Efforts to cut Europe’s energy ties with Moscow have already changed the flow of crude oil. Now, attention is turning to refined products, particularly diesel refined from Russian crude outside of the bloc. The goal is clear: reduce the Kremlin’s revenues. But cutting off diesel imports into the bloc in this manner is no simple matter. Keeping track of the origin of each single molecule of diesel around the world is a near-impossible task. Since the war began, refiners in India, Turkey, and the Gulf have taken in Russian crude, processed…

Trump-era clean energy policies are slamming the breaks on the United States’ battery war with China. While lithium-ion batteries were invented in the United States, China has been outpacing the nation in terms of both battery manufacturing and technological innovations. But while U.S. companies have been scrambling to keep up, gutted clean energy incentives and tariffs on critical materials have made a U.S. victory all but impossible.  The domestic battery industry had been gaining considerable ground under the Biden administration…

Private beachfronts, million-dollar bathtubs, evenings of wine, whiskey, cigars, and karaoke – or performances by Russian pop stars whose fame stretches back to the 1990s. Those are some of the trappings of an “ultraluxe” villa complex in Dubai where Sergei Chemezov – the Western-sanctioned head of the massive Russian state defense conglomerate Rostec and a close ally of President Vladimir Putin since they were KGB officers in communist East Germany – spends time with family, friends, and associates. While they are…

The takeover of German chemicals giant Covestro by Abu Dhabi’s national oil company ADNOC is facing significant hurdles, as the EU is at present assessing the possible competition distortion in European markets. While the German chemical company reported today that it has missed its Q2 2025 sales expectation, primarily due to US trade policies, the management remains confident that the ADNOC takeover deadline is being met. Covestro indicated that it is satisfied that the EU probe is not going to materialize in a blockade of the deal. …

A Kazakh appellate court has sided with the international oil majors operating the Kashagan oilfield, overturning a massive $4.2 billion environmental fine over sulfur storage practices. The North Caspian Operating Company (NCOC)—a consortium that includes Eni, Shell, ExxonMobil, and TotalEnergies—hailed the decision as confirmation that their sulfur handling meets both Kazakh legal requirements and global industry standards. The dispute stemmed from Kazakhstan’s claim that NCOC had improperly stored sulfur byproducts at the $55…

The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States fell this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday as operators continue to scale back. The total rig count in the US fell by 2 rigs for the second week in a row, landing at 540, according to Baker Hughes, down 46 from this same time last year. The number of oil rigs fell by 5 to 410, down by 72 compared to this time last year. The number of gas rigs rose by 2 this week, coming in at 124 for a gain of 26 active gas rigs from this time last year.…

OPEC+ is inching toward a pivotal decision this weekend: whether to greenlight another 548,000 bpd in production hikes for September, effectively fast-tracking the return of 2.2 million bpd in voluntary cuts a year ahead of schedule.                                        The Joint Ministerial Monitoring Committee (JMMC) already met last week and stopped…

A poor U.S. jobs report led to a broader sell-off on Friday, with leading stock indices falling from record highs.Friday, August 1st, 2025 Buoyed by Trump’s Russia threats and news of Indian state refiners curbing purchases of Russian crude, crude oil futures have been trending above $70 per barrel throughout the week, settling on Friday slightly below the $71 mark. Towards the end of the week, sentiment has been sapped by expectations of yet another OPEC+ production hike, potentially even as high as 548,000 b/d, as the eight output-cutting…

Enbridge posted record core earnings, or EBITDA, for the second quarter of the year on the back of strong liquids flows through its pipelines and soaring demand for power generation and feedgas for LNG in North America.  The Canadian pipeline giant on Friday reported record adjusted EBITDA of U$3.36 billion (C$4.6 billion) for the second quarter, up by 7% from a year earlier.  The company expects to finish the year in the upper end of its adjusted EBITDA guidance range, president and CEO Greg Ebel said.  Enbridge’s adjusted…

Enbridge posted record core earnings, or EBITDA, for the second quarter of the year on the back of strong liquids flows through its pipelines and soaring demand for power generation and feedgas for LNG in North America.  The Canadian pipeline giant on Friday reported record adjusted EBITDA of U$3.36 billion (C$4.6 billion) for the second quarter, up by 7% from a year earlier.  The company expects to finish the year in the upper end of its adjusted EBITDA guidance range, president and CEO Greg Ebel said.  Enbridge’s adjusted…

Numbers Report – August 01, 2025 In the latest edition of the Numbers Report, we will take a look at some of the most interesting figures put out this week in the energy and metals sectors. Each week we’ll dig into some data and provide a bit of explanation on what drives the numbers.  Let’s take a look.  OPEC+ to Finish the Unwinding Job with September Superhike  Following the joint ministerial monitoring committee meeting last week, eight leading members of OPEC+ will be meeting on Sunday (August 3) to decide…

The end of maintenance works boosted Russia’s natural gas exports via pipeline to Europe by 37% in July compared to June, data calculated by Reuters showed on Friday.  Russian gas supply via pipelines to Europe has slumped since 2022, after Russia cut off many EU customers from its gas deliveries, and Nord Stream stopped supplying gas to Germany, after Russia reduced flows and after a sabotage in September 2022.  Russian pipeline gas supply via Ukraine stopped on January 1, 2025, after Ukraine refused to negotiate an extension to…

Despite the slide in oil prices in the second quarter, ExxonMobil (NYSE: XOM) reported on Friday earnings that exceeded analyst estimates on the back of increased oil and gas production in the U.S. Permian shale basin and offshore Guyana.  Exxon’s earnings stood at $7.1 billion for the second quarter, or $1.64 per share, as the company achieved its highest second-quarter upstream production since the merger of Exxon and Mobil more than 25 years ago.  The Q2 earnings per share beat the analyst consensus of $1.57 EPS in the Wall Street…

Shares of USA Rare Earth are rocketed higher yesterday afternoon after it was reported that the Trump administration is moving to extend price support mechanisms for U.S. rare earth projects to other companies, broadening a policy that previously focused on MP Materials to include other mining, refining, and magnet production firms. USA Rare Earth is the obvious #2 name in the U.S. that such an expansion may have an impact on. scale, government stake, and strategic timing. Shares quickly popped 15% on the news: This expansion will provide guaranteed…

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) beat Wall Street estimates of its second-quarter profit as Permian production surged and U.S. and worldwide oil and gas output jumped to record highs.   Chevron reported on Friday adjusted earnings of $3.1 billion, or $1.77 per share, for the second quarter of 2025, compared to adjusted earnings of $4.7 billion, or $2.55 per share, for the same period last year.  The decline was the result of lower realizations due to lower crude oil prices, lower income from upstream and downstream equity affiliates,…

Chevron Corporation (NYSE: CVX) beat Wall Street estimates of its second-quarter profit as Permian production surged and U.S. and worldwide oil and gas output jumped to record highs.   Chevron reported on Friday adjusted earnings of $3.1 billion, or $1.77 per share, for the second quarter of 2025, compared to adjusted earnings of $4.7 billion, or $2.55 per share, for the same period last year.  The decline was the result of lower realizations due to lower crude oil prices, lower income from upstream and downstream equity affiliates,…

While Indian refiners are scrambling to understand the implications of President Trump’s threatened “penalties” on India for buying Russian oil, at least four tankers carrying crude cargoes from Russia were staying idle off India’s west coast on Friday, ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg show. Three of the four tankers are sanctioned by either the EU or the UK, or both, and had loaded at Russian ports in June. Now that they have arrived in India, the vessels are anchored off major oil import ports in western India…

Pakistan’s leading exploration and production firm, Oil & Gas Development Company Limited (OGDCL), on Friday announced an oil discovery in an exploration license in the southeastern province of Sindh. OGDCL, the operator of the Tando Allah Yar (TAY) exploration license, found oil at exploratory well Chakar–1, where tests showed that the well flowed 275 barrels of oil per day.   A second drill stem test (DST) is now being conducted to further assess its hydrocarbon potential.  The discovery at Chakar–1 marks…

Crude oil prices surged this week, driven by significant trade diplomacy breakthroughs, tightening supply signals, and mounting geopolitical risks. However, a late-session pullback on Thursday trimmed gains as traders braced for potential fallout from U.S. trade actions. As of Thursday’s close, Light Crude Oil futures settled at $69.26 per barrel, up $4.10 or 6.29% on the week. U.S.-EU and China Trade Progress Fuels Early Week Rally The rally kicked off Monday on the back of a major U.S.-EU trade agreement that lifted the threat of sweeping…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict Mohamed Takala’s election as president of Libya’s High Council of State (HCS) is likely to increase the risk of political paralysis in the country’s political ‘west’. He won 59 votes in a session attended by 95 members. His supporters claim a quorum was met and the process was valid. Khaled al-Mishri, who held the presidency for five years, disputes that. He says the vote was illegitimate and that the session itself was improperly called. Both sides are now pushing competing versions…