China’s biggest state-held energy firms are following the demand trends in the world’s top crude oil and natural gas importer. After decades of growth, Chinese demand for transport fuels is peaking as electric vehicles and LNG-powered trucks are seizing market share from gasoline and diesel. But natural gas demand is only going up, and it’s expected to continue growing for decades. Tasked by the authorities to boost domestic production of oil and gas, all three state majors, PetroChina, Sinopec, and CNOOC, are increasingly betting…

These are big days for oilfield services (OFS) providers, and the awarding of a major drilling contract to U.S.-based giant SLB (NYSE:SLB) for an ultra-deepwater Trion project offshore Mexico is more than just another deal. It’s where the deepest offshore drilling becomes the purview of artificial intelligence. The contract, awarded by Australia-based Woodside Energy Group (NYSE:WDE), Trion’s operator, will see SLB employ its artificial intelligence-enabled drilling capabilities to drill 18 ultra-deepwater wells with improved operational…

As U.S. President Donald Trump looks increasingly likely to shift away from the Biden-era acceleration of renewable energy deployment in favour of the expansion of the fossil fuel industry, oil executives are calling on the government to create greater market stability. The U.S. energy market has boomed in recent years, largely due to the introduction of former President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), which attracted high levels of green financing, and the increase of domestic oil and gas production. Favourable federal policies have…

US Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the Trump administration is committed to remaining in the NATO and urged the military alliance's 32 members to pledge to increase spending to strengthen its defense capabilities. Speaking as he arrived at a two-day meeting of NATO foreign ministers in Brussels, Rubio said the United States was "as active as it has ever been" in the alliance as he sought to allay ally concerns that US President Donald Trump is undercutting transatlantic relations. "President Trump's made clear he supports NATO. We're going…

Oil market fundamentals support the OPEC+ decision to increase May’s crude oil production by three times more than what the group originally planned, energy investor and senior portfolio manager at Ninepoint Partners Eric Nuttal told BNN Bloomberg on Thursday. “It was a surprising press release to wake up to,” Nuttal said, speaking of OPEC’s decision.  “Unfortunately for them, I think they could justify it through looking at strong enough fundamentals, at least before yesterday—looking at inventories being…

It’s official: President Donald Trump has announced sweeping tariffs on friends and foes alike, with the minimum rate at 10% and higher versions of between 20% and as much as 49%. Oil prices took a dive after the announcement, predictions of a grim economic future multiplied, and countries around the world vowed to retaliate. It’s a game of tariffs with a twist: energy imports were exempted from the tariffs. On Wednesday afternoon, President Trump announced a 10% additional levy on most goods that enter the United States. For some trade…

Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) nations saw their bourses plunge on Thursday following U.S. President Donald Trump’s unveiling of sweeping ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs on importers that helped send oil prices plunging 7% earlier in the day. In the UAE, the Dubai stock index was gearing up to record its biggest drop so far this year, shedding 1.8%, while the Abu Dhabi index fell 0.8%. Saudi Arabia’s main index dropped 0.4%, partly driven by losses from state-run oil giant, Saudi Aramco. Lower oil prices in recent years, combined…

Sir Keir Starmer has vowed to “keep a cool head” in the face of the “economic impact” of Donald Trump’s 10 per cent tariffs on UK exports to the US, amid fears of a wider trade war. The Prime Minister spoke to business chiefs in Downing Street this morning in the wake of sweeping global import taxes announced by the US President at the White House last night. Trump imposed a rate of 20 per cent on the European Union (EU), 24 per cent on Japan and 34 per cent on China, among a wide range of others, in a speech hailing…

President Trump’s sweeping new tariffs are sending shockwaves through global markets, sparking concerns across industries—from tech to energy. Announced Wednesday, the new tariff package imposes a minimum 10% duty on all U.S. imports and much higher rates for countries with significant trade surpluses with the United States. China, facing a 54% tariff, is expected to be among the hardest hit. Apple could feel the impact more than most. Analysts estimate that if the company passes the full cost of tariffs on to consumers, the price of…

Via Metal Miner   Steel Industry leader British Steel is set to start consultations on permanently blowing down the operating blast furnaces at Scunthorpe. The move comes after the company failed to reach an agreement with the UK government on financial aid for conversion to green steelmaking. “Since 2020, the shareholder of British Steel, Jingye, has invested more than £1.2 billion [$1.55 billion] to maintain operations amid ongoing production instability and significant financial losses of around £700,000 [$906,400] a day,”…

In the latest of a series of accusations and repudiations, Russia accused Ukraine on Thursday of having launched what Moscow said were “provocative” attacks on energy infrastructure. “The attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure are targeted and are purely provocative and demonstrative,” Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said on Thursday, as carried by Reuters. Last month, Russia agreed to a 30-day suspension of attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in exchange for an identical halt of attacks…

In a time of institutional upheaval and reappraisal The Trump administration, with help from the Supreme Court, is trying to weaken or abolish Federal regulation by administrative agencies. States with a similar philosophical bent might attempt to do the same. Here we examine the issues that will arise when policy wonks make their “modest” proposals to abolish state agencies that regulate public utilities. They might argue that these agencies no longer suit the purpose for which they were intended in the late nineteenth and early twentieth…

In the latest of a series of accusations and repudiations, Russia accused Ukraine on Thursday of having launched what Moscow said were “provocative” attacks on energy infrastructure. “The attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure are targeted and are purely provocative and demonstrative,” Maria Zakharova, spokeswoman of the Russian Foreign Ministry, said on Thursday, as carried by Reuters. Last month, Russia agreed to a 30-day suspension of attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure in exchange for an identical halt of attacks…

Western military leaders will discuss the possible deployment of troops to Ukraine who would monitor a potential cease-fire in the conflict with Russian and be part of the country’s new security structure, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said in his nightly video address. “This is our starting point: the Ukrainian army must be strong enough, and on this foundation, the entire security architecture is built,” Zelenskyy said. “A meeting will take place in just a few days -- on Friday (April 4) -- with representatives…

The price of WTI crude oil dropped more than 7% on Thursday as President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs blitzed markets and OPEC+ threw an unexpected production curveball. At 10:38 a.m. in New York, Brent crude was trading at $70.21—a 6.32% slide—while WTI sat at $66.80, down nearly 7%. The double whammy came as OPEC+ dropped a surprise output hike and Trump lit a fresh round of tariffs aimed at leveling the playing field with other countries. Eight OPEC+ nations announced Thursday they’ll raise output by 411,000…

The price of WTI crude oil dropped more than 7% on Thursday as President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs blitzed markets and OPEC+ threw an unexpected production curveball. At 10:38 a.m. in New York, Brent crude was trading at $70.21—a 6.32% slide—while WTI sat at $66.80, down nearly 7%. The double whammy came as OPEC+ dropped a surprise output hike and Trump lit a fresh round of tariffs aimed at leveling the playing field with other countries. Eight OPEC+ nations announced Thursday they’ll raise output by 411,000…

The price of WTI crude oil dropped more than 7% on Thursday as President Donald Trump’s Liberation Day tariffs blitzed markets and OPEC+ threw an unexpected production curveball. At 10:38 a.m. in New York, Brent crude was trading at $70.21—a 6.32% slide—while WTI sat at $66.80, down nearly 7%. The double whammy came as OPEC+ dropped a surprise output hike and Trump lit a fresh round of tariffs aimed at leveling the playing field with other countries. Eight OPEC+ nations announced Thursday they’ll raise output by 411,000…

Russian revenues from oil and gas plunged by 17% in March from a year earlier, according to data from Russia’s finance ministry. Oil and gas revenues for the Kremlin fell to $13.1 billion (1.1 trillion Russian rubles) last month, while revenues for the first quarter dipped by nearly 10% on the year to $31.4 billion (2.64 trillion rubles), the official Russian data showed. Much of the decline was likely attributable to the lower oil prices in February and March, as well as the initial chaos with Russian oil trade after the U.S. sanctions from…

Oil traders are avoiding hiring tankers built in China amid concerns that port fees could be coming for Chinese vessels at U.S. ports as part of a plan by President Donald Trump to revitalize the American shipbuilding industry. Under the plan – not yet finalized – the Office of the US Trade Representative (USTR) proposes a per-port-entry fee of up to $1.5 million on Chinese-built vessels, and up to $1 million per-port-entry fee on any vessel (Chinese built or non-Chinese-built) for operators that have any Chinese-built vessels in their…

The leaders of Canada’s two biggest political parties are promising expansion and modernization of energy infrastructure to reduce dependence on the United States for energy exports amid U.S. President Donald Trump's tariff and sovereignty threats. Mark Carney, the Prime Minister who replaced Justin Trudeau and is leading the Liberal Party ahead of the April 28 federal election, says that Canada’s principal investment imperatives include “expanding and modernizing our energy infrastructure so that we are less dependent both on…