largest early March natural gas injection since 2012; US oil imports at 17 month low; commercial supplies at 35 week high

first injection of surplus natural gas into storage since November 8th is the largest early March addition to natural gas supplies since 2012; four week average of US crude oil imports is the lowest in 17 months; US commercial crude supplies are at a 35 week high

US oil prices ended higher for a second week, following seven ​straight weekly declines, on a larger than expected drop in US fuel supplies and on new US sanctions on Iran…after ending 0.2% higher at $67.18 a barrel last week as a weaker dollar and strong US gasoline demand offset fears over the economic impact of new US tariffs, the contract price for the benchmark US light sweet crude for April delivery traded higher on Asian markets on Monday, ​after China announced plans to increase domestic consumption by raising wages, increasing pensions and creating incentives for childbirth,​ then got another boost after the United States vowed to keep attacking Yemen’s Houthis until they ended their assaults on Red Sea shipping, and settled the New York session 40 cents higher at $67.58 a barrel after Trump said the U.S. would hold Iran responsible for any future attacks by the Houthis…oil prices moved higher again on global markets early Tuesday, amid renewed tensions in the Middle East, the nebulous future of the Russia-Ukraine war, and the recent stimulus from China, but turned south and fell 1% after Trump and Putin discussed moves to end the war in Ukraine, which could result in a possible easing of sanctions on Russian exports, and settled 68 cents lower at $66.90 a barrel after Russia agreed to an energy and infrastructure ceasefire…oil prices extended their decline in Asia on Wednesday, pressured by prospects of increased Russian supply, then moved​ roughly sideways in early New York trading after the EIA reported another increase in US crude inventories, and US fuel pump prices fell for a fourth straight week, but recovered to settle 26 cents higher at $67.16 a barrel on stronger US fuel demand, even as the Fed’s decision to hold interest rates steady capped gains…oil prices edged up in Asia on Thursday, as a larger-than-expected drawdown ​f​rom U.S. fuel inventories and escalating tensions in the Middle East countered the impact of a stronger dollar, then jumped in US trading to settle $1.10 higher at $68.26 a barrel on the news that the U.S. issued new sanctions against Iran, as trading in the US April oil contract ended, while the more actively traded contract for US light sweet crude for May delivery settled $1.16 higher at $68.07 a barrel….with markets now quoting the contract price for the benchmark US light sweet crude for May delivery, oil prices fell in overseas trading on Friday as a stronger US dollar and the Fed’s decision to hold interest rates steady fuelled fresh concerns about the trajectory of the US economy and global oil demand, and remained under pressure in early US trading amid ample supplies and global weak demand, but turned around to settle 21 cents higher at $68.28 a barrel, as fresh U.S. sanctions on Iran and the latest output plan from the OPEC+ producer group raised expectations of tighter supply…oil prices thus finished 1.6% higher for the week, while the May oil contract, which has finished the prior week priced at $66.91 a barrel, finished 2.0% higher…

meanwhile, natural gas prices finished lower for the third time in four weeks following the first injection of surplus gas into storage since November…after falling 6.7% to $4.104 per mmBTU last week as an outbreak of mild temperatures spread across the most of the US, the price of the benchmark contract for April natural gas delivery opened 4.9 cents lower on Monday, even after a bullish shift added heating demand to near-term forecasts over the weekend, and settled 8.6 cents lower at $4.018 per mmBTU on record output, negative spot prices at the Waha Hub in West Texas, and on forecasts for mild weather through early April…natural gas opened 4.4 cents higher on Tuesday and edged gradually higher throughout the session, supported by bullish weather forecasts and reduced production due to pipeline maintenance, and settled 3.4 cents higher at $4.052 per mmBTU on record flows to LNG export plants, and cooler weather forecasts than had been expected…natural gas opened 11.4 cents higher on Wednesday on hindered production and steady LNG demand, and rallied to settle 19.5 cents, or 4.8% higher at $4.247 per mmBTU on record flows to LNG export plants and a second drop in daily well output…natural gas opened 6.7 cents lower and continued slipping early on Thursday, as traders awaited the latest government storage data for the prior warmer than normal week, then tumbled to settle 27.2 cents or about 6% lower at a two-week low of $3.975 per mmBTU on a surprise storage increase and forecasts for milder weather and less demand next week than previously expected.... natural gas prices halted their freefall and showed signs of life by midday Friday, as traders weighed narrowing storage deficits against a more bullish long-term narrative, and settled the session a half cent higher at $3.980 per mmBTU, on record output and forecasts for milder weather through early April, but still finished 3.0% lower for the week…

The EIA’s natural gas storage report for the week ending March 14th indicated that the amount of working natural gas held in underground storage rose by 9 billion cubic feet to 1,707 billion cubic feet by the end of the week, the first increase since November 8th​ and the largest early March additon since 2012, which left our natural gas supplies 625 billion cubic feet, or 26.8% below the 2,331 billion cubic feet of gas that were in storage on March 14th of last year, and 190 billion cubic feet, or 10.0% less than the five-year average of 1,897 billion cubic feet of natural gas that had typically been in working storage as of the 14th of March over the most recent five years….the 9 billion cubic foot injection into US natural gas storage for the cited week contrasts with the average 3 billion cubic foot withdrawal from storage that analysts in a Reuters' poll were expecting, and compares with the 5 billion cubic foot that was added to natural gas storage during the corresponding week in March of 2024, and also the average 31 billion cubic foot withdrawal from natural gas storage that has been typical for the same March week over the past five years…

The Latest US Oil Supply and Disposition Data from the EIA

US oil data from the US Energy Information Administration for the week ending March 14th indicated that with an ongoing depressed level of refining and a big increase in increase in the supply of oil that the EIA could not account for, we had surplus oil to add to our stored crude supplies for the seventh time in eight weeks and the for the 15th time in thirty-seven weeks, in spite of an big increase in our oil exports...Our imports of crude oil fell by an average of 85,000 barrels per day to average 5,385,000 barrels per day, after falling by an average 343,000 barrels per day over the prior week, while our exports of crude oil rose by an average of 1,354,000 barrels per day to average 4,644,000 barrels per day, which, when used to offset our imports, meant that the net of our trade of oil worked out to a net import average of 741,000 barrels of oil per day during the week ending March 14th, an average of 1,439,000 fewer barrels per day than the net of our imports minus our exports during the prior week. At the same time, transfers to our oil supplies from Alaskan gas liquids, from natural gasoline, from condensate, and from unfinished oils averaged 601,000 barrels per day, while during the same week, production of crude from US wells was 2,000 barrels per day lower at 13,573,000 barrels per day. Hence, our daily supply of oil from the net of our international trade in oil, from transfers, and from domestic well production appears to have averaged a total of 14 915,000 barrels per day during the March 14th reporting week…

Meanwhile, US oil refineries reported they were processing an average of 15,663,000 barrels of crude per day during the week ending March 14th, an average of 45,000 fewer barrels per day than the amount of oil that our refineries reported they were processing during the prior week, while over the same period the EIA’s surveys indicated that an average of 289,000 barrels of oil per day were being added to the supplies of oil stored in the US… So, based on that reported & estimated data, the crude oil figures provided by the EIA appear to indicate that our total working supply of oil from net imports, from transfers, and from oilfield production during the week ending March 14th averaged a rounded 1,037,000 barrels per day less than what was being added to storage plus what our oil refineries reported they used during the week. To account for that difference between the apparent supply of oil and the apparent disposition of it, the EIA just plugged a [ +1,037,000 ] barrel per day figure onto line 16 of the weekly U.S. Petroleum Balance Sheet, in order to make the reported data for the supply of oil and for the consumption of it balance out, a fudge factor that they label in their footnotes as “unaccounted for crude oil”, thus indicating there must have been an error or omission of that magnitude in the week’s oil supply & demand figures that we have just transcribed….Moreover, since 349,000 barrels per day of demand for oil could not be accounted for in the prior week’s EIA data, that means there was a 1,386,000 barrel per day difference between this week’s oil balance sheet error and the EIA’s crude oil balance sheet error from a week ago, and hence the changes to supply and demand from that week to this one that are indicated by this week’s report are off by that much, meaning the week over week changes that we have just cited are nonsense….However, since most oil traders react to these weekly EIA reports as if they were gospel, and since these weekly figures therefore often drive oil pricing and hence decisions to drill or complete oil wells, we’ll continue to report this data just as it’s published, and just as it’s watched & believed to be reasonably reliable by most everyone in the industry…(for more on how this weekly oil data is gathered, and the possible reasons for that “unaccounted for” oil supply, see this EIA explainer….also see this old twitter thread from an EIA administrator addressing these ongoing weekly errors, and what they had once hoped to do about it)

This week’s rounded 289,000 barrel per day average increase in our overall crude oil inventories came as an average of 249,000 barrels per day were being added to our commercially available stocks of crude oil, while 39,000 barrels per day were being added to our Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the sixty-third SPR increase in the past seventy-three weeks, following nearly continuous SPR withdrawals over the 39 months prior to that… Further details from the weekly Petroleum Status Report (pdf) indicate that the 4 week average of our oil imports fell to 5,647,000 barrels per day last week, which was the lowest in 17 months, and 11.0% less than the 6,334,000 barrel per day average that we were importing over the same four-week period last year. This week’s crude oil production was reported to be 2,000 barrels per day lower at 13,573,000 barrels per day because the EIA’s estimate of the output from wells in the lower 48 states was 1,000 barrels per day higher at 13,137,000 barrels per day, while Alaska’s oil production was 3,000 barrels per day lower at 436,000 barrels per day.….US crude oil production had reached a pre-pandemic high of 13,100,000 barrels per day during the week ending March 13th 2020, so this week’s reported oil production figure was 3.6% higher than that of our pre-pandemic production peak, and was also 39.9% above the pandemic low of 9,700,000 barrels per day that US oil production had fallen to during the third week of February of 2021.

US oil refineries were operating at 86.9% of their capacity while processing those 15,663,000 barrels of crude per day during the week ending March 14th, up from their 86.5% utilization rate of a week earlier, but down from the 91.7% utilization rate of nine weeks earlier, initially reflecting the impact of January's below freezing weather on Gulf Coast refineries, and then the onset of US refinery’s usual Spring maintenance…. the 15,663,000 barrels of oil per day that were refined this week were 0.8% less than the 15,785,000 barrels of crude that were being processed daily during the week ending March 15th of 2024, and were 1.0% less than the 15,820,000 barrels that were being refined during the prepandemic week ending March 6th, 2020, when our refinery utilization rate was at 86.4%, also somewhat low for this time of year…

Even with the decrease in the amount of oil being refined this week, gasoline output from our refineries was somewhat higher, increasing by 67,000 barrels per day to 9,623,000 barrels per day during the week ending March 14th, after our refineries’ gasoline output had decreased by 78,000 barrels per day during the prior week.. This week’s gasoline production was 0.3% less than the 9,648,000 barrels of gasoline that were being produced daily over the week ending March 15th of last year, and was 3.5% less than the gasoline production of 9,974,000 barrels per day during the prepandemic week ending March 13th, 2020….at the same time, our refineries’ production of distillate fuels (diesel fuel and heat oil) increased by 151,000 barrels per day to 4,613,000 barrels per day, after our distillates output had decreased by 113,000 barrels per day during the prior week. After that production increase, our distillates output was 1.6% less than the 4,686,000 barrels of distillates that were being produced daily during the week ending March 15th of 2024, and was also 1.6% less than the 4,690,000 barrels of distillates that were being produced daily during the pre-pandemic week ending March 13th, 2020…

Even with this week’s increase in our gasoline production, our supplies of gasoline in storage at the end of the week fell for the fifth time in eighteen weeks, decreasing by 527,000 barrels to 240,574,000 barrels during the week ending February 28th, after our gasoline inventories had decreased by 5,737,000 barrels during the prior week. Our gasoline supplies fell by less this week because the amount of gasoline supplied to US users fell by 365,000 barrels per day to 8,817,000 barrels per day, and because our imports of gasoline rose by 79,000 barrels per day to 657,000 barrels per day, while our exports of gasoline rose by 54,000 barrels per day to 894,000 barrels per day.… Even after thirty-two gasoline inventory withdrawals over the past fifty-nine weeks, our gasoline supplies were 4.2% higher than last March 15th’s gasoline inventories of 230,773,000 barrels, and were about 2% above the five year average of our gasoline supplies for this time of the year…

Even with the increase in this week’s distillates production, our supplies of distillate fuels fell for the seventeenth time in twenty-six weeks, decreasing by 2,812,000 barrels to 114,783,000 barrels during the week ending March 14th, after our distillates supplies had decreased by 1,559,000 barrels during the prior week.. Our distillates supplies fell by more this week because the amount of distillates supplied to US markets, an indicator of domestic demand, rose by 112,000 to 4,010,000 barrels per day, and because our exports of distillates rose by 225,000 barrels per day to 1,261,000 barrels per day, while our imports of distillates rose by 8,000 barrels per day to 257,000 barrels per day...After 36 inventory withdrawals over the past 61 weeks, our distillates supplies at the end of the week were 3.2% below the 118,522,000 barrels of distillates that we had in storage on March 15th of 2024, and about 6% below the five year average of our distillates inventories for this time of the year…

Finally, with the big increase in our oil supplies that the EIA could not account for, our commercial supplies of crude oil in storage rose for the 14th time in twenty-six weeks, and for the 22nd time over the past year, increasing by 1,745,000 barrels over the week, from 435,223,000 barrels on March 7th to a 35 month high of 436,968,000 barrels on March 14th, after our commercial crude supplies had increased by 1,448,000 barrels over the prior week… Even after those increases, our commercial crude oil inventories were still about 5% below the most recent five-year average of commercial oil supplies for this time of year, but were about 33% above the average of our available crude oil stocks after the first week of March over the 5 years at the beginning of the past decade, with the big difference between those comparisons arising because it wasn’t until early 2015 that our oil inventories had first topped 400 million barrels. After our commercial crude oil inventories had jumped to record highs during the Covid lockdowns in the Spring of 2020, then jumped again after February 2021’s winter storm Uri froze off US Gulf Coast refining, but then fell sharply due to increased exports to Europe following the onset of the Ukraine war, only to jump again following the Christmas 2022 refinery freeze-offs, our commercial crude supplies have somewhat leveled off since, and as of this March 14th were 1.8% less than the 445,042,000 barrels of oil left in commercial storage on March 15th of 2024, and 9.2% less than the 481,180,000 barrels of oil that we had in storage on March 17th 2023, but were 5.7% more than the 413,399,000 barrels of oil we had left in commercial storage on March 18th of 2022…

This Week’s Rig Count

The US rig count increased by one during the week ending March 21st, as an oil rig was shut down while two rigs targeting natural gas started drilling...for a quick snapshot of this week's rig count, we are again including below a screenshot of the rig count summary pdf from Baker Hughes…in the table below, the first column shows the active rig count as of March 21st, the second column shows the change in the number of working rigs between last week’s count (March 14th) and this week’s (March 21st) count, the third column shows last week’s March 14th active rig count, the 4th column shows the change between the number of rigs running on Friday and the number running on​ the Friday before the same weekend of a year ago, and the 5th column shows the number of rigs that were drilling at the end of that reporting period a year ago, which in this week’s case was the 22nd of March, 2024…

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

As fracking at Ohio's largest state park gets underway, how the industry has changed this rural county - People from several southeastern Ohio counties gathered in Columbus earlier this month, holding signs that read things like “No Radioactive Waste” to try to get lawmakers to pay attention to what they see as the growing dangers of fracking for oil and natural gas, like transportation of wastewater, or brine. “So, what is this oil and gas waste made of?” asked Roxanne Groff, board member of the Buckeye Environmental Network, through a bullhorn to the crowd on the statehouse steps. “It’s radioactive. And I don’t know what else they need to freakin’ know about it, except that it’s full of radioactivity.” Brine from fracking can be saltier than seawater and contain numerous chemicals from the fracking operation, as well asradium, a radioactive metal. These activists are worried about brine and other impacts as fracking begins under Ohio’s largest state park, Salt Fork, for the first time, thanks to a 2022 revision of an Ohio law meant to spur oil and gas development on state-owned lands. But this area of Ohio is no stranger to fracking. “That’s a brine truck that’s right up there in front of us,” said Austin Warehime, an attorney who drove me around the curvy, hilly roads in Guernsey County, where Salt Fork State Park is located, to show how the oil and gas industry has been changing this rural community, like the increase in trucks carrying brine from fracking operations. “It’s become a daily life thing for people around here,” he said, then noticing traffic up the road. “And this looks like another brine truck that’s coming right towards us right here. So yeah, you see them quite frequently.” I first met Warehime in the summer of 2023, at nearby Salt Fork State Park, at a meeting of residents and activists concerned that the state was ramping up to lease its publicly-owned lands for fracking. Back then, he and his wife were living in Cincinnati. They were ready to start a family and wanted to move back home to Guernsey County, but it was a tough place to find a job. He said some people expected the oil and gas industry to help. And it did help him. “And so I’m here. I’m practicing law still,” Warehime said. “I’m with EQUES Law Group, and we represent landowners in oil and gas matters. We drove around looking at several drilling sites where the hills had been flattened for concrete well pads. On one road, he remembered being a kid on the way to school. “This was part of the bus route, so I saw this road every single day growing up,” he said, pointing to a concrete well pad and pipeline, “It’s changed quite a bit. That was all just trees.”Warehime’s law firm hears from people in the area with varying views on the growth of the oil and gas industry. Some landowners are happy when a landman approaches them to build a pad or a pipeline on their property: “They feel like they hit the lottery because they’ve never had really enough money to get by even, and now all of a sudden they can go buy a new car and have reliable transportation, or they can pay for medical bills,” Warehime said. He also sees clients who worry that the environment and beauty of the area are being destroyed, but there’s not much they can do to stop it. Under Ohio’s “unitization” law, if a company gets 65 percent of landowners in a unit of land to agree to lease their mineral rights, it can apply to the state to force dissenting landowners in the unit into leases. Warehime advises unwilling landowners to come to an agreement with the energy companies because citizens almost always lose these legal fights. “Reasonable people look at that, and they go, ‘Well, I could either get rid of all my money by trying to fight this, or I could make a lot of money, accept it, and deal with the consequences later with some money to actually deal with those consequences,’” he said. The success of the oil and gas industry is easy to see on a well-locator map on the Ohio Department of Natural Resources website. Salt Fork State Park looks like an island in a sea of hundreds of oil and gas wells covering Guernsey County. A report by the Energy Policy Center at Cleveland State University found nearly 300 producing oil and gas wells in Guernsey County at the end of 2023, the last time the report was published.Since then, “we’ve seen a significant increase in the number of new wells that are being drilled,” said research supervisor Mark Henning, an author of the report. He expects an increase of over 100 new wells in what he calls Ohio’s shale counties, including Guernsey, in the next issue to be published in late April.Henning’s team is looking at possible drivers for the drilling increase, including the war in Ukraine and natural gas exports. He also points to the “oil window” in Guernsey and nearby counties. “It’s a relatively thin strip of land where there’s been more activity in the last year or so, where producers have gotten better at predicting where the oil will be,” he said. In January, a Gulfport Energy well pad exploded less than five miles from Salt Fork State Park. “There has been an explosion on what we presume at this time is an unoccupied well pad,” said Donald Warnock, fire chief of Antrim, an unincorporated community in Guernsey County, in a video posted to update nearby residents. “Currently, one set of tanks is burning, possibly two. State route 22 is closed,” he said.No one was injured, but activists say incidents like this are not uncommon. “We see fires, explosions, spills, truck accidents spilling brine. And those are the reported incidents,” said Jenny Morgan of the group Save Ohio Parks, which tracks industry accidents. She points to an analysis of state data that shows nearly two thousand well pad incidents in Ohio over the past eight years. Also, research has connected living near fracking sites with health problems like migraine headaches, difficulty breathing,poor birth outcomes, and even childhood cancers. Morgan worries about hikers, boaters, and other visitors when fracking begins to access the gas under Salt Fork State Park. Her group and 29 other organizations signed a letter to Governor Mike DeWine in February asking for a moratorium on fracking on state parks and public lands, including four wildlife areas.“I don’t want them to frack our parks and public lands; that’s the first order of business,” Morgan said. “It absolutely needs to not happen in these public spaces.” Last year, the Oil and Gas Land Management Commission awarded bids at four wildlife areas and two bids for Infinity Natural Resources to frack under Salt Fork. Save Ohio Parks and three other environmental groups recently lost an appeal in their lawsuit challenging the commission’s process.The state does not allow well pads within state parks, so the first well pad Infinity has constructed is on private land about a third of a mile outside the park’s southern boundary, according to the Ohio Department of Natural Resources. The company is drilling four wells on it. Infinity plans a second well pad, which has not yet been constructed, about a mile from Salt Fork’s northern boundary.The wells on these pads will go deep underground, and then turn horizontally, and run laterally for miles under the park. Drillers pump millions of gallons of water, mixed with sand and chemicals, at high pressure into the well to fracture underground rock and release oil and gas. Infinity’s lease agreements with the state include requirements to sample and test all water wells and sources of water, including Salt Fork Lake, within 3000 feet of any oil or gas well before it starts drilling. The company also must reduce noise and light pollution and limit traffic in the park from fracking activities.

AWMS Continues the Fight to Reopen Shuttered OH Injection Well -- Marcellus Drilling News - We’ve been tracking a story that we consider an ongoing tragedy for nearly a decade. American Water Management Services (AWMS) owns a wastewater injection well in Trumbull County, Ohio, that supposedly caused a low-level earthquake (that nobody could feel) in 2014. Actually, there are two injection wells located at the site, both operated by AWMS. They were both “temporarily” shut down by the Ohio Dept. of Natural Resources following the quake nobody could feel (see ODNR Temporarily Shuts Down Injection Wells After Low-Level Quake). ODNR allowed AWMS to reopen one of the injection wells but denied it the right to reopen the second well. AWMS has been locked in a legal battle to reopen the shuttered well and get compensated by the state for forcing it out of business (missed revenues). The battle continues to this day.

Ohio Chamber Makes Case to Tap “Trapped” Utica Wells for Powergen - Marcellus Drilling News - A guest column appearing in the Columbus Dispatch written by the president and CEO of the Ohio Chamber of Commerce makes a strong case that (a) Ohio needs more electric power generation, and (b) the perfect solution is to use "trapped" by lack of pipelines Utica Shale gas. Steve Stivers throws the weight of the Chamber behind a pair of bills that aim to make it easier to generate power in the Buckeye State, Senate Bill (SB) 2 and House Bill (HB) 15.

EOG Ramps Gassy Dorado, Oily Utica, Slows Delaware, Eagle Ford D&C -- EOG Resources plans to ramp up its new oily Utica Shale and gassy Dorado plays in 2025 as it further delineates the Ohio play and feeds new LNG demand on the Texas Gulf Coast in South Texas. In its 160,000-net-acre Dorado play in the gassy southern fairway of the Eagle Ford and Austin Chalk in Webb County, Texas, it expects 25 net completions with a part-time frac spread and one full-time rig in 2025. The rate is up from 21 net completions in 2024 with the same iron and pressure-pumping count in the play along the Mexican border. In its 460,000-net-acre Utica oil play in Ohio, it plans 30 net completions with one full-time frac spread and two rigs, up from 25 net completions, one rig and one part-time frac spread in 2024. The plans are part of its $6.2 billion capex budget for 2025, EOG COO Jeff Leitzell said in a recent investor call. But even at 15 years old, “the Eagle Ford is a core foundational asset for us” with “some of the highest returns in the play we've ever seen actually in the last several years,” he added. He said that the prolific play even into 2025 “supports a line of sight to maintain production for a decade or more, really.” In its 395,000-net-acre Delaware Basin play, meanwhile, EOG completed 385 net wells in 2024 in the Leonard, Bone Spring and Wolfcamp and plans 375 this year with four frac spreads and 16 rigs, unchanged from 2024. EOG tested Utica well-spacing in 2024. Trasko said it’s unlikely it will pick one number and roll it out across the nearly half-million-net-acre leasehold. “We pride ourselves in not being in a manufacturing mode ever in any of our plays, and so we don't really employ a set spacing or completion design throughout an entire field,” he said. Generally, EOG is looking at landing laterals between 600 ft and 1,000 ft apart, “which is pretty standard for a North American unconventional oil play,” he said. “But we've also said it depends on the area.” EOG may space its wells more widely at the southern end of the Utica’s north-south volatile oil fairway. “In the South, where we have thinner pay, but we also have better frac barriers … that could also mean that the frac reaches out further, so you might expect wider spacing in the south to work out better.” As for commencing tests of the Utica’s adjacent black oil fairway, EOG wants 3D seismic first, Ezra Yacob, EOG chairman and CEO, said. “We’re still a little ways [out].” Utica versus Eagle Ford Yacob added that comparing Utica economics with EOG’s Eagle Ford asset is premature, since infrastructure and other efficiencies are long in place in the latter. “We've really captured the economies of scale [in the Eagle Ford]. So that's one of the things that right off the bat is still lacking with the Utica,” Yacob said. Toward reducing its Utica costs to less than $650 per completed foot includes in-basin sand, water-sourcing infrastructure “and then just having consistent frac and drilling operations …,” Yacob said. But at just two years old, the Utica asset “is significantly farther down the path of having lower well costs and, quite frankly, a better understanding of the subsurface reservoir quality” than the Eagle Ford was at two years, he added.

Utica Shale Academy embarks on $1.5M welding lab project to boost local workforce skills — The first phase of construction for a new welding lab at Utica Shale Academy is underway, with a budget of $907,000 funded through one-time allocations from Ohio Governor Mike DeWine’s office and other sources. Once completed, the lab will require an additional $600,000, bringing the total investment to $1.5 million. "We have to stop the Texas and Oklahoma license plates, and we have to create capable and willing people here in Ohio, so we keep that money here," “We have to stop the Texas and Oklahoma license plates, and we have to create capable and willing people here in Ohio, so we keep that money here,” Utica Shale Academy Superintendent William Watson said. The academy, which serves 170 students, is expanding its facilities to include 27 additional welding bases, making a total of 47. This expansion will offer various welding processes, ultimately enhancing career readiness. "It gives the young people in our county an opportunity to stay here and make a very good living," said Michael Halleck, president of the Columbiana County Board of Commissioners. "When this building opens up, we have a lot more opportunities with different types like we’re gonna have gas MIG and possibly TIG -- it’s gonna open up a lot of opportunities for us," Student Jaden Brandenburg said. State Senator Al Cutrona and Ohio Representative Monica Robb Blasdel attended the ceremony, underscoring the significance of vocational training and the legislative support that facilitated the project. The funding is part of House Bill 2, aimed at directing funds for economic growth and community development. "I think it’s important that we get the school into businesses and try to understand different career path at a younger age," Blasdel said. "There is a high need for welders, and this actually prepares the children for that career choice and right now you have Mac trailer, which is right in our backyard here, and they need more welders, so you know this is a great example of local business and working with education and making all one reality," Cutrona said. The construction of the welding lab is expected to be completed by Sept. 1, providing students with access to state-of-the-art training equipment and industry-standard facilities for the beginning of the 2025 school year.

U.S. ethane production, consumption, and exports set new records in 2024 - U.S. ethane production, consumption, and exports reached record highs in 2024, according to recent data from our Petroleum Supply Monthly. Increasing ethane recovery associated with natural gas production and continued growth in the domestic and global petrochemical sectors drove these increases. U.S. ethane production rose 7% to average a record 2.8 million barrels per day (b/d) in 2024, driven by increased ethane recovery in the Permian Basin. In the United States, almost all ethane is recovered at natural gas processing plants, which remove ethane and other natural gas plant liquids(NGPL) from raw natural gas. The Texas Inland and New Mexico refining districts, which span the Permian Basin, accounted for 63% of all U.S. ethane production in 2024, up from 61% in 2023. Production in those districts averaged 1.8 million b/d, up 9% from 2023. The Appalachian No. 1 Refining District, which straddles most of the Appalachian Basin in Pennsylvania and West Virginia, produced a record 327,000 b/d in 2024, up 13% from 2023. It accounted for 12% of the U.S. total, up from 11% the previous year.Domestic ethane consumption, measured as product supplied, rose 8% in 2024 to a record 2.3 million b/d. In the United States, ethane is consumed almost exclusively in the petrochemical industry as a feedstock for steam crackers to produce ethylene. The rise in consumption came from higher cracker operating rates in 2024 compared with 2023, as no new crackers came online in the United States in 2024. Ethane consumption on the U.S. Gulf Coast rose 5% to 2.1 million b/d in 2024. On the East Coast, consumption nearly tripled to 103,000 b/d in 2024 as Shell’s cracker in Monaca, Pennsylvania, continued to ramp up its production after starting up in late 2022.U.S. ethane exports averaged a record 492,000 b/d in 2024, a 21,000-b/d increase from the previous record set in 2023. Growth in global petrochemical sector demand and rising tanker capacity have driven the increases in U.S. ethane exports. Ethane exports increased almost every year since 2014 except in 2020 when muted global demand related to the COVID-19 pandemic caused a slight decrease in exports. Low prices for U.S. ethane compared with other feedstocks globally contributed to the record exports last year. China imported 46% of U.S. ethane exports, followed by Canada (15%), India (13%), and Norway (9%).U.S. ethane prices at Mont Belvieu, Texas, the main pricing hub for NGPLs, were volatile through 2024. Ethane prices averaged under 20 cents per gallon (gal) for the year (approximately $3 per million British thermal units [MMBtu]) but averaged 25 cents/gal ($3.70/MMBtu) in December as natural gas prices rose to 2024 highs. In comparison, the natural gas price at the Houston Ship Channel averaged $1.86/MMBtu in 2024 but averaged $2.66/MMBtu during the month of December, the highest monthly average of the year. When ethane prices are high relative to natural gas prices, plant operators can recover more ethane from the natural gas stream. However, when ethane prices and natural gas prices are closer, more ethane can be left in the natural gas stream and sold for its heat value.In our March 2025 Short-Term Energy Outlook, we forecast that average U.S. ethane production will remain flat at 2.8 million b/d in 2025 and rise to 3.0 million b/d in 2026. Average U.S. ethane consumption will remain flat at 2.3 million b/d in 2025 and 2026, and exports will increase to 530,000 b/d in 2025 and 630,000 b/d in 2026.

Report: Shell plant in Beaver County could be up for sale - The Allegheny Front - Shell could be exploring the sale of its chemical plants, including its recently constructed Beaver County ethane cracker. The plant, which makes polyethylene, a common plastic, is among those that could be on the auction block, according to a recent report in the Wall Street Journal. The outlet reported the company could be selling off its chemical plants to focus on its core business of producing oil and gas. Shell declined to comment on a potential sale. Shell received $1.65 billion in state tax credits to build the plant, the largest tax break in state history. A small army of 8,000 workers, many from out of state, descended on Beaver County to construct the plant, at a company-reported cost of$14 billion. It began operations in late 2022. News of the potential sale so soon after the plant was constructed was ”a little bit surprising,” said Jack Manning, a Beaver County commissioner who has been one of the project’s biggest public backers. Still, Manning says it’s not uncommon for chemical plants to get bought and sold. He worked in the chemical industry for 35 years, and experienced company sales several times. “When those kinds of things do occur, all the same people stay in place. So it would still be the same people running the show,” he said. “the new buyer’s not going to come in and get rid of everybody who’s running the plant, and try bringing a whole new, whole new team. It just doesn’t happen that way.” Rob Stier, global petrochemicals analyst with SPG Global Commodity Insights, says the timing for Shell makes sense, since now is not the most profitable time to be in the plastics industry. A wave of new plants, especially in Asia, has produced a glut – and low prices.“Now we’re into that low profitability cycle starting really in the second half of 2022 and it’s in forecast to continue through next year,” Stier said. He says Shell’s Beaver County Plant could be attractive to companies in Europe and Asia, which make plastic out of naphtha, a crude oil product.The Beaver County plant uses ethane, a component of natural gas that is much cheaper than naphtha, and common in Pennsylvania’s Marcellus Shale. “A plant like Shell’s in Pennsylvania would be a very attractive acquisition for an international producer that wants to take advantage of cheap ethane,” Stier said. State officials say the plant’s environmental requirements remain the same if it is sold. The plant was fined $10 million by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection for air pollution violations in 2023. In the first few months of startup, the plant had a number of problems, including a sulfuric acid spill, strange odors, and several events that caused the plant to flare excess gases.Shell recently applied for a Title V Operating Permit with the DEP. The permit is required under the federal Clean Air Act for any facility that is a major source of emissions. If the DEP accepts the permit, it will issue a draft permit and open the permit up for public comment, including at least one public hearing. DEP spokeswoman Lauren Camarda said the agency has not received an application for a change of ownership from Shell, but any buyer would have to meet the same environmental requirements as Shell.

SRBC Approves 6 Water Withdrawals for Shale Drilling at March Mtg -- Marcellus Drilling News - The highly functional and responsible Susquehanna River Basin Commission (SRBC), unlike its completely dysfunctional and irresponsible cousin, the Delaware River Basin Commission (DRBC), continues to support the shale energy industry by approving water withdrawals for responsible and safe shale drilling. On March 13, the SRBC board acted on 24 new water withdrawal requests within the basin, six of them approvals for water used in drilling and fracking shale wells in Pennsylvania. The Marcellus/Utica shale drillers receiving a green light from SRBC included Diversified Energy, EQT, JKLM, Repsol, and two requests for Expand Energy (under SWN or Southwestern Energy).

31 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Mar 10 – 16 -- Marcellus Drilling News - - For the week of Mar 10 – 16, the number of permits issued in the Marcellus/Utica to drill new shale wells increased by nine from the previous week. Last week, 31 new permits were issued, with 16 going to the Keystone State (PA). EQT (and its subsidiary Rice Drilling) scored nine permits across Fayette, Greene, and Washington counties in southwestern PA. Range Resources took five permits, all of them in Washington County. And Rev Resources received two permits in Tioga County. ANTERO RESOURCES | ARSENAL RESOURCES | BELMONT COUNTY | CARROLL COUNTY | ENCINO ENERGY | EQT CORP | FAYETTE COUNTY | GREENE COUNTY (PA) | GULFPORT ENERGY | HARRISON COUNTY | HG ENERGY | RANGE RESOURCES CORP | RITCHIE COUNTY | TIOGA COUNTY (PA) |WASHINGTON COUNTY

WV Senate Bill 592 Eases Oil & Gas Storage Tank Inspections -- Marcellus Drilling News - - In the closing hours of the 2014 West Virginia legislative session, the legislature passed Senate Bill (SB) 373, the Aboveground Storage Tank Act (see Fate of 3 WV Laws that Impact Marcellus/Utica Drilling). The bill, which was signed into law, was in response to a chemical leak that affected the drinking water for 300,000 WV residents. Even though the leak was not related to oil and gas drilling (it was related to coal mining), the new rules governing aboveground storage tanks for chemicals affect several industries, including the Marcellus/Utica (see Impact of WV’s New Chemical Tank Law on Marcellus Drillers). Over the years, several attempts have been made to relax the over-restrictive new rules for the oil and gas industry. Another attempt is underway in this year’s legislative session: Senate Bill (SB) 592.

CP2 LNG Clears Regulatory Hurdle After DOE Grants Key Export Authorization - The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) on Wednesday authorized the CP2 LNG project proposed for Louisiana to export the super-chilled fuel to non-free trade agreement (NFTA) countries as the Trump administration continues its push to fast-track natural gas infrastructure projects. Chart showing operational and under construction North American LNG projects. Venture Global LNG Inc. CEO Mike Sabel said, “CP2 LNG is a vital project for the U.S. economy, balance of trade and global energy security.” He lauded the Trump administration’s return to “regular order and regulatory certainty” after the license was signed. The NFTA authorization clears a major regulatory hurdle for the 20 million ton/year CP2 project in Cameron Parish. Venture had applied for the license in 2021. However, the project was delayed by the Biden administration’s decision to pause NFTA export authorizations to study how rapid growth in the sector was impacting the environment and the economy.

Trump administration approves exports from major LNG project -- The Trump administration is authorizing a major gas facility to export the fuel abroad — clearing a major hurdle in getting the controversial project approved. The Energy Department approved a permit for the Calcasieu Pass 2 (CP2) gas export project to sell gas to countries with which the U.S. does not have a free trade agreement. Often, liquified natural gas (LNG) export projects wait on such approval before construction. “The benefits of expanding U.S. LNG exports have never been more clear, and I am proud to be taking action to support the American people and our allies abroad with more affordable, reliable, secure American energy,” Energy Secretary Chris Wright said in a written statement. “Thanks to President Trump’s leadership, we are cutting the red tape around projects like CP2, unleashing our energy potential and ensuring [the] U.S. can continue to meet growing energy demand for decades to come,” he said. The approval comes as the Trump administration has vowed to “unleash” U.S. energy — and especially fossil fuels. Trump and Republicans criticized a Biden administration move to pause approvals of new gas exports while it reassessed the climate and economic impacts of shipping gas abroad. The CP2 authorization marks the fifth gas-related approval since Trump took office. CP2 is the highest-profile gas project, and the largest, approved by the Trump administration so far. While the department’s approval marks a major step forward for the project, CP2 is also still awaiting action from the independent Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC). FERC previously approved the project, but later agreed to take a second look amid challenges from environmental groups. Those groups criticized the Trump administration’s move on Wednesday. “Greenlighting this terminal is simply selling out the American public to further boost the profits of fossil fuel companies,” said Gillian Giannetti, senior attorney at the Natural Resources Defense Council, in a written statement. “LNG extraction and export floods frontline communities with dangerous pollution, raises U.S. energy costs, and further locks in our dependence on dirty fossil fuels,” Giannetti said.

Woodside LNG Louisiana ‘FID Ready’ by Month’s End with Equity Partnership Near, Says CEO - The proposed five-train export project Louisiana LNG, sited in Calcasieu Parish, is close to sanctioning as Woodside Energy Group Ltd. nails down an equity partner and clinches sales agreements, according to CEO Meg O’Neill. A final investment decision (FID) for the first phase had been anticipated this month. Because discussions with potential equity partners continue, the timeline was tweaked, O’Neill told NGI at CERAWeek by S&P Global. The project now should be “FID ready” by month’s end.

DOE Permitting Action Could Accelerate as Biden LNG Study Comments Come to a Close - Prospects of U.S. LNG development moving forward this year are rising as the Trump administration’s Department of Energy (DOE) continues to press the scale in favor of previously contested export projects. DOE Secretary Chris Wright kicked off a visit to Houston last week with DOE’s fourth action on LNG permitting, granting an extension for the Delfin LNG project. A week later, DOE issued another conditional authorization for Venture Global LNG Inc.’s CP2 LNG project. But, before the DOE moves to the next phase of its regulatory reform strategy, Wright said it has to deal with the pending LNG export study ordered by the Biden administration during a nearly year-long pause last year.

Corpus Christi LNG Exports Rise as Cheniere Confirms Completion of Stage 3 Train 1 -- Cheniere Energy Inc. has reached substantial completion of Train 1 at its Corpus Christi LNG Stage 3 expansion, signaling a potential ramp up in exports from the Texas project. The Houston-based firm disclosed Monday that its construction contractor, Bechtel Energy Inc., had turned over the midscale liquefaction train to Cheniere’s control on Sunday. Train 1 began producing LNG in December and Cheniere confirmed it had shipped the first cargo from the project in February. Cheniere’s pace of commissioning with Stage 3 has helped push U.S. feed gas demand to new highs this year and is helping to spark price recovery at key Gulf Coast hubs.

Rio Grande LNG Construction Can Continue While FERC Reviews Approvals, DC Circuit Says - Construction and development risk for two Texas LNG export projects has been minimized with a new decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia (DC) Circuit. In an order published Tuesday, a panel of DC Circuit judges upheld the court’s decision to remand the FERC’s approval for Rio Grande LNG and Texas LNG (Case No. 23-1174). However, the court found that issues with the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission’s authorization process did not outweigh the impacts that vacating Rio Grande’s permit could cause.

High U.S. LNG Feed Gas Demand Continues to Tighten Henry Hub Outlook — A look at the global natural gas and LNG markets by the numbers

• $4.64/MMBtu: Bank of America Global Research is the latest to increase its price outlook for Henry Hub as natural gas production lags collide with increased LNG demand. The bank raised its forecasted average price for Henry Hub to $4.64/MMBtu in 2025 and $4.50 in 2026. The firm also predicted a jump to $6 in the coming winter as exploration and production companies maintain slimmed down drilling plans.
• 3.3 Mt/y: Train 3 at Trinidad and Tobago’s Atlantic LNG has shuttered for planned maintenance, reducing export capacity in the Americas for the next 45 days. Atlantic LNG’s Train 3 has a nameplate capacity of 3.3 million tons/year (Mt/y). The majority of exports from the facility land in South America and the Caribbean, but increasing volumes have landed in Europe since 2022, according to Kpler data.
• 3 Bcf/d: Feed gas demand from Venture Global LNG Inc.’s Plaquemines LNG is continuing to ramp up to new highs indicating that the company is running its trains above nameplate capacity during the commissioning process. East Daley Analytics estimated total feed gas demand from Plaquemines LNG could reach 3 Bcf/d by the end of the year. At least 16 of the 36 planned trains at the facility are currently operating, averaging 1.6 Bcf/d in demand, according to East Daley.
• 35%: European Union natural gas storage levels started the week at 35% of capacity, compared to a five-year average of 46%. Despite the storage situation, the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) prompt contract price has continued to decrease as traders weigh geopolitical and supply opportunities in the coming months. Wood Mackenzie analysts estimated that a return of Russian pipeline gas and increased Russian LNG imports could place 25 Mt/y of U.S. LNG capacity at risk of underutilization by the end of the decade.

Trump blocks rule to implement methane fee for oil and gas companies -- President Trump on Friday signed a resolution to block the implementation of a fee on oil and gas companies’ excess methane emissions. The resolution blocked the Environmental Protection Agency’s 2024 rule that implemented the fee program, which was established in the Democrats’ 2022 climate, tax and health care bill. Technically, the fee is still in the law, since the 2022 legislation has not been overturned. It was not immediately clear what the impacts will be of overturning the 2024 rule implementing the law. But the methane fee program — which also provides funds to help companies install emissions-reducing technology — is likely to be overturned as part of a larger package that Republicans are hoping to pass in the months ahead. Republicans celebrated Trump’s move — and vowed to overturn the program legislatively. “I’m honored to join President Trump and my congressional colleagues in officially rejecting the Democrats’ attempt to collect a tax on natural gas production and stand for American energy dominance,” Sen. Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) said in a written statement. “I will continue to work with my colleagues through the reconciliation process to stop the underlying law establishing this tax that was a part of the so-called Inflation Reduction Act,” said Capito, who chairs the Senate’s Environment and Public Works Committee.

U.S. LNG Exporters Continue Strict Methane Regs Despite Rollbacks - Marcellus Drilling News U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) exporters plan to continue to monitor and curb their methane emissions despite President Trump’s plans to roll back EPA climate regulations (see EPA Launches Biggest Deregulatory Action in U.S. History, Favors O&G). Why? They seek to meet the standards of overseas import markets. Among recent actions by the EPA is the rollback of a requirement for companies to report their annual emissions of the so-called greenhouse gas methane and a decision to review the so-called “endangerment finding,” the legal foundation for all U.S. climate regulation that identifies “greenhouse gases” as pollutants.

LNG Freight Rates Rebound in Sign of Stronger Global Natural Gas Demand Heading Into Summer -- The LNG shipping market is gaining momentum after a soft start to the year, driven partly by increasing output from the United States that’s helping to push freight rates higher. A Chart showing spot LNG vessel rates for global natural gas markets. Spark Commodities said Friday that freight rates in the Atlantic Basin jumped by more than $6,000 over the previous week to $25,750/day, or their highest level in four months. Rates in the Pacific Basin, where demand is more sluggish, have still steadily increased by more than $2,000 to $19,750/day over the same time. Rates were up in both basins again on Monday. The climb higher is a reversal from the beginning of the year when a combination of factors, including too many ships, limited demand and shorter voyages between the U.S. and Europe, cut freight rates to record lows.

US natgas prices slide 2% to 2-week low on record output, Waha turns negative (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures slid about 2% to a two-week low on Monday on record output, negative spot prices at the Waha Hub in West Texas and forecasts for mild weather through early April, which should keep the amount of gas utilities pull from storage to heat homes and businesses lower than usual for this time of year. Gas stockpiles, however, remained about 12% below normal levels after extreme cold in January and February forced energy firms to pull massive amounts of gas out of storage, including record amounts in January. Front-month gas futures for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 8.6 cents, or 2.1%, to settle at $4.018 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their lowest close since February 28. That futures price decline occurred despite record gas flows to U.S. liquefied natural gas export (LNG) plants and forecasts for more demand this week than previously expected. In the spot market, gas prices at the Waha Hub in the Permian shale in West Texas turned negative for the first time since November 2024 due to pipeline maintenance that trapped gas associated with oil production in the basin. Traders talked of maintenance on U.S. energy firm Kinder Morgan's El Paso Natural Gas pipe from Texas, New Mexico and Colorado to California and Arizona and WhiteWater, and Enbridge's Whistler pipeline from West Texas to the Texas Gulf Coast. With Permian oil production hitting record highs every year since at least 2016, according to data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration and the Federal Reserve Bank of Dallas, energy firms have had a hard time building gas pipes fast enough to keep up with soaring associated gas output. Permian gas production has also hit record highs every year since at least 2018. Those pipeline constraints caused next-day gas prices to turn negative a record 49 times in 2024. Waha prices first averaged below zero in 2019. It happened 17 times in 2019, six times in 2020 and once in 2023. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states rose to 105.9 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in March, up from a record 105.1 bcfd in February. Meteorologists projected weather in the Lower 48 states would remain mostly warmer than normal through April 1. LSEG forecast average gas demand in the Lower 48, including exports, will rise from 107.2 bcfd this week to 107.7 bcfd next week. The forecast for this week was higher than LSEG's outlook on Friday. The amount of gas flowing to the eight big U.S. LNG export plants rose to an average of 15.7 bcfd so far in March, up from a record 15.6 bcfd in February, as new units at Venture Global's 3.2-bcfd Plaquemines LNG export plant under construction in Louisiana enter service. Gas was trading at a one-week low of around $13 per mmBtu at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) benchmark in Europe and a 12-week low of $13 at the Japan Korea Marker (JKM) benchmark in Asia.

US natgas prices jump 5%to one-week high on record LNG flows, daily output drop (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures jumped about 5% to a one-week high on Wednesday on record flows to liquefied natural gas (LNG) export plants and a second drop in daily output. Front-month gas futures for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 19.5 cents, or 4.8%, to settle at $4.247 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their highest close since March 11. The price increase occurred despite forecasts for less demand over the next two weeks than previously expected with the weather forecast to remain seasonally mild through early April. That decline in demand should reduce the amount of gas utilities need to pull from storage in coming weeks. Gas stockpiles, however, were already around 11% below normal levels for this time of year after extreme cold weather in January and February forced energy firms to pull large amounts of gas out of storage, including record amounts in January. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states rose to 105.8 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in March, up from a record 105.1 bcfd in February. On a daily basis, output over the past two days was on track to drop by around 2.8 bcfd to a preliminary three-week low of 103.9 bcfd on Wednesday. Traders said the daily drop was likely related to spring pipeline maintenance in Texas and other states, which helped cause spot prices at the Waha Hub in West Texas to turn negative in recent days. Meteorologists projected weather in the Lower 48 states would remain mostly near normal through April 3.

US natural gas prices drop 6% to two-week low on surprise storage build, lower demand (Reuters) - U.S. natural gas futures dropped about 6% to a two-week low on Thursday on a surprise storage build and forecasts for milder weather and less demand next week than previously expected. Energy traders noted that forecast decline in gas demand should allow utilities to keep adding the fuel to storage in the coming weeks. Front-month gas futures for April delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 27.2 cents, or 6.4%, to settle at $3.975 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their lowest close since February 28. The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said utilities added 9 billion cubic feet (bcf) of gas out of storage during the week ended March 14. That was a surprise build versus the draw of 3 bcf that analysts forecast in a Reuters poll and compares with an increase of 5 bcf during the same week last year and a five-year average draw of 31 bcf for this time of year. Despite the storage build, gas stockpiles were still around 10% below normal levels for this time of year after extremely cold weather in January and February forced energy firms to pull large amounts of gas out of storage, including record amounts in January. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states has risen to 105.8 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in March, up from a record 105.1 bcfd in February. On a daily basis, however, output over the past three days was on track to drop by around 2.4 bcfd to a preliminary three-week low of 104.4 bcfd on Thursday. Traders said the daily drop was likely related to spring pipeline maintenance in Texas and other states, which helped cause spot prices at the Waha Hub in West Texas to turn negative in recent days. LSEG forecast average gas demand in the Lower 48, including exports, will rise from 106.8 bcfd this week to 107.9 bcfd next week. The forecast for next week was lower than LSEG's outlook on Wednesday. The amount of gas flowing to the eight big operating U.S. LNG export plants has risen to an average of 15.7 bcfd so far in March, up from a record 15.6 bcfd in February, as new units at Venture Global's 3.2-bcfd Plaquemines LNG export plant under construction in Louisiana enter service. Gas was trading around $14 per mmBtu at both the Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) benchmark in Europe and the Japan Korea Marker (JKM) benchmark in Asia.

Line 5, a Trump donor, is profiting off a pipeline deal threatening pollution --Donald Trump’s administration is being accused by activists of a quid pro quo as it attempts to fast-track a controversial fossil fuel pipeline proposal inMichigan that would in part be built by a donor with deep financial ties to the president.While Canadian oil giant Enbridge owns the Line 5 oil and gas pipeline that it is attempting to replace in the Great Lakes region, the contractor is Tim Barnard, who, along with his wife, gave $1m to Trump’s campaign last year, Federal Election Commission records show.Barnard’s company, Barnard Construction, received more than $1bn to build parts of the border wall, and he is also a prolific Republican donor to state and national candidates and organizations.Enbridge wants to replace the ageing Line 5 that cuts across about 4.4 miles (7km) of lakebed in the Great Lakes, which holds more than 90% of the nation’s fresh water, and 21% of the world’s fresh water.The estimated $1.5bn replacement plan calls for building a tunnel underneath the Great Lakes, which opponents say puts the environment at high risk. They also questioned Barnard’s ability to complete the highly complex project, citing a lack of experience and a history of wage violations.“Such pay-to-play arrangements among the government and federal contractors are not unusual, but they are increasing in scope under a second Trump administration, and are highly unethical and corrupt the government contracting process,” said Craig Holman, a Capitol Hill lobbyist with Public Citizen, a non-profit that advocates for transparency.“Contracts oftentimes are awarded based on large campaign donations rather than merit, and it effectively rigs the bidding process against businesses who either cannot afford making large campaign contributions or who refuse to pay to play for government contracts,” Holman said.Barnard did not immediately respond to a request for comment.The Trump administration in late February moved to fast-track federal energy projects that include Line 5 by sidestepping the US Army Corps of Engineers’ environmental review processes. The move was part of the “energy emergency” he declared on his first day in office, which is viewed as dubious because energy production was already near record highs. Some allegeit was a payback to oil industry donors who helped Trump get elected.In addition to the $1m June 2024 donations, Barnard has given millions to Trump administration officials, Republican congressional committees, and other Republican candidates and groups. Among the recipients are the secretary of state, Marco Rubio; Vice-President JD Vance; the former US House speaker Kevin McCarthy; and the Texas governor, Greg Abbott.

Texans grapple with rising toxic pollution as oil, gas production booms — When retired pastor Columbus Cooper and his wife bought their home in West Odessa in the heart of the Permian Basin, the U.S.’s most productive oil field, they knew they were surrounded by tank batteries holding spent fuel or fracking fluid and injection wells injecting that waste fluid back into the Earth. But as lifelong Odessans, they weren’t worried — until their water started tasting funny and the stench crept in. Until, six years ago, two people died in a pump house down the street. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) later confirmed what many already suspected: The very infrastructure that had fueled the region’s economic boom was exposing the people who lived there to dangerous toxins. Without access to city water, West Odessa residents — like rural Texans across oil country — largely depend on water from wells drilled into the aquifer below. Frequently those wells are as little as a few hundred yards from oil and gas wells or other infrastructure linked with toxic pollution — which are just one explosion or spill away from ruining them. Now, Cooper laughs when he thinks about their decision to move to the neighborhood. “I assumed they would be regulated,” Cooper told The Hill, pointing to a tank battery venting invisible, noxious gas. “I assumed somebody would be making sure we were safe.” The oil and gas industry has long been a cornerstone of the Texas economy, and has brought a flood of new jobs and money to the Permian Basin in recent years as production has climbed to new highs. In 2024 alone, the industry paid a record $27 billion in state taxes and royalties and employed nearly half a million people, many earning more than $124,000 a year. The industry and Texas lawmakers argue that beyond the economy, the state’s fossil fuel production is important for American energy independence — and the environment. The Permian is the regional wellhead of a vast outpouring of oil and — particularly — gas that both the U.S. government and Western oil industry tout as a means of redirecting global markets away from more-polluting energy sources like coal and foreign producers they say produce dirtier products. Every country is concerned about three things in descending order: national security, energy security and the health of its land and water, ConocoPhillips CEO Ryan Lance said in March at CERAWeek by S&P Global. “Natural gas,” he said, “delivers on all fronts.” But for many Texans on the doorstep of the state’s staggering fossil fuel expansion of the past decade, the boom has come at a cost. Millions of Texans now live within striking distance of oil infrastructure — exposed to airborne chemicals, groundwater contamination and, in extreme cases, sudden, violent failures of aging wells, all of which creates public concern. “You don’t want to live close to any of this development — particularly if you’re surrounded by wells,” Gunnar Schade, a Texas A&M atmospheric chemist, told The Hill. Fracking, the increasing use of which has driven the past decade’s oil and gas boom, has been central to much of the mounting pollution concern. Environmentalists and researchers have warned that the technique, in which cocktails of chemicals are pumped underground to shatter rock and release oil and gas, can contaminate groundwater — accusations the industry has fought for years. A 2016 EPA study has been cited by both environmentalists and the industry as support for their positions on the issue. The report found that while direct fracking-related water contamination — penetrating from subterranean oil wells to water wells — was possible, it was rare. Industry groups such as the Texas Oil and Gas Association point to the steps operators take to wall off wells from surrounding groundwater behind “layers of steel casing and cement, as well as thousands of feet of rock.” And the Independent Petroleum Association of America points to “no fewer than two dozen scientific reviews,” including the EPA study, that “have concluded that fracking does not pose a major threat to groundwater.”But much of that discourse has centered on the direct impact of the fracking process, which leaves out a great deal of oil and gas operations. The EPA study also identified multiple other ways that the fuels’ extraction threatens water supplies — like spills or deliberate dumping. In the Permian, for example, The Hill observed numerous pumpjacks and storage tanks dripping “produced water,” or wastewater resulting from the fracking process, on the soil, sometimes in close proximity to farms. This water can resurface tainted with salt, heavy metals, benzene, toxic “forever chemicals” and even radioactive isotopes.The EPA has also pointed to risks that come from the disposal of such wastewater in underground injection wells. And in Texas, all of these risks have escalated as the amount of water being used to frack ever-deeper wells has risen — leading to new challenges in disposing of the resulting wastewater. Each year, Texas oil and gas wells generate more than 12 billion barrels of wastewater — 4 billion of them in the Permian alone, more than all other U.S. oil fields combined. Texas is one of the only states moving forward with plans to allow this produced water to be disposed of in aboveground creeks and rivers. For example, in south Texas’s Eagle Ford Shale, researchers found 700 million gallons per year of produced water was being dumped legally into rivers and creeks that cattle drank. Much of the rest goes back into the Earth. Permian drilling companies inject about 6 billion barrels per year into disposal wells, a process meant to keep it away from drinking water.But the subsurface that those wells cut into is riven with underground cracks and fissures and pocked with as many as hundreds of thousands of “zombie wells,” oil and gas wells that were improperly sealed or left open to deteriorate. Many have rusted-out casings, making them potential pathways between underground water sources and the wastewater being forced into disposal wells. For decades, geologists have warned that underground injection wells could interact with these abandoned legacy wells and contaminate the underground water sources they are connected to.Deep injection wells also lubricate faults in the Earth, sometimes causing earthquakes bad enough to crack home walls and foundations. One quake last July was strong enough to break municipal water pipes. After a decade of local outcry about fracking earthquakes, companies began injecting more shallowly. But this gave rise to another issue: Fracking fluid began bursting from the state’s old, failing or forgotten wells. The tendency of fracking fluid to come back to the surface has turned cleanup into a game of “whack-a-mole,” as Kirk Edwards, a local oil and gas executive and former chair of the Permian Basin Petroleum Association, put it.Zombie wells are “a black eye for the industry,” Edwards told The Hill. He warned that oil producers had perhaps a year to solve the issue before they would face local revolt. The area needed, he said, “a Manhattan Project for water” to treat and reuse fracking fluid.

Newly released investigation report sheds light on 2019 Keystone Pipeline spill in Walsh County - Grand Forks Herald — A fatigue crack likely the result of a defective pipe was the cause of a major crude oil spill in Walsh County in 2019, according to an investigation report newly released by the U.S. Pipeline and Hazardous Materials Safety Administration. Many details about the cause of the Oct. 29, 2019, Keystone Pipeline rupture remain unknown to the public, as the 183-page report is heavily redacted. TC Energy, the Canadian former operator of the pipeline, redacted the report to protect trade secrets and information that could reasonably endanger an individual, in accordance with federal open records law, according to PHSMA. However, the document concludes that part of the root issue could be "ineffective quality control" and inadequate inspections at the Berg Steel Mill in Panama City, Florida, where the damaged portion of pipeline was produced. The report also rules out a slate of possible causes, including that damage was done intentionally to the pipeline. TC Energy eventually reached a settlement with the NDDEQ and agreed to pay a roughly $52,000 fine. The investigation report — formally the Root Cause Failure Analysis — was authored by RSI Pipeline Solutions, a consulting firm based in Ohio. It is dated April 1, 2020.

Greenpeace ordered to pay $660 million over Dakota Access protests - A jury on Wednesday ordered environmental campaign group Greenpeace to pay more than $660 million in damages to Texas-based oil company Energy Transfer, the developer of the Dakota Access Pipeline.A nine-person jury in Mandan, North Dakota, reached a verdict after roughly two days of deliberations. The outcome found Greenpeace liable for hundreds of millions of dollars over actions taken to prevent the construction of the Dakota Access Pipeline nearly a decade ago.It marks an extraordinary legal blow for Greenpeace, which had previously warned that it could be forced into bankruptcy because of the case. The environmental advocacy group said it intends to appeal the verdict."This case should alarm everyone, no matter their political inclinations," Greenpeace U.S. interim executive director Sushma Raman said in a statement published Wednesday."It's part of a renewed push by corporations to weaponise our courts to silence dissent. We should all be concerned about the future of the First Amendment, and lawsuits like this aimed at destroying our rights to peaceful protest and free speech," Raman said. Greenpeace has described Energy Transfer's case as a clear-cut example of SLAPPs, referring to a lawsuit designed to bury activist groups in legal fees and ultimately silence dissent. SLAPP is an acronym for "strategic lawsuit against public participation."France's Greenpeace activists perform an action to support Greenpeace USA, with the Eiffel Tower seen in the background, in Paris on February 20, 2025. Energy Transfer, the Big Oil company behind the Dakota Access Pipeline, is suing Greenpeace USA for $300 million.Energy Transfer told CNBC that the jury verdict was a "win" for "Americans who understand the difference between the right to free speech and breaking the law.""We are very pleased that Greenpeace has been held accountable for their actions against us, but this win is also for the people of Mandan and throughout North Dakota who had to live through the daily harassment and disruptions caused by the protesters who were funded and trained by Greenpeace," the company said in a statement.

Jury delivers verdict finding Greenpeace entities liable for more than $660 million in Energy Transfer SLAPP trial – Greenpeace -- A Morton County jury of nine reached a verdict in Energy Transfer’s meritless lawsuit against Greenpeace entities in the US (Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund), and Greenpeace International, finding the entities liable for more than US$660 million, today. Big Oil Bullies around the world will continue to try to silence free speech and peaceful protest, but the fight against Energy Transfer’s meritless SLAPP lawsuit is not over. “This case should alarm everyone, no matter their political inclinations,” said Sushma Raman, Interim Executive Director Greenpeace Inc, Greenpeace Fund. “It’s part of a renewed push by corporations to weaponize our courts to silence dissent. We should all be concerned about the future of the First Amendment, and lawsuits like this aimed at destroying our rights to peaceful protest and free speech. These rights are critical for any work toward ensuring justice – and that’s why we will continue fighting back together, in solidarity. While Big Oil bullies can try to stop a single group, they can’t stop a movement.”“We are witnessing a disastrous return to the reckless behaviour that fuelled the climate crisis, deepened environmental racism, and put fossil fuel profits over public health and a liveable planet. The previous Trump administration spent four years dismantling protections for clean air, water, and Indigenous sovereignty, and now along with its allies wants to finish the job by silencing protest. We will not back down. We will not be silenced,” said Mads Christensen, Greenpeace International Executive Director. In this case, Energy Transfer has maintained their entirely false claims that Greenpeace organized the #NoDAPL resistance at Standing Rock, an allegation rooted in racism in its erasure of the Indigenous leadership in North Dakota.“What we saw over these three weeks was Energy Transfer’s blatant disregard for the voices of the Standing Rock Sioux Tribe,” said Deepa Padmanabha, Senior Legal Advisor, Greenpeace USA. “And while they also tried to distort the truth about Greenpeace’s role in the protests, we instead reaffirmed our unwavering commitment to non-violence in every action we take. To be clear, Greenpeace’s story is not the story of Standing Rock. Our story is how an organization like Greenpeace USA can support critical fights to protect communities most impacted by the climate crisis, as well as continued attacks on Indigenous sovereignty.”This lawsuit is one of the largest Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPP) cases ever filed. These are meritless lawsuits meant to silence or bankrupt opponents – which is why most U.S. states and several countries have put legal protections in place to protect advocates. But in North Dakota – and 15 other states – no anti-SLAPP statutes exist.Greenpeace entities will continue fighting back against this case, including by appealing to the North Dakota Supreme Court. In February 2024, Greenpeace International initiated the first test of the European Union’s anti-SLAPP Directive by filing a lawsuit in Dutch court against ET. GPI seeks to recover damages and costs it has suffered as a result of ET’s back-to-back, meritless lawsuits demanding hundreds of millions of dollars against GPI and the Greenpeace organisations in the US.“Energy Transfer hasn’t heard the last of us in this fight. We’re just getting started with our anti-SLAPP lawsuit against Energy Transfer’s attacks on free speech and peaceful protest,” said Kristin Casper, Greenpeace International General Counsel. “We will see Energy Transfer in court this July in the Netherlands.”

Alaska LNG Builds Momentum in Deal With Taiwan — Taiwan’s CPC Corp. has signed a non-binding agreement to invest in the long-delayed Alaska LNG project. The country’s Ministry of Economic Affairs lauded the tentative deal and said it boosts Taiwan’s relationship with the United States and would help to secure more energy. The Trump administration has promoted the $44 billion, 20 million ton/year project as a way to export more American energy to global buyers. President Trump has also suggested overseas buyers should take more U.S. energy supplies to avoid tariffs.

Trump administration to open more Alaska acres for oil, gas drilling (Reuters) - U.S. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum on Thursday announced steps to open up more acreage for oil and gas leasing and lift restrictions on building an LNG pipeline and mining road in Alaska, carrying out President Donald Trump's executive order to remove barriers to energy development in the state. Burgum said the agency plans to reopen the 82% of Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve that is available for leasing for development and reopen the 1.56-million-acre Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge for oil and gas leasing. He also said the administration would revoke restrictions on land along the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Corridor and Dalton Highway north of the Yukon River and convey the land to the State of Alaska, which would pave the way forward for the proposed Ambler Road and the Alaska Liquefied Natural Gas Pipeline project. “It’s time for the U.S. to embrace Alaska’s abundant and largely untapped resources as a pathway to prosperity for the Nation, including Alaskans,” said Burgum. Drilling in Alaska's pristine Arctic refuge has long been a source of friction between Alaska lawmakers and tribal corporations seeking to open more acres to drilling to spur economic growth, and Democratic presidential administrations that sought to preserve the local ecosystem and wildlife. A January 8 lease auction that had been mandated by Congress held under the Biden administration's Interior Department received no bids from energy companies. The Biden administration last year rejected the Ambler Road Project, a proposed 211-mile road that would connect to a rare earths mining district. Alaska's Republican Governor Mike Dunleavy and the state's congressional delegation have pushed for a reversal of Biden's Alaska resource development policies. Some Alaska indigenous nations have also called for the right to develop resources in ANWR and the National Petroleum Reserve, and welcomed the announcement. “We applaud today’s decision by DOI and Secretary Burgum," said Kaktovik Iñupiat Corporation President Charles Lampe. "As the only community within ANWR’s 19-million-acre boundaries, we have fought for years for our right to self-determination and local economic development in our Indigenous homelands. The oil industry has signalled it would be hesitant to rush into Alaska given its high risk and the possibility of a political pendulum swing in four years that could put Alaska off limits again. Environmental groups criticized the move that would disturb what they call one of the last wild places on earth, putting caribou, polar bears and migratory birds at risk. "Expanding oil drilling across public lands in the Arctic is risky, harmful to the health and well-being of people who reside nearby, devastating to wildlife and bad for the climate,” said Carole Holley, Managing Attorney in Earthjustice’s Alaska Regional Office.

Trump administration takes steps to expand Arctic drilling, including in contentious wildlife refuge - - The Trump administration formally announced Thursday that it planned to expand drilling in the Arctic, including in the contentious Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. The Interior Department said that it would take steps toward opening up the entire 1.56 million-acre Coastal Plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil and gas drilling. Drilling in the refuge was restricted under the Biden administration, and amid the restrictions oil companies decided against pursuing fossil fuels there.In addition, the department said that it would seek to open up 82 percent of the separate National Petroleum Reserve in Alaska’s Western Arctic. The decision comes after the Biden administration limited drilling there to less than half of the 23 million-acre reserve. The Trump administration also indicated it would revoke a Biden-era decision that blocked an Alaska mining road and that it would take steps to bolster a gas pipeline project.“It’s time for the U.S. to embrace Alaska’s abundant and largely untapped resources as a pathway to prosperity for the Nation, including Alaskans,” said Interior Secretary Doug Burgum in a written statement.“For far too long, the federal government has created too many barriers to capitalizing on the state’s energy potential. Interior is committed to recognizing the central role the State of Alaska plays in meeting our nation’s energy needs, while providing tremendous economic opportunity for Alaskans,” he said. The moves are not necessarily a surprise. President Trump on his first day in office signed an executive order calling for opening up more drilling in the Arctic. During his first term, Trump also opened up about 82 percent of the National Petroleum Reserve for drilling — up from the 52 percent that was open under the Obama administration. The actions are also not final, as actually implementing these policies will require going through a lengthy regulatory process. But the announcement marks the first formal step toward action.The Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is particularly contentious because it is home to animals including grizzly bears, polar bears, gray wolves, caribou and more than 200 species of birds, as well as land considered sacred to the Gwich’in people. However, others, including other Alaska Native groups, have said they want to drill there in order to bolster the state’s economy.

LNG Canada Inches Closer to Startup With Cooldown Cargo Headed for Project - LNG Canada is expected to receive a cooldown cargo in the coming weeks as it works to commission the facility in British Columbia and start operations by the middle of the year. Chart showing North American LNG netback prices for a certain natural gas market's trading day. The company said late last month it expects to receive the cargo by April. Kpler vessel-tracking data showed Tuesday that the Shell plc-chartered Maran Gas Roxana vessel loaded at the Queensland Curtis LNG plant in Australia on March 11. The ship is expected to arrive at the LNG Canada project with a full cargo on March 31. Shell is the operator and majority interest holder at both Queensland Curtis and LNG Canada, which was first announced in 2012. The first 14 million tons/year (Mt/y) phase of the project would be Canada’s first large-scale LNG export facility.

Canada’s Leading E&Ps, Midstreamers Call on Politicians to Build Nation’s Natural Gas, Oil Opportunities - Canadian natural gas and oil business leaders are urging the nation’s Liberal and Conservative politicians to jointly declare an “energy emergency” to help strengthen the nation’s “economic sovereignty.” The call comes less than two weeks after the Trump administration imposed double-digit tariffs on its largest trading partner. Natural Gas Intelligence's (NGI) Canada Border Tracker displaying a map and key natural gas hubs with prices. Depicts flow data key for market analyses. President Trump earlier this month slapped a 10% surcharge on Canadian energy imports, with a 25% duty on other imported goods. The move, which initially shocked many Canadians, has appeared to unify the nation, with leading politicians and companies resolving to look for trading partners beyond the U.S. border. During CERAWeek by S&P Global, provincial leaders said they already were laying plans to expand trade beyond U.S. borders. Now, Canada’s leading natural gas and oil midstream operators and exploration and production (E&P) leaders are joining in the fight.

Investors Beating Path to Alberta for Natural Gas, Petchem and Data Center Opportunities Trade wars may come and go, but Alberta expects to remain a major hub for North American energy development, as companies invest in the province’s natural gas- and oil-fueled infrastructure, petrochemical developments and increasingly, data center opportunities, a top official said. Graph showing Natural Gas Intelligence's (NGI) forward NOVA AECO C natural gas price versus Canadian natural gas production. Invest Alberta Corp. CEO Rick Christiaanse sat down with NGI earlier this month during CERAWeek by S&P Global to highlight the Western Canadian opportunities. The investment firm, established five years ago, works directly with global companies to start up or scale up, with provincial investments to date estimated at C$25 billion-plus. Christiaanse discussed the long-term growth projections as the Trump administration escalated a global trade war, which included a 10% duty on Canada’s energy imports and a 25% tariff on other items delivered by its formerly closest trading partner.

Chile, Brazil Lead LNG Imports in March as DES Prices Dip — April delivered ex-ship (DES) prices to LNG import terminals in Latin America slipped this week. Chart showing delivered ex-ship LNG prices specific to the Latin American LNG market. April DES prices to the Bahia Blanca terminal in Argentina were down 2.1 cents to $12.99/MMBtu on Tuesday, according to NGI calculations. DES prices at the Pecém terminal in Brazil were $12.81, down 2.3 cents. Chile’s Quintero terminal outside of Santiago fetched the highest LNG price of those tracked by NGI at $13.09 on Tuesday. This was higher than prices on Mexico’s West Coast at Manzanillo, which fell 2.3 cents to $13.01.

Speculation Over Russian Natural Gas Returning to Europe Drags Down TTF – European natural gas prices declined on Monday ahead of a planned phone call between President Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin to discuss a 30-day ceasefire with Ukraine. Image showing a comprehensive market analysis of the European Union’s gas storage levels with graphs representing trends in inventories, highlighting key insights into energy market dynamics and gas data projections for the near future. The Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) gave up last week’s gains and finished 2% lower on Monday as the market continues to weigh the possibility of some Russian gas exports returning to Europe in exchange for a peace deal between Russia and Ukraine. Putin hasn’t ruled out restarting some shipments to the continent, although the possibility remains a remote one for now. “The market will continue to watch this closely,” said UK consultancy Auxilione of talks between the U.S., Russia and Ukraine.

Fuel oil continues to be found on distant beaches in Crimea --Fuel oil continues to be found on the far beaches of annexed Sevastopol, spilled after the disaster of Russian tankers in the Kerch Strait in December 2024. According to Crimea.Realii, this was reported by the occupying head of the city Mikhail Razvozhayev. According to him, he visited the Silver Beach and made sure that there is still fuel oil on the distant and inaccessible shores and rocks, especially in places where water does not reach. These emission residues are supposedly cleaned up by specialized agencies. "But it is obvious that the help of volunteers will be useful," Razvozhayev said, adding that volunteers will be brought to these areas next week. At the same time, according to the National Resistance Center, the occupiers are burying the soil contaminated with oil products directly on the annexed peninsula. "The Russians are turning the temporarily occupied Crimea into an ecological dump - instead of disposing of the sand contaminated with fuel oil in Krasnodar, they simply scatter it across the peninsula," the activists say.

Russian Prosecutors Investigate Emergency Ministry Over Black Sea Oil Spill Response - The Moscow Times - Russia’s top prosecutor said Wednesday that his office will investigate the Emergency Situations Ministry over alleged failures in its response to the Black Sea oil spill.The spill occurred on Dec. 15, when two aging Russian tankers were damaged in a storm, releasing thousands of tons of heavy fuel oil into the sea off the coasts of annexed Crimea and the southern Krasnodar region. Since then, volunteers and emergency crews have worked to clean up the oil and remove around 150,000 metric tons of contaminated sand.Speaking at a meeting of senior prosecutors, President Vladimir Putin said Wednesday that the oil spill was caused by “disregard for safety rules and negligence,” leading to “grave consequences for people, the environment and the economy.”“Given the miscalculations identified in efforts to protect the public and territories from emergencies, we have planned an investigation into the Emergency Situations Ministry and its regional bodies,” Prosecutor General Igor Krasnov said.The two tankers involved in the spill, the Volgoneft-239 and Volgoneft-212, were operated by Volgatransneft, while the fuel oil on board belonged to state oil giant Rosneft.Regional transportation prosecutors, the Russian Maritime Rescue Service and the resort town of Anapa have filed three separate lawsuits against Moscow-based Volgatransneft and Perm-based Kama Shipping for damages.Officials in Anapa said last week that they had spent 211 million rubles ($2.4 million) on cleanup efforts alone.Oil slicks have continued to appear off the Black Sea coast three months after the spill, with both the Emergency Situations Ministry and Putin warning that warmer weather could cause heavy fuel oil to rise to the surface of the water.

Njord A oil spill under investigation -The Norwegian Ocean Industry Authority (Havtil) is investigating an oil spill from the Equinor-operated Njord A platform in the Norwegian Sea at the end of last year. Oil escaped via the produced water system, with about 75 MMcm released into the sea and eventually reaching the shore. Response action has started along parts of the coast of western Norway, from Frøya in Møre og Romsdal and northward. The Njord field, in 330 m water depth, started production in 1997 and recently underwent a redevelopment to ensure sustained long-term production from the area.

Oil spill in Ecuador river brings emergency declaration -An oil spill in northwestern Ecuador has turned a river black, prompting authorities to declare an environmental emergency and order residents to ration drinking water. The spill, believed to have been caused when a landslide ruptured a major oil pipeline, has contaminated a section of the Esmeraldas River in the province of the same name. Residents in the town of Cube, where the water had changed color, were trying to stop the flow by building dikes, an AFP journalist saw. "The mud formed by the oil has penetrated all the hillsides," said farmer Fernando Gandara. The Emergency Operations Committee in the provincial capital, also called Esmeraldas, declared an environmental emergency over concerns about water quality. Vilko Villacis, mayor of the city of more than 200,000, said the leak had caused "unprecedented" damages. His office halted the diversion of river water to an aqueduct supplying the city and urged people to ration water. On Friday, state-owned Petroecuador said it was working to address the emergency at the pipeline, part of the Trans-Ecuadorian Pipeline System (SOTE) which transports crude oil from the Amazon. The company has not estimated the volume of oil spilled. Ecuador last year produced 475,000 barrels of crude a day, exporting 72 percent of the total. The SOTE is the most used pipeline system in the country, with the capacity to transport 360,000 barrels per day on the 500-kilometer (310-mile) journey from the Amazon to the Pacific coast.

State of emergency in Ecuador after major oil spill -- YouTube video -- Ecuador declared a state of emergency on March 16, 2025, following a major oil spill in the Esmeraldas River, which has severely impacted the region’s water supply. Authorities have urged residents to ration water as efforts to contain the spill and mitigate its effects are underway. The leak was reportedly caused by a mudslide that ruptured a section of the Trans-Ecuadorian Pipeline System (SOTE). Reports indicate that at least 800 families have been directly affected by the leak. Images shared on social media showed the river turning black due to the oil spill. Vilko Villacís, mayor of Esmeraldas, stated that the leak had caused “unprecedented” damage. His office halted the diversion of river water to an aqueduct supplying the city and urged residents to ration water. Petroecuador, the state-owned oil company, is working to contain and clean up the spill, but no estimate of the leaked oil volume has been provided. Ecuador, which produces 475 000 barrels of crude per day and exports 72% of it, relies heavily on the SOTE pipeline. Some reports suggest that the spill may have resulted from an overflow at a slop pool in the Esmeraldas Refinery, which stores residual crude oil. However, no official confirmation has been provided. The oil has seeped into soil on the hillside, with plants getting covered in crude oil, causing significant damage to the surrounding vegetation. Multiple agencies are working to assist the affected citizens. National Secretariat for Risk Management reported that they had delivered a 2 500-liter tank to the community of El Vergel, in Cube parish. “The authorities are coordinating activities to provide drinking water service to the cantons of Esmeraldas, Atacames and Rioverde. To this end, this Monday, 18 tankers will join to advance in the distribution of water equitably in the three cantons of the province,” said the Esmeraldas’ Mayor’s office. The SOTE is Ecuador’s most utilized pipeline system, with a capacity to transport 360 000 barrels per day over a 500 km (310 miles) route from the Amazon to the Pacific coast.

Ecuador’s NOC Declares Force Majeure After Pipeline Leak Ecuador's state-run oil company, Petroecuador, has declared force majeure at the operations of its SOTE pipeline after a landslide ruptured the pipeline, releasing tens of thousands of barrels of oil. Petroecuador has yet to determine the size of the spill, but has so far removed 225,000 cubic metres of material that collapsed on the pipeline. The company says the force majeure will last up to 60 days in a bid to give it enough time to take all necessary actions to minimise the incident. Petroecuador added it has enough oil in its inventories to supply the local fuel market; however, it has suspended exports of the Oriente crude due to the force majeure clause. Oriente crude is one of two varieties that the South American country produces. Ecuador’s last major oil spill occurred in July 2023 when ~1,200 barrels of crude spilled in the Pacific Ocean. The spill occurred after a tank belonging to Petroecuador exceeded its maximum capacity of 188 barrels and spilled into a containment pool at the company’s Esmeraldas maritime terminal. Around four kilometres of coastline were affected by the spill. Ecuador is one of South America’s top oil producers. In 2021 Ecuador's production clocked in at 550,000 barrels, the 28th highest in the world. Oil consumption in the country is about 260,000 b/d, with the balance being exported. Ecuador has oil reserves of more than 8 billion barrels, ranking the country as number 19 globally. In 2023, Ecuadorians voted against drilling for oil in Yasuni National Park, home to the Tagaeri and Taromenani who live in self-isolation. Yasuni, designated a world biosphere reserve by UNESCO in 1989, encompasses a surface area of over 1 million hectares (2.5 million acres); 121 reptiles species, 610 species of birds and 139 amphibian species. Former Ecuadorian President Guillermo Lasso strongly advocated for oil drilling in Yasuni in a bid to boost oil exports. However, the results of the referendum meant that Petroecuador was forced to abandon operations there.

Petroecuador declares force majeure after worst oil spill in 8 years, Ecuador -Ecuador’s state oil company, Petroecuador, declared force majeure on its Trans-Ecuadorian Pipeline System (SOTE) on March 18, 2025, following a catastrophic oil spill that began on March 13. The spill, caused by a landslide that ruptured the pipeline, has contaminated the Esmeraldas River, affecting over 500 000 residents who are now experiencing a severe water crisis. The landslide was triggered by heavy rains and severe weather conditions across the country that have claimed 20 lives as of March 19. . As a result, the company will suspend exports of Oriente crude, one of two crude oil varieties produced in Ecuador. Petroecuador expects that invoking the clause will shield it from penalties and potential contract breaches. The emergency declaration will remain in effect for up to 60 days and aims to allocate resources to mitigate the impact of the force majeure event on hydrocarbon exploration, production, transportation, and marketing, according to Petroecuador. The oil spill was caused by a landslide that ruptured a pipeline amid heavy rains. Persistent rainfall across Ecuador has led to severe flooding and landslides, resulting in fatalities and widespread damage. The most affected regions are in western Ecuador, including the provinces of Manabí, Guayas, Los Ríos, El Oro, Esmeraldas, Loja, Chimborazo, Cotopaxi, Pichincha, and Imbabura. As of March 19, the National Secretariat of Risk Management (SGR) reported 20 fatalities, 6 missing persons, 95 injured, 306 evacuees, and a total of 108 227 people affected. Additionally, 29 984 houses sustained damage, including 138 that were destroyed. The spill in the El Vergel sector of Quinindé impacted 32 km (20 miles) and at least five rivers, according to the Ministry of the Environment. Initial reports suggested the spill occurred on March 15, but it was later confirmed that a landslide on March 13 ruptured the pipeline, causing the leak. By March 17, Quinindé Mayor Ronald Montero stated that around 15 000 people had been affected by the oil spill in Esmeraldas. At least 2 000 of them live along the riverbanks, where water contamination with oil has been reported. Esmeraldas Mayor Vicko Villacis told Teleamazonas on March 18 that around 500 000 people had been affected, with many losing access to potable water in a region highly dependent on rivers. He estimated the spill at roughly 200 000 barrels. The pipeline rupture has caused the worst oil spill in Ecuador’s coastal region in eight years, prompting an environmental emergency. It has also disrupted drinking water services and impacted some beaches near Esmeraldas. Petroecuador, which has not disclosed the volume of oil spilled, deployed tanker trucks to recover as much crude as possible in affected areas where many residents depend on fishing for subsistence. The company announced that three ships would start delivering drinking water to Esmeraldas on March 19.The National Emergency Operations Committee (COE) instructed the Ministry of the Environment to declare an “environmental emergency” across Esmeraldas province and the Mangroves Estuary River Wildlife Refuge, which hosts more than 250 species, including otters, howler monkeys, armadillos, frigate birds, and pelicans. The COE also ordered the temporary closure of Las Palmas, Camarones, and Las Piedras beaches. “There are no life forms in the water” of two affected rivers, where “a mixture of oil and water circulates,” marine biologist Eduardo Rebolledo from the Catholic University of Esmeraldas told a local TV channel. “In rural Esmeraldas, drinking water is scarce, and residents heavily depend on river water,” he added.

Containership oil spill contaminates vessels at Keelung Port - A containership docked at Keelung Port has spilled oil during refuelling, contaminating several nearby vessels on 16 March. The Port of Keelung Taiwan International Ports Corporation received an alert regarding a suspected oil spill from the 1,675 teu Kanway Global on 16 March. Furthermore, the incident has raised concerns about the port’s environmental management and operational safety. According to the local environmental protection bureau, approximately 100 liters of heavy oil leaked into the harbor during the fuel barge connection procedure. In response, containment booms and oil-absorbent materials have been deployed to minimize environmental and operational disruptions. The three affected pilot boats will require drydocking for maintenance, while the other vessels have delayed their departures until the clean-up is completed. As reported, the containership oil spill affected multiple vessels, including TS Pusan, TS Surabaya, YM Immense, and three pilot boats all of which had their hulls and mooring lines contaminated.

Red Sea tensions push oil prices higher -Oil prices traded higher on Monday after the United States vowed to keep attacking Yemen’s Houthis until the Iran-aligned group ends its assaults on shipping. Brent futures rose 56 cents, or 0.8 per cent, to $71.14 a barrel by 0800 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 56 cents, also 0.8 per cent, to $67.74 a barrel. The US airstrikes, which the Houthi-run health ministry said killed at least 53 people, are the biggest US military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump took office in January. One US official told Reuters the campaign might run for weeks. Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea have disrupted global commerce and set off a costly campaign by the US military to intercept missiles and drones. Oil prices rose slightly last week, snapping a three-week losing streak fed by concern over a global economic slowdown driven by escalating trade tension between the US and other nations. Both benchmarks pared some gains after rising more than 1 per cent in early Asian trade as China reported a mixed start to the year. Industrial output slowed in January-February, while retail sales growth accelerated slightly, government data showed on Monday. The state council, or cabinet, unveiled what it called a “special action plan” on Sunday in a bid to boost domestic consumption and economic recovery amid a burst of US trade tariffs against China, among key trading partners. That effort has threatened to upset the global trade order. “The oil market is thus in a balance between the negative effects of Trump’s tariffs versus the positive effects of Chinese simulative measures,” “It seems that the positive political signals from China on stimulus there is set to lift Brent crude up and out of the depressed range it has traded in over the past 8-9 trading days,” Schieldrop said in a note on Monday. Analysts at Goldman Sachs cut oil price forecasts, saying they expected the US economy to grow slower than expected, due to the tariffs imposed on countries such as Canada, China and Mexico. “We reduce by $5 our December 2025 forecast for Brent to $71/bbl (WTI to $67), our Brent range to $65 to $80, and our 2026 average forecast to $68 for Brent (WTI to $64),” the analysts said in a note. Oil demand was expected to grow at a slower pace than previously expected, while supply from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies (OPEC+) was expected to exceed forecasts, the Goldman analysts said.

The Oil Market Traded Higher After China Released a New Policy Plan -- The oil market on Monday traded higher after China announced plans to increase domestic consumption and the Trump administration vowed to keep attacking Yemen’s Houthi rebels. China released a policy plan aimed at reviving consumption by raising wages, increasing pensions and creating incentives for childbirth, while also reporting increased industrial output and higher retail sales in the first two months of the year. The market was also well supported by the news that the Trump administration launched military strikes against the Houthis on Saturday in response to the group’s attacks against Red Sea shipping. The market opened higher and breached its previous highs as it rallied to a high of $68.37 in overnight trading. The market later traded to a low of $67.25 by mid-day and settled in a sideways trading range during the remainder of the session. The April WTI contract settled up 40 cents at $67.58 and the May Brent contract settled up 49 cents at $71.07. The product markets ended the session in positive territory, with the heating oil market settling up 3.72 cents at $2.2038 and the RB market settling up 3.25 cents at $2.1812. U.S. Defense Secretary, Pete Hegseth, said the United States will keep attacking Yemen’s Houthis until they end attacks on shipping, as the Iran-aligned group signaled it could escalate in response to deadly U.S. strikes the day before. The airstrikes, which the Houthi-run health ministry said killed at least 53 people, are the biggest U.S. military operation in the Middle East since President Donald Trump took office in January. One U.S. official told Reuters the campaign might continue for weeks. President Trump said that Iran will be held responsible and face “dire” consequences for any further attacks by Yemen’s Houthis. On Sunday, Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said that his militants would target U.S. ships in the Red Sea as long as the U.S. continues its attacks on Yemen. Meanwhile, Hossein Salami, the top commander of Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, said the Houthis made their own decisions. He said “We warn our enemies that Iran will respond decisively and destructively if they carry out their threats.” United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres on Sunday called for “utmost restraint and a cessation of all military activities” in Yemen and warned new escalation could “fuel cycles of retaliation that may further destabilize Yemen and the region, and pose grave risks to the already dire humanitarian situation in the country.”U.S. President Donald Trump said he has no intention of creating exemptions on steel and aluminum tariffs and said reciprocal and sectoral tariffs will be imposed on April 2^nd.U.S. President Donald Trump said he plans to speak to Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday and discuss ending the war in Ukraine, with territorial concessions by Ukraine and control of the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant likely to feature prominently in the talks, after positive talks between U.S. and Russian officials in Moscow.Goldman Sachs lowered its December 2025 and average 2026 forecasts for Brent and WTI crude oil prices, citing slower oil demand growth prospects and expectations of higher OPEC+ supply. The bank expects Brent crude at $71/barrel in December, down $5 from its previous forecast, and sees WTI at $67/barrel. It also cut its 2026 average Brent forecast to $68/barrel from $73/barrel, and WTI to $64/barrel from $68/barrel.

Oil rises as Trump says Iran will be held responsible for any future Houthi attacks – Oil prices rose on Monday after President Donald Trump said the U.S. would hold OPEC member Iran responsible for any future attack by the Houthis, a militant group in Yemen that has launched missile strikes on commercial shipping in the Red Sea and on Israel. U.S. crude oil futures rose 40 cents, or 0.6%, to close at $67.58 per barrel. Global benchmark Brent gained 49 cents, or 0.69%, at settle at $71.07 per barrel. "Every shot fired by the Houthis will be looked upon, from this point forward, as being a shot fired from the weapons and leadership of IRAN," Trump said in a post on social media platform Truth Social. "IRAN will be held responsible, and suffer the consequences, and those consequences will be dire!" Trump's threat comes after the U.S. launched a new wave of airstrikes against the Houthis over the weekend. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth said Sunday the U.S. campaign will continue until the militant group halts its attacks. "This campaign is about freedom of navigation and restoring deterrence," Hegseth told Fox News' "Sunday Morning Futures." "The minute the Houthis say we'll stop shooting at your ships, we'll stop shooting at your drones, this campaign will end. But until then, it will be unrelenting." The Houthis began targeting commercial shipping traversing the Red Sea in late 2023 in support of Hamas, after the Palestinian militant group launched a surprise attack on southern Israel and Israel responded with a ground and air campaign in Gaza. The Houthis and Hamas are both allied with Iran. Trump has reimposed a "maximum pressure" campaign against Iran with the goal of driving down the Islamic Republic's oil exports. Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent recently said the Trump administration's goal is to collapse Iran's economy. The White House believes Iran is pursuing a nuclear weapon, an allegation the Islamic Republic denies. Trump's national security advisor, Mike Waltz, said Sunday that "all options are on the table" to ensure Iran does not acquire a nuclear bomb. "We cannot have a situation that would result in an arms race across the Middle East in terms of nuclear proliferation," Waltz said on ABC's "This Week." Trump has said he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran. In 2018, the president withdrew the U.S. from the nuclear deal negotiated by President Barack Obama, an agreement called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

Oil prices ease 1% as Ukraine peace talks offset Mideast instability worries - Oil prices eased about 1% on Tuesday as U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin discussed moves to end the three-year-old war in Ukraine, which could result in a possible easing of sanctions on Russian fuel exports. Earlier in the day, prices hit a two-week high on worries that instability in the Middle East could reduce oil supplies, and hopes that economic stimulus plans in China and Germany could boost demand for the fuel in two of the world’s biggest economies. Brent futures fell 52 cents, or 0.7%, to $70.55 a barrel by 12:33 p.m. EDT (1633 GMT), while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 66 cents, or 1.0%, to $66.92. Even if the U.S. and Russia work out a ceasefire in Ukraine, many analysts said they expect it will take a long while before Russian energy exports increase in a major way. “Russian fossil fuels might at some stage resurge in abundance without sanction shackles, but … (that) does not mean the energy largesse will be lifted,” analysts at oil broker PVM said in a note. Russia produced about 9.2 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude in 2024, down from a recent high of 9.8 million bpd in 2022 and a record 10.6 million bpd in 2016, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) data going back to 1997. In the Middle East, U.S. President Trump vowed to continue the U.S. assault on Yemen’s Houthis unless they end their attacks on ships in the Red Sea. Trump said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks carried out by the Houthi group that it backs in Yemen. If the U.S. acts against Iran, or the Houthis act against other Arab producers, global oil supplies could decline. Iran, a member of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), produced about 3.3 million bpd of crude in 2024, according to the U.S. EIA. Elsewhere in the Middle East, Israeli air strikes in Gaza killed over 400 people, Palestinian health authorities said, as attacks ended a weeks-long standoff over extending a ceasefire that halted fighting in January. In Nigeria, an OPEC member, a blast struck the Trans Niger oil pipeline, its owner confirmed on Tuesday. The pipeline can transport around 450,000 bpd from onshore fields to the Bonny export terminal. In Germany, Europe’s biggest economy, parliament approved plans for a massive spending surge, throwing off decades of fiscal conservatism in hopes of reviving economic growth. In China, the world’s second biggest economy, retail sales growth quickened in January-February in a welcome sign for policymakers’ efforts to boost domestic consumption even as joblessness rose and factory output eased, underscoring the strains on an economy facing fresh U.S. tariffs. In the U.S., the world’s biggest economy, U.S. single-family homebuilding rebounded sharply in February amid a thaw in winter weather, but rising construction costs from tariffs and labor shortages threaten the recovery. The Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) warned that U.S. tariffs would reduce economic growth in the U.S., Canada and Mexico, and weigh on global energy demand. Analysts at energy data and analytics firm Wood Mackenzie projected Brent crude oil prices would average $73 per barrel in 2025, down $7 per barrel from 2024 due to U.S. tariff policies and OPEC+ plans to boost output. Earlier this month, OPEC+, which includes OPEC and allies like Russia and Kazakhstan, decided to proceed with a planned oil output increase in April.

The Market Weighed Instability Against Peace Talks to End the War in Ukraine - The oil market posted an outside trading day as the market weighed the instability in the Middle East against the U.S.-Russia peace talks seeking to end the war in Ukraine. The market rallied in overnight trading and breached its previous highs as it posted a high of $68.72. The market was well supported after President Donald Trump on Monday vowed to continue the U.S. assault on Yemen’s Houthis unless they end their attacks on ships in the Red Sea. President Trump said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks carried out by the Houthi group. The market was further supported by the Israeli air strikes in Gaza that ended a weeks long standoff over extending a ceasefire that halted fighting in January. However, the market later gave up its sharp gains and breached its previous low as it sold off to a low of $66.73 in afternoon trading. The market traded lower as President Trump spoke with his Russian counterpart about a possible Ukraine ceasefire. The crude market later bounced off its low and retraced some of its losses ahead of the close amid reports that while the U.S and Russia agreed that the war between Russia and Ukraine needs to end with a “lasting peace” and further negotiations would begin immediately, Russia stopped short from agreeing to the broader 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine said it was ready to implement. The April WTI contract settled down 68 cents at $66.90 and the May Brent contract settled down 51 cents at $70.56. The product markets ended lower, with the heating oil market settling down 93 points at $2.1945 and the RB market settling down 1.28 cents at $2.1684. The White House said U.S. President Donald Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed in a call on Tuesday that the war between Russia and Ukraine needs to end with a “lasting peace” and talks to achieve that goal will begin immediately in the Middle East. The two leaders agreed to seek a limited 30-day ceasefire against energy and infrastructure targets in Ukraine. Russia’s President Vladimir Putin stopped short of accepting a broader U.S. backed 30-day ceasefire that Ukraine has said it is ready to accept. He emphasized that the “complete cessation of foreign military assistance and the provision of intelligence information to Ukraine is a condition for any permanent peace deal.Palestinian health authorities said Israeli airstrikes pounded Gaza and killed more than 400 people on Tuesday, ending weeks of relative calm after talks to secure a permanent ceasefire stalled. Israel and Palestinian militant group Hamas each accused the other of breaching the truce, which had broadly held since January. Hamas, which still holds 59 of the 250 or so hostages Israel says the group seized in its October 7, 2023 attack, accused Israel of jeopardizing efforts by mediators to negotiate a permanent deal to end the fighting, but the group made no threat of retaliation. Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said he ordered strikes because Hamas had rejected proposals to secure a ceasefire extension during faltering talks. Egypt and Qatar, mediators in the ceasefire deal along with the U.S., condemned the Israeli assault. Meanwhile, U.N. Under-Secretary-General, Tom Fletcher, said the return to hostilities in Gaza must cease and humanitarian aid and commercial essentials be allowed to enter the embattled territory.

Oil ends lower after Russia agrees to cease-fire on Ukraine's energy infrastructure Oil futures finished with a loss on Tuesday as Russia's temporary cease-fire on Ukraine's energy infrastructure lifted the possibility that the U.S. will ease sanctions on the flow of crude from Moscow.Prices for oil gave up early gains on growing tensions in the Middle East following U.S. attacks on Iran-backed Houthi rebels in Yemen over the weekend that threatened to disrupt crude flow in the oil-rich region.

• -- West Texas Intermediate crude CL00 for April delivery CL.1 CLJ25 declined by 68 cents, or 1%, to settle at $66.90 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, after ending Monday 0.6% higher.
• -- May Brent crude BRN00 BRNK25, the global benchmark, fell 51 cents, or 0.7%, at $70.56 a barrel on ICE Futures Europe.
• -- April gasoline RBJ25 shed 0.6% to $2.17 a gallon, while April heating oil HOJ25 lost 0.4% to $2.19 a gallon.
• -- Natural gas for April delivery NGJ25 settled at $4.05 per million British thermal units, up nearly 0.9%.

During a call with U.S. President Donald Trump Tuesday, Russian President Vladimir Putin agreed to a limited cease-fire against Ukraine's energy infrastructure.The White House said the two leaders agreed that the movement to peace will begin with an energy and infrastructure cease-fire and that talks toward a "permanent peace" would start immediately."The rationale here is that any peace progress would increase the chances of removing sanctions on Russian oil shipments, increasing global supplies," said Fawad Razaqzada, market analyst at City Index and FOREX.com, in emailed comments before news of the call's outcome. Terry Haines of Pangaea Policy, meanwhile, said stopping attacks on energy and infrastructure is important largely because it "lessens the possibility of nuclear mistakes, real or not, and allows civilians to breathe easier, at least temporarily."Oil prices had traded higher early Tuesday on the back of "multiple geopolitical risk[s], including Israel launching a series of military strikes across Gaza, which broke their truce agreement, [and] Russia stating that they would only come to a cease-fire if arms were cut off to Ukraine," Alex Hodes, director of energy-market strategy for StoneX, said in a Tuesday newsletter. President Donald Trump has also pushed U.S. forces to target Houthi rebels, he noted.The U.S. over the weekend launched strikes on Houthi rebels in Yemen, raising the risk of disruptions to oil flow in the region. Trump on Monday said he would hold Iran responsible for any future attacks by the Houthis in Yemen, who have targeted shipping in the Red Sea."A potential escalation with Iran is precisely what could cause long-term disruption in the oil market," Samer Hasn, senior market analyst at XS.com, said in emailed commentary."As tensions between Iran and the United States escalate to the point of direct military conflict, two scenarios could emerge if a historic agreement is not reached - which remains highly unlikely - such as tightening strict restrictions on Iranian oil exports" or targeting nuclear energy facilities, he said. "If the situation spirals out of control and we face a direct military escalation against Iran, this could involve targeting oil facilities and supply lines, whether in Iran itself or the region."

Oil prices dip as Russia eases energy attack risks - Oil prices edged lower on Wednesday after Russia agreed to a U.S. proposal to halt attacks on Ukrainian energy infrastructure, raising the possibility of increased Russian oil supply in global markets. Brent crude futures slipped 0.16% to $69.97 a barrel by 1130 GMT, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude dropped 0.18% to $66.78. The decline followed Russian President Vladimir Putin’s decision to stop targeting Ukrainian energy facilities, though he did not commit to the full 30-day ceasefire sought by U.S. President Donald Trump. The agreement eases concerns over supply disruptions, but Russian oil exports remain constrained by sanctions. While the move signals a step toward market stability, immediate changes in global energy flows are unlikely. Meanwhile, fears of an economic slowdown pressured oil prices further. U.S. tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China have added to concerns about weaker global trade and energy demand. Investors are also focused on the U.S. Federal Reserve’s policy meeting, where interest rates are expected to remain unchanged in the 4.25%-4.50% range. Geopolitical tensions in the Middle East continue to add uncertainty. Israeli airstrikes in Gaza, which ended a brief ceasefire, and ongoing disruptions in the Red Sea have raised concerns about supply routes. Trump also reiterated U.S. military actions against Yemen’s Houthis and warned Iran against further involvement. In the U.S., crude stockpiles rose by 4.59 million barrels in the week ending March 14, while gasoline inventories fell by 1.71 million barrels and distillate stocks declined by 2.15 million barrels, according to industry data. The Energy Information Administration’s official report is due later in the day.

WTI Flat As Crude Stocks Keep Rising; Pump-Prices Tumble For 4th Straight Week - Oil futures are chopping sideways (after yesterday's tumble) with increased Middle East tensions countered by bearish factors like Putin's agreement not to attack Ukrainian energy facilities and OPEC+ plans to start raising output in less than two weeks time.The API report overnight was "mostly bearish, however being offset by draws in inventories at Cushing as well as gasoline and distillates," Dennis Kissler of BOK Financial says in a note. "Look for more of a choppy trade as Russian/Ukraine talks proceed."Will the official data back that up? API

• Crude +4.6mm
• Cushing -1.1mm
• Gasoline -1.7mm
• Distillates -2.1mm

DOE

• Crude +1.745mm
• Cushing -1.01mm
• Gasoline -527k
• Distillates -2.81mm

Crude inventories rose for the 7th week in the last 8but stocks at the critical Cushing Hub fell for the second week in a row. Products saw drawdowns for the 3rd week in a row...Graphs Source: Bloomberg. Total crude stocks are at their highest since July 2024... US Crude production remains near record highs... WTI is hovering around yesterday's lows after the big roller-coaster run... Finally, we note that US gas prices continued their downward trend for a fourth straight week, with prices currently hovering around $3 per gallon, according to gas price-tracking website GasBuddy.“The national average is now $3.02/gal, while diesel averages $3.56/gal,” Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis at GasBuddy, said in a March 17 post on X. “The most common price for gas: $2.99. For diesel, $3.69/gal. 34 states see average #gasprices below $3.”Data from GasBuddy shows that the U.S. national monthlyprice of gas at the beginning of February and March was lower than last year’s prices, and also lower than the same time in 2023.In a March 17 statement on the situation, the White House said that President Donald Trump is “delivering needed economic relief.”“After years of soaring prices and economic pain, the Trump Administration’s focus on cutting regulations and unleashing American energy is leading to stability for Americans’ bottom lines,” it said.

Oil rises on US fuel demand, Fed rate decision caps gains (Reuters) - Oil prices edged up on Wednesday after U.S. government data showed a draw in fuel inventories, but the Federal Reserve's decision to hold interest rates steady capped gains. Brent crude futures settled up 22 cents, or 0.31%, to $70.78 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) closed 26 cents, or 0.39%, higher at $67.16. U.S. crude stocks rose by 1.7 million barrels last week to 437 million barrels, U.S. government data showed, exceeding the 512,000-barrel rise analysts had expected. However, distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil, fell by 2.8 million barrels last week to 114.8 million barrels, far surpassing expectations for a 300,000-barrel drop. "The EIA showed a net draw including products, which is incrementally bullish," The Israeli military resumed ground operations in the central and southern Gaza Strip, a day after local health workers said more than 400 Palestinians were killed in airstrikes that shattered a ceasefire. U.S. President Donald Trump this week vowed to continue his country's assault on Yemen's Houthis and said he would hold Iran responsible for any attacks carried out by the group that has disrupted shipping in the Red Sea. "Traders are being forced to refocus on Mideast geopolitical risks as Israel and the United States launch attacks on Gaza and Yemen, respectively," The Fed held rates steady at the 4.25%-4.50% range as expected, but policymakers signaled they still anticipate reducing borrowing costs by half a percentage point by the end of this year in the context of slowing economic growth and a downturn in inflation. U.S. tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China have raised fears of recession, and worries of slower energy demand weighed on oil prices. Investors also watched Ukraine ceasefire talks. Russia agreed to Trump's proposal that Moscow and Kyiv temporarily stop attacking each other's energy infrastructure, a move analysts say increases chances for peace and eventually for Russian oil to re-enter global markets. However, the prospect of a full ceasefire remained uncertain. Russia and Ukraine accused each other of violating a new agreement to refrain from attacks on energy targets, hours after it was agreed by Trump and Russian President Vladimir Putin. A prisoner swap went ahead. "Even if a deal is struck, it will likely take some time before Russian energy exports increase in a significant way, with the short-term impact being around diversion of flows in order to attract better pricing," Russia is among the world's top oil suppliers, but its output has waned during the war, which resulted in sanctions on Russian energy.

Markets: Oil prices gain as US inventories drop -- Oil prices edged higher on Thursday, supported by a sharper-than-expected decline in United States distillate inventories and renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East.As of 2:35 pm AEDT (3:35 am GMT), Brent crude futures climbed $0.39, or 0.6%, to $71.17 per barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude gained $0.27, or 0.4%, to $67.43 per barrel.The gains followed data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) showing a significant drawdown in distillate inventories, which include diesel and heating oil. Stockpiles fell by 2.8 million barrels last week, far exceeding analysts’ expectations of a 100,000-barrel decline. However, U.S. crude inventories rose by 1.7 million barrels, surpassing the forecasted increase of 1.1 million barrels.Geopolitical risks also contributed to oil price gains, with tensions escalating in the Middle East. Israel launched a fresh ground offensive in Gaza on Wednesday, ending a ceasefire that had lasted nearly two months. Meanwhile, the U.S. conducted airstrikes against Houthi targets in Yemen in response to attacks on commercial vessels in the Red Sea. U.S. President Donald Trump has warned that Iran will be held accountable for any future Houthi actions.Meanwhile, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy agreed to a partial ceasefire in Russia’s invasion of Ukraine on a call.

The Expiring April WTI Contract Traded Off the Board up 1.64% - The expiring April WTI contract on Thursday traded higher and went off the board up 1.64%. The market was well supported by the news that the U.S. issued new sanctions against Iran. The market also remained supported by the renewed tensions in the Middle East, with Israel launching a new ground operation on Wednesday in Gaza. The oil market traded higher in overnight trading but found some resistance amid the strength in the dollar after the Federal Reserve indicated it was in no rush to cut rates further this year due to uncertainties surrounding U.S. tariffs. The market posted a low of $66.88 by mid-morning. However, the market bounced off its low and rallied higher after the U.S. issued Iran-related sanctions, targeting entities including for the first time a Chinese teapot or independent refinery and vessels that supplied crude such processing plants. The market rallied to a high of $68.47 by mid-day and settled in a sideways trading range ahead of the April contract’s expiration at the close. The April WTI contract expired up $1.10 at $68.26, while the May WTI contract settled up $1.16 at $68.07 and the May Brent contract settled up $1.22 at $72.00. The product markets ended higher, with the heating oil market settling up 2.24 cents at $2.2543 and the RB market settling up 2.15 cents at $2.1911. Kremlin aide Yuri Ushakov said the next round of U.S.-Russia talks will take place on March 24^th in the Saudi capital Riyadh and at an expert level. Separately, Ukraine’s President, Volodymyr Zelenskiy, said Ukrainian experts would be present at upcoming talks involving the United States and Russia but will not be in the same room as Russia.OPEC+ issued a new schedule for seven member nations including Russia, Kazakhstan and Iraq to make further oil output cuts to compensate for producing above their agreed levels. The plan will represent monthly cuts of between 189,000 bpd and 435,000 bpd. The scheduled cuts last until June 2026.The Wall Street Journal reported that U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is considering a plan to extend Chevron’s license to pump oil in Venezuela. During a meeting on Wednesday with Chevron CEO Mike Wirth and other industry executives, President Trump expressed openness to reversing his administration’s recent order that gave the company until early April to end its Venezuela operation. According to the report, the Trump administration is also weighing a plan to impose tariffs or other financial penalties on countries that buy oil from Venezuela. These tariffs are intended to make it harder for China or other countries to establish a base in Venezuela and to fortify Chevron and keep oil flowing to the U.S. Data from the Environmental Protection Agency showed that the United States generated fewer renewable blending credits in February versus the prior month. It reported that about 1.12 billion ethanol (D6) blending credits were generated in February, compared with about 1.25 billion in January. Credits generated from biodiesel (D4) blending fell to about 376 million in February from 486 million in January.

Oil prices settle $1 higher after US issues new Iran-related sanctions (Reuters) - Oil prices rose on Thursday after the United States issued new Iran-related sanctions and renewed tensions in the Middle East countered strength in the dollar. Brent crude futures settled up $1.22, or 1.72%, at $72 a barrel. The U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude (WTI) contract for April expired on Thursday, and settled up $1.10 or 1.64% at $68.26. The more actively traded WTI May contract settled up $1.16, or 1.73% at $68.07. The U.S. on Thursday issued Iran-related sanctions, targeting entities including for the first time a Chinese "teapot", or independent refinery, and vessels that supplied crude oil to such processing plants. China is the largest importer of Iranian oil. “Teapot” refiners are private Chinese refineries that are the primary purchasers of Iranian oil. Iran produces more than 3 million barrels per day of crude oil. "We were looking for some kind of catalyst to move and that was the ticket that pushed us back towards the high," Elsewhere, OPEC+ issued a new schedule for seven member nations including Russia, Kazakhstan and Iraq to make further oil output cuts to compensate for pumping above agreed levels. The plan will represent monthly cuts of between 189,000 barrels per day and 435,000 bpd, according to a table on OPEC's web site. The scheduled cuts last until June 2026. Meanwhile, U.S. crude inventories rose 1.7 million barrels, exceeding expectations for an increase of 512,000 barrels in an earlier Reuters poll. Putting a lid on crude prices was the dollar, which inched up after the Federal Reserve indicated on Wednesday it was in no rush to cut interest rates further this year due to uncertainties around U.S. tariffs. The U.S. dollar was up 0.5%, making crude more expensive for foreign buyers. The U.S. central bank left its key interest rate unchanged on Wednesday, a move widely anticipated by the market, but maintained its projection of two 25-basis-point rate cuts by the end of this year. Interest rate cuts typically boost economic activity and energy demand. Some analysts, however, are expecting an uneven oil price uptrend in the near term. "I am expecting a choppy upward drift in the oil markets right now," said Kelvin Wong, senior market analyst at OANDA, adding that stimulus measures by China and renewed hostilities between Israel and Hamas were bullish price drivers. Global risk premiums rose after Israel launched a new ground operation on Wednesday in Gaza after breaking a ceasefire of nearly two months. "Amid the prevailing uncertainty, the risk of sanctions is once again coming into focus, as the Trump administration adopts a tougher stance on Venezuela, Iran, and Russia," J.P. Morgan analysts said in a note on Thursday. The U.S. kept up airstrikes on Houthi targets in Yemen in retaliation for the group's attacks on ships in the Red Sea. U.S. President Donald Trump has also vowed to hold Iran responsible for future Houthi attacks. Trump's push to impose tariffs on Canada, Mexico and China has raised recession fears, weighing on oil prices. "Tariff concerns seem to be holding oil back a bit," J.P. Morgan said it expects Brent prices to recover into the mid-to-high $70s over the next couple of months, before dipping below $70 and ending the year in the mid-$60s, averaging around $73.

Oil Prices Slip After US Fed Rate Decision And Stronger Dollar --Crude oil prices fell on Friday as a stronger US dollar and the Federal Reserve’s decision to hold interest rates steady fuelled fresh concerns about the trajectory of the US economy and global oil demand. Brent crude dropped by 0.1%, trading at $71.76 per barrel, down from $71.83 at the previous session’s close. Similarly, the US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate (WTI), slipped by 0.1% to $68.26 per barrel, compared to its prior session close of $68.33. The market downturn was compounded by lingering uncertainty over potential trade actions by former US President Donald Trump, including the imposition of new tariffs, which could dampen global oil demand. Crude prices faced additional pressure from a strengthening dollar, which gained 0.2% to open at 104 on the US dollar index after the Fed’s decision on Wednesday to maintain its benchmark interest rate at 4.25% to 4.50%. The Fed also raised its inflation and unemployment projections for 2025 while lowering its economic growth forecast. Fed Chairman Jerome Powell acknowledged concerns about tariffs, noting that they could strain consumer spending and overall economic performance. Meanwhile, Trump urged the central bank to cut rates, criticising the decision to hold them steady. Despite the downward pressure, new US sanctions on Iran and OPEC+’s planned production cuts helped limit further losses by raising concerns about tighter supply. The US Treasury Department imposed sanctions on 19 entities and vessels linked to Iran’s oil exports, while the State Department sanctioned a Chinese oil terminal for purchasing and storing Iranian crude from a sanctioned vessel. Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at the Australia and New Zealand Banking Group, predicted a potential 1 million barrels per day decline in Iran’s oil exports due to these tighter restrictions. He noted that while rising OPEC+ output could counterbalance the decline, planned production cuts by OPEC+ members are likely to keep overall output stable in the coming months.

Oil Futures Fall Amid Weak Demand, Ample Supplies -- Oil futures fell Friday morning amid by ample supplies and global weak demand, despite the United States imposing a fourth round of sanctions on Iranian oil trade and a Chinese teapot refinery, which is expected to limit crude availability. The April NYMEX WTI futures contract fell by $0.35 to $67.72 bbl while the front-month ICE Brent futures contract dropped by $0.43 $71.57 bbl. April RBOB futures contract fell $0.0155 to $2.1756 gallon and April ULSD futures decreased by $0.0136 to $2.2407 gallon. The U.S. Dollar Index rose by 0.12% to 103.62 against a basket of foreign currencies. On Thursday, March 20, the U.S Department of State imposed sanctions on China-based Shandong Shouguang Luqing Petrochemical Co., Ltd., a teapot oil refinery, "for purchasing and refining hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of Iranian crude oil." The sanctions also include 12 entities and one individual, as well as eight vessels shipping millions of barrels of Iranian oil to China. "These vessels--are part of Iran's "shadow fleet" of tankers that supply teapot refineries, including Luqing Petrochemical," the DOS stated. Meanwhile, Iran is expected to respond in the coming days to a letter from U.S. President Donald Trump seeking talks on Tehran's nuclear program, Foreign Minister Seyed Abbas Araghchi said on Thursday, while ruling out direct negotiations under sanctions, China's Xinhua news agency reported. Stricter sanctions on Iranian, Russian and Venezuelan oil trade have been expected to limit supplies and put upward pressure on global oil futures. However, a combination of global weak demand, led by China, uncertainty on the trade tariffs and geopolitical events in the Middle East have maintained oil prices bearish. Abundant supplies of commercial crude oil reported by the Energy Information Administration and American Petroleum Institute this week also have offset gains seen in the oil futures market the prior trading day.

Oil prices rise for second consecutive week on expected tighter supply (Reuters) - Oil prices settled higher on Friday and recorded a second consecutive weekly gain as fresh U.S. sanctions on Iran and the latest output plan from the OPEC+ producer group raised expectations of tighter supply. Brent crude futures rose 16 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at $72.16 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 21 cents, or 0.3%, to $68.28. On a weekly basis, Brent rose 2.1% and WTI about 1.6%, their biggest gains since the first week of the year. On Thursday, the U.S. Treasury announced new Iran-related sanctions, which for the first time targeted an independent Chinese refiner among other entities and vessels involved in supplying Iranian crude oil to China. That probably sent a message to the market that Chinese companies, the largest buyers of Iranian oil, are not immune to sanctions pressure from the U.S. It was Washington's fourth round of sanctions against Tehran since President Donald Trump in February promised "maximum pressure" and pledged to drive Iran's oil exports down to zero. The tightening U.S. sanctions regime will probably keep some market participants involved in shipping Iranian crude more cautious going forward. Analysts at ANZ Bank said they expect a 1 million barrels per day (bpd) reduction in Iranian crude oil exports because of tighter sanctions. Vessel tracking service Kpler estimated Iranian crude oil exports above 1.8 million bpd in February. Oil prices were also supported by the new OPEC+ plan for seven members to cut output further to compensate for producing more than agreed levels. The plan would represent monthly cuts of between 189,000 bpd and 435,000 bpd until June 2026. The plan likely caps the upside in OPEC+ production over the coming months, UBS's Staunovo said. OPEC+ this month confirmed that eight of its members would proceed with a monthly increase of 138,000 bpd from April, reversing some of the 5.85 million bpd of output cuts agreed in a series of steps since 2022 to support the market. Oil market participants will want more proof of Iraq, Kazakhstan and Russia complying with cuts announced on Thursday to gain more support from the plan. Kazakhstan's oil output has reached a record high in March on the back of oilfield expansion, further exceeding OPEC+ production quotas, two industry sources told Reuters.

Ukraine Hit Russian Refinery Supplying '50%' of Moscow's Fuel: Kyiv - Ukrainian drones struck a Russian oil refinery in Moscow that supplies the capital with about half its fuel, Kyiv's military said.The strike is part of an ongoing campaign by Ukraine to attack facilities on Russian soil that are "involved in ensuring armed aggression against Ukraine," Kyiv said. Oil hubs and refineries have boosted Russia's economy and supplied fuel to President Vladimir Putin's military since the conflict began on February 24, 2022.Ukraine's Unmanned Systems Forces worked with the Security Service of Ukraine (SBU) and military intelligence (HUR), to conduct the drone strike on the Moscow Oil Refinery overnight on March 11, the General Staff of Ukraine's Armed Forces said.The general staff said the Moscow Oil Refinery is capable of processing 11 million metric tons of oil per year and covers 40 to 50 percent of the capital's gasoline and diesel supplies.A few days later, on March 14, Ukrainian drones struck the Tuapse Oil Refinery in Russia's Krasnodar Krai, dealing a blow to President Vladimir Putin.It is one of the country's largest oil hubs with a processing capacity of 12 million tons of oil per year. The Rosneft-owned oil refinery, which is still reported to be burning today as a result of the strike, is of strategic importance for the Russian military, providing fuel to Putin's prized Black Sea Fleet.Ukraine's drone attacks on Russia have persisted as U.S. officials engage in talks with Moscow aimed at bringing an end to the war, which is now in its fourth year.Ukraine has agreed to support a Washington-backed proposal for a 30-day ceasefire in the war.President Donald Trump has threatened to hit Russia with "large-scale sanctions" and tariffs if his Russian counterpart doesn't agree to a ceasefire and peace deal.Yuri Ushakov, an aide to Putin, said during an interview on state TV on Thursday that he was wary of the notion of a temporary ceasefire. He said he told Mike Waltz, Trump's national security adviser, that he considers it to be "nothing more than a temporary respite for the Ukrainian military, nothing more.""We believe that our goal is a long-term peaceful settlement; we strive for this, a peaceful settlement that takes into account the legitimate interests of our country, our well-known concerns," Ushakov said, according to Russian state-run news agency Interfax."It seems to me that no one needs any steps that imitate peaceful actions in this situation," Ushakov added, noting that he was giving his "personal position" on the matter, not Putin's.

Ukrainian Drones Set Fire to Russian Oil Depot Near Damaged CPC Station – A Ukrainian drone strike started a fire at a Russian oil depot connected to the Caspian Pipeline Consortium pumping station damaged in an attack last month. The depot, located in the village of Kavkazskaya, halted all operations early Wednesday, according to a statement from the regional emergency service. The facility was used to send Russian crude to the Kropotkinskaya pumping station, part of the CPC export conduit, until the station halted operations in mid-February.

‘It No Longer Exists’: Massive Fire Wipes Out Oil Depot in Russia’s Krasnodar Region After Drone Attack – kyivpost - A massive fire has engulfed the Naftatrans oil depot in the village of Kavkazskaya in Russia’s Krasnodar Krai following a drone attack, eyewitnesses told Russian independent ASTRA Telegram channel.The fire broke out after a Ukrainian drone attack on Wednesday, March 19, according to the regional operational headquarters. Initial reports indicated that the fire covered about 20 square meters, damaging a pipeline between storage tanks.Authorities initially stated there were no casualties and that the facility’s fire suppression system had been activated. The fire was classified as a level 4 emergency.However, the situation has since escalated. Witnesses reported a third oil tank exploding on Friday, March 21, sending thick black smoke into the air. “The fire is out of control. The smoke is spreading to the city. We’ve shut our windows and doors and are waiting for instructions,” a resident told ASTRA.Authorities have advised people to stay indoors but have not ordered an evacuation. The nearest homes are about 2 kilometers (1.2 miles) from the site.Firefighters are struggling to contain the blaze. “They can’t put it out. The base is completely on fire – it no longer exists. Everything will burn to the ground,” an eyewitness said on ASTRA. The Naftatrans depot, linked to a railway oil terminal and a pipeline in the Caspian Pipeline Consortium system, was believed to store up to 100,000 tons of petroleum products. Local reports indicate there are casualties among firefighters.

Russia says Ukrainian drone attack on oil depot already violates proposed ceasefire (Reuters) - Russia's foreign ministry said on Thursday that Ukraine had already violated a proposed ceasefire on energy sites in the three-year-old war by attacking a Russian oil depot. Russia's TASS news agency reported foreign ministry spokeswoman Maria Zakharova told state television Channel One that it was up to the United States, which had proposed the ceasefire, to confront Ukraine over its actions. The Kremlin said this week that Russian President Vladimir Putin had agreed in a call with his U.S. counterpart Donald Trump to observe a 30-day ceasefire on energy targets. The accord fell short of a wider agreement that the U.S. had sought, and which was accepted by Ukraine, for a blanket 30-day truce. Firefighters in southern Russia were still battling a blaze at an oil depot triggered by a Ukrainian drone attack, regional authorities said on the Telegram messaging app. "We believe that the Kyiv regime has already broken the ceasefire proposed by the U.S. president," Zakharova said on television, according to TASS. "Now the question is - you will forgive me - how is Washington going to handle this terrorist scum gone mad? How are they going to put them in their place and get them on to something like the right track?" Ukrainian officials have also accused Russia of failing to align their actions with their pledges by launching attacks on civilian targets. Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said on Wednesday that Russian attacks on infrastructure, including hospitals and rail equipment, showed "Putin's words are very different from reality". In earlier comments, Zakharova had described the attack on the oil depot as a "provocation" and an attempt by Ukraine to disrupt peace initiatives. Authorities in the southern Russian region of Krasnodar said a Ukrainian drone attack caused a fire at an oil depot near the village of Kavkazskaya. The depot is a rail terminal for Russian oil supplies to a pipeline linking Kazakhstan to the Black Sea. A statement issued by authorities in the Krasnodar region on Thursday evening said efforts were continuing to bring the blaze under control. The statement said 429 firefighters and 174 pieces of equipment had been drafted to tackle the fire covering 3,750 sq m (40,400 sq ft).

Second Blast Hits Russian Oil Depot Holding 100,000 Tons of Fuel – A second explosion rocked a Russian oil depot in the Kavkazsky district of Krasnodar, which has been on fire for two days following a drone attack. On Telegram, the Krasnodar Krai Operations Centre, a regional government body that coordinates crisis response and emergency management, said an explosion of oil products occurred "due to the depressurization of the burning tank" while firefighters were extinguishing a blaze that had been ongoing since a drone attack on March 19.The Naftatrans oil depot is part of critical infrastructure of southern Russia, and it makes up the Kavkazskaya station, which provides the transport of oil to the pipeline system of the Caspian Pipeline Consortium that ultimately gets shipped for export by sea.The blaze at the depot comes as the U.S., Russia and Ukraine work through the technical details of an agreement to halt attacks against energy infrastructure.On Wednesday, Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky spoke on the phone with U.S. President Donald Trump and said Kyiv was prepared to pause attacks on Russia's energy infrastructure as an initial step toward what he hoped would lead to a "lasting peace."On March 19, drones attacked the Naftatrans oil depot, which reportedly holds 100,000 tons of fuel across its five tanks.The pipeline between two tanks was damaged in the attack, and one of the tanks caught fire, according to Russian independent media outlet Astra.Work at the depot was suspended, and 30 workers on shift were evacuated, with no casualties, The Moscow Times reported, as the area of the fire spread to 10,000 square meters.Two days later, "while extinguishing the fire at the oil depot, an explosion of petroleum products and a release of burning oil occurred due to the rupture of a burning tank in the Kavkazsky district," the operations center said.Three pieces of equipment were damaged, and two firefighters were injured. Some 456 firefighters and 181 equipment units were involved in extinguishing the fire.Local authorities have closed the road to Krasnodar, and nearby residents have been advised to stay indoors and keep their windows closed.

Ceasefire in Doubt as Syrian Troops Occupy Lebanon Border Village, Burn Homes -Yesterday’s clash at the border between the Lebanese Army and the Syrian Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) government’s forces seemingly ended with a ceasefire overnight. Eight Syrian soldiers were killed in the Monday fighting, along with five (some unconfirmed reports say seven) on the Lebanese side. A Lebanese boy was also reported killed, and scores were wounded.The expectation was that the situation would be calming down somewhat, but it didn’t last. HTS fighters once again invaded Lebanon overnight, and by 2 AM they had gone five kilometers deep, occupying much of the Lebanese side of the border town of Hawsh al-Sayyid Ali.Neither HTS nor Syrian state media have indicated why they invaded again so soon after a ceasefire, which said that both defense ministers should consult before any moves along the border. Lebanon’s Army is sending a growing number of reinforcements to areas all throughout the border area, unsure of what is to come.On top of occupying the border town, the mayor of Hawsh al-Sayyid Ali reported that the troops occupied the public school in the area, and over 500 residents have been displaced, fleeing deeper into Lebanon from the invading forces.The HTS forces in the town are reportedly ransacking and burning homes as they go. Though Lebanese forces are deployed to that area, they have so far not gone into the town into the areas the HTS is already occupying.The fighting erupted yesterday when HTS forces on the outskirts of al-Qusayr, a major town near the border, started shelling al-Qasr. Over the weekend, al-Qasr was the site of the deaths of three HTS fighters, who were allegedly kidnapped and summarily executed. The HTS has blamed Hezbollah, though Hezbollah maintains they were not involved in anything going on.The fighting raged around al-Qasr for much of Monday, leading civilians to flee toward the bigger town of Hermel. The Lebanese Army forces in the area returned fire at the Syrian security forces attacking, and gunmen reportedly from Lebanese clans also participated in the fighting.The HTS has been conducting crackdowns among the Shi’ite and Alawite population living in the area along the Lebanon border since they took power in December. The area around al-Qusayr was targeted as a drug smuggling route, with allegations large amounts of Captagon had been smuggled over the border. HTS blamed that on Hezbollah as well.In reality, it seems much of the drug smuggling was being done by clans on both sides of the border, and the crackdowns very much rubbed them the wrong way. This led to some fighting in early February just across the border from al-Qasr, with the clans briefly kidnapping some HTS members. Syria briefly invaded Lebanon at the time.Though this new fighting is broadly over the same issue, official Syrian statements continue to push the narrative that they’re fighting Hezbollah, while in reality it seems it is primarily clans who have at most tangential relationships to them who are resisting HTS incursions into their territory on both sides of the border.

Israeli Armored Vehicles Sweep Into Syria’s Quneitra In Largest Incursion Yet - With growing focus on Israel’s resumption of hostilities against the Gaza Strip, the country has continued its military aggression elsewhere in the region as well. In Syria, there are more attacks, and an even bigger ground invasion.Israel first started invading southern Syria in December, after the Assad government was ousted. Tuesday evening saw the biggest ground force sent into Syrian territory yet in Quneitra Governorate, where roughly 50 armored vehicles from the Israeli Army led the charge into al-Adnaniyah, seizing the town and sweeping through the farmlands in the surrounding area.Locals reported the vehicles were sweeping the area for hours, and expressed concern that this which would end in their forcible displacement from their homes, as has happened in other villages in recently-occupied parts of southern Syria. Israeli tanks were also reported further south, in the area around al-Rafid. It is so far unclear what they are doing in the area, but Israeli troops reportedly took over an old military post in the vicinity, which may be related.Further north, Israel carried out multiple drone strikes against old artillery positioned in Khan Arnabeh. Israeli officials claimed the artillery, which apparently had been abandoned in the area some time ago, “posed a threat” to Israel. Monday evening, Israel also carried out airstrikes against the Daraa Governorate. The main target was the town of Izra, but some strikes were also reported on the outskirts of Daraa City itself. At least four civilians were killed in these strikes, and 18 others wounded. T^he strikes in Daraa too were presented in Israeli reports as targeting old Syrian military installations in the area, though indications are that they hit civilians neighborhoods in both instances.Though Israel’s focus in Syria is mostly on the south, where they’re actively seizing territory, they also were reported to have carried out two airstrikes in the Homs Govenrorate, further to the north. The attacks hit old army outposts outside the villages of Shinshar and Shamsin. It does not appear there were any casualties in those cases.

LIVE: Israel strikes Gaza, killing over 300 including many children --Israel’s surprise attack on Gaza shattered a period of relative calm during the Muslim holy month of Ramadan and raised chances of a full return to fighting in a 17-month war that has caused widespread destruction across Gaza and killed more than 48,000 Palestinians. Here is what all sides are saying about the Israeli attacks.

• At least 326 people have been killed in wave of Israeli attacks across Gaza, Health Ministry says. The number is expected to rise as many remain under the rubble of bombarded buildings.
• Israel, which has enforced a total blockade of Gaza, issues new forced displacement orders for several areas.
• Hamas says Israel carried out a “treacherous” attack on besieged and defenceless civilians in order to overturn the Gaza ceasefire deal. Palestinian Islamic Jihad accuses Israel of “deliberately sabotaging” the ceasefire, which had been in place since January 19.
• Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says he ordered the strikes because of a lack of progress in talks to extend the ceasefire.
• Gaza’s Health Ministry says at least 48,577 Palestinians have been confirmed dead and 112,041 wounded in Israel’s war on Gaza. Gaza’s Government Media Office updated its death toll to more than 61,700, saying thousands of Palestinians missing under the rubble are presumed dead. At least 1,139 people were killed in Israel during the Hamas-led October 7, 2023, attacks and more than 200 were taken captive.

UNICEF official describes a harrowing night of airstrikes -- A United Nations staffer in the Gaza Strip described a “very tough night” as Israel resumed heavy strikes across the territory after a nearly two-month ceasefire. Rosalia Bollen, a communications specialist with the U.N. children’s agency, said she woke up around 2 a.m. to “very loud explosions.” She said the UNICEF bass near the southern city of Rafah “was shaking very heavily.” When the strikes subsided, she heard “people yelling, people screaming and ambulances.” “The bombardments have continued throughout the night,” though at a lower intensity than the initial barrage, she said. “The whole night, there’s been just the constant buzzing of drones and planes flying over.” She said the strikes hit tents and structures housing displaced families. “We’re seeing, as of this morning, at least several dozen children killed,” she said.

Ben Gvir To Rejoin Israeli Government Following Massive Gaza Bombing - Itamar Ben Gvir and his Jewish Power party have agreed to rejoin the Israeli government of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu following the resumption of large-scale Israeli bombings on the besieged Gaza Strip and the mass slaughter of Palestinians.Ben Gvir resigned from his post as national security minister in response to the Gaza ceasefire deal.“We welcome the return of the State of Israel, led by Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, to intense fighting,” Ben Gvir wrote on X. “As we said in recent months when we withdrew: Israel must return to fighting in Gaza: this is the right, moral, ethical and most justified step in order to destroy the terrorist organization Hamas and return our hostages.”According to Haaretz, the Israeli cabinet is set to approve Ben Gvir’s return to the government on Tuesday, and the Knesset is expected to approve it on Wednesday.Ben Gvir is one of the most extreme Israeli politicians and is an outspoken proponent of the ethnic cleansing of Gaza and the establishment of Jewish settlements in Gaza. “I will be very happy to live in Gaza,” Ben Gvir said in an interview last year when discussing the potential of settling the territory.Israel’s massive bombing campaign in Gaza comes over two weeks after Israel imposed a total blockade on all goods entering the Gaza Strip. Ben Gvir welcomed the move and called for the Israeli military to bomb aid stockpiles inside the territory.“The government must also order the bombing of the aid stockpiles that have accumulated in Gaza in enormous quantities during and before the ceasefire, alongside a complete halt of electricity and water,” Ben Gvir said

Israel Lied About Murdered Children To Justify Murdering Children -Caitlin Johnstone -Israel resumed its genocidal campaign of annihilation in Gaza early Tuesday morning, killing hundreds in a matter of hours, including many children. As of this writing, the death toll from this assault is reportedly at least 413. Israel is not even pretending that Hamas violated the ceasefire agreement it signed on to in January, saying instead that the decision to resume the onslaught was made because Hamas had been rejecting a significantly altered new agreement put forward by the Trump administration which would have allowed Israel to postpone moving toward a lasting peace.“ This follows Hamas’s repeated refusal to release our hostages, as well as its rejection of all of the proposals it has received from US Presidential Envoy Steve Witkoff and from the mediators,” reads a statement from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.“Israel will, from now on, act against Hamas with increasing military strength,” Netanyahu said. Of course we all know Israel is not really acting against Hamas; Israel is acting against the entire population of the Gaza Strip. The plan to eliminate all Palestinians in Gaza has been openly confessed to by the president of the United States, who went as far as posting a freakishly disturbing AI-generated music video on social media about the future of Gaza after its US-backed ethnic cleansing. Israel is simply making the enclave as dangerous and uninhabitable as possible so that everyone who lives there will be forced to either leave or die. And this was all planned in advance. As soon as the Gaza ceasefire agreement was announced, the Netanyahu-aligned pundits in Israeli media were already saying they knew for a fact that the prime minister wasn’t going to allow the deal to move on to its second phase. After Netanyahu visited Washington and stayed for nearly a week, the Israeli outlet Haaretz reported that the prime minister was planning to sabotage the ceasefire deal upon his return. Now here we are, watching Netanyahu completely torch the ceasefire after weeks ofactively sabotaging it. Not only was this all planned in advance — it was also propagandized for in advance. Israel and the western political-media class spent days pushing the atrocity propaganda narrative that Hamas had murdered child hostages Kfir and Ariel Bibas in the early weeks of the Gaza onslaught — not just murdered them, but murdered them with their bare hands. To this day, Israel has presented the public with no evidence of any kind that the Bibas siblings were murdered by the bare hands of their captors, rather than by the same Israeli airstrikes that were killing women and children every day in the same area as common sense would suggest. Given Israel’s extensive history of lying about exactly this sort of thing, we can safely assume that the evidence was never presented because there isn’t any evidence.

Israel Makes Its Most Explicit Statement Of Genocidal Intent Yet -Caitlin Johnstone- Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has published an explicit statement of genocidal intent toward the people of Gaza, threatening civilians in the enclave with collective punishment in the form of “total devastation” if they do not find a way to overthrow Hamas and free all Israeli hostages. Katz’s statement reads as follows:“Residents of Gaza, this is your final warning. The first Sinwar destroyed Gaza, and the second Sinwar will bring upon it total ruin. The Israeli Air Force’s attack against Hamas terrorists was only the first step. What follows will be far harsher, and you will bear the full cost.“Evacuation of the population from combat zones will soon resume. If all Israeli hostages are not released and Hamas is not kicked out of Gaza, Israel will act with force you have not known before.“Take the advice of the U.S. President: return the hostages and kick out Hamas, and new options will open up for you — including relocation to other parts of the world for those who choose. The alternative is destruction and total devastation.” When Katz says “Take the advice of the US president,” he is referring to a statement made by President Trump earlier this month which made essentially the same threat addressed “to the People of Gaza,” saying, “A beautiful Future awaits, but not if you hold Hostages. If you do, you are DEAD! Make a SMART decision. RELEASE THE HOSTAGES NOW, OR THERE WILL BE HELL TO PAY LATER!”When I criticized the US president for these remarks which explicitly threaten Gaza’s civilians, I got a deluge of Trump supporters telling me he wasn’t reallytalking about “the people of Gaza” as he said, but was rather speaking only about the ones who are actively holding hostages. Katz’s statement makes it abundantly clear that they were wrong, and that those of us who called a spade a spade at the time were correct.The Israeli defense minister is simply following Trump’s position and reiterating what everyone who isn’t a blinkered partisan hack knew Trump was saying two weeks ago. He is doing this in exactly the same way Benjamin Netanyahu followed Trump’s position on ethnically cleansing Gaza last month by enthusiastically endorsing the plan Trump put forward to permanently remove all Palestinians from the enclave. Trump puts forward the plan, and Israeli officials put it into action.So you’ve got both the US and Israeli governments openly threatening the entire population of the Gaza strip with the war crime of collective punishment if they don’t somehow kick Hamas out of Gaza, and additionally announcing the intent to inflict “total devastation” upon that population if they do not.This is about as explicit an admission of genocidal intent as you can possibly come up with.In its genocide case against Israel in the International Court of Justice, South African prosecutors compiled a mountain of evidence of Israeli officials announcing the intent to commit genocide in Gaza, such as Netanyahu describing Gaza’s population as “Amalek” in reference to a Bible story about a people who were completely annihilated on the orders of God, or former Israeli defense minister Yoav Gallant describing Palestinians in Gaza as “human animals” while declaring a “total siege” on the enclave.And Katz’s statement is probably the most clear and explicit admission yet. It’s hard to imagine a clearer declaration of genocidal intent than delivering a video statement addressed to a civilian population threatening them with “total devastation” if they don’t do as they’re told.We may be sure that these statements by Katz and Trump have been added to files held by those who hope to successfully prosecute these monsters for war crimes one day. We may also be sure that they will be recorded in what will eventually be seen as one of the darker chapters in our civilization’s history.

All Hell Breaks Loose In Turkey: Arrest Of Erdogan's Top Opponent Sends Lira Crashing To Record Low, Triggers Marketwide Trading Halt - You can take the banana out of the republic, but you can never take the banana republic out of Turkey. One day after we pointed out that Erdogan was resorting to ruthless authoritarian practices traditionally reserved for such EU nations as Romania, in which the Turkish dictator was preparing to block his top political challenger from competing against him... Erdogan has done just and early Wednesday morning, Erdogan stunned markets when he arrested the popular mayor of Istanbul, Ekrem Imamoglu, 54, who is also the top contender for the presidency. The detention of Imamoglu came a day after Turkish authorities revoked his university diploma in a move that could bar him from challenging Erdogan in the next presidential election. He beat Erdogan’s handpicked candidate in last year’s Istanbul mayoral race and was set on Sunday to be named the presidential candidate for the Republican People’s Party, the main opposition group known as the CHP. The arrest ignited a historic selloff in the country's markets, sparking a market-wide trading halt after the Borsa Istanbul which plunged 8% amid a wholesale liquidation panic, and sent the lira crashing as much as 11% to record lows. It served as a stark reminder of the risks involved in investing in this particular Banana republic, where Erdogan’s 22-year rule has been punctuated by periods of political turmoil, recurrent market meltdowns and hyperinflation. To arrest the collapse, Bloomberg reported that state lenders sold around $8 billion in FX to support the lira after it tumbled to a record low. The nation’s stocks dropped so abruptly they triggered a trading halt while borrowing costs surged as investors dumped the government’s debt. Turkish assets posted the biggest losses worldwide: The lira weakened as much as 11% to trade past 40 mark against the US dollar before trimming losses to 5.5% at 38.8565 per dollar as of 12:45 p.m. in Istanbul after local central bank spent billions in dollars to halt the plunge. The intervention in the lira market was carried out through multiple lenders, the people familiar with the matter said, asking not to be identified given the sensitivity of the matter. The central bank wasn’t immediately available for comment.