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The European Commission has approved the acquisition by E.ON of Innogy’s (RWE) distribution and consumer solutions business as well as certain of its electricity generation assets. The approval is conditional on full compliance with a commitments package offered by E.ON.

E.ON’s commitment package includes the divestment from most of its customers supplied with heating and electricity in Germany and corresponding assets for the buyer to carry on operations. E.ON will also discontinue the operation of 34 electric charging stations in the country. E.ON will divest from the retail supply of electricity to unregulated customers in Hungary and from Innogy’s entire business in the retail supply of electricity and gas in Czech Republic.

In March 2018, E.ON and RWE reached an agreement and engaged in a complex asset swap. Under the agreement, E.ON will acquire the 76.8 % stake in Innogy held by RWE. Meanwhile, RWE will receive a 16.67 % stake in E.ON (created through a capital increase); nearly the entire renewable energy business of E.ON. RWE will also keep Innogy’s renewable energy business; the minority interests held by the E.ON subsidiary PreussenElektra in the RWE-operated nuclear power plants Gundremmingen (25%) and Emsland (12.5%) in Germany; Innogy’s gas storage business; and the 37.9 % stake in the Austrian energy utility KELAG held by Innogy. Beyond the stake in Innogy, RWE will pay €1.5bn to E.ON.

E.ON will focus on the distribution and retail supply of electricity and gas, whereas RWE will be primarily active in upstream electricity generation and wholesale markets.

Equinor has begun production at the Utgard gas and condensate field at the Norwegian-UK border in the North Sea. The field has estimated resources 40 Mboe and will operate beyond 2025. The field will reach 43 kb/d at plateau production. Equinor spent NOK2.6bn (€263m) on this development. The field was discovered in 1982 and a development has been considered several times.

ExxonMobil announced it has made a new oil discovery on the Stabroek Block offshore Guyana at the Tripletail-1 well in the Turbot area. It adds to the previously announced recoverable resource base of more than 6 Gboe. The Stabroek block is operated by ExxonMobil’s affiliate Esso Exploration and Production Guyana with a 45% stake.

Greece’s Minister of Environment and Energy plans to sell the entire 65% state participation in gas utility DEPA. A legislative amendment is expected to be submitted to Greek Parliament at the end of October 2019. …

The UK’s target to equip 100% of homes with smart metres (electricity and gas) under its Smart Metering Implementation Programme (SMIP) will be delayed by 4 years, to 2024. The programme also had its cost reevaluated to £13.4bn (€15bn), up from £11bn, i.e. an increase of 22% or £2.4bn (€2.7bn) compared the previous budget of 2016.. …

The Bulgarian section of the Gazprom’s Turkstream gas pipeline linking Turkey to Serbia will be built by the Saudi Swiss energy service group Arkad-ABB, based in Milan, and not the consortium comprising Luxembourg-based Completions Development, Italy’s Bonatti and Germany’s Max Streicher, ruled Bulgaria’s Supreme Administrative Court. …

The French electricity transmission system operator, RTE, foresees that €33bn of investments are needed over the next 15 years to upgrade and “digitise” the French grid, create interconnections with neighbouring countries and develop renewable energies. …

The European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD) pledged €300m (US$330m) to support the second phase of the Kazakhstan Renewables Framework, an EBRD’s scheme to promote solar, wind, hydro, biogas, distribution and transmission projects in the country. It could reduce Kazakhstan’s CO2 emissions by at least 0,5 MtCO2/year. …