It finally happened — U.S. shale’s crown jewel has hit the number the doomers have been pointing to for years. The Permian Basin is set to produce a record 6.76 million bpd this month, and according to the EIA, that figure may stand as the basin’s all-time high. In any other oil province on the planet, that sort of declaration would cue the obituaries. But the Permian is not “any other basin,” and this is not a story of decline. It’s a story of mutation. What looks like a geological ceiling is, in reality, the…

The first lease sale for the Gulf of Mexico during President Trump’s second term drew bids worth close to $300 million, with the average price bid per acre the highest in eight years. The total, however, was $100 lower than the bids made in the last Gulf lease sale, back in 2023. The Trump administration plans a total of 30 lease sales for offshore oil and gas, to run until 2040. The series should tap a total of 29.6 billion barrels of crude oil and 55 trillion cu ft of natural gas. This was the first in the series, aimed at advancing the…

The US National Security Strategy Is Correct About European Strategic Weaknesses The recent publication of the United States National Security Strategy provoked a strong reaction amongst many in the political establishment across Europe, both within and outside the EU. It has been widely seen by critics as proof of a clear and explicit divergence between the United States and Europe. In truth, many of the points raised about Europe’s strategic weaknesses are much more accurate than many of those currently in leadership in Europe are prepared…

The House on Thursday narrowly approved the PERMIT Act, a Republican-backed measure that would roll back the authority states have used for years to block major pipeline projects under the Clean Water Act. The 221–205 vote marks the chamber’s most aggressive attempt yet to redraw the permitting map just as the U.S. enters the largest natural gas pipeline expansion cycle since the shale boom. At the center of the bill is Section 401 of the Clean Water Act — the clause Northeastern governors have repeatedly used to halt gas lines…

The House on Thursday narrowly approved the PERMIT Act, a Republican-backed measure that would roll back the authority states have used for years to block major pipeline projects under the Clean Water Act. The 221–205 vote marks the chamber’s most aggressive attempt yet to redraw the permitting map just as the U.S. enters the largest natural gas pipeline expansion cycle since the shale boom. At the center of the bill is Section 401 of the Clean Water Act — the clause Northeastern governors have repeatedly used to halt gas lines…

On Wednesday, the United States carried out one of its most consequential maritime interventions to date. The Federal Bureau of Investigation, Homeland Security Investigations, and the United States Coast Guard, acting with support from the Department of War, seized a crude oil tanker accused of transporting sanctioned oil from Venezuela and Iran. It was a dramatic show of force in already volatile waters and an intervention that has jolted Caracas. The operation was presented as a decisive strike against illicit oil flows. Yet within hours, Venezuela…

Washington moved aggressively back into Venezuela’s oil sector on Thursday, sanctioning Maduro family members, a longtime business ally, and six companies operating tankers that have kept PDVSA’s exports alive through opaque shipping practices. It’s the clearest sign yet that the brief thaw under Biden is over, and that the Trump administration intends to put real teeth back into the sanctions regime. At the center of the new action are three nephews of Cilia Flores, Maduro’s powerful wife. Two of them, better known in Caracas…

The global green hydrogen market is projected to undergo massive expansion over the next decade, swelling from USD 2.79 billion in 2025 to nearly $75 billion by 2032, according to a new report by MarketsAndMarkets This forecast, representing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 60%, highlights the sector's immense potential even as the industry faces a period of recalibration marked by project delays and stringent policy debates. While the long-term trajectory points toward rapid scaling, the immediate landscape is defined by a tension between…

NATO chief Mark Rutte warned that members of the military alliance must treat the threat posed by Moscow more urgently as they may be "Russia's next target." In one of his starkest statements to date, Rutte said in a keynote address in Berlin on December 11 that NATO's 32 members need to step up defense effort to prevent a war with Russia that could be "on the scale of war our grandparents and great-grandparents endured." "We are Russia's next target. And we are already in harm's way," Rutte said, noting Russia could be ready to use military force…

Commuting from Heathrow to central London may soon be a thing of the past. Vertical Aerospace, founded by the man behind OVO energy, has unveiled Valo, its next-generation aircraft designed for quick, zero-emission airport-to-city travel. While the British electric aviation giant’s shares have seen a 94 percent decline since its IPO back in 2021, the launch of Valo marks a significant step in the firm’s push to transform urban air mobility. The aircraft is aiming for regulatory approval in 2028, with early commercial routes planned…

Canada’s oil producer Suncor Energy expects to grow its upstream production next year as it continues to invest in in-situ projects in the oil sands patch.  Suncor Energy expects annual upstream production of between 840,000 and 870,000 barrels per day (bpd) in 2026, up by more than 100,000 bpd compared to 2023 and exceeding targets outlined at the 2024 Investor Day. Suncor’s output at oil sands projects only is forecast at 785,000 bpd - 810,000 bpd, the company said in its 2026 corporate guidance. Major economic investments planned…

A background report published by a leading transparency watchdog group in Tbilisi highlights the sketchy ownership structure of a tanker that delivered oil from Russia to Georgia, raising suspicions that the shipment was part of a sanctions-busting endeavor. The backgrounder published by Transparency International-Georgia, titled Kulevi Oil Refinery – Part of a Sanctions Evasion Scheme?, chronicles the voyage of the tanker Kayseri, which sailed out of the Russian port of Novorossiysk…

Equinor and its partners in the huge new Arctic oilfield Johan Castberg will invest $396 million (4 billion Norwegian crowns) to construct the first tie-back of another discovery to the Castberg hub that would boost oil production from the area.   The investment decision by Equinor, Vår Energi, and Petoro was made just eight months after Johan Castberg came on stream, the Norwegian energy major said on Thursday.   Equinor announced in the summer that Johan Castberg hit full capacity of 220,000 barrels per day…

Offshore Eastern Canada remains a region of profound geological potential, characterized by large, under-explored sedimentary basins that could hold billions of barrels of oil and gas. Decades of production from the proven Jeanne d’Arc Basin have established a robust petroleum system, yet significant exploration upside remains in deepwater frontier areas such as the Orphan Basin and Flemish Pass. Yet, recent drilling campaigns targeting these frontier areas have faced mixed commercial results, leading to a critical industry reassessment of…

Oil prices slid nearly 2% on Thursday in a move that ran against a rare alignment of bullish signals—from OPEC’s upbeat December MOMR to a softer glut forecast from the IEA and fresh U.S. inventory draws.  Brent fell toward $61…  And WTI toward $57…  Extending a losing streak that now spans most of December. OPEC’s latest monthly report maintained a firm demand outlook for 2025–26, pointing to resilient consumption in China, India, and the Middle East while reiterating that non-OPEC supply growth…

Oil prices slid nearly 2% on Thursday in a move that ran against a rare alignment of bullish signals—from OPEC’s upbeat December MOMR to a softer glut forecast from the IEA and fresh U.S. inventory draws.  Brent fell toward $61…  And WTI toward $57…  Extending a losing streak that now spans most of December. OPEC’s latest monthly report maintained a firm demand outlook for 2025–26, pointing to resilient consumption in China, India, and the Middle East while reiterating that non-OPEC supply growth…

As the recently published national security strategy emphasised, the new Trump administration is focused on maintaining control and influence in Latin America. The growing pressure that Washington is putting on Venezuela is just one example of this new foreign policy, and the seizure of an oil tanker off Venezuela’s coast is just the latest development. With that in mind, it is useful to understand exactly how the country’s oil industry is caught up in this geopolitical power play. Since the United States introduced sanctions on Venezuelan…

Global oil demand will rise by about 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd) next year, supported by solid economic growth, OPEC said in its monthly report ton Thursday, keeping its demand forecasts unchanged from last month.  Unlike other forecasters, investment banks, and analysts, OPEC continues to expect robust demand growth in 2026 that will be higher than the estimated increase for 2025 of about 1.3 million bpd, forecasts in the cartel’s Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) showed on Thursday.  Figures about the balance of supply and…

Global oil demand will rise by about 1.4 million barrels per day (bpd) next year, supported by solid economic growth, OPEC said in its monthly report ton Thursday, keeping its demand forecasts unchanged from last month.  Unlike other forecasters, investment banks, and analysts, OPEC continues to expect robust demand growth in 2026 that will be higher than the estimated increase for 2025 of about 1.3 million bpd, forecasts in the cartel’s Monthly Oil Market Report (MOMR) showed on Thursday.  Figures about the balance of supply and…

In a significant expansion of its campaign against Russian energy infrastructure, Ukraine’s security services executed a long-range drone strike on a major offshore oil field in the Caspian Sea, effectively halting production at a key Lukoil facility.  The attack on Dec. 11 marks the first time Kyiv has targeted hydrocarbon extraction assets in the Caspian region, a development that signals a new phase in the targeting of Russia’s economic lifelines and raises questions regarding the security of energy corridors previously considered…