PLATTS - "It cannot be the case that Nord Steam 2 means that Ukraine no longer has any significance in transiting [Russian] gas," Merkel said after a meeting with Ukrainian president Petro Poroshenko.

GAZPROM - Nord Stream 2 AG received the second permit required for the construction and operation of the Nord Stream 2 gas pipeline in the Finnish Exclusive Economic Zone (EEZ), thereby completing the permitting procedure in Finland.

REUTERS - GAIL renegotiated the terms of a long-term 2.5 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) liquefied natural gas (LNG) purchase deal with Russia’s Gazprom in January.

EIA - Two out of three of EIA’s measures of natural gas production in the United States set records in 2017. U.S. natural gas production measured as gross withdrawals reached 90.9 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2017, the highest volume on record according to EIA’s Monthly Crude Oil, Lease Condensate, and Natural Gas Production Report. U.S. natural gas production measured as marketed natural gas production also reached a new high, but dry natural gas production did not exceed 2015 levels.

PLATTS - Russian flows of natural gas into Germany and Slovakia combined rose above 400 million cu m/d in each of the final three days of Week 14 for the first time on almost five months as Brotherhood flows increased, data from S&P Global Platts Analytics showed.

GAZPROM - from January 1 through April 8, 2018, Gazprom had supplied Austria with 3.7 billion cubic meters of gas, a rise of 77.2 per cent compared to the same period of last year.

REUTERS - Australian gas producer Santos Ltd (STO.AX) said on Tuesday it would “engage with” Harbour Energy after receiving a $10.4 billion takeover offer from the U.S. company, its fourth unsolicited bid since August 2017.

WNN - The $20 billion project to build the four-unit, 4800 MWe plant is part of Erdogan's '2023 Vision' marking 100 years since the founding of modern Turkey and is intended to reduce the country's dependence on energy imports. The first unit is scheduled to start operations that year, with the other three units following by 2025. The plant is expected to meet about 10% of Turkey's electricity needs.

REUTERS - The International Monetary Fund told Reuters on Friday Ukraine should allow the market to determine gas prices as promised under a $17.5 billion loan program, after the government extended a below-market level pricing system for households.

EIA - U.S. exports of liquefied natural gas (LNG) reached 1.94 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf/d) in 2017, up from 0.5 Bcf/d in 2016. As LNG exports increased, shipments went to more destinations. U.S. LNG exports in 2017, all of which originated from Louisiana’s Sabine Pass liquefaction terminal, reached 25 countries.

GAZPROM - Gazprom continues to implement a number of strategic projects in the west. This work is key to the long-term development of Russia’s Unified Gas Supply System (UGSS) and the provision of reliable gas supplies to consumers in the European part of the country and the traditional European markets.

OGJ - “It’s at a critical point; $150 billion of new infrastructure will be needed domestically. With all the growth in the Permian, there’s not capacity to ship gas to Louisiana,” Hochstein said. “If governments in both the US and Europe aren’t willing to put infrastructure in place, real progress won’t be made.”

EIA - The United States exported more natural gas than it imported in 2017, marking the first time since 1957 that the United States has been a net natural gas exporter. The transition to net exporter occurred as natural gas production in the United States continued to grow, reducing pipeline imports from Canada and increasing exports, both by pipeline and as liquefied natural gas (LNG).

GAZPROM - The Italian Republic is currently the third-largest importer of Russian gas. According to preliminary data, Russia’s gas exports to Italy grew by 99 per cent in March 1–19, 2018, compared to the same period of last year.

BLOOMBERG - “Should the statements become a reality regarding alternative sources for gas instead of Russia, that will damage first and foremost the consumers,” Novak said in a Bloomberg television interview in Moscow. “Should any company or country opt for another supplier, I don’t think that condition will be that preferential and beneficial for them."