EU States Agree on 14th Sanctions Package Against Russia

The European Union flag inside the atrium during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, June 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
The European Union flag inside the atrium during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, June 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
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EU States Agree on 14th Sanctions Package Against Russia

The European Union flag inside the atrium during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, June 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)
The European Union flag inside the atrium during an EU summit at the European Council building in Brussels, Monday, June 17, 2024. (AP Photo/Omar Havana)

European Union countries agreed on a 14th package of sanctions against Russia over its war in Ukraine, diplomats said on Thursday, including a ban on re-exports of Russian liquefied natural gas (LNG) in EU waters.
Belgium, which holds the rotating EU presidency until July 1, said on the X platform that the package "maximizes the impact of existing sanctions by closing loopholes".
Countries debated the new measures for over a month and ultimately watered down one of the Commission's proposals, aimed at preventing even more circumvention, at Germany's prompting, Reuters reported.
The dropped measure would have forced subsidiaries of EU companies in third countries to contractually prohibit the re-exports of their goods to Russia. The EU is keen to stop the flow of dual-use technology such as washing machine chips that could be used by Russia for military purposes.
An EU diplomat said Germany had asked for an impact assessment, and the measure could be included at a later date.
The ban on trans-shipments is the first restriction the bloc has applied to LNG. However, gas market experts say the measure will have little impact as Europe is still buying Russian gas itself, and trans-shipments via EU ports to Asia represent only around 10% of total Russian LNG exports.
The package also tightens measures against the shadow fleet moving Russian oil outside the price cap on Russian crude set by the Group of Seven (G7) nations. EU countries added tankers to the list of sanctioned entities as well as at least two Russian-owned ships moving military equipment from North Korea, diplomats said.
Overall, 47 new entities and 69 individuals were added to the EU sanctions list, bringing the total to 2,200. The package is expected to be formally approved when EU foreign ministers meet on Monday, diplomats said.



Chevron Announces First Oil at Ballymore Project in Gulf of Mexico  

The logo and trading information for Chevron is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, June 27, 2022. (Reuters)
The logo and trading information for Chevron is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, June 27, 2022. (Reuters)
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Chevron Announces First Oil at Ballymore Project in Gulf of Mexico  

The logo and trading information for Chevron is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, June 27, 2022. (Reuters)
The logo and trading information for Chevron is displayed on a screen on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) in New York City, US, June 27, 2022. (Reuters)

Chevron has started oil and gas production from a project in the US Gulf of Mexico, the oil major said on Monday, bringing the company a step closer toward its goal of growing production from the ocean basin by 50% this year.

The $1.6 billion project called Ballymore, located about 160 miles southeast of New Orleans, is composed of three wells that are expected to produce up to 75,000 barrels of oil per day.

Chevron aims to grow oil and gas production from the Gulf to 300,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day in 2026, and at the same time, it is working to cut up to $3 billion in costs across the business.

Instead of building a new production platform for Ballymore, the wells will transport oil and gas back to an existing platform, which the company said will allow it to increase production at less expense.

“Ballymore is interesting in that it's a tie-back to an existing facility, which has allowed us to bring production to market more quickly,” said Bruce Niemeyer, president of Americas exploration and production, in an interview.

The project is also Chevron's first in a geological formation of the Gulf called Norphlet, where the oil and gas industry has historically had fewer discoveries than in other parts of the ocean basin, he added.

Advancements in technology are key to expanding resource exploration, such as the use of ocean bottom nodes, which allow geophysicists to collect better data underneath the ocean floor, Niemeyer said.

Chevron is the operator of Ballymore with a 60% interest, while co-owner TotalEnergies has 40%.

Ballymore holds an estimated 150 million barrels of oil equivalent in potentially recoverable resources.

The company owns 370 leases in the Gulf of Mexico and expects to participate in a lease sale this year by US President Donald Trump's administration, Niemeyer said.

The Ballymore start-up comes after Chevron announced first oil in August at Anchor, a Gulf of Mexico project that is a technological breakthrough with the ability to operate in deepwater pressures of up to 20,000 pounds per square inch.