Since Christmas Italy exports natural gas to France and the Netherlands through Switzerland and Germany. Export has been possible both thanks to the Italian storage system, one of the most efficient in Europe, and thanks to the entry into operation of the Tap pipeline. Thanks to these, gas bills have lowered for 10%. Since a year now, Tap gas pipeline has officially entered into operation and has allowed Italy to receive almost eight billion cubic meters of gas from the Caspian Sea.
Through the over 850 kilometers of pipelines that connect Puglia with the border between Turkey and Greece and then with the deposits in Azerbaijan, the import potential is 20 billion cubic meters per year. Several companies in the sector, including Enel and Shell, have signed contracts for 10 billion cubic meters of gas per year.

The oil giant is expanding in the biofuels sector to provide low-emissions products for the transportation sector, having acquired a 49.9% stake in the Norwegian Biojet AS. Biojet wants to convert forestry and wood-based constructions waste into lower-emissions biofuels and biofuels components with the development of five new facilities. ExxonMobil will purchase up to 3 million barrels of Biojet’s products annually, based on the potential capacity of the new facilities. Ian Carr, President of ExxonMobil Fuels and Lubricants Company, said, “The agreement with Biojet AS advances ExxonMobil’s efforts to provide lower-emissions products for the transportation sector. Using our access at the Slagen terminal, we can efficiently distribute biofuels in Norway and to countries throughout northwest Europe.” Biofuels are projected to gain big traction worldwide with the European Union Renewable Energy Directive, projecting that biofuels produced from wood waste can help reduce life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions by 85% compared to petroleum-based diesel.

Qatar will invest about $60 million in a gas pipeline to bring Israeli natural gas to the Gaza Strip.
Emadi stated that Doha, the Palestinian Authority and the Gaza electricity company have signed a Memorandum of Understanding on a long-term project to supply Israeli natural gas to the only power plant in Gaza. Qatar’s aid to the Strip currently includes fuel deliveries from Israel for a monthly amount of $7 million. Emadi stated that the plan aims to replace the diesel fuel currently used by the Gaza power plant with Israeli gas, with the objective of possibly producing 500 megawatts. This would alleviate Gaza’s chronic electricity deficit. The agreement should involve, in addition to Qatar, PA and Israel, Hamas, Egypt and the European Union. Emadi said the initiative could save Palestinians up to 10 million dollars a month.

The long battle of climate activists against Norway to stop oil drilling in the Arctic ends in court. And not just any court but the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR), which asked Norway to answer charges. At the end of 2020, the Norwegian Supreme Court voted by a majority of 11 to 4 to dismiss a lawsuit brought by environmental groups that had sued Norway for opening the surface in the Arctic to oil drilling years ago. In 2016, environmental organizations, including the Norwegian branch of Greenpeace and Natur og Ungdom (Nature and Youth), took the Norwegian government to court for the award of oil drilling licenses in the Arctic, arguing that these 2015 licenses should have been withdrawn in violation of the Norwegian Constitution and the country’s commitment to comply with the terms of the Paris Climate Agreement. The European Court of Human Rights is now asking for a reply to the Norwegian Government by 13 April.

This week, the European Commission has signed some legislative proposals to decarbonise the EU gas market by facilitating the uptake of renewable and low carbon gases, including hydrogen, and to ensure energy security for all citizens in Europe. The Commission is also following up on the EU Methane Strategy and its international commitments with proposals to reduce methane emissions in the energy sector in Europe and in our global supply chain.

The European Union needs to decarbonise the energy it consumes to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by at least 55% by 2030 and become climate-neutral by 2050, and these proposals will help to deliver that goal. According to Commissioner for Energy, Kadri Simson: “We are creating the conditions for the green transition in our gas sector, boosting the use of clean gases. A key element of this transition is establishing a competitive hydrogen market with dedicated infrastructure. We want Europe to lead the way and be the first in the world to lay down the market rules for this important source of energy and storage. We are also proposing strict rules on methane emissions from gas, oil and coal, to reduce emissions in these sectors by 80% by 2030 and to trigger action on methane outside the EU. Our proposals also strengthen the security of gas supply and enhance solidarity between Member States, to counteract price shocks and make our energy system more resilient. As requested by Member States, we improve the EU’s gas storage coordination and create the option for voluntary joint purchase of gas reserves”.

Enagás (Spain), Snam (Italy) and Grtgaz (France) have decided to explore opportunities for collaboration in the hydrogen sector, which will be crucial in the energy transition and have signed an agreement to launch joint investment initiatives aimed at boosting the clean hydrogen market.

This new initiative underlines the crucial role that European gas Tsos can play in the development of the European hydrogen ecosystem, sharing their experiences in the management of strategic infrastructures. As a first joint action, Enagás, Snam and Grtgaz will each invest € 33 million in the Clean H2 Infra Fund, with an anchor role, for a total of approximately € 100 million. Clean H2 Infra Fund is an impact fund managed by Hy24, a joint venture between Ardian and Fivet Hydrogen, which aims to support the development of clean hydrogen infrastructure with a budget of 1,500-1,800
million euros, in partnership with industrial and financial investors. It is the largest global investment platform in clean hydrogen infrastructure. Hy24 combines Ardian’s experience in infrastructure management and asset management and Fivet’s know-how in the hydrogen value chain, along with the role and experience of the three Tsos in energy grid management and hydrogen technologies.

By investing in the Clean H2 Infra Fund, the three companies aim to promote the clean hydrogen industry with a positive impact on the use and development of transmission networks.

The Russian government, Rosneft and the gas giant Gazprom would find an agreement to implement a “pilot project” with which Rosneft will provide 10 billion cubic meters of Russian gas to Europe. The news of this project has been widely circulated, but the timing of the operations has not yet been announced. Neither Rosneft, nor Gazprom, nor the Minister of Energy responded to the request for a comment that arrived yesterday. However, following the October meeting, officials, including Russian Vice President Alexander Novak, stated that details of how the project would work would be communicated. On 14 October, Rosneft announced that he was considering supplying gas to Europe through an export agreement with British Petroleum.
“The implementation of a pilot project for the export of 10 billion cubic meters of gas from Rosneft’s resources, through a contract with BP, could help in the future to provide additional stocks to the European gas market” Rosneft’s CEO, Igor Sechin, said on that occasion. BP – which holds a 19.75% stake in Rosneft – a few years ago signed an agreement with the Russian company for a potential gas supply in Europe for the year 2017.

Many South American countries are on the brink of socio-economic shock. The still massive use of fossil fuels, delays in the energy transition and a radical devaluation of oil and gas trafficking are among the most determining factors.
In particular, Venezuela, Ecuador and Colombia depend on oil exports and revenues. Bolivia and Trinidad are heavily dependent on natural gas. Guyana, on the other hand, is ready to become the largest per capita oil producer in the world, thanks to the oil discoveries made by Exxonmobil and its partners. Argentina, Brazil and Mexico, are not very dependent on fossil fuels. However, oil and gas are still the largest national industrial arteries for tax revenue, exports and investment. South American oil production is expected to fall below 4 million barrels per day in 2035. This would entail the loss of around USD 3 trillion in royalties for crude oil exporters. But there are encouraging exceptions, however. Peru and Chile, for example with the commitment in solar or Brazil with an important hydroelectric capacity. In Colombia, instead, President Ivan Duque pushed companies to drastically reduce CO2 emissions while expanding unconventional renewable energies.

Azerbaijan has exported 4.6 billion cubic metres of natural gas to Europe (1.4 billion dollars) from January to October 2021. Italy is on top of the list representing 3,9 billion cubic metres of gas for a value of 1,2 billion dollars. About 501.7 million cubic meters of natural gas worth 163.7 million dollars were exported to Greece and 166 million cubic meters worth 25.5 million dollars in Bulgaria. Turkey accounted for 7.8 billion cubic meters of the total volume exported, with a value of 1.2 billion dollars. Another 2.2 billion cubic meters of natural gas worth US$280.9 million were exported to Georgia and 169.3 million cubic meters of natural gas worth US$6.4 million to Iran in January-October 2021. During the reporting period, Azerbaijan exported a total of 14,9 billion cubic metres of fuel worth USD 2,9 billion. In addition, Azerbaijan has begun commercial supplies to Europe via the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP) on 31 December 2020.

According to a research by Brunel and Oilandgasjobsearch.com, 43% of workers want to leave the energy industry within the next five years. The oil and gas industry is facing a huge shortage of labour in the coming years due to renewables. More than half of the workers in the sector, in fact, are trying to enter the renewable energy industry. Energy companies ranging from Royal Dutch Shell and BP to smaller exploration companies had to cut tens of thousands of jobs in the wake of the coronavirus pandemic while cutting budgets. Now, with the strong recovery in energy demand and prices around the world, many companies have difficulty recruiting again. The report also states that “With more workers gravitating towards the renewable energy sector, it is likely that industry will continue to see an exit from those in traditional sectors. The higher salaries offered by the renewable energy and mining sectors are making the roles in these areas more attractive, adding to the pressure faced by recruiters in the oil and gas sector”.