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Oct 8 (Reuters) – Koil Energy Solutions Inc: * KOIL ENERGY AWARDED SIGNIFICANT CONTRACT TO DELIVER SUBSEA DISTRIBUTION EQUIPMENT FOR US PROJECT * KOIL ENERGY SOLUTIONS INC – PROJECT DELIVERY SCHEDULED FOR Q2 NEXT YEAR Source text: Further company coverage:

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* Cape Verde fail to secure World Cup place but still have one more chance * Islanders fight back to force 3-3 draw in Libya * Cameroon win 2-0 away to keep up hunt for second spot (Updates details, adds byline, dateline) By Mark Gleeson CAPE TOWN, Oct 8 (Reuters) – Tiny Cape Verde will have to wait five more days before getting a last chance to secure a first-ever World Cup spot after they drew 3-3 away in a thrilling encounter in Libya on Wednesday. The island archipelago, off the west coast of Africa, needed three points from their last two Group D matches to become the second smallest nation to qualify for a World Cup. However, the draw in Tripoli means they have to win at home to Eswatini on Monday. Cape Verde moved onto 20 points, two ahead of Cameroon, who battled to win 2-0 away in Mauritius at the same time. Cameroon's eight previous World Cup appearances are more than any other African country, but they took 57 minutes before Nicolas Ngamaleu opened the scoring with Bryan Mbeumo adding a second in stoppage time. Libya are third in the standings with 15 points, still chasing second place in the group, which offers the potential of a route to next year’s finals in North America through a lengthy playoff process. Cape Verde were always going to be up against it after their Irish-born defender Roberto Lopes turned the ball into his own net in the opening minute, trying to clear a cross under pressure from striker Muad Eisa. But the islanders came back from 3-1 down early in the second half to score twice in a dramatic finish and come close to snatching a come-from-behind victory and a place at the finals in Canada, Mexico and the U.S. GOALKEEPING HOWLER ALLOWED CAPE VERDE BACK INTO GAME A header from Telmo Arcanjo equalised in the 29th minute, but Eisa’s mazy run three minutes from halftime set up Ezoo El Mariamy to put the home side back ahead. Mahmoud Al Shilw then fired home a 35 metre freekick to extend the lead, but a howler had Cape Verde back in contention as Sidny Cabral made it 3-2 in the 76th minute as his long range kick went through the legs of the Libya goalkeeper Murad Al Wuheeshi. Willy Semedo squeezed home the ball from close range for an 82nd minute equaliser to set up a grandstand finish with another Semedo effort cleared off the line in stoppage time. Cape Verde will still be fancied to win the group and take the automatic qualifying spot when they host the Swazis on Monday, but Eswatini served notice of their potential to cause an upset by holding Angola 2-2 on Monday. Striker Justice Figuareido scored twice inside six minutes early in the second half as Eswatini celebrated the re-opening of their national stadium, but Angola pulled two back from set pieces through Jonathan Buatu and Ary Papel. More qualifiers are being played later on Wednesday with Egypt and Ghana both looking to secure their World Cup spot. (Writing by Mark Gleeson in Cape Town; Editing by Christian Radnedge and Pritha Sarkar)

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(Adds context, paragraphs 5-8) Oct 8 (Reuters) – French-German national Lennart Monterlos has been released from detention in Iran and is back in France, outgoing French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday. Iran had been holding the 18-year-old cyclist after arresting him in June on espionage charges. Monterlos was acquitted on Monday, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. "Lennart Monterlos is free!" Barrot wrote in a post on the social media X. Both Barrot and President Emmanuel Macron reiterated demands that Iran release French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who have been held in the Islamic Republic since 2022. France has repeatedly accused Iran of holding Kohler and Paris arbitrarily, keeping them in conditions akin to torture in Tehran's Evin prison and not allowing proper consular protection. The Islamic Republic denies the accusations. It had accused the pair of spying for Israel's Mossad intelligence service. France has called those charges baseless. On Monday, the two countries said talks for the release of all three prisoners were progressing, after Paris dropped in September its case before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Tehran for violating the right to consular protection of its citizens. The case at the ICJ, or World Court, was widely seen as a bid to pressure Iran over the detention of its citizens. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi suggested in mid-September the French nationals could be exchanged for Mahdieh Esfandiari, an Iranian student living in the French city of Lyon who was arrested this year over anti-Israel social media posts. (Reporting by Alessandro Parodi and John Irish, editing by Dominique Vidalon, William Maclean)

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ROME, Oct 8 (Reuters) – A once-secret passageway in the Colosseum, named after the fearsome ancient Roman emperor who features in the Hollywood blockbuster "Gladiator", has opened to the public for the first time. The so-called Commodus Passage allowed emperors to enter the arena and watch gladiator fights and other spectacles without mixing with crowds. It was cut through the Colosseum's foundations between the end of the 1st century AD and the beginning of the 2nd century AD, in an addition to the original design. The Colosseum was inaugurated in 80 AD. "This passage is now open to the public, it's the first time. And so (visitors will) appreciate what it was like to be an emperor," archaeologist Barbara Nazzaro told Reuters. The corridor was discovered in the 19th century, and linked to Commodus because historical chronicles say he survived an assassination attempt in an underground passage. "It was very easy to make the connection", Nazzaro, who oversaw the corridor's restoration prior to its opening, added. It once had marble walls, later replaced with plaster decorated with landscapes, the Colosseum Archaeological Park said in a statement. It also had stuccowork showing mythological scenes on the vault, and representations of arena spectacles, including bear fights and acrobats, in niches at its entrance. Some traces of the decorations remain, but very damp conditions in the underground passageway have made conservation a struggle. Nevertheless, visitors will be able to have an idea of what it looked like in antiquity thanks to a virtual reconstruction shown in a video, Nazzaro said. (Reporting by Cristiano Corvino, writing by Alvise Armellini, editing by Keith Weir)

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Oct 8 – French authorities on Wednesday denied an important crucial maritime concession for the AQUIND electricity interconnector project, effectively halting progress on the planned high-voltage link between France and the United Kingdom. While the project received environmental approval in July, the concession required a national-level recognition of public interest, which was not validated, the Seine-Maritime prefecture said in a statement on Wednesday. (Reporting by Alban Kacher)

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(Adds context, detail on other detainees in paragraphs 4-5, Iran comments in paragraph 6) Oct 8 (Reuters) – French-German national Lennart Monterlos has been released from detention in Iran and is back in France, outgoing French Foreign Minister Jean-Noel Barrot said on Wednesday. Iran had been holding the 18-year-old cyclist after arresting him in June on espionage charges. Monterlos was acquitted on Monday, according to the semi-official Tasnim news agency. "Lennart Monterlos is free!" Barrot wrote in a post on the social media X. Both Barrot and President Emmanuel Macron reiterated demands that Iran release French nationals Cécile Kohler and Jacques Paris, who have been held in the Islamic Republic since 2022. On Monday, the two countries said talks for the release of all three prisoners were progressing. Iranian Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi suggested in mid-September the French nationals could be exchanged for Mahdieh Esfandiari, an Iranian student living in the French city of Lyon who was arrested this year over anti-Israel social media posts. (Reporting by Alessandro Parodi, editing by Dominique Vidalon, William Maclean)

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(Adds EIA details, oil price reaction) Oct 8 (Reuters) – U.S. crude oil stockpiles rose while gasoline and distillate inventories fell last week, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Crude inventories rose by 3.7 million barrels to 420.3 million barrels in the week ended October 3, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.9 million-barrel rise. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub fell by 763,000 barrels in the week, the EIA said. U.S. crude oil futures held in positive territory, despite the larger-than-expected build in inventories. Global benchmark Brent futures were trading at $65.87 a barrel, up 42 cents by 10:39 a.m. EDT (1439 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures (WTI) were up 27 cents at $62.20 a barrel. Refinery crude runs rose by 129,000 barrels per day last week, the EIA said, while utilization rates rose by 1 percentage point to 92.4%. Gasoline stocks fell by 1.6 million barrels in the week to 219.1 million barrels, the EIA said, compared with expectations for a 911,000-barrel draw. Distillate stockpiles, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2 million barrels in the week to 121.6 million barrels, versus expectations for a 1.2 million-barrel drop, the data showed. Net U.S. crude imports rose last week by 731,000 bpd, the EIA said. (Reporting by Liz Hampton in Denver; Editing by Marguerita Choy)

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OUTGOING FRENCH FOREIGN MINISTER: LENNART MONTERLOS WHO WAS HELD IN IRAN IS FREE

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(Corrects spelling of Energy Aspects in paragraphs 9 and 12) * Russian strikes cause critical damage to Ukrainian gas production * Ukraine will need to import gas from Europe to fill production gap * Ample LNG supplies will mitigate any European gas price increases By Ron Bousso LONDON, Oct 8 (Reuters) – Russia's heavy bombardment of Ukraine's natural gas infrastructure ahead of winter is set to have a knock-on impact on Europe's energy market as Ukraine draws more fuel from its western neighbours. Any increase in European gas prices as a result of Ukraine’s purchases is nevertheless likely to be mitigated by the abundance of global liquefied natural gas supplies. Russia stepped up attacks on Ukraine's energy grid and gas production facilities in recent days as the war enters its fourth winter. CRITICAL DAMAGE TO FACILITIES On Friday, Moscow launched its largest attack on Ukrainian gas infrastructure since the start of the war, which the CEO of state oil and gas company Naftogaz said caused critical damage to facilities. There were further strikes on civilian gas supply infrastructure over the weekend. Ukraine has also ramped up drone attacks on Russian oil refineries and facilities in recent weeks. It is so far unclear to what extent the strikes have hurt Ukraine's domestic gas production. A massive wave of Russian attacks on Ukrainian energy facilities in March reduced production by over a third, meaning that the latest attacks could have similar or larger impact. The disruption comes at a crucial time for Ukraine as it scrambles to refill storage facilities before the onset of winter, when gas demand for heating soars. LOW STORAGE Ukraine operates Europe's largest underground gas storage which has a capacity of 31 billion cubic metres, though it currently holds around 13 bcm, or 42% of capacity, according to Erisa Pasko, gas analyst at Energy Aspects. The figure, however, includes around 4.7 bcm of gas in strategic reserves that are harder to tap, she added. Ukraine has traditionally exported gas to Europe, delivering Russian fuel under a major transit contract which accounted for around 5% of total European Union imports in 2024 and which offered Kyiv substantial revenue. The flow meant that Ukraine's gas storage and pipeline network was initially spared from Russian attacks, but that all changed when the transit agreement expired on January 1, 2025. Beyond its domestic gas production, which reached around 19 bcm last year, Ukraine today imports gas via interconnectors from Hungary, Poland and Slovakia. It has also started using pipelines via the Balkans to import small volumes of LNG delivered to Greece and Croatia. If the current damage to Ukraine’s production is at a similar scale to last winter’s, Ukraine will likely need to increase imports from western neighbours between October and March to 2.1 to 4.1 bcm, from a previous estimate of 1.5 bcm, according to Energy Aspects' Pasko. “Storage fill is well below the historical average and Ukraine will likely take more precautionary measures this winter given continuous attacks on its gas infrastructure,” Pasko said. EU PRESSURE Stronger demand from Ukraine will therefore increase pressure on the neighbouring European gas market, which has itself undergone dramatic transformation in the wake of Moscow's 2022 invasion of Ukraine. Russian gas exports to Europe have plummeted from over 150 bcm in 2021, or 45% of total imports, to 52 bcm, or 19%, in 2024, according to EU data. The EU is currently exploring ways to fully halt Russian imports by 2027. The rapid change led to a severe energy price shock in Europe, as it scrambled to import large volumes of more expensive LNG cargoes. In the first nine months of 2025, Europe’s LNG imports rose by 27% from the previous year to 108 bcm, of which U.S. cargoes accounted for 63%, according to data from consultancy Bruegel. The surge in LNG imports has been vital for replenishing the region's gas storage ahead of winter. EU storage was 83% of capacity by then, lower than the 93% the same time last year, according to data from industry lobby group Gas Infrastructure Europe. LNG CUSHION HEADING INTO WINTER The European gas market enters winter relatively relaxed thanks to a surge in global LNG supplies. Benchmark European TTF gas prices have dropped by around 90% from their post-crisis record of over 300 euros per megawatt hour to around 33 euros per MWh, reflecting the changing dynamics. But increased demand for gas from Ukraine would require Europe to boost LNG imports, pushing prices higher. The gas market will also remain highly sensitive to weather in the coming months. A harsh winter could further fuel demand and tighten supplies in Europe, putting more pressure on prices. Russia's intensified targeting of Ukrainian gas and power infrastructure poses real risks for the Ukrainian economy and population as winter sets in. The impact of the strikes will also be felt in Europe. Want to receive my column in your inbox every Monday and Thursday, along with additional energy insights and links to trending stories? Sign up for my Power Up newsletter here. Enjoying this column? Check out Reuters Open Interest (ROI), your essential new source for global financial commentary. ROI delivers thought-provoking, data-driven analysis. Markets are moving faster than ever. ROI can help you keep up. Follow ROI on LinkedIn and X. (Ron Bousso; Editing by Emelia Sithole-Matarise)

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(Adds: TopBuild Corp, PIB Group, Cenovus Energy Updates: SoftBank Group) October 8 (Reuters) – The following bids, mergers, acquisitions and disposals were reported by 1330 GMT on Wednesday : ** TopBuild Corp said it has acquired Specialty Products and Insulation (SPI) for $1 billion in cash, about a year after the two building materials makers terminated an initial agreement over antitrust concerns. ** PIB Group has expanded its presence in the Channel Islands with the acquisition of Guernsey-based general insurance specialist Ross Gower Group. ** Cenovus Energy sweetened its offer to acquire MEG Energy, raising the value of its proposed deal to C$8.6 billion ($6.16 billion), including debt, in an attempt to match a rival bid from Strathcona Resources. ** SoftBank Group has agreed to buy the robotics business of Swiss engineering group ABB in a $5.4 billion deal, as the Japanese investor forges ahead with a strategy to fuse robotics and artificial intelligence. ** Germany's Helsing will acquire Australian underwater drone maker Blue Ocean, the defence startup said, as it looks to expand its AI-powered autonomous systems in the marine sector. ** Belgian metal recycling group Umicore plans to sell its permanent gold inventories for about 410 million euros ($476 million) in a bid to capitalize on the metal's record prices, it said. ** Singapore's Keppel REIT announced that it plans to acquire a 75% stake in Sydney's Top Ryde City Shopping Centre for a gross purchase price of A$393.8 million ($259 million), marking a major push into non-discretionary retail. ** British philanthropist Lynn Forester de Rothschild is looking to offload her family's entire stake in global media and information company The Economist, Axios reported on Tuesday, citing a source familiar with the transaction. ** Atlanta-based third-party administration (TPA) Engle Martin & Associates has acquired specialty international loss adjusting firm Integra Technical Services Group. (Compiled by Sahil Pandey and Rajarshi Roy in Bengaluru)

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