Adjusted net income jumped 68% from a year earlier to $6.03 billion, the French major said Thursday. That almost matched analyst estimates, which had been revised lower after Total previously flagged underperformance in gas.

Disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz and the conflict between Russia and Ukraine are tightening global fuel supplies, bolstering profits for the world’s top energy companies. Like European peers Shell Plc and BP Plc, TotalEnergies is a major oil refiner as well as a producer and runs a large trading desk, which has helped it navigate the market upheaval.

“In a high-price environment related to the Middle East conflict, TotalEnergies is leveraging its integrated model and portfolio diversification,” Chief Executive Officer Patrick Pouyanné said in a statement. The company managed to “fully capture the increase in refining and petrochemical margins.”

Adjusted net operating income from refining and chemicals more than quadrupled from a year earlier to $1.8 billion as the firm ramped up distillates production. That’s the biggest increase of any operating segment, the company said.

Crude and petroleum products trading — a part of that division — showed similar strength to the first quarter, it said.

Refinery Runs

That windfall helped offset a decline in refinery runs, with the Satorp refinery in Saudi Arabia damaged in an attack in April, the Donges plant in France halted for maintenance for about two months and the US Port Arthur facility shut down during a tropical storm in June.

The refinery utilization rate is expected to be between 80% and 85% in the third quarter, with Satorp, which has been operating at 70% of capacity since early May, returning to full output by the end of the period.

The energy giant also got a boost from its exploration and production business, where profit soared 64% from a year earlier even as oil and gas output fell 4% because of disruptions in the Middle East. The decline was mitigated by project ramp-ups in countries such as Brazil, the US and Libya.

Earnings from the integrated liquefied natural gas unit slumped 22%. The company had already said last week that results from the division would fall “significantly” amid a lackluster European market.

Dividend Payouts

Total shares traded up 2.8% in Paris trading as of 10:23 a.m. local time.

The company will pay an interim dividend of €0.90 ($1.03) a share, up 5.9% from a year earlier. It plans to repurchase as much as $1.5 billion of stock in the third quarter, in line with the previous three months. Back in February, Total said it would buy back $3 billion to $6 billion of its shares this year with oil at $60 to $70 a barrel.

Benchmark Brent crude is currently trading near $98 a barrel. The company has said it would aim to use extra profits to reduce debt.

Total’s gearing — the ratio of net debt to equity — fell near 13% at the end of the second quarter, excluding leases, from 15.5% at the end of March.

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Brent crude advanced as much as 2.6% to trade near $96 a barrel after closing at a six-week high in the previous session, while West Texas Intermediate rose above $88. The Houthis said they fired missiles and drones at the vessels for violating a blockade, identifying the tankers as Encelia and Layla.

Minutes before the Houthi statement, UK Maritime Trade Operations said a ship had been struck by a projectile southwest of Al Shuqaiq on Saudi Arabia’s Red Sea coast, causing a fire on board. UKMTO didn’t identify the vessel.

Following the attack, products tanker Encelia began broadcasting a “not under command” status, indicating it may have lost maneuverability due to damage, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. Layla, a very large crude carrier, has continued sailing under its own power.

The attacks mark the first strikes on oil tankers in the Red Sea, opening a new front in a regional conflict that has snarled traffic through the Strait of Hormuz following a flare-up in violence. In recent days, Iran has struck vessels in the narrow waterway that is critical to Gulf crude exports.

The Red Sea attack is “a serious escalation” of the conflict, said Daniel Hynes, senior commodities strategist at ANZ Group Holdings Ltd. “If this route is disrupted, the tightness in the oil market is only going to worsen.”

Brent has rallied more than 30% this month, and some analysts see prices returning to triple digits later this year if hostilities persist in the Middle East. US forces conducted a 12th consecutive day of strikes on Iran, while Tehran responded by attacking Kuwait, which has borne the brunt of its retaliation.

American forces struck Iranian military targets including maritime capabilities and coastal surveillance sites, according to US Central Command. Nine commercial vessels have been redirected and one disabled to prevent ships from entering or departing Iran’s ports, Centcom added.

The durability of the price rally will depend on whether the Red Sea attack proves to be isolated, or triggers prolonged supply-chain disruptions, said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova Pte. She added that “bulls can comfortably aim for $100 a barrel” Brent.

Washington and Tehran have both played down the prospect of peace talks, raising the possibility of prolonged hostilities that could tighten oil markets. President Donald Trump threatened to bomb bridges and power plants, and reiterated threats to strike Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected Iranian nuclear site.

Houthi militants issued their threat to blockade Saudi shipping in the Red Sea earlier this week. The waterway has become a key alternative export route for Saudi Arabia, allowing the kingdom to bypass Hormuz and export millions of barrels a day to global customers.

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The agreement, signed by US Secretary of Energy Chris Wright and Saudi Arabia's Minister of Energy and Minister of Industry and Mineral Resources His Royal Highness Prince Abdulaziz bin Salman bin Abdulaziz, establishes the legal framework for US companies to participate in Saudi Arabia’s nuclear energy programme. 

The deal, known as a “123 Agreement”, will now be submitted to the US Congress for review before it can enter into force. 

According to the US Department of Energy, the agreement, alongside a bilateral safeguards agreement, will support cooperation on the peaceful use of nuclear energy while strengthening commercial ties, energy security, and nuclear non-proliferation. 

US export of nuclear technologies 

The Department said the agreement would provide “great access” for American companies in Saudi Arabia’s nuclear programme, creating opportunities for US industry and supply chains while helping the Kingdom meet its growing energy demand. 

In a press statement, Saudi Arabia said the agreement follows the visit of the Crown Prince and Prime Minister His Royal Highness Prince Mohammed bin Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud, to the US in November last year.

The statement added that the agreement aims to “enhance cooperation between the two countries in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy and to facilitate the exchange of expertise, knowledge, and technologies, contributing to strengthening bilateral cooperation in accordance with the highest international standards of nuclear safety, nuclear security, and non-proliferation.”

The US Department of Energy said the agreement complies with the non-proliferation requirements set out in the US Atomic Energy Act and maintains high standards of nuclear safety and security.

“These agreements reflect our two nations' shared commitment to strengthening US-Saudi commercial relations, delivering prosperity at home and security to our allies abroad,” Secretary Wright said in a statement. “Rest assured, these agreements uphold the highest standards of nuclear safety and non-proliferation, while relying on the world’s best nuclear technology and scientists, designed right here in the United States.”

A decades-long nuclear partnership

The agreement is expected to support the potential deployment of US-designed AP1000 nuclear reactors in Saudi Arabia over the coming decades, with the US stating that the project would be a “multi-billion-dollar partnership”. 

However, analysts have noted that feasibility studies, licensing, and construction timelines mean any commercial reactors would likely take years to become operational.

The agreement will now be reviewed by the US Congress, which has 90 legislative session days to object before it can take effect. 

UAE: the Gulf’s nuclear pioneer

Saudi Arabia is the second GCC country to strike a deal with the US in order to develop its nuclear programme. The UAE remains the Gulf region’s pioneer in civilian nuclear energy, having become the first Arab country to operate a commercial nuclear power plant. The project has also demonstrated how Gulf states can diversify their energy mix while reducing carbon emissions.

In 2012, the UAE began its nuclear programme by constructing the first reactor for Barakah Nuclear Energy Plant's Unit 1, entering service in 2020. 

The facility's all four APR-1400 reactors came online in 2024, and are now fully operational, making Barakah the largest single source of electricity in the UAE. Together, the reactors generate around 40 terawatt-hours of carbon-free electricity annually, supplying approximately 25% of the country's power needs.

According to Barakah's operator Emirates Nuclear Energy Company (ENEC), the nuclear plant prevents up to 22.4 million tonnes of CO₂ emissions each year, supporting the UAE's net-zero ambitions and broader energy transition goals.

An agreement announced Wednesday between the Interior Department’s Marine Minerals Administration and the US Nuclear Regulatory Commission is intended to strengthen cooperation between the agencies as they evaluate the possibility of deploying undersea nuclear power plants.

No commercial nuclear power plants are approved or planned in federal waters, but the agreement is designed to assess whether and how the technology could be “responsibly implemented” in the future, the Marine Minerals Administration said.

“Submerged reactor systems have been safely deployed in naval applications for decades, demonstrating their potential as a reliable source of energy in demanding marine environments,” said Matt Giacona, the Marine Minerals Administration’s acting director. “It could greatly strengthen America’s energy security in the future.”

Also on Wednesday, the Department of Transportation and the Port of Long Beach signed a memorandum of cooperation to test small modular reactors, or SMRs, for commercial vessels and other applications at the port.

“Everything that’s going on in the energy market, the cost of fuel, and the uncertainty surrounding that is strengthening the case for energy diversification,” Port of Long Beach Chief Executive Officer Noel Hacegaba said after the signing at the Transportation Department’s Maritime Administration in Washington. “Now is the right time for us to explore nuclear energy.”

Hacegaba said Long Beach-based Bluecore Energy is working with the port on research and development for maritime applications of small modular reactors.

“My team and I took nuclear reactor technology that’s been running power plants safely for seventy years, made it smaller, and put it on a barge — a power plant that floats,” Kofi Asante, Bluecore founder and CEO, said in a statement released Tuesday.

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The utility known as MSEDCL has selected SBI Capital Markets Ltd., IIFL Capital Services Ltd., ICICI Securities Ltd, Motilal Oswal Investment Advisors Ltd., IDBI Capital Markets & Securities Ltd. and HDFC Bank Ltd. as advisers for the proposed share sale, the people said, asking not to be identified because the deliberations are private. The company could appoint more banks before formally launching the process, the people said.

The IPO is expected to comprise a mix of newly issued shares and an offer for sale, with state-owned parent MSEB Holding Co. likely to dilute about 10% of its stake, the people said.

Deliberations are ongoing, and key details including the size, valuation and advisers of the offering remain under discussion and could change, the people said. Representatives for MSEDCL and the banks didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

India’s IPO market, which set records in each of the last two years, is regaining momentum after a subdued first half of 2026. Companies have raised about $5.2 billion so far this year, compared with roughly $22 billion during all of 2025. SBI Funds Management Ltd. just completed the country’s first billion-dollar offering of the year, with large deals in the pipeline including share sales by Manipal Health Enterprises Ltd., National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. and Jio Platforms Ltd.

An IPO by MSEDCL would be among India’s first listings of a government-owned electricity distribution utility and could serve as a test case for long-pending reforms in the power distribution sector.

The Maharashtra cabinet has approved a restructuring plan for the company, including a proposal for the state government to assume about 330 billion rupees ($3.5 billion) of the utility’s liabilities to strengthen its balance sheet ahead of the share sale.

MSEDCL supplies electricity to about 35 million consumers across Maharashtra and is among the largest electricity distribution utilities in Asia by number of consumers and power supplied, according to the company’s website.

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Indian Oil Corp. abandoned plans to load the supertanker Lila Jamnagar, which can hold as much as 2 million barrels of oil, the people said, asking not to be identified because the matter is private. The refiner concluded it was too risky for a fully laden tanker to attempt a Hormuz crossing, after several freighters were struck by projectiles in recent days.

Mangalore Refinery & Petrochemicals Ltd., controlled by state-owned Oil and Natural Gas Corp., has also suspended lifting from Iraq because of the deteriorating security situation, the people said. Indian Oil, Mangalore Refinery and India’s oil ministry didn’t respond to requests for comment.

India’s halt further highlights the sharp pullback in shipping traffic through the Strait of Hormuz after Iran targeted multiple oil tankers in an attempt to assert control over the waterway. Vessels that had their transponders off to avoid detection have also come under fire, leaving shipowners with the big question about whether they’re still willing to transit dark.

“The situation in the Strait of Hormuz and the escalating conflict in the region” have increased transit risks and insurance costs, Iraq’s Oil Ministry spokesman Salim Al-Rikabi said. “As a result, some companies have canceled scheduled loading operations,” he said, wihtout elaborating further.  

Indian state refiners typically purchase Iraqi crude under long-term contracts that requires the buyer to arrange shipping. Reuters first reported India’s loading suspensions.

India’s shipping ministry has directed shipowners, managers and recruitment agencies to refrain from deploying Indian seafarers on vessels transiting Hormuz until further notice following the rise in attacks on commercial vessels.

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Brent rose to trade around $92 a barrel, climbing for a fourth day, while West Texas Intermediate was above $85. Trump vowed to respond if Tehran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen disrupted shipping in the Red Sea and reiterated threats to strike soon at Pickaxe Mountain, a suspected Iranian nuclear site.

The American military conducted an 11th straight day of attacks on the Islamic Republic in an effort to degrade the country’s abilities to threaten commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz, according to US Central Command. The waterway remains open, despite Iranian aggression, it added.

Oil futures have rallied this month as the US and Iran escalated hostilities across the Middle East, with three tankers attacked in recent days in Hormuz near Oman. Beyond the region, the market is also contending with a spate of attacks at the Caspian Pipeline Consortium terminal on Russia’s Black Sea coast, which ships most of Kazakhstan’s crude.

On Tuesday, Trump said Iran “want to desperately meet,” adding that the US has no interest. Tehran dismissed claims that it’s seeking talks. Crude has repeatedly swung on the prospects for escalation and détente.

“Our view is that we’ll be kind of in this $80 to $90 range, depending on the news flow,” said Jay Hatfield, chief executive of Infrastructure Capital Management LLC. “If we actually have a closed Red Sea, that’s a threat. We haven’t seen that yet. That could shoot us over $100.”

The Houthi threat to Saudi Arabia’s maritime traffic has started to have some impact. Some tankers appeared to pause as they approached Yemeni waters, while others carrying oil from the kingdom reversed course and headed toward the Suez Canal. Still, other vessels continued to move toward the area. 

The Red Sea became a crucial export route for Saudi Arabia during the war, allowing the kingdom to redirect some flows via pipelines and bypass Hormuz. Observed commercial vessel traffic through the narrow waterway near Iran has fallen to the lowest level in three weeks.

Brent could breach $100 a barrel before year-end if the Middle East conflict drags on and commercial inventories across the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development draw further, according to a note from Bernstein. Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has also flagged the possibility of prices returning to triple digits, although that’s not the bank’s base case.

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Taking emergency action following the US-Iran war, IEA member countries agreed to release 400 million barrels on 11 March. Since then, they have released around 290 million barrels of oil onto global markets, helping offset supply disruptions linked to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

Despite the releases, Dr Birol warned there is “no room for complacency” as commercial oil inventories continue to decline and geopolitical tensions remain elevated. “The escalation in hostilities affecting the Strait of Hormuz and energy infrastructure in the region increases security of supply concerns and uncertainty over the market outlook,” Dr Birol added.

Markets remain supplied for now

While security risks have intensified, the IEA said crude markets continue to benefit from several cushioning factors. The agency noted that weaker Chinese crude imports have reduced pressure on global demand, helping to keep oil markets balanced despite ongoing geopolitical uncertainty.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have maintained significant exports through alternative routes as well as limited shipments through the Strait of Hormuz, while higher production from countries including the United States, Brazil, Venezuela, and Kazakhstan has helped offset some of the losses from the Gulf.

The IEA, however, highlighted that refinery activity has not recovered as quickly as crude production, leaving supplies of refined products such as diesel and gasoline tighter than crude markets. Meanwhile, the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) fell to its lowest in 43 years last week, exacerbating supply concerns. 

Threats to inventories 

Rystad Energy has also noted that 2.5 million barrels per day of Saudi oil is at risk, due to threats from Houthi rebels to blockade the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.

Jorge Leon, Senior Vice President and Head of Geopolitical Analysis at Rystad Energy, said, “The threat is particularly significant because Saudi Arabia has increased exports from Yanbu to around four million barrels per day as it seeks to bypass the Strait of Hormuz,” he added.

“Rystad Energy vessel-tracking data indicates that approximately 2.5 million barrels per day of these volumes are currently moving south through Bab el-Mandeb, leaving a critical alternative export route directly exposed to potential Houthi action,” said León. He added that the situation could give rise to a significant rebound in oil prices if a ceasefire deal is not reached. 

The combination of shrinking commercial inventories and continued geopolitical tensions means oil security remains a key concern, even as strategic reserves continue to cushion the market.

The IEA said a full reopening of the Strait of Hormuz remains essential to reducing uncertainty and strengthening global energy security, warning that emergency stockpiles are designed to provide temporary relief rather than replace sustained oil supplies.

“There is no room for complacency on oil security amid the escalation in hostilities and a continued drawdown of available commercial inventories,” Dr Birol said. 

That compares with an estimated 12% in 2030, it said in a report Tuesday. In states such as Virginia and Texas where data centers are concentrated, their share of electricity use will be even higher.

Given the speed at which soaring demand from artificial intelligence is increasing, BNEF projects data center power needs to reach 194 gigawatts in the country by 2035. That’s a jump of 83% from its December forecast. The gain reflects a growing pipeline of AI facilities poised to be built within the next decade. One gigawatt is equivalent to the capacity of a traditional nuclear reactor.

Surging demand from AI data centers is already straining electric grids that are racing to provide enough energy to meet customer needs after two decades of stagnant load growth. That’s forcing companies led by data center operators to find new ways to power their huge campuses. At the same time, developers face obstacles such as permitting freezes imposed by local governments and political opposition over the projects’ growing energy needs and environmental impacts.

“Every coal plant, every gas plant, every solar farm in the US — one unit of energy out of five generated by them is going to data centers,” said Lloyd Arnold, an analyst at BNEF and one of the authors of the report. “So that’s the same energy that’s going to be going into powering electric vehicles, powering cities, et cetera.”

Data centers in areas served by PJM Interconnection LLC, the grid operator covering 13 states including Data Center Alley in Northern Virginia, and the Electric Reliability Council of Texas Inc. are expected to account for an above-average share of annual electricity use in 2035.

“We’re already seeing the grid struggling to keep up, and that’s driving a change in how assets connect to the grid,” Arnold said.

Annually, the record for the amount of data center capacity that can get connected to the grid is 7.1 gigawatts in a single year, according to BNEF. Even if that pace is maintained, the analysts project a 19 gigawatt shortfall by 2035 under the base-case scenario, despite additions of on-site gas generation, assuming that demand is served from the on-site gas pipeline.

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A tanker was struck by an unknown projectile northeast of Oman’s Limah, according to UK Maritime Trade Operations, which followed attacks in recent days on ships owned by Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd. Hormuz was deserted on Tuesday with no vessels observed transiting, ship-tracking data shows.

Iran’s recent spate of attacks has focused on oil tankers shuttling through the strait along the Omani coast, often with their transponders turned off. While the latest vessel to be hit remains unidentified, earlier strikes have affected major operators such as South Korea’s Sinokor Group and Greece’s Dynacom, which have been instrumental in sustaining crude flows during much of the war.

In the week ending July 19, Hormuz crossings averaged seven tankers each day, compared with 16 per day a week earlier, said Rahul Kapoor, global head of shipping analytics and research for S&P Global Energy. “Ship operators remain increasingly cautious, with risk tolerances continuing to be tested,” he said.

An empty Sinokor supertanker, Plata Singapore, that was sailing toward the Gulf of Oman with the aim of reaching Saudi Arabia’s Ras Tanura in the Gulf, deviated from its path on Sunday, according to ship-tracking data. The vessel is currently in the Arabian Sea. The South Korean company didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment.

The threat by Iran-backed Houthi militants to blockade Saudi Arabia’s maritime traffic has added another element of risk. Shipowners with vessels seeking to transit the Red Sea were advised to review their affiliations with the kingdom, with at least one supertanker in nearby waters switching its broadcast to say that it belongs to the Indian government. 

The India-flagged supertanker, Desh Viraat, which is half-filled with crude from Fujairah, began sailing southwest earlier this week toward Bab el Mandeb in the Gulf of Aden, signaling it had armed guards onboard. Soon after the Houthi threat on Monday, it switched that signal to “Govt. of India Await,” making clear that it has links to New Delhi. 

Desh Viraat’s owner, the Shipping Corp. of India, didn’t immediately respond to emailed request for comment.

“Companies maintaining regular Saudi trade should consider their exposure elevated, particularly for vessels calling at Red Sea ports,” maritime risk company Marisks said in a note to clients late Monday seen by Bloomberg News.

Even though it remains to be seen whether the Houthis will carry through with their threat, “for shipowners, risks have heightened,” said Anoop Singh, global head of shipping research at Oil Brokerage Ltd. “If you have an alternate voyage to take, then you will take that and avoid those in the region.”

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The global benchmark fell below $89 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate dipped to trade near $83. The US conducted a 10th straight day of strikes after President Donald Trump vowed Tehran “will pay” for killing American soldiers. Iran responded with missile and drone attacks on Kuwait.

Still, diplomatic efforts have continued. Iran said mediators were in touch with proposals to ease hostilities after more than a week of worsening clashes, while Reuters reported a suggestion for a 10-day halt of strikes.

Oil prices have repeatedly swung on the prospects for escalation and détente in the conflict, and a threat by Yemen’s Houthi militants to blockade Saudi Arabia’s maritime traffic in the Red Sea adds another level of risk. The Red Sea route allows the kingdom to export millions of barrels of crude via a cross-country pipeline that bypasses the Strait of Hormuz.

“If there’s a disruption in the infrastructure, particularly the shipping lanes, then that could cause a spike in oil prices,” said Rob Thummel, senior portfolio manager at Tortoise Capital LLC, referring to the Houthi threat. “Inventories have drawn down a bit, so there’s just not a lot of margin for error.”

Saudi Arabia has ramped up exports from Yanbu, its key Red Sea export hub, and roughly 2.5 million barrels a day are at risk from Houthi attacks, Jorge Leon, senior vice president and head of geopolitical analysis at Rystad Energy AS, said in a note. The Saudi Foreign Ministry said it would take all necessary measures to protect its ships in accordance with international law.

Brent could exceed $120 a barrel by the fourth quarter if Hormuz disruptions persist, according to Goldman Sachs Group Inc., although that’s not the bank’s base case. At present, Goldman sees $80 in the final three months of the year, with the Houthi threat adding to upside risks to the forecast.

Visible traffic through Hormuz came to a near standstill on Monday following Iranian attacks on vessels over the weekend. An oil supertanker called the Acheloos and a smaller fuel tanker were both struck in the waterway, according to Dynacom Tankers Management Ltd., the ships’ manager.

Early Tuesday, the UK Maritime Trade Operations said that a tanker had been struck by an unknown projectile in the strait northeast of Oman’s Limah, citing multiple reports, without identifying the vessel. The notice indicates a separate attack to those on the Dynacom tankers.

The flare-up in violence around the waterway has prompted some shipowners to offer huge bonuses to get crews to sail through Hormuz. Sinokor Group, the world’s largest owner of supertankers, has offered six months extra salary if seafarers make a return voyage.

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The project will be developed in partnership with TotalEnergies, Eni, and China National Petroleum Corporation (CNPC), with first production expected by 2030.

The development is expected to release more than 600 million standard cubic feet per day of natural gas and associated gas liquids, which is equivalent to nearly 10% of the UAE’s current daily gas consumption.

Enhancing the UAE's energy security goals

The project will support domestic energy security while reinforcing the UAE’s position as a reliable supplier to global energy markets, ADNOC said in a statement. 

The investment is part of ADNOC’s larger strategy to increase production from the UAE’s substantial gas reserves and expand its LNG portfolio as demand for natural gas continues to rise, driven by industrial growth and the increasing power requirements of AI infrastructure.

His Excellency Dr Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber, UAE Minister of Industry and Advanced Technology and ADNOC Managing Director and Group CEO, said, “ADNOC is accelerating its integrated gas strategy to further harness the UAE’s vast gas resources and expand our global LNG platform, as global demand for natural gas continues to rise. The Umm Shaif Gas Cap FID is another important milestone in delivering this strategy and reinforcing ADNOC’s position as a reliable gas supplier.”

The announcement follows the Supreme Council for Financial and Economic Affairs’ award of the Bab Gas Cap concession, which is expected to unlock a further 1.5 billion scfd of natural gas and associated gas liquids.

It also comes after ADNOC launched its integrated LNG marketing and trading platform targeting 47 million tonnes per annum of marketable LNG capacity by 2035.

As part of the development, ADNOC awarded three engineering, procurement and construction (EPC) contracts worth a combined $5.1 billion to consortiums comprising UAE and international contractors for offshore infrastructure works.

The project also includes a $365 million drilling and integrated drilling services programme, under which ADNOC Drilling will deliver 14 wells over an 18-month period using three existing rigs.

Their currency has risen in near step with the rise of renewable energy sources like wind and solar that require back-up systems to address intermittency issues. Successive assessments by the International Energy Agency indicate that battery storage in the power sector happens to be among the fastest growing energy technologies around.

This global BESS deployment is led by the world’s leading 20 economies, but two of Asia’s economic powerhouses – China and India – appear to be in a league of their own.

Tenfold growth and then some

If data from various sources, including the IEA, Bloomberg NEF, and Ember, is aggregated, China’s installed BESS capacity has risen from 12.5 GW to 155 GW between 2021 and the first quarter of 2026. That represents more than a tenfold increase in just five years. 

For India, the growth trajectory may appear negligible, rising from 0.1 GW a decade ago to just over 0.5 GW of commissioned grid-scale capacity by the fourth quarter of 2025, according to the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis. However, in its case – the market dynamic is not about where it currently is, but rather where it’s imminently heading to.

And ‘tenfold’ growth delivery over a different time scale very much seems to be the order of the day for India as well. For the country’s BESS industry, a clear catalyst happens to be its pledge to increase its renewable energy capacity to 500 GW by 2030.

In order enable this, India’s 14th National Electricity Plan outlines aspirations of having 47 GW to 50 GW BESS capacity range, with the lower end of that range equating to around 236 GWh for its power sector. 

What is making things interesting is how market participants have responded to the target. Government data suggests nearly 100 GWh of BESS projects are already in the pipeline. They include three major drives by Tata Power, Adani Energy Solutions, and JSW Energy – Fluence. Additionally, 69 new BESS tenders were floated in 2025 totalling just over another 100 GWh – a 35% increase over 2024.

India is also attempting to diversify the make-up of its battery storage portfolio. A clear example of this is Reliance New Energy’s first utility-scale non-lithium storage system in Gujarat state. It is based on a vanadium flow battery that offers a chance for diversification beyond a typical lithium-ion battery set-up.

Recognising challenges the Indian BESS industry faces in terms of lithium-ion battery manufacturing, the government’s latest budget also made customs duty exemptions to stabilise supply chains and accelerate domestic production capacity.

China’s dominance

For its part, China – a battery manufacturing powerhouse – has no such supply chain issues. It dominates global lithium battery production accounting for two-thirds of it. This relative strength gives it the confidence to relentlessly amplify its BESS footprint as evidenced in the capacity build-up between 2021 and 2026.

In fact, China’s battery storage build-out has no global parallel thanks to this one factor alone, according to Ember. It estimates that nearly all (i.e.149.8 GW) of China’s “new energy storage” consists of lithium-ion batteries.

In terms of the future, following a June update to its 15th Five-Year Plan, China is now aiming to deploy 300 GW of new energy storage by 2030. That would keep the country’s BESS industry progression, that outgrows all other countries combined, firmly on track.

This exponential BESS new-build and bolstering of existing energy storage infrastructure is being led by China’s global household names. They include eight of the top ten global BESS integrators like Sungrow and BYD. They routinely secure top spots worldwide alongside Elon Musk’s Tesla.

Potential market growth worth billions

Both China and India will likely prove vital in terms of potential market growth to the end of this decade, as they pivot from BESS scale-ups to utilisation backed by policy initiatives.

Commenting on the projections and the progress of BESS development in India, a spokesperson for the country’s Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation said: “The sustained growth reflects India's strategic focus on strengthening the nation’s grid reliability and enabling higher renewable energy integration.”

China’s latest five-year plan is similarly upbeat on its prospects and global leadership on BESS. The global market is currently valued in the range of $60 billion to $75 billion. McKinsey & Co. expects the market size to double to around $120 billion to $150 billion by 2030.

Meanwhile, the IEA projects that were Net Zero Emissions by 2050 scenarios or “NZE Scenarios” of major economies to materialise as planned, the headline BESS market valuation could potentially be four times over current projections to the end of the current decade. That sounds plausible given the scale of developments in China and India alone, let alone elsewhere in the G20. 

“The picture is genuinely tight,” analysts including Martijn Rats said in a July 19 note. “Our supply/demand modeling points toward European diesel inventories falling to multi-year lows toward year-end,” they added.

Global energy markets have been jolted this month by the fresh flare-up in the US-Iran war, although petroleum product prices have rallied harder than underlying crude oil. The market for diesel — a workhorse fuel that powers trucks, agriculture and industry — has been tightening on a host of factors including the disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz, but also Ukrainian attacks against Russian refineries, and a diesel-export ban imposed by Moscow.

“The real bottleneck in the oil system right now is refining, more so than crude,” the analysts said, pointing to some unsold African oil cargoes, as well as bearish contango pricing in some parts of the market. “The epicenter of all this is the diesel market, and Europe in particular.”

Diesel-refining margins in Northwest Europe — known as crack spreads — have surged to a record, they said. Local stockpiles are expected to draw steadily from August, reaching a low of about 299 million barrels in November - the smallest for the time of year since at least 2015, they added.

Further afield, industry conditions in China were also contributing to the tightness as refiners processed less crude. “China never supplies Europe with diesel directly,” the analysts said, but when “China runs less, there’s simply less product in the global system to spill westward.”

Still, Morgan Stanley cautioned that the tightness was already reflected in prices, advising investors against betting on more gains from current levels. The market is “full priced — don’t chase,” they said.

European diesel futures traded as much as 3.5% higher at $1,219.50 a ton on Monday, the highest level since May 20. In crude oil, Brent contracts rallied to top $90 a barrel, taking gains this month to 24%.

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The Kavomaleas, a products tanker, started signaling early Monday near the tip of the Musandam Peninsula, indicating that it’s anchored and empty. The previous broadcast from the vessel was in the Gulf of Oman early Sunday, suggesting the ship had initially had been transiting through the strait into the Gulf with its transponder turned off — a tactic to avoid detection.

A few hours before the re-appearance of Kavomaleas, the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps issued a statement that four vessels had attempted to transit the narrow waterway via an “unsafe route” after disregarding warnings. The ships had switched off their transponders, and two were “met with accidents and were stopped in their tracks,” Iranian media reported, citing the IRGC.

The UK Maritime Trade Operations said it had received information from military authorities that a vessel is on fire northwest of Kumzar, Oman, adding that the cause of the blaze has not been verified. The group didn’t name the ship, but the location mentioned in its alert was close to Kavomaleas’s location.

Greece’s Dynacom Tankers Management manages Kavomaleas, and fixtures seen by Bloomberg show it was chartered to pick up a cargo in the Gulf over the weekend. The company didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment sent outside of business hours. Dynacom was among the first shipowners to get tankers out of the gulf with their transponders off.

Visible traffic through Hormuz appeared at a near standstill early Monday after a weekend of escalating hostilities between the US and Iran. The vessel attacks will likely raise fresh concerns over the safety of ships transiting the waterway while hugging the Omani coast — often with their transponders switched off, known as going dark, and at times with the support of the US military.

A Marshall Islands-flagged bulk carrier is among the few ships that appeared to be attempting to transit Hormuz on Monday, exiting the Gulf after going dark while approaching the strait near Oman. A liquefied petroleum gas carrier that’s been marked as being part of the dark fleet involved in Iranian exports also appeared to be approaching the strait.

Another bulk carrier that’s registered with Marshall Islands began signaling from the Gulf of Oman after indicating that it was in the Gulf early Sunday, suggesting that it had crossed Hormuz dark.

Oil traders and shipping executives have been monitoring whether vessels are getting through Hormuz along the Iran-approved corridor further to the north, which would expose charterers and shipowners to compliance risks, or the Omani route to the south.

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The company added that the acquisition will enhance its ability to deliver long-term earnings growth and cash flow through a broader industrial offering and an expanded portfolio of recurring aftermarket services.

“Chart’s thermal management solutions bring complementary capabilities and aftermarket service offerings that accelerate our portfolio strategy,” said Lorenzo Simonelli, Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of Baker Hughes.

“Together, we will expand the solutions we deliver across a broader range of energy and industrial markets and create greater value for customers and shareholders,” Simonelly said, adding “we welcome our new colleagues to Baker Hughes and look forward to working with them to deliver disciplined execution and maximise synergies as we move forward.”

Serving multiple industries 

As part of the integration, Baker Hughes has appointed Jim Apostolides, the company’s Chief Infrastructure & Performance Officer, as Senior Vice President to lead the new Chart business segment. Apostolides has overseen integration planning since July 2025 and brings more than 25 years of operational and supply chain leadership experience.

Chart will operate as a separate reporting segment within Baker Hughes, reflecting the strategic importance of its capabilities in air and gas handling, thermal management, and lifecycle services. The company generated $4.3 billion in revenue in fiscal year 2025 and serves customers in more than 50 countries across sectors including gas infrastructure, nuclear energy, data centres, carbon capture and storage (CCS), geothermal, space, and other industrial markets.

The acquisition forms part of Baker Hughes’ broader portfolio optimisation strategy, which aims to expand its presence in industrial and lifecycle-driven markets while streamlining non-core businesses. The company said it remains focused on disciplined capital allocation and continues to target a net leverage ratio of between 1.0x and 1.5x within the next 24 months.

Baker Hughes has launched a company-wide integration programme aimed at aligning operations, product and technology platforms, engineering capabilities, commercial activities, and digital services. The company expects to achieve annualised cost synergies of $325 million within three years, with early savings focused on manufacturing, supply chain operations and corporate functions.

Honeywell said the acquisition enables the company to offer a broader end-to-end suite of solutions for industrial customers. 

“This acquisition significantly enhances Honeywell Technologies’ ability to deliver end-to-end solutions that help our customers drive efficiency, reduce emissions, and accelerate energy security goals,” added Ken West, President and CEO of Process Technology at Honeywell Technologies. “By combining Johnson Matthey’s differentiated catalyst expertise with our leading technologies and digital capabilities, we are creating a strong platform for future growth while enabling our customers to immediately unlock the benefits of a more robust set of offerings.”

The completion of the deal comes as Honeywell Technologies continues to reshape its business following a series of portfolio changes. The company completed the separation of its Aerospace Technologies business, now operating as Honeywell Aerospace, on 29 June 2026. That followed the spin-off of its Advanced Materials business, Solstice Advanced Materials, in October 2025.

Since 2023, Honeywell Technologies has completed around $11.5 billion in acquisitions aimed at strengthening its technology portfolio. These include Compressor Controls Corporation, SCADAfence, Carrier Global’s Access Solutions business, Air Products’ LNG business, Sundyne, and Li-ion Tamer.

The company has also streamlined its operations through divestments. It completed the sale of its Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) business in 2024 and expects to close the previously announced sales of its Productivity Solutions and Services and Warehouse and Workflow Solutions businesses during the second half of 2026.

Operations at mooring 1 and mooring 3 were suspended after the attack, which happened when the Asia and Nissos Ios tankers were being loaded, the CPC said in a statement Sunday on Telegram. The drone strike was the fifth attack on CPC facilities, it said. 

The consortium comprises oil companies from Russia, the US, Kazakhstan and several European counties. CPC oil mostly comes from Kazakhstan and such shipments aren’t subject to Western sanctions.

Crews extinguished fires on the vessels, no injuries were reported and no oil spill occurred, the Kazakh Energy Ministry said in a statement that didn’t specify where it thought the drones originated from. The mooring facilities weren’t damaged and information about resumption of loading operations will be provided when it’s available, it said. 

“Kazakhstan demands an immediate halt to these attacks and the adoption of comprehensive measures to ensure the security of the infrastructure used for the export of Kazakh hydrocarbons,” the Kazakh Foreign Ministry said in a separate statement.

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From 2027, new renewable generators should receive support “in a way that benefits both the market and the system,” according to a draft law published by the Economy Ministry late Friday. That means rewarding projects that respond more closely to electricity demand and don’t worsen grid congestion.

Fixed feed-in tariffs for new installations would be gradually phased out under the proposal. 

The changes could slow investment in onshore wind and solar projects, where developers already face higher costs and falling revenues as power prices increasingly turn negative. Still, the ministry is sticking to its target of raising renewables’ share of Germany’s gross electricity consumption to 80% from about 58% by 2030, and plans additional auctions for wind capacity.

Germany’s feed-in tariffs, generally granted for 20 years, and recent efforts to cut red tape have helped renewable capacity expand at a record clip. But power lines have failed to keep pace, creating bottlenecks and forcing operators to temporarily curtail generation. Producers can claim compensation for the lost output.

The state is expected to spend about €16 billion ($18.3 billion) on renewable support this year, fueling criticism as Chancellor Friedrich Merz’s government seeks to rein in spending, including on pensions and healthcare. Additional payments for curtailed generation of as much as €3 billion have also drawn criticism.

As part of the reform, grid operators would be allowed to reduce curtailment payments for new projects in areas where the network is already frequently congested. The provision is a softer version of an earlier proposal opposed by developers. 

To comply with European Union requirements, the draft Renewable Energy Act would also cap subsidies and introduce a clawback mechanism allowing the state to recover excess profits. That would bring Germany’s system closer to the Contracts for Difference model used by the UK, where the state tops up generators’ revenue when market prices are low but recovers money when prices rise above a predetermined level.

The proposal would also end subsidies for solar installations smaller than 25 kilowatts and require larger projects to be paired more frequently with batteries, helping to shift power supply into the evening. The draft law is subject to changes as the ministry solicits input from stakeholders.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Argentina is rushing to grow production of natural gas out of its booming shale patch Vaca Muerta, which has more recently been focused on oil as it is easier to transport and export. Natural gas in used in the output of fertilizers, giving drillers another customer base for the energy product. The plant will also strengthen domestic supply chains for the crop input and reduce reliance on shipments from the Middle East.

The plant, which will produce 2.1 million tons a year of ammonia and urea, received a final investment decision, the company said in a regulatory filing Friday.

The project has been closely watched by equity analysts tracking Pampa’s growth. It has the potential to create $1 billion in annual revenue, executives said on an earnings call in May. The company, chaired by Argentine business mogul Marcelo Mindlin, is already a major power generator and natural gas producer and has been making a push in shale oil.

The plant, to be built over three years in Argentina’s petrochemicals hub in Bahia Blanca, underscores a broader trend of the nation finding ways to monetize its vast shale gas reserves. These include the Southern Energy SA liquefied natural gas project, in which Pampa has a stake, and another bigger LNG venture involving Italy’s Eni SpA and Adnoc, Abu Dhabi’s national oil company, which still needs to secure financing. Profertil SA, an existing Argentine fertilizer operation, is also considering a big expansion.

Pampa’s final investment decision is another major coup for RIGI, President Javier Milei’s marquee investor program featuring major tax breaks. RIGI approval is “essential,” it said in the filing and pending. RIGI has drawn a slew of applications in shale-drilling areas and in pipeline and processing infrastructure — supercharging development in the Vaca Muerta.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Elodie Laugel, Amundi’s chief responsible investment officer, says excluding fossil-fuel producers from such funds would make it harder for money managers to pressure them to reduce their carbon emissions over time.

“The more you have exclusion constraints on the transition category, the more you are missing the objective of actually using asset managers like us to help companies to transition,” she said in an interview.  

The comments from Europe’s biggest money manager come as Brussels rewrites the world’s most comprehensive regulatory framework for sustainable investing, the Sustainable Finance Disclosure Regulation. Efforts to overhaul the rule-set have overlapped with the ongoing war in Iran, which is forcing Europe to focus more on energy supply.

Some of the proposed revisions to SFDR, which covers assets worth about $14 trillion, currently don’t go far enough in allowing asset managers to hold oil and gas companies in transition funds, Laugel said. The EU’s proposal on such funds, which represents just one plank of the revised SFDR framework, is a “challenge for us,” she said.

SFDR, which was originally enforced in early 2021, is being overhauled after facing criticism it was a confusing piece of regulation that failed to prevent greenwashing. Transition funds are expected to address those concerns, and provide a credible pathway for investing in companies that stand to benefit from the push toward a lower-carbon economy

Lawmakers have been debating though whether to require transition funds to exclude fossil-fuel companies still expanding production. Their inability to reach agreement led to the delay of a critical vote on revisions to SFDR that had been due to take place earlier this month.

Proposals to include oil and gas exposures in transition funds come as companies including BP Plc and Shell Plc wind back earlier commitments to invest in renewable energy. Against that backdrop, some asset owners and managers have been stepping up exclusions of the sector, according to Covalence SA, a Geneva-based ESG ratings company.

Fossil energy accounted for 30% of all sector exclusions in the second quarter, up 4 percentage points in just three months, according to an analysis conducted by Covalence. 

At the same time, companies that depend on fossil fuels to power operations are increasingly being penalized in the market, according to an analysis by Bloomberg. Top renewable-power users outperformed them by 6% as of May. That’s in part as sources of energy that aren’t disrupted by the Iran war see their appeal rise, the analysis found.

Money managers have long disagreed on the extent to which oil and gas companies belong in funds that claim to be supporting the clean-energy transition. Purists argue that investment clients would rightly be surprised to find that their sustainable fund holds fossil fuels. Energy companies have countered they’re more likely to transition if they’re not shut out by investors.

TotalEnergies SE, the biggest oil and gas producer in France, has said that “excluding companies solely because they invest in new oil and gas projects, while disregarding their significant and expanding contribution to low-carbon energy, weakens key objectives the European Union aims to achieve,” according to an April document discussing SFDR and seen by Bloomberg.

Nareg Terzian, head of strategy and communications at the International Association of Oil & Gas Producers Europe, says the war in Iran — and an unpredictable administration in the US — means the EU needs to focus more on energy independence. There is “nascent discussion” among member states to tap reserves, and “we make sure that it’s on their minds,” he said.

Supporting domestic energy production “is definitely part of the answer,” Terzian said. And it “should get greater attention.”

Against that backdrop, oil, gas and coal companies should be included in transition funds, says Mitch Reznick, group head of fixed income at Federated Hermes in London. 

“Where returns justify the risk, transition funds should be able to invest in high-emitting sectors demonstrating genuine decarbonization through their governance, strategy and capital allocation,” he said.

Laugel of Amundi says she “completely” understands that there might be greenwashing concerns. But “more transparency” could resolve that, while a ban would eliminate the leverage that asset managers have, she said.

“If you are not around the table, there is this expression: that it’s likely that you are on the menu,” Laugel said.

EU lawmakers are expected to take up the question when they reconvene after the summer holidays in Europe. Any agreement would then need to be reconciled with member states’ proposed requirements, which in June stipulated oil companies with “time-bound” plans to cut emissions should be allowed in transition funds. 

(Adds timeline of lawmaker talks)

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Over past months, the European Commission has resisted pressure from the US, the oil and gas industry, and more than half of its member states to revise its methane rules, opting instead to issue non-binding guidance. It is set to recommend next week that penalties should not be applied between 2027 and 2029, except for “cases of large-scale fraudulent breaches,” according to a draft document seen by Bloomberg News on Friday.

Disagreements over the rules — which target emissions of the potent greenhouse gas within the EU and impose new requirements on fossil fuel imports — have intensified after the US, Qatar and other gas-producing nations warned the bloc that the regulation could jeopardize energy shipments. 

Beginning in 2027, fossil-fuel imports into the EU will have to comply with monitoring, reporting and verification requirements aimed at reducing methane emissions, a greenhouse gas that traps about 80 times more heat than CO₂ over its first 20 years in the atmosphere. By 2030, imports exceeding a methane-intensity threshold will face penalties. Under the current framework, companies could be fined as much as 20% of their annual turnover.

The US, which has become Europe’s largest supplier of LNG, has warned that its supplies will head elsewhere if the bloc refuses to ease the regulation. 

The debate comes as the EU seeks to bring down stubbornly high energy costs and diversify supplies amid the conflict in the Middle East and efforts to end reliance on Russian energy. It also underscores the challenges the bloc faces in extending stricter environmental standards to imports from third countries.

The industry has repeatedly said that the recommendations pledged by the EU are not enough and that importers risk being pushed into non-compliance. They cited verification as a major bottleneck, with too few recognized protocols and verification bodies.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Major state-owned buyers, including Sinopec and PetroChina Co., are in discussions with exporters of the fuel that don’t depend on the Gulf for shipments, according to people with knowledge of the matter.

The Chinese companies are looking to sign contracts for deliveries that would begin before 2030 for a term of at least a decade, the people said, declining to be named discussing a sensitive matter. Canada is one source being considered, said two of the people. 

Sinopec and PetroChina didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment.

Such a shift would mark one of the clearest signs yet that the war in Iran could dramatically reshape the global LNG market, as major importers reassess their exposure to the Gulf. 

Largest Customer

China, the world’s top LNG importer, is Qatar’s largest customer, and the emirate accounted for almost 30% of its supply last year. The two countries have signed some of the industry’s biggest deals in recent years, helping underpin Doha’s massive expansion plans.

China isn’t expected to try and cancel its existing agreements with Qatar, which are binding, the people said.

Another consideration for the Chinese companies is to avoid locking in supply from the US, the world’s biggest LNG exporter, due to trade tensions, the people said. Shipments between the two countries plunged after Beijing slapped tariffs on US LNG last year in retaliation to American levies on Chinese goods.

Qatar had been aiming to quickly revive production shuttered in March following Iranian attacks. However, renewed conflict in the strait has once again effectively shut the vital waterway, forcing Qatar to pause its efforts to restart Ras Laffan, the world’s largest LNG plant.

China imported only about 100,000 tons of the fuel from Qatar between April and June, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg. That compares to 4.7 million tons over the same period last year.

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The 10-coach train can carry roughly 2,600 passengers, making it — according to Indian Railways — the world’s longest hydrogen-fueled passenger rail service. It will run on an 89-kilometer (55-mile) stretch between the northern cities of Jind and Sonipat.

The initiative marks a major milestone in Indian Railways’ broader green-energy transition, a critical shift given that over half of the South Asian nation’s electricity is still generated from thermal sources.

Germany pioneered the first commercial hydrogen passenger fleet in 2018, paving the way for pilots in the US, China, and Japan. But high infrastructure costs, the engineering complexities of high-pressure hydrogen storage and operational safety concerns continue to constrain widespread rollout.

Despite these challenges, the technology remains highly relevant. Because the true climate benefit relies entirely on scaling green hydrogen production, these trains will serve as a vital, specialized tool alongside direct electrification in the global pursuit of net-zero mobility.

Indian Railways plans to use insights from this deployment to evaluate hydrogen traction across heritage and tourist rail corridors.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Carso, through a subsidiary, will purchase TotalEnergies’ 30% stake in the EP Mexico Block 30, according to a securities filing on Thursday. UK driller Harbour Energy Plc will control and operate the remaining 70% of the block, and the deal’s closing will be subject to government approvals, according to the filing.

The deal extends Slim’s holdings of the bits and pieces of Mexico’s oil and gas sector that aren’t under state control. While state driller Petroleos Mexicanos is seeking private partners to boost slumping crude output and shore up struggling finances, Slim said earlier this year his companies would steer clear of new joint ventures with Pemex.

In January, Carso purchased Fieldwood Mexico from Russia’s Lukoil, cementing its full ownership of two key Gulf fields. That followed a $2 billion contract with Pemex last year to drill more than 30 wells in the Ixachi oil and gas play, a project Slim says will roughly double crude production from that field to around 200,000 barrels a day within three years.

Carso’s other deals in recent years, including purchases of stakes in Talos Energy Inc. and US-based refiner PBF Energy Inc., have positioned the company as Pemex’s single largest private partner.

Slim said earlier this month Mexico’s total oil and gas output could reach as much as 2.5 million barrels a day with private sector help. Pemex produced 1.65 million barrels of crude and condensates per day as of the end of April.

Slim, 86, is Latin America’s richest person with a fortune of about $130 billion, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, largely through telecommunications giant America Movil SAB. 

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Burnham’s team has asked the civil service to draw up plans for new energy and water policies that can be revealed as soon as next week, according to people familiar with the matter. He will succeed Keir Starmer as premier on Monday and is planning a series of public statements in his first days to mark a change from the previous administration.

Officials are working on a range of options, the people said. They include signaling a willingness to approve new drilling at the Jackdaw gas and Rosebank oil fields off the coast of Scotland, and an expansion of so-called tie-backs which allow further drilling on or near existing ones.

No final decision has been made on what form the North Sea announcement will take, but Burnham is likely to indicate that he is in favor of more drilling, the people said. A spokesperson for Burnham declined to comment. 

The future of North Sea oil and gas has become even more of a political flashpoint since the start of the Iran War, which has prompted countries to turn to homegrown energy sources. The current Energy Secretary Ed Miliband has resisted calls from some corners of business and politics to allow new drilling licenses, instead ramping up renewables. 

But he has faced powerful critics including US President Donald Trump and RenewableUK, a professional association with members from both the traditional energy sector and the newer, cleaner one. 

Government officials expect Burnham eventually to back at least the Jackdaw project, but public consultations have recently been launched on Jackdaw and Rosebank so his government may not be able to formally approve them before those have run their course — a constraint that has also bound the current energy secretary. 

Previous approvals for the fields were overturned by the courts. And the ultimate decision will rest with the person Burnham names to Miliband’s post, because such project approvals are not a cabinet decision.

Burnham has said he won’t name his new ministers until he takes office Monday. Miliband has been a staunch supporter of net zero policies, although has expressed a willingness to be pragmatic on North Sea oil and gas.

New drilling would draw criticism from environmentalists and some on the left of the Labour Party who have opposed it on the grounds that it would damage Britain’s net zero commitments.

One official said approving Jackdaw and Rosebank wouldn’t breach Labour’s manifesto pledge to ban fresh licenses to explore new oil and gas fields, because the licenses were granted under the previous Conservative government.

The proposal was criticized by those who support a transition to green energy. Tessa Khan, executive director of nonprofit campaign and research organization Uplift, said it would be a “mistake” for Burnham to “cave into the demands of the profiteering oil and gas industry” and warned such a decision would be “out of step with the majority of voters.”

The policy was also attacked by Green Party leader Zack Polanski who said new drilling in the North Sea would be a signal the UK is stepping back from its climate commitments. He said the government should be focusing on renewable energy instead.

Thames Water

Burnham’s aides have also tasked the civil service with preparing an announcement on the public control of Thames Water. They have told officials they want to make water a priority.

One of the options being drawn up is putting Thames Water into special administration, a form of temporary nationalization. Some officials working on the transition plans see it as likely Burnham will proceed with that outcome for the utility, which supplies 16 million customers in London and the surrounding areas.

Explainer: Why Thames Water Is Edging Closer to State Control

Burnham said in an interview with the Guardian in June that Thames Water should be nationalized. However, it remains unclear if he means temporary or permanent nationalization and the regulator Ofwat is holding off on any decision about the future of Thames until it has greater clarity.

Talks between Ofwat and senior creditors — including Apollo Global Management, Elliott Management and Silver Point Capital — have ground to a halt amid the transition of power from Starmer to Burnham. Thames Water yesterday said it needed a decision on a rescue deal by October, as it is due to run out of money in December.

The chief executive of Thames said he would respect whatever decision the new prime minister makes on the future of the company, and is keen to work with him on his plans. 

“I very much respect for him needing or saying that there needs to be greater public control,” Thames CEO Chris Weston said in an interview. “I would point out there is a huge amount of public control already over water companies.”

In recent weeks the government has shifted its stance on the future of Thames, saying it is now prepared for any outcome, having previously said it prefers a market-led solution. Polling by YouGov showed 82% of Britons support nationalizing water companies.

Burnham is interested in pursuing an approach similar to mutualization, which would see water companies converted into not-for-profit cooperatives owned and run for the benefit of customers, according to people familiar with the matter. 

The new prime minister favors the approach which would cost less than straightforward nationalization and would be more feasible to achieve, the people said. Politically it would also have the support of Labour MPs who argue it offers an route to public ownership that’s more affordable within the country’s current fiscal constraints.

Burnham will give a speech on Friday - his first since being confirmed as the next Labour Party leader - in which he will criticize the move to increased privatization in the UK since the 1980s and underline his commitment to more public control.

Burnham will argue that an “authentically Labour” administration should press ahead with a program of more public control, reindustrialization and putting more power into the hands of communities through devolution.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Both firms are fracking into the sandstone that makes up the Basel Belly River formation in an area southwest of the Alberta’s provincial capital Edmonton called Willesden Green. For the first half of the year, 15 drilling licenses targeting or ending at the formation were granted, the most for that span of time in 14 years, Alberta Energy Regulator data show.

The new wave of oil drilling gained attention in early June when Obsidian agreed to buy 35 sections of land in the field from Highwood Asset Management Ltd. for C$105 million (about $75 million) in cash. The deal included the equivalent of about 2,500 barrels of oil a day of hydrocarbon production, about 9% of the company’s total output. A total of about 75% of the production is light oil. 

“You started to see some initial wells drilled in the Basil Belly River that had good success on the backs of those that we licensed,” Steve Loukas, Obsidian’s chief executive officer, said in a recent interview with Bloomberg. “Our initial well in the fall of 2024, and we’ve had constructive results that have carried through into 2025 and ultimately 2026.”

The push to drill for oil is part of a broader trend in Western Canada, where companies target liquid-rich areas of shale formations including Montney and Duvernay after years of depressed gas prices. Western Canadian gas has traded at an average of about $1.70 per million British thermal units less than US gas over the past five years, a discount that’s persisted since the start of liquefied natural gas exports off British Columbia last year. At the same time, local oil prices have been supported by the war in the Middle East and the opening of new export pipelines including the expanded Trans Mountain system to the Pacific.

Obsidian plans a six-well development program next year to boost the production of the acquired assets to the equivalent of 3,000 barrels a day, Loukas said. Each well can be developed for about C$5 million. 

The uptick in interest in Basel Belly River marks a revival of the formation. Two decades ago, natural gas prices were rising to records of almost $16 per million British thermal units, and companies including Ember Resources Inc. and Ovintiv Inc., then known as Encana, were tapping into the rock layers for natural gas. More than 1,000 wells were drilled in 2005 that either targeted or terminated at the formation, 95% of them extracting natural gas, according to AER data. 

Things changed when the US shale revolution took off around 2009, unlocking supplies from Pennsylvania to Oklahoma and sending gas prices tumbling. By 2014, the number of wells drilled in the Basel Belly River formation had dropped to single digits and remained there until two years ago. 

Combined with Obsidian’s existing production from Basel Belly River, the company’s output could be boosted to 7,000 barrels a day, making up most of the formation’s output in Willesden Green. Total production from the area, Obsidian estimates, is equivalent of between about 10,000 to 13,000 barrels a day. 

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

The Japan Organization for Metals and Energy Security, better known as Jogmec, has invited bids for “asset valuation and related services for the sale of equity interests in LNG projects in Asia and Oceania,” according to a tender published on Wednesday.

The government-backed company did not identify the projects being considered for potential divestment, and declined to share details in a response to Bloomberg’s request seeking comments.

Jogmec has stakes in several LNG projects across Asia and Oceania, including in joint ventures that own part of Australia’s Wheatstone LNG project and a share in Indonesia’s Tangguh LNG plant.

Managing long-term LNG supplies remains central to energy security for resource-starved Japan. Jogmec’s mandate includes early-stage financing for high-risk resource projects before transferring or selling its stakes to Japanese companies once these become commercially viable.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.

Under the deal, ABB’s biggest-ever acquisition, Rotork investors will get £5.03 ($6.81) in cash per share, a premium of around 60% on its latest three-month average price, the Swiss industrial company said Thursday. ABB also signaled it has deep pockets for more purchases.

Rotork makes equipment that opens and closes industrial valves to control the movement of liquids and gases through pipelines and plants. The Bath, England-based company has significant exposure to energy, water infrastructure and utilities. Its sale marks the latest in a string of acquisitions of UK firms by foreign buyers this year.

ABB’s chief executive officer, Morten Wierod, has streamlined its portfolio since taking over nearly two years ago to tap into burgeoning investment in the data centers underpinning the AI boom. The Zurich-based manufacturer, which makes the transformers that enable power grids to feed the centers’ energy needs, last year sold its robotics division for more than $5 billion and focused on targeted acquisitions.

Its push into industrial AI and automation has helped drive its shares up about 70% in the past year. They slipped about 3.3% in Zurich Thursday, while Rotork surged by as much as 67% to a record £4.86.

Wierod said ABB has a pot of $13 billion available for additional purchases, telling Bloomberg TV the company is “in a very strong position with a strong balance sheet.”

“When we want to do M&A we can do,” he added. “We’re taking a wide view and are looking at every area.”

With the Rotork deal, the value of takeovers of UK companies listed in London has risen almost 130% this year to roughly $64 billion, data compiled by Bloomberg show. Well-known names like asset manager Schroders Plc, ingredients maker Tate & Lyle Plc and insurer Beazley Plc have all agreed to be acquired by overseas rivals. 

This boom in acquisitions comes at the same time as the UK’s stock exchange struggles to attract new listings - posing concerns over the country’s status a global business hub.

ABB rivals like Germany’s Siemens AG and Schneider Electric SE of France have also benefited from the spurt in AI-related demand and have been active as well in dealmaking. Schneider agreed this month to buy Cognite in a $3.1 billion all-cash deal to expand its industrial data and AI software operations, part of an accelerating push to modernize Europe’s factories.

RBC analyst Mark Fielding said the Rotork purchase makes sense for ABB and includes “an attractive premium.” However, the fact that the British firm is “a niche asset” means there could be a counter bid from among “the larger process-equipment companies,” Fielding said in a note.

Having already raised its revenue outlook for the year in April, ABB did so again on Thursday, predicting low double-digit to low-teens growth.

ABB also reported second-quarter orders that surpassed expectations, jumping by 30% compared with the same period a year earlier to $12 billion, comfortably beating estimates.

“When we talk with customers, the pipeline is very strong so the outlook in this sector for the next quarters and years is very strong,” Wierod told Bloomberg TV, referring to ABB’s electrification business. “And we are well positioned to capture that.”

ABB had already announced Wednesday that it bought French company Advantics, adding high-efficiency silicon carbide power-conversion technology to its portfolio. It didn’t publish financial details.

The purchase reinforces its position across the AI power chain, according to Bloomberg Intelligence, which expects ABB’s data-center revenue to rise to about €9.9 billion ($11.4 billion) by 2030 from €3 billion last year.

“Schneider and Vertiv should retain leadership, but ABB looks well placed to narrow the gap as AI data centers shift toward higher-value power architectures,” Omid Vaziri, a senior BI industry analyst, said in a note.

Barclays Plc is advising ABB on the Rotork deal, while JPMorgan Chase & Co., Rothschild & Co. and Jefferies Financial Group Inc. are working with Rotork.

©2026 Bloomberg L.P.