Energy
Report: Shell Will Lay Off Hundreds In Workforce, Houston To Be Impacted
Reuters said Shell could cut hundreds of oil and gas exploration and development jobs in order to reduce costs, with Houston being especially impacted.
Shell, the major oil and energy company with its U.S. headquarters in Houston, may soon announce it is cutting 20 percent of its upstream workforce, according to a new report.
The Houston-based oil and gas giant is planning to reduce its oil and gas exploration staff by 20 percent, according to Reuters.
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Restructuring of the company’s “exploration and wells development and subsurface units” will see hundreds of job cuts around the world, and will be felt in particular in its offices in Houston, The Hague, and to a lesser degree in Britain, the sources told Reuters.
Shell did not respond to Chron’s request for comment on the impending layoffs. The energy giant is Houston’s second-largest energy employer, employing an estimated 9,000 people in the area, according to Houston Business Journal research.
The workforce cuts are not confirmed, and must still be discussed with employee representatives, the news agency said.
Shell’s new CEO, Wael Sawan, is on a cost-saving drive to improve the company’s performance. “Shell aims to create more value with less emissions by focusing on performance, discipline and simplification across the business. That includes delivering structural operating cost reductions of $2-3 billion by the end of 2025,” Shell said in a statement sent to Reuters.
In recent years, the business has also divested in a number of industries, including refineries and renewables. Earlier this week, Shell sold a pipeline and terminal system near the Houston Ship Channel that it had previously integrated into the Deer Park Refinery to a Houston-based business. Previously, Shell sold its interest in the Deer Park Refinery to Petroleos Mexicanos, or Pemex, for $596 million in 2022.
In 2022, Shell also sold its refinery in Mobile, Alabama, to Vertex Energy Inc. of Houston.
Decades after helping establish Houston’s reputation as the Energy Capital of the World, oil and gas giant Shell is shifting its focus.
The company recently published its Energy Transition Strategy 2024 report and announced it will be getting rid of about 1,000 gas stations over the next two years and funneling resources to expanding services for electric vehicles (EVs).
The company also set a goal of cutting down customers’ carbon emissions, which rose to 569 million tonnes in 2021, by 25-30 percent by 2030. “Our target to become a net-zero emissions energy business by 2050 remains at the heart of our strategy,” the report stated.
Courtesy – Chron
Energy
NMDPRA Shares July Domestic Cooking Gas Supply Details
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has credited the NLNG/SEPNU with leading the rise in Nigeria’s domestic cooking gas supply, which peaked at 5,332 tonnes per day in July 2026.
The NMDPRA’s July 2026 midstream and downstream statistics showed that total liquefied petroleum gas supply increased from 5,100 tonnes per day in June to 5,332 tonnes per day in July.
The NLNG/SEPNU supplied 2,031 tonnes per day through vessels, representing about 38 per cent of the total supply during the month.
Other processing plants supplied 1,513 tonnes per day through trucks, while the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals (DPRP) supplied 829 tonnes per day.
Imports accounted for 959 tonnes per day.
The figures showed that domestic sources supplied 4,373 tonnes per day, representing about 82 percent of the total LPG supply in July, while imports accounted for the remaining 18 percent.
The July supply level was the highest recorded in the 13-month period covered by the NMDPRA data.
LPG supply stood at 4,500 tonnes per day in July 2025 before rising to 5,000 tonnes in August and declining to 3,900 tonnes in September last year.
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It subsequently increased to 4,500 tonnes in October, 5,000 tonnes in November and 5,200 tonnes in December.
In January 2026, supply stood at 5,100 tonnes per day before falling to 4,700 tonnes in February and March, 4,500 tonnes in April and 4,100 tonnes in May.
The supply level then rose to 5,100 tonnes per day in June before reaching 5,332 tonnes in July.
The latest figures indicate a continued strengthening of domestic LPG supply, with local sources now accounting for the bulk of the cooking gas available in the country.
However, our correspondent reports that LPG prices have yet to fall below the N1,000 per kilogramme level after the sudden surge in May.
Though prices have plunged from a high of N2,400/kg to between N1,300 and N1,600, depending on location.
The NLNG recently accused some marketers of contributing to the sharp rise in the price of cooking gas by buying liquefied petroleum gas from the company at prices between N800 and N900 per kilogramme and selling it for as much as N2,400/kg in the retail market.
The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of NLNG, Adeleye Falade, disclosed this during a recent media briefing in Lagos, where he attributed the price spike to supply shortages, artificial scarcity and distortions in the distribution chain rather than the company’s pricing.
According to him, when the retail price of LPG climbed to N2,400/kg, the NLNG was selling the product to buyers at between N800 and N900/kg. He said the price was supposed to be in the range of N1,000 to N1,200, going by the recommendation of the NMDPRA.
“When the product was being sold at N2,400 in the market, guess how much they (marketers) were lifting it from us? It was between N800 and N900 per kg. And NMDPRA recommended that by the time you put in transportation costs and all other things, it shouldn’t be selling more than N1,000, N1,100 or N1,200. So, there’s also some distortion that happened on the sales side, which I know the regulators are working on right now to get control of it,” he stated.
Energy
US-Iran Conflict Sees Oil Exceed $94
On Tuesday, renewed escalation of the conflict between the United States and Iran pressured oil prices to over $94/barrel.
Current hostilities which witnessed American air strikes on Iranian targets and triggered global concerns of disruption to crude supplies through the Strait of Hormuz.
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Brent crude rose $4.06, or 4.49 percent, to $94.55 a barrel, while West Texas Intermediate gained $4.44, or 5.18 percent, to $90.20 a barrel. Murban crude also surged by $7.19, or 7.30 percent, to $105.60 a barrel, according to Oilprice.com.
The rally followed the United States’ fresh strikes on Iran, with Washington saying its forces had targeted the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps IRGC).
“Today (Tuesday) at 12 p.m. ET (1600 GMT), US forces began striking Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps targets in Iran.
“The strikes follow recent attempted attacks by the IRGC against commercial shipping in the Strait of Hormuz and against American service members deployed to the region,” the US Central Command said.
The latest attacks have raised fresh concerns about the security around the Strait of Hormuz, a critical route for global oil supplies. Oil prices had already risen following the exchange of attacks between the two countries over the weekend, while reports of attacks on tankers further fuelled supply concerns.
Reuters reported that two supertankers carrying Saudi oil were struck by unknown projectiles within minutes of each other while travelling outbound through the Strait of Hormuz late on Monday, according to shipping intelligence and tracking firms.
Following the reports, Brent crude futures, which were already up about two percent, jumped by almost another two percent.
Iran has also threatened to prevent oil exports from the Gulf if the US continues its attacks. “If the enemy wants us not to export oil from the Persian Gulf, no one will be able to export oil,” Iranian Parliament Speaker Mohammad Baqer Qalibaf was quoted as saying by Iranian media.
The renewed confrontation has heightened fears that the six-month-old conflict could escalate into a wider war and threaten crude supplies from the oil-rich Gulf region.
The conflict had previously shifted towards sanctions, blockades and economic pressure, but the latest exchange of attacks has raised concerns about a return to sustained military confrontation.
US President Donald Trump warned Iran that it would face a stronger response if it retaliated against the latest American strikes.The US strikes came after Iranian missiles were fired at two US air bases in Jordan in response to an earlier American attack on Iran’s Larak Island.
The latest escalation also coincided with plans by Washington to impose additional economic sanctions on Tehran. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said bank sanctions against Iran were likely to be announced this week and next, while warning that Washington would also target other entities doing business with the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps.
Energy
172 HCDTs Incorporated — NUPRC
The Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said that 172 Host Communities Development Trusts (HCDTs) have so far been incorporated by oil and gas companies operating across the country.
The chief executive, NUPRC, Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, disclosed this while addressing the leadership of the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC) in Abuja.
Under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), oil and gas companies, referred to as settlors, are required to contribute three percent of their Operating Expenditure from the preceding financial year into a Host Communities Trust Fund for the benefit of communities where they operate.
Eyesan said the NUPRC had been enforcing the provisions of the Act, particularly those relating to host communities and the obligations of operating companies, and had put in place regulations and procedures to streamline the process.
“We have laid out procedures for doing things and we have put regulations in place to streamline the process. So far, we have registered 172 HCDTs and we have been able to manage contributions by settlors,” she said.
READ ALSO: Nigeria Beats 2026 Foreign Reserves Target, Hits $53.1b
She said the trusts had funded the construction of schools, hospitals and other infrastructure, and had contributed significantly to peace and stability in previously volatile communities, which in turn had led to an increase in oil production.
Eyesan, however, admitted that some of the HCDTs had become subjects of litigation over disagreements on the constitution of their Boards of Trustees. She said the Commission had been working to ensure the trusts run smoothly, and that its Alternative Dispute Resolution Centre had played a key role in addressing some of the grievances.
She said that while the RMAFC’s interest in host communities was appreciated, oversight of how the funds are managed remained the exclusive preserve of the NUPRC.
The NUPRC boss also promised to investigate the lingering disagreement between Sterling Oil Exploration and Energy Production Company (SEEPCO) and its host community in Anambra State.
Responding, the chairman of the RMAFC, Dr Mohammed Bello Shehu, commended the NUPRC for overseeing reforms in the oil and gas sector that had contributed to growth in production.
Shehu said the RMAFC regards the upstream oil and gas sector as important, given that it accounts for a large share of revenue accruing to the Federation Account.
He thanked the NUPRC leadership for honouring the RMAFC’s invitation and called for stronger collaboration between the two institutions in the interest of the country.





