US energy sector reels as winter storm knocks 2 million bpd crude production
Analysts and traders estimate that U.S. producers lost as much as 2 million barrels per day or 15% of their production during the weekend. This was due to a winter storm which ravaged the nation, straining the?energy grids and infrastructure. Energy Aspects estimates that oil production outages peaked at 2 million barrels per day on Saturday. The Permian basin is likely to have experienced the greatest share of this decline, at about 1.5 million bpd.
US energy sector reels as winter storm knocks 2 million bpd crude production
Analysts and traders estimate that U.S. producers of oil lost up to two million barrels per day, or about 15% of the nation's production, over the weekend as a winter storm swept through the country, straining the energy infrastructure and the power grids. According to a report by?consultancy energy?Aspects, oil production outages peaked Saturday. The Permian basin is likely to have been the most affected, as it lost around 1.5 million barrels of oil per day.
Winter storm increases demand for power in US data centers Alley
The largest U.S. power grid saw its prices rise sharply Sunday, as the demand for energy in a region that has?the largest concentration of data centers in the world? exceeded forecasts in the midst of a deep freeze gripping the majority half the nation. Dominion Energy territory in Virginia saw real-time wholesale prices of $1,800 for a?MWh as early as Sunday morning, up from $200 on Saturday. Virginia is home to the largest cluster of data centres in the world.
The US Electric Grid is stressed by the cold weather
Electric grid operators in the U.S. took extra precautions on Saturday to avoid rotating blackouts, as frigid temperatures hit half of America's population. The PJM Interconnection – the largest?U.S. The PJM Interconnection, which serves 67,000,000 people in the East and Mid-Atlantic region, reported temporary spikes of wholesale spot?electricity? prices that rose above $3,000 per megawatt-hour on Saturday morning. Earlier levels were less than $200.
Michigan suedes oil companies for collusion to restrain competition in EVs
Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel filed an antitrust suit against four major oil firms on Friday, alleging that they have colluded over decades to prevent competition from renewable energy sources, including?electric cars. The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court, western Michigan, names BP and Chevron. It also names ExxonMobil, Shell, and the American Petroleum Institute. The lawsuit said that the companies had acted as a "cartel…
Draft shows that Europe is committed to expanding wind energy despite Trump's criticism
A draft declaration that is due to be signed by the leaders of European governments, including Germany, Britain, and Denmark, showed they will continue to expand their wind power projects despite Donald Trump's escalating criticism. Trump has openly criticized the European countries' efforts at switching to low-carbon energies. He said that wind turbines are "losers". Without providing any evidence…
UAE utility withdraws Yemen and transfers solar energy plants to the government
Global South Utilities, based in Abu Dhabi, has handed over two solar power plants to Yemen's Public Electricity Corporation. This was after the?Yemeni government requested that all?Emirati firms leave the country. GSU informed Public Electricity Corporation in a letter of January 22 that all maintenance and operations teams had been evacuated from the Aden Solar Power Plant, with a capacity of 120 Megawatts (MW), as well as the 53 MW Shabwa solar plant.
ContourGlobal, owned by KKR, enters Greece through solar and battery acquisitions
KKR's energy group ContourGlobal announced on Friday that it has entered the Greek renewables markets?with a portfolio of solar plants? and 500 megawatts of?battery -energy storage? projects. The agreement includes 26 solar plants that will generate approximately 51 gigawatt-hours (GWh) of electricity per year, enough to power 15,000 Greek homes for an entire year. Quest Energy, part of Quest Holdings, owned the assets.
Australia now offers three new offshore wind licenses
The government announced on Friday that Australia had offered offshore wind licenses for projects off the coast of Western Australia's southern coast. These projects could bring 4 gigawatts (GW) of clean energy to the state's isolated power system. The offer comes after several other offshore wind project on the east coast Australia have been pulled in the last 18 months, slowing down the sector's progress.
Musk's Davos debut: US tariffs are a problem for solar power
Elon Musk made his Davos debut at the last minute on Thursday. He criticized U.S. Solar Tariffs, set aggressive Tesla targets, such as humanoid robot sales next year, and hinted that European approval of self-driving technology would be within weeks. Larry Fink, interim co-chair of the World Economic Forum, interviewed the richest man in the world after he had described the annual meeting for years as being elitist and unaccountable…
Trafigura CEO: Clean fuels need subsidies and mandates in order to survive on the free market.
Richard Holtum, chief executive of global commodity trading house Trafigura, said that clean or low-carbon fuels need mandates and subsidies to deal with their higher costs compared to conventional fuels. He said that the market will only work if consumers are willing to spend two or three times more on fuel than they do today. Trafigura announced on Tuesday a six-year binding agreement with Syzygy Plasmonics to purchase SAF from Uruguay.
Oil prices and earnings in the Gulf region are mixed.
The major Gulf stock exchanges were mixed early on Tuesday as investors awaited earnings and weighed the weaker oil price, while the Saudi index fell on profit-taking following its recent rally. Saudi Arabia's benchmark index fell 0.1% following a rally of 3.3% triggered by government announcements last week to liberalise access to the capital markets for foreign investors starting next month.
Engie continues to invest in Middle East renewables, as the momentum in US and Europe slows
Engie has reached the 'financial close on a 1.5 Gigawatt solar park, its largest in the world, said the French utility on Monday. The company is stepping up projects in the Middle East, a fast-growing market, amid a slowdown of renewable energy in the U.S. The Khazna Park is set to start commercial operations in the year 2028. It will provide electricity for 160,000 homes throughout the United Arab Emirates…
Smulders to Deliver Jacket Foundation for French Offshore Wind Substation
Engineering firm Smulders has been selected by Chantiers de l’Atlantique to execute the engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) of the offshore substation jacket foundation for the 600MW Dunkerque offshore wind farm in France.The jacket foundation will support the offshore substation for the project, with France’s electricity transmission operator RTE acting as the end client.Final…
Masdar and Engie, both from the UAE, reach financial closure on the 1.5 GW Khazna Solar Project
Masdar, a UAE-based company, and Engie, a French company have completed a 1.5-gigawatt project in Abu Dhabi. They secured financing from seven banks including the?Abu Dhabi Islamic Bank? and?Credit Agricole Corporate? and?Investment Bank?. According to the companies, this group includes KfW IPEX as well as BNP Paribas and HSBC. Abu Dhabi's Emirates Water and Electricity Company awarded Engie and Masdar this project in October.
According to a consultant, India's leading renewable state will need more coal by 2036.
According to a government report, Rajasthan will require 4,400 megawatts by 2036 in order to "meet the rising electricity demand" despite India's leading renewable energy producer adding more?"clean energy" as it retires older thermal plants. According to a letter from the Central Electricity Authority (a think-tank of the federal ministry of power), the earlier estimate of 1,900MW coal-fired energy for Rajasthan has been more than doubled.
China's fossil fuelled power drops for the first time in 10 years as a result of renewables
China's coal-based thermal energy generation in 2025 fell for the first time in 10 years, according to government data released on Monday. Growing renewable generation?met growth of electricity demand, even though?overall consumption?hit a new record. This data is a good sign for China's decarbonisation as it sets out to reach its carbon emission peak by 2030. The coal production reached a new record last year.
Philippines discovers first natural gas in over a decade
The Philippine President Ferdinand Marcos Jr announced on Monday that gas and condensate were found in a well near the existing 'Malampaya' gas field, off the island Palawan. This was the first natural gas discovery by the Philippines in over a decade. Marcos stated that the well, known as 'Malampaya East One or MAE-1', contains about 98 billion cubic foot of gas. This is equivalent to nearly 14 billion kWh in one year.
Top Ukrainian negotiator: Talks with US will continue in Davos
Rustem Umerov, Ukraine's chief negotiator, said that the talks with U.S. officials to resolve the nearly four-year old?war against Russia will continue this week at the World Economic Forum in Davos. Umerov wrote on Telegram that two days of Florida talks with a U.S. delegation including Steve Witkoff, envoy, and Jared Kushner (the son-in law of President Donald Trump) had been focused on security guarantees and a recovery plan for Ukraine after the war.
Zelenskiy, the Ukrainian Zelenskiy, orders faster imports for electricity and power equipment
Volodymyr Zelenskiy, the president of Ukraine, said that he has ordered imports to be as fast as possible. This is because Ukraine is facing its worst energy crisis since World War II. The government declared an emergency because the damaged system is only meeting 60% of its electricity needs. Extremely cold temperatures have exacerbated the situation. Zelenskiy, after a meeting of top military and government officials on X…