Saudi Arabia's oil exports through its Yanbu port on ‌the Red Sea are projected to reach a record high of 3.8 million barrels per day in March after the U.S.-Israeli war on Iran virtually cut off exports via the Strait of Hormuz, Reuters reported on Wednesday. The Kingdom can pump up to 7 million barrels per day through its East?West pipeline, of which 5 mb/d are available for export.  Saudi Arabia has been using drag-reducing agents (DRAs) to speed up oil flows to Yanbu and mitigate loss of exports through Hormuz. DRAs are friction-reducing…

Crude oil inventories in the United States increased by 6.2 million barrels during the week ending March 13, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on Wednesday. The increase brings commercial stockpiles to 449.3 million barrels according to government data, which is still 1% below the five-year average for this time of year. The EIA’s data release follows API’s figures that were released a day earlier, which reported that crude oil inventories saw a surprise build of 6.556 million barrels…

Oil and natural gas markets surged after Iran signaled it could retaliate against key regional energy infrastructure following reported strikes on its upstream assets. Brent crude climbed as much as 6% to $10.56 per barrel, while Europe’s gas benchmark jumped nearly 8%, highlighting mounting fears of supply disruption. Tehran said U.S. and Israeli forces targeted the South Pars gas field and associated facilities in Asaluyeh. The strike marks a significant escalation, representing the first direct attack on Iran’s upstream production…

Oil and natural gas markets surged after Iran signaled it could retaliate against key regional energy infrastructure following reported strikes on its upstream assets. Brent crude climbed as much as 6% to $10.56 per barrel, while Europe’s gas benchmark jumped nearly 8%, highlighting mounting fears of supply disruption. Tehran said U.S. and Israeli forces targeted the South Pars gas field and associated facilities in Asaluyeh. The strike marks a significant escalation, representing the first direct attack on Iran’s upstream production…

Oil and natural gas markets surged after Iran signaled it could retaliate against key regional energy infrastructure following reported strikes on its upstream assets. Brent crude climbed as much as 6% to $10.56 per barrel, while Europe’s gas benchmark jumped nearly 8%, highlighting mounting fears of supply disruption. Tehran said U.S. and Israeli forces targeted the South Pars gas field and associated facilities in Asaluyeh. The strike marks a significant escalation, representing the first direct attack on Iran’s upstream production…

Oil prices surged sharply on Wednesday as the Iran conflict continued to disrupt flows through the Persian Gulf, with the global benchmark pulling decisively away from U.S. crude as the Brent-WTI spread widened to roughly $10 per barrel, signaling mounting stress in seaborne supply markets. Brent crude climbed to about $108.40 per barrel while U.S. West Texas Intermediate traded near $98.50, according to pricing on Oilprice.com, pushing the spread to its widest level in months and well above its typical $2-$5 range.  The divergence reflects…

Iranian authorities have confirmed that the country's powerful security chief, Ali Larijani, has been killed, the highest profile official to die since Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of US and Israeli air strikes on February 28. Ali Larijani was killed along with his son Morteza, his deputy Alireza Bayat, and several bodyguards, the Secretariat of Iran's Supreme National Security Council said in a statement late on March 17. Larijani was secretary of the Supreme National Security Council. The council's statement came about…

Iran's effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz in response to a massive US-Israel bombing campaign has wreaked havoc on world energy markets and sent oil prices soaring. Things could get even worse, experts say, if passage through the Bab al-Mandab Strait -- another crucial shipping route in the Middle East -- is also disrupted. A choke point off Iran's coast, the Strait of Hormuz connects the Persian Gulf to the open ocean and global markets via the Gulf of Oman and the Arabian Sea. Likewise, Bab al-Mandab is a narrow passage for ships entering…

Just as the U.S. faces depletion of the rare earth metals it needs to feed its military machine, REalloys Inc. (NASDAQ: ALOY), one of the key players in rebuilding America’s critical raw materials supply chain, says it has successfully demonstrated a new process for producing rare earth fluorides without hydrofluoric acid—one of the most hazardous chemicals traditionally used in rare earth processing. The breakthrough targets an urgent stage in the production of rare earth metals, the materials that ultimately feed the permanent magnets…

The American Petroleum Institute (API) estimated that crude oil inventories in the United States rose by 6.556 million barrels in the week ending March 13—a surprise build of significant magnitude. In the week prior, US crude oil inventories shed 1.7 million barrels. Analysts had expected a draw of 600,000 barrels in the current reporting period. Inventories in the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) have stayed at 415.4 million barrels for multiple weeks in a row as of the week ending March 13. This is 310.1 million barrels shy of maximum…

The Trump Administration has already used up most emergency options to rein in the soaring international crude oil prices, which have pushed up U.S. gasoline prices by $0.80 per gallon from a month ago. The U.S. last week tapped the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) as part of a record-high reserves release announced by the International Energy Agency. The Trump Administration also issued a one-month waiver allowing buyers to purchase sanctioned Russian oil on tankers without repercussions. It also promised, two weeks ago, risk insurance and escort…

On Monday, European Union foreign ministers rejected demands by U.S. President Donald Trump to help secure the Strait of Hormuz through military means, with Europe only keen on further bolstering the security of its own military bases in the region. Previously, Kaja Kallas, Vice-President of the European Commission, proposed extending the mandate of Operation Aspides to boost security in the Strait of Hormuz amid rising tensions and energy disruptions. Aspides is an active EU military operation launched in 2024 to safeguard merchant shipping and…

Asian nations that are the most exposed to the fallout of the Hormuz crisis have sealed energy deals worth $56 billion with American companies, helping advance President Trump’s energy dominance agenda. Whether this is an actual pivot from the Middle East to the U.S. is yet to be seen. The news about the financial commitments was announced by Interior Secretary Doug Burgum following the Indo-Pacific Energy Security Forum that took place in Tokyo at the end of last week. The deals involve a 20-year supply contract between Venture Global and…

While energy prices stayed steady in February, the numbers show that they were already on the rise even before the United States waged war on Iran. As the Strait of Hormuz begins its third week of closure to its myriad political adversaries, extending what was already the single largest disruption to global oil trade in history, we can expect to see skyrocketing energy prices over the coming weeks and months. And that means that we can expect political disruptions that last a whole lot longer.  As the United States and Israel continue a bombardment…

Independent pubs could be left vulnerable to spikes in energy costs caused by the Iran war, while their larger competitors enjoy the security of fixed energy deals.  Landlords across the UK could face “devastating” costs if energy prices continue to rise, trade body UKHospitality has warned. Blockages to the Strait of Hormuz, a crucial shipping channel, have caused oil and gas prices to surge and some businesses have said they may face higher energy costs as soon as April, when they renew their contracts with suppliers. The owner…

Germany is clamping down on fuel price hikes amid war-driven oil volatility that is stressing Europe’s largest economy. The government approved draft legislation on Tuesday that would limit how often gas stations can hike prices, tightening antitrust oversight of fuel suppliers. The crackdown comes as Brent tops $100 per barrel amid the ongoing Iran conflict, with retail fuel costs soaring across the continent. Under the proposal, gas stations in Germany will be allowed to increase gasoline and diesel prices only once per day, at noon. Price…

The Iran war’s shock to oil and gas prices has, understandably, dominated much of the recent market news.  Though the downstream effects have yet to be fully understood, there is no question that we are in the throes of the greatest energy crisis in modern history, with significant implications for every facet of the modern economy. One particular aspect that is just beginning to be appreciated is the financial one.  The onset of this latest Persian Gulf war is poised to severely disrupt a channel of liquid investment, known as…

Renewable energy sources not only disrupt business relationships due to their low prices and rapid deployment, but they might also disrupt political movements as well, specifically efforts on the part of local governments to take over investor-owned utilities (municipalization), most prominently, recently, in San Francisco, Tucson, and the lower Hudson Valley, NY. Proponents of municipalization hope to reduce electricity rates to local consumers. We believe that because of the advent of newer, cheaper renewable technologies, they are going about…

Japan’s petroleum refiner Idemitsu Kosan has committed $500 million to LNG investment company MidOcean Energy as part of MidOcean’s equity raise of $1.2 billion, as the Japanese refining giant is looking to enter the global LNG business on a full-scale basis. Through the deal, Idemitsu Kosan looks to invest globally in LNG projects and capture business opportunities in growth sectors through strategic partnerships, the Japanese company said on Tuesday. Idemitsu expects to finalize the contract for the investment in MidOcean by the end…

Japan’s petroleum refiner Idemitsu Kosan has committed $500 million to LNG investment company MidOcean Energy as part of MidOcean’s equity raise of $1.2 billion, as the Japanese refining giant is looking to enter the global LNG business on a full-scale basis. Through the deal, Idemitsu Kosan looks to invest globally in LNG projects and capture business opportunities in growth sectors through strategic partnerships, the Japanese company said on Tuesday. Idemitsu expects to finalize the contract for the investment in MidOcean by the end…