Italy's Lombardy will award two hydroelectric plant contracts by 2025
The local administration announced on Wednesday that the northern Italian region of Lombardy would award concessions to two small hydroelectric plants within its territory before the end of the next year. According to the region, the auction has attracted mostly Italian bidders. This could allow newcomers access to the capital-intensive industry. Five Italian bidders including ACEA Produzione, Ascopiave Group and the Italian subsidiary BkW Hydro, submitted bids to purchase a 4 Megawatt (MW), currently operated by A2A. Four Italian groups including ACEA Produzione…
EU Energy Ministers Discuss Ukraine Energy Crisis and Russian LNG
Officials said that EU energy ministers met on Tuesday in Luxembourg to discuss the rising Russian LNG imports and Ukraine's energy shortages before winter, as well as how to balance energy costs across member states. In June, the EU approved a 14th set of sanctions including a ban of transhipments of Russian Gas as of March of next year. However, it did not impose a complete ban. Belgium and the Netherlands saw a dramatic increase in imports since then. In a Monday letter, France and nine countries asked the European Commission for stricter reporting requirements on Russian LNG (liquefied natural gases) to storage companies and suppliers.
Minister: German natgas supplies secure without Ukraine transit
The German Economy Ministry said on Tuesday that Germany's and neighbouring countries' natural gas supplies are safe even if the transit through Ukraine was cut off. The ministry stated that Germany's terminals for liquefied gas (LNG), even those without access to the coast, are an insurance against a natural gas shortage, including in countries outside of Europe. Ukraine informed Slovakia Monday that they will not be extending their gas transit agreement between Russia and Ukraine after its expiration at the end 2024. Slovakia, Austria, and Hungary still receive a large proportion of their gas via this route despite the conflict in Ukraine.
Ukraine's Shmyhal talks energy security with Slovakian Fico
Denys Schmyhal, Ukrainian Prime Minister, began Monday talks with Robert Fico of Slovakia. He said the discussions would be centered on infrastructure co-operation, energy security and Kyiv’s peace plan. Fico, along with the Hungarian prime minister Viktor Orban, has been a strong critic of Western military assistance to Ukraine. The location of the meeting was not immediately known. "We will discuss the roadmap" Included in this is cooperation on infrastructure projects, economy and energy security. Shmyhal, on Telegram Messenger, said that Slovakia has always been willing to assist Ukraine in importing electricity.
Slovakia has a strong interest in ensuring transit of Russian gas and oil via Ukraine
Robert Fico, the Prime Minister of Slovakia, said that the country has a great interest in continuing the flow of oil and gas from Russia through Ukraine to the West. He added that the European Commission was putting pressure on the country to stop these supply flows. Fico said to reporters that the Slovak government and Ukrainian cabinet would meet on Monday. Due to Ukraine's ongoing war against Russia, the central European nation faces disruptions in its key Russian energy supply. Ukraine has said that it will not renew its gas transit agreement with Russia by the end of this year.
Slovak gas buyer SPP continues to talk about extending Ukraine transit
SPP's Chief Executive Vojtech Ferrencz stated on Thursday that the Slovak government-owned gas buyer SPP continues negotiations with Ukraine to extend the gas transit contract after Kyiv’s contract with Russian gas supplier Gazprom expires in the next few months. Ukraine has stated that it does not wish to renew the transit agreement, but certain central European countries depend on Russian gas delivered via pipelines which cross the country. They have secured an exemption from the European Union's ban on Moscow’s gas imports. SPP has taken a lead in attempting to keep transit open, despite Russia's conflict with Ukraine.
How Much Oil Does the EU Import from Russia?
The European Union has agreed to ban the bulk of imports of Russian crude and oil products in its latest round of sanctions following Moscow's invasion of Ukraine.The ban on seaborne crude imports will be phased in over six months and for seaborne refined products over eight months. It excludes deliveries via the Druzhba oil pipeline which supplies refineries in Eastern Europe and eastern Germany.Yet many European buyers have voluntarily suspended purchases of Russian oil or announced plans to phase it out, which means Russian oil…
Gas Prices Soar in Europe on Tight Russian Supply
European gas prices soared more than 30% on Tuesday as low supplies from Russia reignited concerns about an energy crunch as the region heads for colder weather.A key pipeline which normally delivers gas from Siberia to Europe continued to work in reverse on Tuesday, traders said, sending flows from Germany to Poland, while supplies of Russian gas from Ukraine to Slovakia were also subdued.Russian energy exports have been in the spotlight amid the country's broader standoff with the West , including over its tensions with neighboring Ukraine…
MOL Poducing Hand Sanitizer to Help Fight COVID-19
Hungarian oil and gas company MOL said it has transformed one of its production facilities at Almásfüzitő into a sanitizer production plant as energy companies around the world pitch in to aid the fight against coronavirus. Lubricants producer and MOL Group member MOL Lub Ltd. shifted production of a windshield washer production line in just one week to help combat a shortage of hand and surface sanitizers in Hungary brought on by the COVID-19 pandemic.MOL said the unit is operating 24/7, in three shifts, producing a daily volume of around 50,000 liters.
Vermilion to Drill Exploration Wells in Central Europe
Canada's Vermilion Energy will drill its first two exploration wells in Croatia in June, a senior official from the company said on Monday. Vermilion won four licences in 2015 for oil and gas exploration in Croatia's flat northeastern areas and the drilling will take place on one of these."Although we see evidence of gas charge from the new seismic data we have acquired, we'll not know for sure whether any of this is commercially producible until after these initial wells are completed," Bryan Sralla, who heads the unit for central and eastern Europe…
GA Drilling Gets Capital Boost
Slovakia-based GA Drilling has received a boost to help develop, test and commercialize its innovative plug and abandonment (P&A) technology. The company has signed a £4.2 million ($4.7 million) funding agreement with Budapest based venture capital firm Lead Ventures, with funding provided by Hungary-based integrated, international oil and gas company MOL Group and Hungarian Eximbank.The financing deal, in addition to a service agreement with the European oil and gas company, gives GA Drilling access to onshore production wells where it can put its PLASMABIT P&A technology to the test in real field conditions.
MOL, Total Make Refueling Europe Easier
Japanese logistics giant Mitsui O.S.K. Lines (MOL) and French multinational integrated oil and gas company Total S.A. signed an agreement which will make travelling across Europe easier for their corporate customers.The agreement provides for acceptance of MOL Group Cards by Total in its network of stations in France, Belgium, Luxembourg, The Netherlands and Germany. At the same time, the Total fuel cards will be accepted in the MOL’s and Slovnaft’s network of stations in Hungary, Romania, Slovenia and Slovakia.As a first step, starting from February 2019, Total fuel cards are accepted in MOL’s network in Hungary and Romania.
Russia's Gazprom to Start Gas Auctions -Ifax
Russia's Gazprom plans to start its export gas auctions from Sept. 17 for deliveries to Germany, Austria and Slovakia, Interfax news agency reported on Friday.Gazprom began experimenting with auction sales a couple of years ago as a possible alternative to its usual system of selling through long-term oil price-linked contracts, as some clients started to demand at least partial spot pricing.Reporting by Katya Golubkova
Russia's Oil Exports to Europe Decline as Quality Worsens
Russia has exported less crude oil to Europe this year as the quality of the fuel on offer deteriorated and tense diplomatic relations prompted it to redirect more volumes to China.Russia increased oil pipeline exports to China by almost 50 percent in January-April from a year earlier to 12.4 million tonnes, Igor Dyomin, a spokesman for Transneft, Russia's oil pipeline monopoly, said on Tuesday.Moscow has embarked on a so-called "pivot East" strategy and tried to boost ties with Asia as its relations with the West have chilled over Russia's role in Ukraine's conflict and its alleged meddling in the U.S.
Slovak, Polish Firms Sign Deal to Build Gas Interconnector
Polish and Slovak gas transmission system operators GAZ-SYSTEM and Eustream signed an agreement to build a new 165 km (100 mile) interconnector between the two countries, Eustream said on Monday.The link will improve access to the Baltic gas import terminals as well as Norway via the planned Baltic Pipe.In the south, it would improve access though the Slovak-Hungarian interconnection as well as the planned Eastring pipeline leading to the Balkans, it said."Construction of this gas interconnector will increase regional energy security and create new natural gas trading opportunities to the benefit of European customers…
Fire at Austrian Gas Hub Completely Extinguished
The fire that broke out at Austria's main gas pipeline hub on Tuesday, killing one person and disrupting supplies to Italy and other countries, has been put out, the site's operator said. "Fire is completely extinguished," Gas Connect Austria, which operates the Baumgarten site in eastern Austria near the border with Slovakia, said on its website. Reporting by Francois Murphy
MET International Plans to Boost LNG Trades
Switzerland-based MET International AG plans to boost its liquefied natural gas (LNG) trades in Europe by 50 to 100 percent next year, the company's chief executive said on Tuesday. Gyorgy Vargha said that while the company had traded one cargo, or 60,000 tonnes of LNG, per month this year, this is expected to rise to between 1.5 and two cargoes per month in 2018 as MET seeks to increase its role in that segment. MET International was established in 2010 as the natural gas trading arm of parent MET Group, whose activities include gas, oil and power generation in Hungary, Croatia, Romania, Slovakia, Switzerland and the United Kingdom, among others.
Gazprom Inks Gas Transport Deal with Eustream
Russian gas giant Gazprom said on Tuesday it had signed a 5.3 billion euro ($5.6 billion) gas transportation framework deal with Slovakia's Eustream until 2050. "This agreement provides for a basis for future contracts on transportation and allows to participate in obtaining any capacity in the gas transportation system of Slovakia," Gazprom Export, the export arm of Gazprom, told Reuters in an e-mailed comments. Gazprom said earlier that the Slovak gas transportation system will be used in the long term even if the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline is built.
Naftogaz CEO says EU Should Block Nord Stream-2
The chief executive of Ukraine's state energy firm Naftogaz on Friday said the European Union should block the Nord Stream-2 gas pipeline as it would give Russia too much leverage over Germany, Poland and Slovakia. "There is an easy legal way (to stop it). The EU should apply the same logic like with South Stream, apply the Third Energy Package, then you can't build Nordstream 2. Legal arguments have been overlooked so far," Naftogaz Chief Executive Andriy Kobolev told Reuters in an interview. The EU's Third Energy Package sets regulations that seek to prevent energy suppliers from dominating infrastructure.
Rosneft Sends Oil to Hungary, Slovakia with Glencore's Help
Russia's biggest oil producer Rosneft has started supplying oil to Hungary and Slovakia with Glencore, expanding into new markets after recent acquisitions, three industry sources told Reuters on Friday. Rosneft declined immediate comment. The company is supplying Urals crude oil via the Druzhba pipeline, the sources said. Glencore recently became a Rosneft shareholder after it acquired, together with a Qatari fund, 19.5 percent in the Kremlin-controlled producer. Trading sources told Reuters that Rosneft will supply 80,000 tonnes of oil via the route to each of the countries this month, while supplies will total 500,000 tonnes in January to March.
