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Tech Talk – Coal prospects

Last week was the annual Society of Mining Engineers annual meeting, this year in Salt Lake City, with the title “ Leadership in Uncertain Times .” To illustrate the point it had some 6,000 members or more in attendance, as I hear and was quite successful from that point of view. However, through the grapevine I also heard that some of the mining companies are less optimistic of the future, with job offers made for this summer being withdrawn in several cases. There is a considerable question as to the future of coal, as the title reflects, and this has as much to do with concerns over the construction or not of additional coal-fired powered stations around the world and the changing market as older plants are withdrawn from service. Some of the reason for uncertainty can be seen in the predictions from […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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WTI Falls From Four-Month High With Brent on Ukraine Risk

West Texas Intermediate and Brent crudes dropped from the highest price since September amid speculation that heightened tension between Russia and Ukraine is unlikely to result in a disruption to oil supplies. U.S. futures fell as much as 1.4 percent, declining for the first time in three days. Russian President Vladimir Putin ordered troops back to bases from military exercises in the Leningrad region, Interfax newswire reported, citing Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov. Investor fears of a supply disruption are misplaced, according to Societe Generale SA. WTI’s rally was unsustainable, a technical indicator shows. “For the moment the position with regard to Ukraine has stabilized but it remains to be seen what will happen to the loyal Ukrainian forces surrounded in Crimea,” said Christopher Bellew , a senior broker at Jefferies Bache Ltd. in London. WTI for April delivery slid as much as $1.46 to $103.46 a barrel in electronic […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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WTI Crude Rises to Five-Month High on Ukraine

West Texas Intermediate crude surged to a five-month high as Brent advanced amid escalating tension between Ukraine and Russia , the world’s biggest energy exporter. WTI climbed 2.3 percent. Ukraine mobilized its army reserves as Russia seized control of the Black Sea region of Crimea. The U.S. is weighing sanctions against Moscow during the worst standoff between the West and Russia since the Cold War ended. Futures also gained on speculation that supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, slid for a fifth time last week. “The Russian foray into the Crimea is jacking up the geopolitical premium in the market,” said Gene McGillian , an analyst and broker at Tradition Energy in Stamford, Connecticut. “The bulls are having their way and the rally continues.” WTI for April delivery gained $2.33 to $104.92 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange , the highest settlement since Sept. 19. Volume was 49 percent […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ukraine's False Spark for Oil Prices

Oil traders glued to images of Ukrainian and Russian troops in a standoff in Crimea are missing a much more obvious indicator: The stock market. It is characteristic for oil prices to jump at the first whiff of a potential conflict, and Brent crude obliged Monday with a 2% increase, taking it back above $110 a barrel. But Ukraine’s crisis is, if anything, likely a bearish development for oil. Ukraine’s own oil supply is negligible. Russia’s, at about 11 million barrels a day, is vital. But its sheer size means a broad embargo encompassing all major oil-consuming nations mean that is both highly unlikely and likely unenforceable. If anything, the crisis could encourage a release of strategic oil stocks on the part of the U.S. and allies. In the longer term, it could swing U.S. politicians toward allowing more exports of crude oil. Meanwhile, the threat to demand is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
Category:

Ukraine’s False Spark for Oil Prices

Oil traders glued to images of Ukrainian and Russian troops in a standoff in Crimea are missing a much more obvious indicator: The stock market. It is characteristic for oil prices to jump at the first whiff of a potential conflict, and Brent crude obliged Monday with a 2% increase, taking it back above $110 a barrel. But Ukraine’s crisis is, if anything, likely a bearish development for oil. Ukraine’s own oil supply is negligible. Russia’s, at about 11 million barrels a day, is vital. But its sheer size means a broad embargo encompassing all major oil-consuming nations mean that is both highly unlikely and likely unenforceable. If anything, the crisis could encourage a release of strategic oil stocks on the part of the U.S. and allies. In the longer term, it could swing U.S. politicians toward allowing more exports of crude oil. Meanwhile, the threat to demand is […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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UN monitors: Iran cutting sensitive nuclear stocks, but much work remains

Iran is reducing its enriched uranium nuclear stockpile as required by its  landmark deal with world powers , but much work remains to be done to resolve all concerns about Tehran’s activities, the United Nations atomic watchdog chief, Yukiya Amano , said Monday. Among measures Iran is taking since the  interim agreement took effect on Jan. 20  is the dilution of its stock of higher-enriched uranium to a fissile concentration less suitable for any attempt to fuel an atomic bomb. Amano, director general of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), indicated that Iran had made sufficient progress in this regard to receive a scheduled March 1 installment of $450 million out of a total of $4.2 billion in previously blocked overseas funds. The IAEA has a  pivotal role  in checking that Iran is living up to its part of the six-month accord in curbing its disputed nuclear program in […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Militants storm local council HQ in Iraq, kill 6

Iraqi officials say militants have stormed a government building in a city north of Baghdad, killing at least six people. Police officers say two suicide bombers first blew themselves up on Tuesday at the entrance to the local council in Samara, paving the way for five other attackers to storm inside after detonating a parked car bomb. The officers say security forces quickly arrived at the scene, besieged the building and after a two-hour gunbattle, killed all the attackers and freed an unspecified number of people who had been trapped inside. Among those killed in the attack were three policemen and at least three civilians. The officials say 34 people were wounded. All officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they are not authorized to talk to media. © 2014 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Oil Prices Retreat as Markets Watch Ukraine

Crude-oil prices on Tuesday retreated from the highs posted in the previous session, as the market reassessed the risks to supply arising from the crisis in Ukraine. April Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange fell $1.36 to $109.84 a barrel, having traded above $112 a barrel for a time Monday. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in April fell $1.10 to $103.82 a barrel, having traded above $105 a barrel the prior session for the first time since September. Prices will continue to move on headlines from Ukraine, where Russian troops have been deployed in the Crimea region. Talk of sanctions against Russia, the world’s largest oil-producing nation, roiled the markets on Monday. Some 6 million barrels of oil are shipped to Europe from Russia each day. Tamas Varga, of oil brokerage PVM, said the price drawback suggests either that the risk […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Dana Gas to overhaul production facilities in Egypt

Emirati energy company Dana Gas said it was overhauling its el-Wastani natural gas plant in Egypt to increase its production by 25 percent. The company said it was shutting down the facility for two weeks to upgrade capacity by 40 million cubic feet per day to 200 million cubic feet. Mark Fenton, general manager for Dana’s subsidiary in Egypt, said the maintenance was planned as soon as his company received permission to bring new fields in the country into commercial production. "It is a necessary work and the tie-in of the new wells along with the maintenance program ensures that the plant is also fully upgraded prior to new wells coming on stream during the year," he said in a statement published Sunday. Dana announced last week it signed agreements with the Egyptian government to explore for natural resources in eastern […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iraq exports rebound

Iraqi Oil Minister Abdul Karim Luaibi (center), Deputy Prime Minister for Energy Hussain al-Shahristani (second from right), and Nihad Mousa (right), the head of the State Company for Oil Projects, preside over a ceremony marking the expansion of the Basra refinery. (Photo courtesy of the Office of the Deputy Prime Minister) Iraq’s average daily exports rose by 551,000 barrels per day (bpd) in February – a 26 percent jump from January – as the oil sector benefited from infrastructure repairs, upgrade projects, and debottlenecking work.That momentum will need to continue over the coming months because several major fields are scheduled to bring more than 500,000 bpd of new production online by the end of the year, led by the start-up of West Qurna 2, which operator Lukoil is set to push to 300,000 bpd. This… This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple