Free Top Stories

US ‘grabs Iranian fuel en route to Venezuela’

14 August 2020

Move disrupts growing strategic alliance of two sanctioned nations that Washington finds hard to swallow.

Debut green bonds issued on Astana International Exchange

12 August 2020

UNDP backs milestone achievement of Kazakhstan’s Damu Entrepreneurship Fund. Move based on reduction of investment risks in renewable energy.

VTB Capital sees complications with viability of Tajik eurobond amid weakening sovereign profile

6 August 2020

Significant rainfall reduction in Tajikistan’s Pamir mountains hit country’s hopes for electricity export to Pakistan, perhaps undercutting potential of “TAJIKI bond” financed Roghun hydropower dam project.

Belarus set to start the Ostrovets NPP within the next few days

5 August 2020

Operations at the first unit of the new Belarusian nuclear power plant (NPP) in Ostrovets, near the Belarusian-Lithuanian border, are being launched early and slated to start in the next few days

Lithuania’s Ignitis to invest €950mn in green energy in Baltics, Poland

28 July 2020

Ignitis considering investments into wind, solar, hydro, waste and biomass powered plants. Company strategy calls for achieving carbon neutrality by 2050,

Turkish lira nears record low versus euro with market anxious over EU sanctions and tie to dollar

27 July 2020

Spanish foreign minister was in Ankara attempting to ease tensions over eastern Mediterranean drilling plans that have upset Greece and Cyprus.

Poland to table restructuring plan for crippled miner PGG

27 July 2020

PGG has been struggling in 2020, as lockdown measures introduced to curb the spread of the coronavirus pandemic reduced demand for electricity. Poland derives nearly 80% of its power from burning hard and lignite coal.

Romanian PM promises €8bn-9bn investment and western partner for nuclear power plant expansion

24 July 2020

Romania close to signing an agreement with "Euro-Atlantic partners" to complete the third and fourth reactors at the Cernavoda nuclear power plant, PM Ludovic Orban says after talks with China's CGN were scrapped.

European Commission approves merger of Poland’s PKN Orlen with peer Grupa Lotos

14 July 2020

Poland's two refining companies to merge to create a “multinational company with a global reach”, government officials say. PKN Orlen lines up its next merger, with oil and gas company PGNiG.

Gazprom swings to first quarterly loss since 2015

14 July 2020

The coronavirus pandemic caused Gazprom's European sales to collapse, and ruble devaluation led to hefty foreign exchange losses.

Poland’s coal production falls to all-time low in May

3 July 2020

The coronavirus lockdown resulted in lower demand from industry in May, but the mining industry was already facing financial problems due to falling demand and rising production costs.

Macron accuses Erdogan of massively importing jihadists into Libya

30 June 2020

Calls it a “criminal” intervention by “a country which claims to be a Nato member”.

Final licence for €12.5bn expansion of Paks power plant could be issued by September 2021

27 June 2020

After years of delay, project company Paks II will submit the application for a final license to the National Atomic Energy Office on June 30.

Kolomoisky’s Ukrtatnafta oil company wins Defence Ministry fuel supply contract despite offering a price that is a third higher than the others

25 June 2020

Ukraine’s oil company Ukrtatnafta, which is controlled by oligarch Ihor Kolomoisky, has won a tender to supply the Ministry of Defence with 3,500 tonnes of aviation fuel despite asking a price that was almost a third higher than the lowest offer

Western Balkan coal power plants still greatly exceed pollution limits

24 June 2020

Levels of sulphur dioxide emitted by power plants in the EU-aspiring region exceed pollution limits by almost six times, finds a new report from Bankwatch.