Japanese power producer Jera said this week that it has signed multiple long-term LNG supply agreements with US partners over the past two months, to procure up to 5.5mn t/yr over 20 years. This includes 2mn t/yr from NextDecade and 1mn t/yr from Commonwealth LNG. It also signed non-binding interim agreements with Sempra Infrastructure for 1.5mn t/yr and with developer Cheniere for 1mn t/yr. The deals offer competitive pricing and flexible contract terms. All supply will be delivered on a fob basis priced against the US' Henry Hub, allowing Jera to optimise shipping routes and respond flexibly to domestic demand and market conditions, the company said.
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Big Tech to sign pledge to pay for AI buildout
Big Tech to sign pledge to pay for AI buildout
Houston, 4 March (Argus) — Major tech companies gathered at the White House with President Donald Trump Wednesday to sign a pledge intended to shield consumers from higher electricity costs related to the development of power-hungry data centers. Google, Microsoft, Meta, Oracle, xAI, OpenAI and Amazon were set to sign the "Ratepower Protection Pledge," agreeing to "build, bring, or buy" new generation resources and to cover all transmission and distribution upgrades associated with their data center projects, the White House said Wednesday. The pledge comes as public concern mounts over data center power consumption and its affect on household electricity bills. US electricity prices have risen in multiple states as data center construction has surged to support artificial intelligence (AI), posing a political problem for candidates heading into the November midterm elections. "President Trump's ratepayer protection pledge will deliver more affordable, reliable, and secure energy for the American people and help stop the rising electricity prices that started during the previous administration," US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright said ahead of the meeting. The nation's largest utilities are spending hundreds of billions of dollars to add generation and upgrade existing infrastructure to meet what multiple companies have described as unprecedented demand growth. Data center development plans have led to double-digit growth in electricity bills in some markets in the past two years, and government officials and company executives in the technology and energy sectors are seeking ways to ensure households do not bear the brunt of the cost. "Trump's desire to manage energy costs for households via the Ratepayer Protection Plan will be challenging to effect as costs are layered throughout the energy system," Ben Heininger, US data center energy lead at Baringa, said in an email. New generation capacity may add supply to the system but may still be constrained by transmission bottlenecks. Tech companies would need to behave like vertically integrated utilities, which undertake such projects in tandem to truly shield consumers from rate hikes, he said. Runaway Capacity Prices Data center loads are responsible for an additional $23bn, or 40pc of total costs, in the last three capacity auctions at PJM, said Joseph Bowring, president of Monitoring Analytics, the independent external market monitor for PJM Interconnection. Prices skyrocketed into record-high triple digits as larger reserve requirements driven by AI needs coincided with coal-fired and nuclear plant retirements. These prices are locked in until 2028, making it virtually impossible to lower consumer prices in the near term, Bowring said. PJM's territory of 13 states includes the largest cluster of data centers in the world in northern Virginia. "The White House ... recognizes correctly that data centers have to be served by new generation because otherwise you're cannibalizing the old generation, making it everyone else's problem," Bowring said on a webcast hosted by the Brookings Institution. The White House did not specify how the pledge signed by tech companies will be implemented and tracked. It was unclear if the commitment extends to their subsidiaries and special-purpose vehicles, which often sign contracts with utilities, the environmental advocate Earthjustice said. "We urgently need strong policies and protections to ensure that data centers pay their way, disclose and mitigate their impacts, and are powered by clean energy," Earthjustice vice president of litigation for climate and energy Jill Trauber said in a statement. Data center demand appears to be extending fossil-fuel dependency in the interim. Some utilities have delayed coal-fired plant retirements and are investing in natural gas generation as tech companies express concerns about the intermittency of renewable power sources. By Jasmina Kelemen Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US to roll out oil market calming measures
US to roll out oil market calming measures
Washington, 4 March (Argus) — President Donald Trump's administration is set to roll out additional measures aimed to calm global energy markets spooked by the US-Israel war on Iran and Tehran's retaliatory attacks on shipping and infrastructure in the Mideast Gulf. The US will make a "series of announcements" about stabilizing oil and LNG shipments out of the Mideast Gulf, treasury secretary Scott Bessent told CNBC on Wednesday. Trump on Tuesday already ordered US government finance provider Development Finance Corporation (DFC) to offer political risk insurance and naval convoys for ships transporting energy and other commodities through the Mideast Gulf. DFC did not immediately outline how it will implement Trump's order. The agency's mandate already includes political risk insurance for specific projects and "DFC will help ensure commerce, capital, and energy can operate at capacity during the ongoing conflict", chief executive Ben Black said, inviting shippers and financial institutions to contact the agency directly. "DFC can either provide insurance directly or reinsure an insurer, the latter of which might be the easiest thing to do," advocacy group FDD senior adviser and former Trump White House staff member Rich Goldberg told Argus . Another possible measure could include invoking "the Merchant Marine Act of 1936, which provides the US Maritime Administration with authority to issue war risk insurance and reinsurance in the maritime domain", Goldberg said. Trump also said that the Pentagon would provide naval escorts for the hundreds of ships stuck in the Mideast Gulf. Senior US military commanders in briefings on Tuesday evening and Wednesday morning did not address the possible naval escorts and said the US will soon degrade Iran's capacity to launch missiles and drones at its neighbors. Trump's offer of US-backed insurance for the Mideast Gulf shipping sent US benchmark WTI crude futures slightly lower in Tuesday's session. But some traders expressed skepticism about how quickly the plan can be implemented and whether it would help reopen shipping lanes in the world's largest oil-producing region. The offer would effectively be "like painting a massive target on your ship", one trader told Argus , because "Iran would be directly forcing US taxpayers to foot the war bill". The US plan also would put it in an awkward position of having to underwrite energy shipments out of the region to China and other destinations in Asia. The measures outlined by the Trump administration so far focused on enabling energy carrying vessels to transit the strait of Hormuz. Ship traffic through the strait of Hormuz — the world's most critical shipping lane for oil, LNG and other commodities — has almost ground to a halt since US and Israeli forces struck Iran on 28 February. Another vessel was targeted in the Mideast Gulf on Wednesday, fresh reports from the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) indicate, adding to the growing list of incidents in the region. Three tankers commercially operated by Greek shipowner Dynacom Tankers Management passed through the strait of Hormuz on Tuesday, according to a shipbroker. Ship insurers require Additional War Risk Premiums (AWRPs) for vessels passing through designated risky areas to maintain coverage. Last week, ahead of the US and Israeli strikes on Iran, AWRP in the Mideast Gulf stood at 0.15–0.2pc of a vessel's hull and machinery value, according to insurance brokers. But regional rates have now surged, to around 1pc, brokers say, which is equivalent to around $1.34mn for a 2mn bl VLCC. The US strategy does not address the war damage to oil and natural gas production or processing facilities across the Mideast Gulf. State-owned QatarEnergy on Wednesday declared force majeure following the halt of production of LNG and associated products to its "affected" buyers. The halt at Ras Laffan is a safety measure to prevent onshore LNG storage from overfilling, Taiwan's ministry of economic affairs said. State-controlled Saudi Aramco's 550,000 b/d Ras Tanura refinery was targeted by a drone for a second time in three days on Wednesday, according to the defense ministry. By Haik Gugarats and Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
EU says no gas or oil supply concerns from Iran war
EU says no gas or oil supply concerns from Iran war
London, 4 March (Argus) — There are no oil or gas supply concerns yet in the EU as a result of the spreading war in the Mideast Gulf, the European Commission said today. The de facto closure of the strait of Hormuz, the world's most important waterway for oil exports at the mouth of the Mideast Gulf, is likely to cause shortfalls of crude, LNG and other commodities. But the commission said its gas and oil co-ordination groups met today and concluded there are no "immediate security of supply risks". No emergency oil stocks have been released and gas storage levels are stable, it said. Price moves in energy markets since the start of the US-Israel military campaign against Iran on 28 February have been suggesting some concern about future supply shortfalls, with front-month Ice Brent crude up by more than $10/bl since the start of the week and the front-month contract at the Dutch TTF gas hub up by more than 50pc at one point this week. Notably, European jet fuel values tripled in early swaps trading earlier today, making historic gains, having already been at record highs at the market close yesterday, 3 March. Europe's gas prices are rising because the shutting-in of Qatari LNG tightens supply globally . The level of future shortfalls are entirely dependent on how long the strait remains out of bounds for shipping. The US has suggested some remedies , but it is unclear how and when these will be put into action. The commission said today it will reassess the situation "in case of a prolonged closure" of the strait of Hormuz, but it did not say how it defines 'prolonged'. By Ben Winkley Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Hormuz naval escort unlikely in the near-term: SSY
Hormuz naval escort unlikely in the near-term: SSY
London, 4 March (Argus) — A US plan for its navy to escort ships heading through the strait of Hormuz is unlikely to come to fruition any time soon because the fleet will be occupied with military operations, according to analysts at shipbroker SSY. Traffic through the strait, the world's most critical oil and LNG shipping lane at the mouth of the Mideast Gulf, has almost entirely stopped, with insurers unwilling to cover transit since Iran said it will "burn" any ship that tries to pass. A container ship was struck today in the strait, UKMTO said. US president Donald Trump stated on 3 March that "if necessary, the United States Navy will begin escorting tankers through the strait of Hormuz, as soon as possible." Europe is also looking at naval operations in the region, with French president Emmanuel Macron announcing on Tuesday the creation of a coalition to secure traffic through Hormuz. But SSY said the US Navy "has privately told the industry it will lack escort capacity until the initial stage of the military operation is complete. An additional issue is that US law does not allow the country's navy to escort ships that are not US-flagged or -owned, or have no US crew, the firm said. In addition to the legal issues, SSY pointed to the difficulty of actually protecting shipping in the strait. "Physical geography favours the attacker," it said. "[Shipping] lanes are 2 [nautical miles] wide each direction; vessels transit at 10–12 knots and must turn at the narrowest point adjacent to Iranian islands. "A destroyer can intercept missiles but cannot simultaneously sweep mines, counter drone-boat swarms from multiple bearings, and manage GPS disruption," SSY said. The firm pointed to recent US operations in the Red Sea at the height of attacks by Yemen-based Houthi militants, where "escorts failed to restore commercial traffic despite ~400 drones/missiles downed". But, SSY said, pressure to restore normality is greater this time, which could lead to a significantly different military strategy. By John Ollett and Andrey Telegin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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