Monday, 28 September 2026

The EU urged the US to avoid a diesel export ban, arguing that the measure would disadvantage both sides, Event Registry reported.

The proposal had been informally endorsed by US President Donald Trump, according to the report.

European Commission spokesperson Olof Gill said any disruption risked harming both sides, while the bloc viewed reports of a potential ban with concern and monitored its fuel stocks.

American Petroleum Institute CEO Mike Sommers warned that restricting US energy exports would worsen refining challenges and ultimately hurt consumers, Event Registry reported.

The Ministry of Power directed captive coal-based generating stations with capacity of 50 MW or more to maximise electricity generation under Section 11 of the Electricity Act, Event Registry reported.

The order will remain in force from October 1 through December 31, 2026, according to Event Registry.

The ministry cited the prevailing power demand-supply situation and an anticipated increase in electricity consumption.

The Oil Company Windfall Profits Tax Act would impose a permanent excess profits tax on big oil companies, according to Event Registry.

Revenue from the tax would go to the Highway Trust Fund, Mass Transit Account and Leaking Underground Storage Tank Trust Fund, consistent with gas tax ratios, Event Registry reported.

Pakistan's proposed Rs100-per-litre petrol relief would target bikers and small-engine cars rather than all consumers, according to Event Registry.

Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said the IMF raised no objections to the government's targeted subsidy, Event Registry reported.

Petroleum Minister Ali Pervaiz Malik said the government would continue the scheme for up to 10 months if necessary. Malik said it had attracted more than six million registrations.

India-Venezuela energy ties are gaining momentum, Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar said, according to Event Registry.

India and Venezuela announced no supply contract, investment figure or timetable after Jaishankar met Venezuelan Foreign Minister Félix Plasencia González, Event Registry reported.

Separately, Rodriguez obtained no concrete agreements during her New York visit, according to Event Registry.

The Conservative plan would seek to raise Canadian production of diesel and other refined fuels to one million barrels per day, according to Event Registry.

The plan would introduce emergency pre-permitting for diesel refineries, storage and transportation, along with a 100% first-year tax deduction for fuel infrastructure investments.

It would also establish a strategic refined petroleum reserve, Event Registry reported.

The Bay Area Air District is moving toward requiring thousands of homeowners to replace broken natural gas water heaters with electric models, according to Event Registry.

The transition would effectively ban natural gas water heater installations largely in single-family homes and is slated to begin in January, although it could be delayed by a year.

District staff proposed moving the requirement from January 2027 to January 2028 and adding exemptions that could cover up to 38% of installations, Event Registry reported.

The district estimates that switching from a gas model to a heat pump water heater will cost an average of about USD 3,500 more.

Jamaat-i-Islami invited political and opposition parties to join its sit-ins and rallies against the petroleum levy, Event Registry reported.

The party also announced a nationwide campaign to collect public signatures against the levy.

JI said it would continue campaigning until the petroleum levy was abolished.

At a mass-signature campaign event in Karachi, Naeem-ur-Rehman called the levy an unfair burden on consumers, according to Event Registry.

Petroleum engineering expert Dr Kwame Sarkodie warned that Ghana could lose access to European export markets and face higher capital costs unless it ends routine gas flaring and eliminates emissions.

GhanaGuardian reported that EU methane rules will require importers to demonstrate equivalent methane monitoring standards from January 2027 and report methane intensity from August 2028. Limits for specified contracts will apply from August 2030.

PIAC's 2024 disclosures showed that Ghana flared about 28.5 billion cubic feet of natural gas during the year, equivalent to approximately 10.4% of the raw gas used in 2024.

Oil prices rose from USD 65 a barrel before the Iran conflict to more than USD 100 a barrel in mid-September 2026 as Strait of Hormuz traffic remained below 15% of prewar levels, according to The Conversation Energy.

The global oil market has largely exhausted the safeguards used to restrain petroleum prices, The Conversation Energy reported.

A coordinated release by 32 countries added more than 400 million barrels to the global market in March 2026, but those reserves are now substantially depleted, according to The Conversation Energy.

The Conversation Energy said the market is showing signs that significant price increases and possible shortages may be approaching.

The European Commission sent formal notice letters to 18 EU countries that had not reported fully enacting energy-sharing rights and related consumer rules, according to PV Magazine.

PV Magazine identified the countries as Belgium, Estonia, Ireland, Greece, Spain, France, Croatia, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Hungary, Malta, the Netherlands, Poland, Romania, Slovenia, Finland and Sweden.

The countries had until July 17, 2026, to transpose Directive (EU) 2024/1711 provisions on energy sharing and free choice of supplier, the publication reported.

The notices concern failure to notify transposition and do not constitute a finding on the substance of national rules, according to PV Magazine.

Event Registry reported that energy analyst Art Berman put Strait of Hormuz oil flows above 13.5 million barrels a day on a seven-day average.

Loading at Saudi Gulf ports reached about 3.4 million barrels a day, reversing the near-total retreat from those terminals earlier in the war, according to Event Registry.

The EU warned member states of a potential energy price crisis driven by the Middle East conflict and asked them to consider cutting demand and filling gas storage before winter, according to Event Registry.

EU Energy Commissioner Dan Jorgensen said Europe faces a price crisis linked to a supply crisis.

Jorgensen said demand-reduction measures could include limiting temperatures in public buildings, preventing outdoor heating and turning off unnecessary public lighting.

China’s cancellation of overseas coal projects is estimated to have avoided 6.4 billion tons of lifetime carbon dioxide emissions, according to Event Registry.

Event Registry reported that a CREA analyst attributed continued overseas coal expansion to a provision allowing private Chinese companies to invest abroad.

In Australia, conservation and clean energy advocates are calling for coal and gas plants to be included in the federal safeguard mechanism, Event Registry reported.

Australian advocacy groups, including the Climate Council, argue that applying the mechanism to coal plants operating beyond their retirement dates would require operators to pay for emissions and strengthen incentives to close on schedule.

Grid-connected power generators in Australia currently do not face the emissions-reduction caps applied to other industrial emitters, according to Event Registry.

Germany has committed for the first time to explicitly phase out coal, oil and gas by 2045, Event Registry reported.

The roadmap targets an 80% share for renewable electricity generation by 2030, according to Event Registry.

Germany retained 2038 as its coal phaseout target while allowing the deadline to be brought forward to 2035, Event Registry reported.

The plan also commits Germany to reducing methane emissions by 30% by 2030, according to Event Registry.

The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. Ambassador to Greece Kimberly Guilfoyle urged Bulgaria to buy American liquefied natural gas through Greek construction company Aktor.

The newspaper said Guilfoyle directed Bulgarian officials toward Aktor, which later signed agreements with Bulgarian gas companies. Christos Marafatsos, an Aktor lobbyist, accompanied Guilfoyle during meetings with Bulgarian officials.

A U.S. Embassy official said Guilfoyle's trip sought to increase U.S. LNG sales to Europe and reduce European dependence on Russian gas.

The energy price cap will rise 4% for a typical household in England, Scotland and Wales, Event Registry reported.

The average household paying by direct debit for gas and electricity will face a bill of GBP 1,723, according to Event Registry.

Uswitch warned households without smart meters to submit readings by the end of the month so energy used before October 1 is not charged at the higher rates.

Iraq has started importing petrol through Syria, The National reported, citing an Iraqi Oil Ministry official.

Ahram reported that the transit forms part of a renewable three-month agreement intended to secure energy supplies amid shipping disruptions through the Strait of Hormuz.

The first batch comprised 57 tanker trucks, with plans to increase traffic to about 200 tanker trucks per day, according to SANA. Qatar-based UCC purchases the gasoline from international suppliers, while Syrian authorities transport it in return for transit fees, SANA reported.