Energy

Bloomberg Oil and natural gas exploration plunged to an all-time low as the economic and industrial dislocations from the Covid-19 pandemic snuffed out the remnants of the American shale boom. Drilling in US oil and gas fields retreated by 34 rigs this week to 374, led by a precipitous drop in crude exploration that sank to levels not seen since ...

Bloomberg Italy’s electricity demand jumped as lockdown restrictions were loosened, signaling that an economic recovery may be on its way. While consumption rose in France and Britain and held steady in Germany and Spain from the previous week, it’s not clear how quickly demand will recover or if it’ll ever reach pre-crisis levels as the threat of a deep recession ...

Bloomberg Africa’s most populous nation is getting almost nothing from its massive oil wealth. While headline Brent-crude futures have rallied sharply in the past few weeks — rising above $30 a barrel — a glut of Nigerian oil is fetching about $10 less than that. It’s a level that means fiscal revenue for the continent’s biggest economy has cratered. “It’s ...

Bloomberg Suncor Energy Inc is going further into a defensive crouch, cutting its capital-spending plans for a second time and shrinking its dividend payout, as the Covid-19 pandemic hammers crude demand. Capital spending this year will be C$3.6 billion to C$4 billion ($2.6 billion to $2.9 billion), down from an already-reduced range of C$3.9 billion to C$4.5 billion announced in ...

Bloomberg Standing nearly 100 feet tall on the rocky shore of the island Bjorko in southwest Sweden, a white wind tower looks indistinguishable from thousands of similar tubes that help generate clean energy all over the world. But inside is another story. The interior of the tower is a tableau of creamy white boards, soaring into the air like a ...

Bloomberg On the same day Opec-style oil quotas in Texas were pronounced dead on arrival, shale drillers disclosed more supply cuts in response to the crude market collapse. Diamondback Energy, Parsley Energy and Centennial Resource Development became the latest Permian Basin shale explorers to say they were curbing output. A pandemic-fueled crash in oil prices has been so severe that ...

Bloomberg Neoen SA will start construction on Australia’s biggest solar farm after winning a power purchase agreement with Queensland state’s renewables company. The Paris-based company will invest A$570 million ($366 million) in the Western Downs Green Power Hub, with first electricity from the facility expected in the first quarter of 2022. As much as to three-quarters of the energy produced ...

Bloomberg Total SA set out bolder commitments to eliminate most of its carbon emissions by 2050, while curbing spending on oil and gas projects due to the crude-price slump. The French company’s commitment to invest more in clean energy, despite a sharp drop in profit as the coronavirus hammers fuel demand, illustrates the enduring pressure on oil giants from investors ...

Bloomberg Indian refiners are taking advantage of cheap oil to bulk up its supplies even as every corner of the nation’s onshore storage tanks fills to the brim, according to oil minister Dharmendra Pradhan. State-run and private processors are now holding seven million tons — equivalent of more than 50 million barrels — on-board tankers out at sea, the minister ...

Bloomberg Repsol SA’s first-quarter profit fell 28% as oil prices began their unprecedented decline, but it beat analysts’ estimates and shares rose. Earnings from the Spanish energy producer, like those of its peers, reflect what’s proving to be a historic moment for the industry. Crude’s collapse has forced companies to make drastic cuts in spending and, in some cases, slash ...