Oil Prices Rise as Trump Extends EU Tariff Deadline
Crude oil prices began trade with a gain this week following the news that President Donald Trump had extended the deadline for a trade deal with the European Union to early July. The extension was granted to Brussels after Commission president Ursula con der Leyen said the EU needed more time to draft a deal and after Trump said he’d slap 50% tariffs on EU imports beginning next month because the EU deal was so slow in coming. “A nice push higher in crude oil and U.S. equity futures this morning after U.S. President Trump extended the deadline,” IG analyst Tony Sycamore told Reuters. At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $64.96 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate was changing hands for $61.68, both up from Friday, after posting yet another weekly loss last week on the prospect of a nuclear deal between the United States and Iran, and more production from OPEC+. The second factor, by the way, is keeping a lid on prices, countering bullish developments such as the tariff delay for the European Union. There have been reports that OPEC+ will add another 411,000 barrels daily to its combined output in July after agreeing to add the same amount in June. Due to the perception of an oversupplied market, this prospect is having an extended negative effect on prices. Meanwhile, the latest round of talks between the United States and Iran regarding the latter’s nuclear program ended on Friday in Rome with what media perceived as limited progress. Both sides are sticking to their conditions but both appear to be open to further negotiations. “We have just completed one of the most professional rounds of talks … We firmly stated Iran’s position … The fact that we are now on a reasonable path, in my view, is itself a sign of progress,” Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi told media as quoted by Reuters. “The talks continue to be constructive – we made further progress, but there is still work to be done,” a U.S. official whom Reuters did not name said. This suggests that it may still be a while until Iranian crude returns to global markets without restrictions, so the next oil price slump is not yet around the corner.
Saudi Aramco eyes asset sales for expansion amid lower oil prices: Report
Saudi state oil giant Aramco is exploring potential asset sales to free up funds, two people with knowledge of the matter said, as it pursues an international expansion and weathers lower crude prices. Aramco is the world’s largest oil-producing company and the main source of Saudi state revenue. The firm will slash dividend payouts by nearly a third this year as lower oil prices hit its income. The company has asked investment bankers to pitch ideas for how to raise funds from its assets, the people said. They declined to say which assets could be sold or name the banks involved. Aramco is looking to improve efficiency and cut costs, according to two other people with knowledge of the matter, and an option under consideration would be asset sales, one of them said. The four sources declined to be named because they are not authorised to speak to media. Aramco is the engine of the Saudi economy and its sprawling business includes units for aviation, construction and sports.
China’s Oil Demand to Peak Within 5 Years as India’s Continues to Climb
China’s decades-long reign as the world’s top oil demand driver is nearing its end, according to new research published by Moody’s Investors Service demonstrating that China’s crude demand is expected to peak within the next 3–5 years, while India will continue to hold the lead in global oil demand growth through at least 2030. Moody’s attributes China’s demand plateau to slowing economic growth, a shrinking population, a plateau in vehicle ownership, and a rapid shift toward EVs and energy diversification. In contrast, India is poised for 3–5% annual oil demand growth this decade, underpinned by rising per capita consumption, population growth, and rapid infrastructure expansion. “India will remain the primary source of incremental global oil demand through 2030,” Moody’s analysts noted, adding that the country’s oil import dependence will increase as domestic production remains subdued. According to India’s Ministry of Petroleum, crude consumption is already tracking 4.3% higher year-over-year in Q1 2025. The International Energy Agency (IEA) projects India’s oil demand will rise from 5 million barrels per day (bpd) in 2023 to over 6.5 million bpd by 2030. Meanwhile, signs of a peak in Chinese demand have been mounting. Earlier this year, OilPrice.com reported that Chinese refiners were already scaling back crude imports—down nearly 600,000 bpd from last year—amid weak industrial activity and record EV adoption. This eastward demand shift has major implications for long-term pricing, global refining strategy, and upstream investment. For exporters such as Saudi Arabia and Russia, India is now the market to watch. For oil markets, the era of “China-as-demand-engine” is rapidly fading, with India more than ready to hold tight to its status as lead driver of oil demand growth.
Asian Buyers Increase Purchases of Murban Oil
A substantial drop in the spot market price for Emirati crude has triggered a demand surge from Asia, Reuters reported today, citing data for a record trade of 10 million barrels of Murban crude on an S&P Global Platts market-of-close basis this month. “Asian markets have been oversupplied with light grades for most of this cycle, driven by outages at Japanese refiners, increased UAE availability this cycle following the accelerated OPEC+ unwind, and planned maintenance at Saudi Arabia’s Petro Rabigh refinery,” Energy Aspects analyst Richard Jones told Reuters. Yet demand for Murban has done well as its premium on the spot market has dropped to the lowest in six months. The grade represents some 66% of Adnoc’s total oil production and has a lead role in price setting in the Middle East. According to Reuters, Murban affects the pricing of 14 million barrels of oil exports to Asia daily. The Emirati oil major expects production of the grade to top 1.7 million barrels daily in June, July and August, which means more downward pressure on its price and likely drive stronger demand from Asian buyers. One unnamed Reuters source said output of the key grade could top 2 million barrels daily in July. Earlier this month, Bloomberg reported that a couple of Chinese independent refiners had bought two Murban cargos in a sign of a shift from Iranian crude to alternatives amid the U.S. sanction squeeze on one of China’s top discount oil suppliers. The price of the Emirati crude was $5 above the ICE Brent contract for August, the report noted. In March and April, the U.S. sanctioned two small independent Chinese refiners for purchasing and transporting Iranian oil, as part of U.S. President Donald Trump’s “maximum pressure” campaign on Iran to force it to negotiations over its nuclear program.
India poised to end China’s dominance era in oil demand: Moody’s
After more than a decade of dominance by China, the global oil and gas spotlight is shifting, and it’s India that’s now centre stage. According to a latest Moody’s report, India is poised to overtake China as the biggest driver of global oil and gas demand growth over the next decade. The shift marks a dramatic rebalancing, powered by India’s accelerating industrialisation, massive infrastructure push, and a growing middle class with increasing mobility needs. But, on the other side of the story is a slowing Chinese economy and a rapid rise in electric vehicle adoption, both of which are cooling the country’s once-insatiable thirst for fuel. “Demand will grow faster in India than in China over the next decade, as China’s economic growth slows and penetration of new energy vehicles accelerates. Crude consumption in China will peak in the next 3-5 years, while in India we expect annual growth of 3%-5% in the same period,” the Moody’s report read. India’s economic engine shows no signs of slowing. Real GDP growth is projected at 6.3% in 2025 and 6.5% in 2026, putting the country firmly at the top of the G-20 growth charts, highlighted Moody’s report. This robust expansion, combined with rising demand for transportation fuel and stepped-up investments by state-run oil marketing companies in refining capacity, is expected to keep oil demand climbing sharply. It’s not just oil. Gas, too, is becoming a bigger piece of India’s energy puzzle. The government plans to increase natural gas’s share in the energy mix from around 6% today to 15% by 2030. Demand is being driven by fast-growing sectors like fertilisers, petrochemicals, and city gas networks. Annual growth is projected between 4% and 7% through the end of the decade. Yet challenges such as affordability and patchy infrastructure remain barriers to faster adoption.
Blue Energy Motors Crosses 50 Million Km With LNG Trucks, Cuts 14,000 Tonnes Of CO2 Emissions
Blue Energy Motors, a pioneer in green-energy heavy-duty trucks, has surpassed 50 million km on the Indian highways saving 14,000 tonnes of CO2 emissions since the deployment of its Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)-powered green trucks. This achievement is equivalent to the annual carbon absorption of over 5,60,000 trees. The transport sector, particularly commercial vehicles, accounts for a disproportionate share of carbon emissions. According to the Ministry of Road Transport and Highways, commercial vehicles contribute nearly 40 per cent of CO2 emissions in road transport while comprising only 4 per cent of the total vehicle fleet. These figures highlight the urgent need for sustainable alternatives like LNG and EV, which have emerged as game-changers in reducing greenhouse gas emissions. Commenting on the achievement, Anirudh Bhuwalka, CEO of Blue Energy Motors, said “At Blue Energy Motors, we are not only redefining freight mobility with alternate fuel solutions but also building a comprehensive ecosystem of sustainable commercial vehicles for the future. We remain steadfast in our vision of a cleaner, greener tomorrow leading the shift toward sustainable mobility in India and beyond.” LNG-powered trucks offer a cleaner and more sustainable alternative to diesel vehicles, cutting CO2 emissions by up to 30 per cent while significantly reducing particulate matter and nitrogen oxides. When deployed in suitable long-haul applications, these benefits amplify, making LNG technology a cornerstone of India’s green logistics transition. Blue Energy Motors’ trucks are already facilitating a shift toward cleaner logistics, helping fleet owners reduce emissions and operational costs.
Japan Invests Big In LNG Despite Climate-Friendly Promises
Japan is one of the world’s biggest public financiers of gas and oil production, despite a pledge to halt all such funding for fossil fuel at the G7 summit in 2022. From 2013 to 2024, Japanese public financial institutions provided $93 billion (€82 billion) worth of investments for oil and gas projects, according to a report from the South Korea-based Solutions for Our Climate (SFOC). Overseas liquefied natural gas (LNG) development projects amounted to $56 billion worth of this financing. In the same period, the report estimates $24.5 billion in funding was provided for clean energy projects. “Japan’s international influence in energy financing, and specifically fossil fuel financing, is enormous,” Walter James, a private consultant focusing on Japan’s climate and energy policies, told DW “It’s really across the fossil fuel supply chain … all the way from exploration, production, transportation to actual use and power plants.” In what the Institute for Energy Economics and Financial Analysis (IEEFA), a US-based research center, calls the “Japanese model” of LNG investment, decades of policy development by Japan to “encourage direct overseas investment in LNG export projects,” have turned Japan into the main driver of LNG development in the Asia Pacific.
THINK Gas Expands LNG Footprint with strategic launch of 6 New Dispensing Stations accelerating India’s green transition
THINK Gas, India’s leading City Gas Distribution (CGD) company, is accelerating country’s transition towards low-emission transport for long-haul heavy-duty truck mobility with the strategic rollout of 3 (three) new LNG filling hubs/points after the successful operation of its flagship LNG station at Bagroda, Bhopal. As a merged CGD entity of AG&P Pratham and THINK Gas, now operating under the THINK Gas brand, the 3 new LNG fuelling hubs/points, strategically located to serve long-haul mobility, will be in Anantapur, Nellore (in Andhra Pradesh), and Vallam (in Tamil Nadu’s Kanchipuram District), and are expected to be operational by September’ 2025. In addition, 3 more LNG fuelling hubs/points will become operational by December 2025, reinforcing the company’s focus on long-haul clean mobility infrastructure.” THINK Gas is integrating the new LNG hubs with its well-established LCNG Stations (Liquefied to Compressed Natural Gas), allowing for seamless distribution, enhanced infrastructure utilisation, and efficient service delivery to fleet operators and logistics providers.
India shrinks its gas fleet as idle plants become unusable
India has phased out about five gigawatts of gas-fired power capacity that became inoperable after being left idle for years, according to people familiar with the matter. Some of the plants had sold off machinery, while others had become so rusty they were no longer fit to use, the people said. They asked not to be named as they are not authorized to speak to the media. India’s gas power industry has struggled for years, largely thanks to high prices which made plants uncompetitive, complicating the government’s goal to more than double the share of the fuel in the energy mix by 2030. In the year through March, India’s gas-fired generators ran at an average 14.5% of their capacity. About 7 gigawatts of projects in the southern region clocked a utilization rate of below 4%. The power ministry didn’t immediately respond to an emailed request for comment. The nation’s gas fleet totaled 20.1 gigawatts in April, compared with 25.2 a month earlier, data from the power ministry’s Central Electricity Authority show. Lower gas power capacity has raised other challenges for India, including making it harder to meet summer electricity requirements. This is especially true during warm evenings, when nearly 107 gigawatts of solar capacity goes off grid and demand soars as air-conditioners remain switched on. The highest number of closures were recorded in the state of Andhra Pradesh, where a string of gas power projects had been counting on fuel supplies from Reliance Industries Ltd.’s KG D6 field in the Bay of Bengal. The company had expected to produce 80 million cubic meters a day of gas from the site, but production peaked at 55.9 million cubic meters a day in the fiscal year 2011, and began to slide thereafter. It plunged to a low of 0.9 million cubic meters in 2019. Output has recovered since but is still at half of peak levels.
LNG to drive INOX India’s growth in FY26
Liquefied natural gas (LNG) is set to be the key growth driver for INOX India in FY26, backed by rising global adoption and a strong order book. Speaking to CNBC-TV18, Siddharth Jain, Promoter and Non-Executive Director of INOX India, said, “We are seeing greater adoption of that fuel not only in India but across the world, across different segments. We’re very excited about the next couple of years in this vertical.” The company reported a strong Q4FY25, which saw its highest-ever revenue and EBITDA. Revenue rose 33.6% year-on-year, while EBITDA surged 53.4%. For the full year, the company reported moderate growth of 15-20% in topline, EBITDA and PAT. Jain said all three of INOX India’s business verticals — industrial gas LNG, cryo-scientific, and beverage containers — are showing strong growth momentum. The company is also seeing the benefits of a strategy shift made during its IPO, where it chose to focus more on export-oriented orders. “Our strategy, which we laid out over two years ago during the IPO — focusing more on export jobs — has also played out,” he said