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Oil rises towards $65 on signs glut easing, Iran doubts

LONDON Oil rose towards $65 a barrel on Wednesday before a U.S. government report expected to show domestic crude inventories fell for an eighth week, a sign that a supply glut is easing. The industry group American Petroleum Institute (API) on Tuesday reported a drop in U.S. crude stocks, ahead of Wednesday’s official data. Doubts over the likelihood of a deal next week on Iran’s nuclear work also supported prices. Brent crude LCOc1 rose 30 cents to $64.75 a barrel by 0836 GMT. U.S. crude CLc1 gained 39 cents to $61.40. Both contracts made gains on Tuesday. "There could be some support from the APIs," said Tony Machacek, an oil broker at Jefferies Bache in London. "We’re probably going to be testing $66 to the upside," he added, referring to Brent. A steady decline in U.S. crude stockpiles from a record high earlier this year has been supporting prices […]

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Oil prices fall on oversupply concerns, weak economic data

SINGAPORE Oil prices fell on Tuesday on worries over a global glut, while surveys showing a contraction in manufacturing activity in China and Japan also dragged on market sentiment. An expected drawdown in U.S. crude stocks, however, put a floor under prices. Brent crude was down 5 cents at $63.29 a barrel as of 0651 GMT, after closing the previous session up 32 cents. U.S. crude for August delivery fell 14 cents to $60.24 a barrel. The July contract, which expired on Monday, closed up 7 cents at $59.68 a barrel. "I think the Japan and China PMI figures are weighing on the market," said Jonathan Barratt, chief investment officer at Sydney’s Ayers Alliance. China and Japan are Asia’s two biggest oil importers. The HSBC/Markit Flash China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) edged up to 49.6 in June, a three-month high, from 49.2 in May, but remained below the […]

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Natural Gas Price Falls on Cool Weather Forecasts

By Timothy Puko Prices of natural gas futures retreated on Tuesday, as weather forecasts call for mild summer temperatures across large parts of the country. Long-term forecasts from both Commodity Weather Group LLC and WeatherBELL Analytics LLC show repeated cool fronts sweeping over parts of the Rockies, the Midwest and the East Coast for at least the next six weeks. Commodity Weather Group made its summer outlook public on Tuesday, a day after sending it to clients, showing a forecast adjustment for August and September that took most of the eastern states and the large parts of the Rockies from normal temperatures to below-average temperatures. Limited hot weather makes people less likely to use air conditioners and to ramp up demand for gas-fired power. Forecasts for cool weather had already sent prices down sharply on Monday. And near-term updates around noon on Tuesday also eliminated some previous signs of […]

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Gas prices start edging lower

Resolution of refinery issues in part leads to a slight decline in retail gasoline prices for U.S. consumers. Photo by Bill Greenblatt/UPI WASHINGTON, June 23 (UPI) — The price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline in the United States is edging lower as wholesale prices decline and refinery issues ebb, surveys find. Motor club AAA reports a national average retail price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline at $2.79, about a penny less than last week. An increase in demand, which in part was driven by lower prices at the pump, along with refinery issues led to a steady rise in gasoline prices nationwide. Tuesday’s price is about 5 cents higher than one month ago. Around half of all retail fueling stations in the country were selling gasoline at or below the $2 per gallon mark earlier this year. "Pump prices in recent days have stabilized or […]

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What a Difference a Year Makes as Oil Outlook Turns Upside Down

Oil’s One-Year Mirror Image The oil market’s view of the future has flipped on its head in the past year, as fears of supply disruptions turned into concerns of a glut. This chart shows the difference one year can make. Last June, crude was above $107 a barrel. Traders were willing to pay $10 more for oil right away than for barrels delivered a year later. Now, with prices swirling around $60, buyers need to get a $3 discount. “We’ve seen a huge shift since this time last year,” Michael D. Cohen, an analyst at Barclays Plc in New York, said by phone. “The perception now is that stockpiles will continue to grow through the end of the year.” Investors back then were concerned that Islamic State’s military victories threatened to cut off supply from Iraq and that sanctions on Russia would slow output. Neither of those predictions came […]

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Kuwait oil minister says oil price drop unlikely

KUWAIT Kuwait’s oil minister said on Tuesday he expected oil prices to continue rising, predicting gains in the final quarter of 2015 on the back of global growth. "All indicators point to an improvement in prices … today we have reached the stage where a fall is difficult, a fall has now become unlikely," Ali Saleh al-Omair told reporters. Omair also said costs for the country’s al-Zour refinery were expected to increase by around 1 billion Kuwaiti dinars ($3.31 billion) pushing up total cost to more than 5 billion dinars. A Kuwait National Petroleum Company spokesman had said on Monday the start-up of the refinery would be delayed as the company was seeking more financing on the back of rising construction costs. The 615,000 barrel per day oil refinery, originally planned more than a decade ago, would be the biggest in the Middle East, but the project has been […]

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Iran’s Supreme Leader Stiffens His Position on Nuclear Talks

OPEN Photographs Photographs: Stress and Hope in Tehran TEHRAN — Iran ’s supreme leader appeared to stiffen his hard line Tuesday on concessions in any nuclear agreement with foreign powers, one week before the deadline for completing an accord. In a speech broadcast live on Iranian state television, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, said he would not abide any freeze on Iran’s sensitive nuclear work for long periods, ruled out foreign inspections of Iranian military sites and demanded that all sanctions imposed on Iran be lifted with immediate effect once an accord is signed. The ayatollah, who has the final word on nuclear matters, has repeatedly said he supports the negotiations. But his public statements have become increasingly unyielding as the talks between Iran and six major powers, including the United States, head toward a June 30 deadline. His remarks on Tuesday appeared to be the strongest yet. […]

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Retaking Ramadi: The Dilemmas of the Anbar Campaign

Islamic State Militants Approaching Ramadi On May 17th, Islamic State militants seized the key Iraqi city of Ramadi. The capital of Anbar province, its population of around 800,000 inhabitants makes it second only to Mosul among the cities controlled by IS. The fall of Ramadi was a sharp reversal for the Iraqi government, coming only weeks after the successful capture of Tikrit from Islamic State militants, and cast new doubts on the effectiveness of the Baghdad government’s ability to successfully roll back the Islamic State. Criticism and blame was quick to follow. The governor of Anbar province blamed the central government in Baghdad for the lack of promised reinforcements. Government officials, off the record, blamed the lack of adequate American air support, citing the fact that only about 36 strikes were carried out by U.S. led coalition forces. The Pentagon blamed The Iraqi Army unwillingness to fight noting that […]

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Iran’s Supreme Leader Seems to Pull Back on Nuclear Talks

Photo Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, shown in March, appeared to undercut several agreements his negotiators have reached with the West. Credit Office of the Iranian Supreme Leader, via Associated Press TEHRAN — With exactly a week left before the deadline for a final agreement to limit Iran ’s nuclear program , the country’s supreme leader appeared to undercut several of the central agreements his negotiators have already reached with the West. In a speech broadcast live on Iran state television, the supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei , demanded that most sanctions be lifted before Tehran has dismantled part of its nuclear infrastructure and before international inspectors verify that the country is beginning to meet its commitments. He also ruled out any freeze on Iran’s sensitive nuclear enrichment for as long as a decade, as a preliminary understanding announced in April stipulates, and he repeated his refusal to allow inspections of […]

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For IOCs seeking cash flow, KRG local market falls short

A topping plant in Iraq’s Kurdistan region. (PATRICK OSGOOD/Iraq Oil Report) Along a bumpy dirt track to the west of Erbil, near the town of Gwer, tanker trucks trundle to a tiny, makeshift oil refinery – one of the roughly 150 "topping plants" that now underpin the hopes of foreign oil companies looking to monetize their investments in Kurdistan.The centerpiece is a steel boiler corroded with rust along its welding seams. From one side, a maze of cooling pipes zigzags through a pit of dirty water. A rudimentary distiller separates fuels into six, three-meter-high … This content is for registered users. Please login to continue. If you are not a registered user, you may purchase a subscription or sign up for a free trial .

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Iraq aims to hold investor roadshow by end-July for $5 bln bond issue

DUBAI, June 22 Iraq hopes to meet investors by the end of July to present plans for a $5 billion bond issue, the country’s finance minister Hoshiyar Zebari told Reuters on Monday. The government has hired JP Morgan, Citibank and Deutsche Bank to arrange its first debt sale in nine years, to cover a budget deficit caused by low oil prices and its conflict with Islamic militants. Iraqi officials met with the three banks and credit rating agencies Fitch Ratings and Moody’s Investors Service on June 16, Zebari said by telephone. "We completed a very successful round of due diligence with the three banks and with the ratings agencies in Istanbul, and I think they are on board," he said. "We will start our roadshow I think end of July, or early August at the latest, and then we will issue them. So everything is on track." On April […]

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Karachi Heat Wave Death Toll Tops 650 During Ramadan Fast

KARACHI, Pakistan — Karachi’s poor learned long ago to cope with the many adversities that afflict Pakistan’s most crowded and chaotic city, including flooding, street violence and political crises. But since a suffocating heat wave descended on Karachi three days ago, killing at least 650 people, they have found no respite and no escape. “It’s so hot,” said a security guard, Shamim ur-Rehman, 34, as he sat on a cot, looking beleaguered. “There is no fan, there is nothing. I can’t sleep at night or during the day.” Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif declared an emergency on Tuesday as the death toll from the heat wave soared, with overwhelmed hospitals struggling to treat a surge of casualties and morgues filling to capacity. The army set up emergency treatment centers in the streets and the provincial government closed schools and city offices. The Edhi Foundation , which runs an ambulance service […]

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Asia’s Oil Consumption at Record High While Production Peaked in 2010

The annual BP Statistical Review has come out, as usual in June. In this post we focus on the Asia Pacific region. This is important because the Australian government has offered the help of “Team Australia” to build the “Asian Century ”. The question no one asks (or wants to ask) is how much oil there is to carry Asia through the decades to come. No one can give an answer of course but it is clear that if past oil consumption and production trends continue the region will slide into a huge oil crisis. Overview Oil production in the Asia Pacific peaked in 2010 ( China offshore!) at 8.4 mb/d while consumption continued to increase to 30.9 mb/d. Fig 1: Asia-Pacific oil production and consumption The difference between consumption and production (net imports) is now 73% of consumption, up from 68% ten years ago. Oil consumption changes Let’s […]

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Lawmakers mull stricter air pollution control law

BEIJING, June 24 (Xinhua) — Chinese legislators are deliberating regulating emissions from boats and ships as the country clamps down on air pollution. According to a draft amendment to the Air Pollution Law, tabled to the National People’s Congress (NPC) Standing Committee for a second reading on Wednesday, ships on inland or river-to-sea waterways must use standard diesel as fuel to cut emissions. Ocean-going vessels will also be required to use fuels that conform to China’s environmental protection standards after stopping at Chinese ports, the draft read. The shipping sector accounted for around 8.4 percent of China’s sulphur dioxide emissions and 11.3 percent of nitrogen oxide emissions in 2013. The country is also home to eight of the world’s ten largest ports in terms of cargo handling capacities. According to the draft, vessels at berth should operate on land-based power provided by the ports. Ports, both new and existing, […]

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China’s May Iran oil imports down 31.6 percent on year: customs

BEIJING China’s crude oil imports from Iran fell in May to their lowest levels in four months, official customs data showed on Tuesday, as overall crude imports dropped during the traditional maintenance season. China’s imports from Iran were 2.20 million tonnes last month, or 518,400 barrels per day (bpd), down 26.7 percent from April’s 707,400 bpd and down 31.6 percent on the year. An explosion in early April at Dragon Aromatics, an independent petrochemical producer in eastern China that handles condensate like that exported by Iran, could have contributed to the May drop. Thomson Reuters Oil Research & Forecasts had put its latest estimate of China’s imports from Iran in May at 593,400 bpd. The group expects volume from Iran to fall in June to 506,100 bpd. It appears likely that a deal will be clinched to restrict Iran’s nuclear program in exchange for sanctions relief some time around […]

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Canada files charges for Lac-Megantic disaster

Canadian government files federal charges in relation to the Lac-Megantic oil-train disaster, which in 2013 left more than 40 people dead. Photo by Steven Frame/Shutterstock OTTAWA, June 23 (UPI) — The Canadian transport authority said it filed legal charges in connection with the Lac-Megantic oil-train disaster in 2013 under two federal acts. The federal Transport Canada said charges filed for violations of the Fisheries Act relate to the release of crude oil in and around the site of the 2013 derailment into fish-bearing waters. Charges under the Railway Safety Act relate to insufficient application and testing of handbrakes on the locomotive. Montreal, Maine and Atlantic Railway, the train’s operator, blamed the air brakes on the locomotive holding the freight for the Lac-Megantic incident and later filed for bankruptcy protection. The disaster left more than 40 people dead. "The actions taken by the government of Canada in response to this […]

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DOE Study Finds Elevated Greenhouse Gas Emissions From Canadian Crude

A new peer-reviewed study funded by the U.S. Department of Energy says Canada’s oil sands greenhouse gas emissions are an average of 20% higher than U.S. conventional crude, adding ammunition to opponents of the Keystone XL pipeline and other critics of surging Canadian crude production. The study, conducted by DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory in collaboration with researchers at Stanford University and the University of California-Berkeley’s Institute of Transport Studies, calculated greenhouse gas emissions from oil field extraction to the tail pipe in a so-called well-to-wheel analysis. Noting oil sands output is projected to more than double in the next 15 years and that much of that crude could wind up in the U.S., the study said “higher [well-to-wheel] emissions for gasoline and diesel production in the U.S. are expected when oil sands products become a larger fraction of the U.S. fuel mix.” “All crudes are not created equally,” Hao […]

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Stanford team develops new low-voltage single-catalyst water splitter for hydrogen production

Researchers at Stanford University have developed a new low-voltage, single-catalyst water splitter that continuously generates hydrogen and oxygen. An open access paper describing the synthesis and functionality of the bi-functional non-noble metal oxide nanoparticle electrocatalysts appears in the journal Nature Communications . In the reported study, the new catalyst achieved 10 mA cm −2 water-splitting current at only 1.51 V for more than 200 h without degradation in a two-electrode configuration and 1 M KOH—better than the combination of iridium and platinum as benchmark catalysts. Electrochemical/photoelectrochemical water splitting is widely considered to be a critical step for efficient renewable energy production, storage and usage such as sustainable hydrogen production, rechargeable metal-air batteries and fuel cells. Currently, the state-of-the-art catalysts to split water are IrO 2 and Pt for oxygen evolution reaction (OER) and hydrogen evolution reaction (HER), respectively, with ~1.5 V to reach 10 mA cm −2 current (for […]

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North Dakota’s Oil Rig Count Appears To Have Hit Bottom

WILLISTON, N.D., June 23 (Reuters) – The drilling rig count in North Dakota’s oil patch, a closely watched metric through which many attempt to divine future crude production, appears to have hit a bottom. For the past three weeks the count has hovered between 76 and 79, after sliding only slightly from 80 at the end of May. On June 12, the count hit 76, the lowest level since 2009. The count bobbed slightly in the ensuing days, hitting 77 on Tuesday. It has, in short, been the longest period since oil prices started to slide last fall that the rig count has stayed in the same range, offering many in and near the No. 2 U.S. crude-producing state’s energy industry a bit of solace that a nadir has been reached. In early March, for example, the count was at 113. The apparent stabilization has produced a palpable sigh […]

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U.S. West Coast refiners snap up Russian crude cargoes

SINGAPORE Refiners on the U.S. West Coast and Hawaii have stepped up purchases of Russian crude, taking advantage of a narrow gap between U.S. and global prices as they look to guard against a seasonal shortage of Alaskan supply, trade and industry sources said. Up to four tankers were expected to carry nearly 3 million barrels of Russia’s ESPO crude from Kozmino near the city of Vladivostok to refineries in the United States this month and next, the sources said. That will help Russia diversify beyond key buyers in China, South Korea and Japan at a time when Asian markets are grappling with oversupply. Sanctions against Russia over its actions in Ukraine bar U.S. oil companies from drilling in the country, but purchases of oil are still allowed. But traders said the shipments marked only a temporary trend as refineries were buying amid uncertainty over the supply of Alaska […]

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The Way Humans Get Electricity Is About to Change Forever

The renewable-energy boom is here. Trillions of dollars will be invested over the next 25 years, driving some of the most profound changes yet in how humans get their electricity. That’s according to a new forecast by Bloomberg New Energy Finance that plots out global power markets to 2040 1 . Here are six massive shifts coming soon to power markets near you: 1. Solar Prices Keep Crashing The price of solar power will continue to fall, until it becomes the cheapest form of power in a rapidly expanding number of national markets. By 2026, utility-scale solar will be competitive for the majority of the world, according to BNEF . The lifetime cost of a photovoltaic solar-power plant will drop by almost half over the next 25 years, even as the prices of fossil fuels creep higher. Solar power will eventually get so cheap that it will outcompete new […]

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Troubled Delta System Is California’s Water Battleground

Photo The Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, anchored by the convergence of two rivers, is a 720,000-acre network of islands and canals that is the hub of California’s water system. Credit Jim Wilson/The New York Times BYRON, Calif. — Fighting over water is a tradition in California, but nowhere are the lines of dispute more sharply drawn than here in the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta , a 720,000-acre network of islands and canals that is the hub of the state’s water system. Giant pumps pull in water flowing to the delta from the mountainous north of the state, where the majority of precipitation falls, and send it to farms, towns and cities in the Central Valley and Southern California, where the demand for water is greatest. For decades, the shortcomings of this water transportation system, among the most ambitious and complex ever constructed, have been a source of conflict and complaint. But […]

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Greek Debt Blueprint Gets a Cold Reception in Athens

Photo Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras of Greece in Athens on Saturday. He returns to Brussels Wednesday for more talks with creditors. Credit Alkis Konstantinidis/Reuters ATHENS — Prime Minister Alexis Tsipras faced anger and resistance on Tuesday from members of his own radical left political party, complicating his efforts to strike a deal this week with Greece ’s creditors, as some lawmakers and party officials criticized concessions by the Greek side and expressed doubts about voting for a deal in Parliament. Mr. Tsipras returned to Athens on Tuesday afternoon after negotiations in Brussels brought predictions that a deal would be completed by the end of the week, in which creditors would unlock bailout funding so that Greece can stave off default in exchange for concessions on tax increases and pension changes. Less clear, if critical in the eyes of Greek leaders, is a potential European promise for future debt relief. […]

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Russia Pips Saudi Arabia in Race to Grab China Oil Market Share

Russia surpassed Saudi Arabia to become China’s top crude supplier as the fight for market share in the world’s second-largest oil consumer intensifies. China imported a record 3.92 million metric tons from its northern neighbor in May, according to data emailed by the Beijing-based General Administration of Customs on Tuesday. That’s equivalent to 927,000 barrels a day, a 20 percent increase from the previous month. Saudi sales slumped 42 percent from April to 3.05 million tons. China is becoming a key market for global oil exporters as surging output from shale fields from Texas to North Dakota allows the U.S., the biggest crude consumer, to rely less on overseas supplies. The Asian nation will account for more than 11 percent of world demand this year, the Paris-based International Energy Agency predicted this month. “This is a clear sign of how spoilt Asia is for choice these days, with Middle […]

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Ruble Slides as Tax Boost Damped by Debt, Bank of Russia Sales

The ruble headed for the lowest level in a week as support from monthly tax deadlines subsided and investors turned their attention to the Bank of Russia’s dollar purchases and companies’ foreign debt payments. The Russian currency weakened 1.3 percent to 54.6350 per dollar by 4:21 p.m. in Moscow, extending its drop this month to 4.2 percent, the most among 24 emerging markets tracked by Bloomberg. Government bonds fell, lifting the yield on five-year ruble debt four basis points to 11.16 percent. Companies have accumulated the rubles they need to pay the equivalent of about $10 billion in local tax this week, bringing concern over looming external debt redemptions and dividend payments to foreigners to the fore, according to VTB Capital. The Bank of Russia has bought almost $5 billion on the market since May 13 as it seeks to gradually boost its foreign currency reserves to $500 billion […]

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U.K. Panel to Decide on Fracking

PRESTON, England—A bare patch of land amid the wheat and barley fields and cow pastures of northwest England’s countryside has become the focus of a question vexing Europe: to frack or not to frack? This week, the hub of the debate is the Lancashire County Council, which heard from both sides Tuesday, and is expected to decide Wednesday whether to allow the first onshore hydraulic fracturing for shale gas in Western Europe since 2011. The controversial drilling technique has unleashed an oil and gas boom in the U.S. in the past decade, but it has proved politically toxic in Europe , where lawmakers have blocked it. Fracking, which uses a mixture of sand, chemicals and water at high pressure to crack open energy reserves buried deep in shale formations, has been on hold in the U.K. after a series of minor earth tremors followed the first well fracked here […]

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Dutch Government to Cut Groningen Gas-Field Output

Production at the Groningen gas field will be slashed to 13.5 billion cubic meters in the second half of 2015, the government said, resulting in total output of 30 billion cubic meters this year, substantially lower than the previous target of 39.4 billion cubic meters. The move is the latest in a series of production cutbacks by the Dutch government in recent years after a study by The Royal Netherlands Meteorological Institute linked gas extraction to a rise in earthquakes in the northern province of Groningen, where the field is located. The tremors have damaged many homes in the area. “The safety of the people of Groningen is the most important,” said Henk Kamp, the Dutch Minister of Economic Affairs. “Gas production from Groningen will be reduced as far as feasible.” Discovered in 1959, the Groningen field is one of the world’s biggest natural gas reserves and is a […]

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Pressure mounts against British fracking

Din growing louder as debate over fledgling British shale natural gas industry moving closer to crucial phase. Photo by David Gaylor/Shutterstock PRESTON, England, June 23 (UPI) — British advocacy group Friends of the Earth said that, with the nation’s fracking debate in full swing, the interests of local communities should prevail. A local council in Lancashire is reviewing two separate proposals by energy company Cuadrilla Resources to explore for natural gas in regional shale deposits. The council in mid June recommended approval for a campaign with as many as four drilling sites and hydraulic fracturing. The recommendation was subject to restrictions ranging from hours of work to noise pollution. A second application was recommended for refusal because of the potential for an increase in traffic on the rural highway network. "Fracking could have a hugely damaging impact on Lancashire residents and their environment and cause more climate-changing pollution to […]

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Oil prices fall on oversupply concerns, weak economic data

SINGAPORE Oil prices fell on Tuesday on worries over a global glut, while surveys showing a contraction in manufacturing activity in China and Japan also dragged on market sentiment. An expected drawdown in U.S. crude stocks, however, put a floor under prices. Brent crude was down 5 cents at $63.29 a barrel as of 0651 GMT, after closing the previous session up 32 cents. U.S. crude for August delivery fell 14 cents to $60.24 a barrel. The July contract, which expired on Monday, closed up 7 cents at $59.68 a barrel. "I think the Japan and China PMI figures are weighing on the market," said Jonathan Barratt, chief investment officer at Sydney’s Ayers Alliance. China and Japan are Asia’s two biggest oil importers. The HSBC/Markit Flash China Manufacturing Purchasing Managers’ Index (PMI) edged up to 49.6 in June, a three-month high, from 49.2 in May, but remained below the […]

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Oil Prices End Slightly Higher

An oil drilling rig in Port Angeles, Wash. Oil prices eked out a gain Monday as investors weighed concerns about ample crude-oil supplies against hopes that Greek debt negotiations would succeed. Light, sweet crude for July delivery settled up 7 cents, or 0.1%, at $59.68 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. The July contract expired at settlement Monday. The more-actively traded August contract settled up 41 cents, or 0.7%, at $60.38 a barrel. Brent, the global benchmark, rose 32 cents, or 0.5%, to $63.34 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe. U.S. oil prices have hovered near $60 a barrel for weeks as investors weigh the currently oversupplied market against growing demand and cutbacks in new drilling. The physical market for crude oil remains weaker than many analysts expected, damping some investors’ hopes that prices would recover quickly this summer. “The second quarter of 2015 is winding down […]

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Crude Oil Gains on Speculation Inventories Fell for Eighth Week

Crude oil rose on speculation U.S. inventories fell for an eighth week, the longest stretch of declines in seven years. Crude stockpiles decreased by 1.5 million barrels in the week ended June 19, according to a Bloomberg survey before Wednesday’s government report. Prices also gained amid optimism Greece’s debt crisis will be resolved. “We are looking ahead to the inventory report already,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy. “We have a good economy ahead and it’s not going to be upset by a Greek default. It’s a macro play at the moment.” Oil’s rebound from a six-year low has faltered amid speculation that an advance of almost 40 percent since March is spurring global supply. Investors are watching a June 30 deadline for Iran and six other nations to reach a nuclear deal that could lift oil […]

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Natural Gas Drops on Cooler Weather Forecasts

By Timothy Puko Natural gas prices posted their biggest drop in more than three weeks on Monday, on signs of cooler weather and softer-than-expected demand ahead. Prices for the front-month July contract settled down 8.3 cents, or 3%, at $2.733 a million British thermal units on the New York Mercantile Exchange. It was the largest one-day percentage loss in more than three weeks and the lowest settlement since June 8. The contract fell as soon as electronic trading opened Sunday evening and drifted lower for most of Monday as traders checked weather forecasts on the first day of summer for the Northern Hemisphere. Weather updates showed cool temperatures moving into the Midwest by Thursday and then pushing across the rest of the eastern states. Chicago’s high temperatures are likely to be four to seven degrees Fahrenheit below normal, and then the weekend will bring even cooler weather, eight to […]

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‘Missing barrels’ may hold new oil demand

The sea of crude oil drowning markets may be only half as deep as an influential estimate suggests. The Paris-based International Energy Agency, an alliance of 29 oil-importing nations including the United States, has contributed to the downturn in oil prices with its estimates that the global supply of oil is outpacing demand by about 2 million barrels per day, thanks to sluggish growth in fuel consumption by developing nations and a U.S. production boom. That imbalance is the main reason crude prices are 40 percent lower than a year ago. While there’s little dispute the world is producing more oil than it needs, independent analyses suggest the agency’s regular reports understate how much oil the world uses every day, and therefore exaggerate the size of the glut. Analysts reached the conclusion by examining what the agency calls its “miscellaneous to balance” figure, designed to reconcile its estimate of […]

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New International Energy Statistics.

The Eia has finally updated their International Energy Statistics with data through February 2015. All data in the charts below are Crude + Condensate and is in thousand barrels per day with the last data point February 2015. World C+C dropped 477,000 bpd in January and another 65,000 bpd in February for a total decline of 542,000 bpd. World C+C stood at 79,160,000 barrels per day in February. Non OPEC C+C declined 244,000 bpd in January and another 100,000 bpd in February for a total decline of 344,000 since December. Non-OPEC C+C production stood at 46,656,000 bpd in February. OPEC C+C OPEC C+C, in February 2015 stood at 32,504,000 bpd, down 1,451,000 bpd from its peak in April 2012. However according to the OPEC MOMR their crude only is up 1,000,000 bpd from February to May. United States According to the EIA’s International Energy Statistics US C+C production, in […]

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Syrian Kurds, on the offensive, push deeper into Islamic State territory

BEIRUT Kurdish-led forces advanced on Monday deep into territory in Syria held by Islamic State, showing new momentum after they unexpectedly swiftly seized a border crossing from the jihadists last week. The Kurds, aided by U.S.-led air strikes and smaller Syrian rebel groups, had pushed to within 7 km (4 miles) of Ain Issa, a town 50 km (30 miles) north of Islamic State’s de facto capital Raqqa city, said Redur Xelil, spokesman for the Kurdish forces. The rapid advance into Raqqa province has defied expectations of a protracted battle between the Kurdish YPG group and Islamic State fighters, who waged a four-month battle for the border town of Kobani, where the Kurds finally defeated the jihadists in January. Raqqa is the main seat of power in Syria for Islamic State, the group also known as ISIS or ISIL, which has proclaimed a caliphate to rule over all Muslims […]

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Iran, West Say Deadline on Nuclear Talks Won’t Block Deal

LUXEMBOURG—Iranian and Western officials said they may not seal a final nuclear deal by the June 30 deadline but insisted they are committed to trying to unblock the remaining obstacles during talks in coming days. The comments, made after talks between Iranian Foreign Minister Javad Zarif and his counterparts from the U.K., France and Germany on the sidelines of a European Union meeting in Luxembourg on Monday, underscore recent warnings that the nuclear talks have stalled as the deadline approaches. Senior Iranian and Western officials have clashed publicly over key details of a final deal in recent days, although diplomats involved in talks have said there is little sign the negotiations could collapse. The Obama administration has long said it didn’t want the nuclear talks to drift beyond June 30, arguing that the obstacles to a final nuclear deal could grow over time. However, the U.S. does have some […]

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Saudi crude oil stocks likely to draw down: Barclays

Saudi Arabia’s domestic crude consumption is expected to pick up strongly going into the summer season, but with the kingdom intent on meeting global oil demand by keeping production high, it is likely to draw on its stocks at home and abroad, analysts at Barclays Capital said in a research note Monday. "To meet the incremental call at a time when the kingdom’s domestic requirements are set to increase as well, raises the possibility of a draw down on the kingdom’s crude and product stocks, in our view", Barclays said. Saudi crude production has averaged 9.9 million b/d for the year up to April, up 3% year on year, Barclays said, citing the latest data released Thursday by the Riyadh-based Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI). Saudi wellhead production was stable at 10.308 million b/d in April, while exports dropped by 2% to 7.737 million b/d compared with March. Article […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Iran’s oil output goals likely unrealistic because of risk, report says

Iran’s ambitions to produce 4 million barrels a day of oil and 1 million b/d of condensate by 2018 are likely unrealistic because US and European banks and companies are reluctant to take on high-risk investments, according to a report a Washington-based think tank will release Tuesday. "A more realistic assessment would be an expansion of up to 800,000 b/d within six months and a major oil output rebound only after 2016, though even this pace would put Iran on course for a structural shift and acceleration from the current modest pace of economic growth," the Center for a New American Security report states. Bijan Namdar Zanganeh, Iran’s oil minister, has said once sanctions are lifted, production would climb by 1 million b/d, to 3.8 million b/d within six months, and to 4 million b/d by 2018. The report claims it is unlikely that Iran’s crude oil capacity — […]

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Pakistan calls for urgent measures as heatwave toll tops 450

Pakistan’s prime minister called for emergency measures as the death toll from a heatwave in southern Sindh province topped 450. The National Disaster Management Authority (NDMA) said it had received orders from Nawaz Sharif to undertake immediate response measures. The army has also been deployed to set up heat stroke centres and assist the NDMA, it added. Many of the victims are elderly people from low income families. The death toll from the heatwave has risen above 450 Health officials say many deaths have been in the largest city, Karachi, which has experienced temperatures as high as 45C (113F) in recent days. Hundreds of patients suffering from the effects of the heatwave are being treated at government hospitals, provincial health secretary Saeed Mangnejo said. The demand for electricity for air conditioning has coincided with increased power needs over Ramadan, when Muslims fast during daylight hours. Hot weather is not […]

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Peak Oil in Latin America

Today, I want to focus on black gold production south of the Rio Grande. Latin America’s political leaders believe (or claim to believe) that the economic future of the region is promising. They avail themselves of every summit, every conference or bilateral gathering to express their full confidence in growth, progress and development (today called “sustainable,” even when the Amazons continue to suffer). The Cuban president and his minister for the economy, for instance, insisted that this year we would grow like doped-up champions, by no less than 4 %. I think this is magnificent, charming. The one, tiny problem is that, in order to grow like that, exponentially, one has to burn oil at the same pace. So, what legs do we have to stand on? See country graphs below. Does Latin America have the fuel needed to reach such an ambitious goal? Might this not be another […]

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Venezuela’s Maduro Faces His Biggest Test in December 6 Vote

Venezuelan President Nicolas Maduro. Photographer: Federico Parra/AFP via Getty Images Venezuela’s opposition is set to gain control of congress for the first time in 16 years in a Dec. 6 vote seen as the biggest test yet for the Socialist government of President Nicolas Maduro. Official campaigning to choose all 167 members of the National Assembly will take place from Nov. 13 to Dec. 3, the head of national electoral council Tibisay Lucena said in a televised speech Monday. Opposition candidates would get 56.2 percent of the vote, compared to 29.8 percent for the ruling United Socialist Party of Venezuela currently in charge of the Assembly, according to the latest Datanalisis survey of 1,000 people. The May 18-30 poll had a 3 percentage-point margin of error. “We will be in a situation with an already weak president weakened further by a defeat in the election,” Barclays Plc analyst Alejandro […]

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Venezuela sets date for elections after mounting pressure

AP Photo/Fernando Llano CARACAS, Venezuela (AP) — Venezuela will hold legislative elections Dec. 6, election officials announced Monday after months of mounting pressure from local opposition groups and international observers. The South American country’s laws mandate that National Assembly balloting be held this year, but elections officials had delayed setting a date, raising concerns the contest would be canceled. In her announcement, elections council head Tibisay Lucena said the organization had always intended to set a date and was not reacting to public pressure. "These attacks and phony analyses from national experts and international figures have mostly been very ignorant," she said. The date is timed to commemorate the first election of the late President Hugo Chavez, who launched the country’s socialist revolution when voters chose him overwhelmingly on Dec. 6, 1998. The ruling socialist party currently holds a majority in the legislature, but polls indicate that if the […]

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Green Star Over China

TLNIt wasn’t the sort of speech you’d expect from a soon-to-be minster of the Chinese government. On Jan. 27, Chen Jining waxed philosophical to graduating master’s degree students at the elite Tsinghua University in Beijing, where he was serving as university president. He talked about picking up Malcolm Gladwell’s book Outliers during a visit to Taiwan and about shooting the breeze with Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg during a recent campus visit. Unlike the standard Chinese Communist Party apparatchik, Chen eschewed impenetrable party theory or bureaucrat-ese for personal anecdotes and motivational comments. The difference between mediocrity and excellence, Chen said , dressed in robes and a mortarboard, was not talent but “continued perseverance [and] sustained effort.” He closed his speech with a quote from China’s former premier and Tsinghua dean Zhu Rongji who in 2014 penned a letter to Tsinghua students telling them to be bold and fearless. “You’re young […]

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Dakota Access Pipeline Concerns

Dakota Access Pipeline Route Energy Transfer Pipeline is moving forward with plans to build a massive 1.134 mile pipeline that will transport crude from the Bakken through South Dakota and into Patoka, Illinois amid public concerns. Related: Two New Bakken Crude Oil Pipelines Online by 2016 Energy Transfer Partners moved one step closer this week as officials from the McKenzie County Commission approved zoning for the first of six terminals it will need for the project. Along with permission to move ahead the company also received vigorous opposition and criticism from landowners who see the company as arrogant. According to the Tri-City Herald , “Commissioner Kathy Skarda that said she has received numerous phone calls from landowners upset about the company’s negotiating style.” Last week, more than 80 people turned out for a public hearing in Killdeer to express their concerns to the Public Service Commission. This was the […]

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Climate Clashes Resume in Washington

Washington’s climate wars are heating up, with the White House and congressional Republicans both making moves this week that counter the other’s agenda. The Environmental Protection Agency released a report Monday highlighting the economic benefits of cutting carbon emissions, the first in a series of actions the administration is taking this week to bring attention to President Barack Obama ’s climate-change agenda. The focus comes two years after Mr. Obama first laid out his intentions to make acting on climate a legacy of his time in the White House during a speech at Georgetown University on June 25, 2013, where he directed EPA to write regulations cutting carbon emissions from the nation’s power plants, which at 30% are the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. Other actions this week include a summit at the White House Tuesday linking climate change to public health. Mr. Obama’s climate agenda faces […]

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U.S. Plains flooding refills soil moisture, farmers’ wallets

CHICAGO Farmers are reaping higher yields and ranchers’ feed costs have fallen sharply since flooding swept across the southern U.S. Plains in May, with the record rains providing tangible benefits to agriculture despite causing damage that will likely cost billions of dollars to repair. The storms inundated fields across Texas and Oklahoma but they broke a years-long drought that wreaked havoc on the profitability of growers and cattlemen. Even though floods tend to grab more headlines, drought is actually much more costly in terms of its impact on agriculture. "The thing that differentiates it (drought) from all other natural hazards is the fact that it covers such a wide swath or spatial extent," said Don Willhite, climatologist in the School of Natural Resources at University of Nebraska-Lincoln. "Floods are much more localized. (Drought) goes on for so long. The impacts accumulate year to year." Floods also are less costly […]

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Cheap Energy Poised to Shake Up Pipeline Industry

Low oil-and-gas prices are poised to shake up yet another part of the nation’s energy economy, spurring a merger battle among companies that own the key pipelines that move fuels around the country. Williams WMB 25.90 % Cos., a large natural-gas pipeline operator, said it hired bankers and lawyers to help it review strategic alternatives, including a sale, after rejecting a roughly $48 billion unsolicited takeover that would have been the largest energy deal in the U.S. this year. Shares in the Tulsa, Okla., company soared to an all-time high of $60.86, up 26%, giving the more than 100-year-old company a market valuation of $45.58 billion. Shares of its would-be buyer fell nearly 5% to $65.06. Cheap energy has stronger companies across the industry—including exploration and drilling companies—eyeing weaker rivals. But deals have been few as buyout candidates hold out for richer offers. Dallas-based pipeline company Energy Transfer Equity […]

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Williams and Energy Transfer Equity: Pipeline Bid Signals Gas Woes

John D. Rockefeller’s empire wasn’t founded on owning oil fields but instead the means to process and transport oil. Alongside cementing his ruthless reputation, the efficiencies generated by Standard Oil led to a collapse in kerosene prices in the late 19th century. One rationale for Energy Transfer’s interest in Williams: its pipelines in the northeastern U.S. Gas flows have shifted dramatically as shale’s development has opened up new supply sources, not least the giant Marcellus Shale in the Northeast. Last year, this accounted for a fifth of U.S. gas production, according to Sanford C. Bernstein, largely meeting regional demand. But this is set to increase to one-third of U.S. supply by 2018, Bernstein estimates, helped by new and modified pipeline capacity allowing more gas to flow from the Northeast. Right now, bottlenecks there mean Marcellus gas often sells locally at big discounts to the already-low Henry Hub national benchmark. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple