Energy Consumer News

Oil fell by more than 1.5% on Monday, pressured by expectations of weaker global demand and by U.S. dollar strength ahead of possible large increases to interest rates, though supply worries limited the decline.Central banks around the world are certain to increase borrowing costs this week and there is some risk of a blowout 1 percentage point rise by the U.S. Federal Reserve. "The upcoming Fed meeting and the strong dollar are keeping a lid on prices," said Tamas Varga of oil broker PVM.Brent crude for November LCOc1 delivery fell $1.49, or 1.6%, to $89.86 a barrel by 1002 GMT. U.S.

Chinese ports and marine safety authorities are on high alert as an expansion of sea ice makes it tougher for ships to berth and discharge at key energy product import terminals along the coast of northern Bohai Bay.A cold wave sweeping the northern hemisphere has plunged temperatures across China to their lowest in decades, boosting demand for power and fuel to historic highs in the world's largest energy consumer."The sea ice situation is more severe this year than the same period in previous years," said Wang Jun, a professor specializing in transport issues at Dalian Maritime University."It could impede sailing and docking for vessels, no matter how big they are."Weather officials warned against severe frost this week in the region, with sea ice stretching 45 to 55 nautical miles at Li

The Baltic Exchange's main sea freight index jumped about 11% to its highest in nearly three months on Friday as high Chinese coal demand drove up capesize rates.The Baltic dry index, which tracks rates for capesize, panamax and supramax vessels, leaped 158 points, or nearly 11%, to 1,606, its highest since Oct. 14, 2020.The main index was up about 17.6% for the week, its highest jump since early October last year.The capesize index jumped 426 points, or about 20%, to 2,548, a peak since Oct.

Lloyd’s Register (LR) said it signed a contract to class the first ever floating storage regasification unit (FSRU) to be ordered for Indian waters.Due for delivery in December 2019, the new 180,000m³ FSRU will be built to LR’s Rules for the Classification of Offshore Units by South Korean shipbuilder Hyundai Heavy Industries (HHI) for SWAN LNG Pvt. Ltd. (SLPL). It will be stationed at Jafrabad port for 24h-hours-a-day operations, 365 days a year.SLPL’s Bhavik Merchant said, “Our…

The first cargo of US liquefied natural gas (LNG) to target the world’s largest energy consumer arrived Monday at the Chinese port of Yantian in Shenzhen near Hong Kong. The cargo was brought onboard the 161,870-cbm Maran Gas Apollonia, chartered by the Hague-based LNG giant Shell, that was the first LNG tanker to transit the newly expanded Panama Canal connecting the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. The Maran Gas Apollonia has had 19 cargoes of LNG load from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico from the Sabine Pass export facility since February, but this cargo is the first to reach northeast Asia, world's biggest LNG demand center. China, Japan and South Korea are prime target markets for US LNG exporters.

China's state-run Sinochem Group said on Wednesday it had signed a deal with Angolan state-owned producer Sonangol to buy crude oil for more than 10 years. The statement on the Chinese company's website did not give details of the supply amount or other financial details, but trading sources said the agreement was for four or five cargoes per month, which would make the company one of the largest holders of monthly contracts to buy Angolan crude. There are currently around 15 cargoes given to these so-called term buyers each month from Angola's export programmes of roughly 55 cargoes. The deal is a coup for Angola, as OPEC members fight for market share, particularly in China, the world's largest energy consumer.

China has bought around 250,000 tonnes of gasoline and blending components from Europe in recent days as the world's top energy consumer mops up oil products, traders said on Tuesday. China's plan to levy a hefty consumption tax from January on blending components for gasoline is believed to be the main driver for the recent buying drive as it creates a gap in supply there. The move comes in tandem with a massive and rare buying spree by Chinese state-run oil firms of 335,000 tonnes of naphtha and diesel for delivery in November into China. At least seven tankers of around 40,000 tonnes have been booked in recent days to ship gasoline, aromatics and reformates, used for blending into gasoline, into China in November, according to Reuters shipping data and trading sources.

Brent crude oil on Monday slumped to its lowest in over two years, below $97 per barrel as lacklustre economic data from China, the world's top energy consumer, cast a shadow over the outlook for oil demand at a time of abundant supply. * U.S. China's factory output grew at the weakest pace in nearly six years in August, while growth in other key sectors also cooled, raising fears the world's second-largest economy may be at risk of a sharp slowdown. October Brent, which was due to expire later on Monday, fell to as low as $96.21 a barrel, its weakest since July 2, 2012. The futures contract recovered to around $96.40 by 0730 GMT, down 71 cents. U.S. crude was down $1.00 at $91.27, after touching $90.63 - near a 16-month low of $90.43 hit last week.

China's power output, a bellwether for economic activity, posted its first annual decline in more than four years in August, adding to evidence that the world's second-largest economy is losing momentum after a brief rebound in the second quarter. Power output in the world's top consumer fell 2.2 percent to 495.9 billion kilowatt hours (kWh) in August from a year earlier, data showed on Saturday. While the annual fall was in part due to the high reading last summer, when many cities were struck by a record heat wave, overall electricity production also posted its first fall in three months - a sign of slackening demand from major industrial users.

Following on from the formal call of May 21, 2013 to the European Council, Gérard Mestrallet CEO of GDF SUEZ and Paolo Scaroni CEO of ENI appeared before a European Parliament hearing. The event was jointly organized with Amalia Sartori (Chair of the EU Parliament’s Energy Committee) and took place in the presence of the European Commissioner for Energy, Günther Oettinger. The hearing was aimed at highlighting the risks of the EU’s present energy policy. Indeed, the efforts made…

China Shipping Development Co. to order six liquefied natural gas (LNG) to tap the nation’s rising demand for cleaner fuel. The addition of the tankers comes as the world’s largest energy consumer plans to more than double natural gas consumption to cut its dependence on coal and oil. The six-tankship purchase will be made by a venture owned by China Petrochemical Corp., also known as Sinopec Group, China Shipping and Mitsui O.S.K Lines Ltd. (9104) and each ship will have a capacity to carry 174,000 cubic meters of natural gas. reports Bloomberg. Bloomberg was informed by Chief Financial Officer Wang Kangtian that the vessels will cost about $205 million each and the shipping company has arranged syndicated loans to finance the deal. Source: Bloomberg

The AC drives manufacturer Vacon has inaugurated its office in São Paulo, Brazil to support its customers in Brazil and South America. With growing energy consumption, Brazil and South America in general are lucrative markets for energy-saving Vacon AC drives. Brazil is one of the world's major producers of sugar and ethanol, and it is estimated that 60 new sugar cane plants will be running by 2010. Brazil is the 10th largest energy consumer in the world and the largest in South America. Vacon variable speed AC drives bring considerable energy savings and improve process control. These two major benefits provide a huge market potential in South American countries, where the energy infrastructure is being built up and blackouts are frequent.