After the latest political shock in Venezuela, speculation has surged over the prospects of a recovery for the country’s oil industry. On paper, Venezuela still holds the world’s largest proven oil reserves. In reality, production remains a fraction of what it once was. How quickly Venezuela’s oil production ramps up will depend in part on what happens with sanctions. But Venezuela’s collapse did not begin with sanctions, nor can sanctions relief alone undo the damage. However, that could have a significant short-term effect.…

The current US administration has made the expansion of nuclear power a key priority, and through the Janus Program, the United States Army is placed to implement new, portable nuclear technology.The program unveiled last year aims to supply “microreactors” — which are 100 to 1,000 times smaller than conventional nuclear reactors — to military bases by 2028.  The units can produce up to 20 megawatts of electricity and could provide dependable power for remote communities, military bases, data centers, and college campuses,…

China’s meteoric rise to become the world’s first ‘electrostate’ is poised to shake up the entire global economy and the future of energy markets. The country is breaking away from the rest of the world both in terms of what it's investing in and how much it’s investing. China, the world’s second-largest economy after the United States, spent more than USD 625 billion on renewable energy in 2024, a national and global record, while spending plateaued in the United States and declined in the European Union and…

Even as geopolitical developments, such as Venezuela and Iran, are making headlines, another major energy-related issue is currently being unwound. At present, the fire sale of Russian oil and gas giant Lukoil’s empire is ongoing, in the only way this can be done for a sanctioned Russian major. The whole deal or process is clearly under a clock set by Washington, based, and inside a legal maze designed by OFAC. The most critical part of it all is that potential buyers are forced to demonstrate that they are not merely acquiring assets but…

The global mining landscape is bracing for a seismic shift after Rio Tinto and Glencore confirmed they are in talks regarding a potential merger. A tie-up between the two FTSE 100 titans would create the world’s largest mining entity, boasting a combined enterprise value of approximately £190bn. Glencore shares rallied nine per cent in early trading to 449.20 but Rio Tinto took a six per cent tumble to 143.06p. The move comes amid a race to beef up critical metals, particularly copper, as the industry’s pivot toward an energy…

A week after President Donald Trump’s bold talk about U.S. oil majors “going in and spending billions” to revive Venezuela’s wrecked crude industry, the administration is now walking back the idea of direct U.S. cash backing for that effort, even as it convenes a who’s-who of energy executives at the White House. Earlier in the week, Trump publicly portrayed Venezuela’s reopening to Western oil investment as a near-done deal, framing multi-billion-dollar capital commitments by firms like Chevron, ExxonMobil and…

A week after President Donald Trump’s bold talk about U.S. oil majors “going in and spending billions” to revive Venezuela’s wrecked crude industry, the administration is now walking back the idea of direct U.S. cash backing for that effort, even as it convenes a who’s-who of energy executives at the White House. Earlier in the week, Trump publicly portrayed Venezuela’s reopening to Western oil investment as a near-done deal, framing multi-billion-dollar capital commitments by firms like Chevron, ExxonMobil and…

The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States fell by 4 this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published earlier this week, bringing the total rig count in the US  to 544 this week, down 40 from this same time last year. The number of active oil rigs fell by 3 in the reporting period, according to the data. Oil rigs are now at 409, which is 71 below this same time last year. The number of gas rigs fell by 1 to 124, which is 24 more than this time last year. The miscellaneous rig count rose by 2.…

China looks to reduce emissions in industry by introducing a new policy for industrial parks to use more renewable energy from their micro-grids and dispatch less green energy to the main grid. Chinese authorities on Friday issued new guidelines on micro-grids at industrial parks to address hurdles, including a lack of unified technical standards, incomplete market-based mechanisms, and insufficient coordination with the main power grid. Under the new policy, unveiled by five central government departments, including the Ministry of Industry and…

China looks to reduce emissions in industry by introducing a new policy for industrial parks to use more renewable energy from their micro-grids and dispatch less green energy to the main grid. Chinese authorities on Friday issued new guidelines on micro-grids at industrial parks to address hurdles, including a lack of unified technical standards, incomplete market-based mechanisms, and insufficient coordination with the main power grid. Under the new policy, unveiled by five central government departments, including the Ministry of Industry and…

China looks to reduce emissions in industry by introducing a new policy for industrial parks to use more renewable energy from their micro-grids and dispatch less green energy to the main grid. Chinese authorities on Friday issued new guidelines on micro-grids at industrial parks to address hurdles, including a lack of unified technical standards, incomplete market-based mechanisms, and insufficient coordination with the main power grid. Under the new policy, unveiled by five central government departments, including the Ministry of Industry and…

The numbers are not adding up at Tajikistan’s signature infrastructure project, the Rogun Dam. An independent audit of the project’s financial statements has found a $540 million accounting gap and has determined that electricity-production operations at the work-in-progress facility are losing money. Controversy is nothing new for the Rogun project, which, if completed to its maximum specifications, would become the world’s tallest dam. Critics argue the dam is a white elephant in the making that…

Russia’s crude oil production dipped to 9.326 million barrels (bpd) in December, down by over 100,000 bpd from November and nearly 250,000 bpd lower than Moscow’s OPEC+ quota, sources familiar with classified government data told Bloomberg on Friday. The fresh U.S. sanctions on Russia’s top producers Rosneft and Lukoil drove the lower crude output at the end of last year. Russian crude volumes accumulated in floating storage amid buyer hesitancy, low spare storage capacity onshore, and Ukrainian drone attacks on export and refining…

Russia’s crude oil production dipped to 9.326 million barrels (bpd) in December, down by over 100,000 bpd from November and nearly 250,000 bpd lower than Moscow’s OPEC+ quota, sources familiar with classified government data told Bloomberg on Friday. The fresh U.S. sanctions on Russia’s top producers Rosneft and Lukoil drove the lower crude output at the end of last year. Russian crude volumes accumulated in floating storage amid buyer hesitancy, low spare storage capacity onshore, and Ukrainian drone attacks on export and refining…

Iran unrest and tempered Venezuela expectations lifted Brent toward $63 a barrel. Friday, January 09, 2026 Iran protests have added some impetus to 2026’s heretofore surprisingly bullish start, putting potential supply disruptions back on the agenda. Moreover, the failure of the Trump government to entice US oil majors to invest in Venezuela and Treasury Secretary Bessent’s call for ‘wildcatters’ to drill there soothed some concerns that Venezuela’s oil production could soar in the near term. As such, ICE Brent is…

Russia fired a new nuclear-capable ballistic missile with multiple warheads at western Ukraine, part of a barrage of missiles and drones that pounded Ukrainian cities, including Kyiv, where at least 4 were killed and dozens wounded. Russia's Defence Ministry said on January 9 that the use of the missile, called the Oreshnik, was in response to an alleged Ukrainian drone attack in late December that Moscow said had targeted a residence used by President Vladimir Putin. Kyiv denied the allegation, and the CIA has also called the allegation false.…

Before I left for my break over the holidays, I penned an article outlining what I expected for crude in 2026. That is not an original idea, I will grant you, but I have found over the years that having a base case: a rational, unemotional, clearly defined view of what, all things being equal, will drive market pricing in the long term. Every short-term opinion can then be weighed against that long-term view in order to set appropriate time horizons and parameters for potential trades.  But, as we now know, all things would not remain equal…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict Saudi Arabia and Pakistan are discussing an arrangement that would see Pakistan supply JF-17 fighter jets in exchange for financial support or loans. The development is destabilizing because it pulls Saudi defense planning toward a nuclear-armed partner outside the US security structure that has anchored Gulf deterrence for decades. It means Saudi security decisions would no longer run primarily through Washington, Iran would have to account for Pakistan in any confrontation with Riyadh, and the US would no…

There are historical precedents for one power taking control of another country’s oil, but they are rarer than headlines suggest, and they usually occurred under conditions of war, occupation, or overt regime subjugation. That’s what makes Venezuela a precedent.  The closest analogue is Iran. In 1953, when then-Iranian PM Mohammad Mossadegh nationalized the Anglo-Iranian Oil Company, Britain and the U.S. responded by removing the government itself. After the coup, Iran’s oil did not return to Iranian control. It was reorganized…

The week ending January 9, 2026, was anything but ordinary for crude oil markets. As of late Thursday, WTI was trading at $58.42, up $1.10 or 1.92% for the week so far, with a weekly high of $58.87 and a low of $55.76. While these numbers might suggest relative stability, the forces at play beneath the surface tell a far more dramatic story—one that could reshape global energy markets for years to come. The Venezuela Shock The single biggest story this week was President Trump's military operation that resulted in the capture of Venezuelan…