Energy News Summary of Last Week

WTI crude oil rallied $2.62 to $104.39 (up 39% y-t-d)
Gasoline jumped 5.1% (up 56%)
Natural Gas surged another 10.9% (up 94%)

April 27
– Financial Times:
“EU leaders accused Moscow of ‘blackmail’ over gas exports after Russia’s state-owned Gazprom suspended supplies to Poland and Bulgaria on Wednesday, sending prices as much as 20% higher. The two nations are the first EU states to have supplies from Russia cut since Moscow last month threatened to withhold gas exports unless it was paid in roubles… In Russia’s biggest move since the invasion to target the EU’s reliance on its fossil fuels, the interruption rippled into markets, with the euro falling to a five-year low against the dollar.”

April 26

– Guardian:  

“Southern California officials declared a water shortage emergency Tuesday, and adopted new unprecedented restrictions on outdoor watering that will affect millions of people living in Los Angeles, Ventura and San Bernardino counties. Metropolitan water district of southern California’s resolution will limit outdoor watering to just one day per week for district residents supplied by a stressed system of canals, pipelines, reservoirs and hydroelectric power plants called the State Water Project, which supplies water… to 27 million Californians and 750,000 acres of farmland. The restrictions, which take effect in June, will severely limit how much water people can use to water their lawns or wash cars.”

April 27
– Bloomberg:
“Metals producers in India are cutting activity and warning of potential closures as a worsening coal shortage threatens to escalate into a full-blown energy crisis for Asia’s third-largest economy. In the central state of Chhattisgarh, a hub for iron ore and steel-making, sponge iron makers are running at about 60% of usual levels and could be forced to shut down completely if they can’t get more coal, said Anil Nachrani, president of the Chhattisgarh Sponge Iron Manufacturers Association.”

April 28
– Bloomberg:
“Germany has started preparations for a potential halt in Russian gas deliveries as concerns intensify amid a dispute over payment terms. Chancellor Olaf Scholz said… preparations to limit Germany’s exposure to Russian energy imports were under way even before President Vladimir Putin ordered the invasion of Ukraine. While Russian coal is already being phased out, gas is more difficult, he said…”

April 28
– Bloomberg:
“Argentina’s crypto frenzy is putting the energy grid of a small province in Patagonia near a breaking point as miners take advantage of generous electricity subsidies to mint Bitcoin. Crypto mining is expected to consume close to a quarter of all electricity supply in the Tierra del Fuego province… in the next few months until October… Local officials warn that crypto mining, together with an already feeble energy infrastructure, is putting their energy grid at the risk of collapse.”