India has more work to do in order to satisfy US concerns about its purchases of Russian oil and secure tariff relief, President Donald Trump’s trade representative said. While New Delhi has “made a lot of progress” on curbing buys of Russian crude, “it’s hard for them” to completely wean off the supplies because “they like the discount that you get from Russian oil,” US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer said Tuesday in a Fox Business interview.    “I am in frequent contact with my counterpart in India. I have a great working relationship with him, but they still have a ways to go on this point,” Greer said. The comments signal a deal to lower duties on Indian goods is still a ways off. US and Indian officials have been in talks for months over an agreement to lower Trump’s 50% tariff. The president imposed the rate last year, arguing that India’s oil purchases were fueling Russia’s war effort in Ukraine.  Discounted Russian crude has continued to make up a significant portion of Indian imports, a dynamic that analysts say may persist well into 2026. In the meantime, India and the European Union finalized a free-trade pact that was two decades in the making. The agreement was seen as a countermeasure to Trump’s aggressive trade policies.  “I think India comes out on top on this. Frankly, they have more market access into Europe. It sounds like they have some additional immigration rights,” Greer said Tuesday. “India is going to have a heyday with this. They have low-cost labor. And it looks like the EU is doubling down on globalization when we’re trying to fix some of the problems with globalization here in the US.” WHAT DO YOU THINK? Generated by readers, the comments included herein do not reflect the views and opinions of Rigzone.

In its latest short term energy outlook (STEO), which was released on January 13, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected that the U.S. on-highway diesel fuel retail price will drop in 2026. According to its latest STEO, the EIA sees the diesel price averaging $3.43 per gallon in 2026. In 2025, the U.S. on-highway diesel fuel retail price came in at $3.66 per gallon, the STEO showed. A quarterly breakdown included in the STEO projected that the U.S. diesel price will average $3.50 per gallon in the first quarter of 2026, $3.40 per gallon in the second quarter, and $3.41 per gallon across the third and fourth quarters of this year. The STEO showed that, in 2025, the U.S. diesel price came in at $3.63 per gallon in the first quarter, $3.55 per gallon in the second quarter, $3.76 per gallon in the third quarter, and $3.70 per MMBtu in the fourth quarter. In its latest diesel fuel update, which was released on January 27, the EIA showed a rising trend in the average U.S. on highway diesel fuel price. According to this fuel update, the U.S. on-highway diesel fuel price averaged $3.459 per gallon on January 12, $3.530 per gallon on January 19, and $3.624 per gallon on January 26. The January 26 price was $0.035 per gallon lower than the year ago price, however, the EIA fuel update showed. Of the five Petroleum Administration for Defense District (PADD) regions highlighted in the EIA’s latest fuel update, the West Coast was shown to have the highest U.S. on-highway diesel fuel price as of January 26, at $4.301 per gallon. The Gulf Coast was shown in the update to have the lowest U.S. on-highway diesel fuel price as of January 26, at $3.325 per gallon. A glossary section of the

Chevron Corp said Tuesday it has appointed Thomas Horton, a partner at Global Infrastructure Partners (GIP) of global asset manager BlackRock Inc, as an independent director, expanding its board to 13 members. Horton, 64, has joined Chevron’s Board Audit Committee, the Houston, Texas-based energy giant said in an online statement. “Horton previously held senior roles as chairman of American Airlines Group Inc, and chairman, CEO and president at American Airlines Inc and AMR Corp, where he successfully built American Airlines’ network both organically and through its combination with USAirways in 2015”, Chevron noted. Horton was also senior adviser at private equity investor Warburg Pincus. “In addition to executive management roles, Horton has served as a director with some of the Fortune 500’s top brands, including current seats on the boards of Walmart and General Electric (operating as GE Aerospace). He previously served on the boards of Qualcomm and Enlink Midstream”, Chevron added. Chair and chief executive Mike Wirth said of Horton, “His proven leadership, diverse board experience and thoughtful approach to governance will be invaluable as we continue to drive growth and create long-term value”. Chevron’s board now has 11 independent directors, according to the list of members on its website. Besides Wirth, the other non-independent is John Hess, who became a Chevron director July 2025 after Chevron acquired Hess Corp. In an earlier appointment, Chevron said November 3, 2025 that its assistant controller Amit Ghai will replace Alana Knowles as controller effective March 1, 2026. Knowles is expected to retire after 38 years with Chevron. “Ghai will lead Chevron’s accounting policy, corporate and external financial reporting, internal controls, global business services and digital finance teams”, Chevron said. Recently Wirth said he was in discussion with the board about his retirement. The 65-year-old has been chair of the board and CEO

In its latest short term energy outlook (STEO), which was released on January 13, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) projected that U.S. total energy consumption will drop in 2026 and rise in 2027. According to its latest STEO, the EIA now sees U.S. total energy consumption coming in at 95.37 quadrillion British thermal units (qBtu) this year and 95.96 qBtu next year. In 2025, U.S. total energy consumption was 96.06 qBtu the STEO showed. A quarterly breakdown included in the EIA’s latest STEO projected that U.S. total energy consumption will come in at 24.74 qBtu in the first quarter of this year, 22.39 qBtu in the second quarter, 24.03 qBtu in the third quarter, 24.21 qBtu in the fourth quarter, 24.88 qBtu in the first quarter of next year, 22.61 qBtu in the second quarter, 24.26 qBtu in the third quarter, and 24.21 qBtu in the fourth quarter of 2027. The EIA’s January STEO showed that total energy demand was 25.45 qBtu in the first quarter of 2025, 22.45 qBtu in the second quarter, 24.06 qBtu in the third quarter, and 24.09 qBtu in the fourth quarter. Liquid Fuels, NatGas In its latest STEO, the EIA projected that U.S. liquid fuels consumption will stay flat in 2026, then rise next year. According to the EIA’s January STEO, the EIA sees U.S. liquid fuels averaging 20.61 million barrels per day in 2026 and 20.69 million barrels per day in 2027. This demand came in at 20.61 million barrels per day in 2025, the STEO showed. The STEO projected that U.S. liquid fuels consumption will average 20.22 million barrels per day in the first quarter of this year, 20.69 million barrels per day in the second quarter, 20.81 million barrels per day in the third quarter, 20.71 million barrels per day

Uniper SE has won an electricity supply contract from nLighten HQ BV covering all the latter’s data center sites across Germany. “Under the agreement, Uniper is to supply both standard power for nLighten’s German locations and a guaranteed base load supply of hydroelectric power, ensuring a constant CO2-free energy supply with exceptional traceability on an hourly basis”, said a joint statement Tuesday. The companies did not disclose the volume or duration of the contract, which involves an around-the-clock power supply. Munich-based TÜV Süd AG will provide certification for the renewable power for origin verifiability on an hourly basis, the statement said. “Instead of relying on annual renewable energy certificates, nLighten can now track the specific hydropower production that supports its operations on an hourly basis”, the companies said. “The flexible structure allows it to add additional renewable energy sources such as hydropower, wind or solar when demand increases in its German portfolio, with everything handled through Uniper as the balancing party”. “[C]onventional renewable energy certificates issued annually may claim to be ‘100 percent renewable’ but data centers often continue to purchase carbon-intensive electricity during peak times”, the statement noted. “Uniper’s 24/7 solution closes this gap: companies can prove that their digital infrastructure is powered by verified carbon-free energy hour by hour, which is verified for our German operations by third-party certification”. German power and gas utility Uniper says it has 14 gigawatts of flexible power generation capacity. Schiphol-Rijk, Netherlands-based nLighten, meanwhile, has projects across Europe. Last week Uniper and TenneT BV announced an agreement to develop a new central network node in Großkrotzenburg, Germany to serve data center-driven growth in power demand in the greater Frankfurt area. “The core of the project is the construction of a new 380-kilovolt switchyard, which will create extensive additional capacity for urgently needed customer

In a report sent to Rigzone recently, Standard Chartered Bank Energy Research Head Emily Ashford outlined that Standard Chartered expects oil market sentiment “to gradually turn more positive”. “We expect [crude oil] market sentiment to gradually turn more positive as the bearish oversupply narrative so prevalent in H2-2025 weakens, and traders turn their attention to a more positive H2-2026,” Ashford stated in the report. “We expect the supply glut estimates of the main market commentators to be revised towards more seasonal norms, although prices are likely to remain in the low to mid $60s per barrel,” Ashford added. Ashford also outlined in the report that Standard Chartered expects “an uptick in volatility and increasing focus on risks to both supply and demand”. The Standard Chartered Bank Energy Research Head went on to note in the report that “low prices have begun to quash U.S. shale output growth” and added that, “if OPEC+’s gradual return of barrels recommences in Q2-2026, this would start to highlight the tightness and geographic concentration of spare capacity, which should be price supportive in the medium term”. In the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) latest short term energy outlook, which was released earlier this month, the EIA projected that Lower 48 States crude oil production, including lease condensate and excluding the Gulf of America, will drop from 11.28 million barrels per day in 2025 to 11.11 million barrels per day this year. Total U.S. crude oil output, including lease condensate, is forecast in the STEO to drop from 13.61 million barrels per day in 2025 to 13.59 million barrels per day in 2026. A statement posted on OPEC’s website on January 4 revealed that, in a meeting held that day, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman “reaffirmed their decision on 2 November