Is $100 oil possible this year? That was the question Rigzone asked Carole Nakhle, the Chief Executive Officer of London based consultancy Crystol Energy. Responding to the question, Nakhle said “anything is possible”, but added that “the likelihood of a $100 oil price is very slim under existing market conditions”. “Unless we have a major disruption to supply, I don’t see how that is possible, especially when demand is not booming and unlikely to suddenly do so this year,” Nakhle told Rigzone. In a research note sent to Rigzone earlier this week by Natasha Kaneva, the head of global commodities strategy at J.P. Morgan, analysts at the company, including Kaneva, said “based on numerous recent discussions with institutional and corporate clients”, they “conclude that the sentiment on oil is neutral to optimistic, particularly within the corporate community”. “Money managers increased their net-long positions in Nymex WTI to the highest level since late January last week, while short positions in Brent fell by the most since October,” the J.P. Morgan analysts highlighted in that note. “Brent’s prompt spread hit its strongest level since January, and open interest on Brent climbed to a new record, with Brent September $95 calls trading more than 10,000 times last Tuesday,” they added. The J.P. Morgan research note showed that the company is projecting that Brent crude oil will average $66 per barrel in 2025 and $58 per barrel in 2026. According to the note, J.P. Morgan sees Brent averaging $67 per barrel in the second quarter of this year, $63 per barrel in the third quarter, $61 per barrel in the fourth quarter, $55 per barrel in the first quarter of next year, $57 per barrel across the second and third quarters of 2026, and $60 per barrel in the fourth quarter of next year.

Proserv, a global leader in controls technology, has proudly announced the launch of its groundbreaking PhaseCatcher Multi-Phase Sampling System. This innovative system addresses longstanding challenges in multiphase fluid sampling by ensuring the collection of sufficient individual phase volumes with unparalleled precision and safety.​   About partnership content Some Energy Voice online content is funded by outside parties. The revenue from this helps to sustain our independent news gathering. You will always know if you are reading paid-for material as it will be clearly labelled as “Partnership” on the site and on social media channels, This can take two different forms. “Presented by”This means the content has been paid for and produced by the named advertiser. “In partnership with”This means the content has been paid for and approved by the named advertiser but written and edited by our own commercial content team. The PhaseCatcher system incorporates patented technology that eliminates venting and the release of toxic fluids into the atmosphere, significantly enhancing operator safety and environmental compliance. By maintaining samples at flowline conditions, PhaseCatcher preserves the integrity of the sample’s chemistry, providing accurate data essential for calibrating multiphase flow meters without relying on potentially erroneous PVT modelling.​ A key feature of the PhaseCatcher is the integration of Digital Guided Wave Radar Technology into Proserv’s piston sample cylinders. This advancement allows operators to verify that sufficient volumes of individual phases – oil, gas, and water – are collected during sampling. Additionally, the system enables sub-sampling of individual phases directly from the multiphase flowline, streamlining the sampling process and reducing manual handling.​ The inception of the PhaseCatcher system can be traced back to an Innovation and Design Thinking workshop, part of a postgraduate diploma program. During this workshop, Richard Barr, technical assurance & BD manager at Proserv, inspired by techniques taught at MIT

OPEC’s crude production fell last month despite the group’s long-awaited plans to increase, with much of the reduction stemming from looming US sanctions on Venezuela. Output from the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries shrank by 200,000 barrels a day in April to 27.24 million a day, according to a Bloomberg survey. Venezuela accounted for about half of the decline as international producers such as Chevron Corp. wind down operations while President Donald Trump’s administration tightens sanctions.  It was less clear, though, why other OPEC members such as Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates didn’t take advantage of the group’s agreement to finally bolster supplies. OPEC and its allies had resolved to start gradually reviving halted output in April, after delaying the plans several times for fear of undermining crude prices. Nonetheless, the United Arab Emirates – which had even secured a special carve-out to make extra increases – instead curtailed output by 80,000 barrels a day to an average of 3.25 million a day, according to the survey. Riyadh added just 20,000 barrels a day, pumping 8.97 million, only part of the agreed amount. The countries may have been trying to honor pledges to restrict output in order to compensate for previous overproduction, though the biggest quota offenders – the UAE and Iraq – remained well above their designated targets. OPEC’s surprising restraint throws more uncertainty onto what the cartel and its partners will decide on Monday, when they’re due to hold a video-conference to review production levels for June. Last month, Saudi Arabia stunned crude traders by steering the group to accelerate output increases in May, unleashing a hike of 411,000 barrels a day that was triple the originally scheduled amount. Delegates said the move was intended to punish errant OPEC+ nations like Iraq and Kazakhstan, though Riyadh may also have been

Equinor ASA announced Friday a deal to divest its 60 percent operating stake in the producing Peregrino field offshore Brazil to Prio SA for $3.5 billion. Having acquired Sinochem Holdings Corp. Ltd.’s 40 percent ownership last year, Prio would become the sole owner. Closing is subject to regulatory approvals. No expected date of completion has been given. The agreement was signed between subsidiaries Equinor Brasil Energia Ltda. and Prio Tigris Ltda. Put onstream 2011, Peregrino’s productive life has been extended to 2040 with the startup of phase 2 in 2022. The heavy oil field produces about 110,000 barrels a day. Peregrino produced 250 million barrels from start-up to 2024, according to information on Equinor’s website. Located in the Campos Basin, east of Rio de Janeiro, the field has a floating production storage and offloading platform. “Brazil will continue to be a core country for Equinor, as we focus on starting up the Bacalhau field and continue progressing the Raia gas project”, Philippe Mathieu, Equinor executive vice president for exploration and production international, said in an online statement. “With these two operated projects and our partnership in Roncador [producing field] our equity production in Brazil will be close to 200,000 barrels per day by 2030. “This deal is part of Equinor’s ongoing effort to high-grade its international portfolio through asset divestments and acquisitions. We continue to see growth potential and opportunities to extend the longevity of our international oil and gas portfolio, also in Brazil”. The Norwegian majority state-owned energy major said, “PRIO, Brazil’s largest independent oil and gas company, will pay a consideration of USD 3.35 billion and a maximum of USD 150 million in interest to Equinor for the transaction”. The transaction will be executed in two stages. Prio will initially purchase 40 percent along with the operatorship for

Shell saw its adjusted earnings grow in the first quarter of this year, hitting $5.6 billion compared to $3.6bn in the fourth quarter of 2024. According to its first quarter results, the increase was driven by strong LNG trading and optimising the company’s capabilities. “Shell delivered another solid set of results in the first quarter of 2025,” Shell CEO Wael Sawan said. “We further strengthened our leading LNG business by completing the acquisition of Pavilion Energy, and high-graded our portfolio with the completion of the Nigeria onshore and the Singapore Energy and Chemicals Park divestments.” The company’s oil and gas production was largely flat quarter on quarter, coming in at around 1.3m barrels per day and 3mcf per day respectively. However, the group added that adjusted earnings were higher than in the fourth quarter of 2024, reflecting lower depreciation following year-end reserves updates and lower well write-offs, partially offset by lower sales volumes. Shell’s performance also reflects the restart of the Penguins field in the UK North Sea in February 2025. The field was upgraded to use a modern floating, production, storage and offloading (FPSO) facility (Shell 50%, operator; NEO Energy 50%). The previous export route for this field was via the Brent Charlie platform, which ceased production in 2021 and is being decommissioned. Shell added that it expects production to be in the region of 1.56-1.76m boe per day in the second quarter of this year. For renewables, power sales were also flat, coming in at 76TWh across both quarter one 2025 and quarter four 2024. However, Shell increased its operating capacity from 3.4GW to 3.5GW. Again, the company saw its adjusted earnings increase over the previous quarter due to higher seasonal demand and volatility driving higher trading and optimisation, particularly in the Americas. Shell also announced a $3.5bn share

First minister John Swinney and his Scottish Conservative rival were both rebuked by Holyrood’s presiding officer as they clashed over the future of Scotland’s energy supply. Conservative leader Russell Findlay branded the Scottish government’s opposition to new nuclear power “nonsensical, impractical and irresponsible” as he said blocking such developments in Scotland is an act of “self-harm”. He also hit out at Swinney over the SNP’s stance on new oil and gas developments, and attacked him for having been in government with the Scottish Greens – who he branded “dangerous fanatics” and “dangerous cranks”. That prompted presiding officer Alison Johnstone to urge Findlay “to treat other members with courtesy and respect”. She issued a similar warning to the first minister when he went on to accuse his Tory rival of “barefaced dishonesty”. The attack came as Swinney told MSPs during First Minister’s Questions that Findlay had voted for climate change targets at Holyrood last November, but this year had described Conservative UK leader Kemi Badenoch’s opposition to net zero targets as “refreshingly honest”. Findlay claimed opposition to new oil and gas developments would “result in higher energy prices and greater reliance on foreign imports”. He told Holyrood: “The SNP used to say it’s Scotland oil, now they just want to just stop oil.” With a new poll on Thursday showing more than half (52%) of those who voted for the SNP in 2021 support nuclear power being included in Scotland’s energy mix, despite the party’s longstanding opposition to it, Findlay then said: “John Swinney is intent on inflicting self-harm on Scotland by blocking all new developments. “Nuclear energy is green and clean, it produces a reliable and steady supply, and it would bring down people’s bills.” However the first minister insisted: “Nuclear power will not bring down the energy prices of