The IEA concedes rising oil demand at odds with its call to end new oil, gas and coal funding
The International Energy Agency (IEA) is torn between two conflicting ends. On one hand, it’s grappling with climate change issues; on the other, it sees rising oil prices. For now, the two ends seem to be running parallel but not converging. Oil demand is rising fast, as are prices, reaching multi-year highs on Friday. Brent…
IEA wants all investments in new developments to stop. Others warn that could lead to $200 a barrel oil
The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies in OPEC+ are on a collision course with energy watchdog International Energy Agency (IEA) on at least two counts. Last month, the Paris-based IEA delivered the starkest warning yet on fossil fuels, saying the exploitation and development of new oil and gas fields must stop this…
Alternative energy and calls for the world to overcome its reliance on fossil fuels gaining currency
The short-term prognosis for crude oil looks exciting. But that may be a mirage. The approaching summer driving season in the Northern Hemisphere and the lifting of COVID-19 restrictions have stimulated demand. The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and its allies in the expanded OPEC+ appear confident that with the accelerating vaccination programs and…
The IEA lays out recommendations for what needs to happen, and when, to transform the global economy from one dominated by fossil fuels
The world must act quickly on climate change, says the International Energy Agency. To meet the net-zero emission targets and limit the worst impacts of climate change, a sprint is absolutely essential, says the Paris-based IEA, the energy watchdog for the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD). Reaching net-zero emissions will require a huge…
Iran orchestrated Houthis attacks on Saudi Arabia to coerce the Saudis to market its oil
As the result of developments in the Middle East, oil is back as a bargaining chip on the geopolitical chessboard. Once Donald Trump lost the election for a second term as American president, it became increasingly evident that the new administration led by Joe Biden would attempt to revive the 2015 nuclear deal with Iran.…
Biden seems to have slackened America's tight grip on Iranian crude exports reigniting a market share battle within OPEC
Iran and the United States are closing in on reviving the 2015 Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action (JCPOA), commonly termed as the Iran nuclear deal. U.S. President Joe Biden is keen to strike a deal before the June presidential elections in Iran, which hardliners are projected by many to win. All this has significant bearing…
But the good old days are gone
A new reality is dawning: the short-term direction of oil markets is in sharp contrast to its longer-term trajectory. The short-term outlook – courtesy of the decision by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies in OPEC+ to withhold some eight million barrels per day (bpd) from the markets – and the emerging…
Ominous clouds continue to hang over the global oil horizon
Where will world oil markets be in a year? With so many variables impacting the markets, no one has the crystal ball to see the crude oil price trajectory a year ahead. On April 20, 2020, panic had gripped the energy market as a frightening realization dawned on oil traders: The world was rapidly running…
Oil producers face catastrophe if countries worldwide move to limit global warming by two degrees Celsius
Crude oil demand is weak and the fundamental factors aren’t encouraging. Yet, most major oil-producing countries are moving to boost their output levels in the short run. Why? Saudi Arabia is pursuing plans to develop major offshore expansion projects to add an extra 1.15 million barrels per day (bpd) to its oil capacity by 2024,…
Fed up with the Saudi's "artificially jacking up the prices"
An oil war is brewing between the world’s largest crude exporter, Saudi Arabia, and the world’s third-largest crude consumer, India. India has long pleaded with Saudi Arabia to keep oil prices lower to help sustain economic growth in the developing and emerging economies of Asia. In rather hushed tones, for diplomatic reasons, India has protested…
With the continuing OPEC+ oil output cuts, markets were going into an overdrive mode. Prices at U.S. gas stations rose sharply
Surprising the markets and going against expectations, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies in the extended OPEC+ changed course at their ministerial meeting last week. At the virtual meeting, OPEC+ opted to increase its output by 350,000 barrels per day (bpd) in May another 350,000 bpd in June, and roughly an additional…
Crude oil markets continue to show signs of weakness – even without the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and the Suez Canal closure
Pressure is mounting on the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and their allies in the extended OPEC+ to roll over their crude oil output cuts when they meet on April 1. Markets continue to show signs of weakness – even without the Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and the Suez Canal closure. But the Suez…
The recent spike in oil markets was engineered – fundamentals didn’t drive it. There were issues about the tight leash on output
The oil market recovery is faltering. Uncertainty over the speed of an economic recovery and whether there will be a full rebound in global oil demand is holding back the markets. Stalled COVID-19 vaccination efforts in parts of the world and a strong dollar are also keeping the markets from rising much further. The recent…
Although the OPEC+ decision resulted in immediate oil price gains, the warning shots on the horizon couldn’t be altogether ignored
Saudi Arabia is leading the pack on crude oil production management. Russia seems to be following. Despite murmurs in the oil market of a possible rift between the two countries on the issue of output, the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and their allies in the OPEC+, at their virtual meeting last Thursday, went…
Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani personified OPEC
The grand old wise man of the energy world has slipped into history. With the passing away of Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, the charismatic Saudi oil minister from 1962 to 1986, an era has come to an end. With his calm and cool demeanour, intellectual depth, sharp mind and the capacity to stand up to…