Category Archives: Energy industry

Gazprom profits as Russia prospers from Europe’s gas crisis

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State-owned company accused of ‘selling as much gas as possible without lowering market prices’

• Gas prices near record highs as Berlin rejects pipeline from Russia

About 12.7bn cubic feet of gas flowed into Europe from Russia’s state-owned Gazprom last month. The world’s largest gas producer typically supplies more than a third of the needs of countries across the European Union, but in November flows dwindled to a six-year low.

Gas supplies from Russia have fallen well short of pre-pandemic levels for months. The volumes of Russian gas flowing into homes, businesses and storage facilities this year have been almost a quarter below those in 2019.

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Gas prices near record highs as Berlin rejects pipeline from Russia

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Germany says escalating tensions over Ukraine are one factor in Nord Stream 2 not getting green light

• Gazprom profits as Russia prospers from Europe’s gas crisis

Gas prices across the UK and Europe are on course to return to record highs after Germany said a controversial pipeline from Russia could not be approved amid deepening tensions on the Ukrainian border.

The German foreign minister, Annalena Baerbock, said the Nord Stream 2 pipeline could not be given the green light in its current form because it did not meet the requirements of EU energy law.

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UK ‘embarrassed’ into funding Mozambique gas project, court hears

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Friends of the Earth cites documents suggesting UK’s reputation could suffer if it pulled $1.15bn of promised support

The UK was “embarrassed” into funding a huge gas project in Mozambique while considering ending overseas support for fossil fuels, a court has heard.

During a three-day high court hearing, Friends of the Earth highlighted government documents that suggested there would be “obvious repercussions” if the government did not follow through on $1.15bn of support to an offshore pipeline and liquefied natural gas plant in Cabo Delgado province.

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Old UK oilwells could be turned into CO2 burial test sites

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Exclusive: Consortium of energy firms and universities says underground storage of hydrogen can also be investigated

Exhausted oil and gas wells would be turned into the UK’s first deep test sites for burying carbon dioxide next year, under plans from a consortium of universities and energy companies.

There are hundreds of active onshore oil and gas wells in the UK. But as they come to the end of their lives, some need to be redeployed for trials of pumping CO2 underground and monitoring it to ensure it does not escape, the group says. The test wells could also be used to assess how hydrogen can be stored underground.

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Exclusive: oil companies’ profits soared to $174bn this year as US gas prices rose

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Exxon, Chevron, Shell and BP among group of 24 who resisted calls to increase production but doled out shareholder dividends

The largest oil and gas companies made a combined $174bn in profits in the first nine months of the year as gasoline prices climbed in the US, according to a new report.

The bumper profit totals, provided exclusively to the Guardian, show that in the third quarter of 2021 alone, 24 top oil and gas companies made more than $74bn in net income. From January to September, the net income of the group, which includes Exxon, Chevron, Shell and BP, was $174bn.

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Shell to go ahead with seismic tests in whale breeding grounds after court win

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Judgment rules company can blast sound waves in search for oil along South Africa’s eastern coastline

Royal Dutch Shell will move ahead with seismic tests to explore for oil in vital whale breeding grounds along South Africa’s eastern coastline after a court dismissed an 11th-hour legal challenge by environmental groups.

The judgment, by a South African high court, allows Shell to begin firing within days extremely loud sound waves through the relatively untouched marine environment of the Wild Coast, which is home to whales, dolphins and seals.

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Germany suspends approval for Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline

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Move follows mounting politcal pressure to scrap project in setback to Kremlin-backed project

Germany has suspended its approval process for the controversial Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline which would double its reliance on Russian gas following growing geopolitical pressure to scrap the project.

Energy markets across Europe surged after the German energy regulator suspended its certification process, in a big setback to Kremlin-backed Gazprom’s plans to extend Russian gas dominance via a new pipeline across the Baltic Sea.

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Shell and BP paid zero tax on North Sea gas and oil for three years

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Firms defend paying no corporation tax after government handed out billions to energy giants

Shell and BP, which together produce more than 1.7bn tonnes of greenhouse gases a year, have not paid any corporation tax on oil and gas production in the North Sea for the last three years, company filings reveal.

The oil giants, which have an annual global footprint of greenhouse gases more than five times bigger than Britain’s, are benefiting from billions of pounds of tax breaks and reliefs for oil and gas production.

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Crown gives go ahead to rival ‘net zero carbon’ North Sea schemes

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Exclusive: crown estates accused of greed in selling rights to ‘incompatible’ carbon capture and windfarm projects

A clash between two multibillion pound “net zero carbon” schemes is brewing in the North Sea after the Queen’s property manager granted development rights for one patch of seabed to two different projects at the same time.

The crown estate will earn millions of pounds after agreeing to lease an area off the Yorkshire coast to the latest phase of the giant Hornsea offshore windfarm, as well as to a scheme led by BP which plans to begin storing carbon dioxide under the seabed. This has prompted concern that the giant wind turbines could interfere with seabed sensors for the carbon storage project.

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No formal Cop26 role for big oil amid doubts over firms’ net zero plans

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Officials from fossil fuel firms may attend fringe events but campaigners hail lack of official role

Fossil fuel firms have been given no official role in the Cop26 climate summit, it can be revealed, against a background of growing concern among UK officials that big oil’s net zero plans do not stack up.

Private emails from civil servants in the Cop unit, seen by the Guardian, show doubts about one oil major’s net zero plans, with an official saying BP “[does] not currently fit our success criteria for Cop26” and another noting “it’s unclear whether [its net zero] commitments stack up yet”.

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Cop26 corporate sponsors condemn climate summit as ‘mismanaged’

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Exclusive: NatWest, Microsoft and GSK among firms to raise complaint over poor planning and breakdown in relations

Companies that stumped up millions of pounds to sponsor the Cop26 climate summit have condemned it as “mismanaged” and “very last minute” in a volley of complaints as next month’s event in Glasgow draws near.

The sponsors, which include some of Britain’s biggest companies, have raised formal complaints blaming “very inexperienced” civil servants for delayed decisions, poor communication and a breakdown in relations between the organisers and firms in the run-up to the landmark talks.

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French villagers bid to stop Tory donor Aquind laying cable under Channel

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Energy firm and director Alexander Temerko have given £1.1m between them to Conservatives

French mayors and residents along the Normandy coast are campaigning to block a project for a cross-Channel electricity cable backed by a Ukrainian-born businessman who has donated hundreds of thousands of pounds to the Conservative party.

Kwasi Kwarteng, Britain’s business secretary, is due to decide this week on whether to give the go-ahead to a £1.2bn project for the 148-mile cable between Normandy and Hampshire. The firm says the link, which will run through Portsmouth, could supply up to 5% of Britain’s electricity needs.

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Claims that Russia is using energy as a weapon is nonsense, says Putin – video

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President Vladimir Putin says Russia is ready to provide more gas to Europe if requested, emphatically rejecting the suggestion that Moscow is squeezing supplies for political motives. European gas prices have hit record levels this month, but the Kremlin has repeatedly denied that Russia is deliberately withholding supplies in order to exert pressure for quick regulatory approval of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline across the Baltic Sea to Germany

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Carbon emissions ‘will drop just 40% by 2050 with countries’ current pledges’

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International Energy Agency says $4tn investment needed over decade to reach net zero target

Current plans to cut global carbon emissions will fall 60% short of their 2050 net zero target, the International Energy Agency has said, as it urged leaders to use the upcoming Cop26 climate conference to send an “unmistakable signal” with concrete policy plans.

In its annual World Energy Outlook, redesigned this year as a “guidebook” for world leaders attending the summit in Glasgow, the IEA predicted that carbon emissions would decrease by just 40% by the middle of the century if countries stick to their climate pledges.

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India faces electricity crisis as coal supplies run critically low

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Eight in 10 thermal power stations within days of running out as state blackouts spark protests

India is facing a looming power crisis, as stocks of coal in power plants have fallen to unprecedentedly low levels and states are warning of power blackouts.

States across India have issued panicked warnings that coal supplies to thermal power plants, which convert heat from coal to electricity, are running perilously low.

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Nord Stream 2 approval may cool gas prices in Europe, says Russia

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Deputy PM calls for rapid clearance from German regulator after prices reach an all-time high

Russia’s deputy prime minister has said certification of the Nord Stream 2 undersea gas pipeline, which is awaiting clearance from Germany’s regulator, could cool soaring European gas prices.

Prices have risen sharply in response to a recovery in demand, particularly from Asia, with storage levels low.

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China orders energy firms to secure winter fuel supplies at all costs

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World’s second biggest economy is grappling with power cuts that have affected industrial output

China’s central government officials have ordered the top state-owned energy companies to secure fuel supplies for winter at all costs as the country battles a power crisis that threatens to hit growth in the world’s second biggest economy.

The vice-premier, Han Zheng, has told energy companies to make sure there is enough fuel to keep the country running and made it clear that Beijing would not tolerate blackouts, according to a report by Bloomberg.

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How bad is China’s energy crisis?

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Country is implementing power rationing as supplies dwindle due to price raise of imported coal

The situation is widespread. In recent days, factories in 20 of China’s 31 provinces have suffered a loss of power, forcing many to shut down production, at least for hours at a time. Millions of households in the north-east of the country have also lost power and found that they cannot use electricity to heat or light their homes.

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China hit by power cuts and factory closures as energy crisis bites

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The world’s top coal consumer implements power rationing as supplies dwindle ahead of winter

China has told railway companies and local authorities to expedite vital coal supplies to utilities as the world’s second largest economy grapples with extensive power cuts that have crippled industrial output in key regions.

As many as 20 provinces are believed to be experiencing the crisis to some degree, with factories temporarily shuttered or working on short hours. Shopkeepers were left to light their stores by candles, and there were reports of mobile networks failing after a three-day outage hit three north-eastern provinces.

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Boris Johnson to consider using army to supply petrol stations

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Ministers to discuss emergency plan Operation Escalin after BP reveals a third of its forecourts have shortages

Hundreds of soldiers could be scrambled to deliver fuel to petrol stations running dry across the country due to panic buying and a shortage of drivers under an emergency plan expected to be considered by Boris Johnson on Monday.

The prime minister will gather senior members of the cabinet to scrutinise “Operation Escalin” after BP admitted that a third of its petrol stations had run out of the main two grades of fuel, while the Petrol Retailers Association (PRA), which represents almost 5,500 independent outlets, said 50% to 90% of its members had reported running out. It predicted that the rest would soon follow.

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