Oil imports from Russia rose 16% to 7.72 million tons last month, a volume topped only by Saudi Arabia, according to Chinese customs data.

U.S. Rig Count is up 3 from last week to 782, Canada Rig Count is up 1 from last week to 201.

Meanwhile, the European Union is continuing talks about ways to limit spikes in gas prices ahead of a meeting of energy ministers next week.

The electric grids at most risk of supply shortfalls are in Texas, the central US system stretching from the Great Lakes to Louisiana, New England and the Carolinas, the North American Electric Reliability Council said in its seasonal assessment Thursday.

Benchmark gas futures settled 9.2% higher, following an increase of 16% on Monday. Freeport LNG in Texas will likely extend an outage that began in June, increasing global competition for much-needed supplies right before the winter.

Japan sees an equity stake in the Sakhalin 1 oil, gas project important as it relies around 95% on Middle Eastern oil imports.

Gas prices soared this year tracking the Russia-Ukraine war. But even if there was some peace settlement or an agreement with Ukraine, non-Russian gas will likely continue to attract a premium

U.S. Rig Count is up 9 from last week to 779, Canada Rig Count is down 9 from last week to 200.

Despite the ongoing uncertainty of long-term forecasts for the energy market development, it is clear that natural gas will continue gaining increased importance in the global energy mix. Its consumption is expected to increase by about 20 per cent by 2040 versus 2021.

Risks over existing gas supplies from Russia will continue through the coming months, with just one pipeline route open to the biggest European customers.