Oil prices slipped on Friday, heading for a weekly loss of more than 2%, weighed down by oversupply concerns and ongoing uncertainty surrounding U.S.-China tariff negotiations. The oil markets have seemingly tired of trying to anticipate the next move of US President Donald Trump, with ICE Brent settling within a relatively narrow bandwidth of $66.0-67.5 per barrel this week. Such rangebound trading still represents a fall from a week ago, with hopes of potential US-China trade talks quashed by the Chinese Foreign Ministry denying that any bilateral…

The Trump Administration is pushing the International Energy Agency (IEA) to ditch its focus on the energy transition and promotion of renewable energy sources, two sources briefed on recent IEA meetings have told POLITICO. Reports emerged as early as last summer during President Donald Trump’s presidential campaign that if elected, Trump would push the IEA, for which the United States provides about a quarter of the funding, to focus back on energy security and fossil fuel supply.   The Paris-based IEA was created to ensure the…

For the first time in its history, China has more wind and solar power capacity than fossil fuel-based thermal power, the country’s energy regulatory said on Friday. The country’s renewable fleet hit 1,482 gigawatts at the end of March, crossing a symbolic threshold that makes for great headlines—but less great power reliability. Because here’s the catch: while renewables now account for more than half of China’s installed electricity capacity, they still delivered just 22.5% of actual power consumption in Q1. Grid…

Numbers Report – April 25, 2025 In the latest edition of the Numbers Report, we will take a look at some of the most interesting figures put out this week in the energy and metals sectors. Each week we’ll dig into some data and provide a bit of explanation on what drives the numbers. Let’s take a look. Trump Brought Market Volatility to a New Level - The unpredictability of Donald Trump’s policy measures has resulted in S&P 500 volatility shooting through the roof, despite gaining 5% since the Easter holidays restored…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict - The recent terrorist attack in Kashmir, in which at least 26 civilians were killed, has reignited Indo-Pakistani tensions. As of late Thursday, the situation was dangerously and rapidly escalating, with back-and-forth retaliatory measures threatening a major disruption of regional stability. India attributes the attack to Pakistan-backed militant proxies (The Resistance Front), and has retaliated by stopping the Indus Waters Treaty, closing the Wagah border crossing and revoking Pakistani visas. Pakistan’s…

Over the past three weeks, as markets of every stripe have been in turmoil, everyone is looking for an indicator. What can data points or other markets tell us about stocks? Is the worst of the drop over, or are the up days just an exaggerated dead cat bounce (a market term for a retracement of a down move that means nothing on the basis that even a dead cat will bounce if you throw it to the floor hard enough), and will we be seeing new lows before too long?  Everybody has their own favorite indicator that they believe will give them some…

Why are oil operators even entertaining Libya? The key risk assessment here seems to be the overly simplified notion that it’s been 5 years since Libya’s civil war ended, and the dust has settled. Nothing could be further from the truth, even as Libya’s NOC gets all pomp and circumstance with its new exploration contracts for the first time in two decades. The European interest is largely about replacing Russian oil, even as Russia works to expand its own footprint in Libya. So for the first time in 17 years, Libya, this week,…

As of Thursday’s close, crude oil futures were down $1.16 or 1.81% on the week, with prices struggling to hold any meaningful rebound in the face of renewed geopolitical tension, potential supply growth, and macroeconomic headwinds. Though the market attempted to stabilize after early-week losses, sentiment remained fragile as traders weighed risks tied to Iran, OPEC+ output decisions, and the global trade environment. Iran Supply Fears Stir Market Volatility Oil began the week under pressure as optimism grew around U.S.-Iran nuclear negotiations.…

As India looks to boost its nuclear power generation, the government is considering allowing foreign companies to own up to a 49% stake in Indian nuclear power plants, government sources told Reuters on Friday.  Even if India passes amendments in its nuclear foreign investment laws to allow up to 49% foreign stakes, any foreign investment will likely still need prior government approval, according to Reuters’ sources.  Currently, India has 8 gigawatts (GW) of operating nuclear capacity, operated by the state-owned Nuclear Power…

China and the European Parliament are in the "final stages" of discussions about removing sanctions on its lawmakers as part of a move to open the door for mended relations between Beijing and the bloc. "Discussions with the Chinese authorities are continuing and in their final stages," a spokesperson for the European parliament told RFE/RL. European Parliament President Roberta Metsola "will first inform group leaders once the Chinese authorities officially confirm that sanctions have been lifted," the spokesperson added. "It has always been the…

Iraq has sent a delegation to Syria to study if it could restore an oil pipeline that carried crude from Iraq via Syria to ports on the Mediterranean, the media office of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said on Friday.  The Iraqi delegation is headed by the President of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service, Hamid Al-Shatri. The delegation arrived in Damascus on Friday and is scheduled to meet with the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, Ahmed al-Sharaa’, along with several senior Syrian government officials. “The…

Iraq has sent a delegation to Syria to study if it could restore an oil pipeline that carried crude from Iraq via Syria to ports on the Mediterranean, the media office of Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani said on Friday.  The Iraqi delegation is headed by the President of the Iraqi National Intelligence Service, Hamid Al-Shatri. The delegation arrived in Damascus on Friday and is scheduled to meet with the President of the Syrian Arab Republic, Ahmed al-Sharaa’, along with several senior Syrian government officials. “The…

Fewer and fewer Canadian consumers are considering buying an electric vehicle as their next car, an AutoTrader survey has shown.  For the third consecutive year, the share of Canadians who would buy an EV has dropped. This year’s survey found that 42% of respondents say they would be considering an EV as their next vehicle, down from 46% in 2024, and down from a massive 68% considering buying an EV in 2022.   Only 29% of respondents in the 2025 survey said they would exclusively consider buying an EV. This is a quite a decline…

Iran and Russia are enhancing further their energy cooperation as Russian companies signed a deal to develop oilfields in Iran and the countries discuss the creation of a natural gas hub in the Islamic Republic.  Iran’s Oil Minister Mohsen Paknejad is currently on a visit to Moscow, where the two countries that are under U.S. sanctions committed to increase their cooperation.     Early this year, Iran and Russia signed a so-called Comprehensive Strategic Partnership Treaty, which included – among various other…

The U.S. Interior Department has introduced changes to pressure difference requirements in offshore drilling in a bid to stimulate greater production from the Gulf. According to the department, the changes could add 10% to offshore U.S. oil production over the next decade, equal to some 100,000 barrels daily, by allowing greater pressure differences between reservoirs. “Results from a University of Texas study on commingling show that commingled production maximizes per-well oil production compared to sequential schemes. Over 30 years, it…

Crude oil prices were about to end the week with another loss following a report that OPEC+ may be considering another larger than initially planned output boost in June. A renewed hope for peace in the Ukraine contributed to the bearish mood among traders. Benchmarks were both up at the time of writing, with Brent crude at $66.98 per barrel and West Texas Intermediate at $63.21 per barrel. The weekly trend is downward but it will be a slim decline. Earlier this week, Reuters reported OPEC+ could add more barrels to production after its June meeting…

In 2020, British Columbia approved LNG Canada, the first megaproject of its kind to get the green light in this Canadian province. LNG Canada consists of an export plant that cools the natural gas to a liquid using a combination of hydroelectricity and natural gas, states LNG Canada — a consortium of Shell, Mitsubishi Corporation, Petronas, PetroChina and Korea Gas Corp. The accompanying pipeline, called Coastal GasLink, is a partnership owned by affiliates of TC Energy, Alberta Investment Management Corporation (AIMCo), and US private…

Russia is boosting its crude oil exports, with shipments to China and India rebounding as traders and buyers have reshuffled tanker supply chains following the U.S. sanctions on Russia’s oil trade and shadow tanker fleet from early this year. The Biden Administration’s farewell sanctions on Russian oil trade from January 10 were the most aggressive yet. Many of the vessels, specialized tankers, and shuttle tankers transporting Russia’s oil from the Arctic and Far East Pacific fields and production clusters to Asia have…

Just a few years ago, China’s energy-storage industry was riding high on a sugar rush of subsidies, soaring demand, and sky-is-the-limit optimism. But this is 2025, and China is waking up with a tariff-sized headache and a hangover from its own price war. At the heart of the drama is the battery energy storage sector (BESS)—those magical boxes that soak up solar and wind energy and spit it back out when the grid needs it. In theory, BESS are the unsung heroes of the clean energy revolution. In practice, they’re now ground zero…

Guyana’s oil output took a dip in March, sliding to 627,000 barrels per day (bpd) from February’s 648,000 bpd, a new report from Reuters shows. That puts first-quarter production at a still-robust 631,000 bpd on average, according to the country’s energy ministry. A blip? Sure. A bust? Not even close. Let’s not forget: just five years ago, Guyana didn’t even have a spot on the global oil map. Thanks mostly to ExxonMobil and its tag-team partners Hess and CNOOC, the offshore Stabroek Block has turned into one of the…