Germany Offered to Build LNG Terminals to Avert US Pipeline Sanctions
Berlin offered to spend 1 billion euros ($1.2 billion) to build two liquid natural gas terminals in a bid to dissuade the United States from imposing sanctions over the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, due to bring gas directly from Russia to Germany, Die Zeit reported on Wednesday.The weekly paper said Finance Minister Olaf Scholz made the proposal in an Aug. 7 letter before Washington imposed sanctions on companies involved in building the Baltic Sea pipeline, effectively freezing its construction.A spokesman for the German…
MWV Expects Druzhba Shipments Within Days
German oil industry lobby group MWV expects German refineries to receive shipments of clean Russian oil through the Druzhba pipeline via Belarus and Poland within the next several days, a spokesman said on Tuesday.The spokesman for the Berlin-based association (Mineraloelwirtschaftsverband), that represents 14 companies, 17 refinery sites and 10 oil pipelines, said the two most severely affected refineries, PCK Schwedt and Leuna would be receiving pipeline oil again.An influx of contaminated oil into Druzhba in April forced Russia to halt west-bound flows to customers…
Merkel: Germany Will Accelerate Plans to Build LNG Terminal
Chancellor Angela Merkel said on Friday that Germany would speed up its plans to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal as Europe's largest economy seeks to diversify its energy supply.Merkel also said that Ukraine would remain an important gas transit country once the Nord Stream 2 pipeline is built. Critics of the project say it will deprive Ukraine of lucrative gas transit fees and increase the dominance of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom. (Reporting by Reuters Television Writing by Michelle Martin Editing by Thomas Escritt)
Shell Lobbies Dutch Government for More Wind Projects
Anglo-Dutch oil major Royal Dutch Shell said it has urged the Dutch government to come up with bolder offshore wind targets and quadruple the goal for installed capacity to 20 gigawatts (GW) by 2030. Europe's biggest oil company, which has traditionally invested little in green energy sources, is ramping up renewable energy investments to $1 billion a year by the end of the decade after pressure from shareholders to do so and as it sees governments turning to less carbon intensive and more flexible fuels. Some of its recent activities in renewable energy include winning a contract…
Fugro's Shares Sink after Boskalis Trims Holding
Shares in Dutch deep-sea prospector Fugro fell 4.5 percent on Monday after larger rival Boskalis announced that it had trimmed its holding in the company. A statement from dredging and marine engineering company Boskalis said that its holding in Fugro now stands at 24.9 percent. Boskalis had built a stake of as much as 28.6 percent at the end of 2015 in what was widely seen as a first step towards buying Fugro. Boskalis also took Fugro to court in an attempt to strip away some of the company's poison pill defenses but lost its case in May. Fugro shares were down 4.5 percent at 14.74 euros by 1641 GMT.
Albanians Protest Law Allowing Refuse Imports for Recycling
Several thousand Albanians protested in the capital on Saturday to demand Prime Minister Edi Rama scrap a law allowing waste imports for recycling that has revived fears the country could become Europe's refuse dump. Rama angered environmentalists last week by reinstating the legislation in a bid to prop up the country's flagging recycling industry just three years after he repealed a similar law proposed by the previous government soon after coming to power. Environmental activists say the law will let wealthy neighbouring countries such as Italy send dangerous and polluting waste to be destroyed in Albania…
Fugro Slashes Jobs, Sheds Subsea Business Unit
Marine engineer Fugro announced a further 600 job cuts and the sale of one of its business units as it battles to cut costs in response to weak oil and gas prices. The company, which specialises in prospecting for hard-to-reach subsea deposits that are uneconomic at low oil prices, saw first-half core earnings tumble by 49 percent, though CEO Paul van Riel said he hoped conditions would improve next year. "The lack of investment is impacting on oil supply while demand is still strong," he said. The company also stands to benefit from the oil industry's own cost cutting…
Dutch Offshore Wind Tender Attracts Bids
Some of Europe's biggest energy companies, including Shell, RWE and Vattenfall, are competing in a Dutch offshore wind tender seen as one of the biggest green energy projects on offer in Europe this year. The Dutch government has an ambitious target to more than quadruple its offshore wind energy capacity by 2023 to lower climate-harming carbon emissions from energy production. Many other European governments lack a clear framework to deliver renewable energy projects after 2020, making the Dutch tender an attractive one for investors.
Dutch offshore engineer Sif gains on first day of trading
Shares in Dutch offshore energy engineer Sif Group rose on their first day of trading in a sign that investors are attracted to a company that stands to benefit from government pledges to boost renewable power generation. The company, which makes foundations for offshore structures including wind turbines and oil platforms, had originally planned to list in February but postponed the offering due to poor market conditions. Shares in the company rose 1 percent above their offer price of 14 euros in Amsterdam's first listing of the year on Thursday, before settling back to 14.05 euros by 0711 GMT. (Reporting By Thomas Escritt.
Ukraine Energy Firms Turn to Arbitrator Over Crimea Losses
Two Ukrainian energy companies that lost control of assets in Crimea when Russia seized control of the peninsula have asked a U.N. arbitrator to award compensation, the Permanent Court of Arbitration said on Monday. The case was brought in June 2015 by the two companies, Ukrnafta and Stabil, who alleged that Russia had violated its obligations under the Ukraine-Russia Bilateral Investment Treaty when it expropriated the firms' investments in petrol stations in the Black Sea peninsula. The case has only now been made public.
Dutch Govt. to Halt Gas Output in Part of Groningen Field
The Dutch government said it would immediately implement a court order to halt production in part of Europe's largest gas field after a ruling that raised industry concerns of further output curbs because of safety fears over earthquakes. In a preliminary ruling on Tuesday, the Council of State ordered the government to a halt production around the village of Loppersum in the northern province of Groningen, where the gas field is located. It stopped short of imposing the full block on production in the gas field that complainants had sought.
Vopak Staff to Strike if Pay Offer Not Improved
Workers at oil storage firm Vopak will take strike action if the company does not make an improved pay offer as part of a collective bargaining agreement by Monday, a union official said on Friday. The CNV Vakmensen union informed the company on Tuesday after talks aimed at securing an improved agreement for workers broke down, union spokesman Gijs Dupont told Reuters. "We sent them an ultimatum on Tuesday, as we must under Dutch labour law. It expires at 00.01 on Monday morning," he said. The union's demands include jobs guarantees and a 3 percent pay rise for staff.
Court Rejects Boskalis' Bid for Vote on Fugro's Defences
A Dutch court on Tuesday rejected a bid by Dutch marine engineer Boskalis to have a shareholder vote on anti-takeover protections in place at smaller rival Fugro, in which it holds a 20 percent stake. The legal challenge was closely followed because of the potential for it to set a non-binding precedent concerning poison pill protections in place at two thirds of all Dutch listed companies. At hearings on Tuesday, Boskalis said Fugro's anti-takeover measures were disproportionate. Fugro rejected Boskalis's claim, saying that its offer to discuss its anti-takeover measures at a shareholder meeting without holding a vote was adequate.
SBM Offshore Warns of Sharp Revenues Drop
SBM Offshore, the Dutch marine oil production and loading vessels specialist, said on Wednesday its revenue this year could fall to as low as $2.2 billion, down from $3.5 billion in 2014. "The effects of the recent drop in oil prices are being felt across the offshore services industry in the form of lower order intake," said Chief Executive Bruno Chabas in reporting its results for last year. However he added that the company's strong lease and operate backlog meant the company was "uniquely positioned" with long-term cashflow that was unaffected by movements in oil prices or production levels.
Imtech: Investigating Fraud Allegations
Dutch engineering and construction firm Imtech is investigating allegations it operated a cartel to overcharge German energy company RWE for the building of a power plant in the Netherlands. The allegations, detailed in Dutch newspaper De Telegraaf and German newspaper Handelsblatt on Thursday, follow earlier allegations of accounting fraud at its German and Polish operations. The company put out a statement late on Tuesday in response to questions put to it by the two newspapers in which it mentioned "allegations…
KPI Cancels Investment, May Sell Reinfery
Converting to storage terminal, closure also options. Union says conversion would cut jobs to 80 from 350. Plant has been for sale before, but small size makes finding buyer difficult. Kuwait Petroleum International has cancelled a planned $1.4 billion investment in its 88,000 barrel per day (bpd) Rotterdam refinery and may sell it, a spokesman said, as Europe's refiners struggle with overcapacity and global competition. "Now we have to look at all other options," spokesman Jan Maarten van der Steen said on Monday, adding that the company was talking to banks including HSBC about managing a possible sale.
Trading Dutch Well Placed to Pursue Russia Sanctions
The seafaring Netherlands prides itself on being a trading nation, reluctant to let politics get in the way of a good deal. But since the downing, allegedly by Moscow-backed rebels in eastern Ukraine, of Malaysian Airlines flight MH17 with the loss of 193 Dutch lives, a growing Dutch chorus has called for the country to use its trade power to hit Russia in the wallet. Dozens of Russian firms have chosen to incorporate in the Netherlands to save money on tax, taking advantage of an extensive network of double taxation treaties. The country is also one of Russia's largest trade partners.
Dutch Pension Fund to Invest in Hydroelectric Projects
APG, the asset management arm of the Dutch public sector pension fund, plans to invest $682 million (500 million euros) in hydroelectric power projects over the next five years, a spokesman said on Monday. Harmen Geers said the fund aimed to take advantage of energy companies' need to raise cash by divesting assets. "We have a small investment in hydroelectric power already, but as we are expanding the infrastructure portfolio and we prefer sustainable energy generation, then hydropower sticks out as very suitable," Geers added.
