May 14, 2025 Latest Energy / Automotive News and Analysis
Despite significant uncertainties, the market share of electric cars is on track to exceed 40% by 2030 as EVs become increasingly affordable in more markets, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said.
London, May 14, 2025 (Oilandgaspress) –- General Motors and LG Energy Solution will commercialize lithium manganese-rich (LMR) prismatic battery cells for future GM electric trucks and full-size SUVs, in a new battery technology breakthrough. This builds on a partnership between the two companies to develop prismatic battery cell technology and related chemistries, and on GM’s long legacy of American ingenuity that’s produced innovations like the small-block V8 engine, OnStar connected vehicle services and hands-free Super Cruise.
GM aims to become the first automaker to deploy LMR batteries in EVs. Ultium Cells, a GM and LG Energy Solution joint venture, plans to start commercial production of LMR prismatic cells in the United States by 2028, with pre-production expected to begin at an LG Energy Solution facility by late 2027. The final production-design of these LMR battery cells will be validated at GM’s Battery Cell Development Center in Warren, MI, which is expected to open earlier that year, as well as LG Energy Solution’s facility.
Battery cathodes require materials like cobalt, nickel and manganese, with cobalt being the most expensive. LMR battery cells use a higher proportion of more affordable manganese, while also delivering greater capacity and energy density.
Battery engineers at GM and LG Energy Solution have developed a new LMR prismatic battery cell that unlocks 33% higher energy density compared to the best-performing lithium iron phosphate (LFP) based cells – at a comparable cost.. . Read from source
McDermott Advances Scarborough EPCIC McDermott announces the safe, successful completion of fabrication, construction, and offshore floatover of the Scarborough floating production unit (FPU) topside and hull structures for Woodside Energy.
McDermott Advances Scarborough EPCIC with Successful FPU Floatover.
The contract, awarded in 2021, followed the successful delivery of front-end engineering design for the Scarborough Energy Project’s FPU and includes engineering, procurement, construction, installation and commissioning (EPCIC) services. McDermott is delivering design, fabrication, integration, transportation and installation of an approximately 30,000-metric-ton topside and 37,000-metric-ton hull structure, making it the largest floating production facility the company has ever designed and built, and one of the largest semi-submersible production platforms built in offshore history.
Topsides fabrication was completed at McDermott’s joint venture yard, Qingdao McDermott Wuchuan (QMW), in Qingdao, China, while the hull was constructed by COSCO in its Qidong shipyard, also in China. The topsides have six deck levels; 169 core equipment units, including three gas turbine-driven export gas compressors and three main generators with waste heat recovery systems; more than 50,000 meters of piping; one million meters of cabling; 568 integrated subsystems and a battery energy storage system, supporting operational emissions reduction.
TotalEnergies and HitecVision Partner to Pursue the Development of Polska Grupa Biogazowa in Poland TotalEnergies has signed a Sale and Purchase Agreement (SPA) with HitecVision, a Norwegian investment company specializing in energy, for the sale of 50% of Polska Grupa Biogazowa (“PGB”) for an enterprise value of €190 million.
With 20 units in operation and a production capacity of over 450 GWh of equivalent biomethane, PGB is the leader in biogas in Poland. Founded in 2007 and acquired by TotalEnergies in 2023, PGB operates biogas production units that generate electricity and heat through cogeneration (CHP). PGB currently has 2 plants under construction in Poland and aims to diversify into biomethane production. PGB’s goal is to reach 2 TWh of equivalent biomethane production capacity by 2030.
Hyundai Elantra Named 2025 Best Hybrid for the Money by Cars.com The Hyundai Elantra Hybrid has been awarded the 2025 Best Hybrid for the Money and winner of the compact car segment by Cars.com. Additionally, the Hyundai Santa Fe HEV has been awarded Best Hybrid for the midsize SUV category. To qualify, any hybrid vehicle that allows shoppers to pay the least for the most mileage, barring all other considerations, was included in the evaluation. Cars.com devised an efficiency-cost rating to determine if a hybrid vehicle’s added expense is worth the cash for buyers. This list includes model-year 2025 hybrids without a plug, and vehicle equipment levels, quality judgments, cost of car ownership or any variances from EPA mileage estimates were not factors.
Tullow Oil finalizes terms to sell Gabon assets Tullow Gabon Limited, a wholly owned subsidiary of Tullow, has signed a sale and purchase agreement (SPA) with Gabon Oil Company (the “Purchaser”) for the sale of 100% of the shares in Tullow’s subsidiary, Tullow Oil Gabon S.A. (TOGSA), which holds all of Tullow’s non-operated working interests in Gabon for a total cash consideration of US$300 million net of tax, subject to customary adjustments.
Transaction highlights
Corporate sale of Tullow’s entire Gabonese portfolio of assets, representing c.10 kbopd of 2025 production guidance and c.36 million barrels of 2P reserves (independently audited at year-end 2024).
The total cash consideration of US$300 million net of tax (subject to customary adjustments) due on Completion.
The conditions precedent to be met in advance of Completion of the Transaction include all necessary government and regulatory approvals.
Completion of the Transaction, satisfaction of conditions precedent and receipt of funds is expected around the middle of the year.
Drilling of well 7-TQ-240D-BA, which is located in the Taquipe field, in São Sebastião do Passé
Petrobras began drilling well 7-TQ-240D-BA this Friday (09/5), located in the Taquipe field, in São Sebastião do Passé, about 80 km from Salvador (BA). The start of drilling marks the resumption of well drilling by the company in the state after six years since the last drilling.
The EBS-08 rig, operated by EBS Perfurações, is the first of three drilling rigs already contracted for onshore production operations in Bahia. The new rig contracts include three new drilling rigs and ten new onshore production rigs (SPT) (increasing from 13 to 23). As foreseen in PE 2025-29, Petrobras estimates drilling an additional 100 wells in Bahia over the next five years, increasing current production.
At the Bahia Unit, Petrobras currently has a workforce of approximately 4,300 professionals, produces 17,000 boed in 20 concessions and around 2,000 onshore wells, in addition to the Manati platform (which produces gas), in the Camamu Basin, in Valença. The new wells to be drilled are spread across the cities of Alagoinhas, Entre Rios, Esplanada, Cardeal da Silva, Araçás, Catu, Candeias and São Sebastião do Passé. In 2024, the return to society in taxes and government participation was approximately R$257 million.
Eni: Resolutions of the Shareholders’ Meeting 2025 The Ordinary and Extraordinary Meeting of Eni’s Shareholders, held today, resolved the following:
approval of Eni S.p.A. 2024 Financial Statements
allocation of 2024 net profit equal to € 6.419 billion to the available reserve
total dividend 2025 per share of € 1.05
amendment to the Long-Term Incentive Plan 2023-2025 (2025 allocation)
approval of the remuneration policy 2025 and resolution in favour of the remuneration paid in 2024
authorization to the Board of Directors for the purchase of Eni treasury shares
potential use of available reserves for and in place of the 2025 dividend
potential use of the reserve pursuant to no. Law 342/2000 for and in place of the 2025 dividend
authorization to the Board of Directors to cancel treasury shares that will be purchased within the new buyback programme
CPAC Systems (SE) signs investment agreement with Flying Fish (NL) Flying Fish Maritime Innovations B.V., a Dutch pioneer in digital maritime technology and advice, announced a minority investment from CPAC Systems AB, a subsidiary of the Volvo Group, on May 7th, 2025. CPAC Systems (Sweden) is specialized in developing advanced control and automation systems for marine, construction and commercial vehicle industries. For the Flying Fish team, this step marks the beginning of a broader strategic partnership aimed at accelerating sales growth, product innovation, industrialization, and team development.
Founded in Delft in 2018, Flying Fish has built a strong reputation through its integrated software and hardware solutions. Its offerings range from advanced fleet management algorithms for shared waterborne mobility to a modular electric driveline and plug-and-play hydrofoil technology — all designed for sustainability and operational efficiency.
TRATON GROUP appoints new Head of Financial Services Mats Gunnarsson, currently Executive Vice President, Scania and Head of Scania Commercial Operations, has been appointed as the new Head of TRATON Financial Services, reporting to TRATON CEO Christian Levin. He is due to assume the position on June 1, 2025. Mats Gunnarsson has acquired extensive expertise while heading several commercial units of Scania, as well as experience in investment banking. With this background, he is bringing a wealth of industry experience to his new role at TRATON Financial Services. “I’m pleased to welcome Mats to head our TRATON Financial Services. He has a deep understanding of our business, with an appreciable combination of customer and bank perspectives. We will benefit from his strong customer dedication in a scale-up phase of our Group financial services,” says Christian Levin, CEO of the TRATON GROUP.
In addition to his many executive commercial roles at Scania in different parts of the world, Mats Gunnarsson has also worked for the European Investment Bank as well as Volkswagen Commercial Vehicles. He holds a master’s degree in Mechanical Engineering, and in Business and Economics.
Recycling critical materials such as lithium, cobalt and nickel
The China Resources Recycling Group, created by the State Council last year, is seeking to bring together businesses with the expertise and infrastructure to recycle offline e-waste in large quantities for its lithium, cobalt, copper, gold, aluminum, and nickel.
According to the national publication Economic Daily, the trade in recycled materials from wind and solar power and EV batteries has grown to an enormous sum of $38.5 billion per year, more than double of what the US market for solar recycling was predicted to be in 2050, and also more than the current market for recycling both solar panels and lithium-ion batteries.
Chinese manufacturers produce the greatest share of the world’s electric vehicles, and after a decade of growth, the first wave of battery retirements is crashing down on the Chinese economy. In just a few years, the retired battery tonnage is expected to reach 4 million.
Speaking with South China Morning Post, a pair of business owners said they are seeing big revenues in recycling coming from batteries and solar cells. One, Tianli Technology in Zhejiang Province, earns a quarter of all profits from just batteries, while the much larger Henan Hairui Intelligent Technology, has 70% of its productive capacity dedicated to making machines that recycle batteries and solar panels.
CATL targets nearly $4b in HK’s biggest IPO of 2025 Contemporary Amperex Technology Co Ltd, the world’s largest electric vehicle battery maker, is aiming to raise up to HK$41 billion ($3.99 billion) in a Hong Kong initial public offering, which would make it the biggest IPO in Hong Kong so far this year. The IPO comes as China and the United States signaled progress in easing trade tensions following what both sides described as “constructive” talks in Geneva over the weekend. The Hong Kong listing marks a key step in CATL’s global expansion, reinforcing its position as a dominant force in the EV battery market amid intensifying international competition.
According to filings with the Hong Kong Stock Exchange, CATL plans to sell 117.9 million shares at a maximum offer price of HK$263 each. About 7.5 percent of the offering is allocated to retail investors in Hong Kong, with the remainder open to global institutional buyers.
CATL said it plans to spend about 90 percent of the proceeds—around HK$27.6 billion—on building a major battery manufacturing facility in Hungary, part of its strategy to expand production capacity in Europe to supply automakers such as Volkswagen.
China’s auto sales, production to April 2025 China’s automobile production and sales have historically surpassed 10 million units in the first four months of this year, according to data released by the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) on Monday.
From January to April, the country produced 10.175 million units and sold 10.06 million units, up 12.9 percent and 10.8 percent year-on-year. Among these, new energy vehicle (NEV) production and sales amounted to 4.429 million units and 4.3 million units, respectively, reflecting a 48.3 percent and 46.2 percent rise year-on-year. NEVs accounted for 42.7 percent of total new vehicle sales during this period.
Crude oil climbs 3% on tariff cuts Crude oil futures climbed about 3% on Tuesday, lifted by a temporary cut in U.S.-China tariffs and a better than expected inflation report. Oil prices fell on Wednesday as traders eyed a potential jump in U.S. crude inventories, awaiting official weekly data later in the day and OPEC’s monthly oil report. Brent crude futures fell 64 cents, or around 1%, to $65.99 a barrel by 0934 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude slipped 64 cents, or 1%, to $63.03.
| Oil and Gas Blends | Units | Oil Price | Change |
| Crude Oil (WTI) | USD/bbl | $63.28 | Up |
| Crude Oil (Brent) | USD/bbl | $66.24 | Up |
| Bonny Light 12/05/25 CBN | USD/bbl | $67.00 | Down |
| Dubai | USD/bbl | $64.39 | Up |
| Natural Gas | USD/MMBtu | $3.52 | Down |
| Murban Crude | USD/bbl | $65.97 | Up |
| OPEC basket 13/05/25 | USD/bbl | $65.38 | Up |
Uber and Momenta in Strategic Agreement for Robotaxi Deployment Uber Technologies, Inc. and Momenta today announced a strategic agreement to introduce autonomous vehicles to the Uber platform, in international markets outside of the US and China.
First deployment for the partnership will take place in Europe at the beginning of 2026, with onboard safety operators. By combining Uber’s ridesharing network with Momenta’s autonomous driving technology, the two companies aim to accelerate and deliver safe, scalable, and efficient Robotaxi services.
Momenta, backed by investors such as Mercedes-Benz and SAIC, said on May 3 it would begin rolling out robotaxi services on the Uber network in early 2026, starting in Europe.
TRATON Board approves dividend of €1.70 per share for 2024 – TRATON Annual General Meeting approved all items on this year’s Annual General Meeting agenda by a large majority. They resolved on a dividend payout for financial year 2024 of €1.70 per share, compared to last year’s figure of €1.50. In addition, shareholders approved the actions of the members of the Executive and Supervisory Boards for fiscal year 2024 as well as the remuneration report presented to them.
Baker Hughes Rig Count: U.S. U.S. -6 to 578 Canada -6 to 114
U.S. Rig Count is down 6 from last week to 578 with oil rigs down 5 to 474, gas rigs unchanged at 101 and miscellaneous rigs down 1 to 3.
Canada Rig Count is down 6 from last week to 114, with oil rigs down 6 to 68, gas rigs unchanged at 46 and miscellaneous rigs unchanged at 0.
| Region | Period | Rig Count | Change |
| U.S.A | 09 May 2025 | 578 | -6 |
| Canada | 09 May 2025 | 114 | – 6 |
| International | April 2025 | 891 | -8 |
International Oil and gas companies are rapidly adopting AI technologies The world’s biggest oil and gas firms are embracing AI and related technology to maximize savings, optimize operations, and boost earnings.
Digitalization is not new to the energy sector—oil producers and utilities have been using and perfecting it for years. But AI and its rapid advancements and capabilities are the latest hype, and it seems everyone is using it, and doing a very good job at it, at least companies say so.
Robot Dogs, AI Drones
Oil and gas firms use robot dogs and AI-enabled drones for inspections at operating assets, as well as autonomous haul trucks, among other digital and AI technologies, to minimize costs and maximize profits.
AI and other advanced technologies are not exclusively used by international majors. The top national oil companies (NOCs) in the Middle East are also deploying and touting the use of AI.
Aramco, the Saudi state oil giant and largest oil company in the world, uses AI to generate new results from oil seismic data, in just one instance of its use of AI. Oil and gas executives in a recent EY survey said that the two highest opportunities for creating value from AI and emerging technology are predictive maintenance for heavy equipment and assets, and intelligent optimization of operational performance.
Global EV Sales Surge EV sales in China jumped by 35% in the first four months of the year to 3.3 million, and sales in Europe rose by 25% to 1.2 million units. North America saw the lowest growth of just 5% between January and April compared to the same period of 2024.
Chinese sales were supported by the authorities extending the vehicle trade-in policy scheme into 2025 to boost consumer consumption and spending and help economic growth. This policy paid off and Chinese sales of EVs have jumped so far this year.
Tesla, however, is losing market share in both China and Europe, as competition from Chinese and European EV manufacturers is intensifying and prospective buyers, especially in Europe, view Elon Musk’s inroads into politics and affiliation with U.S. President Donald Trump as a negative image of Tesla.
Ethiopia Concludes High-Level Business Forum, Securing Over $1.6 Billion in Investment Deals Amidst Bold Economic Transformation Push The Invest in Ethiopia High-Level Business Forum 2025 concluded today in Addis Ababa, marking a significant step in the country’s drive to attract foreign investment and foster private sector growth. The two-day event, which gathered global investors and key stakeholders, highlighted Ethiopia’s ongoing comprehensive economic reforms and resulted in the signing of five major investment deals totaling over $1.6 billion USD.
Minister of Finance of the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, H.E. Mr. Ahmed Shide reaffirmed that the government remains steadfast in its commitment to fostering a cohesive environment for private sector growth, ensuring macroeconomic stability, and advancing comprehensive reforms, including the recently launched Macro Reform Program. Minister Ahmed Shide extended a sincere invitation to investors to join Ethiopia on this transformative journey, asserting that “There has never been a more opportune moment to invest in our nation”. He emphasized that investment is pivotal to advancing shared goals of resilience, inclusive prosperity, and sustainable development. Investors were urged to take concrete steps by engaging with Ethiopian investment institutions and forging strategic partnerships, exploring high-potential sectors outlined in the prepared “deal book”.
Eni publishes “Eni for 2024” its voluntary sustainability report that illustrates the main results achieved during the year on the path towards a Just Transition. The report, now in its nineteenth edition, provides an overview of Eni’s performance and concrete actions for a Just Transition, capable of combining industrial growth, environmental sustainability and social inclusion, illustrating future strategies and goals. This year saw an important discontinuity in sustainability reporting: the entry into force of the European Corporate Sustainability Reporting Directive (CSRD), which regulates mandatory sustainability reporting and introduces new European reporting standards. In addition to publishing its first Sustainability Statement in line with the EU legislation, Eni has decided to continue to prepare its voluntary report Eni For, a complementary and supplementary document to the Sustainability Statement, to make Eni’s sustainability information more accessible to stakeholders, enriching it and providing concrete examples through case studies, in-depth analyses and interviews.
Among the company’s main achievements in 2024, the report includes the reduction of net Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 55% for Upstream and 37% for Eni compared to 2018. A special focus was placed on reducing methane emissions by confirming the target of bringing them close to zero in 2030. Eni for also renewed its commitment to achieve water positivity in at least 30% of sites operated with withdrawals greater than 0.5 Mm3/year of fresh water in water-stressed areas by 2035.
The report also illustrates Eni’s progress in implementing the satellite model, an innovative approach that aims to create integrated businesses capable of generating value for the energy transition.
Global EV sales up almost 30% in April Global sales of electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles increased 29% in April, compared with the same month a year earlier, according to data published by EV research group Rho Motion on Wednesday.
The number of electric vehicles sold came to 1.5 million in April, a drop of 12% compared to March 2025.
From January to April, sales in Europe were up 25% on the year, China saw a 35% rise, North America saw a 5% rise, while the rest of the world saw a 37% rise.
In April alone, Europe saw growth of 35%, China 32%, while sales fell 5.6% in North America. In the rest of the world, April sales rose 51%.
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OilandGasPress Energy Newsbites and Analysis Roundup | Compiled by: OGP Staff, Segun Cole @oilandgaspress.
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