Norway’s Energy Ministry on Tuesday awarded 53 hydrocarbon production leases on the country’s continental shelf under last year’s licensing round. A total of 20 firms, out of 21 that applied under the 2024 Awards in Pre-Defined Areas (APA), were offered ownership interests. Thirteen companies were offered one or more operatorships, according to a list published on the ministry’s website. “Continued development of the Norwegian continental shelf (NCS) is important for employment, value creation, and the ripple effects of petroleum activities on the mainland going forward”, Energy Minister Terje Aasland said in a statement. “We need new discoveries to ensure that Norway can remain a stable and predictable supplier of oil and gas to Europe. It is therefore very positive to see such great interest in new exploration areas”. Thirty-three of the new licenses are on Norway’s side of the North Sea. Nineteen are in the Norwegian Sea, while one is in the Norwegian portion of the Barents Sea. The Nordic nation, the top gas supplier for Europe having overtaken Russia since 2022, holds about 7.1 billion standard cubic meters of oil equivalent remaining resources in its continental shelf. The figure includes 3.5 billion standard cubic meters of oil equivalent undiscovered resources, according to the Norwegian Offshore Directorate’s 2024 “Resource Report”. Aker BP ASA has the most operatorships, numbering 16, among the 2024 APA winners. It is a participant in a total of 19 licenses under the 2024 APA. Fornebu, Norway-based Aker BP said in a separate online statement it plans to start drilling in the former Frigg field, which is among its new NCS operatorships, in the second quarter. “Phasing in oil and gas from new discoveries will be crucial to ensuring long-term activity on the shelf”, said Per Øyvind Seljebotn, senior vice president for exploration and reservoir development at

The National Energy System Operator (NESO) has proposed pausing applications for new grid connections as it looks to deal with a project backlog. Following approval from energy regulator Ofgem, NESO will implement new transitional arrangements that will pause applications received as of Wednesday 29 January 2025. As part of the connections reforms planned for 2025, a new process will be implemented following final regulatory approval by Ofgem. Grid connections applications have continued to grow over the last year to the point that it is no longer possible to deliver in flight connections reforms in parallel with the existing connections process. In 2023/24 alone, NESO received over 1,700 queue applications, with more projects already in the queue than is required for the energy system in 2030 or even 2050. NESO director of connections reform Matt Vickers said: “This transitional arrangement is critical to delivering the connections reforms we will implement later this year, subject to Ofgem approval. It’s a significant step forward in changing the grid connections process for the better. “Our reforms prioritise projects which are ready to progress, and which are needed to deliver clean power by 2030. To reorder the queue, we need to start from a stable base. This short pause in applications will allow us to work with colleagues across the network companies to prepare for the new processes we need to bring forward the electricity projects needed for the delivery of clean power by 2030 and beyond.” The plan has been developed in partnership with SSEN, Scottish Power Network and National Grid Electricity Transmission To enable NESO, transmission owners and distribution network operators to focus on preparing for the new connections reform framework, a new starting point is needed for the connections process, to ensure all projects join the new framework on the same terms.

The European Union is considering import restrictions on Russian aluminum and phasing out liquefied natural gas from the nation as part of a new package of sanctions targeting Moscow for its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, according to people familiar with the matter. The draft measures, which would be part of the bloc’s 16th package of sanctions, include restrictions on dozens more vessels that are part of Moscow’s shadow fleet of tankers transporting Russian oil and further export controls on goods used for military purposes. The move would also see more banks cut off the international payments systems SWIFT, said the people, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Restrictions on aluminum would be gradual with a timeframe and scope still to be determined, the people said. Exiting LNG could be done either as a sanction or as part of a road map that the bloc’s executive arm is set to present next month, they said. Reuters earlier reported the discussion on aluminum. The draft proposals are still being discussed between member states and could change before they’re formally presented. While a ban on imports of Russian gas has been urged by several nations, the EU still needs to decide whether it should rely on sanctions to make it legally binding, regulations as part of a road map, or a mix of those two, according to officials and diplomats with knowledge of the talks. Sanctions may offer the strongest argument for terminating contracts with Russian suppliers, but they require unanimous approval from member states and are limited in time. Supply Shifts European governments, which had previously been reluctant to give up Russian LNG, are watching nervously as gas prices creep up because of cold weather and new US sanctions on Russian energy. The US and EU have been gradually sanctioning some Russian LNG projects

EDF Energy Holdings Ltd. has partnered with EV charge-point manufacturer and software provider Hypervolt on an industry first. EDF said in a media release that, through its Wholesale Market Services’ PowerShift technology, the collaboration aims to leverage Hypervolt’s UltraGrid software to offer a frequency response service using electric vehicles (EVs). Working with Britain’s National Electricity System Operator (NESO), this initiative will use Hypervolt EV chargers to support the grid at times when it is facing challenges maintaining the required frequency, EDF said.  The offer aligns with NESO’s Clean Power 2030 Report, emphasizing quicker responses to maintain system frequency near 50 Hz and increasing services through frequency markets, according to EDF. Using its PowerShift capability, EDF said it will automatically adjust Hypervolt EV chargers to balance the grid during peak demand or when there is excess renewable energy. This approach helps customers save on electricity costs, reduce their carbon footprint, and maximize renewable energy use, it said. Current and future Hypervolt charger owners will have access to an innovative smart charging tariff from EDF, providing the best value for those who frequently charge their EVs. Customers who enroll in this tariff will always have control over their charging preferences, including the desired level of charge and the time of day they want their EV charged. Charging will be managed automatically, requiring no manual intervention, and savings will be available on the EDF app, the company said. Hypervolt charger owners who are not EDF customers can also benefit from flexibility savings through PowerShift, EDF’s virtual power plant. PowerShift optimizes flexibility value from grid-scale and behind-the-meter assets by utilizing artificial intelligence, real-time data analytics, and advanced algorithms. EDF said it offers its multi-market flexibility trading capability to EV charge point manufacturers, helping capture value and reduce costs for all EV drivers. “Our partnership

A subsea cable manufacturing facility in Ayrshire has won further backing with a £20 million investment from the Scottish National Investment Bank (SNIB). Project developer XLCC will use the Scottish Government funds to press ahead with its high-voltage direct current (HVDC) cable factory, which is being built to meet growing demand for electricity transmission projects needing subsea connection to the UK grid. The latest investment adds to public sector-backing the Essex-based developer has raised already. This includes a further £20m from UK Infrastructure Bank (UKIB) – now known as the National Wealth Fund (NWF) – in 2024, and £9m from the SNIB’s counterpart agency, Scottish Enterprise, the year prior to that. XLCC, which was established in 2020, initially won planning permission two years later to develop the factory on a disused coal yard on the site of the Hunterston B nuclear power plant, which is being decommissioned by French power giant EDF (PAR:EDF). © Supplied by XLCCRenderings of the future XLCC cable manufacturing site at Hunterston in Ayrshire. The company’s first order is for one of the longest subsea cables in the world, on behalf of its strategic partner Xlinks. This firm plans to build a massive 3.6GW solar farm in Morocco connected by an HVDC-powered trans-Atlantic link to the Alverdiscott substation in North Devon. Like fellow cable manufacturer Sumitomo, which is building a £350m cable factory in the Scottish Highlands, XLCC is also aiming to meet demand for subsea cable driven by the growth in European energy production from offshore wind, particularly floating wind power projects in deep water. XLCC estimates demand for high-voltage subsea cables is expected to be two and a half times greater than available supply by 2030. Scotland is currently a world-leader in its plans to develop floating offshore wind. Of the UK’s target to deliver

Oil slipped from a five-month high as Hamas and Israel tentatively agreed to a cease-fire, cooling a rally fueled by risks to Russian and Iranian supplies. West Texas Intermediate retreated 1.7% to settle at $77.50 a barrel after CBS reported Israel and Hamas agreed in principle to a draft deal for a cease-fire and hostage release. Such a deal would mark a potential end to a conflict that has buffeted global oil markets for more than 15 months. The relative strength index shows crude futures have been mostly overbought since the start of the year, a reading that signals prices are due for a pullback. Algorithmic-driven investors known as commodity trading advisers, or CTAs, are flashing signs of buying exhaustion, said Daniel Ghali, a commodity strategist at TD Securities. “Our simulations of future prices already suggest that in no scenario will CTAs add to their WTI crude length, suggesting a continued rise in supply risk premia associated with Biden’s farewell sanctions on Russia will now be needed to support prices further,” Ghali said. The US benchmark had climbed 6.6% over the previous two sessions, while oil shipping rates surged the most in months on Monday in response to the measures from Washington that target about 160 tankers involved in the Russian oil trade. While the full impact of the latest US sanctions package remains unclear, it may drive a rerouting of global flows as users across Asia, including refiners in India and China, are forced to reach far and wide for replacement barrels. Some early signs of disruption are already apparent. Among them, a senior Indian bureaucrat told reporters that sanctioned vessels won’t be allowed to discharge, although the country’s state-owned refiners expect Moscow to find workarounds. The potential for Russian oil to continue reaching its intended destinations is easing