Latest Market News

Eni signs major gas project deal in Libya

  • Spanish Market: Condensate, Natural gas
  • 29/01/23

Italy's Eni and Libya's state-owned NOC have signed a long-delayed deal on the development of a major offshore gas project which will supply the domestic market and boost exports to Italy.

The $8bn Structures A&E project is the largest single investment in Libya's upstream sector since the 2011 civil war and, according to Eni, the first major project in the north African country since 2000. The deal, previewed last week in a local TV interview with NOC chairman Farhat ben Gudara, was officially signed on 28 January during a visit to Tripoli by Italy's prime minister Giorgia Meloni.

The project involves developing two offshore gas fields, with the platforms tied back to existing treatment facilities at the onshore Mellitah Complex, which is operated by Eni and NOC's Mellitah Oil and Gas joint venture. Eni said previously that the project will have the capacity to produce 760mn ft³/d of gas and 47,000 b/d of liquids, primarily condensate. It said in October that production could be online in 2024, but its latest statement says output from the fields will start in 2026 and reach a plateau of 750mn ft³/d.

The project also includes the construction of a carbon capture and storage facility at Mellitah, in line with Eni's decarbonisation strategy and Libya's nascent decarbonisation ambitions.

NOC's Ben Gudara said the deal is a "clear indication that the oil sector in Libya is free of risks" and that his country is on its way back to being considered a reliable oil and gas producer. Libya's decade-long political quagmire has not only hampered new oil and gas projects from getting off the ground but has also frequently led to existing output being shut down for political purposes. The relatively safe location of Structures A&E offshore Tripoli makes the project less vulnerable to disruption than Libya's onshore fields.

The agreement comes against the backdrop of Italian prime minister Meloni's "Mattei plan", which seeks to deepen Italy's energy and political ties to Africa. Italy, alongside other European countries, has been scrambling to strengthen its energy security since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.


Related news posts

Argus illuminates the markets by putting a lens on the areas that matter most to you. The market news and commentary we publish reveals vital insights that enable you to make stronger, well-informed decisions. Explore a selection of news stories related to this one.

Dutch government eyes gas storage levy from 2026


18/09/24
18/09/24

Dutch government eyes gas storage levy from 2026

London, 18 September (Argus) — The Dutch government has proposed a new levy from 2026 to recoup the cost of filling the Bergermeer gas storage facility since 2022 in its 2025 budget plan. The government's draft budget presented on Tuesday said that preparations were ongoing to introduce a levy on booked capacity on top of gas system operator GTS' transport tariffs. The levy would apply to both domestic users and "users abroad" to ensure that "the costs associated with the gas storage filling measures are borne by the users who benefit from the filling of storages", the government said. The levy is expected to generate €146.7mn/yr ($163mn/yr) from 2026 until at least 2029, according to the draft budget. That phrasing suggests that the levy may not take effect before 2026. The government tasked state-owned holding company EBN with filling Bergermeer to 90pc of capacity in summer 2022 if market participants failed to do so, and has left that legal requirement in place until 2025. And the Dutch government's draft budget earmarks more money for the stockbuild in coming years, amounting to about €256mn for 2025 and €233mn for 2026, up from €67mn in 2023 and €105mn in 2024. The Hague's new coalition government has focussed on gas security of supply, proposing further steps to support domestic production and ensure that storages are filled. As part of this, it intends to propose legislation to prevent and react to an energy supply crisis, while aiming to reduce demand, maintain LNG capacity and focus on long-term contracts, the government said. The government also plans to amend the mining act, the gas act and other existing laws to "structurally safeguard the security of gas supply", it said. In its government programme released on Friday , the cabinet said it was examining how the government could more proactively ensure the gas stockfill. All the country's storage sites remain "crucial for guaranteeing security of supply and realising energy independence", the budget said. This includes the country's largest storage site at Norg, where the government compensates operator Nam — a 50:50 joint venture between Shell and ExxonMobil — to use the facility to ensure security of supply . The government has paid Nam €491mn for that this year, down from €757mn a year earlier, because of lower gas prices, the budget shows. The German government implemented a similar storage levy in 2022 to recoup the cost of filling storage sites ahead of the winter heating season. But after EU pressure from central and eastern European neighbours regarding the large negative impacts of the levy on their effort to diversify away from Russian gas, the German government decided to stop charging the levy on outbound flows from the beginning of next year. By Lucas Waelbroeck Boix and Till Stehr Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Hoekstra to face 'tough' EU parliamentary hearings


18/09/24
18/09/24

Hoekstra to face 'tough' EU parliamentary hearings

Brussels, 18 September (Argus) — EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra, who has been nominated again for the role, is expected to face "tough" hearings in the European Parliament, according to a senior European official. The official told Argus that Hoekstra might have a "slight" advantage, as he underwent parliamentary hearings in 2023 when he took over fellow Dutchman Frans Timmermans' climate portfolio. At the time, Hoekstra was questioned extensively about past work with Shell and on climate issues. European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen put forward new commissioner candidates on 17 September, assigning Hoekstra the climate, net-zero, and clean growth portfolio. All candidates will undergo hearings before the EU parliament votes on the new commission line-up. Hoekstra has said he is "honoured and humbled", but formal appointment depends on how he performs during the hearings before the European Parliament's energy, environment and other committees. Hoekstra's mandate would include drafting legislation to enshrine a 90pc cut in greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by 2040, from 1990 levels, into European law. The commission's 2040 target, revealed in February, referred to a "net GHG emissions reduction of 90pc". Hoekstra last year made a "personal" commitment to defend a "minimum target of at least 90pc" net GHG cuts. Von der Leyen has tasked Hoekstra with designing climate policies for the post-2030 period and developing an Industrial Decarbonisation Accelerator Act. Other key objectives include channelling investment toward net-zero infrastructure and ensuring revenues from the EU's emissions trading system (ETS) are used "effectively" to drive decarbonisation. Hoekstra's responsibilities extend to advancing a single market for CO2, boosting carbon removals for hard-to-abate sectors, and phasing out fossil fuel subsidies. Hoekstra would work closely with former Danish climate minister Dan Jorgensen, who is nominated for the energy and housing portfolio, if both are appointed. Jorgensen will be responsible for advancing the Electrification Action Plan for industrial transition and overseeing a roadmap to phase out Russian energy imports. He is tasked with ensuring the "full use" of joint procurement mechanisms, with a mandate to extend the current aggregated demand system from gas to include hydrogen and potentially other commodities. Supervising both Hoekstra and Jorgensen, in addition to von der Leyen, will be Teresa Ribera, Spain's former climate minister. Ribera has been nominated as executive vice-president for a clean, just and competitive transition. European Parliament officials expect to receive financial declarations and other procedural documents in the coming days. That will allow parliamentary committees to send written questions to Hoekstra and other nominated commissioners, officially kicking off the hearing process. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Cop 29 presidency sets out initiatives, summit agenda


17/09/24
17/09/24

Cop 29 presidency sets out initiatives, summit agenda

London, 17 September (Argus) — The president-designate of the UN Cop 29 climate summit, Azerbaijan's Mukhtar Babayev, has set out 14 initiatives and a detailed agenda for the conference, including a new focus on methane reduction and tackling barriers to a "clean hydrogen" market. There is an "urgent need to harmonise international frameworks, regulations and standards to create viable business models" for hydrogen, Babayev said. The Cop 29 presidency will build on the declaration of intent on mutual recognition of hydrogen certification schemes, made at Cop 28 last year, it said. It plans to launch a framework to set priorities ahead of Cop 30, scheduled for November 2025 in Brazil. The Cop 29 presidency also aims to tackle "the growing problem of methane from organic waste", it said. Methane — a potent greenhouse gas (GHG) — is often a focus at Cop summits, although typically with an eye to the largest emitters, the agriculture and fossil fuel industries. Babayev has called for governments to commit to targets to cut methane from organic waste in their climate plans, as well as for more signatories of the Global Methane Pledge. The pledge, launched in 2021 at Cop 26, asks signatories to cut methane emissions by at least 30pc by 2030, from 2020 levels. The Cop 29 presidency has also developed a two-pronged pledge, which seeks to scale up global installed energy storage capacity to 1.5TW by 2030 and add or refurbish more than 80mn km of power grid by 2040. It has developed a "green energy zones and corridors" pledge as well, to maximise sustainable energy generation and ensure "cost-effective transmission over large distances and across borders". Babayev provided further details of a planned climate fund , which will be capitalised by fossil fuel producing countries and companies. "We believe that countries rich in natural resources should be at the forefront of those addressing climate change," Babayev said, noting that the direction came from Azerbaijan's president Ilham Aliyev. The fund will be a public-private partnership, with "concessional and grant-based support to rapidly address the consequences of natural disasters" in developing countries, Babayev said. It will "provide offtake agreement guarantees for small and medium-sized renewable energy producers and first-loss capital for green industrial projects", with a focus on food and agriculture, he said. Cop 29 is set to take place in Baku, Azerbaijan on 11-22 November. It will be the first Cop hosted in the Caucasus region, Babayev noted. He flagged the "extreme heat [and] water scarcity" the region faces, but also pointed to its wind and solar power potential. Topics of other programmes set out today include water, climate action in tourism and a peace initiative which emphasised the "interplay between conflict and climate change". By Georgia Gratton Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Von der Leyen puts forward EU commissioner candidates


17/09/24
17/09/24

Von der Leyen puts forward EU commissioner candidates

Brussels, 17 September (Argus) — European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen today presented candidates for commissioner posts, confirming names put forward for portfolios including climate, energy, agriculture and trade. Von der Leyen — who was confirmed by European Parliament as Commission president on 18 July — has committed to doubling down on climate and energy policy. Her 2024-29 mandate stipulates greenhouse gas emissions cuts of at least 90pc by 2040 compared with 1990. Her commissioners, if appointed, will implement those policies. She is nominating Teresa Ribera to oversee competition policy but also "clean, just and competitive transition" that would include energy, climate, environment and other Green Deal files. Ribera is Spain's deputy prime minister and responsible for the country's ecological transition. Von der Leyen has proposed the current EU climate commissioner Wopke Hoekstra for the portfolio of climate, net-zero and clean growth. Hoekstra, who replaced previous Green Deal commissioner Frans Timmermans , will also be responsible for taxation. Other nominees include former Danish climate minister Dan Jorgensen, up for energy and housing commissioner. Former Swedish minister for EU affairs Jessika Roswall is proposed for a portfolio including environment and circular economy, and Luxembourgish Christophe Hansen, a former member of EU parliament, is proposed as agriculture and food commissioner. Von der Leyen now needs to ensure that candidate-commissioners are approved by parliamentary committees and then by plenary. Hearings will also focus on candidates' abilities to implement policies. "Parliamentary scrutiny will not cut corners," European Parliament president Roberta Metsola said. By Dafydd ab Iago Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Business intelligence reports

Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

Learn more