Oil plunged for the second straight day as US President Donald Trump signaled he wants to keep oil flowing out of Iran after brokering a fragile ceasefire between Tehran and Israel. West Texas Intermediate crude plunged by nearly 15% over two sessions to settle near $64 a barrel, while Brent was just above $67. Prices have slumped amid the significant deescalation of a conflict that has rocked the energy-rich Middle East. Trump said in a social media post that China can continue buying Iranian oil and that he hopes the country will also be purchasing “plenty” from the US. Crude fell further as both sides made deescalatory remarks. The move is a stark departure from an earlier US strategy of squeezing Iranian energy exports to apply pressure at the negotiating table, a move many investors thought might be contingent on upholding the ceasefire or assurances on nuclear intentions, said Rebecca Babin, a senior energy trader at CIBC Private Wealth Group. Crude has declined sharply this week — including a 7% rout on Monday — despite the arrival of a long-feared clash that saw America bomb Iran’s nuclear sites and the Islamic Republic retaliate against US bases in Qatar. While prices spiked in the wake of Israel and America’s initial attacks, the conflict hasn’t had any significant impact on oil flows from the Persian Gulf, and exports from Iran have surged. Trump cheered crude’s slide earlier on Tuesday, saying “I love it.” Furthermore, the shale boom of the early 2000s has helped to greatly reduce US reliance on Middle Eastern oil, blunting the impact of a conflict in the region on energy prices. The initial price surge has instead presented a major opportunity for domestic producers to lock in higher prices, with swap dealer positions in US crude futures climbing to

Angolan President Joao Lourenco called on US companies to expand their investments in Africa beyond traditional oil and mineral extraction to industries such as automobiles, shipbuilding, tourism, cement and steel. “American companies operating in Angola are already benefiting from a favorable business climate,” he said on Monday at the opening of the US-Africa Business Summit in Luanda, the capital. “Now we want to see broader engagement.” The event was held as US trade rival China seeks to extend its influence on the continent by offering to remove levies on imports from almost all African countries, while America threatens reciprocal tariffs after a 90-day pause ends on July 9. The US has also cut aid to the continent and banned travel from certain African nations.  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.

WASHINGTON—The Department of Energy (DOE) today issued an emergency order authorized by Section 202(c) of the Federal Power Act to address potential grid shortfall issues in the Southeast U.S. The order, issued amid surging power demand, will help mitigate the risk of blackouts brought on by high temperatures across the Southeast region.  “As electricity demand reaches its peak, Americans should not be forced to wonder if their power grid can support their homes and businesses. Under President Trump’s leadership, the Department of Energy will use all tools available to maintain a reliable, affordable, and secure energy system for the American people,” said U.S. Secretary of Energy Chris Wright. “This order ensures Duke Energy Carolinas can supply its customers with consistent and reliable power throughout peak summer demand.”  The Order authorizes Duke Energy Carolina to utilize specific electric generating units located within the Duke Energy Carolina area to operate at their maximum generation output levels due to ongoing extreme weather conditions and to preserve the reliability of bulk electric power system.  Orders such as this, issued by the Office of Cybersecurity, Energy Security, and Emergency Response (CESER), are in accordance with President Trump’s Executive Order: Declaring a National Energy Emergency and will ensure the availability of generation needed to meet high electricity demand and minimize the risk of blackouts. The order is in effect from June 24 – June 25, 2025.  Background:  FPA Section 202(c) gives DOE the ability to support energy companies to serve their customers during times of emergencies when they would otherwise not be capable of supplying Americans with reliable, consistent power by providing a waiver of federal, state, or local environmental laws and regulations.   The waivers have limitations to ensure public safety and interest are prioritized. ###

Dive Brief: The University of Texas at Dallas earlier this month announced the opening of its Batteries and Energy to Advance Commercialization and National Security – or BEACONS – facility, which aims to help commercialize new battery technologies, China-proof the lithium-ion battery supply chain and bolster the national battery workforce. The facility is funded by a $30 million award from the U.S. Department of Defense, and is also collaborating with industry partners including Associated Universities Inc. and LEAP Manufacturing.  “We want to have that supply chain resilience and independence from the Chinese supply chain,” said BEACONS Director Kyeongjae Cho. “So that even if things really go bad and China decides to cut off [access to] all of these critical mineral supplies, the [domestic battery supply] will not be impacted by that, especially those going to defense applications.” Dive Insight: DOD provides a lot of battery demand, Cho said, due to their need to operate energy-intensive technology in the field. The Pentagon’s battery supply chain is set to shrink after the 2024 National Defense Authorization Act barred DOD from procuring batteries from some Chinese-owned entities starting in October 2027. The banned suppliers are China’s Contemporary Amperex Technology, BYD, Envision Energy, EVE Energy Company, Gotion High-tech and Hithium Energy Storage. China currently dominates the “active materials production portion” of the lithium battery supply chain, according to a 2024 article from the Center for Strategic and International Studies. “Previously, a lot of defense applications were purchasing batteries from Chinese manufacturers,” Cho said. “So that’s creating this dependence on the Chinese supply, and under the unlikely but unfavorable scenario, our defense would be stuck in their supply chain. That’s something we want to avoid.” The program is particularly focused on advancing solid state battery technology, which is more commonly used for drones and defense applications

Summer power bills are going up, federal government warns | Utility Dive Skip to main content An article from Consumers will see a “slight increase” in power bills this summer, the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Monday. But that analysis is based on expectations for cooler weather. Published June 24, 2025 According to NASA, 2024 was the hottest summer on record. And the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration is anticipating hotter-than-average temperatures this summer. Chris Hondros/Getty Images via Getty Images As parts of the United States bake under the first heat wave of summer, the federal government has warned consumers in many regions to brace for higher power bills over the next few months. “From June through September, residential customers in the United States can expect average monthly electricity bills of $178, a slight increase from last summer’s average of $173,” the U.S. Energy Information Administration said Monday.  The largest increase will hit New England, where the average monthly bill is expected to rise $13 from last summer, to $193 a month. The Pacific and Mountain regions could see bills decline slightly, according to EIA’s analysis. Retrieved from U.S. Energy Information Administration. EIA said it based its bill analysis on expectations for a “slight decrease in consumption, driven by cooler forecast summer temperatures relative to last summer.” But other experts say the federal government’s energy data arm is being optimistic. EIA’s projections “are very conservative and assume temperatures about the same,” said Mark Wolfe, executive director of the National Energy Assistance Directors Association.  But, Wolfe added, “the issue is not temperatures as much as increasing prices.” Residential electricity prices across the U.S. will average 17 cents/kWh in 2025, rising to 17.6 cents/kWh in 2026, according to EIA’s Short-Term Energy Outlook. Prices averaged 16 cents/kWh in 2023. Consumers “will be hit with yet another year

The U.S. Department of Energy on Tuesday issued an emergency order allowing Duke Energy to exceed emissions limits in its power plant permits in the Carolinas during a heat wave. The emergency order expires at 10 p.m. on Wednesday when the heat and humidity is expected to ease, according to DOE. The order, issued under the Federal Power Act’s section 202(c), will help reduce the risk of blackouts brought on by high temperatures across the Southeast region, the department said. Under the order, Duke will be allowed to exceed power plant emissions limits when it declares an Energy Emergency Alert Level 2, which it expects to do, DOE said. The North American Electric Reliability Corp. defines an EEA-2 as when a grid operator cannot provide its expected energy requirements, but is still able to maintain minimum contingency reserve requirements, according to the PJM Interconnection. Once Duke declares that the EEA Level 2 event has ended, its generating units would be required to immediately return to operation within their permitted limits, the department said. In its request to DOE for the emergency order, Duke said about 1,500 MW of its power plants in the Carolinas are offline while other generating units may be limited by conditions and limitations in their environmental permits, according to the department. DOE issued a similar order for Duke Energy Florida in October in response to Hurricane Milton. DOE has also issued 90-day emergency orders to keep generating units that were set to retire on May 30 operating this summer in Michigan and Pennsylvania.