Today’s Key Takeaways: Baker Hughes and Haliburton warn of tariff impacts. China purchase of US LNG in March = 0. Billionaire investor buys stake in Donlin gold mine project. EPA fires 450 environmental justice and DEI staff.
OIL:
Tariff Concerns Weigh on Baker Hughes Outlook
Irina Slav, OilPrice.Com, April 23, 2025
Oilfield service major Baker Hughes is going to be cautious about its financial performance outlook this year, due to “broader macro and trade policy uncertainty,” most likely meaning tariffs, the company said in its first-quarter financial report.
Baker Hughes booked net profits of $509 million, which was down from $694 million for the last quarter of 2024 on a GAAP basis, which represented a 27% decline. Cash flow from operating activities was down by 40%, to $709 million from $1.189 billion three months earlier. Free cash flow stood at $454 million at the end of March 2025, down 49% from the $894 million booked for the final quarter of 2024.
The company also reported a decline in both its domestic and international operations during the first quarter. The North American decline stood at 5% and the international hit 11% during the period, after a year when international operations growth largely offset domestic declines for the oilfield service sector.
Halliburton warns of tariff impact, lower North America oilfield activity; shares plunge
Arunima Kumar, Arathy Somasekhar, Reuters, April 23, 2025
Halliburton on Tuesday warned of a second-quarter earnings impact from tariffs and lower oilfield activity in North America as producers evaluate drilling and completions at weak oil prices, sending shares of the oilfield service producer down nearly 10%.
Halliburton is the first of the Big Three U.S. oilfield services providers and among the first large oil company to report earnings as U.S. crude prices hover under $64 a barrel. Many companies say they cannot drill profitably if oil prices fall under $65 a barrel, impacting demand for equipment and services provided by companies like Halliburton.
“Many of our customers are in the midst of evaluating their activity scenarios and plans for 2025 activity reductions could mean higher than normal white space for committed fleets and in some cases, the retirement or export of fleets to international markets,” Jeff Miller, Chief Executive Officer of Halliburton, said about expectations in North America markets. White spaces refer to gaps in the calendar when the company’s does not have work lined up for its equipment.
The company’s shares were down about 9.5% to $19.85 a share in early trading after it forecast a 2-cents to 3-cents per share impact in the second quarter from ongoing trade tensions. Shares were down 25% year-to-date, while rival SLB’s was down only 11% this year.
GAS:
China Stops Imports of US LNG Amid Trade War, Custom Data Shows
Bloomberg News, April 20, 2025
China’s purchases of US liquefied natural gas plunged to zero in March after a sharp decline in the previous two months, as the trade war between the two biggest economies alters shipping routes.
Overall delivery of US LNG shipments in the first quarter of 2025 fell by 70%, according to Chinese official custom data released on Sunday. The hiatus is the longest since the last trade war triggered during US President Trump’s first tenure, when China didn’t receive cargoes for about 400 days.
MINING:
As gold prices soar, this billionaire investor now has a big stake in an Alaskan gold mine
Barbara Kollymer, MarketWatch, April 22, 2025
NovaGold’s stock rallies 36% on its Paulson-backed purchase of a stake in Alaska’s Donlin gold-mine project
Upping his exposure to one of the hottest investments this year, billionaire investor John Paulson is teaming up with Canada’s NovaGold Resources Inc. to purchase a stake in an Alaskan gold-mining project.
CA:NG announced Tuesday that it has entered into a deal with Paulson Advisers LLC, which is a hedge fund under the investment company Paulson & Co., to buy Barrick Gold Corp.’s 50% stake in Donlin Gold LLC, which runs an Alaskan gold-mining project of the same name, for $1 billion in cash.
NovaGold’s stock rallied 36% on Tuesday, while Barrick Gold fell 2%.
NovaGold will take a 20% stake in Donlin, and Paulson an 80% stake. NovaGold also has an option to buy outstanding debt owed to Barrick linked to the Donlin project for $90 million if that is done before closing of the deal, which is expected in the second or early third quarter of 2025. The debt will remain outstanding if that option isn’t exercised.
“Donlin Gold is one of the most attractive development gold projects in the world. With 39 million ounces of gold at double the industry-average grade, and an optimal location in the prime jurisdiction of Alaska — already the second-largest gold-producing state in the United States — we believe that the project could create value for decades to come,” Paulson said in a statement.
POLITICS:
EPA FIRES ENVIRONMENTAL JUSTICE AND DEI STAFF: The Environmental Protection Agency has sent termination or reassignment notices to more than 450 employees working on environmental justice or diversity, equity, and inclusion, the Washington Post reports.
The agency sent notices late last night to those working at the Office of Environmental Justice and External Civil Rights. A spokesperson told the Washington Post that the agency would fire 280 employees and reassign 175 employees to other offices.
The notice obtained by the Washington Post said the agency’s action will help ensure “efficient and effective operation of our programs.”
It added “With this action, EPA is delivering organizational improvements to the personnel structure that will directly benefit the American people and better advance the Agency’s core mission of protecting human health and the environment.”
The Trump administration has made an effort to shrink federal agencies, specifically in areas that do not align with the current administration’s agenda or priorities.
During a press conference yesterday, EPA Administrator Lee Zeldin defended the administration’s consolidation efforts and said that the agency would be sure to fulfill all its statutory obligations as it reorganizes different offices and priorities.
“I do not want to lose one good employee,” Zeldin said. “And we’re going to be very thoughtful and deliberate in how we go forward in this process…If you ask me, ‘What’s the perfect number for the agency?’ While we’re figuring out that exact number, the answer should be not one more or one less than what we need to fulfill our statutory obligations.”
From the Washington Examiner, Daily on Energy, April 22, 2205