U.S. tech giants, banks, and oil majors all fell on Friday, after China responded to Trump's new tariffs by imposing steep duties. This heightened fears of an economic recession around the world. China has imposed additional duties of 34 percent on U.S. products, which will take effect on April 10. China also announced a ban on the export of certain rare-earths, and added a number of U.S. companies to its "unreliable entity" list. This allows Beijing to take punitive measures. On Wednesday, U.S. president Donald Trump announced 34% tariffs on imports coming from China and a 10% base tariff on the majority of goods entering the U.S.
US Businesses brace themselves for more pain when Trump imposes reciprocal tariffs
The U.S. president Donald Trump announced on Wednesday a number of reciprocal duties on trading partners, the latest of a long list of duties that have been imposed by him since he returned to the White House in early this year. From April 5, the U.S. is imposing a baseline 10% tariff on all imports into the country and will be increasing duties for several of its largest trading partners. Levies may be especially damaging to U.S. firms in sectors that have already been hit with duties. Following U.S. Trump announced last week that he would impose 25% tariffs on imports of all automobiles and auto parts from outside the United States.
Japan's Terra Drone will boost collaboration with Saudi Aramco in inspections
Terra Drone, a Japanese startup that uses drones to inspect and survey energy infrastructure, has announced it is increasing its cooperation with Saudi Arabian state-owned Aramco in order to inspect oil and natural gas facilities. Terra Drone, a Japanese company, has signed an agreement with Aramco that will allow it to test its drones in Saudi Arabia. This is expected to begin later this year or early next. Terra Drone stated that the actual operation of the inspections will begin in 2027. Terra Drone's contract with Aramco would be its largest ever in terms of drone inspections at oil and gas installations.
Trinidad: Key gas project in Venezuela is not slowing down, despite US pressure
Trinidad Prime Minister Stuart Young stated on Thursday that companies planning an offshore gas project between Venezuela and Trinidad and Tobago have "not slowed down" their work despite increased pressure from the United States on Venezuela and uncertainty regarding the extension of the license for the project. After talks with U.S. Young, who spoke to South American and Caribbean nations this week, said that the "landscape" is changing. He was referring the recent announcement by Washington of secondary tariffs for importers of Venezuelan gas and oil.
TotalEnergies warns that indirect emissions may increase as the company aims to sell gas
TotalEnergies, a French energy company, said in its sustainability report on Thursday that plans to sell more gas in the coming years would increase indirect CO2 emissions. TotalEnergies said that global emissions will also fall as a result of its clients moving away from dirty fuels. In 2024, the French oil giant emitted 376 millions metric tons CO2-equivalent. Of this, 342 million tons was indirect emissions so-called Scope 3, which comes from clients burning fuels purchased. This is a slight decrease from the 386 tons CO2-equivalent that was produced in 2023.
Nigeria’s Refining Revolution is Reshaping West Africa’s Energy Landscape
The launch of the Dangote Refinery near the Port of Lagos presents an exciting opportunity to transform the energy and shipping markets in West Africa. And it stands to boost Nigeria’s role as an influential player in the global oil industry, fostering economic growth and regional development.Nigeria’s standing in the global energy landscape is getting a boost with domestic refining capacity expanding in 2025. The Dangote Refinery near Lagos presents a transformative opportunity for Nigeria’s economy and is expected to reshape global tanker routes and trade flows.The country has long been a leading exporter of crude oil…
Glencore refinery in South Africa invests in cleaner fuels
Astron Energy, an affiliate of the global commodity trader Glencore will invest up six billion rands ($328 million) in order to install new equipment, and to become compliant with South Africa’s cleaner fuel specification before a 2027 deadline. Astron officials have said that the foundations for a Gasoline Hydrotreating Process, which will reduce petrol to Euro 5 specifications has already been laid in the 100,000 barrels a day crude oil refinery near Cape Town. The Clean Fuels II regulation in South Africa, which stipulated that the sulphur content in petrol and diesel must be reduced to 10 parts-per-million (ppm)…
European investors warn that the clock is ticking on AI adoption
European companies who are investing heavily in generative artificial intelligence must start showing results by the end of next year or investors will lose patience. AI-exposed shares have been downdrafted with the broader equity market in recent weeks, as fears of recession rise. This has added to the pressure on the sector, which was already under strain in January when the launch low-cost Chinese AI DeepSeek sparked a tech sale. Many investors are optimistic about Gen-AI and its potential to boost profits and productivity. However…
Tax tussles between Indian and foreign companies
In India, foreign companies often face difficulties due to the high tax demands on large M&A deals or accusations by the government of duty evasion. This can lead to lengthy litigation. The following are the most important tax disputes that have occurred in the past and present involving foreign companies. In January, the South Korean giant Samsung Electronics was ordered to pay back taxes and penalties of $601 million for avoiding tariffs on imports of key telecom equipment. Samsung is one of India's largest consumer electronics and smartphone companies. The amount demanded represents a significant chunk of its net profit last year of $955 millions.
Laos signs clean energy agreement worth $1.45 billion with Chinese industrial company
Laos signed a clean energy agreement worth $1.45 billion with a Chinese manufacturer of power plant equipment as it continues its drive to generate and transmit clean electricity. China Western Power Industrial and a Singaporean construction company signed an agreement with Xekong Thermal Power Plant, Laos. The project will design, supply and build a 1,800 megawatt clean energy power plant in southern Laos. This was revealed in a filing on the Sichuan stock exchange by the Sichuan based company. The project will be completed at the beginning of 2020, and the initial designs should be complete by the end this year.
