Global oil demand has made a strong start to 2025, analysts at Standard Chartered Bank, including Commodities Research Head Paul Horsnell, said in a report sent to Rigzone by Horsnell on Thursday. “Based on a variety of national sources and the 19 March Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI) release, we estimate that demand averaged 102.77 million barrels per day in January, a year on year increase of 2.19 million barrels per day,” the Standard Chartered Bank analysts said in the report. “This is in line with the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) estimate for January that put demand at 102.74 million barrels per day and growth at 1.85 million barrels per day,” they added. In the report, the Standard Chartered Bank analysts noted that January is usually the seasonal low point for global demand and said they expect demand “to move above 105.0 million barrels per day for the first time in June before reaching a 2025 high of 105.6 million barrels per day in August”. “Our forecast for 2025 demand growth stands at 1.41 million barrels per day. After weakening in H2-2024, our forecast is now back where it stood at its initiation in January 2024,” they added. “While the main downside risk to demand comes from U.S. tariff policy and the economic uncertainty it creates, for now demand-side fundamentals appear robust despite negative sentiment,” they continued. The Standard Chartered Bank analysts stated in the report that they expect global demand to exceed supply by 0.9 million barrels per day in the second quarter and by 0.5 million barrels per day in the third quarter. Rigzone has contacted the Trump transition team and the White House for comment on Standard Chartered Bank’s report. At the time of writing, neither have responded to Rigzone. In a research note sent to

Voyager Midstream Holdings LLC has completed the purchase of a non-operating stake in a Texas natural gas liquid (NGL) pipeline from Phillips 66. The 254-mile Panola Pipeline, operated by Enterprise Products Partners LP, transports Y-Grade NGLs from Panola County to fractionation facilities in Mont Belvieu city. “Voyager’s interest in the Panola Pipeline is a strategic fit with the company’s existing footprint in East Texas and North Louisiana”, Houston, Texas-based Voyager said in an online statement, referring to assets also acquired from Phillips 66. Voyager chief executive Will Harvey commented, “Panola Pipeline is a critical NGL pipeline connecting the major East Texas gas processing complexes and Gulf Coast demand markets”. “We are excited to work alongside our partners in Panola Pipeline to safely transport liquids to satisfy growing demand for NGLs along the Gulf Coast”, Harvey added. Voyager did not disclose the financial details of the transaction. It said that in conjunction with the acquisition, it has entered into a credit facility with the Bank of Oklahoma. “This credit facility, along with existing equity commitments from Pearl, provides Voyager with substantial flexibility and capital to continue growing its business in support of its customers”, it said. Pearl Energy Investments launched Voyager in 2023 as a platform for the acquisition and development of crude oil, natural gas and produced water infrastructure across key basins in North America. Voyager operates about 550 miles of natural gas pipelines and associated compression. It also has 400 million cubic feet a day of cryogenic gas processing capacity and 12,000 barrels per day of liquid fractionation capacity. It also operates Carthage Hub, a gas trading and delivery hub capable of handling over 1 billion cubic feet per day. Carthage Hub interconnects multiple markets across the United States including LNG markets in Texas and Louisiana. All of these

Energy firm BP has sold a stake worth $1 billion (£733m) in the Trans-Anatolian Natural Gas Pipeline (TANAP) to Apollo as part of the first tranche of a $20bn asset sale target. The US asset manager will take a 25% non-operated stake in BP Pipelines (TANAP) (BP TANAP) which itself holds BP’s 12% interest in TANAP, owner and operator of the pipeline that carries natural gas from Azerbaijan across Turkey. The sale comes after BP chief executive Murray Auchincloss unveiled plans to review assets for a potential sale including its core lubricants business, Castrol and its solar business, BP Lightsource. The $20bn target was announced alongside a “fundamental reset” for the firm as it turns focus to its traditional oil and gas production business. The deal marks the second such sale agreed with US fund manager, Apollo. Last year Apollo snapped up another $1bn BP-owned stake in Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP). TANAP, running for approximately 1,120 miles (1,800km) across Turkey, is the central section of the Southern Gas Corridor project (SGC) pipeline system. The SGC transports gas from the BP-operated Shah Deniz gas field in the Azerbaijan sector of the Caspian Sea to markets in Europe, including Italy and Greece. It connects to TAP at the Greek-Turkish border, which crosses Northern Greece, Albania and the Adriatic Sea before coming ashore in Southern Italy to connect to the Italian natural gas network. BP said the deal allows it to “monetise” its interest in TANAP while retaining control of the asset. BP executive vice president for gas and low carbon energy William Lin said: “This unlocks capital from our global portfolio while retaining our role in this strategic asset for bringing Azerbaijan gas to Europe. BP and Apollo will continue to explore further strategic cooperation and mutually beneficial opportunities.” Apollo partner Skardon Baker

A release posted on the UK government website on Friday announced that the “first major project” for Great British Energy (GB Energy) “is to put rooftop solar panels on around 200 schools and 200 NHS sites, saving hundreds of millions on their energy bills”. Hundreds of schools, NHS trusts and communities across the UK will benefit from new rooftop solar power and renewable schemes to save money on their energy bills, thanks to a total GBP 200 million ($258.6 million) investment from the UK government and Great British Energy, the release stated. “In England around GBP 80 million ($103.4 million) in funding will support around 200 schools, alongside GBP 100 million ($129.3 million) for nearly 200 NHS sites, covering a third of NHS trusts, to install rooftop solar panels that could power classrooms and operations, with potential to sell leftover energy back to the grid,” the release noted. The first panels are expected to be in schools and hospitals by the end of summer 2025, according to the release. The release stated that local authorities and community energy groups will also be supported by nearly GBP 12 million ($15.5 million) to help build local clean energy projects. A further GBP 9.3 million ($12.0 million) will power schemes in Scotland, Wales, and Northern Ireland including community energy or rooftop solar for public buildings, the release added. “Great British Energy’s first major project will be to help our vital public institutions save hundreds of millions on bills to reinvest on the frontline,” Energy Secretary Ed Miliband said in the release. “Great British Energy will provide power for pupils and patients,” he added. “Parents at the school gate and patients in hospitals will experience the difference Great British Energy can make. This is our clean energy superpower mission in action, with lower bills

A flurry of oil projects from Brazil to Saudi Arabia are set to come online this year, providing the biggest infusion of new crude production in more than a decade.  Fresh oil field output is expected to total about 2.9 million barrels a day in 2025, up from about 800,000 barrels last year, according to data from Raymond James. That’s the most in data stretching back to 2015. Among the largest projects are the Tengiz field in Kazakhstan and Bacalhau in Brazil, as well as the Berri and Marjan expansions in Saudi Arabia. The projections for this year and next are subject to delays, and could change. Global oil forecasters have been projecting a supply overhang for 2025 as countries including Guyana and Brazil bring on new output and OPEC+ plans to start reviving idled output in April. Meanwhile, US President Donald Trump’s trade policies have fanned concerns about reduced global energy demand. The US Energy Information Administration projects supply will exceed demand by 100,000 barrels a day this year, and the International Energy Agency sees a surplus of 600,000 barrels a day. While Raymond James didn’t provide full forecasts for production and consumption, the firm projects that supply will outstrip demand by 280,000 barrels a day toward the end of 2025.  “Investors have not fully grasped just how much new supply from projects is on deck in 2025,” said Pavel Molchanov, an analyst at Raymond James. What do you think? We’d love to hear from you, join the conversation on the Rigzone Energy Network. The Rigzone Energy Network is a new social experience created for you and all energy professionals to Speak Up about our industry, share knowledge, connect with peers and industry insiders and engage in a professional community that will empower your career in energy. MORE FROM THIS

The drive for net zero cannot be “in isolation from the hydrocarbon sector”, the head of the CBI (Confederation of British Industry) will say today. Rain Newton-Smith is due to speak at the group’s annual lunch in Edinburgh, alongside First Minister John Swinney, where she will laud the oil and gas industry as “the bridge” to net zero. But the business boss will also lament government action which has hit the fossil fuels industry. The speech comes at a time when the idea of net zero is becoming unpopular with the Conservatives and a surging Reform UK – which has made opposing them a key plank of their offering to the public. “Despite the voices being raised against net zero, the fact is Scotland is sitting on a goldmine of green energy,” Newton-Smith is expected to say. “The numbers don’t lie. The opportunities are there. “Since 2022, Scotland’s net-zero sector has grown 20% and created 16,000 more jobs while average UK growth has near-flatlined. “So, let me be crystal clear. Business is behind net zero. Business is invested in our energy transition. And we’re behind the plans to go further. “But we can’t see net zero in isolation from the hydrocarbon sector. “Especially in Scotland. Oil and gas are still tens of thousands of jobs here. From the latest data it still makes up over 10% of Scotland’s GDP. “It will still be a part of the energy mix and the bridge to net zero, for some time yet. The infrastructure, the investment, the skills and knowledge of these industries will be mission critical for the transition. “But too often, they have been left out of the picture, hit by repeated tax changes and uncertainty. “On one hand, we need clear timelines and funding for net-zero commitments government has already