The cost of shipping Russian crude from its ports in the Baltic Sea to India has dropped this month as the price of Russia’s flagship crude grade, Urals, slid in early April to below the G7 price cap, which increases the availability of tankers. The price cap mechanism set by the G7 and the EU says that Russian crude shipments to third countries can use Western insurance and financing if cargoes are sold at or below the $60-a-barrel ceiling. The price of Urals dipped below $60 per barrel earlier this month as international benchmarks crashed…

The cost of shipping Russian crude from its ports in the Baltic Sea to India has dropped this month as the price of Russia’s flagship crude grade, Urals, slid in early April to below the G7 price cap, which increases the availability of tankers. The price cap mechanism set by the G7 and the EU says that Russian crude shipments to third countries can use Western insurance and financing if cargoes are sold at or below the $60-a-barrel ceiling. The price of Urals dipped below $60 per barrel earlier this month as international benchmarks crashed…

The cost of shipping Russian crude from its ports in the Baltic Sea to India has dropped this month as the price of Russia’s flagship crude grade, Urals, slid in early April to below the G7 price cap, which increases the availability of tankers. The price cap mechanism set by the G7 and the EU says that Russian crude shipments to third countries can use Western insurance and financing if cargoes are sold at or below the $60-a-barrel ceiling. The price of Urals dipped below $60 per barrel earlier this month as international benchmarks crashed…

Oil prices are set to post a weekly gain for the first time in three weeks, although demand concerns continue to loom as the U.S.-China trade war escalates. Friday, April 18th, 2025 As the Western hemisphere wound down trading activity with the onset of the Easter holidays, crude oil markets have posted an impressive 7% week-on-week rise, with ICE Brent now back at $68 per barrel. New OPEC+ compensation quotas, tighter US sanctions on Iran, and relatively upbeat March macro data have all boosted sentiment in the short term, although further…

At least 58 people were killed in U.S. air strikes on a fuel port in Yemen, Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV said on Friday, in what could be the deadliest U.S. attack in Yemen since U.S. President Donald Trump ordered strikes on targets of the Iran-aligned rebels a month ago. In the middle of March, the U.S. began air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, with the U.S. Department of Defense stating the attacks would continue until the Houthis stop attacking ships traversing the Red Sea. The U.S. Central Command said on Thursday about the attack that “The…

At least 58 people were killed in U.S. air strikes on a fuel port in Yemen, Houthi-run Al-Masirah TV said on Friday, in what could be the deadliest U.S. attack in Yemen since U.S. President Donald Trump ordered strikes on targets of the Iran-aligned rebels a month ago. In the middle of March, the U.S. began air strikes on Houthi targets in Yemen, with the U.S. Department of Defense stating the attacks would continue until the Houthis stop attacking ships traversing the Red Sea. The U.S. Central Command said on Thursday about the attack that “The…

BP has suffered a huge rebellion from its shareholders as the London-listed oil giant’s annual general meeting faces scrutiny of its environmental policy. Nearly a quarter voted against the re-election of outgoing chair Helge Lund at the firm’s annual general meeting. as conflict swirls over BP’s decision to cut back on climate goals. Chief executive Murray Auchincloss has faced mounting pressure to turn around the company’s struggling share price and in February announced plans to pivot back to oil and gas. Lund played…

Crude oil futures logged their first weekly gain in three weeks, lifted by a fresh round of U.S. sanctions on Iran, stepped-up output discipline from OPEC producers, and improved U.S. export flows. In a holiday-shortened trading week, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) settled at $64.01 per barrel on Thursday, up $3.15, or 5.18%, for the week. Brent crude saw a similar percentage gain, with both benchmarks bouncing off multi-week lows on supply-side catalysts. U.S. Sanctions on Iran Reignite Supply Risk Premium The most impactful development this week…

Despite the 2020 ceasefire, recent armed mobilizations in and around Tripoli have raised fears of renewed violence. In the south, efforts to restructure the Libyan National Army (LNA) have led to deadly clashes. The country remains divided between rival administrations, with political struggles fueled by competition for economic resources and fragmented institutions lacking a unified budget For the last few years, the clan of General Haftar (controlling the east from Benghazi) and infinitely interim prime minister Djebeba (controlling the west…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict Hints that German and French energy firms might resume Russian gas imports mark more than just economic desperation—they signal Europe's quiet recalibration of strategic autonomy. With U.S.-EU ties fraying under Trump-era foreign policy shifts and Qatar LNG talks going nowhere, some EU players see Russian gas as a necessary evil to preserve industrial competitiveness. While publicly committed to decoupling from Moscow, Berlin and Paris may be preparing for a "cold peace" in Ukraine that allows for limited…

For the last month and a half or so, the pieces I have written here have been focused on my prediction that stocks and energy commodity prices would go through a rough patch, and on how to deal with that. I still believe that stocks could move lower still, but crude seems to have found a bottom at around $60 for now. That, and the fact that energy has attracted some interest as a safe haven sector as more adventurous areas such as tech have led the market down, has resulted in energy beginning to outperform over the last few days. However, the…

The United States will abandon efforts to broker a Russia-Ukraine peace agreement if progress isn’t made very soon and unless clear signs emerge that a deal can be reached, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio said on Friday. “We're not going to continue with this endeavour for weeks and months on end. So we need to determine very quickly now, and I'm talking about a matter of days whether or not this is doable in the next few weeks,” Secretary Rubio said. Rubio held meetings in Paris with European and Ukrainian leaders to discuss…

Pakistan has recorded the first substantial increase in its domestic oil reserves since 2020, with new discoveries and higher production leading to a 23% annual increase in reserves to 238 million barrels as of December 2024. The key fields contributing to the increase include Pasakhi/Pasakhi North East, Rajian, Kunar, Sono, Thora, Jhandial, and Lashari Centre, according to a report by Arif Habib Limited cited by Pakistani media. Natural gas reserves in Pakistan remained relatively flat last year compared to the gas reserve estimate for 2023. Despite…

India plans to remove an unlimited liability clause in its nuclear energy laws in a bid to attract foreign firms, especially U.S. companies, to its nuclear energy sector. The Indian Department of Atomic Energy has prepared a bill that would remove a clause in the Civil Nuclear Liability Damage Act of 2010 that exposes suppliers to unlimited liability if accidents occur, government sources told Reuters. India plans a major expansion to its nuclear energy capacity in the coming decades as a pillar of reliable zero-carbon electricity to meet surging…

China hasn’t imported liquefied natural gas from the United States since early February, as the tariff war hit energy trade and could have long-term consequences for U.S. LNG export contracts. The last LNG cargo to arrive in China from America was a tanker from Corpus Christi, which docked in the southern Chinese province of Fujian on February 6, according to shipping data cited by the Financial Times. The Chinese tariffs on U.S. goods, including energy products, and the broader trade war between the world’s two biggest economies could…

Europe has been at the forefront of global efforts at an energy transition as it prioritized the reduction in carbon dioxide emissions over any other policy priorities. It has had some marked success, too—the EU, which covers most of Europe, saw its emissions dip by 2.9% last year. This year, however, the trend has reversed. Emissions are up. And there’s transition trouble on the way. This week, climate NGO Centre for Research on Energy and Clean Air reported that European Union emissions in 2024 had fallen by 2.9% from the previous…

AI data centers and the reshoring of some manufacturing will drive U.S. electricity demand growth over the coming decade. The world’s biggest economy will need all energy sources to ensure power demand is met. Natural gas is the biggest near-term winner of AI advancements, but renewables will also play a key role in powering the data centers of next-generation computing, analysts say. The U.S. has seen a surge in proposed data centers over the past year. As of July 2024, Wood Mackenzie had identified about 50 gigawatts (GW) of proposed data…

The energy transition through the perspective of the power sector came into view last week at the annual Middle East Energy conference and exhibition in Dubai. What appeared was a region ready to think about leveraging its growing array of renewable energy resources to maintain its role as a leading energy exporter. Exports of power from the Gulf’s thriving renewables sector, to countries needing more clean power to meet climate goals, could become an important driver of the region’s economic growth. Conference participants expressed…

Their names are difficult to pronounce, they're essential for modern manufacturing, and they're increasingly at the center of the escalating trade war between the United States and China. The global supply of these rare earths -- an essential group of 17 elements that find themselves in everything from electric vehicle batteries to vital defense technology -- are also mostly controlled by China. Beijing is now looking to use that strategic leverage amid the growing trade spat and rising tensions with Washington. In response to recently imposed…

Many thought that green hydrogen would be a silver bullet for decarbonization, particularly in hard-to-abate industries. But the green hydrogen revolution has not yet materialized as the fuel’s production remains expensive and economically inefficient. But a new breakthrough in hydrogen harvesting could put the sector back on track for major industry disruption. Green hydrogen is lauded as a potential game-changer for clean energy because it can be combusted at high heat like fossil fuels to power sectors like steelmaking, shipping, and transport.…