Second Japan-Linked Oil Tanker Sails Via Strait of Hormuz as PM Asks Iran to Help Out
A Panama‑flagged crude tanker managed by Japan’s Eneos group successfully crossed the Strait of Hormuz, marking the second Japan‑linked vessel to do so after Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi personally appealed to Iran for passage. The ship carries about 1.2 million barrels of Kuwait crude and 700,000 barrels of Emirati Das Blend, with an expected arrival in Japan in early June. Tokyo confirmed it paid no transit toll and continues diplomatic pushes for the 39 remaining Japanese‑affiliated vessels still stuck in the Gulf. The move follows a similar transit by Idemitsu’s tanker in late April and comes as Japanese refineries lift runs above 70% using alternative supplies.
TotalEnergies’ 750-Million-Barrel Project Offshore Namibia Targets First Oil in 2030
TotalEnergies is moving ahead with the Venus deep‑water oil project in Namibia’s Block 2913B, a discovery estimated to contain about 750 million barrels of recoverable oil and a Phase 1 production capacity of roughly 150,000 bpd. Front‑end engineering and design (FEED) has been completed...
‘Inevitable’ Jet Fuel Shortages Will Drive up Air Fares This Summer, Says Willie Walsh
IATA chief Willie Walsh warned that jet‑fuel shortages, triggered by the Iran‑related closure of the Strait of Hormuz, will make higher air‑fares inevitable during Europe’s summer peak. Even if the strait reopens, elevated oil prices are expected to linger into...
Eneos Buys Chevron Oil Assets in APAC for $2.2B
Japanese refiner Eneos announced a $2.17 billion cash purchase of Chevron's refining and retail assets across the Asia‑Pacific, including a 50% stake in a Singapore refinery. The transaction, slated to close in 2027, marks Eneos' first overseas refinery ownership and expands...
Big Batteries Took a Bite Out of Gas Generators’ Evening Peak Party, Then They Ate the Whole Dinner
Queensland’s electric grid, long reliant on peaking gas generators, saw a rapid shift as large‑scale battery storage entered the market. In March and April 2026, batteries reduced gas output during the evening peak by roughly 40%, effectively displacing the traditional...
NSW Fast Tracks $60m to Win over Local Communities, Years Before First Poles Erected in New Renewable Zone
The New South Wales government has launched a $60 million (≈$40 million USD) community funding program to support towns in the New England and Upper Hunter regions before the New England Renewable Energy Zone (REZ) construction begins. The REZ, projected to exceed...
A “Keep Out” Sign for Investment: Alarm Bell Sounds over New Retrospective Tax on Renewables
The Albanese government’s 2024‑25 budget expands capital gains tax (CGT) to cover renewable energy assets such as wind turbines, solar panels, battery storage, and transmission infrastructure. A 50 percent CGT discount is offered only until 2030, after which the levy returns...
Crude@$100+: A Power Boom You Might Be Missing
India’s power and energy sector has seen a massive rally as Brent crude stays above $100 per barrel, adding roughly $36 bn (Rs 3 lakh crore) to the market‑capitalisation of Nifty Energy stocks since the US‑Israel‑Iran conflict began. Foreign institutional investors poured about $670 m...
Diesel Backup Gensets Are Big Winners From the Data Centre Boom. Our Cities Would Be Better Off with Batteries
Data‑centre operators pursuing Tier IV (Rated‑4) uptime must provision 96 hours of diesel backup for every megawatt, driving roughly $1.6 billion USD in capital costs per gigawatt and $50 million USD in annual OPEX. Prices for generators have surged about 45% since 2021, pushing...
Hormuz Oil Flows Fell Nearly 30% Last Quarter
U.S. Energy Information Administration data show that daily oil and fuel flows through the Strait of Hormuz fell to about 14.6 million barrels in Q1 2026, a near‑30 percent drop from a year earlier. The decline follows the onset of the war...
Bizarre Planning Rules that Force New Home Owners to Pay for Gas Connections, Whether They Want It or Not
A McKell Institute report finds that 60% of new South Australian homes are automatically connected to the fossil‑gas network, incurring a $4,500 AUD (≈$3,000 USD) connection fee and an additional $8,000 AUD (≈$5,300 USD) in construction costs. The policy persists despite a 5.5% annual...
Public Gets Three More Weeks To Comment On Eskom Nuclear Site – But Critics Say It’s Not Enough
Eskom has pushed the deadline for comments on its Draft Environmental Scoping Report from 5 May to 25 May, adding a 21‑day extension for the proposed 5,200 MW nuclear plant. The report, which leans toward the Thyspunt site, comes with a 2,700‑page dossier...
Energy Insiders Podcast: Budget’s Fossil Fail, and How to Fix the CIS
The latest Energy Insiders podcast examines the Australian federal budget’s disappointing support for fossil fuels and the resulting setbacks for clean energy projects. Host Tim Buckley critiques the budget’s reduced renewable subsidies and highlights the under‑funded Capacity Investment Scheme (CIS)...
China’s EcoFlow to Sell Solar Panels in British Supermarkets Soon
EcoFlow, a Chinese energy‑storage firm, will begin selling plug‑in solar panels through UK supermarkets such as Lidl and Iceland within months. The move aligns with the British government’s plan to install 1.5 million energy‑efficient homes as part of its net‑zero 2050...
Developer of Australia’s Most Powerful Battery Gets Green Light for New Four-Hour Project
Akaysha Energy and BZ Renewables have secured full state and federal approval for the Glenrowan battery energy storage system, a 400 MW, four‑hour (1,600 MWh) project in north‑east Victoria. The EPBC agency classified the development as “not a controlled action,” clearing the...
Germany Takes New Run at Industrial Emissions With CFDs
Germany is rolling out a new carbon contracts‑for‑difference (CCFD) scheme worth €5 billion (≈$5.9 billion) to accelerate industrial decarbonisation after its first CCFD program proved undersubscribed. The initiative focuses on high‑emitting sectors such as steel, chemicals and cement, offering price guarantees for...
Baseload Solar Power Moves From Dream to Reality
A new wave of hybrid power systems that pair solar photovoltaic or wind farms with battery storage is proving capable of delivering continuous, round‑the‑clock electricity. These configurations challenge the traditional definition of baseload power, which has long excluded intermittent renewables....
IEA Sees Bigger Drop in Demand, Warns on Inventories
The International Energy Agency (IEA) has sharply cut its 2026 global oil‑demand forecast, citing a deeper, longer‑lasting economic impact from the recent Middle‑East supply crisis. The agency now expects demand to fall by an additional 1.5 million barrels per day compared...
Senegal Targets $7.5B Gas Project to End Energy Subsidies
Senegal’s state‑owned oil firm Petrosen announced that developing the Yakaar‑Teranga offshore gas field will require $7.5 billion, with a $2.5 billion first phase to produce 300 million cubic feet per day for domestic use and a $5 billion downstream expansion for fertilizer, petrochemical and...
Cherry Street Energy Installs Solar Project for International Talent Consultancy
Cherry Street Energy financed and installed a 112.89‑kW rooftop solar system at Insight Global’s Richmond, Virginia office, bringing the project online in early spring. The talent‑consulting firm signed a 20‑year power purchase agreement, committing to purchase the electricity the array...
Wright and Burgum: Trump's Energy Tiger Team
President Trump has formed an "Energy Tiger Team" headed by Wright and Burgum to overhaul federal energy policy. The group’s mandate is to reverse what Wyoming Senator John Barrasso describes as the Biden administration’s "regulatory rampage" that has driven up food...
Coal: China Produces More Than Everybody Else
China produced 4.78 billion tonnes of coal in 2024, representing 51.7% of global output, according to the 2025 Statistical Review of World Energy. This single nation outproduces the rest of the world combined. The next five producers—India, Indonesia, the United States...
Huge Opportunity in Oil and Natural Gas Stocks
Rob Thummel, senior portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital, told CNBC that investors remain under‑exposed to oil and natural‑gas equities despite a favorable supply‑demand outlook. He highlighted that energy stocks have underperformed the broader market, creating a valuation gap. Thummel pointed...
The Hidden Bottleneck Slowing DER Interconnection—And What Utilities Can Do About It
Utilities are feeling a new bottleneck in distributed energy resource (DER) interconnection: the time engineers spend turning raw field data into structured, analysis‑ready inputs. While drones, LiDAR and other reality‑capture tools have accelerated data collection, converting that imagery into pole...
This Week in PowerBites: Grid-Scale Storage Boom, V2G Initiative, and APEC Standouts
U.S. domestic production of grid‑scale battery storage now satisfies the entire renewable generation capacity demand, positioning storage to provide about 28% of new U.S. power capacity. California’s Energy Commission released a roadmap detailing technical, economic and regulatory actions needed to...
Billie Eilish’s Climate Fund Supports Solar Project for Maryland Affordable Housing
A nonprofit coalition installed more than 270 kW of solar capacity on 40 affordable‑housing townhomes in Montgomery County, Maryland. The project, financed by RE‑volv and the Montgomery County Green Bank and built by GreenBrilliance, is expected to cut energy expenses by...
Duke Energy’s Nuclear Playbook: Three Horizons, One Strategy
Duke Energy’s 11‑unit nuclear fleet posted a record‑high capacity factor above 97% in 2025, underscoring the reliability of its core generation assets. The company is pursuing 80‑year license extensions for all reactors and a 300 MW uprate program that adds capacity...
Activ8 Energies and SSE Airtricity Launch All-Island Funded Solar Initiative Worth up to €200 Million to Support Businesses
Activ8 Energies and SSE Airtricity have unveiled a €200 million (≈$218 million) all‑island solar programme that finances on‑site solar PV installations for Irish businesses at no upfront cost. Companies will purchase the generated electricity through long‑term Power Purchase Agreements, securing a fixed...
Follow This Proposal at Equinor Backed by 21% of Independent Shareholders
A shareholder resolution urging Equinor to continue Barents Sea exploration has secured the support of 21% of independent shareholders, with an additional 9% of non‑state investors voting in favor. The proposal arrives as the European Union intensifies pressure on Arctic...
Zero: Electricity Will Power a Globally Stable Era (Podcast)
Bloomberg’s Zero podcast features host Akshat Rathi speaking with Gerald Butts, chairman of Eurasia Group and former chief of staff to Canada’s prime minister. The episode examines how the current energy shock—fuelled by wars and disrupted supply chains—is reshaping investor and...
Global Oil Inventories Falling at Record Pace Amid Iran War; US Producer Price Inflation Hits Four-Year High – as It...
The International Energy Agency reported that global oil inventories fell by 129 million barrels in March and another 117 million barrels in April, a record draw caused by supply losses after the Iran‑Israel conflict shut the Strait of Hormuz. The agency now...
ReconAfrica Advances Kavango West 1X Production Testing in Namibia
ReconAfrica, together with NAMCOR and BW Energy, is moving forward with downhole production testing on the Kavango West 1X well in Namibia, targeting a start before the end of May. The test will assess six optimized zones across roughly 420 m of...
Sinopec Reports 235 Bcm Reserves at China’s First Ultra-Deep Shale Gas Field
Sinopec has received official approval for 235.7 billion cubic metres of proven reserves at the Ziyang Dongfeng shale gas field in Sichuan, marking China’s first ultra‑deep shale gas field with reserves over 100 Bcm. The Cambrian Qiongzhusi Formation lies at depths of 4,500‑5,200 m,...
Angola’s Block 2/05 Advances with Successful Espadarte Appraisal Well
Etu Energias and partners completed drilling, completion and testing of the Espadarte 7ST2 appraisal well in Angola’s Block 2/05. The extended‑reach well intersected eight productive intervals with 175 ft net thickness and delivered stabilized flow rates of 2,000‑2,500 bopd, free of water. Reservoir analyses...
Petralon Boosts Nigeria’s Dawes Island Production to 4,800 Bopd
Petralon Energy has lifted output at Nigeria’s Dawes Island field to about 4,800 barrels of oil per day after the DI‑3 well came online on March 14, 2026. The new well contributed roughly 2,800 bopd, marking the second consecutive producing well...
TotalEnergies Targets Egypt Deep Offshore Potential Through New Agreement
TotalEnergies and Egypt’s state gas company EGAS signed a memorandum of understanding to cooperate on deep offshore exploration in northwestern Egypt. The MoU establishes a framework for technical cooperation, subsurface evaluation and early‑stage studies to assess hydrocarbon potential. Signed in...
BYD Surpasses Tesla as World’s Top Energy Storage Deployer
BYD overtook Tesla as the world’s largest battery‑energy‑storage system (BESS) integrator in 2025, securing 13% of the market versus Tesla’s 10%. The Chinese maker shipped more than 60 GWh of storage units, outpacing Tesla’s 46.7 GWh amid a 51% surge in global...
Natural Gas Power Burn Eyes 2027 Rebound as Data Centers Lift Demand, EIA Says
The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects natural‑gas‑fired electricity generation to remain essentially flat in 2026 before accelerating sharply in 2027. The rebound is tied to soaring power demand from data centers, which are expected to consume a larger share of...
Hammerfest LNG Outage Tests Europe’s LNG Supply Cushion
Norway’s Hammerfest LNG export terminal has been forced offline after an operational fault, with repairs expected to take several days. The unexpected shutdown arrives as Europe prepares for a competitive summer storage‑refilling season, tightening the regional LNG balance. U.S. liquefied...
Hydrostor Announces Development of Advanced Compressed Air Energy Storage Project in Greater Napanee, Ontario
Hydrostor announced the Quinte Energy Storage Centre, an advanced compressed‑air energy storage (A‑CAES) project in Greater Napanee, Ontario. The development has secured a municipal support resolution and an Indigenous equity partnership with the Mohawks of the Bay of Quinte, and will...
US LNG Feed Gas Flows Retreat From April Highs as Terminal Work Weighs on Demand
U.S. LNG feed‑gas nominations slipped below 17 billion cubic feet per day, retreating from April’s peak levels. The decline is driven by a Freeport LNG outage that trimmed Texas terminal flows and continued reduced nominations at the Corpus Christi facility. Extended commissioning...
Oil Little Changed as Trump Visits China
Oil prices held steady on Wednesday, with Brent at $107.47 a barrel and WTI at $102.04, as traders watched a fragile cease‑fire in the Middle East and President Donald Trump’s summit with Xi Jinping in Beijing. The International Energy Agency...
Oil Price Spike Turmoil Far From over, IEA Says as Inventories Are Depleted at “Record Pace"
The International Energy Agency warned that oil market turmoil will persist as inventories shrink at a record pace following the February war in the Middle East. Global supply fell an additional 1.8 million barrels per day in April, bringing cumulative losses...
Eni Says Its Biodiesel Successfully Tested on Cruise Ship
Eni’s biofuel arm Enilive successfully ran a 2,000‑hour test on MSC Opera using 100% hydrogenated vegetable oil (HVO) without any engine modifications. The trial recorded a 16% drop in NOx and roughly an 80% reduction in lifecycle greenhouse‑gas emissions versus conventional...
France’s Mantle8 Raises €31 Million to Fund the World’s Most Advanced Natural Hydrogen Exploration and Drilling Campaign
Mantle8, a Grenoble‑based natural hydrogen explorer, closed a €31 million (≈$33.5 million) Series A round, bringing total capital to €37 million (≈$40 million). The funding, led by Sandwater and backed by Breakthrough Energy Ventures, Bpifrance’s Ecotechnologies 2 fund, IP Group, Wind Capital and Calderion, will finance...
Chevron, TotalEnergies Advance Nigeria Offshore Plans
Meren Energy, holding stakes in Chevron's Ikija and Agbami fields, has accelerated its appraisal and infill drilling schedule to the fourth quarter of 2024, moving it up from a 2027 timeline. The move comes as Nigeria's deep‑water offshore output has...
Growatt Launches C&I Storage System with 95% Depth of Discharge
Chinese inverter and battery maker Growatt has launched the RISE 261H‑XH, an all‑in‑one hybrid energy storage system for commercial and industrial use. The platform delivers 261 kWh of lithium‑iron‑phosphate storage with a 95 % depth‑of‑discharge and is offered in 50 kW, 63 kW, 85 kW...
India Set to Scale Back Russian Oil Imports if US Waiver Lapses
India may be forced to cut Russian crude imports if the U.S. sanctions waiver expires on May 16. Imports have surged to a record 2.3 million barrels per day this month, but could fall to about 1.9 million barrels without a renewal. Indian...
EU Carbon Trading Revamp to Boost Revenue Return to Industry, Commissioner Says
The European Commission announced a revamp of the EU Emissions Trading System (ETS) aimed at returning a larger share of permit revenues to industry as a decarbonisation incentive. Climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra highlighted the need for more renewable capacity, continued...