Iran’s missile strike on Al Udeid Air Base in Qatar on June 23 was loud but calculated. Despite the scale (nearly 20 missiles, including medium-range ballistic weapons) the damage was negligible. U.S. and Qatari sources confirm that interception systems neutralized the bulk of the barrage, and the only successful impact hit a structure outside the base, with no military value and no casualties. This was not a serious attempt to degrade U.S. capabilities in the Gulf. It was theater with a purpose: to signal resolve without triggering escalation,…

This could have been a momentous week in Ukraine’s long-term wish of joining the European Union and NATO. In the end, it wasn't. As leaders of the two institutions met for key summits in Brussels and The Hague respectively, Kyiv’s eventual membership of both should have been a centerpiece. Instead, Ukraine is no closer to joining either — and the many obstacles in the war-torn country's path to the Euro-Atlantic community were on full display. Just like in Vilnius a year ago, Ukraine was frustrated that it didn’t get an…

Crude oil markets endured a sharp four-day selloff from June 22-26, driven by collapsing geopolitical risk premiums and mounting global supply. The steep decline wiped out nearly all the gains from mid-June’s heightened Middle East tensions, as traders recalibrated around fresh supply-side realities and emerging demand concerns. Iran-Israel Ceasefire Removes Key Supply Risk Oil’s abrupt decline was catalyzed by a ceasefire agreement between Israel and Iran, announced late Monday by U.S. President Donald Trump. Though Israel accused…

Santos has granted exclusive due diligence access for six weeks to the consortium led by Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC that has made an $18.7 billion non-binding takeover bid for the Australian energy giant.  Santos, which earlier this month received – and plans to accept – the offer, has now entered into a process and exclusivity deed with XRG, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and lead investor of a consortium including Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company and Carlyle, the Australian gas giant said on Friday.  The…

Santos has granted exclusive due diligence access for six weeks to the consortium led by Abu Dhabi’s ADNOC that has made an $18.7 billion non-binding takeover bid for the Australian energy giant.  Santos, which earlier this month received – and plans to accept – the offer, has now entered into a process and exclusivity deed with XRG, a subsidiary of Abu Dhabi National Oil Company and lead investor of a consortium including Abu Dhabi Development Holding Company and Carlyle, the Australian gas giant said on Friday.  The…

Shell and its partners have started up two subsea compressors to boost the recovery rate at the Ormen Lange natural gas field in the Norwegian Sea, the UK-based supermajor, which operates the field, said on Friday.  Shell expects the compression stations to raise the gas recovery rate to 85% from the current 75%.  The two new compressor stations are installed on the seabed 120 kilometers (75 miles) from shore and are directly connected to the processing plant at Nyhamna.  The increased recovery rate will allow the extraction of 30–50…

China hiked its imports of crude oil from Iran in June, as Iran accelerated loadings in May and independent Chinese refiners bought more discounted Iranian barrels.  Amid overall high imports in recent weeks, thanks to the lower oil prices in April and May when cargoes were bought, China significantly boosted its imports of crude from Iran this month, according to data from tanker-tracking firms cited by Reuters. Vortexa put the Chinese oil imports from Iran at a record high of 1.8 million barrels per day (bpd) in the period June 1 to June…

Centrica, the owner of British Gas, is prepared to take a 15% stake in the UK’s Sizewell C nuclear power plant project, the final investment decision on which is expected shortly, the Financial Times reported on Friday, quoting sources with knowledge of the talks.   Sizewell C was initially proposed years ago by France’s EDF and China General Nuclear Power Group. However, the UK government bought out the Chinese group’s stake in 2022 amid concerns about China’s influence, and is now a shareholder with 84%, with…

The risk of crude oil supply disruption in the Middle East has dropped to just 4%, according to options traders, Goldman Sachs said in a new note, after Israel and Iran agreed to a ceasefire earlier in the week. The bank’s analysts reported that options traders now see a 60% chance for Brent crude to average between $60 and $70 over the next three months, with the chance of the benchmark topping $70 per barrel at 28%, Reuters wrote. Among the factors driving these expectations, Goldman listed the absence of any disruption during the latest…

Crude oil prices were set to end the week lower than they started it as Israel and Iran stopped bombing each other, alleviating fears of a supply disruption in the Middle East. At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $68 per barrel, with West Texas Intermediate at $65.55 per barrel. That’s down from over $77 for Brent crude and $73 per barrel for WTI at the end of last week. Still, both benchmarks inched higher on Thursday this week, after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported a draw in both crude oil and fuel inventories,…

Previously, we reported that the United States is witnessing a power storage boom, with a 15-fold increase in utility-scale battery storage capacity since 2020 to nearly 30,000 megawatts (30 GW). Nineteen states have installed at least 100 MW of utility-scale battery storage, driven largely by falling battery costs. However, this surge in battery capacity pales in comparison to China’s hydropower growth. According to the International Hydropower Association, China accounted for nearly 60% of the 24.6 GW in new global hydropower capacity commissioned…

The ongoing transition from baseload power generation to weather-dependent sources of electricity has proven quite challenging due to this dependence. Now, a team of scientists says the challenges are not insurmountable. We just need to build a globally interconnected system of wind and solar. It sounds like a huge undertaking fraught with its own challenges, and indeed it is. For the time being, then, the idea is only theoretical, with the scientists claiming it would result in energy abundance for every part of the world, thanks to the planet’s…

A new oil and gas project in the North Sea has been greenlit by Norwegian oil major Equinor and its Fram partners, which plan to invest NOK 21 billion or USD$2 billion. Equinor Energy owns 45 percent of the Fram Sør project, Vår Energi ASA holds 40 percent and INPEX Idemitsu Norge AS has 15 percent. The plan for development and operations was submitted on Thursday to Norway’s Minister of Energy. The Fram Sør project is a combined development of several discoveries that will export oil and gas via Troll C. The Troll field…

The recent commissioning of Brazil’s largest gas-fired thermal plant is set to raise the country’s annual gas consumption for power generation by at least 6 million cubic meters per day (MMcmd) from July to November – representing a 23% year-on-year rise. Gas Natural Acu’s (GNA) 1.7-gigawatt (GW) GNA II power plant began commercial operations on 31 May, accounting for approximately 8% of the country's total gas-fired installed capacity. As a result, GNA raised its operational thermal portfolio to 3 GW, consolidating itself…

In a move with significant implications for transcontinental energy trade, the UK government has formally withdrawn support for the $34.4-billion Morocco-UK Power Project, a mega-renewables plan that would have delivered solar and wind electricity via a 3,800 km undersea cable from the Sahara Desert to Devon, Reuters reports.  The project, led by British firm Xlinks and backed by TAQA, Octopus Energy, and TotalEnergies, aimed to supply 8% of the UK’s electricity needs, enough for over 7 million homes, with zero-carbon power. But Energy…

In a move with significant implications for transcontinental energy trade, the UK government has formally withdrawn support for the $34.4-billion Morocco-UK Power Project, a mega-renewables plan that would have delivered solar and wind electricity via a 3,800 km undersea cable from the Sahara Desert to Devon, Reuters reports.  The project, led by British firm Xlinks and backed by TAQA, Octopus Energy, and TotalEnergies, aimed to supply 8% of the UK’s electricity needs, enough for over 7 million homes, with zero-carbon power. But Energy…

Apple’s position in the rapidly evolving artificial intelligence landscape is increasingly precarious. While rivals such as Google, Microsoft and even Samsung have surged ahead by integrating large language models (LLMs) and generative AI into their products, Apple’s progress has been notably cautious and incremental. Commentators and insiders alike question whether Apple is losing the race to harness one of the most critical technology revolutions of the decade. “I’m massively bearish on it (Apple) long term”, Dan…

Spot rates for very large crude carriers (VLCCs) sailing from the Persian Gulf to Asia have fallen sharply in recent days, as military tensions near the Strait of Hormuz subside and shipping flows resume a more stable pattern. Charterers that had paused bookings or rerouted vessels in mid-June amid fears of an Iranian blockade have begun re-entering the market, easing pressure on freight. According to tanker brokers cited by gCaptain, VLCC rates for Gulf-to-China routes have dropped to approximately $63,000 per day, down from nearly $100,000 just…

Spot rates for very large crude carriers (VLCCs) sailing from the Persian Gulf to Asia have fallen sharply in recent days, as military tensions near the Strait of Hormuz subside and shipping flows resume a more stable pattern. Charterers that had paused bookings or rerouted vessels in mid-June amid fears of an Iranian blockade have begun re-entering the market, easing pressure on freight. According to tanker brokers cited by gCaptain, VLCC rates for Gulf-to-China routes have dropped to approximately $63,000 per day, down from nearly $100,000 just…

Spot rates for very large crude carriers (VLCCs) sailing from the Persian Gulf to Asia have fallen sharply in recent days, as military tensions near the Strait of Hormuz subside and shipping flows resume a more stable pattern. Charterers that had paused bookings or rerouted vessels in mid-June amid fears of an Iranian blockade have begun re-entering the market, easing pressure on freight. According to tanker brokers cited by gCaptain, VLCC rates for Gulf-to-China routes have dropped to approximately $63,000 per day, down from nearly $100,000 just…