While crude oil and gas markets are trying to find their own footing, other crises are already on the horizon. At present, the global debate surrounding the closure of the Strait of Hormuz is framed through crude oil prices, Asian LNG demand, and Europe’s still fledgling security. Yes, these are very visible shockwaves, but behind these media clouds, something else is hiding in plain sight. One of the most immediate and severe casualties of a prolonged Hormuz closure, or even worse a regional war, will not be a major industrial power but…

U.S. intervention in Venezuela removed a major destabilizing force in South America’s Northern Andes region, the authoritarian regime of illegitimate president Nicolas Maduro. While this will revitalize Venezuela’s economic backbone, the country’s oil industry, it will impact nearby countries, notably those producing heavy crude. Among the most exposed to the risks posed by Venezuela’s resurgent oil patch is Ecuador. For over a decade, Ecuador’s government in the capital Quito has been battling to resurrect the economically…

Iraq has begun curtailing oil production at key southern fields, including Rumaila, while West Qurna 2 is also shutting in roughly 460,000 barrels per day, according to Iraqi oil officials. The cuts follow escalating regional tensions that have effectively stalled tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Iraqi authorities said disrupted navigation and a shortage of available tankers have pushed storage tanks in southern export terminals toward critical levels, forcing production reductions. Related: Trump’s Secret Weapon in the Rare Earth…

Iraq has begun curtailing oil production at key southern fields, including Rumaila, while West Qurna 2 is also shutting in roughly 460,000 barrels per day, according to Iraqi oil officials. The cuts follow escalating regional tensions that have effectively stalled tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Iraqi authorities said disrupted navigation and a shortage of available tankers have pushed storage tanks in southern export terminals toward critical levels, forcing production reductions. Related: Trump’s Secret Weapon in the Rare Earth…

Iraq has begun curtailing oil production at key southern fields, including Rumaila, while West Qurna 2 is also shutting in roughly 460,000 barrels per day, according to Iraqi oil officials. The cuts follow escalating regional tensions that have effectively stalled tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz. Iraqi authorities said disrupted navigation and a shortage of available tankers have pushed storage tanks in southern export terminals toward critical levels, forcing production reductions. Related: Trump’s Secret Weapon in the Rare Earth…

India’s gas marketing companies have informed industrial customers they would receive lower gas supply, industry sources told Reuters, after Qatar announced on Monday it would halt LNG production due to attacks on its liquefaction facilities.   QatarEnergy, the state firm of the world’s second-largest LNG exporter, on Monday announced that “Due to military attacks on QatarEnergy’s operating facilities in Ras Laffan Industrial City and Mesaieed Industrial City in the State of Qatar, QatarEnergy has ceased production…

Oil prices jumped by 8% early on Tuesday as markets brace for a prolonged conflict in the Middle East and fears of supply disruptions began to materialize.  As of 7:00 a.m. ET on Tuesday, the international benchmark, Brent Crude, had jumped by 8.36% to $84.24.  The U.S. benchmark, WTI Crude, moved up past the $75 per barrel threshold and traded at $76.93, up by 8% on the day.    After a 10% jump on Monday, oil prices continued their upward trajectory on Tuesday after U.S. President Donald Trump said that the war in Iran,…

The U.S. government spends roughly $900 billion on defense each year. The private aerospace and defense sector generates close to $1 trillion in annual revenue. Over the next five years, nearly $10 trillion will flow through production lines that build fighter jets, missile defense systems, naval vessels, radar networks, satellites, and drones. All of it depends on one industrial step North America largely abandoned decades ago: the conversion of rare-earth oxide into magnet-grade metal. For decades, China has dominated rare earths — not…

Following a 40% surge on Monday, Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices soared by another 30% at opening on Tuesday as the halt of LNG production in Qatar, the world’s second-largest LNG exporter, roiled global gas markets and put energy security in Asia and Europe at risk.  The front-month Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, jumped by 34% at opening before paring some gains, but they were still 26% higher since Monday’s close as of 8:30 a.m. in Amsterdam on Tuesday.   …

It’s not hyperbole to call what transpired today in Qatar a seismic event for global energy markets. On March 2, QatarEnergy — the state-owned energy giant responsible for all of the country’s liquefied natural gas exports — announced a complete halt to LNG production after Iranian drone strikes hit facilities at Ras Laffan Industrial City and Mesaieed Industrial City. And the effects of the shutdown will go well beyond the short term. These aren’t minor processing units. These are the heart of Qatar’s LNG infrastructure,…

From the moment that Russia invaded Ukraine on 24 February 2022, liquefied natural gas (LNG) became the key global emergency energy source. Unlike pipelined energy that requires time-consuming infrastructure build-out and contract negotiations before it can be moved anywhere, LNG can be bought in the spot market when required and move swiftly to wherever it is needed. As increasing sanctions have hit Russia’s previously enormous global oil and gas exports, LNG’s crucial importance to the world’s energy balance has increased. Against…

Oil prices jumped nearly 10% in Monday's early session after Iran launched a barrage of retaliatory missiles and drone strikes targeting Israel and U.S. bases in the Persian Gulf following the killing of Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei on Saturday. And, it could get worse: JPMorgan Chase has warned that Brent crude oil prices could spike to $120 per barrel if the conflict leads to sustained disruption of oil flows through the Strait of Hormuz. Whereas the Strait of Hormuz has not officially been closed, it is experiencing a de…

South America’s largest economy, Brazil, is on track to be a top 5 global oil producer. During 2023, Brazil received an offer to join the OPEC+ price cartel, but it took until early 2025 for the government in the capital Brasilia to accept membership. This signaled a significant change in government strategy, with President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva seeking to make Brazil the world’s fourth-largest petroleum producer by the end of the decade. By joining OPEC+, Brazil can access considerable strategic resources to assist with…

Last month’s announcement that Devon Energy and Coterra Energy are merging to create a $58-billion giant is the latest mega-deal in the U.S. shale patch, signaling smaller public companies are seeking multi-basin, multi-year increases in drilling opportunities. In early February, Devon Energy and Coterra Energy announced a definitive agreement to merge and create a premier shale operator in an all-stock transaction, implying a combined enterprise value of about $58 billion. The deal creates a company with a significantly increased position…

Average U.S. gasoline prices climbed above $3 per gallon on Monday for the first time since November, as escalating conflict with Iran rippled through global energy markets and pushed crude and fuel prices sharply higher. According to Reuters, retail gasoline crossed the $3 threshold as Brent crude surged more than 5% to nearly $77 per barrel, with prices briefly topping $80 in early trading. Tehran’s retaliation following U.S. and Israeli strikes has disrupted oil and fuel shipments across the Middle East, particularly through the Strait…

Average U.S. gasoline prices climbed above $3 per gallon on Monday for the first time since November, as escalating conflict with Iran rippled through global energy markets and pushed crude and fuel prices sharply higher. According to Reuters, retail gasoline crossed the $3 threshold as Brent crude surged more than 5% to nearly $77 per barrel, with prices briefly topping $80 in early trading. Tehran’s retaliation following U.S. and Israeli strikes has disrupted oil and fuel shipments across the Middle East, particularly through the Strait…

Average U.S. gasoline prices climbed above $3 per gallon on Monday for the first time since November, as escalating conflict with Iran rippled through global energy markets and pushed crude and fuel prices sharply higher. According to Reuters, retail gasoline crossed the $3 threshold as Brent crude surged more than 5% to nearly $77 per barrel, with prices briefly topping $80 in early trading. Tehran’s retaliation following U.S. and Israeli strikes has disrupted oil and fuel shipments across the Middle East, particularly through the Strait…

When it comes to the dangers of artificial intelligence (AI) and now artificial superintelligence (ASI) (sometimes called artificial general intelligence), I feel as if we've been transported onto the set of the 1983 film "WarGames." In the film teenage hacker David Lightman stumbles onto the military's most sensitive war scenario planning computer while believing he has simply found a soon-to-be-released game called "Global Thermonuclear War" on the server of a computer game company.  Lightman activates the game which ultimately makes personnel…

The Strait of Hormuz is back in the headlines. Again. Roughly a fifth of globally traded oil passes through that narrow maritime corridor between Oman and Iran. And once more, geopolitical tensions in the Middle East have turned this chokepoint into a pressure valve for the entire global economy. Insurance premiums spike. Tankers hesitate. Traders hold their breath. Politicians rush to microphones. And Europe wonders why its energy bills are rising. There is something profoundly frustrating about this moment, not because it is surprising, but because…

Chevron has declared force majeure at Israel’s Leviathan natural gas field after the government ordered a temporary suspension of production on security grounds, marking the second time in less than a year that hostilities with Iran have disrupted Eastern Mediterranean gas flows. Israel’s energy ministry directed operator Chevron to shut in Leviathan following joint U.S.-Israeli strikes on Iran and subsequent retaliatory action across the region. Partner NewMed Energy said the suspension followed guidance from security authorities,…