In a report sent to Rigzone by the Standard Chartered Bank team late Tuesday, analysts at the bank, including the company’s commodities research head Paul Horsnell, revealed their projection for the next meeting of the eight OPEC+ countries that made additional voluntary cuts in April and November 2023, which is set for Sunday. “We expect ministers will continue the unwinding of the November 2023 tranche of cuts, increasing targets by 411,000 barrels per day for the fourth successive month,” the analysts said in the report. “We expect a further 411,000 barrel per day increase at the August meeting, which will result in the full unwinding of the November 2023 voluntary cuts that totaled about 2.2 million barrels per day,” they added. In the report, the analysts noted that they expect the market to absorb extra OPEC+ production easily in the short term and revealed that they forecast a global stock draw of 0.9 million barrels per day in the third quarter of this year and a 0.2 million barrel per day build in the second quarter. “The tightening in Q3 is primarily the result of a 1.4 million barrel per day quarter on quarter increase in demand while non-OPEC+ output is fairly flat and OPEC+ output increases by significantly less than the nominal unwinding of the target cuts,” the analysts said in the report. “While the targets (not including compensation for past overproduction) will average about one million barrels per day higher week on week in Q3, we expect total OPEC+ output to rise quarter on quarter by about 0.4 million barrels per day,” they added. The Standard Chartered Bank analysts stated in the report that rapid unwinding of the November 2023 cuts has proved a highly successful strategy. “It has simplified a situation that many traders found too complicated,

Eni S.p.A.’s corporate venture capital company, Eni Next, has signed a collaboration agreement with Azimut Group. Under the agreement, Azimut will launch a new European Long Term Investment Fund (ELTIF) of venture capital, leveraging Eni Next’s consulting and expertise on technological developments in the energy sector. Eni said in a media release the ELTIF’s launch is expected in September 2025, and the fund will support investments in the energy tech sector.  With a EUR 100 million ($118 million) fundraising target, the Luxembourg-based fund, which is currently awaiting authorization from the relevant authorities, will be open to a broad range of investors, both institutional and private, in line with the new ELTIF 2.0 Regulation’s criteria. The portfolio will comprise U.S.-based startups and scale-ups in the clean tech sector, focusing on decarbonization, energy efficiency, sustainable mobility, and the circular economy. The fund may also invest in European and international companies, Eni said. “This strategic collaboration initiated with Azimut provides Eni Next with an additional lever to support innovative companies in the energy sector. By combining our specialized expertise with Azimut’s fundraising capabilities, the partnership will further accelerate and enhance the growth of the Eni Next portfolio”, Clara Andreoletti, CEO of Eni Next, said. “The energy sector, like many other industrial sectors, is undergoing a profound transformation driven by technological innovation. To support this transition and ensure its economic sustainability, private capital plays a crucial role in enabling new technological solutions to emerge and scale rapidly”. “As new technologies reshape the energy sector, driving a generational shift toward increasingly efficient solutions, this fund aims to give investors access to the most promising and high-potential opportunities”, Giorgio Medda, CEO of Azimut Holding, commented. “This will help bring the Group’s total investments since 2022, dedicated to global energy transition and environmental sustainability, to at least

Scottish Power Ltd.’s SP Energy Networks has agreed on deals worth GBP 1.4 billion ($1.9 billion) for critical onshore transmission projects across central and southern Scotland. ScottishPower said in a media release that the commitment will help with the delivery of the government’s Clean Power 2030 mission. Part of a GBP 5.4 billion ($7.4 billion) decade-long investment to upgrade the grid, these contracts help SP Energy Networks build long-term partnerships with UK businesses to rewire the electricity network. This program aims to increase capacity for new homes, businesses, and clean energy, as well as improve power distribution, reduce reliance on fossil fuels, and enhance energy security, ScottishPower said. “These strategic partnerships give suppliers the confidence to invest in themselves – growing their workforce, opening new offices across the country, and creating even greater opportunities for the UK”, Nicola Connelly, CEO of SP Energy Networks, said. “This is great news for the UK and Scottish supply chains, with every pound spent directly benefiting central and southern Scotland and its infrastructure for decades to come”. The contracts cover new and upgraded high-voltage substations, overhead line construction, design, engineering, construction, and electrical works, ScottishPower said. The strategic collaborations last five years, with a possibility of a 10-year extension. Seventeen out of the 19 suppliers are in the UK, according to ScottishPower. “These SP Energy Networks partnerships take us a step closer to reaching clean power by 2030, in modernizing the country’s outdated network to get more of clean power generated in Scotland to homes and businesses across the country”, Energy Minister Michael Shanks said. “This is the clean power transition in action – investing in British supply chains that will bring skilled jobs and economic growth to communities in Scotland and beyond”. Morgan Sindall Infrastructure is the sole contractor for the substation and overhead lines

ORLEN SA has agreed to deliver an additional 140 million cubic meters (4.94 billion cubic feet) of liquefied natural gas (LNG) from the United States to Ukraine’s Naftogaz Group via Poland. This is the fourth LNG supply contract signed by the state-owned companies this year, bringing Naftogaz’s total contracted gas volumes from ORLEN to 440 million cubic meters, Naftogaz said in an online statement. The contracts are part of a cooperation pact signed by ORLEN and Naftogaz last March to diversify Ukraine’s gas supply sources, ORLEN said separately. After arriving from the U.S., the LNG is planned to be regasified at the Swinoujscie terminal in Poland or the Klaipeda terminal in Lithuania and then transported to Ukraine via Poland. “Naftogaz is diversifying its sources and routes of gas supply”, said Naftogaz chief executive Sergii Koretskyi. “This enhances Ukraine’s energy security and resilience amid the ongoing full-scale war with Russia”. “Signing an additional contract for the supply of American LNG is an important element of our preparations for the coming winter heating season and a big step toward ensuring reliable gas supply for Ukrainians”, Koretskyi added. ORLEN chief operating officer Robert Soszynski said, “Thanks to our continually developed trading expertise, proprietary fleet of LNG transport vessels and reserved regasification capacities, we are well-positioned to support Ukraine in diversifying both the sources and supply routes for natural gas”. “The summer period, which is crucial for replenishing storage facilities, adds to the importance of these deliveries”, Soszynski added. “ORLEN not only ceased all Russian gas imports over three years ago, but today we are also in a position to assist neighboring countries, such as Slovakia and Ukraine, on their path toward energy independence from Russia”, Soszynski said. On Monday ORLEN said it had also eliminated Russian oil from its supply chain when the

The European Commission proposed Wednesday an amendment to the European Union Climate Law to set a goal of a 90 percent net reduction in regional greenhouse gas emissions by 2040 compared to 1990, toward a climate-neutral economy by 2050. The proposed intermediate target “does not prescribe specific policies, technologies or measures, leaving Member States flexibility, taking into account the regulatory framework to achieve greenhouse gas emission reduction targets”, the official text says. The nearer intermediate aim of a 55 percent net reduction by 2030 comes with binding policies toward the legally binding target of net zero by 2050. The 2040 proposal is based on an impact assessment by the Commission that found “a reduction of 90-95 percent was the most proportionate to bring the EU economy to climate neutrality by 2050 and for the EU to contribute to global climate action in accordance with the Paris Agreement temperature goals of limiting the temperature increase to well below 2ºC above pre-industrial levels and pursuing efforts to limit the temperature increase to 1,5°C above pre-industrial levels”, the text states. The impact assessment took into account progress toward the 2030 reduction aim. The assessment used economic modeling to analyze the evolution of emissions by sector and the contribution of technologies needed to reach net-zero emissions. A Commission analysis published May said the EU was on course to fulfil the 2030 aim, despite saying efforts needed to go beyond existing policies. The projection relies on the 27 member states fully implementing their National Energy and Climate Plans. In a statement for the 2040 proposal, the Commission said, “One central element is flexibilities that the Commission will consider in designing the future legislative instruments to achieve this 2040 climate target”. “These include a limited role for high-quality international credits starting from 2036, the use of domestic permanent removals in the EU Emissions

Oil climbed in light pre-holiday trading after US President Donald Trump said he had reached a trade deal with Vietnam. West Texas Intermediate rose 3.1% to settle above $67 a barrel after Trump said he had reached a pact with the Southeast Asian nation that eliminated the nation’s import tariff on US goods. The deal is the third announced following agreements with the major trade partners UK and China, with investors pricing in a tentative optimism that more will be reached ahead of a July 9 deadline. Oil’s jump was probably amplified by low liquidity ahead of Friday’s July Fourth holiday in the US. The price gains came despite government data Wednesday showing a buildup in US crude inventories of 3.85 million barrels. The increase is the largest in three months, and more than five times the 680,000 barrel increase projected by the industry-funded American Petroleum Institute on Tuesday. Trading activity in crude futures has declined overall since the truce between Israel and Iran led prices to plunge early last week, with volatility returning to the lower levels seen before the war. The market is likely to turn its attention to a glut forecast for later this year, with an OPEC+ meeting this weekend expected to deliver another substantial increase in production quotas. “Speculators who are already net-long are trying to protect their position,” said Robert Yawger, director of the energy futures division at Mizuho Securities USA. “The problem is that they are running into a OPEC+ meeting with no place to hide over the long weekend.” Investors will also hone in on a slew of inputs expected in the coming days, ranging from a jobs report Thursday to an OPEC+ output decision at the weekend. Oil Prices WTI for August delivery rose 3.1% to settle at $67.45 a barrel