Centrica strikes £20 billion gas supply deal with Equinor
The firms said the new deal will see Centrica take delivery of five billion cubic metres of gas per year up to 2035.
Chris O'Shea, boss of Centrica, said the deal ensures an improvement in UK energy security and stressed that the business is working with the Government to build further gas storage.
It comes ahead of a speech from the boss of the Confederation of British Industry, who is calling on the Government to come up with a 'serious plan' to cut energy costs and invest in energy security.
Rain Newton-Smith, chief executive of the business group, will say that Britain must address soaring energy tariffs as firms struggle under the weight of crippling power bills on top of tax and wage hikes, in a speech later on Thursday.
Around half of all UK gas was imported from Norway last year, after a recent increase in demand following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.
Centrica added that the contract will also call for natural gas sales to be replaced with hydrogen in the future.
Mr O'Shea said: 'Equinor is a valued partner and this landmark agreement underscores the vital role that natural gas plays as a transition fuel as we navigate towards a low carbon energy future.
'Over the last few years, we've seen first-hand how important energy security is.
'Today's deal not only ensures the UK's energy security has improved but also paves the way for a burgeoning hydrogen market.
'The deal represents a significant investment in the UK's future, showing that Centrica will make bold investments that drive forward the energy transition while delivering value for our shareholders.'
Equinor's president and chief executive Anders Opedal said: 'For nearly 50 years, we have supported the UK's energy security with reliable gas supplies.
'In addition, we have advanced offshore wind and pioneered decarbonisation solutions.
'We are pleased to strengthen the energy partnership further through a new gas sales agreement with our longstanding customer and partner Centrica.'
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
NBC News
29 minutes ago
- NBC News
Former federal inmate pardoned by Trump tapped as Bureau of Prisons deputy director
A former federal inmate who was pardoned by President Donald Trump in his first term for drug trafficking crimes more than two decades ago has been tapped as deputy director of the federal Bureau of Prisons, according to bureau spokesperson Kristie Breshears. Joshua J. Smith, a Tennessee businessman who founded an inmate advocacy and rehabilitation nonprofit foundation, the Fourth Purpose, will be second in command in the bureau. The BOP has never had a formerly incarcerated inmate work as an employee at any level, according to a senior bureau official. 'Josh brings to this role something our agency has never had before at this level, a perspective shaped by lived experience, proven innovation and national impact,' Director William K. Marshall III said in a memo to staff Thursday. 'His firsthand understanding of our facilities — of the tension, the risk and the importance of trust — makes him uniquely positioned to advocate for the resources and reforms front-line staff need to do their jobs safely and effectively,' added Marshall, a former prison commissioner in West Virginia whom Trump selected as BOP director in April. Smith declined to comment when reached by phone Thursday. Trump granted a full pardon to Smith, who had been convicted of conspiracy to possess drugs with intent to distribute. Indictments were filed in 1997 for marijuana- and cocaine-related charges, and the court docket shows he pleaded guilty. The court recommended he go to the Federal Correctional Institution Manchester in Kentucky and boot camp for a 60-month sentence. He was also set to have five years supervised release, substance abuse treatment and a $12,500 fine. The bureau, in recent years, has been roiled by accusations of cronyism and corruption, widespread staffing shortages, and violence and misconduc t in prisons. Its leadership must manage a massive $8 billion-plus budget, more than 143,000 federal inmates across 122 prisons, and a workforce of more than 35,000 as the Justice Department's largest employer. In deciding to pardon Smith, the White House said in 2021 that, after his release from prison in 2003, he 'dedicated his life to his faith and to his community,' founded Fourth Purpose and 'mentored incarcerated individuals and taught business classes to those in prison — including at the prison where he was incarcerated.' Smith's pardon request was supported by Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee, a Republican. According to his online biography, Smith said he was raised by a single mother in government housing, was convicted of 10 felonies by the time he was 16 and entered prison at 21. While in prison, he said, he learned about Christianity and God and was mentored by white-collar criminals. He said he started a multimillion-dollar company that hired ex-offenders before becoming more active in prison reform. 'Today is a day of redemption that I attribute to God's grace,' Smith said after he was pardoned, adding that 'there are a lot of Josh Smiths in prisons across our country, and I am going to help as many as possible find a new purpose.' Smith's pardon was one of 74 that Trump granted on his last day in office during his first term, when he also pardoned former chief strategist and longtime ally Steve Bannon, who was indicted on wire fraud and money laundering conspiracy charges, and hip-hop star Lil Wayne, who pleaded guilty to weapons charges.
Reuters
an hour ago
- Reuters
Shaken by crises, Switzerland fetters UBS's global dream
BERN, June 6 (Reuters) - Switzerland announced reforms on Friday to make its biggest bank UBS (UBSG.S), opens new tab safer and avoid another crisis, hampering the global ambitions of a lender whose financial weight eclipses the country's economy. UBS emerged as Switzerland's sole global bank more than two years ago after the government hastily arranged its rescue of scandal-hit Credit Suisse to prevent a disorderly collapse. The demise of Credit Suisse, one of the world's biggest banks, rattled global markets and blindsided officials and regulators, whose struggle to steer the lender as it lurched from one scandal to the next underscored their weakness. On Friday, speaking from the same podium where she had announced the Credit Suisse rescue in 2023 as finance minister, Switzerland's president Karin Keller-Sutter delivered a firm message. The country would not be wrongfooted again. "I don't believe that the competitiveness will be impaired, but it is true that growth abroad will become more expensive," Keller-Sutter said of UBS. "We've had two crises. 2008 and 2023," she said. "If you see something that is broken, you have to fix it." During the global financial crisis of 2008, UBS was hit by a losses in subprime debt, as a disastrous expansion into riskier investment banking forced it to write down tens of billions of dollars and ultimately turn to the state for help. Memories of that crisis also linger, reinforcing the government's resolve after the collapse of Credit Suisse. For UBS, which has a financial balance sheet of around $1.7 trillion, far bigger than the Swiss economy, the implications of the reforms proposed on Friday are clear. Switzerland no longer wants to back its international growth. "Bottom line: who is carrying the risk for growth abroad?" said Keller-Sutter. "The bank, its owners or the state?" The rules the government proposed demand that UBS in Switzerland holds more capital to cover risks in its foreign operations. That move, one of the most important steps taken by the Swiss in a series of otherwise piecemeal measures, will make UBS's businesses abroad more expensive to run for one of the globe's largest banks for millionaires and billionaires. Following publication of the reform plans, UBS Chairman Colm Kelleher and CEO Sergio Ermotti said in an internal memo that if fully implemented, they would undermine the bank's "global competitive footprint" and hurt the Swiss economy. The reform would require UBS to hold as much as $26 billion in extra capital. Some believe the demands may alter the bank's course. "It could be that UBS has to change its strategy of growth in the United States and Asia," said Andreas Venditti, an analyst at Vontobel. "It's not just growing. It makes the existing business more expensive. It is an incentive to get smaller and this will most likely happen." Credit Suisse's demise exploded the myth of invincibility of one of the wealthiest countries in the world, home to a global reserve currency, and proved as unworkable a central reform of the financial crisis to prevent state bailouts. For many in Switzerland, the government's reforms are long overdue. "The bank is bigger than the entire Swiss economy. It makes sense that it should not grow even bigger," said Andreas Missbach of Alliance Sud, a group that campaigns for transparency. "It is good that the government did not give in to lobbying by UBS. The question is whether it is enough. We have a banking crisis roughly every 12 years. So I'm not really put at ease." UBS CEO Ermotti had lobbied against the reforms, arguing that a heavy capital burden would put the bank on the back foot with rivals. The world's second-largest wealth manager after Morgan Stanley is dwarfed by its U.S. peer. Morgan Stanley shares value the firm at twice its book value, compared with UBS's 20% premium to book. On Friday, the bank reiterated this message, saying that it strongly disagreed with the "extreme" increase in capital. But others are sceptical that the government has done enough. Hans Gersbach, a professor at ETH Zurich, said there was still no proper plan to cope should UBS run into trouble. "The credibility of the too big to fail regime remains in question."
BBC News
2 hours ago
- BBC News
Botswana diamond giant Debswana slashes output as demand falls
Botswana's main diamond company has paused production at some of its mines, citing a prolonged downturn in global a joint venture between the government and global mining giant De Beers, saw its sales revenue drop by almost 50% last is the world's largest producer of diamonds by value. The industry accounts for a quarter of the country's total annual income (GDP), according to the International Monetary Friday, Debswana said production this year is being scaled back to 15 million carats - approximately a 40% decrease from its output in 2023. The company, which accounts for around 90% of Botswana's diamond sales expects this reduced output will lead to "significant cost savings" across areas like fuel and a statement, Debswana said it continued to "prudently navigate the challenging market conditions" citing low demand and "emerging pressures such as US-imposed tariffs".The global market for mined diamonds has been experiencing a decline since 2023, partly due to the availability of lab-grown response to this downturn, Debswana paused production at its flagship Jwaneng mine, as well as its Orapa mines, last month. Each mine will be closed for three months in southern African country has for decades been trying to shift its economy away from being dependent on diamond sales, to varying degrees of successive governments have boosted sectors such as tourism, finance and the mining of minerals such as copper, diamond sales still make up three-quarters of Botswana's foreign exchange income is likely to be hit by Debswana's decision to temporarily close its company has stressed that no involuntary job cuts are planned, although it continues to offer voluntary a result of the sustained downturn in the global diamond industry, Botswana will cut its 2025 economic growth forecast to almost zero, a senior finance official was quoted as saying by the Reuters news agency. You may also be interested in: World's second-largest diamond found in BotswanaHow friends became foes in Africa's diamond state'Proud to be young' - Beauty queen, lawyer and Botswana's youngest cabinet minister Go to for more news from the African us on Twitter @BBCAfrica, on Facebook at BBC Africa or on Instagram at bbcafrica
