International

It is easy to forget that China is a relatively new member of the LNG importers club.

This year has begun with some “macro volatility,” but Baker Hughes Co.’s executive team remains optimistic about the outlook for energy services, particularly for natural gas. The Houston-based oilfield services (OFS) giant kicked off the quarterly earnings season for the energy sector on Wednesday. CEO Lorenzo Simonelli led a conference call with analysts to share…

If European Union (EU) countries decide to limit Russian LNG imports, the decision could result in potentially disruptive outcomes for global natural gas markets, according to analysts. Last month, European Commissioner for Energy Kadri Simson urged EU members and companies to stop buying Russian liquified natural gas, and not to sign any new gas contracts…

A natural gas and oil fortune has been abandoned offshore of British Columbia (BC) after Chevron Corp. and ExxonMobil retired Pacific seabed drilling rights following decades of successful environmental opposition. The integrated producers voluntarily gave up exploration licenses to an area rated as harboring up to 40 Tcf of natural gas and 10 billion bbl…

Global natural gas demand remained weak as floating inventories built at sea and prices in Europe and Asia continued falling as the week got underway.  The May Title Transfer Facility (TTF) shed a penny on Monday, while spot LNG prices in Asia dropped below $12/MMBtu to their lowest point in nearly two years.  In Europe,…

China Petroleum and Chemical Corp., aka Sinopec, has agreed to take a stake in QatarEnergy’s North Field East (NFE) LNG expansion project, the first equity deal between a Chinese state-owned firm and the major natural gas exporter. Sinopec negotiated a 5% stake in one of the four 8 million metric ton/year (mmty) capacity trains outlined…

U.S. oil producers ramped up output last week even as near- and long-term demand grew increasingly uncertain amid recession fears and a new push to shift American drivers to electric-powered cars and trucks. Domestic exploration and production (E&P) firms generated 12.3 million b/d of oil for the week ended April 7, according to the U.S.…

Brent crude oil prices are poised to average $86/bbl for the remainder of 2023 before falling to an average of $81 in 2024 amid rising global inventories, according to the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) latest projections. Downward pressure could start to emerge for the global crude benchmark in 2Q2024, when global oil inventories “will begin…

European natural gas storage inventories are so full heading into injection season and Asian demand remains weak enough that there is a remote possibility of U.S. LNG cargo cancellations later this summer. Even a limited number of cargo cancellations would mark an extraordinary turnaround from a tight market that’s been shaped by supply fears since…