EnergyCents

Buoyed by high commodity prices in 2022, the global upstream sector enters 2023 with a high-class cash-flow problem: what to do with all this money. Among other ideas, governments suggest windfall-profits taxes, investors want dividends and buybacks, and environmentalists seek climate-directed investment. Upstream experts Raoul LeBlanc and Kevin Birn rejoin EnergyCents with host Hill Vaden to disc...

Battery and automobile makers often look at the relationship between service stations and internal combustion engines as business-model analogues to solve electric vehicles' duration and distance challenges. But are these the right analogues? Cleantech experts Sam Wilkinson and George Hilton rejoin EnergyCents this week to discuss business-model alternatives to road-side recharging, as well as the...

Environmental, Social, Governance (ESG) investment themes fell out of favor in 2022 as concerns around things like energy security and Wall Street's motivation captured the attention of investors and governments. Peter Gardett rejoins EnergyCents this week to discuss the changing narratives of ESG and consider how those shifts may (or may not) affect cleantech-directed capital in 2023. Join the co...

The success of cleantech innovation is, in many ways, dependent on the world's mining sector delivering an adequate supply of one or more of the following metals: copper, cobalt, nickel, and lithium. Mark Ferguson, a Commodity Insights metals and mining expert for S&P Global's Capital IQ, joins EnergyCents this week to discuss the convergence of energy with the metals and mining sector, and how ES...

In what has become an annual EnergyCents tradition, we welcome back experts Reed Olmstead and David Vaucher for our annual year-in-review and resolutions episode. We check in to see how well we performed against 2022 expectations, consider the year's biggest surprises, and share predictions on how the energy sector may evolve in the coming year. Join the conversation at energycents@spglobal.com

Russia's Ukraine invasion led to gas supply constraints to Europe that rerouted global gas flows throughout the summer and fall. Gas market expert Johan Utama joins EnergyCents this week to review the role of natural gas in Southeast Asian markets, and how a spike in European demand influenced local balances half a world away. Learn more about S&P Global Commodity Insights' petroleum-sector risk c...

Global oil prices avoided hitting new highs over past months as policy choices from consuming countries helped balanced markets, and Russian supply found new outlets. Global oil expert Karim Fawaz joins EnergyCents this week to review shifts in oil markets since the start of the Russia-Ukraine conflict, and share expectations for winter as global economies slow and anticipated sanctions dislocate...

The world has seen an impressive emergence of the Guyana Basin through the discovery of more than 16 billion boe of recoverable resources in less than seven years. Accelerated development of the most prolific discoveries may perhaps lead to the basin delivering 2 MMb/d by middle of next decade. The scene has radically changed since 2015 when ExxonMobil made the Liza discovery in the Stabroek Block...

The Eastern Mediterranean's role as a global gas hub is technically advantaged by more than 10 years of exploration success, and strategically advantaged by its relative proximity to European markets. However, those advantages are balanced by competing interests that include growing gas demand from local markets and a lack of political consensus in the region. Petroleum-sector risk expert Cat Hunt...

Five oilfield services firms control more than 65% of the hydraulic horsepower capacity available to US shale-focused operators interested in fracing wells. Nearly 80% of that capacity is in use, and overall horsepower is not expected to expand anytime soon. North America oilfield services experts Chris Alexander and Prashanth Pillai join EnergyCents this week to consider what the capacity limitat...

More than a dozen operators are preparing to bid in December on up to 12 pre-salt blocks in Brazil's Campos and Santos basins, including the promising Ametista Block. This year's auction times with the finalization of a presidential run-off and marks the first time pre-salt blocks are available in a Permanent Offer System, which is designed to promote award efficiency and had been previously appli...

There are more than 20 Green Banks operating in the US with a shared goal of accelerating cleantech investment in underserved communities and filling other climate-related market gaps. Alison Bennett, a banking reporter with S&P Global's Market Intelligence, joins EnergyCents this week to discuss the role of Green Banks in climate finance, and what to expect from the institutions on the back of a...

Europe's real GDP grew by about 5% during the first two quarters of 2022 on the back of post-pandemic strength from the service sector. Momentum, however, stalled in response to high energy prices and contraction now appears imminent. S&P Global experts on European economics and policy Diego Iscaro and Petya Barzilska join EnergyCents this week to discuss the impact of high energy prices on EU mem...

Increasing the mix of Sustainable Aviation Fuels (SAFs) in airlines is a key ingredient in the aviation sector reaching its goal of carbon neutrality by 2050. Biofuels expert Kevin Lindemer returns to EnergyCents this week to discuss the technologies and policies supporting SAF development and consider the timing of market-share growth for lower carbon fuels in aviation. Learn more about S&P Globa...

The US shale sector is awash in cash on the strength of commodity prices and prudence of operations. North America upstream experts Reed Olmstead and Imre Kugler join EnergyCents this week to consider the near-term outlook for shale producers, and why high commodity prices are not stimulating aggressive drilling campaigns. Learn more about S&P Global Commodity Insights shale forecasting and analys...

Climate Week NYC runs September 19-25 in Manhattan, during a week when the city will also be crowded with dignitaries attending the United Nations General Assembly. Climate and energy experts Peter Gardett and Roman Kramarchuck join EnergyCents this week – ahead of their own Climate Week attendance – to share their expectations for program, and frame its role in the accelerating global environment...

The broad-reaching Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) includes a mix of federal incentives to motivate clean-energy investment that will mitigate emissions-related climate concerns. North America Power experts Patrick Luckow and Doug Giuffre join EnergyCents this week to share their early analysis of the bill, and highlight its potential implications for the US electric grid. Read more of Patrick and D...

Egypt hosts the 2022 United Nations Climate Change Conference, also known as COP27, this November. The event takes place during a year when energy security has overshadowed many countries' climate concerns. Climate policy experts Anna Mosby and Conway Irwin join EnergyCents this week to share expectations for the upcoming conference and consider how the recently signed Inflation Reduction Act may...

Utilities and their commissions are watching customers embrace distributed generation and battery investments that could impact existing rate design and returns on equity. Lillian Federico, a Commodity Insights research director for S&P Global's Capital IQ, joins EnergyCents this week to discuss the evolution of utility rate design, and how growing climate and resilience priorities from US consume...

Governments of resource-rich countries in Africa find themselves at a crossroads as oil and gas operators weigh stranded-asset risk before committing to long-lead-time fossil-fuel projects. Roderick Bruce, an expert in petroleum-sector risk with S&P Global Commodity Insights, joins EnergyCents this week to discuss how host governments in Africa are working with operators to balance their near-term...

Policy makers are returning their attention to nuclear power as a potentially low-emission, reliable generator of electricity. Most recently, the European Parliament voted in early July to apply its green label to nuclear power under the EU's sustainable finance taxonomy. S&P Global Commodity Insights experts in European power Coralie Laurencin and Sylvain Cognet-Dauphin join EnergyCents this week...

Washington state in April became the first state to adopt all-electric standards for new commercial and multi-family constructions. The move follows similar, more localized, activity led largely by California municipalities to limit the expansion of fossil-fuel end use. Gas utilities Expert Tom DiChristopher, a Commodity Insights senior reporter for S&P Global's Capital IQ, joins EnergyCents this...

Global coal prices are at multi-decade highs as post-CoVid demand spikes in the face of underinvested supply. Coal Markets Expert Taylor Kuykendall, a Commodity Insights senior reporter for S&P Global's Capital IQ, joins EnergyCents this week to discuss the current coal market imbalance, and consider how competing environmental and energy-security concerns may influence markets going forward. Lear...

The LNG industry counts 48 floating regasification and storage units (FSRU) in its global fleet, and demand has exploded as Europe seeks gas-supply optionality after Russia's invasion of Ukraine. Charter rates have about doubled this year to approximately $200,000/day. S&P Global LNG Expert Andres Rojas joins EnergyCents this week to put the current FSRU-market tightness into perspective, and cons...

Energy-directed capital has long been biased to the molecule thanks to the global scale and operational efficiencies of fossil fuels. Focus has, in some ways, shifted to the electron with the maturation of low-carbon technologies. S&P Global climate finance expert Peter Gardett returns to EnergyCents this week to discuss the complexities of climate-aligned energy investing, and how there's room fo...