The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries on Wednesday forecast global oil demand growth for 2026 at 1.2 million barrels per day year over year down from last month's assessment for growth of 1.4 million bpd.
Liquids production from countries not participating in the Declaration of Cooperation, is expected to grow by about 0.6 mb/d, year-over-year in 2026, unchanged from last month's assessment, the group said.
Equinor (EQNR) is set to hold talks with major European energy consumers to gauge interest in supporting new projects to recover higher-cost oil and gas reserves, Bloomberg reported on Wednesday, citing industry sources.The Norwegian energy giant plans to sound out customers, including Germany, regarding the long-term financial commitments necessary to greenlight these developments.Government officials from Germany, the UK, Belgium, Poland, and the Netherlands are expected to attend a meeting in Oslo on May 18, hosted by gas pipeline operator Gassco, the report said.The discussions come as global energy markets remain volatile due to the ongoing Middle East conflict. Equinor is seeking ways to stabilize output as North Sea production is projected to decline over the next decade.Equinor did not immediately respond to' request for comment.Equinor's strategy includes a long-term goal to increase drilling in the Arctic, as Norway lobbies the European Union to soften its opposition to exploration in the region.The energy firm is among several firms that have drilled for decades in Norway's ice-free waters north of the Arctic Circle.The move to tap costlier wells comes as Norway has emerged as Germany's main supplier of natural gas, accounting for about half of total imports after replacing most of the cheaper pipeline deliveries from Russia, which ended in 2022.(Market Chatter news is derived from conversations with market professionals globally. This information is believed to be from reliable sources but may include rumor and speculation. Accuracy is not guaranteed.)Price: $38.29, Change: $-0.23, Percent Change: -0.60%
Logistics provider DHL Express has signed a 10-year offtake agreement for the delivery of 250,000 metric tons of sustainable aviation fuel with Dubai-based SAF One, according to a joint statement on Tuesday.As per the agreement terms, DHL Express will receive 25,000 mt of unblended SAF per year from SAF One's Bahrain plant from the start of production, planned from 2028.This is the first offtake agreement in the Middle East for DHL Express, which aims to increase its use of SAF to 30% by 2030, the statement said.
US natural gas futures rallied on Wednesday as Middle East supply constraints persisted, helping offset bearish domestic developments.Both the front-month Henry Hub contract and the continuous contract rose 1.83% to $2.895 per million British thermal units.The conflict in the Middle East has reached a stalemate, with US President Donald Trump rejecting Iran's response to a US-backed ceasefire proposal earlier this week.Meanwhile, Iran's Foreign Minister Seyyed Abbas Araghchi said on Tuesday that the country was developing a new set of rules to facilitate safe passage via the Strait of Hormuz, cementing its control over the strategically crucial waterway.This helped offset a prediction of higher US gas output with the US Energy Information Administration raising its 2026 natural gas production estimates to 110.61 billion cubic feet per day, from a projection of 109.60 bcf per day in April.LNG export feedgas demand, too, has dropped to 17.29 Bcf, compared to the 30-day moving average of 18.82 Bcf, according to the Bloomberg LNG Feedgas Model. This is primarily due to seasonal maintenance planned across several leading LNG export facilities.Weather forecasts, however, have turned bearish, with almost the whole of the country expected to see above-normal temperatures from May 20 to May 26, according to the National Weather Service. This is expected to kickstart air conditioning demand with temperatures across parts of the country set to top 90 degrees.