This week, the Biden administration revealed that it will release as much as 180 million barrels of crude oil in a bid to calm oil prices, which have remained above $100 per barrel for an extended period of time. The International Energy Agency, meanwhile, is coordinating a smaller but international reserve release of some 60 million barrels and has called an emergency meeting to discuss how exactly to go about it.  It remains unclear whether part of the 180 SPR release in the United States will be a completely separate endeavor or if some…
Oil prices rose early on Thursday, with Brent firming above $90 a barrel, as fears of a Russia-Ukraine conflict that could disrupt energy supply to Europe trumped a strengthening U.S. dollar after the hawkish Fed statement on Wednesday. As of 10:00 a.m. EST on Thursday, WTI Crude was up 0.96% at $88.18 and Brent Crude traded above $90 per barrel, at $90.78, up by 0.91%. On Wednesday, Brent broke above $90 for the first time since 2014 due to the simmering tension between Russia and the West over Ukraine and another decline in the U.S. inventories…
U.S. presidents have long been made by their advisers to understand the dangers of benchmark oil prices staying above the US$75-80 per barrel (pb) level for extended periods of time. As the Brent and West Texas Intermediate (WTI) benchmarks continue to spike back above that level – and threaten a sustained move even above US$90 pb – there will be renewed pressure on President Joe Biden to act to bring oil prices down to below the ‘danger’ levels. The danger for a U.S. president in oil prices being above these levels for…
The Biden administration confirmed that it is considering shutting down an oil pipeline in Michigan despite the ongoing fuel crisis in the country. “Revoking the permits for the [Line 5] pipeline that delivers oil from western Canada across Wisconsin, the Great Lakes and Michigan and into Ontario, would please environmentalists who have urged the White […]
Tropical storm Nicholas, which was upgraded to a Category 1 hurricane yesterday, made landfall in the early hours of Tuesday in the Matagorda Peninsula, threatening dangerous flooding in the U.S. oil heartland just days after another hurricane, Ida, shut down almost all offshore oil production and a lot of Gulf Coast refining capacity. The progress of the hurricane pushed oil prices to the highest in six weeks on Monday, as more than 40 percent of U.S. offshore oil production, or close to 800,000 bpd, still remains shut down from Ida. The last…
9:00 AM — Sep 14th 2021
India's crude oil demand has been on the mend since mid-summer. It is likely to continue along this same vein for quite a while, with at least one refiner planning to boost refining capacity considerably. India, the world's third-largest oil importer, has become a key factor for oil prices because of its overwhelming dependence on imported crude. During the latest wave of Covid-19 infections in the country, oil demand suffered an expected slump. But now things are looking up. Reuters reported last month that in July, Indian refiners increased run…
Saudi Arabia had intercepted a ballistic missile attack on facilities owned by state oil major Aramco in the Eastern Region, Reuters has reported, citing the Saudi defense ministry. Earlier reports said Aramco facilities in Dharan had gone on lockdown because of a suspected attack. The Iran-affiliated Yemeni Houthi group claimed responsibility for the attacks on Sunday, saying it had used ballistic missiles and drones. Ras Tanura, which is home to extensive oil infrastructure, was not the only target of the attack: the Houthis also targeted Aramco…
9:00 AM — Sep 6th 2021
"This Is Big": 14-Mile Long Oil Spill In Gulf Of Mexico Investigated By Coast Guard The US Coast Guard is responding to a 14-mile long oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico discovered in the aftermath of Hurricane Ida, officials said Saturday according to Bloomberg . The spill, which consists of a 4-mile black sheen and a 10-mile rainbow sheen, is located in federal waters off Port Fourchon, Louisiana, said Sam Jones, head of the Louisiana Oil Spill Coordinator’s Office. “That’s big,” Jones said in an interview on Saturday. “It’s the biggest one out there.” The Coast Guard said in a s [...]