Oil India Limited (OIL), the state-owned oil and gas explorer, has $300 million in dividends from its stakes in Russian oilfields stuck at Russian banks and unable to withdraw, due to last week’s U.S. sanctions that hit the Rosneft-operated fields.   The U.S. sanctions on JSC Vankorneft and Taas-Yuryakh Neftegazodobycha LLC (LLC TYNGD), in each of which Rosneft holds just over 50%, have complicated fund transfers, Oil India’s chairman Ranjit Rath told Reuters on Tuesday. OIL is seeking legal options to free up the dividends, Rath…

Oil India Limited (OIL), the state-owned oil and gas explorer, has $300 million in dividends from its stakes in Russian oilfields stuck at Russian banks and unable to withdraw, due to last week’s U.S. sanctions that hit the Rosneft-operated fields.   The U.S. sanctions on JSC Vankorneft and Taas-Yuryakh Neftegazodobycha LLC (LLC TYNGD), in each of which Rosneft holds just over 50%, have complicated fund transfers, Oil India’s chairman Ranjit Rath told Reuters on Tuesday. OIL is seeking legal options to free up the dividends, Rath…

Brent crude hovers near $65 as traders await the outcome of this week’s Trump–Xi meeting in South Korea. From Black Gold to Blue Flame – US Dealmakers Pivot to Gas - The US oil industry’s consolidation drive has run out of steam as low-60 crude prices made it much harder for private equity firms to sell their undeveloped assets; however, gas deals still have a lot of room left.  - According to Enverus, US upstream dealmaking dipped by almost 30% in Q3 2025, totalling only $9.7 billion with Crescent Energy’s $3…

India’s Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Limited (HPCL) is looking to import fuel in early November under a rare import tender, after the state-controlled refiner was forced to close a gasoline-producing unit at its Mumbai refinery due to a contamination issue, sources with knowledge of the tender told Reuters on Tuesday.  HPCL on Monday said its Mumbai refinery, one of the two large refineries the company operates in India, faced “operational issues” after processing crude from Hindustan Oil Exploration Co.’s (HOECL)…

North Sea oil and energy services group Petrofac has appointed administrators, putting thousands of jobs at risk. The company said it took the decision after one of its customers, TenneT, terminated its relationship over a 2GW energy programme in the Netherlands. “Having carefully assessed its options, and the impact of TenneT’s decision… the directors of Petrofac Limited have applied to the High Court of England and Wales to appoint administrators,” the company said in a statement. “When appointed, administrators…

Singapore’s Equator Renewables Asia and the clean energy unit of China National Nuclear Corporation on Tuesday signed a joint venture agreement to develop a solar project in Indonesia, with part of the electricity generation set for exports to Singapore.  CRE International (CREI), the renewables arm of the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC), and Equator Renewables Asia will work to develop a cross-border renewable energy project designed to export up to 400?MW?AC of clean, solar-generated electricity from Indonesia’s Riau…

The oil market just had its knee-jerk moment. Prices roared higher after the U.S. blacklisted Rosneft and Lukoil—but traders are already questioning whether President Trump’s sanctions will ever really stick. Oil prices jumped 8% last week, with most of the gains coming on Thursday, the day following the U.S. Treasury Department’s announcement that Russia’s top two producers and refiners would be designated effective November 21.   Market Focus Shifts from Glut Fears to Supply Squeeze Anxiety The U.S. sanctions…

Electric vehicle skeptics often squawk that battery-electric vehicles like Teslas are nowhere nearly as friendly to the environment as their proponents claim. Well, the truth is a bit more nuanced. Whereas the initial manufacturing of EVs, particularly their batteries, does have a significantly higher carbon footprint than internal combustion engine (ICE) cars, many life cycle assessments consistently show that EVs have significantly lower total greenhouse gas emissions than gasoline or diesel vehicles once they are on the road. Unfortunately,…

Europe’s clean-energy crusade has hit a wall of its own making. The EU’s leaders vowed to slash emissions by 90% by 2040, but as electricity bills climb and factories falter, the political consensus that once seemed unshakable is beginning to crack. What began as a climate ambition is turning into an economic rebellion.  Next month will see world leaders gather for COP30—the climate conference that sees countries make political and financial pledges in a bid to arrest what many argue is irreversible planetary destruction.…

Global satellite-detected methane emissions from the onshore upstream oil and gas sector ticked up late last year and into the first quarter of 2025, reversing a steady decline since 2020. Rystad Energy analysis, supported by satellite detection, highlights stark regional differences: China’s emissions surged nearly one-third year on year, while the US recorded a smaller rise of 4%. Russia, on the other hand, posted a 5% drop in the first quarter, largely due to the ongoing Russia-Ukraine conflict leading to lower production volumes. Detected…

U.S. President Donald Trump appears to have come to the view long-held by others who know how his Russian counterpart Vladimir Putin operates that the war in Ukraine must finally cause him hard-hitting consequences before it can come to an end. After all, the Little Emperor’s geopolitical game plan has always been to keep pushing until he runs into a force greater than his own, whether that is in Ukraine or further westwards in Europe. Indeed, the only reason that Putin did not use tactical nuclear weapons in Ukraine after it was apparent…

Via Metal Miner While geopolitical tensions continue and rare earths supply chain vulnerabilities deepen, the United States is quietly redrawing the global map of critical mineral sourcing, and Australia seems to be emerging as a cornerstone. The latest development on this front is the U.S. Export-Import Bank (EXIM) issuing a letter of interest to fund up to US $200 million for VHM’s Goschen Rare Earths and Mineral Sands Project in Victoria. This follows a similar move in September of this year, when EXIM backed US $67 million for Sunrise…

The UK government will offer an annual £1.08 billion support budget for new offshore wind projects under its next renewable electricity auction, with £900 million dedicated to fixed-bottom developments and another £180 million for floating offshore wind farms to be delivered from 2028, the Independent reported.  The government said the expanded budget aims to spur investment in clean power capacity as part of its wider ambition to decarbonize the UK’s electricity grid by 2030, cut household bills, and strengthen energy…

The UK government will offer an annual £1.08 billion support budget for new offshore wind projects under its next renewable electricity auction, with £900 million dedicated to fixed-bottom developments and another £180 million for floating offshore wind farms to be delivered from 2028, the Independent reported.  The government said the expanded budget aims to spur investment in clean power capacity as part of its wider ambition to decarbonize the UK’s electricity grid by 2030, cut household bills, and strengthen energy…

The UK government will offer an annual £1.08 billion support budget for new offshore wind projects under its next renewable electricity auction, with £900 million dedicated to fixed-bottom developments and another £180 million for floating offshore wind farms to be delivered from 2028, the Independent reported.  The government said the expanded budget aims to spur investment in clean power capacity as part of its wider ambition to decarbonize the UK’s electricity grid by 2030, cut household bills, and strengthen energy…

Central Asian leaders are scrambling to prepare for a snap summit with President Trump in Washington. While critical minerals will undoubtedly dominate discussions, Central Asian officials will also be seeking US help in addressing an array of other pressing issues, including technology transfers, expanded cultural and educational exchanges, and water-resource management, according to a source familiar with the preparations.  The Washington summit, organized under the C5+1 framework, is scheduled for November 6, according to a statement released…

Previously, we reported that the national average price of gasoline in the United States has dropped below $3 a gallon for the first time in years, in large part due to OPEC+ returning more barrels to the market as well as weak global demand. Average national gas prices clocked in at $2.969 per gallon on Monday, 16 cents lower than a year ago, with popular fuel savings platform GasBuddy predicting that they could go even lower in the coming weeks.  Warnings on Friday that U.S. motorists may not enjoy sub-$3 prices for long became reality by…

China has increased its underground gas storage capacity by the most of any country since 2022, the International Gas Union (IGU) said in a new report on Monday. As of 2025, there are 699 underground natural gas storage facilities in operation worldwide, with a total working gas volume of 424 billion cubic metres (bcm), the IGU report found. That’s an increase of 10 bcm compared to 2022. “Of note is the fact that China added 6 bcm to its storage capacity, now ranking 6th globally,” the IGU said. The top five countries with the…

China has increased its underground gas storage capacity by the most of any country since 2022, the International Gas Union (IGU) said in a new report on Monday. As of 2025, there are 699 underground natural gas storage facilities in operation worldwide, with a total working gas volume of 424 billion cubic metres (bcm), the IGU report found. That’s an increase of 10 bcm compared to 2022. “Of note is the fact that China added 6 bcm to its storage capacity, now ranking 6th globally,” the IGU said. The top five countries with the…

The noticeable upward tilt in graphs of the U.S. natural gas price since April 2024 is likely a hint of things to come for U.S. consumers of energy. That's because record amounts of U.S. natural gas are now being sent abroad in the form of liquefied natural gas (LNG). And much more export capacity is planned. The U.S. Energy Information Administration forecasts that U.S. LNG export capacity will double by 2029. That's all gas that cannot be delivered to American users. I have written about these trends (see here, here, here and here)…