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Energy
Iran war 'catastrophic' for oil markets: Aramco CEO
The Iran war could have “catastrophic consequences” for global oil markets, Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser has said, after the company’s profits dipped last year amid low oil prices. Iran has largely closed the Strait of Hormuz, where around 20% of global oil flows would usually transit. Saudi Arabia has started cutting its oil output and is working to boost exports through an alternative Red Sea route, Bloomberg reported. “There would be catastrophic consequences for the world’s oil market the longer the disruption goes on, and the more drastic the consequences for the global economy,” said Nasser. “While we have faced disruptions in the past, this one by far is the biggest crisis the region’s oil and gas industry has faced.” “Global spare capacity is mostly concentrated in this region, so it is absolutely critical that shipping resumes in the Strait of Hormuz.” Iranian drones struck Aramco’s Ras Tanura oil refinery last week, causing a fire that temporarily halted its operations. The refinery is Saudi Arabia’s largest, with a capacity of more than 500,000 barrels each day. Brent crude prices spiked to a high of over US$119 per barrel on Monday, but have since declined as U.S. President Donald Trump claimed the war w
Energy
Google to fund 1.9GW to grid for Minnesota data centre
Google is building a data centre in Pine Island, Minnesota. Under a new agreement with Xcel Energy, the company will fund 1,900 megawatts (1.9GW) of new clean energy for the grid - 1.4GW of wind, 200MW of solar, and a 300MW iron-air battery installation from Form Energy rated for up to 100 hours of storage, the largest long-duration battery project by gigawatt-hour capacity announced to date. Google will cover all transmission infrastructure costs, protecting existing Xcel ratepayers from bill increases - a structure it previously used with NV Energy in Nevada via the Clean Transition Tariff. The renewable energy funded under the deal serves the broader grid rather than a ring-fenced corporate supply, and the agreement includes a $50 million contribution to Xcel's Capacity*Connect distributed battery program. Xcel's current carbon-free energy mix sits at 70%. The announcement coincides with some uncomfortable figures from Google's own reporting. The company's 2025 Environmental Report showed Scope 3 emissions - primarily supply chain - rose 22% in 2024, pushing combined emissions up 11% year-on-year to 11.5 million tonnes of CO₂ equivalent. Data centre electricity consumption was up 27% in 2024, driven by AI w
Energy
Buffett company agrees to settle wildfires litigation
Berkshire Hathaway subsidiary PacifiCorp has agreed to pay US$575 million (A$811 million) to settle damage claims brought by the United States Government over wildfires that burned nearly 290,000 acres of federal land. The U.S. Department of Justice said the settlement resolved the claims that PacifiCorp’s electrical lines negligently started all six fires in California and Oregon in 2020 and 2022. It said the money would help repay the United States for the substantial costs of fighting the fires, with the funds to be distributed to the Forest Service and Bureau of Land Management to restore some of the public land that was burned. “This agreement strikes a balance by addressing the government’s significant fire-suppression costs and loss of natural resources without preventing PacifiCorp from offering electricity at fair prices,” Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General Adam Gustafson of the Department of Justice’s Environment and Natural Resources Division said in a media release. U.S. Attorney Eric Grant of the Eastern District of California said the settlement served the Department’s longstanding policy of holding individuals and corporations responsible for damages caused by wildfires. PacifiCorp denied lia
Energy
Origin Energy profits plummet amid low gas prices
Origin Energy profits plummeted last half amid low gas prices, though its Energy Markets segment’s earnings continued to rise. Statutory profit was A$557 million, down from $1.02 billion year-over-year and below Visible Alpha estimates of $574.81 million. "Origin's first half results are solid, allowing an upgrade to full-year guidance for Energy Markets. Retail performance continued to strengthen, grid-scale batteries added further portfolio flexibility, gas production was steady, and cost management remained disciplined as commodity prices softened,” said CEO Frank Calabria. "We have delivered more than 10 consecutive halves of customer growth, further building on Origin's leading retail position, reflecting the strength of our brand and customer solutions, including a refreshed suite of battery products and continued enhancements in customer experience.” Underlying EBITDA sank from $1.93 billion to $1.59 billion year-over-year. Underlying profit dropped from $924 million to $593 million. Its Energy Markets segment reported underlying EBITDA of $860 million, rising $122 million, which Origin credited to higher electricity gross profit and cost to serve savings. It added 96,000 new customer accounts. Integrated
Energy
AGL narrows FY26 outlook after H1 profit drop
AGL Energy has narrowed its 2026 guidance after the results of its latest earnings report for the first half of this year. The H1-26 report saw a drastic fall in statutory profit, down to $94 million, a drop of 42%. Earnings per share came out ahead of estimates of $0.44‬, landing at $0.53‬. Revenue was posted at $‪‪7.04 billion, ahead of estimates of ‪‪$6.92. The power producer also tightened its guidance for the year, narrowing its expected underlying EBITDA from a range of $1.92-$2.22 billion to $2.02-$2.18 billion, and its underlying net profit guidance from $500-$700 million to $580-$680 million. AGL also announced today it had struck a $115 mil deal with Aussie Broadband, with the internet giant acquiring AGL's telco portion of the business. AGL will continue to promote services under their brand name, but Aussie Broadband will supply the services and customer experience. Shares in AGL jumped by 11.8% after, to the highest point since December, and Aussie Broadband also enjoyed a boost, up to 14.8%. AGL Energy (AGL: ASX) closed higher on Wednesday, up 11.8% at $9.89.

Energy
BP halts share buybacks, targets cost-cutting
BP has suspended its share buybacks as it pursues cost-cutting measures, while profits last quarter were in line with estimates. Its underlying replacement cost profit was US$1.54 billion, falling from $2.21 billion in the previous quarter but up from $1.17 billion one year ago. This matched LSEG estimates. “2025 was a year of strong underlying financial results, strong operational performance, and meaningful strategic progress. We have made progress against our four primary targets - growing cash flow and returns, reducing costs, and strengthening the balance sheet - but know there is more work to be done, and we are clear on the urgency to deliver,” said interim CEO Carol Howle. “With a continued emphasis on capital discipline and returns, we are reducing capital expenditure for 2026 to the lower end of the guidance range, while continuing to drive down our cost base.” The company will halt share buybacks and allocate its excess cash towards strengthening its balance sheet, BP said. Its most recent share buyback, announced in November, was $750 million. It increased its cost reduction target to $5.5-6.5 billion by the end of 2027, rising from $5 billion. Woodside Energy CEO Meg O'Neill will begin as BP's CEO from
Energy
Oil drillers combine as Transocean buys Valaris
Transocean will acquire Valaris for US$5.8 billion (A$8.219 billion) in stock, combining two major drilling contractors as the offshore drilling industry expands. The combined company would have an enterprise value of around $17 billion and a market capitalisation of $12.3 billion, according to Transocean and Valaris. Its fleet would include 73 oil rigs. “This transaction creates a very attractive investment in the offshore drilling industry, differentiated by the best fleet, proven people, leading technologies, and unequalled customer service,” said Transocean CEO Keelan Adamson. “The powerful combination is well-timed to capitalise on an emerging, multi-year offshore drilling upcycle. Investors and our global customers will benefit from our expanded fleet of best-in-class, high-specification rigs.” The companies’ combined backlog is around $10 billion. The acquisition comes amid a surge in offshore drilling activity, with the global market valued at $43.78 billion in 2025 and forecast to reach $87.50 billion by 2034. Valaris investors will receive 15.235 shares in Transocean for each Valaris share. The acquisition is set to close in 2026’s second half. The transaction will aid in reducing Transocean’s debt, Ada
Energy
ConocoPhillips struggling against lower oil prices for Q4
ConocoPhillips has posted lower-than-expected results for its fourth quarter and overall 2025 outlook, with oil prices falling as production increased. Production for the fourth quarter was 2,320 barrels of oil-equivalent per day (MBOED), up by 137 from Q4 the year before, but struggled against a 19% decrease in the company's average realised price, which dropped to US$42.46. Adjusted earnings per share for the Texas-based petroleum industry giant came in at $1.02, which fell below the Zacks Consensus Estimate of $1.08. The bottom line decreased from the prior-year level of $1.98. Total revenue for the quarter was posted at US$14.19 billion, a decline from US$14.74 billion a year earlier. “Looking ahead, we’re focused on driving a $1 billion reduction in our capital and costs in 2026, while returning 45% of our CFO to shareholders," said Ryan Lance, chairman and chief executive officer. At the time of reporting, ConocoPhillips (NYSE: COP) was trading down 2.43%, to US$104.98 and maintains a market cap of US$129.73 billion.
Energy
Shell quarterly profits drop amid low oil prices
Oil major Shell fell below earnings estimates last quarter amid low oil prices, while its production increased. Adjusted earnings were US$3.26 billion, down from the previous quarter’s $5.43 billion and under LSEG estimates of $3.53 billion. This is its lowest quarterly profit since 2021. “2025 was a year of accelerated momentum, with strong operational and financial performance across Shell. We generated free cash flow of $26 billion, made significant progress in focusing our portfolio and reached $5 billion of cost savings since 2022, with more to come,” said Shell CEO Wael Sawan. “In Q4, despite lower earnings in a softer macro, cash delivery remained solid and today we announce a 4% increase in our dividend and $3.5 billion share buyback, making this the 17th consecutive quarter of at least $3 billion of buybacks.” Oil prices fell by 19% in 2025, driven by a glut in supply as OPEC+ nations increased their output. This was the first time oil prices had reported three consecutive years of losses. Integrated gas production increased from 934,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day to 948,000 barrels. The company expects 920,000-980,000 per day in 2026’s first quarter. Upstream production increased from 1.83 millio