** Israel said it attacked a one-of-a-kind uranium processing plant in Iran in its latest wave of air strikes. The IDF also hit a heavy water reactor, which they described as “key infrastructure for producing plutonium for nuclear weapons”.
** Governments moved again this week to release and build oil reserves as the supply shock from the Iran war deepened and the Strait of Hormuz remained constrained. Japan began releasing about one month of state-held crude, adding to earlier draws from private stockpiles, while the United States is already in the middle of one of its largest-ever Strategic Petroleum Reserve releases to contain price spikes.
** A Chinese energy executive says the country may reach peak oil demand sooner than expected as conflict in the Middle East drives China even further toward renewables.
** Hapag-Lloyd is spending an extra $40 million to $50 million weekly due to the war in Iran, CEO Rolf Habben Jansen said in a company earnings call. The expenses are largely related to increasing rates for bunker fuel, as well as rising insurance premiums and added costs for container storage and inland transportation.
** Serica Energy has urged the government to prioritise domestic production in the North Sea, as oil and gas supplies continued to be held in the Strait of Hormuz amid the Iran war in its latest annual results.
** An oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico in early March spread more than 600 kilometers (373 miles), including to seven nature reserves, and originated from a vessel yet to be identified and two “natural seepages,” Mexican authorities announced. Authorities, however, ruled out the possibility of severe environmental damage from the spill off coast of the eastern state of Veracruz.
U.S.
** A judge ruled Friday that the Trump administration can convene a meeting next week to seek an exemption from the Endangered Species Act on the basis of national security for expanded oil and gas drilling in the Gulf of Mexico.
** Offshore wind experts question the legality of the Trump administration’s announced reimbursement to TotalEnergies of nearly $1 billion in lease fees for areas off the coasts of New York and North Carolina to invest in fossil fuels instead, saying no process exists for the federal government to return the funds.
** Half of oil executives surveyed by the Dallas Federal Reserve say their drilling plans for this year haven’t changed despite rising oil prices, while 21% say they’ll increase drilling significantly.
** Energy Secretary Chris Wright says gas supply disruptions in the Middle East could boost the case for an Alaskan LNG pipeline that would run fuel south from the state’s North Slope.
** Iowa lawmakers consider granting data centers and nuclear power plants a state sales tax exemption during construction to encourage investment.
** Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) says Democrats will look to restore and expand renewable energy tax credits if they regain control of Congress this year.