Saudi Arabia isn’t ready to ditch Russia
After a brief lull and a price drop, crude oil markets are heating up again, surging by more than US$2 a barrel last week. The Aug. 3 expanded OPEC+ ministerial meeting, which includes Russia, is just around the corner. And signals from producing countries aren’t helping to stabilize the markets. In addition, the threat of…
An intense tug of war is being waged on the global crude horizon
Stakeholders continue to make interesting moves across the global energy chess board. Six days after U.S. President Joe Biden flew out of Saudi Arabia – without any public commitment from Riyadh to increase crude output significantly – Russian President Vladimir Putin and Saudi Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman spoke by phone, underlining the importance of…
Russia’s war in Ukraine has recast the entire Arctic security architecture
Russia’s 2014 war of aggression against Ukraine – renewed in 2022 – is having worldwide ramifications, and the Arctic region is now experiencing fundamental changes to its overall security structures and infrastructure. Arctic institutions and organizations are being transformed because of Russia’s actions. These changes will continue to reverberate across the entire international system for…
U.S. transport of LNG to Europe is surging in the wake of Russia’s invasion of Ukraine
Canadian natural gas is finding its way to global customers desperate for more LNG, but it’s not because of any export project on Canada’s coasts. Instead, the supply is taking off on ocean tankers as part of the mix from liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminals in the United States, according to Deloitte Canada. “It appears…
The driver of this bearish sentiment is an overly hawkish response by the Federal Reserve
Last week, the crude oil markets saw one of the most significant single-day price declines in history. Have the bulls retreated – perhaps for good? Tuesday’s oil price collapse could go down as one of the most memorable moments of the oil market’s tumultuous year, said Josh Owens in his piece for Oilprice.com. Although oil…
Ukraine can prevail, but it needs the tools to do so
It has been almost four months since Russia re-invaded Ukraine with the explicit aim of erasing Ukraine from the map as an independent country and Ukrainians as a people from our collective memory. Russian dictator – and now war criminal – Vladimir Putin failed thanks to the bravery and immense sacrifices of Ukrainians fighting for…
Analysts warn that prices could reach $380/barrel if existing penalties prompt Russia to make cuts
The crude oil world is in deep flux. Ongoing attempts by the G7 to put a price cap on Russian crude exports – almost an admission of its failure to curb the flow of petro-dollars to Moscow – also meant it needed to do more. But moving ahead with the proposal could result in global…
Increasing Canadian LNG would improve energy security and also help reduce world emissions
The growing global shortage of liquefied natural gas (LNG) is expected to bring a sustained period of higher prices and extreme market volatility, according to analysts with Norway-based consultancy Rystad Energy. Russia’s invasion of Ukraine – and the subsequent decision by European countries to seek other natural gas suppliers – is exacerbating an already tight…
Increasing spending does not contradict efforts to reduce emissions, says IEF
World energy markets are facing a “red alert,” and there’s more trouble ahead without enough investment going into oil and gas to meet demand, according to a new report by the International Energy Forum (IEF). “At a time when the global energy crisis calls for more supply, underinvestment in hydrocarbons will be the main reason…
Bullish pressure on crude oil markets doesn’t seem to be easing
Crude oil prices fell last week, notching their second weekly decline in the face of concern that rising interest rates could push the global economy into recession. Yet the future of crude oil still seems bullish to many. Spare capacity, or lack of it, is just one of the reasons. The global surplus of crude…
Hereditary dynasties could not survive the industrial revolution. Well, except for one
Last week’s column drew from British historian Dominic Lieven’s current book about emperors and empires. Called In the Shadow of the Gods, it’s an exploration of the characteristics that contributed to dynastic success or failure. Lieven’s penultimate chapter deals with the challenges modernity posed to hereditary dynasties. As the environment changed rapidly, the crowns adorning…
The best bet remains to bring sanctioned Iranian oil back to the market
American gasoline prices have crossed the unprecedented US$5-a-gallon mark. American Automobile Association data shows prices at the pump are up roughly 60 per cent from a year ago. And prices in Canada are already more than $2 a litre. We are seeing new record prices around the world with each passing week. And no respite…
And we can blame political meddling
The crude oil world has inched into a crisis mode. The world faces a “much bigger” energy crisis than the one in the 1970s. Fatih Birol, the executive director of the International Energy Agency (IEA), told the German daily Der Spiegel in an interview last Tuesday. The IEA, the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development…
Here are facts for Canadians forced to face the real-world impact
The marvellous Christmas movie The Polar Express, starring the inimitable Tom Hanks, ends with the words “anything is possible, if you only believe.” Except, as adults understand, many things aren’t possible, not even if some people do believe them. An obvious example is the fantasy that the 84 per cent of global energy supplied by…
Climate change, a pandemic, war and nationalistic hoarding are all contributing factors
Events unfolding around the world are creating the perfect playbook for a global food security crisis: climate change, a pandemic, war and nationalistic hoarding are all factors. Climate has been affecting agriculture for a very long time. And the unpredictable nature of severe weather patterns is making the lives of our farmers more difficult. Growing…