Document shows that ten EU countries have called for sanctions against Russian LNG and gas
A document obtained by revealed that ten European Union nations have asked the 27-nation group to ban the imports of gas from Russia. This comes as Europe is debating new sanctions against Moscow for its war in Ukraine. The EU is currently preparing its 16th set of sanctions against Russia's economic system, in advance of the third anniversary Moscow's invasion of Ukraine on a large scale. This will take place in February 2022. The 10 countries include the Czech Republic as well as Denmark, Estonia, and Finland. They want Europe to do more to target Russia's oil exports to reduce the revenue flowing to Moscow.
The Moldovan President visits the area affected by blackouts and blames Russia's Gazprom
On Thursday, the Moldovan president Maia Sandu visited areas that were experiencing rolling power outages and blamed Russian Gas giant Gazprom. The energy crisis in the pro-Russian enclave of Transdniestria is a result of this. Dmitry Peskov, Kremlin spokesperson in Moscow, said that Moldova and Ukraine are responsible for the power and heating shortages. The foreign minister of Finland met with officials in both government-controlled Moldova and the separatist enclave and pledged to help both sides achieve a settlement. Transdniestria has been receiving Russian gas for over 30 years. However, Ukraine refused to extend the gas transit agreement past New Year's Day.
Sources say that OMV's Romanian subsidiary has agreed to supply gas to Germany
Three people with knowledge of the situation have confirmed that OMV's Romanian subsidiary has signed a contract to supply Uniper gas from its Black Sea Project starting in 2027. This comes as Europe looks for new ways to increase energy security following the breakup with Russia. The deal, which was not disclosed before, is for a five-year supply of 15 terawatts of natural gas to be delivered by the Neptun Deep Project. This comes after Russia stopped gas deliveries via Ukraine last month and the European Union began to reduce its energy purchases due in part to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.
Sources say that Austria's OMV Romanian unit has agreed to supply gas to Germany
Three people with knowledge of the situation have confirmed that Austria's OMV Romanian has signed a contract to supply Germany's Uniper gas from its Black Sea Project from 2027. This is as Europe looks for new ways to increase energy security following its breakup with Russia. The deal, which was not disclosed before, is for a five-year supply of 15 terawatts of natural gas to be delivered by the Neptun Deep Project. This comes after Russia stopped gas deliveries via Ukraine last month and an overall reduction in energy purchases made by the European Union from Moscow as a result of its invasion of Ukraine.
Sources: Austria's OMV has agreed to supply Romanian Gas to Germany
Three people with knowledge of the deal said that Austria's OMV will supply Germany's Uniper gas from its Black Sea Project from 2027. This comes as Europe looks for new ways to increase energy security following the breakup with Russia. The deal, which was not disclosed before, is for a five-year supply of 15 terawatts of natural gas to be delivered by the Neptun Deep Project. This comes after Russia stopped gas deliveries via Ukraine last month and a general slowdown in energy purchases made by the European Union from Moscow because of its invasion of Ukraine. The contract volume would represent about 1.5% in Germany's imports of gas in 2024.
In the pro-Russian region of Moldova, thousands are left without gas or heat
Authorities said that more than 51,000 households in Moldova's pro Russian separatist enclave were without gas, and 1,500 apartment blocks had no heating for winter. Moldova and Russia have been trading blame over an escalating crisis. Transdniestria (a breakaway region dominated by Russian speakers along the Ukrainian border) had been receiving Russian gas through Ukraine for decades. It used it to produce electricity that was sold to the rest Moldova and provided 80% of its power. This gas, along with the flow to Central and Eastern…
In the pro-Russian region of Moldova, thousands are left without gas or heat
Authorities said that more than 51,000 households in the pro-Russian separatist region of Moldova were without gas, and 1,500 apartment blocks had no heat for winter. This was after Ukraine refused to renew a transit agreement last week with Russia. Transdniestria (a separatist region dominated by Russian speakers along the Ukrainian border) had been receiving Russian gas through Ukraine for decades. It used it to produce electricity that was sold to the rest Moldova and provided 80% of its power. This gas, along with the flow to Central…
After gas cutoff, the breakaway region of Moldova faces prolonged blackouts
Local authorities reported that Saturday saw a longer period of rolling power outages in Transdniestria (the pro-Russian breakaway region of Moldova), which is now without Russian gas because it no longer transits through Ukraine. The flow of Russian gas through Ukraine into central and eastern Europe ceased on New Year's Day, after the transit agreement between the two warring nations expired and Kyiv refused a renewal. Transdniestria is a predominantly Russian-speaking enclave that has lived alongside Moldova since it broke away in the final days of Soviet rule. It received gas from Russian company Gazprom via the pipeline which crosses Ukraine.
Officials say that the breakaway region of Moldova will face new power outages on Saturday.
Local authorities have confirmed that power cuts will continue in Transdniestria on Saturday. The region, which is a breakaway Moldovan region, has been left without Russian supplies after Ukraine decided not to renew a contract for Russian transit gas. After the expiration of the transit agreement, Kyiv refused to do business with Moscow. Transdniestrian officials announced that the first rolling blackouts had begun on Friday night. The region that is mainly Russian-speaking, located along the Moldova-Ukraine frontier and that split from Moldova in 1990, received Russian gas through Ukraine and used it for electricity production.
The industry in the breakaway Moldovan region shuts down due to lack of Russian gas
An official confirmed on Thursday that the cutoff of Russian gas supply to Moldova's Transdniestria region, which is a breakaway region of Moldova, has forced all industrial companies - except for food producers - to close. The Russian gas cutoff to Central and Eastern Europe through Ukraine on Wednesday has caused a severe and immediate impact on the mainly Russian-speaking region of 450,000 people that split off from Moldova during the Soviet Union's collapse in the 1990s. Sergei Obolonik told a local channel that "all industrial enterprises were idle except those involved in food production, which directly ensures food security for Transdniestria".
After gas was cut off, the power plant of the breakaway region in Moldova switches to coal
Transdniestria's main power plant has switched to coal since Russian gas supplies were halted Jan. 1. It should be able to provide electricity to residents of the breakaway region in January and Febraury, according to the leader of the region. The cutting off of Russian gas through Ukraine on Wednesday has caused heating and hot-water supply cuts in the mostly Russian-speaking territory, which split from Moldova early in the 1990s. Russia also has 1,500 soldiers in this area. Transdniestria leader Vadim Krsnoselsky stated in a late-night statement on Wednesday that gas reserves in the region could last 10 days in the northern part and twice that in the southern.
Orban: Hungary is in talks with Ukraine about Russian gas deliveries via Hungary
Viktor Orban, the Prime Minister of Hungary, said that Hungary was in talks with Russia, Ukraine and other countries to keep open gas deliveries via Ukraine, even though it imports Russian gas via Turkstream. The pipeline via Ukraine is one of the main Russian gas routes into Europe. However, it will close at the end this year because Kyiv doesn't want to extend the five-year transit deal that brings gas to Slovakia and the Czech Republic. Orban said in a press briefing: "We're now trying to pull off the trick... Orban stated that talks are ongoing…
Romania allocates 1.5 GW of renewable energy projects
The Energy Ministry announced in a Monday statement that Romania had allocated 1.5 gigawatts of renewable energy project funding through an EU-funded contract for difference scheme. The long-awaited low carbon energy support scheme fixes the price of electricity to providers at a level agreed for 15 years. The Ministry selected 10 projects for onshore wind worth 1.09 GW and 11 projects with a total capacity of 432 MW. The energy ministry stated that the projects would have an average weighted cost of 51 euros for solar projects and of 65 euros for wind projects. This is below the initial strike price of 91 euros for solar and of 93 euros respectively.
Moldova declares a state of emergency when the risk of Russian gas being cut off looms
The Moldovan parliament voted on Friday morning to declare a state of national emergency lasting 60 days, starting Dec. 16, due to the expected interruption of Russian gas supply on Jan. After Prime Minister Dorin Recean's request for approval, 56 members of the 101-seat chamber approved the measure just after midnight. He said that the vote was to stop "gas blackmail" by Moscow. Declaring an emergency allows the government respond quickly and reduce energy exports. Ukraine has announced that it will not be extending its transit contract with Russian Gas giant Gazprom. The contract expires December 31.
Moldova and Russia hold talks about Transdniestria Gas Supply amid Ukraine Transit Uncertainty
Moldova reported that the energy minister of Moldova met with the head Russian gas giant Gazprom to discuss alternative routes for supplying Russian gas to Transdniestria, Moldova's breakaway region. If transit through Ukraine is stopped, Moldova will look at other options. Ukraine has stated that it will not prolong the gas transit agreement. Transdniestria, a region backed by Russia, relies heavily on Russian gas delivered via Ukraine. After the St Petersburg talks, the Moldovan energy ministry released a statement saying that the two men (energy minister Victor Parlicov…
Gazprom and Moldovan ministers to meet to discuss power supply
The Moldovan energy minister announced on Friday that he will meet with Russian gas giant Gazprom in St. Petersburg, Russia next week to ensure stable power supplies following Russian attacks on the energy systems in Ukraine. Victor Parlicov warned that systematic strikes against Ukraine's electricity grid could cut off the country from a supply which had become reliable. The war in Ukraine has had a profound impact on the ex-Soviet Republic Moldova, which is one of Europe's most impoverished countries. Russian drone fragments have repeatedly fallen onto its territory.
Palm extends its losses as concerns about demand weigh
Malaysian palm futures continued to fall on Friday. They hit a new low of three weeks, as the sluggish market outweighed worries about supplies of sunflower oil from the Black Sea region, which is the largest producer, and gains in soft oils. The benchmark contract for palm oil delivery in November on Bursa Derivatives exchange was down 21 Ringgit (0.55%) at $3,831 Ringgit ($888.45). The contract is down 1.7% this week. A Mumbai-based trader said that palm oil has been struggling to recover, despite the gains made by soyoil. Sunoil supply is also a concern. The demand for palm oil is not encouraging a recovery.
Romgaz, a Romanian gas company, raises 500 million euros through its debut Eurobond
IFR data show that Romanian state-owned Romgaz issued its first eurobond on Monday. The company sold 500 million euros (559.50 million dollars) of five-year papers to fund a project for deepwater gas in the Black Sea. Romgaz and OMV Petrom have partnered to develop Neptun Deep Black Sea Gas Project, one of Europe's largest natural gas reserves. The project is expected to cost four billion euros, to be divided equally between the two companies. The company intends to fund its portion of the project via a 1,5 billion euro Euro Medium Term Notes programme that was approved earlier this month.
Ministry: Romania will launch CfD-based support scheme for green energies in mid-November
Romania will launch its first auction of onshore renewable energy projects by mid-November through a contract-for-difference (CfD) support scheme funded by the European Union, the energy ministry said on Monday. It said that the scheme would set a strike-price of 78 Euros per Megawatt Hour for solar projects, and 82 Euros for wind. The long-awaited low carbon energy support scheme will fix the price of electric for providers to an agreed level for a period of 15 years. After the Ministry reduced the scope of the initial 2 GW auction, the first auction will offer 1,5 gigawatts worth of onshore solar and wind energy projects.
DN Agrar and BSOG Romania plan to build a 15 MW Biomethane Production Site
The first biomethane plant in the EU will be built by Black Sea Oil & Gas, a Romanian offshore gas company controlled by Carlyle Group LP and DN Agrar. Romania has committed to phase out brown coal and uses a mixture of coal, gas, hydroelectric, nuclear, and renewables. Anaerobic digestion is a process that produces biomethane, which is a gas identical to natural. It can be injected in existing pipelines. Biomethane is considered renewable energy by EU regulations, so countries and companies can use it alongside wind and solar. Construction of the site BSOG & DN Agrar intend to build is expected to cost 30 million euros (32.68 millions).
