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…

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…

China plans to launch commercial operations at the world’s first small modular reactor (SMR) to generate nuclear energy as early as in the first half of 2026, according to the president of the China Institute of Nuclear Industry Strategy.  The Linglong One reactor was the first SMR to be approved by the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) in 2016.   Linglong One, based in Hainan province in China, earlier this year completed its primary circuit cold functional test, the China National Nuclear Corporation (CNNC) said in…

The United States has seized a large oil tanker off the coast of Venezuela, marking a major escalation in tensions between Washington and Caracas and pushing oil prices higher. President Trump confirmed the operation, saying, "We've just seized a tanker on the coast of Venezuela, large tanker, very large, largest one ever seized actually". He then went on to warn "other things are happening so you'll be seeing that later." U.S. authorities, including the Coast Guard, FBI, and Homeland Security, executed a seizure warrant, boarding the tanker by…

China is closing 2025 with the strongest domestic crude output in its modern history, ending its Seven-Year Action Plan (2019–2025) with measurable gains. National production has risen from 3.8 million b/d in 2020 to an average of 4.3 million b/d in 2025, a roughly 12% increase, driven by accelerated drilling activity, rising unconventional output, and the most significant restructuring of its upstream sector in decades. The expansion reflects Beijing’s strategic aim to strengthen energy security through domestic supply, even as overall…

Rising oil supply amid tepid demand growth has prompted forecasters and analysts to predict a large surplus on the market going into 2026. All experts and investment banks estimate that the market is accumulating inventories and will continue to do so in early 2026, when oil demand is typically at its weakest in any year. The forecasts of oversupply vary considerably, but regardless of how large the surplus would be, 2026 will likely be the last year in which the market will have to work through a glut, analysts such as Goldman Sachs say. Despite…

The production of US natural gas and demand for it will both end the year at record highs, according to the US Energy Information Administration’s Short-Term Energy Outlook cited by Reuters on Dec. 9. For dry gas production and LNG exports, the totals will keep rising in 2026. EIA projected dry gas production will rise from 103.2 billion cubic feet per day in 2024 to 107.7 bcfd in 2025 and 109.1 bcfd in 2026. That compares with a record 103.6 bcfd in 2023. The agency also projected domestic gas consumption will rise from a record 90.4 bcfd…

Artificial intelligence could help the energy industry tap an additional one trillion barrels of oil by making more of these barrels economical to extract. Wood Mackenzie analysts made the prediction recently, adding fuel to an already heated debate: is AI going to accelerate the transition or, as the Wood Mac prediction suggests, hinder it by extending the world’s reliance on oil and gas? For the energy industry, the question is rather irrelevant. From the perspective of companies in the business of extracting energy commodities, AI is a…

The global energy landscape is undergoing a decisive structural shift, moving away from the century-old model of centralized utility dependence toward localized, autonomous power networks. According to a new industry report by Credence Research, the global market for decentralized microgrid solutions is projected to nearly triple in value over the next decade, reaching $17.16 billion by 2032. This trajectory represents a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 13.74%, driven by a confluence of geopolitical instability, accelerating renewable energy…

The European Commission is expected to launch a nearly $1.4 trillion (1.2 trillion euros) package to upgrade cross-border electric grids and accelerate planning and permitting as the EU looks to strengthen power links and accommodate a growing share of renewable electricity generation. The European Commission is set to unveil the trillion-dollar package to fast-track grid upgrades and renewable projects permits, and boost cross-border cooperation, a leaked document seen by Euronews showed this week. The Commission has identified eight key grid…

Workers at Brazil's Oil & Gas giant Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE:PBR), aka Petrobras, have announced a nationwide strike starting December 15, terming the company's latest counteroffer for a labor agreement as "disrespectful”. Petrobras workers have been pushing for changes to the employee compensation structure, claiming there’s a deficit in the retirement fund. However, Reuters cited an unnamed source as saying that contingencies have been put in place, with the strike unlikely to affect operations or production. …

Workers at Brazil's Oil & Gas giant Petróleo Brasileiro S.A. (NYSE:PBR), aka Petrobras, have announced a nationwide strike starting December 15, terming the company's latest counteroffer for a labor agreement as "disrespectful”. Petrobras workers have been pushing for changes to the employee compensation structure, claiming there’s a deficit in the retirement fund. However, Reuters cited an unnamed source as saying that contingencies have been put in place, with the strike unlikely to affect operations or production. …

Britain’s AI boom is running straight into an energy wall, and nuclear power was supposed to act as its crutch to get around it. Instead, the government has hit pause, just as data centre demand is set to explode, leading investors wondering whether the UK risks talking itself out of its opportunity. Recent analysis from the Nuclear Industry Association and Oxford Economics warned that data-centre electricity demand will jump more than fivefold by 2030, swallowing nearly nine per cent of the UK’s total power use. The AI labs and hyperscalers…

Elon Musk's space transportation company SpaceX is targeting a raise of $25 billion through an initial public offering (IPO) in the coming year, in a move that will give it a valuation of over $1 trillion, making SpaceX one of the world’s most valuable companies, thanks in large part to the rapid expansion of its Starlink satellite internet business as well as plans to launch a direct-to-mobile service. SpaceX is currently engaged with banks about the IPO expected to come in June or July 2026. According to Crunchbase, SpaceX is the world's…

Elon Musk's space transportation company SpaceX is targeting a raise of $25 billion through an initial public offering (IPO) in the coming year, in a move that will give it a valuation of over $1 trillion, making SpaceX one of the world’s most valuable companies, thanks in large part to the rapid expansion of its Starlink satellite internet business as well as plans to launch a direct-to-mobile service. SpaceX is currently engaged with banks about the IPO expected to come in June or July 2026. According to Crunchbase, SpaceX is the world's…

A new wave of consolidation is on the horizon for small- and medium-sized US shale producers, largely driven by an appetite for scale in a merger and acquisition (M&A) environment that is getting increasingly competitive. Scale and efficiency are key catalysts for exploration and production (E&P) players who are seeking favorable business valuations, with acquisitions emerging as a key calculation of shareholder value by rewarding operators who keep volumes high and costs low. To build scale and survive another consolidation wave, the smaller…

Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) is currently engaged in talks with the Trump administration over its Venezuelan operations, with Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth emphasizing that its continued presence there is beneficial to U.S. interests, while Washington’s military buildup in the Caribbean seeks to ramp up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Last week, Chevron flew its employees to its oil production sites in Venezuela, defying a warning by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration regarding the dangers of air travel due…

Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) is currently engaged in talks with the Trump administration over its Venezuelan operations, with Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth emphasizing that its continued presence there is beneficial to U.S. interests, while Washington’s military buildup in the Caribbean seeks to ramp up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Last week, Chevron flew its employees to its oil production sites in Venezuela, defying a warning by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration regarding the dangers of air travel due…

Chevron Corp. (NYSE:CVX) is currently engaged in talks with the Trump administration over its Venezuelan operations, with Chief Executive Officer Mike Wirth emphasizing that its continued presence there is beneficial to U.S. interests, while Washington’s military buildup in the Caribbean seeks to ramp up pressure on Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro. Last week, Chevron flew its employees to its oil production sites in Venezuela, defying a warning by the U.S. Federal Aviation Administration regarding the dangers of air travel due…