Global updates and expert commentary on the energy and automotive sectors
Baker Hughes Rig Count: : International +27 to 913, :U.S. -2 to 536 Canada -5 to 175
London, August 29, 2025, (Oilandgaspress) –––Panasonic Corporation today announced that Panasonic Heating & Ventilation Air-Conditioning Czech, s.r.o. (PHVACCZ), a subsidiary of Heating & Ventilation A/C Company, started operations at the new building in its Czech factory, a production site for air-to-water heat pumps. Air-to-water heat pumps utilize heat from the atmosphere to produce hot water, which is then circulated throughout buildings for heating. They minimize environmental impact with less CO2 emissions compared to fossil fuel-using heaters, they significantly reduce CO2 emissions and have a lower environmental impact. With the growing awareness of environmental issues and the push toward a decarbonized society, the market is expected to see steady growth over the medium to long term.
The Czech factory was established in 1996 as a production site for televisions and began manufacturing air-to-water heat pumps in 2018. Initially, the factory produced only indoor units, but in 2023, it also started producing outdoor units using the R290 natural refrigerant, making it the first Japanese manufacturer*1 to do so. Furthermore, in 2024, the factory strengthened its role as a key development and production hub by establishing an R&D department to respond swiftly and flexibly to market needs in Europe. Read More
China National Offshore Oil Corporation (CNOOC).,the Chinese owner of Scotland’s oil platform has rejected Ed Miliband’s plans to power it with a £2.5bn wind farm. Mr Miliband, the Energy Secretary, had hoped to install a giant floating wind farm 50 miles north-east of Aberdeen to power the polluting Buzzard oil platform, The aim was to electrify Buzzard – one of the North Sea’s most polluting platforms – so that it could be powered by green electricity from the wind farm, known as Green Volt. However, CNOOC has now backed out of the arrangement. A spokesman said that after a review of plans to electrify the Buzzard platform, “we have been unable to find an investible solution in the current economic climate”. China’s decision to abandon the electrification scheme is likely to be linked to Buzzard’s falling oil production output. Read More
AeroVironment, Inc., a leader in intelligent, multi-domain robotic systems, announced the successful delivery of its Group 2 P550™ small Unmanned Aircraft Systems (sUAS) to the U.S. Army as part of the Long-Range Reconnaissance (LRR) program to support training and operations for Transformation in Contact (TiC) brigades. This initial delivery includes multiple P550 systems along with new equipment training and training master trainers to ensure mission readiness and rapid integration into the U.S. Army TiC Brigades and other designated units.
This milestone marks a significant achievement for both the Army and the all-new P550 product line. Built from the ground up with a Modular Open Systems Approach (MOSA), the P550 is designed to meet evolving warfighter requirements, enabling rapid adaptation in dynamic, contested environments with multiple payload, radio, and power options to counter emerging threats and enhance lethality. It builds on decades of AV’s UAS development and production of combat-proven systems delivered to the Department of Defense and over 50 partner nations. The P550 is AV’s latest autonomous Group 2 eVTOL system, redefining battlefield adaptability with rapid deployment, advanced situational awareness, and targeting and strike capabilities. Its proven AI and autonomy enable smarter, safer operations for maneuver forces. Read More
Baker Hughes Rig Count: : International +27 to 913, :U.S. -2 to 536 Canada -5 to 175
U.S. Rig Count is down 2 from last week to 536 with oil rigs down 1 to 412, gas rigs down 3 to 119 and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at 5.
Canada Rig Count is down 5 from last week to 175, with oil rigs down 3 to 120, gas rigs down 1 to 55 and miscellaneous rigs down 1 to 0.
International Rig Count is up 1 from last month to 914 with land rigs down 10 to 720, offshore rigs up 11 to 194.
The Worldwide Rig Count for July was 1,621, up 22 from the 1,600 counted in June 2025, and down 92, from the 1,713 counted in July 2024.
| Region | Period | Rig Count | Change |
| U.S.A | August 29, 2025 | 536 | – 2 |
| Canada | August 29, 2025 | 175 | -5 |
| International | July 2025 | 914 | +1 |
.Air Lease announced the lease and delivery of two additional new Airbus A321-200neo aircraft to China Airlines, marking the seventh and eighth new A321neos to deliver to the airline on long-term lease from Air Lease’s orderbook with Airbus. The two new aircraft delivered to the Taiwan-based carrier on August 16th and August 20th.
“We are pleased to lease and deliver these two additional new A321neos to our valued long-term customer, China Airlines, to help with their further fleet development and expansion,” said John L. Plueger, Chief Executive Officer and President of Air Lease.
China Airlines stated that in response to growing travel demand, the airline continues to steadily expand fleet capacity and optimize its route network. By introducing leased A321neo aircraft, China Airlines is implementing the strategy for steady global network development and fleet modernization, delivering exceptional inflight services and maintaining market competitiveness. Read More
Embraer announced it has surpassed 2,000 business jet deliveries, marking a defining moment in the company’s history. The milestone aircraft is a Praetor 500, delivered to an undisclosed corporate flight department during a ceremony at Embraer’s Executive Jets state-of-the-art Global Customer Center in Melbourne, Florida.
The Praetor 500 is the most disruptive and technologically advanced business jet in its class, delivering industry-leading range, speed and performance. It is the fastest and furthest-flying midsize jet, capable of true nonstop North America corner-to-corner flights, such as Miami to Seattle or Los Angeles to New York. The aircraft offers an impressive intercontinental range of 3,340 nautical miles (6,186 km) with four passengers and NBAA IFR Reserves. Read More
Honeywell announced that Syzygy Plasmonics, a global leader in electrified biogas-to-SAF technology, will use Honeywell UOP Fischer-Tropsch (FT) UnicrackingTM technology to make sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) from dairy waste and renewable energy at the world’s first electrified biogas-to-SAF facility. Syzygy’s modular commercial plant, NovaSAF-1, located in Duranzo, Uruguay, is expected to produce more than 350,000 gallons of SAF per year. The NovaSAFTM platform can be replicated at over 50,000 biogas sites globally, helping scale affordable SAF production of abundant feedstock.
“Our innovative NovaSAF platform helps meet the growing demand for sustainable aviation fuels by achieving both high volumes and low price points, even as low as Jet-A parity under the right conditions,” said Trevor Best, CEO and co-founder of Syzygy Plasmonics. “With Honeywell’s hydrocracking technology, we can accelerate the development of our modular NovaSAF-1 plant, which will serve as a repeatable, scalable model for the future. This plant will show the world how profitable it can be to produce SAF from biogas waste streams combined with renewable energy.”
With traditional feedstocks in short supply, alternative production methods are important to produce renewable fuels. By 2030, the International Energy Agency predicts waste- and nonfood crop-based biofuels will supply over 40% of biofuel demand.1. Read More
Sinopec Wins Engineering Contract for Saudi Arabia Green Hydrogen Project
According to a front-end engineering design (FEED) +EPC convertible contract recently awarded by Saudi Arabia’s ACWA Power, Sinopec Guangzhou Engineering Co., Ltd., the wholly-owned subsidiary of the SINOPEC Engineering (Group) Co., Ltd. (SEG), and Spanish company Técnicas Reunidas, will form a joint venture to provide engineering service for a large-scale green hydrogen and green ammonia project in Yanbu.
The project will be put into commercial operation in 2030, producing annually 400,000 tonnes of green hydrogen and 2.8 million tonnes of green ammonia with wind and solar power. This will effectively promote the scale-up and application of green hydrogen and green ammonia technologies, contributing to the global energy transition. Read More
China Discovers Another Large Shale Gas Field
Recently, more than 165 billion cubic meters of proven shale gas reserves in the Hongxing shale gas field, submitted by Sinopec Jianghan Oilfield, have been reviewed and approved by China’s Ministry of Natural Resources. This marks the discovery of another large-scale shale gas field in China and further demonstrates the region’s strong resource potential.
At present, Sinopec has built one trillion-cubic-meter-level deep shale gas field in Fuling, along with four other deep shale gas fields — Weirong, Qijiang, Yongchuan, and Hongxing — each with proven gas reserves of around 100 billion cubic meters. Read More
Gulfstream Aerospace Corp. announced its first customer delivery of the all-new Gulfstream G800, the world’s longest range business aircraft. The G800 entry into service follows its Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) and European Union Aviation Safety Agency (EASA) certifications on April 16. The aircraft was outfitted at Gulfstream’s Appleton, Wisconsin, completions facility. Recently awarded the 2025 International Yacht & Aviation Award for Private Jet Design, the G800 features the industry’s lowest cabin altitude of 2,840 feet/866 meters when flying at 41,000 ft/12,497 m, 100% fresh air in the cabin, a plasma ionization air purification system and 16 Gulfstream Panoramic Oval Windows. The interior can be configured with up to four living areas or three living areas and a dedicated crew compartment.
The April 16 certifications confirmed enhanced performance capabilities for the G800, which can travel 8,200 nautical miles/15,186 kilometers at its long-range cruise speed of Mach 0.85 and 7,000 nm/12,964 km at its high-speed cruise of Mach 0.90. The aircraft can also fly 8,000 nm/14,816 km at Mach 0.87. In addition, the G800 maximum operating speed increased to Mach 0.935 from Mach 0.925. Read More
UK Government’s Electric Car Grant (ECG) is barely a month old and already ministers have introduced a new stipulation to restrict the number of vehicles qualifying for discounts. Launched on 15 July, the ECG is Labour’s desperate bid to encourage the take-up of electric vehicles following months of slowing demand from private buyers.
The scheme offers to slash the price of some new EVs by as much as £3,750 in the hope that making them more financially appealing will translate to an acceleration in the number of motorists making the switch.
To ensure grants are ‘targeted’ only to affordable EVs, only those starting from under £37,000 are eligible. Manufacturers too must adhere to stringent sustainability criteria in order for their cars to qualify for the discounts.
With 28 models so far confirmed for grants, the Department for Transport last night introduced a new ‘price cap’ to the rules to cut more luxurious and well-equipped EVs out of the deal.
This will ultimately add yet more confusion to the scheme, which has already drawn criticism from industry experts and dealers for being convoluted and a drain on taxpayer funds. . Read More
Ford Pro is introducing Ford Power Promise for its commercial vehicle customers, a package of benefits designed to make switching to electric vans much simpler. Electric vans could save small businesses in the UK almost £12,000 (€14,000) per vehicle over three years, mainly through reduced energy and maintenance costs, according to a recent report commissioned by Ford Pro and published by the Centre for Economics and Business Research (CEBR). 1
Despite the potential savings, the report also found many businesses are lacking the confidence to make the switch. Charging times (38.1 per cent of respondents), availability of public charging (29.1 per cent) and the cost of installing charging infrastructure (28.4 per cent) ranked high on the list of concerns. The Ford Pro Power Promise is designed ease those worries and many more – giving hard-working business owners the confidence to transition their fleets to benefit from productivity-boosting electric power.
Building on Ford Pro’s home charging offer launched in 2024, the package provides a discounted home charger costing just £10, or an £825 contribution towards a charging installation at a commercial premises; free five-year service and roadside assistance plan; eight-year high-voltage battery warranty; 12-month free vehicle management software and access to Ford’s expansive BlueOval Charge Network (BOCN) – all included with the sale of the vehicle. Alternatively, for customers who do not have the ability to install a home charger and don’t need depot charging, a £500 saving on any eligible vehicle purchase will be offered. Read More
Ford Transit van celebrates its 60th anniversary this year, marking six decades of loyal service to businesses and communities across the UK, with celebrations kicking off at the CV Show in Birmingham.
Since the first vehicle left the production line in 1965, Transit has become a byword for getting the job done – reliably and efficiently. Fast forward 60 years, and a new generation of connected and electrified Transit vans is raising productivity to a new level.
Commercial vans provide the backbone for the economy – supporting €1 trillion in economic activity across Europe alone – and Ford Transit vehicles play a significant role in the lives and jobs of millions of people. From getting workers to a building site, to keeping our stores stocked and delivering goods to our doors, or even rushing a patient to hospital, people depend on Transits to keep the world moving.
The latest Transit line up from Ford Pro features four key models – Courier, Connect, Custom and the larger two-tonne Transit, each available with electrified powertrains and full connectivity to Ford Pro’s supporting services. Read More .
Ford Motors announced a recall Thursday of nearly 500,000 vehicles due to a potential brake fluid leak that could impact braking performance.
The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration warns that a ruptured brake hose could increase stopping time, and therefore crash risks, although Ford said it has not received any reported crashes or injuries related to the issue. The recall affects Ford’s SUV Edge, model years 2015 to 2018, as well as its mid-size luxury vehicle, Lincoln MKX, from 2016 to 2018. The NHTSA estimates that one percent of the recalled vehicles have the defect. Owners of affected vehicles will be notified by mail and are advised to schedule a free repair at a Ford or Lincoln dealership. The repair involves replacing the brake master cylinder. Read More
Bentley Motors has announced the official opening of a new €4.8 million state-of-the-art service centre in Düsseldorf, Germany, underlining its commitment to sustainability, innovation, and exceptional customer service.
The Düsseldorf service centre has been purpose-built to deliver benchmark-setting technical innovation and a seamless customer experience. The 1,200 m² workshop includes nine lifts, expandable to eleven, conductive epoxy flooring for the safe servicing of battery-electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles, and fully integrated smart building systems. From advanced diagnostics to future-ready tooling, the facility ensures Bentley customers receive world-class aftersales care.
The customer experience is at the heart of the Düsseldorf service centre. The facility features dedicated premium offices, a refined lounge, and comfortable waiting areas, ensuring a seamless and welcoming environment that mirrors Bentley’s hallmark attention to detail.
The new facility represents a landmark investment in the region, and is rooted in Bentley’s Beyond100+ sustainability strategy. The site includes a 60 kWp rooftop solar installation, providing renewable energy to power operations, while also operating on 100 per cent renewable electricity and connecting to Düsseldorf’s district heating system. Read More
Air Liquide announced that it has signed a binding agreement with Macquarie Asia-Pacific Infrastructure Fund 2, for the acquisition of DIG Airgas, a leading national player in South Korea. It is expected to close in the first semester of 2026. The proposed transaction values DIG Airgas at an enterprise value of 2.85 billion euros / 4.6 trillion South Korean won. This major acquisition marks a significant strategic milestone for Air Liquide, substantially strengthening its market position in South Korea – the 6th largest manufacturing country by GDP, the 4th largest Industrial Gas market and the 2nd country in innovation spending ratio. It is recognized globally for its highly dynamic economy and rapidly expanding electronics, clean energy, mobility and Bio-Pharma sectors. Read More
On August 29, 2025, Air Liquide was made aware of the Russian authorities’ decision to place Air Liquide Group’s Russian assets under state administration. This decision confers control of Air Liquide’s assets in Russia to the Russian Government, as it has already done for other entities previously owned by European companies. Air Liquide takes note of this decision and will examine all available courses of action. Read More
The FF, Ferrari’s first all-wheel drive production car, arrived in 2011, and now both the triple Le Mans 24 Hours-winning 499P and F80 use an electrified front axle to deliver unprecedented handling response. Ferrari had been experimenting with all-wheel drive for years, the 408 4RM – ruote motrici – cars among the most notable of the company’s concepts. It’s said that Ferrari’s technical director, the late Mauro Forghieri, often pondered the possibility of all-wheel drive in Formula One, but by the Eighties it was the dominant technology in the hugely popular World Rally Championship. Japanese car companies were also experimenting with it.
The 408 4RM was powered by a 4.0-litre V8 derived from the 328 model, and two were made; one had a steel chassis, the other a bonded aluminium structure, with composite body panels and a magnesium bulkhead. The 4WD system used a centre differential and hydraulic coupling, for 29/71 torque split front-to-rear. Vice Chairman Piero Ferrari called time on the project in 1991, citing the system’s extra weight as antithetical to Ferrari’s core engineering philosophy. Read More
The Ferrari 250 LM has one of the most melodious exhaust notes of all time, but as it burbles tunefully at Maranello today, its V12 engine is accompanied by more music – that of Emanuel Graf and his Stradivarius cello.
Graf is one of the most accomplished cellists of his generation. Yet, beyond his musical virtuosity, Graf’s cello case, in Rosso Corsa, hints at another passion: a lifelong love for the Prancing Horse. Read More
Xpeng Motors’ booth at Chengdu Auto Show
On August 29th, the 28th Chengdu International Auto Show opened with great fanfare. With the theme of “AI Changing the World,” Xpeng Motors showcased an all-star lineup, including the all-new Xpeng P7, Xpeng G7, the 2025 Xpeng X9, the Xpeng MONA M03, and the next-generation humanoid robot IRON, showcasing Xpeng’s cutting-edge achievements in AI technology.
The Xiaopeng Motors booth is located in H1106 of Hall 11. It not only presents a variety of AI cars and AI humanoid robots, but also has multiple core technology display areas, focusing on presenting hard-core technologies such as Xiaopeng Turing AI intelligent driving, Xiaopeng Turing AI chip, Xiaopeng shooting battery pack and 5C supercharging, demonstrating the brand’s deep accumulation in the fields of intelligence and electrification.
On the first day of the auto show, the new Xiaopeng P7 welcomed its first batch of deliveries in Chengdu at Chunxi Road Pedestrian Street. The scene was very popular, proving the strong market appeal of the popular coupe. Read More
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OilandGasPress Energy Newsbites and Analysis Roundup | Compiled by: OGP Staff, Segun Cole , victor@oilandgaspress
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