Nicholas Newman

Houston based energy exporter and pipeline operator Kinder Morgan Inc, recently announced that it intends to buy New England regional gas storage and distributor Stagecoach Gas Services LLC, for the sum of $1.23 billion. At present, Stagecoach Gas Services is a joint venture between Consolidated Edison Inc and Crestwood Equity Partners Ltd partnership.

This week Iran’s Energy Ministry announced that it had begun to transmit crude oil along the recently completed Goreh-Jask pipeline, which links oil fields near the Iraqi border with the Gulf of Oman port of Jack, thereby bypassing the Strait of Hormuz.

Gas pipeline operator Snam, has initiated establishment of Italy’s first national research centre for hydrogen related technologies. The Hydrogen Innovation Centre will be based at the University of Modena with sister research campuses in Milan and Rome. In time, similar hydrogen innovation centres could be set up elsewhere in Italy to encourage start-ups.

The midwestern American state of Michigan has ordered Canada’s Enbridge to close its Line 5 pipeline which delivers nearly half of the oil needs of Ontario and Quebec as well as propane to Michigan State.

State-owned Brazilian Petrobras, has gained government approval to sell its remaining 10% stake in the country’s natural gas pipeline operator, Nova Transportadora do Sudeste (NTS), for $337m (BRL1.8bn).

At least ten new specialist companies have joined the AquaVentus consortium responsible for constructing a massive integrated 10 GW offshore North Sea wind-to-hydrogen project.

Robert Kasande of the Ugandan Ministry of Energy and Mineral Development has announced that compensation to those affected by the Ugandan section of the planned East African Crude Oil pipeline could reach the equivalent to $18 million.

Norway-based energy industry consultants DNV, forecast a marked expansion in the amount of CO2 emissions that will need to be transported from where it is captured to where it will be stored.

In the South American state of Chile, a consortium of oil companies and leading utilities are considering the purchase of a proposed integrated renewables hydrogen factory. Other potential investors come from abroad, namely AustriaEnergy and Ökowind EE, who are encouraged by the interest shown by potential domestic off-takers including oil companies and utilities.

Leading energy stakeholders endorsed President Biden’s climate-change commitments on Thursday 22nd of April.