Europe

German gas storage levy set at €1.45/MWh from July

A charge to help fund gas imports into Germany will more than double from July, according to Trading Hub Europe, which was tasked by Berlin with ensuring national stocks get Europe’s top economy through the winter.

Germany scales down LNG terminal plans as supply crisis eases

Germany will almost halve planned capacity for LNG terminals in the Baltic Sea as Berlin revaluates its LNG needs given local resistance and an easing of energy bottlenecks.

Ørsted awarded contract which will capture and store 430,000 tons of biogenic CO2

The Danish Energy Agency (DEA) has awarded Ørsted a 20-year contract for its carbon capture and storage project ‘Ørsted Kalundborg Hub’.

EU watchdog sees concentration and liquidity risks in gas derivatives

Europe's $4.5-T natural gas derivatives market has become less transparent since Russia's invasion of Ukraine and faces risks due to a small number of market players and low liquidity.

Finland's Gasum not taking LNG from Russia's Kryogaz

Finnish energy provider Gasum has not been taking cargoes of liquefied natural gas for about a month from the Russian Kryogaz-Vysotsk plant controlled by Novatek citing data from analytics group Kpler.

Europe’s gas prices slide on swollen inventories

Europe has made a relatively slow start to rebuilding gas inventories but stocks were so high at the end of last winter that storage sites are still on course to be full well before summer ends, putting downward pressure on prices.

bp sees investment decision on Teesside carbon capture projects in 2024

bp expects to make a final investment decision in 2024 on a cluster of carbon capture projects in northern England, including a gas-fired power plant in Teesside.

Spain's Endesa faces $411-MM claim in LNG contract dispute

Spanish power utility Endesa faces a claim of $411 MM as part of an arbitration process launched by a liquefied natural gas producer in March.

Ford to test small UK fleet of hydrogen fuel cell E-Transit vans

Ford Motor Co said it will test a small fleet of prototype hydrogen fuel-cell versions of its electric E-Transit model to see if they are a workable zero-emission option for customers hauling heavy goods long distances.

Italy, Germany, Austria sign letter to support hydrogen pipeline

Energy ministries of Italy, Germany and Austria have signed a joint letter of support for the development of a hydrogen-ready pipeline between North Africa and Europe, Italian gas grid operator Snam said.

Germany will have to import 70% of green hydrogen

Germany can only meet 30% of its own needs for green hydrogen, putting Berlin on a quest for trade partners to deliver the remaining 70%, German Economy Minister Robert Habeck said.

Denmark, Sweden sign solidarity agreement on gas supply

Denmark and Sweden have signed an agreement on mutual support in case of gas shortages, the energy authorities of the two countries said.

Germany, Austria, Italy urge EU to back hydrogen projects

Austria, Germany and Italy have pressed the European Union to support a cluster of infrastructure projects to transport green hydrogen imported from North Africa, as part of efforts to build a market in Europe for the low-carbon fuel.

Norway plans wider gas transport nationalization including at Nyhamna

Norway's plan to nationalize gas pipelines owned by the Gassled company also includes an additional goal to take over other assets, including at the Nyhamna processing plant, a letter from the Norwegian energy ministry to the owners showed.

Equinor's Hammerfest LNG plant offline after outage

Equinor's Hammerfest LNG plant in Arctic Norway suffered a compressor failure and is expected to remain offline until May 19.

Poland bought less Russian LPG in 2022, ramped up re-exports to Ukraine

Poland bought less LPG from Russia last year as it sought to diversify its sources in the wake of the war in Ukraine, data shows, although it remained Russia's top customer for the fuel and ramped up re-exports to Ukraine.

Germany's Uniper rides gas price fall to quarterly net profit

German state-owned utility Uniper reported a first quarter net profit of €6.7 B after releasing significant provisions it previously made in the wake of Moscow's move to stop gas supplies.

European gas spike risk lingers says Equinor CEO

The risk of price spikes lingers on the European gas market, depending largely on weather during the peak demand heating season later this year and LNG supplies.

Global gas markets rebalancing and remains tight in 2023

Global gas markets are gradually rebalancing but are expected to remain tight in 2023 amid lower Russian pipeline gas deliveries to Europe.

Fire breaks out at gas processing plant in Kazakhstan

A fire broke out at a gas processing plant on the Zhanazhol gas condensate field in Kazakhstan, local authorities and the company developing the field said.

Aramco in talks with Sinopec and TotalEnergies for $10-B gas deal

Saudi Arabian oil giant Aramco is in talks with refining giant Sinopec Corp and French oil major TotalEnergies for a gas deal of about $10 B.

Russia temporarily halts gas supply to Armenia for planned maintenance

Russia temporarily halted gas supplies to Armenia for four days to conduct planned maintenance on a major gas pipeline.

U.S. LNG exports go full steam ahead, sales to Latin America rise

U.S. producers of LNG exported at top capacity in April for a second consecutive month, with over two-thirds of shipments bound for Europe and rising volumes to Latin America.

Sakhalin Energy to start maintenance at LNG plant

Russia's Sakhalin Energy will start maintenance at its LNG plant in July, without providing the timeframe for the maintenance.

RWE has no interest in operating LNG infrastructure long-term

Germany's RWE said it had no interest in operating infrastructure for importing LNG in the long run, responding to a report saying it wanted to pull out of a controversial LNG project in the Baltic Sea.

Norway plans to nationalize gas pipelines when concessions expire

Norway plans to nationalize most of its gas pipeline network when many existing concessions expire in 2028 to tighten control over key infrastructure.

MHI to collaborate with Saipem on CO2 capture technologies

Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, Ltd. has concluded a General License Agreement with Saipem S.p.A. under which MHI will provide Saipem with its proprietary “KM CDR Process” and “Advanced KM CDR Process” technologies for use in CO2 capture plants.

European Hydrogen Bank strategy to be tested at autumn auction

The European Union will hold a pilot auction for subsidized green hydrogen contracts as it ramps up efforts to decarbonize energy supply and strengthen energy security.

TotalEnergies says Mozambique LNG restart complicated by cost disagreements

The restart of TotalEnergies' $20-B Mozambique LNG project is being complicated by disagreements with contractors over extra costs.

Eni launches LNG production in Congo Republic

Italian energy group Eni and Congo Republic's government on Tuesday launched a $5-B gas liquefaction project expected to reach a production capacity of 3 million tpy in 2025.