Venezuela is edging toward what could become the most consequential energy shift in a generation. Interim President Delcy Rodriguez reportedly met with senior international oil executives this week at a PDVSA facility, as the government opens consultations on a partial reform of the country’s Organic Hydrocarbons Law. The proposed changes, now moving through Venezuela’s National Assembly, would fundamentally reshape the fiscal and contractual rules governing the country’s oil and gas sectors.  While the state would retain…

Last year, the energy sector emerged as one of the notable laggards in an otherwise red-hot U.S. stock market. The sector notched a respectable, but below-market, return of 7.9%, falling to match the 16.4% gain by the S&P 500 in large part due to a big pullback in oil prices in the second half of 2025. Thankfully, oil and gas stocks are looking to flip the script in the early innings of the new year, with the energy sector up 11.2% in the year-to-date, the best sector performance so far in the year and incomparable to a 1.9% gain by the broad-market…

Following the U.S. sanctions on Russia’s Lukoil, which operated one of Iraq’s largest oilfields, Baghdad temporarily took control over the West Qurna 2 project, which accounts for 10% of all Iraqi oil production and 0.5% of global crude supply. Lukoil had a 75% equity stake in West Qurna 2, which produces more than 400,000 barrels per day (bpd) of crude oil. The U.S. sanctions made it impossible for Lukoil to continue operating the huge field. Following the U.S. sanctions on Lukoil and Rosneft, “as a result of Russia’s…

Europe has been trying to reduce its reliance on imported energy for four years now. It has had partial success, notably through demand destruction resulting from excessive prices. This month, part of Europe doubled down on that plan just as the United States grid presented an object lesson in the importance of reliable energy from all the sources that Europe wants to get rid of, and soon. Earlier this week, nine European countries announced they would build 100 GW of offshore wind power capacity as they seek to source more of their electricity…

Iran is bracing for a potential attack as the United States deploys key military assets, including an air carrier and additional bombers, to the Middle East. US President Donald Trump has threatened to strike the Islamic Republic over its bloody crackdown on anti-government protesters. If Trump authorizes military action, Tehran would be virtually powerless to stop an aerial attack, experts say. But that does not mean Iran cannot retaliate against US military and commercial assets in the region, experts say, citing Tehran's formidable arsenal of…

Kuwait is preparing to move forward with a major midstream expansion as it opens a $7-billion pipeline project to foreign capital, part of a broader push to fund critical oil infrastructure outside the state budget. State-owned Kuwait Oil Company is readying a pipeline deal valued at roughly $7 billion that would involve international partners, according to Reuters. The project is part of a broader effort by Kuwait to upgrade transport capacity linking upstream production to export and processing hubs, while easing the financial burden on the state.…

In its first monetary policy decision of 2026, the Federal Reserve elected to hold the federal funds rate steady at 3.50%–3.75%, pausing further cuts after three reductions late last year. The decision, made at the January 27–28 Federal Open Market Committee meeting, reflects a cautious stance amid mixed economic signals and persistent inflation above target. The FOMC statement shows that while economic activity “has been expanding at a solid moderate pace,” job gains have slowed and the unemployment rate has only “shown…

In its first monetary policy decision of 2026, the Federal Reserve elected to hold the federal funds rate steady at 3.50%–3.75%, pausing further cuts after three reductions late last year. The decision, made at the January 27–28 Federal Open Market Committee meeting, reflects a cautious stance amid mixed economic signals and persistent inflation above target. The FOMC statement shows that while economic activity “has been expanding at a solid moderate pace,” job gains have slowed and the unemployment rate has only “shown…

Africa’s trade finance lender has unveiled a major new funding line for Angola’s national oil company, as the country seeks to stabilize crude trading and maintain output in a basin facing structural decline and renewed scrutiny from international producers. The African Export-Import Bank has announced a $17.5 billion financing facility for Sonangol, according to a statement cited by Reuters on Wednesday. Afreximbank said the facility is designed to support Sonangol’s oil trading operations and general corporate funding needs,…

Africa’s trade finance lender has unveiled a major new funding line for Angola’s national oil company, as the country seeks to stabilize crude trading and maintain output in a basin facing structural decline and renewed scrutiny from international producers. The African Export-Import Bank has announced a $17.5 billion financing facility for Sonangol, according to a statement cited by Reuters on Wednesday. Afreximbank said the facility is designed to support Sonangol’s oil trading operations and general corporate funding needs,…

Africa’s trade finance lender has unveiled a major new funding line for Angola’s national oil company, as the country seeks to stabilize crude trading and maintain output in a basin facing structural decline and renewed scrutiny from international producers. The African Export-Import Bank has announced a $17.5 billion financing facility for Sonangol, according to a statement cited by Reuters on Wednesday. Afreximbank said the facility is designed to support Sonangol’s oil trading operations and general corporate funding needs,…

The Illusion of Randomness in Oil Markets Anyone who trades crude oil futures has seen it happen. Price sells off hard into a round number, stalls, and then snaps violently higher. Or oil grinds higher all morning, only to reverse sharply mid-session with no headline, no inventory release, no obvious catalyst. This can be especially confusing for fundamental traders and analysts who try to explain price action solely through data and headlines. To many, these moves appear random. In reality, they aren’t random at all. Many of these moves…

Next month, the United States Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC) is slated to overhaul the level of radiation that Americans can legally be exposed to in response to an executive order issued by Donald Trump in May of 2025. The Trump administration is seeking to loosen regulations related to the nuclear energy industry in the United States in order to jumpstart the struggling sector.  The United States generates more nuclear energy than any other country, but it won’t hold that distinction for long if current domestic and global trends…

India is on track to import record-high volumes of crude oil and condensate in January as refiners boost non-Russian purchases to replace barrels lost to U.S. sanctions, energy flow tracking firm Vortexa said in a report on Wednesday India’s crude and condensate imports will likely hit 5.2 million barrels per day (bpd) this month—a new record, as deliveries of cargoes laden with non-Russian oil surged. The jump in non-Russian crude imports is set to more than offset the decline in India’s imports of Russian crude, according to…

India is on track to import record-high volumes of crude oil and condensate in January as refiners boost non-Russian purchases to replace barrels lost to U.S. sanctions, energy flow tracking firm Vortexa said in a report on Wednesday India’s crude and condensate imports will likely hit 5.2 million barrels per day (bpd) this month—a new record, as deliveries of cargoes laden with non-Russian oil surged. The jump in non-Russian crude imports is set to more than offset the decline in India’s imports of Russian crude, according to…

Rystad Energy tracks 82 billion cubic feet per day (Bcfd) of flows from interstate pipelines in our North America Gas dashboard. We see an initial loss of about 2 Bcfd from the Bakken, Rockies and the Mid-Continent, followed by a more abrupt drop of 12 Bcfd, primarily driven by the Permian and the broader Gulf Coast region, with losses somewhat limited in Appalachia. In total, we expect the impact could potentially be closer to 20-25 Bcfd given that the Permian and Haynesville regions have more intrastate pipelines, which are not captured in the…

Crude oil inventories in the United States decreased by 2.3 million barrels during the week ending January 24, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on Wednesday. The decrease brings commercial stockpiles to 423.8 million barrels according to government data, which is 3% 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 suggested that crude oil inventories fell by 247,000 barrels. Crude prices were trading…

UK-based supermajors Shell and BP are seeking U.S. licenses to develop gas fields that Trinidad and Tobago shares with Venezuela, the Caribbean island’s Energy Minister Roodal Moonilal said on Wednesday. BP and Shell have sought to develop two separate cross-border gas fields in Venezuelan and Trinidad and Tobago waters, but progress has been slow in recent years due to the frequent changes in U.S. policy toward allowing international firms to do business with Venezuela. In July 2024, BP, together with its partner, the National Gas Company…

UK-based supermajors Shell and BP are seeking U.S. licenses to develop gas fields that Trinidad and Tobago shares with Venezuela, the Caribbean island’s Energy Minister Roodal Moonilal said on Wednesday. BP and Shell have sought to develop two separate cross-border gas fields in Venezuelan and Trinidad and Tobago waters, but progress has been slow in recent years due to the frequent changes in U.S. policy toward allowing international firms to do business with Venezuela. In July 2024, BP, together with its partner, the National Gas Company…

UK-based supermajors Shell and BP are seeking U.S. licenses to develop gas fields that Trinidad and Tobago shares with Venezuela, the Caribbean island’s Energy Minister Roodal Moonilal said on Wednesday. BP and Shell have sought to develop two separate cross-border gas fields in Venezuelan and Trinidad and Tobago waters, but progress has been slow in recent years due to the frequent changes in U.S. policy toward allowing international firms to do business with Venezuela. In July 2024, BP, together with its partner, the National Gas Company…