RIYADH: European gas prices rose on Wednesday after delayed approval of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. US natural gas futures dropped by 5 percent. Brent crude futures dropped 32 cents, or 0.4 percent, by 5:10 PM Riyadh time to $82.11 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell 43 cents, or 0.5 percent, to $80.33 a barrel. Energy Market Qatar Energy has sold three cargoes of al-Shaheen crude loading in January at the highest premiums in nearly two years on robust demand in Asia, Reuters reported on Wednesday, citing trade sources. The future of gas The UAE will award contracts for $20 billion of natural-gas projects, according to Bloomberg. Abu Dhabi National Oil Co. will award engineering and construction work for the Dalma gas field in Persian Gulf waters soon, and it is meant to start flowing by about 2025. Investment insSolar NextEnergy is looking for around €420 million ($475 million) for 105 solar plants dotted across Italy including clusters on the islands of Sicily and Sardinia, people familiar with the matter told Reuters. Investment fund NextEnergy Capital has hired Rothschild and Banca IMI to help it find a buyer for solar power plants in southern Italy it hopes can fetch more than €400 million. Coal Three civil society groups are suing the Government of South Africa over its planned coal-fired energy power, which they said threatens people"s right to an environment not harmful to health, Reuters reported. The intention to build 1,500 MW of new coal capacity is contained in the government"s Integrated Resource Plan, a 2019 document laying out the energy mix up to 2030.