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☆ Pro-Ukrainian group blew up a controversial Russian gas pipelines, but it's unclear who sent them, reports say
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-07 | by ( John Haltiwanger | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

A pro-Ukrainian group was behind the Nord Stream pipeline sabotage, per new reports. The pipelines were controversial even before Russia launched the war in Ukraine. The Nord Steam 1 and Nord Stream 2 pipelines, which transported natural gas from Russia to Germany, were controversial even before Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered the unprovoked invasion of Ukraine last year. Nord Stream 1 was shut down indefinitely last September, and Nord Steam 2 was never operational. Facing immense pressure to end its reliance on energy from Russia, Germany froze the Nord Stream 2 project two days before Russian forces invaded Ukraine.

[1/5] The logo of Nord Stream AG is seen at an office building in the town of Vyborg, Leningrad Region, Russia August 22, 2022. Nord Stream 1 and Nord Stream 2, each consisting of two pipes, were built by Russia's state-controlled Gazprom to pump 110 billion cubic metres (bcm) of natural gas a year to Germany under the Baltic Sea. Three of the pipes were ruptured by unexplained blasts in September, and one of the Nord Stream 2 pipes remains intact. Engie (ENGIE.PA), Gasunie (GSUNI.UL) and Wintershall DEA (WINT.UL) (BASFn.DE) - stakeholders in Nord Stream AG, the operator of Nord Stream 1 - declined to comment. The similar-sized Nord Stream 2 had been completed in September 2021 as tensions with Russia were growing and ran in trouble as Germany's regulators refused to certify it.

☆ West gains advantage as it vies with Russia for influence in Serbia
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-01 | by ( Aleksandar Vasovic | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +7 min

T-shirts with the letter Z, a symbol of Russia's campaign, are sold as souvenirs while far-right groups openly tout support for Russia. Last month, Prime Minister Ana Brnabic said that while Serbia had made progress in EU accession negotiations, Brussels required more. A separate CRTA poll found 61% felt Belgrade should preserve good relations with Moscow even at the cost of EU ties. U.S. and EU sanctions mean Serbia can no longer send its fighter jets or helicopters, based on ex-Soviet technology, to Russia for overhauls, nor purchase new weapons from Russia. Cedomir Stojkovic, a Belgrade-based lawyer and activist whose October Group publishes lists of prominent Serbs who are outspoken supporters of Russia, said Serbia was under Russia's "hybrid occupation".

☆ Hacking attack prompts Russian regional broadcasters to issue air alert warnings
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-28 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

MOSCOW, Feb 28 (Reuters) - A hacking attack caused some Russian regional broadcasters to put out a false warning on Tuesday urging people to take shelter from an incoming missile attack, the emergencies ministry said. Radio stations played a loud siren sound with a message stating: "Attention, attention. Attention, attention. Russian state media cited some local officials blaming Ukraine for the messages. Gazprom Media, which operates a number of regional TV stations, said its infrastructure had been "attacked" in a statement cited by RIA Novosti.

☆ BASF picks right time to share pain with investors
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 24 (Reuters Breakingviews) - BASF (BASFn.DE) continues to provide the best metaphor for the German economy. The group will cut 2% of its workforce in a 550 million euros cost-cutting effort that includes plant closures. Investors who might have cheered the news sent the stock tanking by 6% as BASF boss Martin Brudermüller is also suspending a 3 billion euros share buyback. Politically that may have allowed the group to maintain its dividend at a planned 3.40 euros a share. The closure of one of two ammonia plants in the company’s stronghold of Ludwigshafen was expected - a Belgian plant in Antwerp can supply the global market.

☆ For two Russian women, the war in Ukraine stirs pride or fear
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-22 | by ( Guy Faulconbridge | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

REUTERS/Yulia MorozovaMOSCOW, Feb 22 (Reuters) - For two Russian women, both named Yekaterina, the war in Ukraine has stirred them to very different emotions. One supports President Vladimir Putin and expects victory, while the other opposes Putin and thinks Russia will lose. Polling by the independent Levada Centre indicates around 75% of Russians support the Russian military, while 19% do not and 6% don't know. Yekaterina Varenik, 26, who used to work at state-controlled gas giant Gazprom, hates the war and publicly opposes Putin. Like many Russians, she has close familial and friendship networks which criss-crossed the borders of post-Soviet Russia and Ukraine.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Putin gives nuclear warning, Biden rallies allies
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/7] Russia's President Vladimir Putin takes part in an event marking Gazprom's 30th anniversary, via video link at a residence outside Moscow, Russia February 17, 2023. Feb 21 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday delivered a nuclear warning to the West over Ukraine, suspending a bilateral nuclear arms control treaty, announcing new strategic systems were on combat duty and warning that Moscow could resume nuclear tests. DIPLOMACY* "One year ago, the world was bracing for the fall of Kyiv," Biden said at Warsaw's Royal Castle. "I can report: Kyiv stands strong, Kyiv stands proud, it stands tall and, most important, it stands free." * A year on from Russia's invasion, Ukraine and its government have not just survived.

☆ Russia's war on Ukraine latest: Putin gives nuclear warning after Biden's Kyiv visit
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

[1/6] Russia's President Vladimir Putin takes part in an event marking Gazprom's 30th anniversary, via video link at a residence outside Moscow, Russia February 17, 2023. Feb 21 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday delivered a nuclear warning to the West over Ukraine, suspending a bilateral nuclear arms control treaty, announcing new strategic systems were on combat duty and warning that Moscow could resume nuclear tests. U.S. President Joe Biden, fresh from pledging support for Ukraine on an unannounced visit to Kyiv, was due to rally NATO allies in Warsaw, making his case for a sustained Western effort to ensure Kyiv wins the war. * The United States and Ukraine's President Zelenskiy warned China against supporting Russia. * Financial leaders of the Group of Seven (G7) will meet on Thursday to discuss measures against Russia that will put pressure on it to end the Ukraine war, Japan's Finance Minister Shunichi Suzuki said.

☆ The chief executive of an AI-driven markets analytics company breaks down how to invest in the craze sparked by ChatGPT
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-18 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Today, I'm eager to share my conversation with the CEO of a markets analytics platform that leverages the power of artificial intelligence. Jan Szilagyi is the chief executive officer and cofounder of Toggle AI. Toggle AIJan Szilagyi is the chief executive officer and cofounder of Toggle AI. Jan Szilagyi: We've seen a big increase in business and a huge spike in inquiries to Toggle AI. Ultimately, I don't think AI is going to be a fad though.

☆ European natural gas prices hit 18-month low and near parity with crude oil as Vladimir Putin's energy war fizzles
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( Filip De Mott | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Alternative suppliers and a warm winter have brought European gas prices below 50 euros per megawatt hour. Natural gas prices are now equivalent to $85 per barrel, nearly on par with Brent crude oil at around $83. At the current level, natural gas prices are equivalent to $85 per barrel, nearly on par with Brent crude oil at around $83. In November, Germany signed a 15-year contract with Qatar, a major liquefied natural gas exporter. But further downside to gas prices may be limited as demand looks to pick up.

☆ Putin allows Gazprom Neft to take over Shell stake in Salym oil project
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: 1 min

Feb 17 (Reuters) - Russian President Vladimir Putin on Friday signed a decree allowing Gazprom Neft (SIBN.MM) (GPN) to take over Shell's (SHEL.L) 50% stake in the Salym oil project, a deal that had been provisionally agreed in December. But the decree, posted on the government's website, did not say whether Shell would receive any money. Shell - which announced the deal earlier this month - had already written down the value of its stake with an impairment of $233 million last year. Its directors resigned from the project last July. Reporting by David LjunggrenOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Europe’s now dealing with an oversupply of natural gas after hoarding it for months before winter
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-16 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +5 min

The benchmark price for natural gas futures has cratered about 28% this year, and it's trading roughly 85% cheaper than record highs reached in August. At that time, natural gas was costing buyers about 10 times more than usual ahead of the winter months. As a key energy supplier to Europe, many feared that Russia would cut off natural gas flows in retaliation to Western sanctions. Europe enjoyed its third hottest January ever last month, meaning people used less heating and thus less natural gas. A former Gazprom official told Reuters this week that all the years of work to build up Russia's natural gas exports have become moot.

☆ Wall Street luminaries say it's time to get out of the stock market before the Fed crushes the economy
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-15 | by ( Phil Rosen | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

Tuesday's CPI data showed inflation climbed 0.5% in January, slightly higher than expected, and year-over-year it slowed to 6.4%. Prices, it seems, aren't cooling down as smoothly or quickly as anyone wants, especially the Fed. To Kolanovic, a recession is all but guaranteed if the Fed is serious about its 2% inflation target. And like Kolanovic, Morgan Stanley Wealth Management investment chief Lisa Shalett warned that Fed policy is going to pull stocks lower. US stock futures fall early Wednesday, as investors pick over yesterday's CPI inflation report to assess what it means for the Fed.

☆ Analysis: Gazprom's export revenue may fall by 50% in 2023
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Oksana Kobzeva | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

If the trend continues, Gazprom's export revenues for the whole year could be halved compared to 2022 when its export volumes also declined by nearly half. LOWER REVENUESIn 2022, Gazprom's export volumes fell by 46%, according to the company. Gazprom has not provided forecasts for gas exports for this year. Gazprom's exports outside ex-Soviet Union fell by more than 45% to 100.9 bcm in 2022 from 185.1 bcm in 2021. The Economy Ministry forecasts Gazprom's export price for 2023 at $700 per 1,000 cubic metres.

☆ Ex-Gazprom official says decades of the Russian gas giant's work has been 'flushed down the toilet', with export revenues expected to halve this year
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Ryan Hogg | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Gazprom's years of work on exporting Russian gas have been "flushed down the toilet," an ex-official said. An ex-manager at the gas giant bemoaned the impact of the Ukraine war to Reuters after gas prices fell close to two-year lows. "The work of hundreds of people, who for decades built the exporting system, now has been flushed down the toilet," he told Reuters. Russia's gas exports to Europe have fallen significantly thanks in part to sanctions imposed on Moscow after President Vladimir Putin sent troops into Ukraine in late February last year. Energy prices are dipping after a milder winter than expected for Europe, which has successfully built up stocks of oil and gas.

☆ Analysis: Washington pushes for harsher action against banks with Russia ties
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( John O'Donnell | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +6 min

"We are looking at additional banks and financial institutions to see how Russia deals with the outside world. Some European banks, including UniCredit (CRDI.MI) and Raiffeisen Bank International (RBIV.VI), have large businesses there and must follow local rules to grant payment holidays to soldiers. ENFORCEMENTO'Brien said that the United States would step up enforcement, something the EU also hopes to improve. "We are now looking at how sanctions, including financial sanctions, can be most effective," he said. "While the majority of important Russian banks are sanctioned, there is a lot outside that perimeter that you could go after," said Nicolas Veron, of Washington think tank the Peterson Institute for International Economics.

☆ Moscow's decades-old gas ties with Europe lie in ruins
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-14 | by ( Vladimir Soldatkin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +10 min

Washington has long criticised Germany's policy of reliance on Russian energy, which until last year, Berlin had said was a means to improve relations. In October, he mooted an idea of a gas hub in Turkey to divert the Russian gas flows from the Baltic Sea and North-West Europe. The 20-year supply deal is worth about $30 billion in current gas prices. In Europe, gas prices hit record levels and international oil prices shortly after the special military operation began spiked close to their all-time high. Domestic gas prices are regulated by the government and there have been discussions about liberalising the gas market, a sensitive issue for Russian households.

☆ IBA denounces 'hyenas' after U.S. and Irish boycott worlds
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-10 | by ( Alan Baldwin | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

LONDON, Feb 10 (Reuters) - Amateur boxing's Russian-led governing body has offered to fund U.S. and Irish boxers wanting to compete in this year's world championships after their national federations decided to boycott the tournaments. The International Boxing Association (IBA) also warned in a statement on Friday that it would pursue "strong sanctions against those who initiate and join the participation boycott". "Those who are doing this to our athletes are worse than hyenas and jackals, they violate the integrity of sport and culture. The Irish Athletic Boxing Association (IABA) said on Friday its boxers, referees and judges would be staying away. "IBA invites USA and Irish teams to come to the world championships and participate under their flags and anthems," it said.

[1/2] The main deck of the Floating Storage and Regasification Unit (FSRU) "Neptune" is seen during the official commissioning of the liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal "Deutsche Ostsee" at the harbour in Lubmin, Germany, January 14, 2023. John Macdougall/Pool via REUTERSLONDON/FRANKFURT, Feb 9 (Reuters) - Germany and Oman are in advanced talks to sign a long-term deal for liquefied natural gas (LNG) lasting at least 10 years as Berlin continues its search for alternatives to Russian fuel supplies, three sources familiar with the matter said. Europe has been scrambling to replace Russian gas since last year against a backdrop of war in Ukraine, with state-run Gazprom (GAZP.MM) progressively reducing and then suspending the lion's share of pipeline supplies to Europe. Germany has been holding talks for months with the world's biggest LNG producer Qatar for additional supplies, but negotiations have been lengthy. While supply deals with Qatar would be positive for Germany, they would not offer an immediate solution to Berlin's energy crisis.

☆ Former Bulgaria energy minister charged with mismanagement of gas deals
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

SOFIA, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Bulgarian investigators charged former energy minister Alexander Nikolov on Wednesday with mismanagement that led to losses of more than 88 million levs ($48.36 million) at state gas firm Bulgargaz, related to Russia cutting off gas supplies to the country. Russia cut the gas supplies on which Bulgaria was almost fully reliant at the end of April 2022 after the European Union country refused to pay for deliveries in roubles. Former deputy energy minister Danail Nikolov has been charged with malfeasance as part of the same probe. The centre-right GERB party has accused the former government of reformist Kiril Petkov of paying higher prices to secure alternative gas supplies after it refused to pay for Russian gas in roubles. Petkov's coalition government, where Nikolov was energy minister, was toppled in a no-confidence vote six months after taking office in December 2021.

With net profit for the year of $28.7 billion, up from $8.6 billion a year earlier, Equinor joined global oil and gas majors such as ExxonMobil (XOM.N), Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L) in reporting record returns for 2022. Majority state-owned Equinor (EQNR.OL) became Europe's largest supplier of natural gas last year as Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) cut deliveries over the West's support for Ukraine, sending European gas prices to all-time highs. But gas prices have tumbled in 2023 and Equinor's Oslo-listed stocks have fallen 9% year-to-date, underperforming a 3.3% rise in European petroleum stocks (.SXEP). The board reaffirmed a regular share buyback plan of $1.2 billion per year and said it would make an extraordinary buy back in 2023 of $4.8 billion, for a total of $6 billion. Equinor's previous adjusted earnings record was $36.2 billion in 2008, when North Sea oil prices hit record highs.

☆ Big Oil doubles profits in blockbuster 2022
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Ron Bousso | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

The profit surge gave the oil companies scope to increase spending on oil and gas projects, and a chance for some to rethink energy transition strategies to meet new demands for security of supply. The combined $219 billion in profits allowed BP (BP.L), Chevron (CVX.N), Equinor (EQNR.OL), Exxon Mobil (XOM.N), Shell (SHEL.L) and TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA) to shower shareholders with cash. Oil companies last year also pulled out of Russia, a major energy producer, leading to huge writedowns, including BP's $24 billion exit from its 19.75% stake in Kremlin-controlled oil giant Rosneft (ROSN.MM). Benchmark oil prices are currently near $85 a barrel. BP will lean more into oil & gas for the remainder of this decade," Clint said in a note.

☆ Equinor shares soar on record 2022 profit, Q4 beat
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( Nerijus Adomaitis | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

Net profit for the year was $28.7 billion, up from $8.6 billion a year earlier. The company joined global oil and gas majors such as ExxonMobil (XOM.N), Shell (SHEL.L) and BP (BP.L) in reporting record bottom lines. Equinor's previous adjusted earnings record amounted to $36.2 billion in 2008, when the price of North Sea oil had risen to record highs. Equinor said it expected capital spending for 2023 at between $10 billion and $11 billion, broadly in line with a previous plan. It raised it spending projection for the next three years to $13 billion per year from $12 billion seen before.

"Judging by the customs statistics, some of the benefit was captured by refiners in India and China, but the main beneficiaries must be oil shippers, intermediaries and the Russian oil companies," he added. As a further complication, some Russian oil grades, including Pacific grade ESPO, are also worth more than Urals. After decades of low profits or losses, sections of the global shipping industry are enjoying a financial boom from moving Russian oil. A year ago, a similar journey would have cost a seller of Russian oil $0.5-$1.0 million depending on shipping rates. Nayara is 49%-owned by Russian state oil major Rosneft, run by Putin's ally Igor Sechin, meaning some of the profits are indirectly captured by Russia.

☆ Equinor posts record profit for 2022, Q4 beats expectation
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-08 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

REUTERS/Ints Kalnins/File PhotoOSLO, Feb 8 (Reuters) - Equinor (EQNR.OL) on Wednesday posted a record $74.9 billion adjusted operating profit for 2022, more than double the previous record thanks to soaring gas prices and with fourth-quarter results beating analyst expectations. The oil and gas producer's adjusted earnings before tax and interest for October-December rose to $15.1 billion from $15 billion a year earlier, beating the $14.4 billion predicted in a poll of 25 analysts compiled by Equinor. The majority state-owned company last year became Europe's largest supplier of natural gas as Russia's Gazprom (GAZP.MM) cut deliveries amid the West's support for Ukraine, sending European gas prices to all-time highs. Equinor's previous adjusted earnings record amounted to $36.2 billion in 2008, when the price of North Sea oil rose to record highs. Gas prices have tumbled in the new year, however, and Equinor's Oslo-listed stocks have fallen 15% year-to-date, underperforming a 1% rise in European petroleum stocks (.SXEP).

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