The Houthi threat to shipments of Saudi crude oil from the Red Sea hasn’t abated and more tankers laden with Saudi oil appeared to have made the transit through the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint in dark mode. Two tankers that had loaded Saudi crude at the Red Sea port of Yanbu have likely exited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in southern direction with their transponders off, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing vessel-tracking data it is monitoring. The Greece-owned Lesvos tanker of the Suezmax size and the supertanker Desh Vaibhav, flying the Indian…

The Houthi threat to shipments of Saudi crude oil from the Red Sea hasn’t abated and more tankers laden with Saudi oil appeared to have made the transit through the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint in dark mode. Two tankers that had loaded Saudi crude at the Red Sea port of Yanbu have likely exited the Bab el-Mandeb Strait in southern direction with their transponders off, Bloomberg reported on Monday, citing vessel-tracking data it is monitoring. The Greece-owned Lesvos tanker of the Suezmax size and the supertanker Desh Vaibhav, flying the Indian…

The Iran war could “halt growth” in the UK economy as the success of Andy Burnham and John Healey’s economic management largely hinges on President Trump’s decision-making, a City firm has warned.  Big Four consultancy EY has said that the UK economy could perform better than first expected this year as its growth forecast was revised up to 0.9 per cent.  But economists at the firm said baseline forecasts hinged on the opening up of the Strait of Hormuz, allowing around a fifth of global oil and gas supplies as…

Oil prices fell sharply in early Asian trade on Monday after President Trump called off another round of military strikes on Iran, raising hopes that a diplomatic route to reopening the Strait of Hormuz and averting a broader regional conflict could be found. At the time of writing, West Texas Intermediate futures were trading at $79.77 per barrel, down 5.88%, while Brent futures had fallen to $83.47, down 5.07%. The most recent selloff comes after a very volatile July in which both benchmarks surged more than 20% as renewed hostilities between…

When Iran shut down the Strait of Hormuz, Saudi Arabia quickly redirected its oil flows to the Red Sea. Now, that route has become dangerous because of the Houthi blockade, so Saudi is rerouting to Egypt—and two LNG tankers in the Egyptian port of Damietta just got struck by drones. OPEC’s number-one is running out of options to reroute its oil exports. In early March, after Iran effectively paralyzed vessel traffic via the world’s biggest oil chokepoint, every Gulf state that could redirect export flows did so. In the case of…

China’s domestic car sales have fallen significantly this year; however, sales of Chinese cars have risen substantially in some international markets, such as Mexico, demonstrating the growing global demand for Chinese-made vehicles. This demand growth has been driven by the launch of a wide range of affordable and competitive Chinese electric vehicles (EVs) from companies such as Build Your Dreams (BYD). China’s car market could experience its worst year since 2021, based on recent low consumer demand, compared to the record-high sales…

An Alaska-based tidal energy company is testing a new kind of small, modular turbine in the waters off of Massachusetts to try to take advantage of the United States’ vast and untapped tidal power potential. The turbine is being piloted in the strong tidal currents of Cape Cod to test the technology’s performance and durability in real-world conditions in order to explore whether it could be suitable for commercial scaling. Tapping into the country’s tidal energy potential could be a major game changer for decarbonization and…

China has announced plans to double down on its already ambitious renewable energy targets by massively expanding its solar and wind capacity by the end of the decade. China has been rapidly growing its renewable energy portfolio for several decades to become the world leader in green energy. However, despite its ambitious renewable energy plans, it also plans to continue expanding its coal production. China is the largest energy consumer and greenhouse gas emitter in the world; however, it has also grown to become the biggest renewable energy…

Argentina’s Vaca Muerta is booming as the key shale province outside the United States has seen record oil and near-record natural gas production in recent months. Vaca Muerta’s fortunes, however, appear to be confined so far to the area in which the shale patch is located, the province of Neuquén in the western region of Patagonia. The rest of Argentina continues to struggle with sluggish growth, high inflation, weak consumer spending, and business and mortgage defaults, all the while South America’s second-largest economy…

The electricity demand created by artificial intelligence is usually presented as a simple supply problem. AI requires increasingly large data centers, those facilities consume enormous amounts of electricity, and utilities must somehow build enough power plants to serve them. The numbers appear to support the alarm. Data centers consumed around 485 terawatt-hours of electricity globally in 2025. The International Energy Agency expects this to rise to approximately 950 TWh by 2030, while consumption from AI-focused facilities could triple. Some…

Middle East turmoil, centered on the U.S. war with Iran, is playing havoc with world energy markets. An ongoing dispute over access to the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of world oil and natural gas supply is shipped, is causing prices to surge. This is a boon for South America's oil industry, particularly Suriname's emerging petroleum boom, which was delayed by conflicting drilling results and seismic data. The former Dutch colony is on the cusp of becoming South America's next major oil-producing nation. Since 2019, Suriname's government…

In line with greater funding for renewable energy and cleantech in recent years, several companies have sought to use innovative technologies and techniques to enhance clean energy production. Tech and energy startups from around the world have raised funds to test out a wide range of technologies aimed at accelerating the deployment of renewable energy capacity and enhancing the stability of certain energy sources, such as solar power. The California-based startup Reflect Orbital was recently granted permission from the United States Federal Communications…

Europe is falling far behind on energy storage installation exactly when it’s most needed. The continent’s energy security is under significant threat as it contends with its third energy crisis in four years thanks to the region’s over-reliance on imported fossil fuels. While the European Union has made major inroads toward adding solar and wind capacity to help diversify the bloc’s energy mix, energy storage capacities have lagged behind, creating new vulnerabilities for the grid and for energy markets alike. “Without…

Environmental groups have been campaigning to encourage banks and other financial institutions to divest from fossil fuels for years, with efforts growing stronger since the Covid-19 pandemic and the global push to transition away from oil, gas, and coal to renewable alternatives. In June, the Bank of England quietly announced that it would no longer be accepting bonds associated with coal operations for key loan arrangements. The ban will be enforced from October. It is the latest move to encourage a shift away from thermal coal for electricity…

Venture capitalists are taking a major interest in nuclear energy start ups. Funding is surging for both nuclear fusion and fission firms as the technology becomes an increasingly essential part of a feasible pathway toward sustainable energy security in the face of the artificial intelligence boom. According to reporting by Axios, global investment in both fission and fusion has topped USD $4.5 billion across 81 companies in 2026 so far. At this pace, by year’s end, this year will shatter 2025’s previous record of $6.2 billion for…

While the dust is settling and facts emerge, it is clear that the latest attack on Saudi Aramco's Abqaiq oil-processing complex is rapidly becoming one of the most consequential energy developments of 2026. The event should not be assessed on the basis that it has immediately removed millions of barrels of oil from international markets, but rather because it exposes a vulnerability that traders, governments, and investors have largely assumed no longer existed. At present, oil prices are not showing any real impact; levels are restrained. At the…

Donald Trump’s July 8 order to halt trade with Spain has yet to become an energy embargo, but Madrid can no longer dismiss it as political theatre. It was the second such threat since March 2026, this time delivered directly to Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent after Spain refused to commit 5% of GDP to defence spending and declined to support US operations against Iran. Washington is now reportedly examining products that could be targeted, even though EU customs rules make it illegal to isolate one member state from the bloc’s common…

ExxonMobil and Chevron made a combined $26.5 billion in the second quarter after producing more oil, refining more fuel, and selling all of it into a market scrambled by war. Washington is investigating why gasoline costs so much. Chevron reported record net income of $12.2 billion, nearly five times its year-ago profit. Exxon earned $14.5 billion, double what it made during the same quarter last year and its best result since oil prices soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Iran war sent crude prices sky high after Gulf production…

ExxonMobil and Chevron made a combined $26.5 billion in the second quarter after producing more oil, refining more fuel, and selling all of it into a market scrambled by war. Washington is investigating why gasoline costs so much. Chevron reported record net income of $12.2 billion, nearly five times its year-ago profit. Exxon earned $14.5 billion, double what it made during the same quarter last year and its best result since oil prices soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Iran war sent crude prices sky high after Gulf production…

ExxonMobil and Chevron made a combined $26.5 billion in the second quarter after producing more oil, refining more fuel, and selling all of it into a market scrambled by war. Washington is investigating why gasoline costs so much. Chevron reported record net income of $12.2 billion, nearly five times its year-ago profit. Exxon earned $14.5 billion, double what it made during the same quarter last year and its best result since oil prices soared following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. The Iran war sent crude prices sky high after Gulf production…