Hungary’s MVM signs deal for 100mn m³ of Azeri gas

: Natural gas
23/06/05

Hungarian state-owned utility MVM has signed an agreement with Azeri state-owned supplier Socar for 100mn m³ of gas by the end of the year, Hungarian foreign minister Peter Szijjarto said on 2 June.

This agreement could "form the basis" of a future long-term contract for up to 2bn m³/yr, Szijjarto said. The gas will be delivered in the fourth quarter, MVM chief executive Karoly Matrai specified.

The deal diversifies Hungary's energy supply, as "diversification is not about swapping geographical dependencies, but about bringing in as many new sources as possible to guarantee security of supply", Szijjarto said.

Hungary reached a political agreement with Azerbaijan on this supply in late February, but the two companies only signed the contracts last week.

Hungary and Serbia will be able to receive Azeri gas by the end of this year "if everything goes according to the schedule, and all the planned interconnectors are built on time", Azeri president Ilham Aliyev said last week. This could suggest that Hungary will receive its Azeri supply through Serbia rather than Romania, depending on the timely completion of the interconnector between Serbia and Bulgaria, which is scheduled for the end of the third quarter. Szijjarto criticised the EU in May for its unwillingness to help raise funding for upgrades to pipeline infrastructure in southeast Europe.

The interconnector commissioned last year with Slovakia is also of importance for Hungary's energy security, as it opens up the possibility of importing gas from Norway, Szijjarto said last week.

Czech Republic eyes Azeri supply

The Czech Republic could receive gas from Azerbaijan "in the near future", Czech industry and trade minister Josef Sikela said.

"Our aim is to start as soon as possible with the drafting of conditions and test deliveries," Sikela said over the weekend, adding that the two countries could co-operate in other parts of the energy sector, such as green hydrogen. Azerbaijan has an "essential" role in Europe's energy security, he said.

Importing Azeri gas would be difficult, as it would need to flow through several markets to reach the Czech Republic, and there is limited spare gas for Azerbaijan to export to Europe in the near future.

By Brendan A'Hearn

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25/05/12

Ukrainian gas imports double in May

London, 12 May (Argus) — Ukraine's gas imports have nearly doubled in the first 10 days of May from April, although still only the Polish and Hungarian routes are being used. Ukraine's net imports — after netting off inflows and outflows to and from Moldova — averaged 140 GWh/d on 1-10 May, nearly double the 73 GWh/d average in April, the latest available data from transmission system operators show. The increase has been driven by flows from Hungary at VIP Bereg rising to near full capacity of 103 GWh/d from 60 GWh/d, and a smaller 12 GWh/d increase from Poland ( see flows graph ). Net flows to Moldova also fell to 13 GWh/d from 23 GWh/d, leaving more gas in Ukraine. But imports would need to ramp up significantly to match the 4.6bn m³ that state-owned incumbent Naftogaz estimated would be needed over the entire summer. If Ukrainian net imports remain at 140 GWh/d until 15 October, around the typical start of the heating season, then cumulative net imports would reach around 22TWh, or around 2.1bn m³ using Ukraine's standard 10.5 kWh/m³ conversion rate. VIP Bereg is already flowing at near maximum capacity, as is the interconnection point with Poland, meaning that any additional flows will need to arrive from Slovakia at Budince or from Romania at Isaccea, both particularly expensive transit routes. Demand for third-quarter capacity along the Bereg route continues to outstrip available capacity, with the auction now in its sixth day and still not concluded. So far, Naftogaz has announced few public supply deals, although it has contracted 300mn m³ of LNG from Poland's Orlen , with some market participants saying Orlen would supply as much as 1bn m³. The firm has €410mn in funds from the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development , which it hopes will finance the purchase of around 1bn m³. But it is unclear where funding for additional purchases will come from, and the government does not intend to increase household or business tariffs to cover Naftogaz's higher costs. Even if Ukraine imports as much as Naftogaz said it will need, the country could still face shortages in the winter . Ukraine started the injection season in mid-April at the lowest stock level in at least a decade , and while Naftogaz managed to restore more than half of the output it lost in February following attacks on its production infrastructure, Ukrainian production still remains well below pre-2022 levels. Hungary maintains pivotal hub role Hungary has become an increasingly important transit hub over the past year, and Ukraine's import needs have increased its prominence further. With VIP Bereg at a 99pc utilisation rate this month and continued exports northward to Slovakia, Hungary has been pulling in more gas from other sources to maintain these flows. Inflows from Serbia at Horgos, where Russian gas arrives into Hungary through Turkish Stream, rose to 244 GWh/d on 1-10 May from 223 GWh/d in April, just below the point's technical capacity of 246 GWh/d. And inflows from Austria have also increased considerably, rising to 139 GWh/d from 92 GWh/d, while receipts from Romania more than doubled to 40 GWh/d from 19 GWh/d ( see Hungarian flows graph ). Hungarian prompt prices have risen to a premium over Austria and Romania in order to attract more gas ( see prices graph ). Slovakia remains at a premium to Hungary, though, driven by the need to incentivise flows from Hungary now that Russian transit through Ukraine has ceased. Hungarian transmission tariffs remain significantly cheaper than in Slovakia or Romania, so demand for Hungarian capacity at quarterly auctions last week held strong . The bookings suggest that the recent flow configuration is set to continue in the second half of summer, with all import capacity from Serbia booked and most available capacity from Austria. The export route from Romania to Ukraine remains unpopular, not just because of the high transmission tariffs paid in Romania and Moldova, but also because of the conditional nature of the flows. An equal amount of gas must be brought into Romania at Negru Voda 1 as is exported at Isaccea 1, as they are part of the same Trans-Balkan Pipeline string. Additionally, anyone hoping to bring gas from Greece or Bulgaria up to Ukraine must secure capacity in as many as 10 or more auctions, which take place simultaneously given that the transit route crosses in and out of Moldova several times. Even one failed auction could make exports along this route impossible. By Brendan A'Hearn Hungarian DA vs nearby markets €/MWh Ukrainian net flows by point GWh Hungarian net flows by point GWh Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

US shale M&A faces headwinds on oil price rout

25/05/12

US shale M&A faces headwinds on oil price rout

New York, 12 May (Argus) — Dealmaking in the US shale patch, which had been on a roller-coaster ride in the past few years, is at risk of grinding to a halt as a result of an oil price slump. Just as a growing number of producers are unveiling plans to cut spending and slow activity as crude prices teeter around levels needed to profitably drill wells, prospects for mergers and acquisitions (M&A) in the shale patch are also souring. That marks a departure from the start of 2025 , when dealmakers were expecting a bumper year with recent acquirers looking to offload non-core assets and private equity gearing up to make a return after raising new funds. April brought five deals with a combined value of $2.3bn, bringing the year-to-date total for M&A activity in the US upstream space to $19.2bn, consultancy Enverus says. That was down by 60pc from a year earlier, when the latest round of consolidation was in full sway. "We're just hearing over and over again, across the board, that companies are overwhelmingly sitting on their hands," law firm Sidley partner Stephen Boone says. Recent deals include natural gas giant EQT buying the upstream and midstream assets of privately held Olympus Energy for $1.8bn . Gas is increasingly likely to dominate dealmaking going forward, as not only has the commodity fared better than oil on a relative basis, but investors are likely to be drawn by the US LNG boom and rapid growth of gas-fired power generation demand to meet the energy needs of data centres required for artificial intelligence . "The trouble is, there aren't enough potential gas deals to make up for a drop in oil asset activity, which we do anticipate is going to fall off a cliff," Enverus principal analyst Andrew Dittmar says. Aside from the trade tariff-induced market volatility that has sent crude prices tumbling to four-year lows, a lack of high-quality targets on the oil side also suggests deals will be few and far between this year. Most publicly-held operators will be focused on protecting their bottom line as they remain focused on shareholder returns rather than growth, and might well be reluctant to take on debt to fund deals. And private equity may prefer to bide its time. "That group is likely looking for some sign of a bottom on crude before jumping in, rather than trying to catch a falling knife of asset values," Dittmar says. That is not to say that deals have completely dried up, with Permian Resources agreeing this week to snap up assets in the New Mexico part of the top US shale play from APA for $608mn. But Diamondback Energy, a top Permian producer which has played an active role in the most recent round of M&A, might sum up the view of many with its plan to remain on the sidelines for the time being. Too much noise "We're in the period right now where there's so much noise and volatility that not a lot gets done," Diamondback's president, Kaes Van't Hof, says. "Anything that we would look at would have to be extremely cheap, and I just don't think we're there yet today." Even if some relief comes on the tariff front and the economy avoids a recession, it will take time for deals to pick up again, and that could push a resurgence in dealmaking well into 2026. The fact that public operators have spent the years since the pandemic on repairing balance sheets and focusing on investor payouts might also count against any uptick in transactions anytime soon. "That's actually going to keep M&A down, because now that we see the downturn, we have significantly less distressed companies out there that will be forced to sell, and we have more and more companies that think they are better situated to just ride it out," Sidley's Boone says. By Stephen Cunningham Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Saudi Aramco cuts dividend after fall in 1Q profit

25/05/12

Saudi Aramco cuts dividend after fall in 1Q profit

Dubai, 12 May (Argus) — State-controlled Saudi Aramco has announced a sharp cut to its quarterly dividend after reporting a 5pc year-on-year decline in profit for the first three months of 2025. The company's profit fell to $26.01bn in January-March from $27.3bn in the same period last year after lower oil prices squeezed revenues. Aramco said its bottom line was also hit by higher operating costs. The company said it sold its crude for an average $76.30/bl in January-March, down from $83/bl the first quarter of 2024. "Global trade dynamics affected energy markets in the first quarter of 2025, with economic uncertainty impacting oil prices," Aramco's chief executive Amin Nasser said. The company said its overall dividend for the quarter will be $20.61bn, down from $31bn in the corresponding period in 2024. The steep drop is due to the performance-linked element of the dividend being slashed to just $219mn for the quarter, from $10.7bn a year earlier. Aramco already announced in March that it expected its dividends for the full year to fall to $85.4bn from $124.3bn in 2024. Despite the current economic uncertainty, Aramco's capital expenditure (capex) rose to $12.5bn for January-March from $10.83bn in the same period last year, although this puts investment broadly in line with the lower end of the full-year 2025 capex guidance of $52bn-58bn that the company announced in March. The aggressive capex programme will help drive growth plans for the downstream and new energies sides of Aramco's business, as well as fund the firm's strategy to maintain its maximum sustainable crude capacity at 12mn b/d and expand its gas output by 60pc by 2030 compared with 2021 levels. By Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

India, Pakistan reach US-mediated, fragile ceasefire

25/05/11

India, Pakistan reach US-mediated, fragile ceasefire

Dubai, 11 May (Argus) — A US-mediated ceasefire reached on Saturday between nuclear-armed neighbours India and Pakistan is still holding, following four days of intense fighting. "After a long night of talks mediated by the United States, I am pleased to announce that India and Pakistan have agreed to a FULL AND IMMEDIATE CEASEFIRE," US president Donald Trump posted on his social media platform Truth Social on Saturday. India and Pakistan will now start negotiations on a broad set of issues at a neutral site, US secretary of state Marco Rubio said on social media platform X. India's military on 7 May launched attacks against targets in Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir in retaliation for an April terrorist attack that killed dozens. But by Saturday, the two countries seemed to be edging toward all-out war, as their militaries targeted each other's bases. India's foreign minister Subrahmanyam Jaishankar confirmed the ceasefire, saying on X that "India has consistently maintained a firm and uncompromising stance against terrorism in all its forms and manifestations. It will continue to do so." Pakistan "responded positively to the ceasefire proposal for regional and global peace, and its people and I hope that dialogue will now be chosen for resolution of water and Kashmir disputes," Pakistan's prime minister Shehbaz Sharif said in a televised address. Trump also praised leaders of both countries for agreeing to halt the aggression and said he would "substantially" increase trade with them, although this was "not even discussed". Kashmir is a contested area between India and Pakistan, and the two have twice gone to a war over the region. Fear of the conflict spreading roiled global financial markets. India is the region's second-biggest oil buyer after China — importing around 4.5mn b/d last year — and a major customer for other commodities, including LNG and coal. Pakistan also imports fertilizers, coal, oil products and LNG. The escalation between the two severely limited direct trade between them. Airlines in the region as well as some Mideast Gulf carriers rerouted or cancelled flights to avoid Pakistani airspace. But the Pakistan Airports Authority said on Saturday that "Pakistan's airspace has been fully reopened for all types of flights." By Bachar Halabi Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

White House ends use of carbon cost

25/05/09

White House ends use of carbon cost

Washington, 9 May (Argus) — The US is ending its use of a metric for estimating the economic damages from greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions, the latest reversal of climate change policies supported by President Donald Trump's predecessors. The White House Office of Management and Budget (OMB) this week directed federal agencies to stop using the social cost of carbon as part of any regulatory or decision-making practices, except in cases where it is required by law, citing the need "remove any barriers put in place by previous administrations" that restrict the ability of the US to get the most benefit "from our abundant natural resources". "Under this guidance, the circumstances where agencies will need to engage in monetized greenhouse gas emission analysis will be few to none," OMB said in a 5 May memo to federal agencies. In cases where such an analysis is required by law, agencies should limit their work "to the minimum consideration required" and address only the domestic effects, unless required by law. OMB said these steps are needed to ensure sound regulatory decisions and avoid misleading the public because the uncertainties of such analyses "are too great". The budget office issued the guidance in response to an executive order Trump issued on his first day in office, which also disbanded an interagency working group on the social cost of carbon and called for faster permitting for domestic oil and gas production and the termination of various orders issued by former president Joe Biden related to combating climate change. The metric, first established by the administration of former US president Barack Obama, has been subject to a tug of war between Democrats and Republicans. Trump, in his first term, slashed the value of the social cost of carbon, a move Biden later reversed . Biden then directed agencies to fold the metric into their procurement processes and environmental reviews. The US began relying on the cost estimate in 2010, offering a way to estimate the full costs and benefits of climate-related regulations. The Biden administration estimated the global cost of emitting CO2 at $120-$340/metric tonne and included it in rules related to cars, trucks, residential appliances, ozone standards, methane emission rules, refineries and federal oil and gas leases. By Michael Ball Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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