EIA - Brent crude oil spot prices averaged $74 per barrel (b) in June, a decrease of almost $3/b from the May average. EIA forecasts Brent spot prices will average $73/b in the second half of 2018 and will average $69/b in 2019. EIA expects West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil prices will average $6/b lower than Brent prices in the second half of 2018 and $7/b lower in 2019. NYMEX WTI futures and options contract values for October 2018 delivery that traded during the five-day period ending July 5, 2018, suggest a range of $56/b to $87/b encompasses the market expectation for October WTI prices at the 95% confidence level.

PLATTS - The Russian government is extending a production sharing agreement with France's Total for development of the Kharyaga oil field by 13 years to the end of 2031, in the latest sign that many Western majors' operations in Russia are continuing despite sanctions on the oil sector.

EBRD - The EBRD Board of Directors has approved an up to €500 million loan for the construction of the Trans Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), a priority project of the European Union (EU) and the Energy Community. The 878 kilometre pipeline will start at the Greek/Turkish border, cross Albania and, after passing under the Adriatic Sea, will end in southern Italy. It constitutes the final leg of the Southern Gas Corridor and will transport gas from the Caspian region to Europe.

FT - A French government commission has called for improvements in the safety of the country’s nuclear power plants, including their ability to withstand terrorist attack, putting further pressure on state-backed power utility EDF.

IMF - Germany’s economic performance was strong in 2017, underpinned by solid domestic demand and a rebound in exports in the second half of the year. Despite a slowdown in public consumption due to the stabilization of refugee-related expenditures, real GDP grew by 2.5 percent.

REUTERS - “The project will definitely be financed. It is important for Gazprom and Russia currently has a high liquidity in euros,” Paul Corcoran, the Nord Stream 2 CFO, told Welt am Sonntag in an interview.

IAEA - "Austria has demonstrated its commitment to nuclear and radiation safety by inviting, for the first time, an international peer review for its regulatory oversight of radiological and nuclear facilities and activities," said team leader Mika Markkanen, Principal Adviser, Regulation Practices Regulation at the Finnish Radiation and Nuclear Safety Authority (STUK).

REUTERS - Germany has been assured by the United States that any sanctions imposed on Russia will not affect the building of a gas pipeline to bring Russian gas to Europe, a spokeswoman for the German economy ministry said on Friday.

ROSATOM - ROSATOM and the French EDF Group signed a Memorandum of Understanding on Development of Innovative Cooperation at the World Nuclear Exhibition 2018 (WNE). The document was signed by Alexey Likhachev, General Director of ROSATOM and Jean-Bernard L?vy, Chairman and CEO of EDF Group.

МИНЭНЕРГО РОССИИ - в ходе переговоров был актуализирован статус реализации совместных инфраструктурных проектов «Северный поток-2» и «Турецкий поток», направленных на диверсификацию маршрутов транзита газа и повышения энергетической безопасности ЕС.

OGJ - Sandra Oudkirk, deputy assistant secretary for energy diplomacy at the US Department of State, confirmed that the Trump administration has received several requests to sanction the proposed Gazprom-sponsored pipeline that would extend from Russia beneath the Baltic Sea to Germany.

IMF: Austria’s economy is robust. Supported by expansionary monetary and fiscal policies, growth has picked up markedly, to 3 percent in 2017 and 3.1 percent (y/y) in Q1 2018. A recovery in private investment and a favorable external environment as growth in Europe accelerated more broadly, have underpinned growth. Concomitantly, unemployment has declined recently. Inflation remains broadly stable, at 2 percent (y/y) in April.

REUTERS - Norway, which shares an Arctic border with Russia, lacks a “credible plan” how to meet NATO’s spending target, U.S. President Donald Trump said in a letter to the country’s prime minister, the Norwegian daily VG reported on Tuesday.

GAZPROM - The meeting highlighted that Germany continued to ramp up its imports of Russian gas. According to preliminary data, from January 1 through June 19, 2018, Gazprom supplied Germany with 28.2 billion cubic meters of gas, an increase of 13.1 per cent from the same period of 2017.

WNN - There are 126 operational power reactors in 14 EU Member States, providing more than one-quarter of the bloc's total electricity production. In its Communication on the Nuclear Illustrative Program (PINC) published last year, the European Commission expects nuclear to maintain its significant role in Europe's energy mix up to 2050. This would require investment of some EUR40-50 billion (USD46-58 billion) in nuclear LTO by 2050.