Fossil Fuels

Italian CEOs’ Putin call exposes European discord

26 Jan 2022

Rome is pushing the firms to scrap their virtual chat with the Russian leader. With their varying degrees of investment, trade and energy dependence, Europeans have more to lose from sanctions against Moscow than the United States. That lets Putin pit them all against each other.

Eni’s quirky rejig may turn rivals green with envy

24 Jan 2022

Italy’s $54 bln oil major may list stakes in its green energy and biofuels arms, as well as a Norwegian subsidiary. That’s different from rivals which are financing green investments by selling fossil fuels. Yet if Eni’s spinoffs get cheaper financing, others may follow suit.

Imperfect UK energy fix would still kill two birds

19 Jan 2022

Finance minister Rishi Sunak faces pressure to help consumers with high power bills without busting the budget. The least-bad plan would spread energy costs over some years. By curbing price pressures, he will also limit inflation-linked bond payouts and public sector pay hikes.

Larry Fink’s pragmatism is awkward but lucrative

18 Jan 2022

The BlackRock CEO rejected criticisms that stakeholder capitalism is “woke”, while backing natural gas. The danger for Fink is that he occupies a no man’s land position on culture war hot topics. His consolation is that $10 trln of assets suggest investors are down with that.

Power windfall tax is bad idea whose time has come

17 Jan 2022

European leaders are under pressure to help households with soaring power bills. Taxing energy companies is potentially ineffective and replete with unwise incentives. The idea could nevertheless catch on, and oil giants like BP and Shell may need to take the strain.

EU greenwash laxity could see it build back worse

13 Jan 2022

Europe’s green taxonomy is meant to direct billions of euros towards clean energy so a post-virus continent can “build back better”. Yet political fudges mean gas and nuclear count as sustainable. Worse, the tool’s new draft contains loopholes that could make it dirtier still.

Kazakh oligarch shakeup may give foreigners a shot

12 Jan 2022

President Tokayev needs to consolidate power after unrest and raise cash to placate his citizens. Billionaires allied to his predecessor are obvious targets. Since he lacks a go-to gang to take over mining assets, he may favour gradual redistribution and more external investment.

Boris Johnson has Europe’s biggest energy headache

7 Jan 2022

Customers across Europe are braced for higher utility bills, prompting governments to divide the pain between users, suppliers and the state. But Britain faces the biggest hike and has done the least to cushion the blow. That makes the prime minister’s position more perilous.

Pricey oil gives Kazakh investors emergency cover

7 Jan 2022

Russia sent troops to quash a revolt in its neighbour. Even if President Tokayev keeps his job, energy majors like Chevron and Shell will fear fallout from the unrest. With the state reaping the rewards of oil at $80 a barrel, there’s less incentive to renegotiate their terms.

EU’s anti-greenwashing crusade takes a risky turn

5 Jan 2022

The bloc’s new draft of its green taxonomy includes gas and nuclear power. The risk is a tool intended to make sustainable financing less prone to greenwashing does the opposite. A lot hinges on whether investors properly differentiate between clean and “transition” activities.

Nordic $20 bln deal sets high bar for oil mergers

22 Dec 2021

Aker BP is acquiring Lundin Energy’s fossil fuel assets using cash and stock. Both sides emerge with a stake in a low-cost big hitter, better able to negotiate oil’s decline. The billionaire Lundin brothers get a smoother path out of the sector, and arguably a small premium.

Europe tightens energy noose round its own neck

17 Dec 2021

Germany will not certify Nord Stream 2 until the second half of next year. The Baltic pipeline is a hugely flawed solution to Europe’s energy security shortcomings. But the main losers from delaying its launch are likely to be its own consumers, rather than Russia or Gazprom.

Fortescue unearths transition leadership challenge

10 Dec 2021

The Aussie miner’s CEO will step down, a year after Chairman Andrew Forrest unveiled his bold green-hydrogen plans. Straddling iron ore and new energy is no easy feat. Others trying to remake themselves for a new era also will wrestle with finding the right person for the job.

Germany enlarges green transition’s grey area

2 Dec 2021

Berlin’s new coalition wants to build new plants powered by natural gas, even as it exits coal quicker. That strays from the ideal path to net-zero CO2 emissions. But the real problem is the precedent set by rich countries caving to those promoting gas as a green “bridge fuel”.

Capital Calls: Wise, Swedish oil

30 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: The 8 bln pound money-changer raised its revenue targets; $10 bln Swedish oil company Lundin Energy may be considering M&A options.

Glencore’s activist is misguided but not unhelpful

30 Nov 2021

Bluebell is pushing the $63 bln miner-trader to spin off coal. Thungela’s plans to dig up more of the mineral after its Anglo spinoff weaken the argument, and prices are at record highs. Still, if it makes Glencore quit coal quicker than its 2050 target, it’s a job well done.

Capital Calls: Remy Cointreau, African petrol

25 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: With profits soaring, the cognac maker will face mounting pressure for M&A; commodity trader Vitol buys out minority shareholders in London-listed fuel distributor Vivo.

Capital Calls: Eni spinoff

22 Nov 2021

Concise views on global finance: The $50 bln Italian oil group has a new name for the renewable energy and retail arm it plans to partially list.

Chancellor: Investors unprepared for carbon crunch

18 Nov 2021

Markets aren’t effectively factoring in a potential hydrocarbons scarcity. It’s not just that the world is trying to get off fossil fuels. They’re increasingly expensive to extract as supplies reach their peak. It’s another downside risk investors need to consider.

Viewsroom: European bank M&A, De-Dutching Shell

18 Nov 2021

Big lenders in the euro zone are doing deals, but not the kind investment bankers dream about. BNP Paribas is in U.S. retreat, BBVA bulks up in Turkey and KBC goes Bulgarian. Liam Proud explains. George Hay explains why the Anglo-Dutch oil major is dropping the Dutch bit.