Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict At midnight on Thursday, the six-month temporary oil sanctions relief Washington granted Venezuela last October expired, and the Biden administration moved to reimpose those sanctions, which was met with backlash in Caracas, where the move was described as a U.S. attempt to “control and manipulate the Venezuelan oil industry”. Nicolas Maduro was given every opportunity to comply with the conditions of the sanctions relief, yet, has continued to work to ban, arrest, or otherwise prevent the rise of…

Russia was India’s single largest oil supplier for a second consecutive fiscal year, as surging imports of Russian crude dragged down the share of OPEC and Middle East supply to India to a record low, Reuters reported on Friday, citing data from tanker-tracking data obtained from industry sources. In the 2023/2024 fiscal year ended March 31, the share of Middle East oil supply of India’s oil imports slumped to as low as 46% -- the lowest on record dating back to 2001-2002, according to the Reuters analysis. This compares with a…

Amid calls from some member states, the European Union should be careful in its efforts to ditch Russian LNG as it should protect its security of gas supply, the European Union Agency for the Cooperation of Energy Regulators, ACER, said in a report on Friday. The Baltic EU member states have been calling for a ban on the bloc’s imports of LNG, but the EU’s watchdog believes that any such move should only be gradual.   As the EU aims to completely end its reliance on Russian fossil fuels by 2027, “the reduction of…

Oil prices gave up nearly all of early Friday’s gains after an Iranian official told Reuters that there hadn’t been a missile attack against Iran. Oil surged by as much as $3 per barrel in Asian trade early on Friday after a U.S. official told ABC News today that Israel launched missile strikes against Iran in the early morning hours today. After briefly spiking to above $90 per barrel early on Friday in Asian trade, Brent fell back to $87.10 per barrel in the morning in Europe. The news was later confirmed by Iranian…

Inflation, interest rates, and wars may well delay the energy transition by quite a long time, JP Morgan has warned in a call for “a reality check” on its shift from hydrocarbons to alternatives. “While the target to net zero is still some time away, we have to face up to the reality that the variables have changed,” the bank’s head of global energy strategy, Christyan Malek, told the Financial Times. Malek was the lead author of a new report by JP Morgan focusing on energy. The report noted higher interest…

The director of the FBI has warned that the Chinese state has its sights set on U.S. critical infrastructure to compromise U.S. economic and national security. Speaking at the Vanderbilt Summit on Modern Conflict and Emerging Threats, Christopher Wray said “The PRC [People’s Republic of China] has made it clear that it considers every sector that makes our society run as fair game in its bid to dominate on the world stage, and that its plan is to land low blows against civilian infrastructure to try to induce panic and break America’s…

Israel launched missile strikes against Iran in the early morning hours, a U.S. official told ABC News today. The news was later confirmed by Iranian media, which said the country’s air defense system took down three drones over the city of Isfahan, according to Al Jazeera. Flights to three cities including Tehran and Isfahan were suspended, Iranian media also reported. The news of the Israeli strike prompted a sharp spike in crude oil prices, which gained $3 per barrel earlier in the day. "If these reports turn out to…

Talk of $100 oil returned to the market this week following the Iranian attack against Israel that sparked fears of a widening conflict in the Middle East.   Analysts are not ruling out $100 oil in case of further escalation and even $130 oil if a broader conflict disrupts oil flows in the Strait of Hormuz, where around 21 million barrels per day (bpd) of oil pass from the top Middle Eastern exporters en route to global markets. That’s around a fifth of daily global petroleum consumption. However, the market – while still on edge…

Following a strong rally amid escalating tensions in the Middle East, oil prices have pulled back sharply in the current week as demand worries outweigh geopolitical concerns. WTI crude for May delivery has declined 5.1% from the Friday close to trade at $83.15 per barrel while Brent crude June contract has retreated 4.9% to change hands at $87.50, marking the first time it has slipped under $90 in more than a week. However, several commodity analysts believe the markets are unduly discounting the risk of a full-blow war between…

Russian oil refineries experienced decreased production, contributing to the country's ongoing export decline in the first quarter of this year, Russia's central bank said on Thursday. According to a report released by the bank, goods exports dwindled from $105.1 billion to $97.9 billion compared to the same period last year. The report did not spell out figures for oil exports specifically. The decline in Russia’s goods exports was further attributed to unforeseen repairs triggered by drone attacks on some refineries. Ukrainian drone strikes,…

Russian oil refineries experienced decreased production, contributing to the country's ongoing export decline in the first quarter of this year, Russia's central bank said on Thursday. According to a report released by the bank, goods exports dwindled from $105.1 billion to $97.9 billion compared to the same period last year. The report did not spell out figures for oil exports specifically. The decline in Russia’s goods exports was further attributed to unforeseen repairs triggered by drone attacks on some refineries. Ukrainian drone strikes,…

Coal was more popular than ever in 2023, despite big promises from many world powers to curb production and use in favour of cleaner alternatives. Mainly owing to China and India, the generation of electricity from coal production increased last year, as several new plants came online across Asia. While countries such as the U.S. and the U.K. are ditching coal for natural gas and renewable alternatives, several countries across Asia continue to rely heavily on coal for their electricity production, with many projects expected to run for several…

UK firms are planning to invest hundreds of billions in an attempt to bubble-wrap supply chains and bring manufacturing closer to home, new research suggests. Investment in re-industrialisation among UK firms is expected to hit $423.5bn over the course next three years, according to research from professional services firm Capgemini, up from $351.4bn over the last three years. The research, based on a survey of 200 supply chain and manufacturing executives at UK firms with more than $1bn in revenue, suggests that the trend towards re-shoring is…

Via Metal Miner Copper prices continued their breakout during March, rising 4.25%. Prices then formed a second higher high on March 15, followed by a new higher low on March 27. The rally continued throughout April as prices climbed an additional 7.59%. As of April 15, they stand at their highest level since June 2022. Source: MetalMiner Insights, Chart & Correlation Analysis Tool  New Russian Sanctions Hit Copper, Aluminum, Nickel The UK and U.S. announced a new round of sanctions late Friday afternoon, restricting the trade of Russian…

After several hours of silence following Iran’s unprecedented missile-and-drone attack on Israel, Russia issued its first formal reaction: The Foreign Ministry voiced what it said was Moscow’s “extreme concern” over “the latest dangerous escalation in the region.” There may be some truth to that statement, as analysts say that a full-scale war in the Middle East would not be in the interests of President Vladimir Putin’s government. For now, though, it seems more likely that the Kremlin is enthusiastic…

In a bid to stabilize gas prices amid the upcoming summer driving season and Presidential election, the Biden administration wants to ensure that the United States remains on a steady economic course. White House economic adviser Lael Brainard emphasized the administration's commitment to maintaining gas prices within current ranges during a statement on Thursday, according to Reuters, without elaborating on how that would be achieved. In the past, steps to keep gasoline prices in check included attempts to strong-arm OPEC/OPEC+ to boost crude…

In a bid to stabilize gas prices amid the upcoming summer driving season and Presidential election, the Biden administration wants to ensure that the United States remains on a steady economic course. White House economic adviser Lael Brainard emphasized the administration's commitment to maintaining gas prices within current ranges during a statement on Thursday, according to Reuters, without elaborating on how that would be achieved. In the past, steps to keep gasoline prices in check included attempts to strong-arm OPEC/OPEC+ to boost crude…

Geothermal energy is at the precipice of a major breakthrough in the United States. As technology rapidly advances, it’s seeming more possible than ever that the once niche energy production method could soon scale up for mass deployment in nearly any environment. Pilot projects are taking off across the country as federal funding rolls in for research and development of these new methods, but the future of geothermal remains mired in political uncertainty. While it currently enjoys bipartisan support, many pundits worry that a…

As the world anxiously awaited the outcome of Iran's large-scale attack against Israel, some Arab countries had already taken steps to blunt its impact. When the dust from the April 13 attack settled, the vast majority of the hundreds of drones and missiles launched by Iran had been shot down -- by Israel, its Western allies, and Jordan, despite its strong opposition to Israel's ongoing war in Gaza. At least two other Arab states -- Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (U.A.E.), which have been highly critical of the Gaza war and have joined…

China scooped up record volumes of crude oil imports from Russia in March, adding 790,000 barrels per day to its stockpiles, up from 570,000 bpd in January and February, Reuters’ Clyde Russell reported on Thursday, citing official Chinese import data.  Beijing’s efforts to boost its strategic stockpiles is simultaneously skewing the country’s oil demand picture, with record imports of Russian oil contributing to a false picture of the country’s overall demand, Russell notes.  First-quarter numbers for the year…