Energy Blast – May 26, 2011

Gazprom increased its gas exports to Europe by 30% this month, with daily supplies now ‘correspond[ing] to winter production rates‘.  The company’s plans to redirect 20% of the gas it currently transports thought Ukraine could deprive the country of $700 million in transit revenues.  Gazprom has cut short its involvement in Namibia’s Kudu development project; together with Japan it will invest $7 billion to build an LNG plant near Vladivostok.  TNK-BP is in talks with Brazil’s oil and gas company HRT Participacoes em Petroleo, and could buy a 45% stake for $1 billion.  Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko has slammed E.U. rules aimed at making the energy market more competitive, warning that any requirements to open up the South Stream pipeline to competitors would reduce investor returns and deter them from continuing with their support.  Spain’s Repsol has bought crude oil from Surgutneftgaz through a tender for the first time.  Rosneft ‘head‘ Igor Sechin is in talks with the chief executive of Shell to discuss Arctic exploration. (Editor’s note: Didn’t Sechin leave his post last month?) Denmark and Greenland are planning to establish an Arctic military command structure to protect its energy interests in the region.