Energy stocks gained Friday afternoon with the NYSE Energy Sector Index rising 0.8% and the Energy Select Sector SPDR Fund (XLE) adding 0.9%.

The Philadelphia Oil Service Sector index increased 0.3%, and the Dow Jones US Utilities index gained 1.3%.

West Texas Intermediate crude oil rose 0.4% to $69.62 a barrel, while global benchmark Brent advanced 0.3% to $73.06 a barrel. Henry Hub natural gas futures jumped 6.1% to $3.80 per 1 million BTU.

In corporate news, Battalion Oil (BATL) shares plunged 39% after the company terminated its agreement and plan of merger with Fury Resources.

Berkshire Hathaway (BRK.A) increased its stake in Occidental Petroleum (OXY), purchasing about $409.2 million in shares over the past three days, a regulatory filing on Friday showed. Occidental shares jumped 4.6%. Separately, Occidental's joint venture with Colombia's Ecopetrol (EC) may be in jeopardy because of turmoil at the state-controlled energy company, Reuters reported. Ecopetrol shares climbed 0.9%.

FirstEnergy (FE) shares rose 1.1%. a day after the FirstEnergy Pennsylvania unit got approval from the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission to implement the third phase of its long-term infrastructure improvement plans.