European Commission proposes 17th Russia sanctions package
EU diplomats confirmed on Tuesday that the European Commission has proposed to add more individuals and over one hundred vessels connected to Russia's Shadow Fleet to its 17th package against Moscow. One source said that the extension will continue until June of next year due to its importance for Japan. They said the proposal was "simple" and came sooner than expected. The proposal was not discussed informally with the member states in advance, as had been the case for past Russian measures. The countries are expected to reach a quick agreement on the proposal, with the first discussion scheduled for Wednesday.
EU countries expect 'simple' 17th Russia sanctions package
EU diplomats say that the EU countries are not expecting any major restrictions to be added in the next package against Russia of sanctions, which will be shared by the Commission with the member states on Tuesday. They said the package proposal was earlier than expected and that member states had not been formally consulted on its contents in advance, as has been standard for Russian measures in the past. Sources said that the work of the Commission on new measures had been slow and new restrictions would not be expected until June.
Gazprom, the Russian energy giant, will return to profit in 2024 with earnings of $14.8 billion
The Russian energy giant Gazprom reported a net profit for the full year 2024 of 1.2 trillion Russian roubles (14.76 billion dollars) compared to its loss in previous years. This was due to a better gas business as well as higher interest incomes from financial investments. Gazprom reported a net loss for 2023 of nearly $7 billion, its first since the year 1999. This was due to a decline in sales to Europe, which used to be its primary source of income. Gazprom has been the Russian company most affected by international sanctions since the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2013.
Equinor Q1 profits rise more than expected
Equinor announced a higher than expected increase in its first quarter profit on Wednesday. This was boosted by an increase in European gas prices compared to the same period last year. Equinor's poll of 20 analysts predicted that the Norwegian oil and gas company would earn $8.51 billion in January-March, but it actually increased to $8.65 from $7.53. Equinor has maintained its projections that oil and gas production will increase by 4% in this year's compared to the previous year. It also kept its forecast of capital expenditures for 2025 at $13 billion.
US sanctions on Serbia's NIS Oil Firm are lifted
The United States has granted a third waiver of sanctions to the Serbian oil company Naftna Industrija Srbije. It is owned by Russia's Gazprom and Gazprom. NIS has a single refinery with a capacity of 4.8 millions tons per year in Serbia. The crude oil supply is sufficient to cover the majority of Balkan countries' needs. On January 10, the Office of Foreign Assets Control of the U.S. Treasury placed sanctions against Russia's oil industry and gave Gazprom a 45-day deadline to sell its NIS shares. The Serbian…
Media report that the Russian court has increased the penalty for Naftogaz Ukraine to $1.3 billion.
Russian news agencies reported that a Russian court increased the financial penalty imposed on Ukraine's Naftogaz state energy company from $150 million to $1.3 billion for its decision to pursue international arbitration in order to resolve a dispute over gas transit with Gazprom. Naftogaz didn't immediately respond to a comment request. St Petersburg's region court took action against Naftogaz in the last year, more than two years after Russia's war began with Ukraine. The five-year transit agreement for gas expired on January 1, 2020. After that date, Russia stopped exporting gas to Europe through Ukraine.
Data shows that Russia's LNG imports fell by 1.2% year-on-year in the first quarter of 2018.
LSEG's preliminary data on Tuesday showed that Russia's LNG exports in the first quarter of this year fell by 1.2% compared to a year ago, reaching 8.1 million metric tonnes. Due to U.S. sanctions over the invasion of Ukraine, Russia has been unable to increase its LNG exports. The new Arctic LNG 2 facility has effectively been frozen due to the Western sanctions. According to two sources, Arctic LNG 2 resumed processing in the last month. According to LSEG, Russia's exports of LNG rose 3.7% in March, from 2.7 millions tons a year earlier.
Prices for EUROPE GAS remain stable as the storage needs continue to support them
Dutch and British wholesale prices for gas were slightly higher on Monday morning, but are expected to be more volatile this week due to the milder weather being offset by the necessity to replenish storages as peace in Ukraine is still elusive. LSEG data shows that the Dutch front-month contract rose 0.60 euros to 41.00 euros per Megawatt Hour (MWh), which is $13.01/mmBtu by 0850 GMT. The contract for the month of May, which is now the front-month was increased by 0.81 euros at 41.40 euro/MWh. The day-ahead contract in the British market rose by 2.00 pence, to 99.00 pence per therm.
Slovak SPP: Gazprom will increase gas supply through TurkStream in April
The CEO of Slovak importer SPP Vojtech Ferencz, who spoke to reporters on Monday, said that Russia's Gazprom would substantially increase its gas supplies to Slovakia via the TurkStream pipe from April. SPP reported last month that Gazprom started supplying gas again to Slovakia at the start of February using volumes donated by Hungary for the TurkStream pipeline. SPP said last month that volumes were expected to double in April but did not specify amounts. Ferencz announced on Monday that the TurkStream capacity had been released, allowing the company to increase the shipment by several times what it was in the previous two months.
Vucic: Serbia will lose access to oil imports when the deadline for sanctions looms.
Serbia may lose access to essential oil imports as of Friday, after discussions to stop the imposition by the United States of sanctions on its sole oil refinery failed. President Aleksandar Vucic stated this in an interview published. The waiver of sanctions expires at midnight. If it is not extended, NIS, which is owned by Russia's Gazprom and Gazprom in majority, may face a reduction in crude oil supply. NIS is the sole oil refinery in Serbia, with a capacity of 4.8 millions tons per year. This facility covers most of Serbia's energy requirements.
Energy assets affected due to sanctions and standoff between Russia and the West
On Tuesday, the United States and Russia reached separate agreements to stop attacks on energy and maritime targets. Washington also agreed to press for the lifting of some sanctions against Moscow. In the event that a peace agreement is reached between Russia and Ukraine, the potential for a relaxation of U.S. sanctions and EU sanctions has led to the question of what will happen to the disputed assets which were affected by international sanctions. This includes both Russian assets located in Europe as well as assets owned by foreign companies in Russia. The main source of revenue for Moscow is oil and gas exports.
Sources: Turkey and Slovakia receive US waiver extensions for gas payments to Russia
Sources told reporters on Thursday that the United States has extended waivers to Turkey and Slovakia for gas payments made to Russia. The extensions will be valid until the end of May. Washington imposed sanctions on Russia's Gazprombank in November over the Ukraine conflict. Gazprombank is one of Russia's largest banks and receives payments from Gazprom customers in Europe for natural gas. The United States granted a waiver to Turkey, Hungary, and Slovakia in December. This removed a major obstacle for them to pay for the Russian gas they receive via the TurkStream pipeline. The energy ministry of Turkey declined to comment.
Sources: Russian-Kazakh joint venture suspends LPG supply from Orenburg plant because of EU sanctions
Kazrosgaz is a joint venture between Russia’s Gazprom, and Kazakhstan’s KazMunayGas. It has suspended production of liquefied gas and its supplies at the Orenburg gas processing facility in Russia this year because EU sanctions have been imposed on imports from Russia for propane and propane butane. Kazrosgaz delivers raw natural gas from Kazakhstan's Karachaganak gas field to Orenburg gas treatment plant in Russia. The company usually sells its LPG to Europe through trading firms. From December 19, last year, the European Union banned imports of Russian butane and propane.
Chinese Companies Shy Away From Russian Oil
Chinese state oil companies are shying away from Russian oil this month, with two importers halting purchases while two others scaled back volumes as they assess compliance following recent U.S. sanctions on Moscow, multiple trade sources said.Russian oil supplies to top buyers India and China fell sharply following the January 10 sanctions by the former Biden administration targeting Russian producers Gazprom Neft and Surgutneftegaz as well as insurers and more than 100 vessels to curtail Moscow's oil revenue.While Russian shipments to the two Asian countries have rebounded after more non-sanctioned tankers joined the trade…
Experts say that Russia is struggling to meet its LNG targets
Experts said that due to the international sanctions, Russia's LNG exports will probably not reach 67 million tons by 2030. This is far below its target of 100 million tons. Russia is focusing on developing LNG that can be transported by sea tankers as its gas exports from pipelines to Europe are down due to the conflict in Ukraine. It has also struggled to increase LNG to China. The company plans to increase its market share to the fifth position on the global LNG markets by 2030-2035. Alexei Gromov, from the Institute for Energy and Finance Foundation in Moscow…
Moldova names new Energy Minister
Dorin Dzungietu, a gas industry expert from Moldova, was appointed as the country's new Energy Minister by President Maia Sandu on Wednesday morning. He was sworn into office at the Presidential Office. Junghietu replaced Viktor Parlicov who was fired in December after failing to prepare for a possible stoppage of gas supplies for Moldova's separatist Transdniestria due to Ukraine refusing to extend their transit agreement with Russia. Sandu stated that "we must increase energy security in our state to ensure that Moldovans are not blackmailed" by others.
Hungary wants to remove eight people from EU sanctions against Russia
EU diplomats say that Hungary wants to remove 8 individuals from the European Union’s Russia sanctions list, and to receive new guarantees regarding Ukraine gas transit negotiations before it agrees to renew restrictions. EU sanctions against Russia, imposed because of Moscow's war on Ukraine, must be renewed by unanimous vote every six months. Budapest has used this renewal as a bargaining opportunity. Peter Szijjarto, the Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs, wrote on Facebook on Monday that Budapest "would not consent to moving forward" in extending sanctions against individuals.
EU May Need 350 additional LNG Cargoes
Helge Haugane, head of Equinor's gas and power trading, told Bloomberg News that the European Union could need up to 350 additional cargoes this year of liquefied gas (LNG).Haugane stated that in the worst case scenario, European reserves of gas could only be 30% full at the end winter. He added that it will be crucial to attract cargoes over the summer for the storage to be refilled, and this could be expensive and require regulatory interventions.Equinor replied to a comment request by saying that it had nothing to add to what Bloomberg News had reported.Anders Opedal…
Data shows that Russia's LNG exports between January and February fell 7.3%.
LSEG released preliminary data on Friday showing that Russia's LNG exports in the first half of this year were down 7.3% compared to a year ago, at 5.1 million metric tonnes. This was due to sanctions and the Sakhalin-2 supply cut. Due to U.S. sanctions over the conflict in Ukraine, Russia has been unable to increase LNG exports. The new Arctic LNG 2 facility has effectively been frozen due to the Western sanctions. According to LSEG, Russia's exports of LNG fell by 8% in February, from 2,57 million to 2,36 million tonnages a year earlier.
Sakhalin LNG and oil production to decline in 2024
According to the local administration, production of LNG, oil and gas on Sakhalin, a Russian Pacific island, will decline in 2024. According to the administration's figures, production of LNG from Sakhalin Energy, a project led by Kremlin controlled Gazprom in Russia, decreased by around 2 percent to 10,2 million metric ton, or about a third of Russia’s total. The administration said that the oil and gas production at Sakhalin-1 project has fallen by 9.8% since 2023 without providing any figures. Gazprom is the largest shareholder in Sakhalin Energy, located at the southern tip Sakhalin.
