Hormuz blockade risk, US toll threat lift TTF winter prices
Bullishness abounds for LNG prices and winter 2026/27 contracts at Europe’s benchmark TTF gas trading hub after US President Donald Trump threatened to impose a US toll on shipments through the Strait of Hormuz. For spot prices, the sell-off after the peace memorandum was short-lived.
Canadian PM seeks free trade deal with India, eyes LNG exports
Canada’s Prime Minister Mike Carney is pushing to advance a free trade agreement with India that would open a strategic outlet for LNG, agri-food and technology exports. The move reflects Canada’s effort to fast-track Pacific‑facing LNG infrastructure and lock in long-term offtake.
Italian PM visits Algeria for pipeline gas to replace Qatari LNG
Italy’s Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni is scheduled to visit Algeria this week, seeking to step up pipeline gas imports after QatarEnergy notified Edison it cannot deliver the five contracted cargoes due in early April.
Japanese PM rebukes Trump’s demand to ban Russian LNG
Japan’s new Prime Minister, Sanae Takaichi, has rebuked demands from US President Donald Trump for an outright ban of Russian LNG, saying such a move would be “difficult.” Mitsui and Mitsubishi own stakes in the Sakhalin-2 project and Russian LNG currently cover some 9% of Japan’s total imports.
Vietnam: PM wants first LNG power plant operational by June
The Vietnamese Prime Minister Phạm Minh Chính has urged for an accelerated start-up of the country’s first LNG-fuelled power project. Out of 14 gas power projects in planning, only the Nhon Trach 3&4 plants are on track to be commissioned in the second and third quarter of this year.
Nhon Trach 3&4, developed by the EPC contractors SamSung C&T and Lilama on behalf of PV Power. Situated near Ho-Chi-Minh City in Dong Nai province, the plants have a design capacity of 1.500 MW (2x750MW) and an annual average power production of 9 billion kWh per year.
Urge to bring another 6 GW onstream
Speaking at an industry forum, PM Chính underlined the urgency of advancing the remaining projects, particularly the Block B–O Mon and Hiep Phuoc 1 combined cycle gas power plants, which together have a projected capacity of 6,634 MW.
According to Vietnam’s Office of the National Steering Committee on Energy Projects, these two CCGTs are “the only other projects with a realistic chance of becoming operational before 2030.”
To meet that timeline, however, developers must finalize power purchase agreements (PPAs), gas sale agreements (GSAs), and secure debt financing by early 2026.
PetroVietnam in June signed multiple agreements with its partners to advance the Block B–O Mon project, yet efforts have had limited effect so far. The national oil major’s initiative involves offshore gas fields in blocks 48/95 and 52/97 along with a 400-kilometer pipeline, designated to deliver natural gas to the O Mon thermal power complex in southwest Vietnam.
