Friday, 16 October 2026

International oil companies working in South Africa have called for government intervention to streamline regulations and resolve appeal-related licensing delays that are holding back upstream investment.

Industry leaders said predictable policy, infrastructure investment and faster project approvals are needed to open up South Africa's petroleum potential.

Magali Pailhé, Managing Director of TotalEnergies EP South Africa, singled out regulatory appeals as a major obstacle to offshore exploration, contrasting the country's limited drilling activity with neighbouring Namibia. Pailhé said 25 wells had been drilled in Namibia since 2022, against three in South Africa since 2014.

US natural gas inventories rose by 67 billion cubic feet in the week ending October 9, according to Hellenic Shipping News. The build fell short of market expectations for a 76 bcf addition.

The weekly injection slowed from 85 bcf the prior week, Hellenic Shipping News reported. It also came in below the 80 bcf recorded in the same period a year earlier and the five-year seasonal average of 90 bcf.

Total US natural gas in storage rose to 3.567 trillion cubic feet.

Uganda has replaced a missed mid-year first-oil target with a window ending in June 2027, after the war in the Middle East held up equipment needed to finish its oilfields and export pipeline, according to Uganda Business News. The statement presents June 2027 as the timeline but does not name a production month.

The delay reflects the need to bring three linked projects into operation together, according to Uganda Business News.

Project updates provided to MPs this month put overall completion at 92% for EACOP, 78% for Tilenga and 90% for the Kingfisher development.

Residents and businesses on St. Croix affected by the 2021 Limetree Bay Refinery pollution incidents have until November 3 to file claims under seven proposed settlements totaling $59.795 million. The claims process follows preliminary approval by the U.S. District Court of the Virgin Islands.

In a separate case, about 2% of New York City's natural gas leaks into the air, costing city customers who pay for the gas $300 million a year.

The Motorists Association of Kenya (MAK) has threatened peaceful demonstrations after the Energy and Petroleum Regulatory Authority (EPRA) raised fuel pump prices in its latest monthly review, according to Ghafla!.

The review raised Super Petrol by KES 12.93 per liter, Diesel by KES 9.90 and Kerosene by KES 28.49, Ghafla! reported.

MAK is demanding an independent review of EPRA's pricing formula, an official audit of Kenya's government-to-government oil import arrangement, and full disclosure of the freight and landing charges used to calculate domestic retail prices, according to Ghafla!.

Bruce Tangeman, former vice president and chief financial officer of the Alaska Gasline Development Corporation (AGDC), estimated that the total cost of the Alaska LNG project could reach USD 75 billion.

Separately, Alaska North Slope production exceeded 500,000 barrels per day for more than half of September and regularly exceeded that level by October as output from the Santos-operated Pikka project increased, according to numbers from the Alaska Department of Revenue Tax Division.

Andy Burnham faces pressure to approve the Rosebank and Jackdaw oil and gas fields off the coast of Scotland, with decisions on both due imminently, according to the Scottish Daily Express.

The Rosebank oil field sits off Shetland, while the Jackdaw gas field is situated east of Aberdeen. The Energy Secretary said a decision on the Jackdaw field is imminent, according to SSBCrack News.

South African motorists face a potential fuel price increase in November 2026, driven by elevated international oil prices and conflict in the Middle East.

Central Energy Fund data indicated expected under-recoveries of R2.28 per litre for 95 petrol and R1.46 per litre for 0.005% sulphur diesel.

The November projections remained uncertain and subject to international oil prices, the rand-dollar exchange rate and subsequent Central Energy Fund data.

Egypt's petroleum and investment ministries signed a cooperation protocol on Wednesday covering the oil, gas and mining sectors, with the stated goals of attracting investment, diversifying financing and raising returns on state-owned assets, according to Amwal Al Ghad.

Petroleum Minister Karim Badawi said the protocol would open investment opportunities, widen private-sector partnerships and bring in new financing arrangements, Amwal Al Ghad reported. He said those arrangements target better asset management and faster project delivery inside Egypt and abroad.

Amwal Al Ghad said the cooperation is expected to lift domestic production, cut imports and channel investment into exploration, production, refining, petrochemicals and manufacturing.

Semafor Net Zero reported that the Dangote refinery outside Lagos State has exposed how much West African demand for locally refined fuel had gone unmet, and that its output has reached buyers in Europe and Asia.

Fola Fagbule, who runs the Kenya regional office of multilateral lender Africa Finance Corporation, a backer of the Lagos plant, told Semafor that new projects are advancing across the continent "as a result of the new realities in the energy market". He described the refinery's impact as a "Big Bang" moment.

South Africa said it would build up its strategic oil reserves for the first time since the end of apartheid to cushion against supply shocks, according to Semafor. Angola is pushing for faster exploration concessions and asking southern African governments to help fund a new refinery, while refinery plans in Uganda and Tanzania have picked up pace.

Equinor has exercised options for two additional wells using Odfjell Drilling's Deepsea Atlantic semi-submersible rig, according to Offshore Engineer OEDigital.

The additional wells extend the rig's firm contract into the late fourth quarter of 2027, OEDigital reported.

Equinor retains priced options for another two wells, which could further extend the drilling program, according to OEDigital.

US commercial crude oil inventories decreased by 8.6 million barrels in the week ending October 9, 2026, dropping to 415.6 million barrels, 3% below the five-year average.

The weekly figure excludes the Strategic Petroleum Reserve.

Earlier data for the week ended October 2 showed a draw of 3.2 million barrels, against an expected build of 1.7 million barrels. That decline brought stockpiles to 424.1 million barrels.

Tanzania is approaching a final agreement on a USD 42 billion liquefied natural gas (LNG) development, with commercial and fiscal terms now largely settled.

Equinor and Shell lead the project.

The development draws on an estimated 47.13 trillion cubic feet of natural gas reserves, with the bulk of the LNG set for export and a share held for domestic use.

The head of the Tanzania Petroleum Development Corporation (TPDC) said in September 2026 that talks on commercial, fiscal and revenue-sharing terms were largely complete.

South Korea's government said the announced USD 54 billion South Korean investment in an Alaska liquefied natural gas pipeline was not complete, according to the Rachel Maddow Show's MaddowBlog. Industry Minister Kim Jung-kwan said he lodged a strong protest with the administration, telling reporters that Trump's announcement went far beyond what was agreed.

Trump announced that Taiwan had agreed to buy 30% of the LNG from a planned Alaska pipeline for the next 20 years, Bloomberg News reported. Taipei said the contract was not yet completed, according to Just the News.

A separate announced project drew similar scrutiny. A review of property records found that Mesabi Metallics and its Indian parent company, the Essar Group, did not own property in Lee County, Iowa, where a steel plant was supposed to be built, or elsewhere in the state, according to The Washington Sun's review cited by the MaddowBlog.

Brent oil reached $110/bbl for the first time since May as prospects for imminent supply relief dwindled, according to World Oil. Traders ramped up bets on higher prices ahead of the weekend.

The global benchmark rose 3.7%, recording a second consecutive weekly gain amid reports of conflict in major export centers, World Oil reported.

Iran-backed Houthi rebels continued missile and drone strikes against Saudi Arabia, while Russia and Ukraine exchanged attacks on energy infrastructure, according to World Oil.

NG Energy International has brought its Aruchara-6 well online at the Maria Conchita block in Colombia, according to World Oil.

During initial flow through the field's central processing facility, the well produced up to 8.7 MMcfd gross and 6.96 MMcfd net, World Oil reported.

With Aruchara-6 online, Maria Conchita's output is expected to rise to 23.0 MMcfd gross and 18.4 MMcfd net, from 16.0 MMcfd gross and 12.8 MMcfd net, according to World Oil.

Equinor Energy exercised options for two additional wells on Odfjell Drilling's Deepsea Atlantic semisubmersible rig, extending the firm contract into late fourth-quarter 2027, according to World Oil. The rig operates offshore Norway.

The additional wells will be drilled in direct continuation of the rig's current contract, at rates agreed under the original contract, World Oil reported.

Equinor retains priced options for a further two wells, according to World Oil.

Fourteen oil and gas operators, service providers and vendors have approved an updated recommended practice for electric intelligent wells, according to Offshore Magazine.

The update, known as IWIS 2.0, revises the original recommendations to support increased adoption of advanced electric completions, Offshore Magazine reported. These completions require more power and more intricate integration with subsea control and communication systems.

The updated practice recommends power, communications and mechanical interfaces, along with safety and redundancy measures.

A proposed IWE interface module would standardize the larger, high-power interface electronics required by advanced electric completions, according to Offshore Magazine. The module would simplify integration and qualification.

Oil demand in Southeast Asia and Africa has fallen sharply since the outbreak of the Middle East war, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said, as disrupted trade flows, tighter fuel supplies and higher prices weigh on consumption.

Southeast Asian oil demand declined by an estimated 260,000 barrels per day, or 3.7% year on year, during March to August 2026, according to the IEA. That compares with prewar expectations for 2.3% growth over the same period.

African oil consumption contracted by 2.5% year on year during March to August, the IEA said, following estimated demand growth of 3.4% in the 12 months before the war.

South America remained relatively resilient, benefiting from its lower dependence on Middle Eastern oil supplies, according to the IEA.

New Zealand Petroleum and Minerals (NZPAM) confirmed that Sunda Energy's application for an offshore petroleum exploration permit in the Taranaki Basin has become exclusive, according to Offshore Magazine.

The application covers 654 sq km of acreage in the Awakino area in the northern part of the basin, west of New Zealand's North Island, Offshore Magazine reported.

Sunda's proposed program involves technical studies of well and field data, along with reprocessing of 450 sq km of existing 3D seismic, according to Offshore Magazine.

No competing offers were submitted for the acreage. NZPAM will review Sunda's proposal before deciding whether to award the permit, Offshore Magazine reported.

Ghana National Gas Company is considering using drones to monitor its gas pipelines because of concerns about encroachment by illegal miners, chief executive Judith Adjobah-Blay said on Thursday, according to energynewsafrica.com.

The company separately warned fisherfolk in coastal communities in Ghana's Western Region not to tamper with or damage the marker buoys installed along its offshore gas pipeline, according to ghanaweb.com. Ghana Gas described such acts as a threat to human life, national energy security and the environment.

Ghana Gas said any damage to the buoys or to the pipeline itself could cause gas leakage, fire, loss of lives at sea, disruption of power supply nationwide and severe environmental pollution, according to ghanaweb.com.

South Africa called for deeper continental energy collaboration, increased investment and expanded regional refining capacity, according to The Business Weekly. The appeal urged closer cooperation among governments, national oil companies, regulators and financial institutions.

The push for more investment lands as the IMF raised its economic growth forecast for sub-Saharan Africa to 4.5% in 2026, according to News Central. The Fund cited the region's ability to withstand successive global shocks.

The revised projection is 0.2 percentage points above the estimate in the IMF's April outlook, News Central reported.