Europe NEWS

French oil and energy company TotalEnergies has begun production from the Ikike field in Nigeria, which is expected to deliver peak production of 50,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day by the end of 2022, it said on Monday. The European Commission's deputy director general for its energy department this month said that the European Union was seeking additional gas supplies from Nigeria as the bloc prepares for potential Russian supply cuts.

Schlumberger NV on Friday raised its annual revenue forecast after beating analysts' second-quarter earnings expectations, buoyed by higher demand for its oilfield services and equipment. The company has benefited from a boost in activity driven by stronger oil and gas prices. Global crude prices hovered above $100 per barrel last quarter, fueled by tight supplies following Western sanctions on Russia, a major producer, and as energy consumption returned to near pre-pandemic levels.

European shares notched up their best week in two months on Friday as concerns over an energy supply crunch eased, bringing some calm to investors worried about a big rise in interest rates and a political crisis in Italy. The pan-European STOXX 600 index closed 0.3% up at its highest level since June 10, while for the week it jumped nearly 2.9%. While Russian gas flows to Europe resumed after a scheduled maintenance outage, market participants fretted as euro zone business activity unexpectedly shrank in July, due to a downturn in manufacturing and a near-stalling of service sector growth.

German energy giant Uniper on Friday said it is having to draw down gas from storage facilities, reducing supplies needed for winter even as Europe is experiencing an extreme heatwave.The embattled utility told CNBC in a statement that reducing gas volumes from its own storage facilities was necessary “in order to supply our customers with gas and to secure the Uniper’s liquidity.”

The biggest single pipeline carrying Russian gas to Germany starts annual maintenance on Monday, with flows expected to stop for ten days, but governments, markets and companies are worried the shut-down might be extended due to war in Ukraine. The Nord Stream 1 pipeline transports 55 billion cubic metres (bcm) a year of gas from Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea. It will undergo maintenance from July 11 to 21.

The European Parliament on Thursday backed landmark rules on aviation fuel that set binding targets for the replacement of kerosene with less polluting energy sources, but extended the definition of what a green fuel could be. The requirements, which if approved would be a world first, were originally proposed by the European executive commission last year to cut the climate impact of the aviation sector, which is deemed responsible for up to 3% of global emissions.

$150 oil could still happen, BofA Global Research indicated in a new report sent to Rigzone this week. In the report, BofA Global Research outlined that it sees Brent averaging $102 per barrel this year and in 2023 and highlighted that a potential spike to $150 per barrel could happen if European sanctions push Russian oil production below nine million barrels per day.

European Union governments moved closer on Sunday to agreeing to tough sanctions against Russia over its invasion of Ukraine, but scheduled more talks for Monday to work out how to ensure countries most dependent on Russian energy can cope.

"European leaders blasted Russia's decision to cut natural gas shipments to Poland and Bulgaria as “blackmail,” saying the cutoff and the Kremlin's warning that it might cease shipments to other countries is a failed attempt to divide the West over its support for Ukraine."

EU lawmaker Jerzy Buzek, former Polish prime minister and Parliament's lead lawmaker on the rules, said Parliament's team hoped to start talks with EU countries in two weeks and strike a deal lawmakers could vote on in June.

If Europe adopts official sanctions on Russian crude and fuel, prices will likely surge, and India could profit even more from refining Russian oil to fuels it then sells to Europe for more money.

"The coal ban is significant because it breaks the taboo on severing energy ties with Russia."

Norway could increase gas exports to the continent by between 15 billion and 30 billion cubic metres by end of year

U.S. and European officials condemned the moves, but a Biden administration official said Russia's military action did not as yet constitute an invasion that would trigger a broader sanctions package.

The taxation regime for gas production in Romania has become even more uncompetitive, significantly above the European average. This puts pressure on investments in Romania, endangering the supply [of local consumers] from domestic natural gas production.

Turkey is interested in resuming talks with Israel about using Israeli natural gas and transporting it to Europe, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan said on Friday, as carried by the Daily Sabah news outlet. “We can use Israeli natural gas in our country, and beyond using it, we can also engage in a joint effort on its passage to Europe,

The most-active Brent contract, for April delivery, was trading at $89.69, up $1.17 or 1.3 per cent

TOKYO, Jan 24 (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Monday on worries about supply disruption amid rising tensions in Eastern Europe and the Middle East, which could make an already tight market even tighter, while OPEC and its allies continued to struggle to raise output.