European gas and oil prices jumped sharply on Tuesday as US‑Israeli strikes on Iran entered their fourth day and Qatari LNG exports remained halted, stoking fears of prolonged supply disruption through the Strait of Hormuz. montelnews.com/news/27f768f...

The European Commission is setting up an energy task force with EU member states and liaising with the International Energy Agency in response to the war in Iran, it said late on Monday. montelnews.com/news/765a1b0...

Italy is unlikely to face an immediate gas shortage from the halt to Qatari LNG via the Strait of Hormuz but rising prices and market volatility pose a risk to its energy system, analysts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/60fd7e4...

European gas prices surged over 50% on Monday amid the Middle East conflict, meaning German power generators should switch from gas to coal, analysts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/ac2214e...

The EU and Switzerland signed an electricity agreement on Monday intended to eventually integrate the landlocked country into the bloc’s internal market against a backdrop of growing geopolitical turmoil. montelnews.com/news/0634c27...

European gas and power prices soared on Monday afternoon – with the benchmark TTF contract climbing up to almost 55% – amid an escalating conflict in the Middle East and reports of a production halt at a key LNG facility in Qatar. montelnews.com/news/01878ac...

QatarEnergy announced on Monday a halt to its LNG production following military attacks at its terminal in Ras Laffan, thus removing one of the world’s largest LNG suppliers from active output. montelnews.com/news/604608f...

The benchmark EU carbon price recovered from a nine-month low level on Monday morning, but was still trading in the opposite direction of surging gas and oil prices amid the fresh Middle Eastern conflict. montelnews.com/news/f5da9b6...

The Middle East conflict has paused LNG traffic through the Strait of Hormuz and could “dramatically” tighten the global market, intensifying competition for cargoes between Asia and Europe, analysis firm Wood Mackenzie said on Monday. montelnews.com/news/376afe7...

Nordic power futures are expected to rise strongly in response to surging gas prices on Monday as unusually weak hydropower reserves made the market more vulnerable to global fuel disruptions than normal, analysts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/1e99a5a...

European gas prices spiked by nearly 25% early on Monday as war in the Middle East led to an effective halt over the weekend to shipping via the Strait of Hormuz, which handles a fifth of the world’s LNG supply. montelnews.com/news/e8ac7e5...

Brent crude oil jumped more than 10% to the highest level since January 2025 in early trading on Monday amid fighting in the Middle East and reports of three ships attacked near the Strait of Hormuz. montelnews.com/news/400d1d2...

Oil and gas prices will likely surge when European markets open on Monday, with some analysts expecting a USD 5-20 rise in Brent crude, amid heightened instability in the Middle East following US-Israel strikes on Iran. montelnews.com/news/260e69d...

Norwegian paper producer Norske Skog is to cut power consumption at its paper mill in Halden by up to 60%, it said on Friday, adding it had made a preliminary agreement with a data centre developer to join the site. montelnews.com/news/6bfd6d4...

Carbon analysts have largely refrained from readjusting their 2026 EUA price forecasts despite increasing political pressure to loosen the trading scheme having pulled the market down by 23% since mid-January. montelnews.com/news/5fde801...

Battery energy storage optimisation deals are set for further growth in the UK this year, with offtakers targeting revenues through price volatility and the array of opportunities afforded by the country’s wholesale power markets, sources told Montel. montelnews.com/news/1b2765c...

Norwegian utility Å Energi has written down the value of its 49.9% stake in battery venture Morrow to zero, it said on Friday, delivering a further blow to a sector many believed would become a major driver of power demand a few years ago. montelnews.com/news/a5138e4...

Blocking weather patterns could cause energy prices to rise by bringing cooler temperatures and reduced wind and precipitation to northwest Europe this spring, meteorologists told Montel. montelnews.com/news/22fc20c...

The European Commission is unlikely to approve Italy’s proposed ETS-related measures, according to the country’s hydropower association Assoidroelettrica, which said informal feedback from EU officials suggests this aspect would be incompatible with state aid rules. montelnews.com/news/d90d6a4...

Nordic countries Denmark, Finland and Sweden were among the most vocal supporters of a strong emissions trading system (ETS) amid calls to soften its impact on industry, it emerged during a debate on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/2dfc716...

Industry’s access to cheap home-grown wind power remains limited by grid constraints and flat electricity demand in the face of fresh calls for power and carbon market reforms, lobby WindEurope said on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/22531fc...

Spain and Portugal are entering a period of stronger power demand growth driven by affordable energy prices, outperforming other European markets, the CEO of Portuguese utility EDP said on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/dfbb56b...

Spain’s power grid “did not fail” before last April’s blackout so power TSO Red Electrica’s parent company Redeia did not set aside funds for potential damages claims from utilities, it said on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/364d861...

Europe’s benchmark carbon price fell 5% to a one-week low on Thursday amid calls by Italy to suspend the EU emissions trading system. montelnews.com/news/9ec5375...

A group of 10 EU members – including the bloc’s biggest economy, Germany – has urged a revision of the emissions trading system to take a more lenient approach to industry. montelnews.com/news/34b6fb2...

Different accounting systems that can produce a wide range of emissions measurements for steelmakers are compounding the teething difficulties that have accompanied the EU Carbon Border Adjustment Mechanism (CBAM), a webinar heard late on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/b4db8f8...

A majority of French MPs voted late on Wednesday against toppling the government over the publication of the country’s 10-year energy roadmap (PPE) two weeks ago. montelnews.com/news/67653e0...

Italy’s energy reform plan could slow renewable development, undermine investor confidence and create uncertainty over subsidy schemes, industry observers told Montel. montelnews.com/news/1069b12...

Italy has called on the EC to suspend the EU ETS until a comprehensive reform is implemented, arguing the current framework imposes an “additional tax burden on European companies” and undermines their competitiveness, in a statement released on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/4d87393...

Ukraine faces “a war against energy infrastructure” four years after Russia’s invasion – leaving people without power during the country’s coldest winter for 15 years, industry officials told Montel’s Plugged In podcast on Thursday. montelnews.com/news/ccb3374...

AI will be a boon for the German economy and the country must embrace data centres, despite the demands they add to the country’s already congested grid, Eon CEO Leonhard Birnbaum said on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/1fa6487...

The European Commission may take into account the political and geopolitical reasoning behind Italy’s energy reform, rather than focusing on legal technicalities, an energy law specialist told Montel on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/cfa12cb...

The German government’s plan to relax its building sector decarbonisation law is likely to increase demand for the upcoming EU ETS2 and lift carbon prices, an analyst told Montel on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/4ba2a2a...

Norway opposes an EU plan to share grid congestion revenues between EU countries, energy minister Terje Aasland told Montel on Wednesday, although he noted the government had yet to decide on implementing the EU grid package. montelnews.com/news/498db5f...

German energy company Eon on Wednesday welcomed a controversial recent economy ministry proposal to decongest networks, and countered suggestions the company was responsible for costly grid bottlenecks. montelnews.com/news/c54194e...

The European Commission plans to unveil an EU electrification action plan on 19 May, as well as proposals to strengthen energy security and a heating and cooling strategy, according to a draft agenda seen by Montel on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/ed5edd6...

Interventions in power markets such as Italy’s would not help to attract the investment needed to address growing electricity demand, Spanish utility Iberdrola’s chairman said on Wednesday as he called for lower power taxes. montelnews.com/news/f363a7e...

Curtailment of onshore wind and solar power output in France doubled last year, to around 3 TWh during periods of negative spot prices, transmission system operator RTE said on Wednesday. montelnews.com/news/429205f...

A group of 150 Italian scientists and economists have urged the country’s government not to weaken the EU carbon market in its new energy reform, calling such a move “short-sighted” as Italy faces growing climate risks. montelnews.com/news/99ce8f7...

Column of the Week - North Sea power play: Europe’s bold wind gamble montelnews.com/news/2308097...

The European Commission should halt its gas storage rules in 2028 to enable “market-led” use of underground sites, Energy Traders Europe said on Tuesday, while calling for clearer rules to ban Russian gas and LNG imports. montelnews.com/news/247c23e...

Spain will begin to see widescale development of battery energy storage system (BESS) projects this year due to subsidies already granted to the sector, industry experts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/5b7f25a...

The European Commission should aim to limit total electricity costs for industrial users to EUR 50/MWh as part of its electrification action plan expected in May, energy-intensive industries said on Tuesday. montelnews.com/news/a87abaa...

The EU emissions trading system will require flexibilities and stronger carbon leakage measures to play a key role in supporting the bloc’s long-term decarbonisation efforts, a lobby group representing European industry said on Tuesday. montelnews.com/news/d24f4a5...

European gas storage operators face challenging financial conditions up to 2036 as a “wave of LNG supply” pressures winter-summer price spreads, reducing the profitability of many facilities, analysts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/0ecc00d...

Long read: GO market may stall as emissions accounting standards loom montelnews.com/news/87c18cc...

Some EU nations risk missing their 2030 interconnector targets, raising the prospect of higher power prices and constrained renewable flows as grid bottlenecks hamper cross-border electricity trade, analysts told Montel. montelnews.com/news/193c49a...

Spanish utility Endesa plans to invest EUR 3bn in renewable energy in the 2026-28 period in Iberia, 20% lower than the amount earmarked in its previous period, it said on Tuesday. montelnews.com/news/52f0012...

Russia began its full-scale invasion of Ukraine four years ago today which, aside from the tragic toll on its population, has seen the crippling of the country’s energy system through ever-worsening strikes on plants and infrastructure. montelnews.com/news/58f439f...

Far-right National Rally (RN) and far-left La France Insoumise (LFI) parties each filed a motion of no confidence against the French government on Monday in reaction to the publication of the country’s 10-year energy roadmap (PPE) two weeks ago. montelnews.com/news/6c0131b...