A few years ago, I analyzed the growth of world energy consumption, breaking it down into (a) the growth in energy consumption needed to support the growth in world population, and (b) the growth in energy consumption available to support higher standards of living. This analysis covered the period 1820 to 2020. I found that periods of low growth tended to coincide with wars, depressions, and collapses. This is not surprising in a world economy governed by the laws of physics. Every part of the economy requires adequate energy of appropriate…

Following the United States intervention in Venezuela on 3rd January, which brought an end to President Nicolás Maduro’s 13-year dictatorship, all eyes have been on the South American country’s oil industry. Once one of the world’s biggest oil producers, output has waned in recent years. However, with U.S. President Trump setting his sights on Venezuelan crude, many are speculating just how quickly its resources can be tapped. While the focus is on Venezuela’s potential as an oil power, others think that more immediate…

Azerbaijan risks getting sucked into a widening Middle East conflict after Iran conducted a drone attack March 5 on the Nakhchivan exclave, wounding four civilians.  One of four drones targeting Nakhchivan, a territory sitting on Iran’s northern border, hit a terminal at the region’s airport. Another narrowly missed a school building, according to a statement issued by Azerbaijan’s Defense Ministry. Azerbaijani anti-air defenses shot down one of the drones, the statement added. Iran has denied initiating any attack against…

Americans are experiencing a sharp rise in gas prices this week, with the national average gasoline price posting its largest weekly jump since the early days of the Russia-Ukraine war. If fuel prices continue to climb as the U.S.-Israeli Operation Epic Fury intensifies against Iran, the fallout for consumer sentiment may weigh on the broader economy and affect voting polls in the near term. The surge in gasoline and diesel prices at pumps nationwide doesn't appear to be a concern for President Trump (at least not yet). "I don't have…

The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States rose this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday, bringing the total rig count in the US to 551 this week, down 41 from this same time last year. The number of active oil rigs rose by 4 to 411 during the latest reporting period, according to the data. This is 75 below this same time last year. The number of gas sunk by 2, reaching 132, which is 31 more than this time last year. The miscellaneous rig count stayed the same at 8. The latest EIA…

The national average price of gasoline in the United States has jumped to the highest level seen during either of President Donald Trump’s terms in office, per GasBuddy data, as the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz is holding back millions of barrels of crude and fuel supplies and leading to price spikes.   WTI Crude, the U.S. benchmark, jumped from $67 per barrel on February 27, just before the Iran war started, to above $84 per barrel a week later as of early Friday. Oil prices are on track for at least a 16% weekly jump…

The national average price of gasoline in the United States has jumped to the highest level seen during either of President Donald Trump’s terms in office, per GasBuddy data, as the de facto closure of the Strait of Hormuz is holding back millions of barrels of crude and fuel supplies and leading to price spikes.   WTI Crude, the U.S. benchmark, jumped from $67 per barrel on February 27, just before the Iran war started, to above $84 per barrel a week later as of early Friday. Oil prices are on track for at least a 16% weekly jump…

Brent tops $90 as the Strait of Hormuz closure halts Gulf oil flows and Iraq and Kuwait begin cutting output, fueling fears of a sharper price surge. Friday, March 06, 2026 When a US President declares that there would be no deal with Iran except for ‘unconditional surrender’, the oil markets rally. Hence, there should be nothing surprising about ICE Brent jumping above $90 per barrel for the first time since April 2024, as the closure of Strait of Hormuz continues, with zero crude oil movement out of the Persian Gulf. With Iraq and…

The United States produces more crude oil than any country in history, pumping more than 13.5 million barrels per day. On paper, that suggests a high level of energy security. But energy security for different states depends on infrastructure and access. For the 39 million residents of California, independence is largely geographic fiction. If the Strait of Hormuz remains constrained, attention will focus on Asia’s large crude importers. Yet a close look at U.S. pipeline maps and refinery configurations shows that California is uniquely exposed…

Oil prices could soar to as much as $150 per barrel within two to three weeks if the critical Strait of Hormuz remains off limits for tankers, Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi told the Financial Times in an interview published on Friday.   That proclamation came just a few short hours before reports that Kuwait—one of the founding members of OPEC—had begun shutting in oil production at some oilfields as there just simply isn’t anywhere to store any more oil with the Strait of Hormuz still at a standstill.…

Oil prices could soar to as much as $150 per barrel within two to three weeks if the critical Strait of Hormuz remains off limits for tankers, Qatar’s Energy Minister Saad al-Kaabi told the Financial Times in an interview published on Friday.   That proclamation came just a few short hours before reports that Kuwait—one of the founding members of OPEC—had begun shutting in oil production at some oilfields as there just simply isn’t anywhere to store any more oil with the Strait of Hormuz still at a standstill.…

Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices were on track early on Friday for a 50% weekly jump—the biggest one-week surge since the energy crisis in the summer of 2023, as the Middle East war has cut off 20% of global LNG supply.     The implied volatility in the Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, has surged fourfold since the beginning of the year and is at the highest in nearly three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.   Early on Friday, the April…

Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices were on track early on Friday for a 50% weekly jump—the biggest one-week surge since the energy crisis in the summer of 2023, as the Middle East war has cut off 20% of global LNG supply.     The implied volatility in the Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, has surged fourfold since the beginning of the year and is at the highest in nearly three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.   Early on Friday, the April…

Europe’s benchmark natural gas prices were on track early on Friday for a 50% weekly jump—the biggest one-week surge since the energy crisis in the summer of 2023, as the Middle East war has cut off 20% of global LNG supply.     The implied volatility in the Dutch TTF Natural Gas Futures, the benchmark for Europe’s gas trading, has surged fourfold since the beginning of the year and is at the highest in nearly three years, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.   Early on Friday, the April…

Beginning in 2027, the Pentagon will prohibit the use of Chinese-origin rare earth magnet materials in U.S. military platforms. That mandate cuts through the American defense industrial base, compelling manufacturers to verify the origin of the rare earth metal inside their systems–all the way back to the beginning of the processing chain. Defense giants like Lockheed Martin are overhauling their magnet supply chains to avoid non-compliance in 2027, warning that rare earth sourcing restrictions require traceability down to the mining level…

Vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has dropped from an average of 138 ships a day to just two in the 24 hours to Thursday, the Joint Maritime Information Center has reported. The center noted that neither of the two vessels that passed the strait were tankers. “This represents a near-total temporary pause in routine commercial traffic, resulting from ongoing regional conflict dynamics involving Iran, including warnings against transits by U.S., Israeli, European, and allied vessels,” the JMIC noted in its report. The agency…

QatarEnergy declared force majeure on liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports on Wednesday, following disruptions at its Ras Laffan industrial city facilities caused by the Middle East conflict.  This legal declaration effectively releases the state-owned company from contractual delivery obligations due to extraordinary circumstances beyond its control. The shutdown was triggered by a near-complete halt of shipping in the Strait of Hormuz due to the U.S.-Israeli conflict with Iran. Qatar accounts for 20% of global LNG exports, primarily serving…

The U.S. shale patch cannot and will not come to the rescue of a potentially catastrophic loss of crude supply from the Middle East as the war in Iran set fire to the world’s most important oil-producing region. The escalating war and the de facto closing of the Strait of Hormuz is threatening to hold back more than 15 million barrels per day of oil supply for weeks and forcing Gulf producers to begin shutting down output as storage fills up. The International Energy Agency, which was created in the 1970s to coordinate actions during the…

The first signs of gas supply problems have emerged in Europe, with Moldova’s breakaway Transnistria region warning of short supply. Chances are the situation will deteriorate further unless Middle Eastern LNG flows resume soon—at the moment, a highly unlikely scenario. Transnistria, also called Transdniestria and Pridnestrovie, is a pro-Russian region of Moldova that broke away from the former Soviet republic in the early 1990s. The Russian-speaking region, until recently, received natural gas from Russia essentially for free—and…

Natural gas prices have reacted strongly to QatarEnergy’s decision to cease LNG production and the closure of the Strait of Hormuz amid escalating conflict in the Middle East escalate. Still, despite a more than 52% surge at Europe’s benchmark Title Transfer Facility (TTF) on 2 March, Rystad Energy expects the current supply shock to have a limited long-term impact on global gas and liquefied natural gas markets. This outlook is based on the expectation that the disruption will be temporary and manageable in terms of volumes. “With…