Oil And Gas News

A fire broke out at Russia's Baltic Sea port of Ust-Luga, a major oil export hub, after a major Ukrainian drone attack, Russian officials said on Wednesday.Ukraine has stepped up drone attacks on Russian oil refineries and export routes over recent weeks in an attempt to weaken Russia's war economy.Ust-Luga and Primorsk, on the Gulf of Finland, were forced to suspend exports of oil and crude on Sunday after drone attacks but they had restarted loadings on Monday, Reuters reported.But Alexander Drozdenko…

Iran has told the United Nations Security Council and the International Maritime Organization that "non-hostile vessels" may transit the Strait of Hormuz if they coordinate with Iranian authorities, according to a note seen by Reuters on Tuesday.The U.S.-Israeli war against Iran has all but halted shipments of about one-fifth of the world's oil and liquefied natural gas through the strait, causing oil supply disruption.The note from Iran's Ministry of Foreign Affairs was sent to the 15-member Security Council and U.N. Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday.

Oil prices sank about 4% on Wednesday after reports the United States had sent Iran a 15-point proposal aimed at ending the war in the Middle East, raising prospects of a ceasefire that could ease supply disruptions in the region.Brent crude futures LCOc1 fell $4.17, or 4%, to $100.32 a barrel by 0708 GMT, after declining to as low as $97.57. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 futures were down $3.11, or 3.4%, at $89.24 a barrel, after falling to as low as $86.72.Both benchmarks rose nearly 5% on Tuesday…

At first glance, the Iran war appears to be hitting oil and gas with equal force, as missiles, drone strikes and shipping disruptions choke flows through the Strait of Hormuz.But beneath that surface symmetry lies a critical imbalance. The global gas supply chain has fewer rerouting options and less storage capacity than the oil market - making the fallout for gas consumers considerably more acute.Key gas infrastructure - liquefaction plants in particular - is more complex and expensive to build and repair than the oil equivalent.

Bahrain has put forward a draft U.N. Security Council resolution that would authorise countries to use "all necessary means" - diplomatic language for force - to protect commercial shipping in and around the Strait of Hormuz, according to a text seen by Reuters on Monday.Diplomats said the draft text was backed by other Gulf Arab states and the United States, although they said it was unlikely to get through the council, where Russia and China had veto power.France circulated a more conciliatory alternative draft resolution…

Valero Energy Corp has shut its 380,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) oil refinery in Port Arthur, Texas, following an explosion and fire at a diesel hydrotreater unit, people familiar with the plant operations said on Monday.The cause of the explosion at the 47,000-bpd 243-diesel hydrotreater unit was not clear. The blast could be heard as far as 11 miles away, the sources said.In an emailed response to Reuters, Valero confirmed a fire in a unit at the company's Port Arthur refinery and…

Oil prices rose on Tuesday on supply fear, as Iran denied it had talks with the United States to end the war in the Gulf, contradicting U.S. President Donald Trump who said a deal could be reached soon.Brent futures LCOc1 rose $2.89, or 2.9%, to $102.83 a barrel at 0710 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) CLc1 climbed $2.49, or 2.8%, to $90.62.Crude futures dropped more than 10% on Monday, after Trump ordered a five-day delay to attacks on Iran's power plants, saying the U.S.

The United States and French energy major TotalEnergies said on Monday they would redirect nearly $1 billion from offshore wind leases to U.S. oil and natural gas production.The agreement marks a new strategy in the Trump administration's wide-ranging effort to stymie development of U.S. offshore wind projects, which President Donald Trump has said he finds ugly, costly and inefficient.His administration has moved to increase domestic fossil fuel production and scrap policies…

The International Energy Agency is consulting with governments in Asia and Europe on the release of more stockpiled oil "if necessary" due to the Iran war, Executive Director Fatih Birol said on Monday."If it is necessary, of course, we will do it. We look at the conditions, we will analyse, assess the markets and discuss with our member countries," Birol told the National Press Club in Canberra, at the start of a world tour.IEA member nations agreed on March 11 to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from strategic stockpiles to combat the spike in global crude prices.

U.S. President Donald Trump went into the Iran war convinced that America’s vast oil wealth would insulate the country from the kind of energy shock now battering much of the world. Four weeks into the conflict, that shield is looking fragile.Trump’s wager has only partly paid off. U.S. oil prices have risen less sharply than those elsewhere since U.S.-Israeli air strikes against Iran on February 28 ignited a regional war that rapidly engulfed the Middle East’s energy infrastructure…

Iran accused Israel of striking its facilities in the huge South Pars gas field on Wednesday in a major escalation in the U.S.-Israeli war that sent oil prices shooting higher, and retaliated by vowing attacks on oil and gas targets throughout the Gulf, firing missiles at Qatar and Saudi Arabia.Qatar's state oil giant QatarEnergy reported "extensive damage" after the Ras Laffan Industrial City, an energy-industry hub, was hit by Iranian missiles. Saudi Arabia said it had intercepted…

Iranian gas facilities in the Gulf came under attack on Wednesday, state media reported, prompting Tehran to say it would target a range of energy installations across Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Qatar "in the coming hours".Oil prices jumped on the news, with Brent crude futures gaining more than 6% to a session high just shy of $110 per barrel.The attacks on Iran's energy industry in South Pars and Asaluyeh have raised concerns that Iran could also target infrastructure of global energy majors across the Gulf…

Seadrill has announced that Sonadrill Holding, its 50:50 joint venture with an affiliate of Sonangol E.P., has been awarded a contract extension.A seven-well priced option for the ultra-deepwater drillship Sonangol Quenguela has been exercised, extending operations in Angola by approximately 480 days and committing the rig into June 2028.Seadrill earns a management fee for providing management, operational and technical support to Sonadrill.

When Saudi Aramco told its oil buyers in a letter this week that it had no clear idea which port it would use for April exports, it laid bare a new reality: Iran, not the United States, holds the key to reopening the global energy market.The letter, sent to Saudi oil buyers around the world, said they might receive oil from the Red Sea, but they might still get it from the Gulf."I might as well call Iran to find out when this war ends so I can get my oil," one regular Saudi oil…

British energy major BP has received approval from the Trump administration to advance its Kaskida project in the Gulf of Mexico, a company spokesperson told Reuters in an emailed statement late on Friday.The $5 billion investment would unlock 10 billion barrels of resources that BP has discovered in the Paleogene fields of the U.S. Gulf, the spokesperson said.The U.S. Department of the Interior's approval of Kaskida follows a year-long review of the company's development plan…

In separate ad hoc meetings of the Gas Coordination Group and the Oil Coordination Group held on March 12, the Commission and EU countries assessed the situation concerning the EU’s gas and oil security of supply in view of the continued disruptions in the Middle East. During the exchange, EU countries confirmed that they do not observe any security of supply risks at the moment. Oil stocks remain at a high level, gas storage filling levels in the EU remain stable.EU countries…

Offshore drilling contractor Seadrill has appointed Samir Ali as its new chief executive officer (CEO).Effective immediately, Samir Ali will step up from its Executive Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer (CCO) position to its new role, succeeding Simon Johnson.Ali has served as Executive Vice President, Chief Commercial Officer of the company since August 2022. Prior to joining Seadrill, Ali was with Diamond Offshore, most recently serving as Vice President of Investor Relations…

Ships must coordinate with Iran's navy to pass through the Strait of Hormuz, the country's foreign ministry spokesperson said in comments carried by Mehr news agency on Thursday.Iran will fight on and keep the Strait of Hormuz shut as leverage against the United States and Israel, new Supreme Leader Mojtaba Khamenei said on Thursday in defiant first comments attributed to him since he succeeded his slain father."The security of the Strait of Hormuz is of vital importance to Iran, because the country’s security is tied to the security of the region.

Iranian crude oil has continued to flow through the Strait of Hormuz at a near-normal pace even as Tehran-linked attacks on ships in the narrow waterway have decimated exports from other Gulf countries, a Reuters review of tanker tracking data showed.Iran has exported about 13.7 million barrels of crude oil since Israel and the U.S. launched attacks on the country on February 28, according to analysis from TankerTrackers.com, a maritime intelligence company that specializes in tracking the so-called shadow fleet…

Oil prices rose sharply on Thursday as Iran stepped up attacks on oil and transport facilities across the Middle East, fuelling concerns of a prolonged conflict and potential disruptions to oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz.Brent futures LCOc1 climbed $5.95, or 6.47%, to $97.93 a barrel at 0915 GMT, having hit $100 per barrel in earlier trading, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude CLc1 was up $5.25, or 6%, to $92.50.Brent hit $119.50 a barrel on Monday, its highest since mid-2022, then dropped after U.S.

Oman's civil defence is working on containing a fire in fuel tanks at the country's Salalah port, Oman's state news agency reported on Wednesday, after drones struck oil storage facilities at the port.The state news agency, citing Oman's civil defence, said that containing the fire "might take time", without providing further details.Earlier on Wednesday, Oman's state TV said that drones struck fuel tanks in the port. Oman's state news agency said, citing an energy ministry official…

The International Energy Agency on Wednesday agreed to release a record 400 million barrels of oil from strategic stockpiles to combat a spike in global crude prices since the start of the U.S.-Israeli war with Iran, with the U.S. contributing the bulk of the supply.The IEA said all 32 member countries backed the move, the sixth coordinated stockpile release since the agency's creation in the 1970s. The United States will take a lead role by contributing 172 million barrels, according to U.S.

G7 energy ministers stopped short of agreeing on a release of strategic oil reserves on Tuesday and instead asked the International Energy Agency to assess the situation before acting.The IEA said it was convening an extraordinary meeting of its member states on Tuesday.Members would "assess the current security of supply and market conditions to inform a subsequent decision on whether to make emergency stocks of IEA countries available to the market," IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol said."We have asked the IEA to elaborate scenarios for a potential oil stock release…