An Islamist insurgency that froze TotalEnergies SE’s $24.5-billion gas project in Mozambique four years ago is intensifying, just as the French oil major prepares to restart development. Militants affiliated with Islamic State have in recent months carried out raids across the northeastern Cabo Delgado province that hosts the Total project and another led by Exxon Mobil Corp. The number of attacks against civilians in the region has almost doubled in 2025 to the highest in years, according to the United Nations. TotalEnergies’ announcement last weekend that it’s restarting the project — seen as pivotal to transforming one of the world’s poorest nations — lifted Mozambique’s eurobonds 2.9% on Monday. At the same time, there are growing fears among local communities that the security situation near the project site at Afungi is deteriorating — with more than 90,000 people fleeing attacks since the last week of September. “Right now, people are living in fear,” Andrew Bogrand, a senior policy adviser at Oxfam America, said after a visit to the region that included a resettlement village adjacent to the project. “Folks in Quitunda, police officers, contractors — they don’t see how this project can work if people are concerned about security.” The militants have in recent weeks made incursions into both Palma — neighboring the LNG site — and nearby Mocimboa da Praia, where they filmed themselves preaching in a local mosque. That was symbolic: The port town is where the extremist insurgency began in 2017 as a ragtag army of local youth in one of the poorest parts of Mozambique. They later occupied the town for about a year. Total has estimated charges of $4.5 billion during the halt to construction, adding to the original $20 billion project cost — revisions that require government approval before work resumes. The company paid

Indian Oil Corp. plans to start a joint venture with commodities trader Vitol Inc. in Singapore to trade oil and fuel products early next year, a person familiar with the development said. The agreement will include a clause requiring Vitol’s exit after five to seven years, said the person, who asked not to be named as talks aren’t public. The New Delhi-based refiner had held talks with several other companies, including BP Plc and TotalEnergies SE, but finally decided to move ahead with Vitol, the person said. Global trading giants have lost some hold over India’s market as the country turned to cheaper Russian barrels for its spot purchases. With India expected to lead global oil demand growth, they are now trying to regain ground. Teaming up with Indian Oil could give Vitol a stronger presence in the country as it cuts back on Russian oil due to sanctions from the West. Indian Oil and Vitol didn’t respond to messages seeking comment.  Indian Oil will capitalize on the strength of the global trader which has access to real-time market intelligence, in addition to its wider reach and established risk management systems. That may help the Indian company source crude at lower prices.  The refiner, which meets nearly 90% of its oil demand via imports, is likely to see a surge in consumption as its crude processing capacity is expected to expand by 346,000 barrels a day to 1.76 million barrels next year. WHAT DO YOU THINK? Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone. All comments are subject to editorial review. Off-topic, inappropriate or insulting comments will be removed.

Dive Brief: The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission on Monday rejected a large load tariff proposed by Tri-State Generation and Transmission Association, saying it intruded on retail rate regulation, which falls under state jurisdiction and is outside of FERC’s authority. “We find that Tri-State has not provided a sufficient basis for the Commission to find that its proposal does not regulate the terms and conditions of a [High Impact Load] Customer’s retail service in ways that are beyond the Commission’s authority,” FERC said. With FERC beginning to consider the U.S. Department of Energy’s request that the agency develop rules for interconnecting large loads to the transmission system, the Tri-State decision provides insights into the commission’s thinking about its jurisdiction over the issue, according to Steven Shparber, a member at the law firm of Mintz, Levin, Cohn, Ferris, Glovsky and Popeo. “FERC’s decision relied on longstanding U.S. Supreme Court precedent noting that FERC may not regulate retail sales, which are exclusively within the states’ jurisdiction,” he said in an email. Dive Insight: Tri-State’s Aug. 28 proposal came as utilities like AEP Ohio and Dominion Energy Virginia have adopted tariffs that set out terms and conditions for interconnecting data centers and other large loads. In its proposal, Tri-State — a wholesale cooperative based in Westminster, Colorado, with 40 utility members in Colorado, Nebraska, New Mexico and Wyoming — said there is growing interest in building data centers in the Mountain West region. It has received 10 requests from member utilities to add loads ranging from 45 MW to 650 MW that could each grow to 300 MW to 1,000 MW, according to Tri-State, which has a 2,500 MW peak load. Tri-State said its proposed High Impact Load, or HIL, tariff and High Impact Load Agreement would protect its utility members from a range of risks

Rising ratepayer burdens from costs to meet new large loads from hyperscalers and other load growth can be limited by utilities that use newly available flexibility to manage demand peaks, power system stakeholders told Utility Dive. Due to growing demand for power from data centers and industrial customers, total U.S. generation by the electric power sector will grow by 2.3% in 2025, according to September data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration. And the average U.S. residential electricity rate rose over 5% from July 2024 to July 2025, EIA’s data browser showed. Investing in an expanded power system to meet new large load demand and limiting rate impacts while paying for the investments may seem contradictory, but it can be done, stakeholders said. Large loads increase rates if they induce utilities to make expensive grid infrastructure upgrades to meet higher demand peaks, said University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business Professor Severin Borenstein.  But with policy incentives to “restrain” peak demand, large loads can avoid the costs that drive higher rates, he added. State policymakers and stakeholders can design and enact those incentives and other policies to strengthen power system flexibility, affordability and reliability, analysts said. “Rate increases are capturing politicians’ attention because costs, and especially energy costs, are emerging consumer issues,” said former Arkansas Public Service Commission Chair Ted Thomas, founder of Energize Strategies. “That makes resisting rate increases important enough for politicians to expend political capital on now.”  Though the amount of load growth is still uncertain, investments to meet it already threaten affordability. But data shows the right regulation can limit its impacts and potentially stabilize customer costs. The rising prices Investor-owned utilities, which meet 57% of U.S. electricity use, will invest of about $1.1 trillion from 2025 to 2029 in infrastructure, up from $765 billion

In a statement sent to Rigzone recently, the American Petroleum Institute (API) said it had “strengthen[ed]… offshore safety standards with new updates”. The API announced the release of the third edition of API Standard 2RD, Dynamic Risers for Floating Production Systems, in that statement, adding that this standard “addresses the design and integrity management requirements for risers that carry oil and gas between the seafloor and floating production systems, such as spars, semi-submersibles and tension leg platforms”. The industry body noted in the statement that the standard applies to all risers from these systems, including steel catenary risers and top-tensioned risers.  “Dynamic risers are critical for offshore energy production,” the API highlighted in the statement. “Their safe performance supports the reliable flow of energy while minimizing risks to the environment and personnel,” it added. “This updated edition incorporates advances in riser integrity management and addresses evolving offshore conditions, enhancing clarity, consistency, and safety,” it continued. The API pointed out in its statement that the third edition of API Standard 2RD unifies design methods from earlier editions, “integrating multiple methods for measuring loading in a way that should reduce confusion among end users and regulators and improve clarity around permitting”. “It also introduces strengthened robustness requirements, requiring risers to be tested against extreme environmental conditions beyond what is anticipated in normal operations,” it said. “These provisions are designed to ensure that even in severe events, risers are more likely to require repair rather than suffer catastrophic failure,” the API noted. The industry body also highlighted in its statement that the new edition “provides clear guidance for reassessing existing risers in coordination with API RP 2RIM, Riser Integrity Management, 1st edition, supporting ongoing integrity management and extending service life”. “By expanding on previous editions and coordinating with API RP 2RIM, the third edition of API

Dive Brief: United Natural Foods, Inc., one of the largest publicly-traded wholesale food distributors in North America and a major supplier for Whole Foods, has completed its largest rooftop solar array installation to date, the company announced Friday. Spanning nearly 1,000 yards, the installation sits atop the company’s distribution center in Riverside, California, and is expected to generate approximately 80% of the facility’s electricity. The project is part of UNFI’s efforts to reduce its emissions footprint through energy efficiency, fleet electrification and renewable energy. Dive Insight: The Providence, Rhode Island-based company said that the 6.7-megawatt solar array generates enough electricity to power roughly 1,500 homes annually. The solar array will reduce the Riverside distribution center’s emissions by 85%, according to the announcement.  United Natural Foods worked with PowerFlex on the project, and the energy provider will continue to support the solar array’s ongoing performance.  “Our onsite renewable energy projects, specifically our solar arrays, are one of our most important strategies to achieving our climate goals and supporting operational resilience,” Kevin Alavi, United Natural Foods’ sustainable operations director, said in the announcement. The company finished its 3.2-megawatt solar array installation at its distribution center in Howell, New Jersey, in 2023. It has completed a similar project at its facility in Gilroy, California.  Its latest Impact Report, which it released in January, said the company had eight distribution centers with solar power arrays.  By the end of fiscal 2030, United Natural Foods aims to reduce absolute Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions from all other emission sources by 50% at its facilities, the report said. During fiscal 2024, the company prioritized increasing its solar energy capacity, supplementing on-site generation by buying renewable energy certificates and investing in energy efficiency programs, per the report.  Other grocery companies have also turned to solar energy.