Latest news with #ReutersPowerUp
Reuters
07-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Emerson Electric raises annual profit forecast on automation services demand
May 7 (Reuters) - Emerson Electric (EMR.N), opens new tab raised its full-year profit forecast on Wednesday on the back of strong demand for its automation services and products that also helped the company report second-quarter earnings ahead of Wall Street estimates. The engineering services firm's shares jumped more than 3% in premarket trading. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. Demand for industrial components and automation services has been driven by investments across sectors including chemicals, energy transition and mining. "First-half performance and ability to navigate the tariff environment give us the confidence to update our 2025 outlook," Emerson CEO Lal Karsanbhai said. The company now expects full-year adjusted earnings per share between $5.90 and $6.05, compared with its prior forecast range of $5.85 to $6.05. Analysts are expecting an annual profit of $5.91 per share, according to data compiled by LSEG. Emerson also raised its forecast for net sales to grow about 4% from its prior expectation of an increase of 1.5% to 3.5%. On an adjusted basis, the company earned $1.48 per share in the second quarter, beating estimates of $1.41. Net sales of $4.43 billion also beat expectations of $4.38 billion.
Reuters
07-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Harbour energy to slash its UK workforce by 25%, company says
LONDON, May 7 (Reuters) - Oil and gas producer Harbour Energy (HBR.L), opens new tab is set to cut 250 jobs, approximately 25% of the workforce at its UK unit based in Aberdeen, the company said in a statement on Wednesday. Harbour, the largest British North Sea oil and gas producer, said the cuts were necessary because of lower investment as a result of the UK government's policies towards the North Sea fossil fuel industry. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here.
Reuters
07-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
NiSource beats first-quarter profit estimates on robust power demand
May 7 (Reuters) - U.S. electric and gas utility NiSource (NI.N), opens new tab beat Wall Street estimates for first-quarter profit on Wednesday, driven by strong demand for power. Utilities continue to benefit from rising electricity usage - expected to reach record highs in 2025 and 2026, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration - driven by surging power demand from data centers looking to match Big Tech's AI ambitions. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. In addition to the data centers, residences and commercial businesses have been using more electricity for transportation and heating, which has further increased demand for power. "Despite market conditions and other forces beyond our control, the longevity of our plan is enduring and our investments are resilient," said CEO Lloyd Yates. Across six states, the utility company serves natural gas to around 3.3 million customers through its Columbia Gas unit and electricity to 500,000 customers through its NIPSCO unit. Quarterly total operating revenue for NiSource was $2.18 billion, compared with $1.71 billion a year earlier. Its total customer revenue, which includes residential, commercial and industrial buyers at its electric and gas segments, increased 30.8% from a year earlier to $2.15 billion. However, persistently high interest rates increased borrowing costs for power companies, which often require substantial capital for expenses such as maintaining and upgrading the electric grid. NiSource said interest expenses rose 14.2% from a year earlier to $132.8 million in the reported quarter, while operating expenses were up nearly 27%. The company reaffirmed its forecast for adjusted earnings to be between $1.85 and $1.89 per share. Analysts' average estimate was $1.87 per share. The Merrillville, Indiana-based company reported a quarterly profit of 98 cents per share, compared with analysts' average estimate of 90 cents according to data compiled by LSEG.
Reuters
07-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
TurkStream gas pipeline could slow EU, Russia decoupling: Vladimirov
May 7 - The European Commission announced a revised roadmap to fully wean itself off Russian energy by the end of 2027, but some parts of Europe are moving in the opposite direction. Russian LNG sales in the continent are actually rising, and gas supply through the TurkStream pipeline has not only survived but expanded. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. It's true that Russian pipeline gas exports to the European Union have plummeted since the start of the war in Ukraine, falling from over 155 billion cubic metres (bcm) in 2021 to under 40 bcm in 2024. But in the same period, Russian LNG sales to the EU nearly doubled to around 25 bcm, with France, Belgium, Spain and Netherlands buying over 90% of the volumes. The ban on Russian LNG transhipment via EU ports has actually boosted direct spot gas purchases. This trend should reverse under the new EU Roadmap as it calls for member states to develop detailed national plans for phasing out Russian gas in the next two and a half years. However, the Commission provides no clear legal framework for enforcing these targets. Meanwhile, the Turkstream pipeline, which runs under the Black Sea to Turkey and on to Southeast Europe, accounts for all of the Russian energy giant Gazprom's remaining pipeline exports to the bloc. In Q1, 2025, volumes through TurkStream's European section rose 16% year-on-year to around 4.5 bcm, driven by higher demand in Hungary and Slovakia. Since Turkstream's launch, more than 63 bcm of Russian gas has reached the EU, generating over 20 billion euros ($22.72 billion) for Gazprom, while supplying gas to Greece, Bulgaria, Serbia, Romania, Moldova, North Macedonia, Bosnia, Hungary and Slovakia. In 2025, Hungary has emerged as the leading importer, with Russian gas imports expected to rise to around 8 bcm, up from 6 bcm in 2023. Slovakia, which previously received its Russian gas via Ukraine, has begun importing from TurkStream, facilitated by Hungary's expansion of the cross-border transmission capacity from 2.6 to 3.5 bcm/year. Slovakia's state gas supplier, SPP, confirmed in March 2025 that it would expand its long-term contract with Gazprom, valid until 2034. These flows are driven by steep Gazprom discounts. Based on EU custom-based data, Russian pipeline gas sold to EU buyers via TurkStream in 2024 was priced 13–15% lower than alternative options. ALTERNATIVE ENERGY Alternative gas supply options exist. U.S. LNG exports will surge 15% in 2025, adding 22.5 bcm, enough to replace Russian pipeline gas and cut the U.S. trade deficit with the EU by up to $10 billion per year. These exports could reach LNG terminals in Turkey, Greece, Croatia and Italy, and then flow throughout Central and Easten Europe (CEE) via interconnectors with over 30 bcm/year in capacity. However, swapping overdependence from one supplier to another may also be risky at a time when U.S. leadership is becoming less reliable. Additionally, U.S. LNG exporters charge Europe more than North American buyers and demand 20–25-year contracts, clashing with the EU's decarbonisation goals. CEE governments, notably Hungary and Slovakia, have opposed the phaseout of Russian gas, claiming it will drastically increase energy costs and undermine Europe's competitiveness. Yet, a closer look at market differentials and gas company financial reports suggests that the Russian gas price discount does not reach consumers and instead flows to Gazprom-linked suppliers. To encourage this process of supply diversification, the EU could ban spot gas purchases immediately as they do not require long-term gas contract modifications. The deadlines for phasing out all Russian gas imports in the Roadmap could also be brought forward to the end of 2025, and the EU could make the target binding. This process could trigger force majeure clauses in long-term Gazprom contracts, though legal experts warn courts may not accept the argument. Still, a better strategy may be to claim that the seismic geopolitical changes since 2022 are forcing companies to renegotiate or cancel their contracts. To avoid bottlenecks, the European Commission's roadmap commits to help coordinate LNG imports, strengthen the gas demand aggregation mechanism and use interconnections more efficiently to reach landlocked countries. The EU also wants to oblige member states to implement a certification and traceability system for gas origin, requiring all suppliers to disclose the source of gas entering the EU, and ban Russian gas deliveries. If the EU is serious about truly decoupling from Russian energy, then TurkStream needs to be addressed. The bloc must also rethink energy security to avoid overreliance on any one power. The new roadmap gives Brussels the legal and policy tools to act, but without political resolve, dependency could quietly persist. (The views expressed here are those of Martin Vladimirov, the Director of the Geoeconomics Program of the Center for the Study of Democracy (CSD). ($1 = 0.8801 euros) Opinions expressed are those of the author. They do not reflect the views of Reuters News, which, under the Trust Principles, is committed to integrity, independence, and freedom from bias.
Reuters
06-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Uniper again delays restart of Swedish nuclear reactor
OSLO, May 6 (Reuters) - Uniper ( opens new tab has extended an outage at Sweden's Oskarshamn 3 nuclear reactor until August 15 to repair a broken pipe, the company said on Tuesday. The 40-year old reactor, which has an installed power capacity of 1,400 megawatts, has been offline since March 29 for its planned yearly maintenance and refuelling. The Reuters Power Up newsletter provides everything you need to know about the global energy industry. Sign up here. It was originally scheduled to return to service on April 18 but this was later postponed by two months to June 15. The ongoing maintenance has revealed that a pipe in the plant was damaged and a plan is now in place for how to repair it, a company spokesperson said without elaborating.
