NextDecade Corp. contractor Bechtel Corp. has awarded ABB Ltd. additional integrated automation and electrical solution orders, extending its scope to Trains 4 and 5 of NextDecade’s 30-million tonne/year (tpy)  Rio Grande LNG (RGLNG) plant in Brownsville, Tex. The orders were booked in third- and fourth-quarters 2025 and build on ABB’s Phase 1 work with Trains 1-3, totaling 17 million tpy.  The scope for RGLNG Trains 4 and 5 includes deployment of an integrated control and safety system consisting of a distributed control system, emergency shutdown, and fire and gas systems. An electrical controls and monitoring system will provide unified visibility of the plant’s electrical infrastructure. These two overarching solutions will provide a common automation platform. ABB will also supply medium-voltage drives, synchronous motors, transformers, motor controllers and switchgear.  The orders also include local equipment buildings—two for Train 4 and one for Train 5— housing critical control and electrical systems in prefabricated modules to streamline installation and commissioning on site. The solutions being delivered to Bechtel use ABB adaptive execution, a methodology for capital projects designed to optimize engineering work and reduce delivery timelines. Phase 1 of RGLNG is under construction and expected to begin operations in 2027. Operations at Train 4 are expected in 2030 and Train 5 in 2031. ABB’s senior vice-president for the Americas, Scott McCay, confirmed to Oil & Gas Journal at CERAWeek by S&P Global in Houston that the company is doing similar work through Tecnimont for Argent LNG’s planned 25-million tpy plant in Port Fourchon, La.; 10-million tpy Phase 1 and 15-million tpy Phase 2. Argent is targeting 2030 completion for its plant.

Citing impacts from the Iran war, near-zero flows through the Strait of Hormuz, accelerating global stock draws, and expectations for a muted US production response despite higher prices, Enverus Intelligence Research (EIR) raised its Brent crude oil price forecast. EIR now expects Brent to average $95/bbl for the remainder of 2026 and $100/bbl in 2027, reflecting what it described as a persistent global oil flow imbalance that continues to draw down inventories. “The world has an oil flow problem that is draining stocks,” said Al Salazar, director of research at EIR. “Whenever that oil flow problem is resolved, the world is left with low stocks. That’s what drives our oil price outlook higher for longer.” The outlook assumes the Strait of Hormuz remains largely closed for 3 months. EIR estimates that each month of constrained flows shifts the price outlook by about $10–15/bbl, underscoring the scale of the disruption and uncertainty around its duration. Despite West Texas Intermediate (WTI) prices of $90–100/bbl, EIR does not expect US producers to materially increase output. The firm forecasts US liquids production growth of 370,000 b/d by end-2026 and 580,000 b/d by end-2027, citing drilling-to-production lags, industry consolidation, and continued capital discipline. Global oil demand growth for 2026 has been reduced to about 500,000 b/d from 1.0 million b/d as higher energy prices and anticipated supply disruptions weigh on economic activity. Cumulative global oil stock draws are estimated at roughly 1 billion bbl through 2027, with non-OECD inventories—particularly in Asia—absorbing nearly half of the impact. A 60-day Jones Act waiver may provide limited short-term US shipping flexibility, but EIR said the measure is unlikely to materially affect global oil prices given broader market forces.

Equinor has started drilling the Raia natural gas project in the Campos basin presalt offshore Brazil. The $9-billion project is Equinor’s largest international investment, its largest project under execution, and marks the deepest water depth operation in its portfolio. The drilling campaign, which began Mar. 24 with the Valaris DS‑17 drillship, includes six wells in the Raia area 200 km offshore in water depths of around 2,900 m. The area is expected to hold recoverable natural gas and condensate reserves of over 1 billion boe. Raia’s development concept is based on production through wells connected to a 126,000-b/d floating production, storage and offloading unit (FPSO), which will treat produced oil/condensate and gas. Natural gas will be transported through a 200‑km pipeline from the FPSO to Cabiúnas, in the city of Macaé, Rio de Janeiro state. Once in operation, expected in 2028, the project will have the capacity to export up to 16 million cu m/day of natural gas, which could represent 15% of Brazil’s natural gas demand, the company said in a release Mar. 24. “While drilling takes place, integration and commissioning activities on the FPSO are progressing well putting us on track towards a safe start of operations in 2028,” said Geir Tungesvik, executive vice-president, projects, drilling and procurement, Equinor. The Raia project is operated by Equinor (35%), in partnership with Repsol Sinopec Brasil (35%) and Petrobras (30%).

Woodfibre LNG LP has received two major modules within a week for its under‑construction, 2.1‑million tonne/year (tpy) LNG export plant near Squamish, British Columbia, advancing construction to about 65% complete. The deliveries include the liquefaction module—the project’s heaviest and most critical process unit—and the powerhouse module, which will serve as the plant’s central power and control hub. The liquefaction module, delivered aboard the heavy cargo vessel Red Zed 1, is the 15th of 19 modules scheduled for installation at the site, the company said in a Mar. 24 release. Weighing about 10,847 metric tonnes and occupying a footprint roughly equivalent to a football field, it is among the largest modules fabricated for the project. Once installed and commissioned, the liquefaction module will cool natural gas to about –162°C, converting it into LNG for export. Shortly after the liquefaction module’s arrival, Woodfibre LNG received the powerhouse module, the 16th module delivered to site. Weighing more than 4,200 metric tonnes, the powerhouse module will function as a power and control system, receiving electricity from BC Hydro and managing and distributing power to the plant’s electric‑drive compressors. The Woodfibre LNG project is designed as the first LNG export plant to use electric‑drive motors for liquefaction, replacing conventional gas‑turbine‑driven compressors. The Siemens electric‑drive system will be powered by renewable hydroelectricity from BC Hydro, eliminating the largest operational source of greenhouse gas emissions typically associated with liquefaction, the company said. The project is being built near the community of Squamish on the traditional territory of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) and is regulated in part by the Indigenous government.  All 19 modules are expected to arrive on site by spring 2026. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2027. Woodfibre LNG is owned by Woodfibre LNG Ltd. Partnership, which is 70% owned by Pacific Energy Corp.

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Mark FinleyBaker Institute, Rice University  In recent weeks, questions surrounding the oil market crisis have been framed around a core principle described as the Golden Rule of the Oil Market: it is a global market. When conditions change anywhere—positively or negatively—prices respond everywhere. That framework helps explain why gasoline prices are rising in the US despite limited direct imports from the Middle East and the US’s status as a significant net exporter of oil. It also explains why oil cargoes that Iran permits to transit the Strait of Hormuz reduce Iran’s leverage over global oil prices, and by extension over US consumers and policymakers concerned about prices at the pump. Alongside its own exports, Iran has allowed a handful of additional tankers to transit the Strait, including several tankers destined for China and LPG shipments for India. The greater the volume of oil transiting the Strait, the smaller the disruption to the global oil market and the less upward pressure on global prices. The same logic applies to US efforts to ease sanctions on Iranian and Russian oil cargoes already at sea, which are unlikely to provide meaningful relief for rising oil prices. Under the Golden Rule, those barrels—having already been produced and shipped—would have found buyers regardless of sanctions, with price discounts sufficient to offset the risk of US penalties, as has been the case for Russian oil since 2022. Exceptions The Golden Rule has described oil market dynamics effectively for decades. However, a small number of potential exceptions have begun to emerge. For now, those exceptions remain relatively inconsequential, though larger risks may be developing. The non-market player There are two ways that supply and demand can be equalized. In a global market, it is achieved by price changes. Prices rise or fall to ensure that there is