week’s increase in oil supplies was the most since January; distillate supplies are at a 20 year low; distillate imports were at a 6 year low; distillate exports were at a 46 week high; gasoline exports were at a 32 week high
US oil prices finished the week higher for the fifth time in six weeks after Yemen’s Houthi rebels attacked and sunk two ships in the Red Sea, and after the International Energy Agency said the global oil market was tighter than it appeared…. after rising 1.5% to $67.00 a barrel last week after Iran suspended its cooperation with the U.N.’s nuclear watchdog agency, the contract price for the benchmark US light sweet crude for August delivery fell in Asian trading on Monday, as a larger-than-expected production increase from OPEC+ and renewed concerns over U.S. tariff plans weighed on market sentiment, then came under further pressure in early US trading, as officials flagged a delay on when tariffs would begin, but reversed and rallied to a high of $68.09 ahead of the close after Saudi Arabia surprised customers in Asia by hiking prices for its main crude grade, confident that the market could absorb extra OPEC barrels. and settled 93 cents higher at $67.93 a barrel as signs of strong demand more than offset the impact of the higher-than-expected OPEC+ output hike for August....oil prices fell in Asian trading Tuesday as traders assessed new developments related to U.S. tariffs and a higher-than-expected increase in production by the OPEC+ alliance, but steadied Tuesday morning in New York, as traders shifted their focus to U.S. trade policy after Trump announced new tariff rates but postponed their implementation to Aug. 1, and settled 40 cents higher at a two-week high of $68.33 a barrel on forecasts for less U.S. oil production, renewed Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, worries about U.S. tariffs on copper, and on technical short covering….oil traded lower in Asia on Wednesday morning after an American Petroleum Institute report showed an unexpected and large increase in US oil inventories for the week ending July 4th, then were down Wednesday morning in New York as signs of a large gain in US crude stockpiles undermined comments by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia about tight market conditions, but managed a late recovery to settle 5 cents higher at $68.38 a barrel, as the market weighed the attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea, forecasts of lower U.S. oil output, and increased gasoline demand against the unexpected build in crude stocks….oil prices climbed on global markets on Thursday, supported by a weaker US dollar and expectations of strong fuel demand in the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer. but then tumbled over 2% by midday, as traders reacted to fresh tariff threats from U.S. President Trump, raising alarms over future oil demand in key growth markets. and settled $1.81 lower at $66.57 a barrel on the potential impact of U.S. President Trump's tariffs on global economic growth….oil prices edged up on Asian markets on Friday, as traders weighed a tight prompt market against a potential large surplus this year, as was forecast by the International Energy Agency, while U.S. tariffs and possible further sanctions on Russia were also in focus, then rallied sharply during the New York session after the International Energy Agency said the global oil market was tighter than it appeared, and settled $1.88 or 2.8% higher at $68.45 a barrel, and thereby finished 2.2% higher for the week…
natural gas prices, on the other hand, finished lower a fourth time in five weeks on increasing output, abundant inventories and generally inconsequential weather forecasts….after falling 8.8% to $3.409 per mmBTU last week as another larger than expected injection of gas into storage during last week's heatwave indicated increased use of other energy sources for power generation, the price of the benchmark natural gas contract for August delivery opened 6 cents lower on Monday, as prices had fallen over the long weekend as production held steady amidst scorching temperatures, but recovered to settle three-tenths of a cent higher at $3.412 per mmBTU on an increase in output so far this month, and on forecasts for less demand this week than had been expected…the August natural gas contract started Tuesday 3 cents lower and gradually traded lower through the session as traders assessed weak market fundamentals, and settled the session 7.2 cents lower at $3.340 per mmBTU, as the bargain buying that had underpinned Monday’s recovery faded…natural gas prices opened Wednesday 11.2 cents lower, knocked down by abundant gas storage levels and lackluster weather forecasts, and settled down 12.6 cents at a six week low of $3.214 per mmBTU on low cash prices, an increase in output so far this month, and higher-than-normal amounts of gas in storage…natural gas prices opened 4 cents higher on Thursday, and spiked to $3.339 after the bullish storage report hit the wire, then traded cautiously into the afternoon and settled 12.3 cents higher at $3.367 per mmBTU on a smaller-than-expected inventory build, rising gas flows to LNG export plants, and forecasts for hotter-than-normal weather over the next two weeks than was previously forecast…traders continued to buy August natural gas early Friday, building on Thursday’s strong gains, driven by a bullish U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) storage report, rising demand and volatile production, but pulled back into negative territory through early afternoon trading and settled 2.3 cents lower at $3.314 per mmBTU after updated forecasts left the hottest stretch of summer in July looking less intimidating, offsetting rising LNG exports, and leaving the August natural gas contract 2.9% lower for the week..
The EIA’s natural gas storage report for the week ending July 4th indicated that the amount of working natural gas held in underground storage rose by 53 billion cubic feet to 3,006 billion cubic feet by the end of the week, which left our natural gas supplies 184 billion cubic feet, or 5.8% below the 3,190 billion cubic feet of gas that were in storage on July 4th of last year, but 173 billion cubic feet, or 6.1% more than the five-year average of 2,833 billion cubic feet of natural gas that had typically been in working storage as of the 4th of July over the most recent five years….the 53 billion cubic foot injection into US natural gas storage for the cited week was somewhat less than the 58 billion cubic foot addition to storage that was forecast in a Reuter’s poll of analysts ahead of the report, and was also less than the 61 billion cubic foot that were added to natural gas storage during the corresponding week of 2024, but it matched the average 53 billion cubic foot addition to natural gas storage that has been typical for the same early July 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 July 4th indicated that despite a big decrease in our oil imports and an increase in our oil exports, we had surplus oil left to add to our stored crude supplies for the thirteenth time in twenty-two weeks, and for the 30th time in fifty-two weeks, partly due to an increase in oil supplies that the EIA could not account for….Our imports of crude oil fell by an average of 906,000 barrels per day to average 6,013,000 barrels per day, after rising by an average of 976,000 barrels per day over the prior week, while our exports of crude oil rose by an average of 452,000 barrels per day to average 2,757,000 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 3,256,000 barrels of oil per day during the week ending July 4th, an average of 1,358,000 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 622,000 barrels per day, while during the same week, production of crude from US wells was 48,000 barrels per day lower at 13,385,000 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 17,263,000 barrels per day during the July 4th reporting week…
Meanwhile, US oil refineries reported they were processing an average of 17,006,000 barrels of crude per day during the week ending July 4th, an average of 98,000 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 a net average of 1,044,000 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 July 4th averaged a rounded 788,000 barrels per day less than what what was 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 [+788,000 ] 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 984,000 barrels per day of demand for oil could not be accounted for in the prior week’s EIA data, that means there was a 1,771,000 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 complete 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 1,044,000 barrel per day average increase in our overall crude oil inventories came as an average of 1,010,000 barrels per day were being added to our commercially available stocks of crude oil, while 34,000 barrels per day were being added to our Strategic Petroleum Reserve, the seventy-ninth SPR increase in the past eighty-nine 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 6,006,000 barrels per day last week, which was 9.6% less than the 6,743,000 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 48,000 barrels per day lower at 13,385,000 barrels per day as the EIA’s estimate of the output from wells in the lower 48 states was 58,000 barrels per day lower at 12,962,000 barrels per day, while Alaska’s oil production was 10,000 barrels per day higher at 423,000 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 2.2% higher than that of our pre-pandemic production peak, and was also up 38.0% from 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 94.7% of their capacity while processing those 17,006,000 barrels of crude per day during the week ending July 4th, down from their 94.9% utilization rate of a week earlier, which had been the highest utilization rate since July 5th of last year…. the 17,006,000 barrels of oil per day that were refined this week were 0.6% less than the 17,109,000 barrels of crude that were being processed daily during the week ending July 5th of 2024, and were 2.5% less than the 17,438,000 barrels that were being refined during the prepandemic week ending July 5th, 2019, when our refinery utilization rate was also at 94.7%, which is close to average 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 278,000 barrels per day to 9,899,000 barrels per day during the week ending July 4th, after our refineries’ gasoline output had decreased by 491,000 barrels per day during the prior week.. This week’s gasoline production was still 3.9% less than the 10,300,000 barrels of gasoline that were being produced daily over the week ending July 5th of last year, and 5.0% less than the gasoline production of 10,418,000 barrels per day during the prepandemic week ending July 5th, 2019….at the same time, our refineries’ production of distillate fuels (diesel fuel and heat oil) increased by 59,000 barrels per day to 5,034,000 barrels per day, after our distillates output had increased by 245,000 barrels per day during the prior week. Even with those production increases, our distillates output was still 0.7% less than the 5,128,000 barrels of distillates that were being produced daily during the week ending July 5th of 2024, and 4.9% less than the 5,358,000 barrels of distillates that were being produced daily during the pre-pandemic week ending July 5th, 2019…
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 thirteenth time in nineteen weeks, decreasing by 2,658,000 barrels to 229,468,000 barrels during the week ending July 4th, after our gasoline inventories had increased by 4,188,000 barrels during the prior week. Our gasoline supplies decreased this week because the amount of gasoline supplied to US users rose by 519,000 barrels per day to 9,159,000 barrels per day, and because our imports of gasoline fell by 74,000 barrels per day to 832,000 barrels per day, and because our exports of gasoline rose by 260,000 barrels per day to a thirty-two week high of 1,043,000 barrels per day….Even after fifteen gasoline inventory withdrawals over the past twenty-two weeks, our gasoline supplies were barely changed from last July 5th’s gasoline inventories of 229,666,000 barrels, and were about 1% below 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 17th time in 27 weeks, decreasing by 825,000 barrels to a twenty year low of 102,797,000 barrels during the week ending July 4th, after our distillates supplies had decreased by 1,710,000 barrels during the prior week.. Our distillates supplies decreased by less this week because the amount of distillates supplied to US markets, an indicator of domestic demand, fell by 375,000 to 3,668,000 barrels per day, and even as our exports of distillates rose by 232,000 barrels per to a 46 week high of 1,585,000 barrels per day while our imports of distillates fell by 76,000 barrels per day to a six year low of 42,000 barrels per day...After 46 withdrawals from inventories over the past 76 weeks, our distillates supplies at the end of the week were 17.5% below the 124,612,000 barrels of distillates that we had in storage on July 5th of 2024, and are now about 23% below the five year average of our distillates inventories for this time of the year…
Finally, even after the decrease in our oil imports and an increase in our oil exports, our commercial supplies of crude oil in storage rose for the 15th time in twenty-six weeks, and for the 30th time over the past year, and by the most since January 31st, increasing by 7,070,000 barrels over the week, from 418,951,000 barrels on June 27th to 426,021,000 barrels on July 4th, after our commercial crude supplies had increased by 3,845,000 barrels over the prior week… After that increase, our commercial crude oil inventories were still 8% below the recent five-year average of commercial oil supplies for this time of year, while they were about 20% above the average of our available crude oil stocks as of the first weekend of July 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 July 4th were 4.3% below the 445,096,000 barrels of oil left in commercial storage on July 5th of 2024, and 7.0% less than the 458,128,000 barrels of oil that we had in storage on July 7th of 2023, but were 0.5% more than the 423,800,000 barrels of oil we had left in commercial storage on July 1st of 2022…
This Week’s Rig Count
The US rig count decreased by two during the eight day period ending July 3rd, the fourteenth decrease in sixteen weeks, as one rig targeting oil and one miscellaneous rig were removed...the 424 oil directed rigs that remained was the lowest US oil rig count since September 2021…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 July 11th, the second column shows the change in the number of working rigs between last week’s count (July 3rd) and this week’s (July 11th) count, the third column shows last week’s July 3rd 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 12th of July, 2024…
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Council members learn about oil, gas drilling - Times Observer - Warren City Council members now have a deeper understanding of oil and gas drilling in the city. Council members recently heard a presentation by Sam Harvey, president of Bull Run Resources LLC, an energy exploration and development company operating over 1,000 oil wells. The company has six wells in Warren that were drilled starting in 2013 on the Whirley property. Harvey described the typical well inside the city limits as a shallow conventional well. While shallow, these wells go well below the water table, with a depth reaching 450 to 1,000 feet deep into a layer of sandstone below the city. By contrast, wells that go into the Marcellus shale tend to be 5,000 to 9,000 feet deep. “They have nothing to do with the Marcellus Shale, the Utica Shale, long laterals, all the new stuff that’s happened since about 2011. The wells that are being drilled now and have been drilled since the 1960s in this area are basically the same as they’ve been since the 60s,” Harvey said. Wells inside the city can only be drilled on industrial territory. Many wells in Warren are what are called slant wells, which can be distinguished by the pump jack that people see being set at an angle. That allows drillers to install their equipment in an area zoned industrial – the only places drilling is allowed in the city limits – into other areas, such as was proposed recently near Betts Park. Slant wells in Warren reach between 400 and 500 feet. Similar wells in the Marcellus Shale, Harvey said, can extend horizontally for miles. “Basically, instead of drilling straight down you’re drilling at an angle,” Harvey said. Drillers work to get beneath any local freshwater drinking water to protect freshwater drinking sources. A 450 foot hole in Warren is below the water table, Harvey said. “Everything to do with the regulations is about keeping the oil and the gas out of the freshwater and from the producer’s side keeping the freshwater out of your oil and gas,” he said. Some of these sites use the gas onsite for heating local businesses. The wells go down at slight angle and are coated in cement to keep them from leaking. “This technology has been used for decades and is pretty secure” according to Harvey. “The biggest problem is when the cracks created by fracking hit an old well and the stray gas goes somewhere unexpected.” The different products from the well are split and go to different places. Crude oil goes to the refinery. Brine water is either treated – there is a plant in Ridgeway -, reinjected into another well or used to frack a new well. Methane, propane and butane gas produced by the wells are sent to a plant – including one in Warren – that strips the various gases and sells it to wholesalers for consumption. “Generally in Warren you’re making a lot more oil than brine – fortunately. There are a lot of places where you’re making a lot more brine than oil so it becomes a sneaky expense,” Harvey said. Gas wells in the city tend to be very productive for their first few years, but production falls off sharply. A five year old well may only pump gas out for 5 or 10 minutes a day, but work for 30 to 35 years as a marginal gas well. If a well is abandoned there likely won’t be a pump jack on it. “That’s how a well gets plugged in normal circumstances,” Harvey said. “We look at the production from that area and say as things break down hole, it’s not worth going in and fishing that all out and fixing it and putting it all back together. It would take too long to get our money back. At that point you pull all the guts out and reuse all that’s reusable – the pump jack, the motor, everything like that. Then you fill the hole basically with cement. Warren city had older production from prior to the 1960s. Some of those wells may or may not have been plugged correctly. They’re basically gone at this point. They’re underneath. Who knows where they’re at. Those don’t seem to be causing any problems.”
Aspire Energy Building New Pipeline in Ohio to Feed Power Plant - Marcellus Drilling News -- Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, not to be confused with the former Chesapeake Energy Corporation (which is now Expand Energy), announced that its Ohio subsidiary, Aspire Energy Express, LLC, has entered into an agreement with American Electric Power (AEP) to construct and operate an intrastate natural gas pipeline in central Ohio to feed Marcellus/Utica gas to a new fuel-cell facility, which will provide on-site electric power to a data center. The pipeline is expected to cost approximately $10 million to construct.
Chesapeake Utilities to build $10 million pipeline for Ohio data center - - Chesapeake Utilities Corporation (NYSE:CPK), a $2.84 billion market cap utility company with impressive revenue growth of 20.34% over the last twelve months, announced Tuesday that its subsidiary, Aspire Energy Express, will construct and operate an intrastate natural gas pipeline in central Ohio to serve a new fuel-cell facility providing power to a data center. According to InvestingPro analysis, the company is currently trading above its Fair Value.The agreement with American Electric Power (AEP) represents a capital investment of approximately $10 million for Chesapeake Utilities. The new transmission infrastructure is expected to deliver natural gas to power on-site electricity generation at the data center, with completion anticipated in the first half of 2027. With EBITDA of $326 million and a P/E ratio of 22.87, the company maintains a FAIR financial health score according to InvestingPro metrics."This project is a clear example of how Chesapeake Utilities Corporation continues to execute on our growth strategy by leveraging our core capabilities," said Jeff Sylvester, senior vice president and chief operating officer of Chesapeake Utilities Corporation, in the press release.The project comes as demand for distributed data infrastructure continues to rise across the United States, with AEP working to support these developments by providing power solutions to customers with increasing energy requirements.Aspire Energy Express, founded in 2020, is a wholly owned subsidiary of Chesapeake Utilities that operates as an intrastate pipeline company in Ohio. The parent company, Chesapeake Utilities, operates multiple energy infrastructure subsidiaries that enable the transmission and distribution of natural gas to residential, commercial, and industrial customers. The announcement represents the latest expansion of natural gas infrastructure by Chesapeake Utilities in Ohio, a state the company describes as having strong workforce availability and abundant resources.
Chesapeake Utilities to Power New Data Center with Natural Gas -- Chesapeake Utilities Corporation announced Tuesday that its Ohio subsidiary, Aspire Energy Express, LLC, will construct a $10 million intrastate natural gas pipeline in central Ohio to supply a new fuel-cell facility powering a data center. The project, in partnership with American Electric Power (AEP), is set to deliver reliable natural gas by the first half of 2027, addressing the surging energy demands of the data center industry.The pipeline will support a fuel-cell facility providing on-site electricity to a data center, reflecting a broader trend of utilities adapting to the power-intensive needs of data infrastructure driven by artificial intelligence and cloud computing. The U.S. Energy Information Administration projects U.S. electricity consumption will hit record highs in 2025 and 2026, largely due to data centers, with natural gas playing a key role in meeting this demand despite its declining share in power generation, expected to drop from 42% in 2024 to 40% in 2025.Chesapeake’s investment aligns with its growth strategy, leveraging its expertise in natural gas transmission to serve high-growth regions. “This project is a clear example of how Chesapeake Utilities continues to execute on our growth strategy by leveraging our core capabilities,” said Jeff Sylvester, senior vice president and chief operating officer. The company, with a market cap of $2.84 billion, reported a 20.34% revenue increase over the past year, driven by strong natural gas demand and infrastructure investments.AEP, a major utility serving 5.6 million customers across 11 states, is also positioning itself to meet rising commercial load growth, which hit 12.3% in the first quarter of 2025. Its collaboration with Chesapeake underscores efforts to provide innovative power solutions, including low-carbon options like fuel cells, as seen in AEP’s recent 100-megawatt Bloom Energy fuel cell project in Ohio.The project comes amid concerns about the risks of overbuilding gas infrastructure. Environmental groups, like the Sierra Club, warn that speculative data center demand could lead to stranded assets, burdening ratepayers if projects fail to materialize. AEP Ohio has introduced tariffs requiring data centers to cover most of their projected energy costs to mitigate such risks.This pipeline, operated by Aspire Energy Express, founded in 2020, adds to Chesapeake’s 2,300 miles of natural gas pipelines across 40 Ohio counties. As data centers reshape energy landscapes, this initiative highlights the critical role of natural gas in balancing reliability and growth, even as utilities navigate a complex transition toward cleaner energy sources.
Southwest Ohio Power Plant Sold to ArcLight Capital Partners -- Marcellus Drilling News -- Another day, another gas-fired power plant has been sold. It’s becoming a routine thing. Yesterday, ArcLight Capital Partners announced that it has entered into definitive agreements to acquire 100% of the economic interests in Middletown Energy Center, a 484 megawatt (MW) natural gas-fired power plant located in Butler County, Ohio. We wrote about the original plan to build the Middletown plant back in 2014 (see New SW Ohio Electric Generating Plant to be Powered by Natgas). It got built, sold once, and is now being sold again.
Marcellus/Utica May Finally Be on the Verge of Production Increase Marcellus Drilling News - A month ago, MDN published a post predicting that Marcellus/Utica natural gas production is set to grow thanks to new pipeline projects and demand from data centers and LNG exporters (see Marcellus/Utica Set to Grow Thanks to LNG, Data Centers, Southeast). Today, we shift the focus from customers to what drillers are saying (predicting) about their 2025 production and their long-term production plans.
27 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 23 – 29 -- Marcellus Drilling News - For the week of June 23 – 29, the number of permits issued to drill new wells in the Marcellus/Utica rose slightly from the previous week. There were 27 new permits issued across the three M-U states last week, up three from 24 issued two weeks ago. The Keystone State (PA) issued 10 new permits. Six of the ten permits went to EQT for a single pad in Greene County. Two permits were issued to Range Resources for a pad in Washington County. And one permit each was issued to Coterra Energy in Susquehanna County (in Dimock!), and Infinity Natural Resources in Indiana County. ANTERO RESOURCES | ARSENAL RESOURCES | ASCENT RESOURCES | CARROLL COUNTY | COTERRA ENERGY (CABOT O&G) | ENCINO ENERGY | EOG RESOURCES | EQT CORP | GREENE COUNTY (PA) | GUERNSEY COUNTY | HARRISON COUNTY | HARRISON COUNTY | INDIANA COUNTY | INR/INFINITY NATURAL RESOURCES | MARION COUNTY | MARION NATURAL ENERGY | RANGE RESOURCES CORP | SUSQUEHANNA COUNTY | WASHINGTON COUNTY | WETZEL COUNTY
21 New Shale Well Permits Issued for PA-OH-WV Jun 30 – Jul 6 - Marcellus Drilling News - For the week of June 30 – July 6, the number of permits issued to drill new wells in the Marcellus/Utica decreased from the previous week, likely due to the July 4th holiday. There were 21 new permits issued across the three M-U states last week, down six from 27 issued two weeks ago. The Keystone State (PA) issued 13 new permits. EQT and its recently acquired Olympus Energy received a combined five permits scattered across three counties: Allegheny, Greene, and Washington. Snyder Brothers received four permits in Armstrong County. BKV scored three permits in Wyoming County. Range Resources received a single permit in Washington County. ALLEGHENY COUNTY | ARMSTRONG COUNTY | ASCENT RESOURCES | BKV/BANPU | EQT CORP | EXPAND ENERGY | GREENE COUNTY (PA) |GUERNSEY COUNTY | HARRISON COUNTY | OHIO COUNTY | OLYMPUS/HUNTLEY & HUNTLEY | RANGE RESOURCES CORP | SNYDER BROTHERS |WASHINGTON COUNTY | WYOMING COUNTY (PA)
As a longtime fracking activist moves on, his concerns about the industry persist (podcast and transcript) A dozen years ago, as fracking was getting started in Ohio and was already well underway in Pennsylvania, data researcher Ted Auch began working at the new nonprofit, FracTracker Alliance, which tracks the risks of oil, gas and petrochemical industries. Auch has been using photography, maps and data analysis to document the region’s gas and petrochemical industries and has been a source for many Allegheny Front stories about the industry’s waste and water usage in Ohio and the region. He has recently announced he’s leaving FracTracker. He spoke with The Allegheny Front’s Julie Grant. LISTEN to their conversation here.
New York pipeline foes allege Trump ‘shakedown’ - Opposition is growing over a revived natural gas pipeline project that would run into New York City, and critics say President Donald Trump’s heavy-handed intervention has made the plan vulnerable to a legal takedown.The line of attack raises the prospect that Trump’s transactional method of operating — and a White House boast — could be used to challenge the Northeast Supply Enhancement project and another gas project Trump wants built: the Constitution pipeline.“In a normal era, this would be a Watergate-level scandal. I’m actually shocked that everyone acknowledges the basic factual timeline, but yet most people just shrug and move on,” said Tyson Slocum, director of Public Citizen’s Energy and Climate Program.In the consumer advocacy group’s formal protest to federal regulators, Slocum called it a “quid pro quo.” Trump administration officials say they’re simply advancing projects that will reduce energy costs. The outcome of the tussle over gas pipeline plans may help shape whether the northeastern United States builds more renewable energy infrastructure or relies more on fossil fuels such as natural gas.The Northeast project, or NESE, proposed by Williams Cos. would include a 24-mile pipeline running underwater into New York from New Jersey, which would host three miles of onshore pipe. It is an expansion of Williams’ 10,000-mile Transcontinental natural gas pipeline system connecting Gulf states with the New York metro area.Williams is seeking to reinstate a permit — known officially as a certificate — from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that expired in May 2024 after being slowed by regulatory hurdles imposed by New York state officials. Public Citizen’s formal protest before the commission says the “unseemly” way the project was revived shows it is not in the public interest.The Natural Resources Defense Council is seeking to slow the project, arguing to FERC that Williams cannot simply resurrect the permit. Instead, NRDC said, the company needs to start over with a new application.Transco cites zero relevant support for its contention that a dead certificate can be shocked back to life in these circumstances,” the organization said in a protest filed with FERC. And more than 500 people have registered for formal “intervenor” status with FERC, amid encouragement from environmental groups and opposed local governments.For example, the Franklin Township government in New Jersey has posted online detailed instructions on how to intervene. Its sample language suggests saying, in part, “Air quality, water quality, health and safety are threatened by the potential for an explosion.”Williams, which is based in Tulsa, Oklahoma, did not respond to requests for comment from POLITICO’s E&E News. But in its request to FERC to revive its permit, the company said NESE is needed to fulfill Trump’s energy goals.“President Trump’s executive orders make clear the NESE Project is more important than ever,” the company said in its petition, signed by Francesca Ciliberti, senior counsel of Williams’ Transcontinental subsidiary.In the White House’s telling, both pipeline projects were dead until Trump shut down construction of a wind energy project important to New York Gov. Kathy Hochul (D). The White House said Trump allowed the wind project to resume only after Hochul “caved” and agreed to approve the pipeline, along with Constitution. Hochul has not approved either pipeline proposal and told Newsday she made no deal to do so. But Slocum still thinks something about the situation smells rotten.It’s “the product of an unseemly, tawdry political shakedown involving unlawful abuse of powers by the Trump Administration and the State of New York,” Slocum said in his protest filing.. In a statement, the administration said it is “championing domestic energy production.” Department of Energy spokesperson Ben Dietderich said NESE is needed to bring down energy costs in a section of the United States.“The Northeast has long had the some of the most expensive energy in the country due largely to the inadequate natural gas pipeline capacity in the region, leaving it vulnerable to price spikes and system reliability issues,” Dietderich said. High electricity prices have helped to weaken pipeline resistance among elected Democrats in the Northeast. The region relies heavily on natural gas but has limited pipeline capacity and has some of the highest electricity prices in the nation.The revival of NESE — which is commonly pronounced “nessy” — and Constitution are the latest development in a yearslong tug-of-war over whether to power the Northeast with wind turbines and other renewable sources, or fossil fuels delivered by pipeline.Constitution and NESE were two of at least five northeastern gas pipeline shredded by local opposition and environmental litigation. One gas trade group, the Marcellus Shale Coalition, has accused New York of erecting an “energy blockade.”
Summer Maintenance Continues to Limit LNG Feed Gas Demand — The Offtake -A look at the global natural gas and LNG markets by the numbers
- 500,000 Dth: More maintenance at Cheniere Energy Inc. facilities is limiting LNG feed gas demand after nominations returned to near-record highs last week. Compressor maintenance at Corpus Christi LNG could limit up to 500,000 Dekatherms/d (Dth/d) of transportation capacity through the week, according to Kpler data. Continued maintenance on the Transcontinental Gas Pipe Line Co. LLC that feeds Sabine Pass LNG could also limit deliveries this week to Lighthouse Road, according to Wood Mackenzie. Planned maintenance at a compressor station connected to Sabine Pass from July 21-27 could take an additional 230,000 Dth/d of transportation capacity offline.
- 5%: LNG Canada’s commissioning is raising feed gas demand around British Columbia and price assumptions for AECO, but how fast can production reasonably grow? Researchers with TD Securities Inc. projected AECO would average $3/Mcf in 2026 as international exports drive demand. By comparison, NGI’s NOVA AECO C spot price averaged C$1.090/GJ (79.6 cents/MMBtu) on Tuesday (July 8). TD estimated that in 2026, producers in the Western Canadian Sedimentary Basin could grow gas volumes by 1 Bcf/d, a 5% year/year increase, without impacting current price assumptions.
- $4.40: Despite a summer of maintenance, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) expects LNG demand will continue to present upside pressure on U.S. natural gas prices next year. EIA estimated feed gas demand would average 16 Bcf/d in 2026 as commissioning LNG terminals near commercial operations. Feed gas demand was estimated at 15.1 Bcf/d Wednesday, according to Wood Mackenzie. In the latest Short-Term Energy Outlook, EIA researchers assumed production would remain mostly flat in the coming year, pushing Henry Hub to an average of $4.40.
- 0.29 Mt: China’s falling demand for LNG is continuing to push U.S. natural gas volumes to price sensitive buyers, according to Kpler ship tracking data. A cargo from Plaquemines LNG carried by a QatarEnergy-controlled ship diverted from China to Bahrain earlier in the week as the Middle East country looks to meet summer demand. An import terminal in Bahrain became operational earlier in the year and has already received 0.29 million tons (Mt) in U.S. volumes. Another cargo from Freeport LNG that had been on the water since late May diverted from China to Malaysia over the weekend. China has not imported U.S. LNG since February, according to Kpler.
Venture Global Capitalizes on Spot Sales From Plaquemines LNG --U.S. LNG exporter Venture Global is cashing in on its recently launched Plaquemines LNG plant, which has yet to be commissioned, by selling cargoes on the spot market, making much more money from the facility than the commissioned Calcasieu Pass plant which now sells LNG under long-term contracts.In December 2024, Venture Global reached first LNG production at its second facility, Plaquemines LNG, in Port Sulphur, Louisiana.While the plant achieved first LNG production, its buyers under long-term contracts – including ExxonMobil, Chevron, EDF, and Petronas – may have to wait until the end of 2026 or 2027 to receive cargoes when the commissioning period expires and the facility achieves the so-called commercial operation date. The long commissioning period allows Venture Global to sell LNG cargoes on the spot market, earning more than if it sold gas to long-term customers under fixed fees.The much higher revenues from the not-yet-commissioned Plaquemines LNG became evident in an SEC filing of the company. The filing showed that Venture Global exported 51 cargoes from its Plaquemines LNG facility in the second quarter, realizing a weighted average fixed liquefaction fee of $7.09/MMBtu.To compare, Venture Global’s exports from the commissioned Calcasieu Pass facility totaled 38 cargoes, allowing the company to realize a weighted average fixed liquefaction fee of approximately $2.66/MMBtu—over two times lower.Venture Global is a relative newcomer on the LNG stage but it has already earned a controversial reputation for not keeping its long-term contracts and instead selling all its LNG on the spot market to make more money. The company’s defense has been that its first LNG plant, Calcasieu Pass, was not really completed, which left it with a loophole to sell on the spot market but not make deliveries under long-term contracts. Venture Global gained notoriety after half a dozen European energy majors accused it of breaking long-term delivery contracts to sell LNG on the spot market at higher prices. This made Venture Global billions of dollars while causing losses for the long-term clients, which contributed to the funding of the U.S. company’s first LNG plant.
Plaquemines LNG Achieves Record Output, Earns More Than Double U.S. Natural Gas Benchmark Price --Venture Global LNG Inc. continued to push production at its developing Plaquemines terminal to a new high in the second quarter as it raked in more than twice the average price of Henry Hub for each cargo. The Virginia-based company exported 51 cargoes from the southeast Louisiana facility from April to the end of June, according to a recent Securities and Exchange Commission filing. It was a more than 75% increase over the previous quarter as Venture continued to bring additional liquefaction blocks online and pushed production past nameplate capacity. The company told regulators it realized an average of $7.09/MMBtu for its Plaquemines cargoes sold during the period. The price was slightly above Venture Global’s first quarter guidance of $6-7 for each commissioning cargo for the remainder of the year.
U.S. LNG Exports to Latin America Jump in June, Led by Chile — The United States sent 0.92 million tons (Mt) of LNG to Latin America and the Caribbean in June, up from 0.57 Mt in May and 0.62 Mt in April, according to data from Kpler. Chart showing delivered ex-ship LNG prices specific to the Latin American LNG market. Chile led the way in June at 0.21 Mt, followed by the Dominican Republic at 0.17 Mt and Argentina at 0.12 Mt. Mexico imported zero cargoes of LNG from the United States in June, Kpler data showed. The United States was by far the largest supplier of LNG to Latin America and the Caribbean in June, accounting for 66% of all exports to the region during the month.
‘Overlooked’ U.S. Natural Gas Plays, Innovation Shaping Private Capital Investments -The Anadarko Basin appears to be drawing in more private natural gas and oil investments as Lower 48 prospects tighten, while Haynesville Shale activity remains poised for more activity as LNG capacity expands and natural gas demand grows, according to a survey by Enverus. Table showing the Top 15 private exploration and production companies in the Lower 48 U.S. for 2024, ranked by production (boe/d), including data on liquids production, natural gas production, percentage of liquids, well count, primary operating region, previous year's rank, directional changes, and active rig counts. Continental Resources, Mewbourne Oil, and Aethon Energy occupy the top three positions. Source: Enverus. ExpandThe Austin, TX-based consultancy recently published its annual top 100 list of private exploration and production (E&P) companies working in the United States. The survey, based on 2024 data, ranked the private E&Ps based on gross operating production, well counts and rig movements. “This year’s top 100 list reflects a private operator landscape that’s been shaped by the drastic consolidation of operators over the last two years,” Enverus principal analyst Shawn Stuart. He spoke with NGI about the latest survey.
US natgas prices fall 4% to six-week low on low cash prices, ample stockpiles — U.S. natural gas futures fell about 4% to a six-week low on Wednesday on low cash prices, an increase in output so far this month and higher-than-normal amounts of gas in storage. That price decline occurred despite a drop in gas output in recent days and forecasts for the weather to remain hotter than normal through late July, which should lead power generators to keep burning large amounts of gas to meet demand for air conditioning. Front-month gas futures for August delivery NG1! on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX) fell 12.6 cents, or 3.8%, to settle at $3.214 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), their lowest close since May 28. The premium of futures for September over August 2025 (NGQ25-U25) rose to a record high, meaning some in the market are betting supplies will be lower, demand will be higher and/or there will be less gas in storage compared with normal in September. Looking forward, the premium of futures for March over April 2026 (NGH26-J26), which the industry calls the widow maker, fell to its lowest since July 2020, while the premium of futures for November over October 2025 (NGV25-X25) rose to a record high. The industry calls the March-April spread the "widow maker" because rapid price moves resulting from changing weather forecasts have forced some speculators out of business, including the Amaranth hedge fund, which lost more than $6 billion in 2006. The industry uses the March-April and October-November spreads to bet on winter weather forecasts and supply and demand since March is the last month of the winter heating season when utilities pull gas out of storage and October is the last month of the summer cooling season when utilities inject gas into storage. One factor weighing on futures prices over the past few months has been low cash prices. Next-day gas at the U.S. Henry Hub benchmark in Louisiana traded around $3.20 per mmBtu. Spot contracts have traded below front-month futures every day since late April. Analysts said that so long as spot prices remain far enough below front-month futures to cover margin and storage costs, traders should be able to lock in arbitrage profits by buying spot gas, storing it and selling a futures contract. Another factor weighing on futures prices in recent months has been the growing surplus of gas in storage over the five-year normal level for this time of year. Analysts projected energy firms added more gas into storage than usual for an 11th time in 12 weeks during the week ended July 4. Gas stockpiles were already about 6% above normal levels for this time of year. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states rose to 106.7 billion cubic feet per day (bcfd) so far in July, up from a monthly record high of 106.4 bcfd in June. On a daily basis, however, output was on track to drop by around 3.0 bcfd over the past six days to a preliminary four-week low of 104.5 bcfd on Wednesday. Analysts have noted that preliminary data is often revised later in the day. With hotter weather expected, LSEG forecast average gas demand in the Lower 48, including exports, would rise from 106.8 bcfd this week to 108.1 bcfd next week. Those forecasts were higher than LSEG's outlook on Tuesday.
U.S. Natural Gas Climbs 4% on Low Storage Build, Rising Export Demand | (Reuters) — U.S. natural gas futures climbed about 4% on July 10 on a smaller-than-expected storage build, rising gas flows to liquefied natural gas export plants and forecasts for hotter-than-normal weather over the next two weeks than previously expected. Front-month gas futures for August delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange rose 12.3 cents, or 3.8%, to settle at $3.337 per million British thermal units. On Wednesday, the contract closed at its lowest price since May 28. The U.S. Energy Information Administration said energy firms added 53 billion cubic feet of gas into storage during the week ended July 4. That was smaller than the 58-bcf build analysts forecast in a Reuters poll and compares with an increase of 61 Bcf during the same week last year and an average of 53 Bcf over the last five years (2020-2024). The build left gas stockpiles around 6% above the five-year normal for this time of year. Financial firm LSEG said average gas output in the Lower 48 U.S. states rose to 106.7 billion cubic feet per day so far in July, up from a monthly record high of 106.4 Bcf/d in June. But on a daily basis, output has fallen by around 2.4 Bcf/d over six days to a four-week low of 105.1 Bcf/d on Wednesday. That daily output decline, however, was smaller than previously expected. The average amount of gas flowing to the eight big U.S. LNG export plants rose to 15.6 Bcf/d so far in July as liquefaction units at some plants slowly exited maintenance reductions and unexpected outages. That was up from 14.3 Bcf/d in June and 15.0 Bcf/d in May, but remained below the monthly record high of 16.0 Bcf/d in April. On a daily basis, however, LNG export feedgas was on track to rise to a 10-week high of 16.0 Bcf/d on Thursday with flows to U.S. energy company Cheniere Energy's 3.9-Bcf/d Corpus Christi plant in operation and under construction in Texas expected to rise from 1.5 Bcf/d on Wednesday to 2.2 Bcf/d on Thursday, according to LSEG data. Gas was trading around $12 per MMBtu at the Dutch Title Transfer Facility benchmark in Europe and $13 at the Japan Korea Marker benchmark in Asia.
Chevron Prepares to Close Hess Acquisition - Chevron is preparing for a quick finalization of the Hess Crop. Acquisition, even as the two still await the decision of the arbitration court on Exxon’s right to first refusal on Hess’s stake in the Stabroek Block in Guyana. Reuters reported the news, citing unnamed sources and “an industry analyst”, who said that Chevron was even working on severance packages for some Hess employees who would be let go after the tie-up. Yet for that to happen, the International Chamber of Commerce needs to rule in Chevron’s favor. The dispute that the ICC ruled on earlier this month but has yet to make its decision public, concerns the Guyanese operations of Exxon, in which Hess Corp. is a minority partner with 30%. It is this 30 stake that Chevron is especially interested in, but, it turns out, so is Exxon. Chevron announced its plans to acquire Hess for some $53 billion in late 2023. Yet the megadeal ran into an obstacle when Exxon said it had right of first refusal to Hess’s stake in the Stabroek Block. Hess and Chevron countered that such a clause would only be valid in a stake acquisition situation, while the two had a company acquisition situation. CNOOC, the third partner in Guyana, sided with Exxon. The Stabroek Block has so far yielded estimated resources of some 11 billion barrels and there’s likely to be more. Production has been growing quickly and steadily, too, at around 660,000 bpd currently. Plans are to raise this to 1.3 million barrels daily by 2030. Meanwhile, Chevron is buying Hess stock. The company was recently reported to have accumulated a stake of 5% in the target company, with the price tag at $2.3 billion. At the same time, the supermajor has appointed a team to take care of the integration of Hess’ operations into the larger entity once the deal s finalized, signaling it is confident the arbitration court will announce a favorable decision.
Canadian Natural Gas Prices Poised for Breakout as LNG Sector Finally Booms - The Canadian natural gas market is on the cusp of a new era as LNG Canada’s first cargo makes its way toward South Korea and three more export terminals are in advanced development, setting the stage for supply, demand and prices to rise. Line chart showing the projected forward basis differentials for NOVA/AECO C compared to U.S. benchmark pricing from August 2025 through July 2035. The curve indicates a gradual tightening trend in the negative basis, improving from around -$2.50/MMBtu in 2025 toward -$1.00/MMBtu by 2035, based on NGI’s Forward Look data. “The emerging LNG industry could transform Canada’s west coast into a significant energy export hub – one that supplies secure energy to our trading partners and fuels economic growth at home,” said CEO Lisa Baiton of the Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers. Western Canadian natural gas prices have for years traded below Henry Hub in the United States, which has become the world’s largest LNG exporter. Prices have continued to flounder. Robust production, a lack of pipeline capacity, wavering U.S. import demand and seasonality have all combined to hold prices back.
Citing Trump Trade War, Alberta and Ontario Move to Build Infrastructure, Expand Natural Gas, Oil Exports -Canada’s Ontario and Alberta provinces, which lead the nation in economic growth, inked agreements Monday to unlock trade opportunities beyond the United States, including for natural gas. In memorandums of understanding (MOU), Alberta Premier Danielle Smith and Ontario Premier Doug Ford said they would investigate ways to advance natural gas and oil pipelines, rail lines and other infrastructure to unlock growth opportunities. The MOUs, a preliminary step toward final agreements, are designed to “diversify Canada’s trading partners,” the premiers noted.
Trade Tensions, Asian Spot Buying Keep Global Natural Gas Prices Afloat — - Global natural prices were steady on Monday amid a rare calm that reigned over the market with geopolitical tensions at ease and a deadline for countries to make trade deals with the United States nearing. Chart and map of Lower 48 LNG export facilities tracking daily natural gas feedstock flows to sites for market intelligence. Prices have declined over the past two weeks since Israel and Iran agreed to a ceasefire that eroded risk premiums. Intense heat in both Europe and Asia has spurred some spot buying and prevented prices from falling further. Japan-Korea Marker futures have traded at about a $2/MMBtu premium to the Title Transfer Facility (TTF) benchmark in Europe, putting the continent at risk of losing some cargoes as it works to refill storage inventories ahead of winter.
Prices Linked to Natural Gas Hubs Dominate Global Trade With Boost from U.S. LNG - Natural gas buying at prices linked to dominant benchmarks like Henry Hub, the Japan-Korea Marker and the Title Transfer Facility last year again outpaced purchases linked to oil prices in a trend being driven largely by LNG trade growth, according to the International Gas Union (IGU). Bar chart from the International Gas Union showing spot LNG imports by region from 2005 to 2024, with significant growth led by Asia Pacific, Europe, and Asia; total global imports rising to nearly 225 billion cubic meters in 2024, highlighting increased global reliance on flexible LNG supply. Between 2005 and 2024, the share of global gas-on-gas (GOG) competition, or deals with prices linked to dominant natural gas hubs, rose to 49% of all gas purchases from 31.5%. The share of crude-indexed transactions fell to 18.5% from 24% of gas consumption over the same time, according to IGU’s 17th annual Wholesale Gas Price Survey. Responses to the survey came from buyers that represent 96% of global natural gas consumption, IGU said. Since 2016, buying linked to gas hubs has increasingly gained market share as spot LNG trades have increased, accounting for about 38% of all LNG transactions last year, IGU said. The trend has been driven in large part by the rise of flexible U.S. LNG contracts tied to Henry Hub that allow buyers to take the super-chilled fuel anywhere in the world instead of more traditional contracts that restricted destinations.
Valsad: Oil spills reported in Nargol and Umargam beaches | Ahmedabad News - The Indian Express -Oil spills, in the form of tar balls, were reported along the beaches of Nargol and Umargam in Valsad district — the reason behind which is yet to be ascertained — following which the officials of Gujarat Pollution Control Board (GPCB) reached the areas and collected samples for tests. According to officials, the oil spill, after coming in contact with coastal sands, turns into tar balls. The matter came to light on Sunday morning when fishermen from Nargol and Umargam went to the beaches and found a black layer of tar balls spread all over the area. In Nargol, the fishermen reported the incident to village sarpanch Sweety Bhandari, who reached the beach with the gram panchayat members and surveyed the entire 7-kilometre stretch of the beach. The GPCB authorities have set up multiple teams and deployed them to various beaches in Valsad, said sources. On Monday, a team from the GPCB, Valsad division, visited Nargol beach and collected samples from the beach. Meanwhile, the Nargol Gram Panchayat started the cleaning work on the beach as it witnesses a large footfall of tourists. Repeated phone attempts to contact Valsad division GPCB regional officer A O Trivedi for his remarks over the development went unanswered. Nargol resident and environment activist Yatin Bhandari told this paper, “Oil spills were reported along the beaches of Nargol and Umargam. The oil spill may have taken place deep into the sea due to the neighbouring ONGC Bombay High oil field. During the monsoon season, with high-speed winds and high tides in the sea, oil spill incidents take place at Nargol and Umargam beaches. We had requested the GPCB officials to clean the spill as a large number of tourists visit the beach. Since the officials did not take any action, the village sarpanch and a few volunteers started the cleaning work.” Sarpanch Sweety Bhandari told The Indian Express, “We have started the procedure to get Blue Flag certification for Nargol beach. Currently, Dwarka’s Shivrajpur beach is the only one in the state that holds a Blue Flag.” The Blue Flag certification is awarded to beaches for meeting high standards of water quality, environmental management and safety among other criterias. Sweety Bhandari added, “Every year, over 6,000 people from Gujarat and Maharashtra come to Nargol beach for a pre-wedding shoot. We charge Rs 500 as a fee, which is used to clean and maintain the beach. We also keep a record of the people attending the pre-wedding shoots at the Gram Panchayat office. The beach is a popular destination among foreign tourists also.” “We complained about the presence of tar balls on the beach to the concerned authorities, but no action was taken. We are now cleaning the beach on our own,” the sarpanch added.
Kerala court sues MSC for $1.1 billion over fuel spill - The Kerala government has filed a lawsuit against Mediterranean Shipping Company (MSC), seeking $1.1 billion in compensation after one of its container vessels sank and leaked fuel into the Arabian Sea in May.This legal action follows a Kerala High Court order on 7 July directing port authorities to “arrest, seize and detain” another MSC ship anchored at Vizhinjam Port until the company deposits securities covering the claim amount, Reuters reports. In May, the MSC ELSA 3, traveling from Vizhinjam to Kochi, capsized while carrying 640 containers, including 12 containing calcium carbide, a chemical that poses fire and explosion risks if it comes into contact with seawater. The vessel was also transporting 84.44 metric tons of diesel and approximately 376.1 tons of furnace oil, raising serious environmental concerns. Following the sinking, MSC began tracking and recovering containers that washed ashore. Authorities in the southern Indian state of Kerala had been urgently working to contain the oil spill, putting coastal areas on high alert and stated that the Coast Guard took action to prevent the spread of oil using two ships and sprayed dust to destroy the oil using a Dornier aircraft.
Renaissance Shuts Down Okordia–Rumuekpe Pipeline After Oil Leak --Crude oil feed into the Okordia–Rumuekpe pipeline in Rivers State has been suspended by Renaissance Africa Energy Company Limited. This action was taken by the energy firm after a leak in the 14-inch pipeline in Ikata under the Ahoada East Local Government Area of Rivers State. Before now, the oil facility was operated by Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC), but Renaissance recently acquired all the oil assets of Shell in a deal finally approved by the federal government. Business Post reports that Renaissance took over onshore oil and gas assets of Shell in Nigeria for about $2.4 billion. The recent oil leak was the first major incident the facility was experiencing since the transaction was concluded a few months ago. Confirming the shutdown in a statement on Tuesday, a spokesperson for Renaissance Africa Energy, Mr Michael Akande, explained that the action was taken to protect the environment. “We have taken immediate steps to isolate and discontinue production into the pipeline to minimise any potential environmental impact,” Mr Adande stated. He noted that the relevant regulatory authorities have been informed of the oil leak, assuring that the company will cooperate with the regulators to determine the cause and extent of the spill. “Government regulators have been informed, and we are actively coordinating the statutory joint investigation visit, which will include their representatives and those from the local community,” he added. As anticipation builds for the outcome of the JIV, environmental advocates and local leaders have called for transparency and immediate remediation. Nigeria’s oil production have been affected over the years by a series of challenges. While efforts to curb them have yielded some results, the country is still far from hitting its 2.06 million barrels per day target to fund its 2025 budget. Nigeria’s oil production peaked at 2.5 million barrels decades ago and despite ambitious 3-4 million barrels promises by subsequent governments, the highest actualisation in recent times have been 1.8 million barrels per day.
'Planeloads of Russians' Touch Down in Iraq as Moscow Eyes Oil, Nuclear Deals - So, what could all these heavy-set monobrowed gentlemen be discussing in a country that historically has been used as a front and conduit for all sorts of unpleasant Iranian exports destined to cause trouble of one sort or another around the world? At the top of the list in terms of scale and scope is energy, as might be expected in a country with the fifth highest oil reserves on the world and sizeable associated and non-associated gas resources to boot, a senior oil industry source who works closely with Iraq’s Oil Ministry exclusively told OilPrice.com last week. “There are two elements that most interest them: first, safeguarding the assets they have here in the south [of Iraq] to add to the presence they have in the north [in the semi-autonomous region of Kurdistan] and, second, ensuring that we [the Iraqis] continue the practical relationship we had with Iran for assisting in its oil, gas, and other sectors sector too,” he said. In the case of the former, new deals are on the table from Moscow to further explore and develop key oil and gas regions in the south. This was part of the content of last week’s meetings between Iraq’s Oil Minister, Abdul Ghani, and a delegation from Russia comprising its Ambassador to Iraq, Elbrus Kutrashev, and several very senior representatives from one of its energy giants Lukoil. As a sign of new deals to come in this regard, the Oil Ministry’s Director General of the Petroleum Contracts and Licensing Directorate (PCLD) was also in attendance, as was the Undersecretary for Extraction Affairs, Bassem Mohammed Khudair, presumably to note down all the fields Russia wants. As it stands, Lukoil holds a 75% operating stake in the supergiant West Qurna 2 field and a 60% stake in the supergiant Eridu oil field. “Russia wants to build a big multi-year cooperation agreement here [in Iraq] like the one it had in Iran, and like the one China already has here,” said the Iraq source. Although all the details for both are laid out in full in my in my latest book on the new global oil market order, the Russia deal in Iran and China’s deals in Iraq and Iran share several key elements. One is that they give preference to Russian and/or Chinese firms (both sides have a dividing line running through Iraq and Iran that favours one side or the other as the major player) for development and exploration rights in Iraqi and Iranian oil and gas fields. The temporal terms of these deals are also skewed in favour of the Russian and/or Chinese developers in that although a contract might be for 25 years, it would not officially start for two years after the signing date, so allowing the developer more time to recoup more profits on average per year and less upfront investment. On the other side of the risk/reward balance, the payments made to the developers are usually the higher of either the mean average of the 18-month spot price for crude oil produced, or the past six months’ mean average price, although other time periods are occasionally. There are further eye-watering concessions involved, including the Russia and/or Chinese developer being given the chance to significantly manipulate the exchange rates at which these payments from Iraq or Iran are made to them. These recent negotiations going on between Russia and Iraq are designed to complement Moscow’s already tight grip on the Kurdistan region in the north, added the Iraq source. Following the chaos after 2017’s overwhelming vote in favour of full independence in the region, as also analysed in my latest book, Russian energy giant Rosneft effectively took control of the region’s oil sector. This was achieved through a combination of offering massive pre-payment deals for oil exports and huge infrastructure investment. Since then, the Kremlin has been a key factor in sewing discontent between the north and the south through the mechanism of the highly controversial ‘oil exports for budget payments’ deal between the federal government of Iraq in Baghdad and the semi-autonomous government of Kurdistan in Erbil. The aim on Russia’s side was first to use its leverage in Kurdistan to extend its on-the-ground presence in the south and then to help Baghdad with the process of subsuming the Kurdistan region into the rest of Iraq, with a loss of all its independence. By doing this, it was – and is believed – by both Russia and China (as a senior political source in Moscow exclusively told OilPrice.com many months ago) that: “Iraq will be one unified country and by keeping the West out of energy deals there, the end of Western hegemony in the Middle East will become the decisive chapter in the West’s final demise.” Underlining Russia’s commitment to this is the fact that it recently made clear that it is torestart its key oil and gas operations in Kurdistan region. The second of Russia’s two key interests at play in the current talks is ensuring that Iraq stays on message about continuing to act as the front for Iran. For Russia, this partly means continuing to allow Iran to rebrand is oil as Iraqi oil, which although is now partly under sanctions’ scrutiny is still far less heavily monitored than Iran’s. This can be done with remarkable ease, as very often oil on the Iraqi side of the border with Iran is being drilled from the same reservoirs as the oil being drilled on the Iranian side, and sometimes through long-distance horizontal directional drilling. Notable examples of shared reservoirs and fields are Iran’s Azadegan oil reservoir (split into North and South fields) that is the same reservoir upon which sits Iraq’s Majnoon oilfield. This identical feature applies to Azar (on the Iran side)/Badra (on the Iraq side), Yadavaran (Iran)/Sinbad (Iraq), Naft Shahr (Iran)/Naft Khana (Iraq), Dehloran (Iran)/Abu Ghurab (Iraq), West Paydar (Iran)/Fakka/Fauqa (Iraq), and Arvand (Iran)/South Abu Ghurab (Iraq). All of this gives Iran money that can be used in the various arms-for-oil swaps being utilised between Tehran and Moscow now. Iraq also plays a vital role in Russia’s broader Middle Eastern plans, by dint of its geographical location between Iran and Turkey to the north and Syria to the west. Just before the removal of al-Assad from power by the U.S. and U.K., Russia, Iran, and China had been putting the final touches to a plan that would see the long-anticipated ‘Land Bridge’ come into being. This would run from Tehran to Syria’s Mediterranean Sea coastline and crucially was aimed at exponentially increasing the scale and scope of weapons delivery into southern Lebanon and the Golan Heights area of Syria for use in attacks on Israel.Having said all of this, perhaps the most concerning element of parts of these discussions between Russia and Iraq have concerned its nuclear future. According to several sources, talks began on China’s side in the same style as they had when addressing Saudi Arabia’s desire to build out its own nuclear energy programme. This was before the second presidential term of Donald Trump, which prompted a rapid reassessment of its priorities by Riyadh. According to a comment on 1 June from Minister of Higher Education and Scientific Research, Naeem Al-Aboudi, the long-running negotiations between China and Iraq on this nuclear future have led to the imminent signing of an agreement with the China Atomic Energy Corporation for the founding of Iraq’s first subcritical training reactor. This apparently is aimed at “developing the skills of students and researchers in the fields of nuclear physics and peaceful radiation technologies”.
Saudi Arabia’s Crude Oil Exports Jumped by 400,000 Bpd in April --Saudi Arabia’s crude exports soared by 412,000 barrels per day (bpd) in April from March, the latest data by the Joint Organizations Data Initiative (JODI) showed on Tuesday.Saudi Arabia, the world’s top crude exporter, saw its exports in April at an average of 6.17 million bpd, according to the JODI data which compiles self-reported figures from the individual countries.Crude oil production in Saudi Arabia rose by around 48,000 bpd in April compared to the March production level of 8.96 million bpd.Domestic refinery intake slumped in April from March, which also freed more barrels for exports.Since April, Saudi Arabia has been consistently increasing its crude oil production, as the OPEC+ group it leads is unwinding 2.2 million bpd in total oil production cuts.Since starting to unwind the cuts earlier this year, OPEC+ producers Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman made a small output increase of 138,000 bpd in April and then began to aggressively raise production quotas by 411,000 bpd for each of May, June, and July.At this weekend’s meeting, the OPEC+ group caught the market by surprise by announcing a larger-than-expected output hike of 548,000 bpd for August.This exceeded market expectations of another routine 411,000 bpd hike, while the move set the alliance on track to fully unwind 2.2 million bpd cuts nearly a year ahead of schedule. Another production boost of 550,000 bpd for September is expected, and this would allow OPEC+ to unwind all the 2.2 million bpd cuts.OPEC+ producers still have 1.6 million bpd in other production cuts spread among the group members and expiring at the end of 2026.Saudi Arabia is thus set to further increase its crude oil production, but its crude oil exports may not be as proportionately high in the summer because the Kingdom uses crude for direct burn at power plants to meet peak air-conditioning demand in the scorching temperatures.
OPEC+ to Complete Unwinding of Oil Output Cuts With Big September Hike -The eight OPEC+ producers withholding supply to the market are set to complete the unwinding of their 2.2 million barrels per day (bpd) production cuts from 2023 with another supersized output hike of 550,000 bpd for September, five sources with knowledge of the alliance’s discussions told Reuters on Monday.Since starting to unwind the cuts earlier this year, OPEC+ producers Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, UAE, Kuwait, Kazakhstan, Algeria, and Oman made a small output increase of 138,000 bpd in April and then began to aggressively raise production quotas by 411,000 bpd for each of May, June, and July.At this weekend’s meeting, the OPEC+ group caught the market by surprise – once again – by announcing a larger-than-expected output hike of 548,000 bpd for August. This exceeded market expectations of another routine 411,000 bpd hike, while the move set the alliance on track to fully unwind 2.2 million bpd cuts nearly a year ahead of schedule.Another production boost of 550,000 bpd for September would allow OPEC+ to unwind all the 2.2 million bpd cuts, as well as complete the 300,000 bpd output increase from the UAE as the Gulf producer last year argued for and received a higher quota due to the ramp-up of its production capacity.OPEC+ has an additional 3.6 million bpd in active cuts spread across members, including voluntary reductions from major producers. These expire at the end of 2026. The accelerated unwinding of the 2.2 million bpd cuts is a sign that OPEC+ is going after market share and pleasing U.S. President Donald Trump, who has campaigned on lower energy prices and has called for lower energy prices and higher OPEC output since taking office early this year.However, with a market glut expected after the peak summer season, oil prices are likely to remain depressed, analysts say. This is not good news for U.S. shale producers, the majority of which said in the latest Dallas Fed Energy Survey out last week that their oil production would decrease slightly from June 2025 to June 2026 if the WTI price remained at $60 per barrel.At WTI prices at $50 per barrel, 46 percent of executives expect their firms’ oil production would decrease significantly from June 2025 to June 2026, and another 42 percent anticipate their firms’ oil production would decrease slightly. The most selected response among executives at large E&P firms was “decrease slightly,” while among executives at small E&P firms it was “decrease significantly.”
Iran ranks as OPEC’s second-largest oil refiner - -- Iran has become the second-largest oil refiner among OPEC member states, with a daily refining capacity of 2.237 million barrels — accounting for 16 percent of OPEC’s total and 2.1 percent of global refining capacity, according to the latest OPEC Annual Statistical Bulletin. The 60th edition of the bulletin, released last week by the OPEC Secretariat, highlights the refining capacities of member states as of 2024. The combined refining capacity of OPEC countries last year stood at 14.139 million barrels per day (bpd), while global capacity reached 103.769 million bpd. These figures indicate that OPEC countries held 13.6 percent of the world’s refining capacity in 2024. Globally, refining capacity increased by 1 percent year-on-year, while OPEC's capacity grew by 0.5 percent. Saudi Arabia topped the list among OPEC members with a daily refining capacity of 3.291 million barrels, representing more than 23 percent of the organization's total. Iran followed in second place with its 2.237 million bpd capacity, capturing roughly 16 percent of OPEC’s share and 2.1 percent of global capacity. Iran’s position is notable considering that it ranks third in crude oil production within OPEC, behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq. However, thanks to its advanced refining infrastructure, Iran processes around 69 percent of its crude domestically into high-value petroleum products — a strategy that not only curbs crude exports but also meets internal demand. In contrast, Saudi Arabia refines 39 percent of its output, while Iraq refines just over 30 percent.
Oil Prices Dip Amid Supply Glut Fears, Tariff Concerns - Oil prices fell on Monday as a larger-than-expected production increase from OPEC+ and renewed concerns over U.S. tariff plans weighed on market sentiment. Brent crude slipped 0.4% to $67.67 per barrel, while the U.S. benchmark, West Texas Intermediate (WTI), edged down 0.2% to $65.48 per barrel, from $65.65 in the previous session. Over the weekend, the OPEC+ alliance announced it would boost production by 548,000 barrels per day in August, exceeding the planned monthly hikes of 411,000 barrels approved for May through July and reversing about 80% of the 2.2 million barrels per day in voluntary cuts introduced earlier by eight OPEC members. The move raised concerns about a potential supply glut as members, particularly Saudi Arabia, ramp up output while others struggle to meet quotas. Despite the broader increase, Saudi Arabia signaled confidence in demand by raising the official selling price of its Arab Light crude to Asia for August, the highest in four months. Analysts at Goldman Sachs expect OPEC to implement an additional 550,000 barrels per day increase in September, with the final decision anticipated at its August 3 meeting. On the demand side, renewed uncertainty around U.S. trade policy added to bearish sentiment. While U.S. officials indicated a delay in planned tariff changes, President Donald Trump warned that countries would be notified of new, higher tariffs by July 9, with implementation set for August 1. The proposed rates could range widely, from a baseline of 10% up to 70% under a “reciprocity” framework, fueling investor concerns about potential impacts on global economic growth and energy demand. “Fears about Trump’s tariffs continue to dominate market sentiment in the second half of 2025, with dollar weakness being the only support for oil right now,” said Priyanka Sachdeva, senior market analyst at Phillip Nova. For now, while a softer U.S. dollar is providing some support to crude prices, concerns over rising supply and trade-related economic risks continue to weigh on the outlook for oil markets in the coming weeks.
Concerns About the Potential Impact of U.S. Tariffs - The oil market posted an outside trading day as it traded higher on Monday despite the OPEC+ decision to increase output more than expected for August and concerns about the potential impact of U.S. tariffs. The market sold off to a low of $65.40 on the opening on Sunday night following the OPEC+ decision to increase its output by 548,000 bpd in August, more than the 411,000 bpd increase they made for the previous three months. The oil market also came under pressure as U.S. officials flagged a delay on when tariffs would begin. While President Donald Trump said the U.S. was close to finalizing several trade pacts and will notify other countries of higher tariff rates by July 9th, he added that the higher rates would take effect on August 1st, a three-week reprieve. The August WTI crude contract rallied to a high of $68.09 ahead of the close and settled up 93 cents at $67.93. The WTI market continued to trend higher and rallied to a high of $68.32 in the post settlement period. The September Brent contract ended up $1.28 at $69.58. The product markets settled higher, with the heating oil market settling up 5.13 cents at $2.4211 and the RB market settling up 3.36 cents at $2.1522. U.S. President Donald Trump said the U.S. would impose a 25% tariff on imports from Japan and South Korea beginning August 1st as he unveiled the first two of what he has said will be a wave of letters to trading partners outlining the new levies they face. The rate for South Korea is the same that President Trump initially announced on April 2nd, while the rate for Japan is 1 point higher than initially announced. Earlier, U.S. Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said the U.S. will make several trade announcements in the next 48 hours, ahead of a U.S. deadline on Wednesday to finalize trade pacts.OPEC+ agreed on Saturday to raise production by 548,000 bpd in August, further accelerating output increases at its first meeting since oil prices rallied and then retreated following Israeli and U.S. attacks on Iran. The August increase represents an increase from monthly increases of 411,000 bpd OPEC+ had approved for May, June and July, and 138,000 bpd in April. OPEC+ cited a steady global economic outlook and healthy market fundamentals, including low oil inventories, as reasons for releasing more oil. With the August increase, OPEC+ will have released 1.918 million bpd since April, which leaves just 280,000 bpd to be released from the 2.2 million bpd cut. On top of that, OPEC+ allowed the UAE to increase output by 300,000 bpd. The group of eight OPEC+ members will next meet on August 3rd.Five sources said OPEC+ oil producers are set to approve another big output increase for September as they complete the unwinding of voluntary output cuts by eight members and allow the United Arab Emirates to produce more to meet a larger quota. The sources said that the groupis likely to approve an increase of around 550,000 bpd for September when it meets on August 3rd. That will complete the planned return of 2.17 million bpd to the market from the eight members. Fuel oil imports into the refinery hub on the U.S. Gulf Coast reached a record low in June as tighter global supplies prompted refiners to run heavy, sour crude. According to Kpler, Gulf Coast-bound fuel oil imports reached a record low at 213,000 bpd in June, down from 233,000 bpd on the month, compared with 430,000 bpd in June 2024. Refineries along the Gulf Coast account for more than 55% of total U.S. refining capacity. The fall was driven by a drop in Mexican crude volumes, which in June fell to their lowest level since April 2020 at just 22,000 bpd, down from 71,000 bpd on the month.
Oil Gains on Saudi Price Hike | Rigzone --Oil rose as Saudi Arabia surprised customers in Asia by hiking prices for its main crude grade, a vote of confidence that the market can absorb extra OPEC barrels. West Texas Intermediate crude advanced more than 1% to settle just below $68 a barrel, erasing earlier losses, while Brent settled above $69 a barrel. Saudi state producer Aramco will raise the price for Arab Light crude, its flagship grade, by $1 a barrel to $2.20 a barrel more than the regional benchmark for Asian customers in August, according to a sheet from the company seen by Bloomberg. The pricing move staved off a rout in oil after a simultaneous decision by eight OPEC+ nations to increase supply more rapidly than expected, adding 548,000 barrels a day in August, with more expected in September. “The decision to raise prices during the peak summer demand season signals that physical markets remain tight, suggesting the additional barrels can be absorbed — for now,” “In the short term, downside risks to crude appear contained.” Meanwhile, President Donald Trump unveiled the first in a wave of promised letters that threaten to impose higher tariffs rates on key trading partners, including levies of 25% on goods from Japan and South Korea beginning Aug. 1. That start date pushed back the previous July 9 deadline for country-by-country tariffs to go into effect. The move allows trade partners more time to negotiate away economy-crushing levies on their exports to the US. The delay has improved the near-term demand outlook for oil-consuming nations, including the European Union, which is facing especially punishing tax rates. Still, uncertainty surrounding the final outcome of talks continues to weigh on crude prices. Traders and analysts also noted that OPEC’s decision to hike production at a faster-than-anticipated rate highlights bullish market fundamentals, including resilient demand in the US and China, as well as pockets of extreme tightness in the physical market amid summer driving season. The larger increase also amplifies a dramatic strategy pivot away from years of output restraint to reopening the taps to reclaim market share. The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies had announced hikes of 411,000 barrels a day for May, June and July — already three times faster than initially planned — and traders had expected the same for August. The cartel will consider adding another 548,000 barrels a day in September at its next meeting on Aug. 3, according to delegates. The boost was based on “a steady global economic outlook and current healthy market fundamentals,” the group said in a statement on Saturday. Traders snapped up oil futures ahead of the close as Yemen’s Houthis claimed responsibility for an attack on a ship sailing through the Red Sea in their first strike on merchant shipping since December, reviving the market’s geopolitical risk premium. Oil has been trading in a relatively narrow band since the pause in the Israel-Iran conflict, which saw Brent top $80 a barrel. OPEC+ is “clearly taking advantage of a period of tightness in global energy markets,” said Robert Rennie, the head of commodity and carbon research at Westpac Banking Corp. However, there are “downside risks” to oil prices as seasonal demand wanes after summer, he added. Oil Prices WTI for August delivery settled 1.4% higher at $67.93 a barrel. There was no settlement on Friday due to the US holiday. Brent for September delivery was 1.9% higher at $69.58 a barrel.
Oil Prices Steady Amid Tariff Deadline Delay, OPEC+ Hike - Oil futures were little changed Tuesday morning, after gaining 1.5% in the previous trading session despite a larger-than-expected OPEC+ production hike plan. Market participants shifted their focus to U.S. trade policy as U.S. President Trump announced new tariff rates but postponed their implementation to Aug. 1. NYMEX-traded WTI for August was down $0.05 bbl to trade near $67.88 bbl, and ICE Brent for September delivery advanced $0.05 bbl to $69.63 bbl. August RBOB gasoline futures rose $0.0173 to $2.1695 gallon, while the front-month ULSD futures contract fell $0.0031 to trade near $2.4180 gallon. The U.S. Dollar Index gained 0.094 points to 97.235. The 90-day tariff freeze, which was set to expire July 9, has been postponed to Aug. 1, at which point new, significantly higher import duties will be levied by the U.S. government. President Trump on Monday said that this new date was "not 100% firm," leaving market participants in the dark over new tariff rates and their timing. Higher tariffs are set to curb oil demand growth at a time when OPEC plans to significantly ramp up production, elevating global oversupply concerns. By September, the 2.2 million bpd production cut shouldered by eight member states, in place since 2023, will be fully unwound -- at least on paper. How much of these planned production hikes will be realized, and will they have a larger impact on oil prices than quotas which OPEC members have increasingly struggled to meet? Monday's lack of market reaction to the larger-than-expected output hike may come down to this very factor, namely to the growing gap between production targets and de facto output. According to OPEC's latest monthly oil market report, OPEC+ collectively produced 180,000 bpd more in May than in April, and production from the eight member countries who had agreed to raise output by a combined 411,000 bpd was up 153,000 bpd month-on-month. OPEC's next monthly report containing production figures for June is scheduled for July 15 release.
Oil Prices Near 2-Week Highs On OPEC+ Output and U.S. Tariffs - Oil prices climbed Tuesday, hovering near two-week highs as markets absorbed the impact of a larger-than-expected OPEC+ production increase and ongoing uncertainty around US trade policy.As of mid-afternoon, Brent crude was up 89 cents at $70.47 per barrel, while US West Texas Intermediate rose 80 cents to $68.73. Both benchmarks are on track for their highest close since June 24.OPEC+ on Saturday approved a 548,000 barrel-per-day (bpd) production hike for August, outpacing the 411,000 bpd monthly increases seen earlier this summer. The move accelerates the rollback of the group’s 2.2 million bpd in voluntary cuts and hints at a similar bump likely to be announced at the group’s next meeting on August 3.Despite the higher output, tight middle distillate inventories and ongoing Red Sea shipping disruptions have helped keep prices supported. Analysts at Rystad Energy noted that actual physical supply remains tighter than headline production figures suggest.US trade policy added further volatility. President Trump announced new tariffs on 14 countries, including 25 percent duties on imports from Japan and South Korea, and up to 40 percent for others. Both Japan and South Korea have said they will attempt to negotiate exemptions ahead of the August implementation. The move has raised fears of a global economic slowdown that could dampen oil demand.Traders are also awaiting weekly US inventory data. The API and EIA are set to report Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively. Analysts expect a draw of 2.8 million barrels from crude stocks for the week ending July 4, which would be the sixth draw in seven weeks.
Concerns Over Houthi Attacks on Vessels Off Yemen - The crude market traded higher as the market assessed the latest developments regarding U.S. tariffs against the concerns over Houthi attacks on vessels off Yemen and lower U.S. oil output forecast. The market traded to a low of $67.33 in overnight trading amid the news that U.S. President Donald Trump announced that higher U.S. tariffs will take effect on August 1st. The tariff news has once again raised uncertainty in the markets and concerns that they could have a negative impact on the global economy and oil demand. While the market was also weighed by OPEC+ unwinding of its output cuts, Houthi attacks on cargo ships provided support to the market, with Israel striking Houthi targets in response on Monday for the first time in nearly a month. The oil market bounced off its low and rallied to a high of $68.91 in afternoon trading. The market was further supported by EIA’s Short Term Energy Outlook forecasting that the U.S. will produce less oil in 2025 than previously expected as declining oil prices have prompted U.S. producers to slow activity this year. The crude market later erased some of its gains ahead of the close. The August WTI contract settled up 40 cents at $68.33 and the September Brent contract settled up 57 cents at $70.15. The product markets ended the session higher, with the heating oil market settling up 2.02 cents at $2.4413 and the RB market settling up 3.28 cents at $2.1850. U.S. President Donald Trump notified 14 nations, from major suppliers such as Japan and South Korea to minor trade players, that they now face sharply higher tariffs from a new deadline of August 1st. In letters so far to 14 countries, President Trump hinted at opportunities for additional negotiations, even while warning that reprisals would draw a like-for-like response. The higher tariffs take effect from August 1t and will not combine with previously announced sectoral tariffs, such as those on automobiles and steel and aluminum. On Tuesday, China warned the United States against reinstating tariffs on its goods, and said it could retaliate against countries striking deals with the U.S. to cut China out of supply chains. A European Commission spokesperson said the European Union still aims to reach a trade deal by Wednesday after European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen and President Trump had a “good exchange”. Later on Tuesday, President Trump said he is probably two days off from sending the European Union a letter disclosing the tariff rate on their exports to the United States.Kpler data showed that EU and UK diesel and gasoil imports are on track to reach 727,000 bpd in July, down from 936,000 bpd in June.The EIA reported that the U.S. will produce less oil in 2025 than previously expected as declining oil prices have prompted U.S. producers to slow activity this year. The U.S. is projected to produce 13.37 million bpd of oil in 2025, versus last month’s forecast of 13.42 million bpd. In 2026, the U.S. will produce 13.37 million bpd, in line with the previous forecast. Meanwhile, U.S. oil demand is estimated at 20.4 million bpd in both 2025 and 2026, unchanged from previous estimates. The EIA also reported that it sees world oil output of 104.6 million bpd in 2025, up 200,000 bpd from a previous forecast, while output in 2026 is seen at 105.7 million bpd, up 600,000 bpd from a previous estimate. World oil demand in 2025 is seen at 103.5 million bpd, unchanged from a previous forecast, before it increases to 104.6 million bpd, unchanged from a previous forecast.
Oil edges up to two-week high on lower US output forecast, renewed Red Sea attacks (Reuters) - Oil prices edged up to a two-week high on Tuesday on forecasts for less U.S. oil production, renewed Houthi attacks on shipping in the Red Sea, worries about U.S. tariffs on copper and technical short covering. Brent crude futures rose 57 cents, or 0.8%, to settle at $70.15 a barrel, while U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude closed at $68.33, up 40 cents, or 0.6%. Those were the highest closes for both crude benchmarks since June 23 for a second day in a row. "The lower (U.S.) production outlook got the price rally going and it kept going along with other commodities on the copper tariff news and the increased tensions in the Red Sea," The U.S. will produce less oil in 2025 than previously expected as declining oil prices have prompted producers to slow activity this year, according to the latest Energy Information Administration (EIA) outlook. U.S. President Donald Trump said on Tuesday he will announce a 50% tariff on copper later in the day, aiming to boost U.S. production of a metal critical to electric vehicles, military hardware, the power grid and many consumer goods. Trump's decision to impose copper tariffs surprised markets and boosted prices of the metal to a record high. In the Red Sea, three seafarers on the Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated bulk carrier Eternity C were killed in a drone and speedboat attack off Yemen, the second incident in a day after months of calm. Attacks in the Red Sea have forced vessels carrying oil, liquefied natural gas and other energy products to travel long distances to avoid the region, boosting energy costs. Some analysts also noted the oil market was supported by technical short-covering after Brent prices traded over $70 a barrel, a key level of both psychological and technical resistance. In addition, energy traders noted rising prices for U.S. gasoline and diesel in recent weeks have boosted the diesel crack spread to its highest since March 2024 and the 3:2:1- crack spread to a six-week high. Crack spreads measure refining profit margins. "The best thing that this complex has going for it on the upside is its recent ability to advance despite a steady flow of seemingly bearish headlines that would usually be weighing on oil values," analysts at energy advisory firm Ritterbusch and Associates said in a note. Those bearish headlines include Trump's plan to ramp up his trade war again and plans by the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies, a group known as OPEC+, to raise production by 548,000 barrels per day (bpd) in August. Analysts forecast U.S. crude stockpiles fell about 2.1 million barrels last week. The American Petroleum Institute (API) trade group and the EIA are due to release weekly U.S. inventory data on Tuesday and Wednesday, respectively.
Oil prices rise on Red Sea attacks, lower US output - Oil prices rose due to attacks in the Red Sea and lower US production, with Brent crude reaching $70.63 per barrel and WTI climbing to $68.84per barrel US President Trump announced a 50 percent tariff on copper imports, aiming to boost domestic production, while OPEC+ is preparing for a significant production boost in September Despite concerns about tariffs affecting oil demand, strong travel activity during the US Fourth of July holiday supported consumption, with a likely increase of 7.1 million barrels in US crude stockpiles Oil prices rose on Wednesday, maintaining their highest levels since June 23, supported by attacks on ships in the Red Sea, alongside concerns over sharp US tariffs on copper and expectations of reduced oil production in the United States. Brent crude futures rose by 48 cents, or 0.7 percent, to $70.63 per barrel by 08:55 GMT, while US West Texas Intermediate crude climbed by 51 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $68.84 per barrel. After months of calm in the Red Sea, attacks resumed last week in this vital global shipping route. Sources indicated that the Iran-backed Houthi militia in Yemen was behind the latest incidents. A rescue operation is currently underway for the crew of a cargo ship that sank in the Red Sea following an attack that killed at least four crew members. The Houthis have not yet claimed responsibility for the strike. Oil prices were also supported by a report from the US Energy Information Administration released Tuesday, which projected lower oil output in 2025 compared to earlier forecasts, citing slower activity among American producers due to falling prices. On Tuesday, US President Donald Trump said he would announce a 50 percent tariff on copper imports, aiming to boost domestic production of the metal — vital for electric vehicles, military equipment, power grids, and a range of consumer goods. This announcement came as Trump postponed some tariff deadlines to August 1, offering key trading partners hope that deals could be reached to ease the tariffs, though many companies remain uncertain about the future direction. Despite concerns that tariffs may curb oil demand, strong travel activity during the US Fourth of July holiday supported consumption, and data suggested a likely increase of 7.1 million barrels in US crude stockpiles. In a research note, oil brokerage PVM said: “With attacks in the Red Sea and increased summer fuel consumption in the U.S., expectations of a future supply glut should take a back seat to short-term realities.” Official US crude inventory data from the Energy Information Administration is due at 14:30 GMT. Meanwhile, OPEC+ oil producers are preparing for another significant production boost in September as they continue to unwind voluntary supply cuts previously agreed upon by eight member states. The UAE is also transitioning to a higher production quota, according to five informed sources. This follows the group’s Saturday announcement of a supply increase of 548,000 barrels per day for August. Suvro Sarkar, head of the energy sector team at DBS Bank, said: “Oil prices have shown surprising resilience in the face of accelerating supply increases from OPEC+.” UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei said Wednesday that oil markets are absorbing OPEC+ supply hikes without stockpile build-ups, indicating that markets are “thirsty” for more oil. “You can see that even with the continuous increases over several months, we haven’t seen significant stockpile accumulation — meaning the market genuinely needed these volumes,” Mazrouei added.
WTI Slides After Biggest Crude Build Since January - Oil prices are down this morning as signs of a large gain in US crude stockpiles undermined comments by the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia about tight market conditions. In the US, API reported overnight that crude inventories rose 7.1 million barrels last week. That would be the largest increase since January if confirmed by government data due later on Wednesday. The expected inventory gain threw some cold water on UAE Energy Minister Suhail Al Mazrouei’s comments that a lack of major inventory buildups shows the market needs the production that OPEC+ is reviving, while Saudi Aramco sees healthy global demand despite trade challenges and tariffs.API
- Crude +7.1mm
- Cushing +100k
- Gasoline -2.2mm
- Distillates -800k
DOE:
- Crude +7.07mm - biggest build since Jan
- Cushing +464k
- Gasoline -2.66mm
- Distillates -825k
The official data confirmed API's big crude build while products saw inventories drawdown... With the 238k addition to SPR, total crude stocks rose by the most since January last week... US crude production remains just off record highs, even as the US rig count plunges... WTI Crude is well off the highs of the day now...
The Crude Market Weighed the Attacks on Shipping Vessels in the Red Sea --The crude market on Wednesday ended the session up 0.07% as it weighed the attacks on shipping vessels in the Red Sea, forecasts of lower U.S. oil output and increased gasoline demand against the unexpected build in crude stocks. The market traded mostly sideways in overnight trading before it extended its previous gains and posted a high of $68.94 following the news of a second cargo ship sinking in the Red Sea due to an attack by Houthi militants that killed at least four crew members. The market also remained well supported by the EIA forecast that the U.S. will produce less oil in 2025 than previously expected, as declining oil prices have prompted U.S. oil producers to slow their activity. The market later erased its gains and traded to a low of $67.70 ahead of the release of the EIA’s weekly petroleum stocks report. The oil market later bounced off its lows and traded back towards its high as the market focused on a larger than expected draw in gasoline stocks of over 2.6 million barrels and shrugged off an unexpected build in crude stocks of over 7 million barrels. The August WTI contract settled up 5 cents at $68.38 and the September Brent contract settled up 4 cents at $70.19. The product markets ended the session in mixed territory, with the heating oil market settling down 3.21 cents at $2.4092 and the RB market settling up 29 points at $2.1879. The U.S. Treasury Department said the U.S. imposed sanctions on 22 companies in Hong Kong, the United Arab Emirates and Turkey on Wednesday for their roles in helping sell Iranian oil. It said the oil sales benefit Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps’ Quds Force. The Treasury Department said the Quds Force employs front companies outside of Iran that use offshore accounts to transfer hundreds of millions of dollars in profits derived from Iranian oil sales to circumvent U.S. sanctions. On Wednesday, U.S. President Donald Trump issued a round of tariff letters to six countries, including Algeria, Brunei, Iraq, Libya, Moldova and the Philippines. United Arab Emirates’ Energy Minister, Suhail al-Mazrouei, said oil markets are absorbing OPEC+ production increases without building inventories. IIR Energy said U.S. oil refiners are expected to shut in about 113,000 bpd of capacity in the week ending July 11th, increasing available refining capacity by 56,000 bpd. Offline capacity is expected to increase to 171,000 bpd in the week ending July 18th. The recovery in global jet fuel demand is set to slow and stall below pre-pandemic levels this year and next as the Chinese travel abroad less, stringent U.S. immigration policies deter some tourists and aircraft fleets become more fuel-efficient. Jet fuel accounts for around 7% of global fuel use and softer consumption leads to lower overall demand for oil and ultimately weaker oil prices. Aviation fuel consumption has lagged the recovery seen in fuel oil and gasoline since the pandemic, held back largely by a decline in long-haul flights from Asia, particularly China, with tight consumer spending cutting travel budgets. In June, the International Energy Agency forecast that jet fuel consumption would reach 8 million bpd in 2027, above 2019’s level of 7.9 million bpd, having earlier predicted it would recover to the pre-pandemic rate last year. Demand grew by 5.6% last year, but the IEA expects a slowdown to 1.32% in 2025 and 1.29% next year.
Oil Prices Rise As US Dollar Weakens -Crude oil prices climbed on Thursday, supported by a weaker US dollar and expectations of strong fuel demand in the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer. Global oil prices have been volatile amid renewed US tariff threats and concerns over potential damage to global economic growth. Analysts have expressed worries that President Donald Trump’s use of tariffs against longstanding allies could reverse the global trade order, adding uncertainty to commodity markets. The US dollar has weakened against major trading partners as investors reduced their exposure to the greenback, making oil cheaper for holders of other currencies and boosting demand. The US dollar index dipped 0.15% to 97.055 in early Thursday trading. Brent crude rose to $69.62 per barrel, while US benchmark West Texas Intermediate (WTI) inched up by 0.01% to $67.30 per barrel from $67.29 in the previous session. The US Energy Information Administration (EIA) reported a 2.7 million barrel drop in gasoline inventories last week, indicating strong fuel demand during the July 4 holiday period. Further supporting market sentiment, minutes from the US Federal Reserve’s recent meeting showed that most Fed officials see it appropriate to cut interest rates this year, with some open to a rate cut as early as July. Lower interest rates typically weaken the dollar, providing an additional boost to oil demand. Meanwhile, Trump’s comments on trade tariffs remain in focus for markets. The US president warned that any country aligning with BRICS’ “anti-American policies” would face an additional 10% tariff, adding, “There will be no exceptions.” He also announced new tariff plans targeting seven countries, including the Philippines, Iraq, and Libya, while threatening a separate 50% customs duty on Brazilian products. These trade tensions continue to cloud the global economic outlook, creating mixed signals for oil prices as concerns over demand remain despite near-term support from a weaker dollar and strong US consumption.
Trump Tariff Comments Trigger Oil Price Decline - Crude futures fell over 2% Thursday as traders reacted to fresh tariff threats from U.S. President Donald Trump, raising alarms over future oil demand in key growth markets. At 12:19 p.m. ET, Brent crude was trading down 1.80%, at $68.93 per barrel, while WTI dropped to $66.97, shedding 2.06% on the day.In comments made Wednesday evening, Trump warned of a broadening tariff regime targeting Chinese imports, citing ongoing imbalances and Beijing’s trade practices. While no specific measures were announced, the tone of escalation rattled energy markets already facing macroeconomic headwinds.The tariff remarks come amid signs of cooling demand in Asia’s industrial and transportation sectors. Chinese refinery throughput has slowed for the second consecutive month, and recent export data showed continued weakness across regional manufacturing hubs.Futures traders responded with a broad selloff in crude and refined products. Gasoline prices also dropped, while diesel cracks in Asia edged lower.No immediate response has been issued by China’s Ministry of Commerce, but analysts say any retaliatory action could directly impact crude flow dynamics between the two largest energy consumers.Trump has also dispatched letters warning seven additional countries–Algeria, Brunei, Iraq, Libya, Moldova, the Philippines and Sri Lanka–that they could face tariffs ranging from 20% to 30% starting August 1, citing “common sense” and trade imbalance concerns. The letters signal a broader move to reassert U.S. leverage in trade negotiations, though Trump notably excluded major economic partners like Japan, South Korea and the EU, for now. Meanwhile, Iraq has publicly downplayed the impact of the impending U.S. tariffs. The country’s Trade Ministry emphasized that crude oil–exempt from the new duties–represents its main export to the U.S., totaling around 200,000 barrels per day or roughly $4.5?billion annually. However, Iraqi officials view this moment as an opportunity to streamline and redirect non-oil trade flows, reducing reliance on third-party brokers and seeking more transparent, direct engagement with U.S. markets.
Oil falls amid bearish Trump tariff outlook (Reuters) - Oil prices fell more than 2% on Thursday, as investors weighed the potential impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on global economic growth. Brent crude futures settled at $68.64 a barrel, down $1.55, or 2.21%. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude finished at $66.57 a barrel, down by $1.81, or 2.65%. On Wednesday, Trump threatened Brazil, Latin America's largest economy, with a punitive 50% tariff on exports to the U.S., pressuring his Brazilian counterpart Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva over Brazil's trial of former President Jair Bolsonaro over charges of plotting a coup to stop Lula from taking office in 2023. On Thursday, Lula called a meeting with ministers, a day after hinting at reciprocal measures in a post on social media. Trump has also announced plans for tariffs on copper, semiconductors and pharmaceuticals. His administration sent tariff letters to the Philippines, Iraq and others, adding to over a dozen letters this week including to powerhouse U.S. suppliers South Korea and Japan. Trump's history of back-pedalling on tariffs has caused the market to become less reactive to such announcements, said Harry Tchilinguirian, group head of research at Onyx Capital Group. "People are largely in wait-and-see mode, given the erratic nature of policymaking and the flexibility the administration is showing around tariffs," Tchilinguirian said. Policymakers remain worried about inflationary pressures from Trump's tariffs, with only "a couple" of officials at the Federal Reserve's June 17-18 meeting saying they felt interest rates could be reduced as soon as this month, minutes of the meeting released on Wednesday showed. Higher interest rates make borrowing more expensive and can slow demand for oil. OPEC+ oil producers are set to approve another big output boost for September, as they complete unwinding voluntary production cuts by eight members and the United Arab Emirates' move to a larger quota. However, OPEC+ indicated it may pause output hikes in October because of a possible peak in oil demand, said Phil Flynn, senior analyst with Price Futures Group. "Earlier fears of reaching 'peak oil' have not materialized, and rising prices incentivize the discovery of new oil sources, both domestically and offshore," Flynn wrote in a note on Thursday. Elsewhere, U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held "frank" talks with Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov in which he expressed Washington's frustration around a lack of progress in ending the war in Ukraine. Trump said recently he was considering a bill that would impose tougher sanctions on Russia.
Oil edges higher as investors weigh market outlook - Oil prices edged up on Friday, as investors weighed a tight prompt market against a potential large surplus this year, according to the International Energy Agency, while U.S. tariffs and possible further sanctions on Russia were also in focus. Brent crude futures were up 40 cents, or 0.58%, at $69.04 a barrel as of 1027 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude ticked up 45 cents, or 0.68%, to $67.02 a barrel. At those levels, Brent was headed for a 1.1% gain on the week, while WTI was little changed against last week's close. The IEA on Friday said the global oil market may be tighter than it appears, with demand supported by peak summer refinery runs to meet travel and power-generation. Front-month September Brent contracts were trading at a $1.10 premium to October futures at 1027 GMT. "Civilians, be they in the air or on the road, are showing a healthy willingness to travel," PVM analyst John Evans said in a note on Friday. Prompt tightness notwithstanding, the IEA also boosted its forecast for supply growth this year, while trimming its outlook for growth in demand, implying a market in surplus. "OPEC+ will quickly and significantly turn up the oil tap. There is a threat of significant oversupply. In the short term, however, oil prices remain supported," Commerzbank analysts said in a note. One other sign of robust prompt oil demand was the prospect of Saudi Arabia shipping about 51 million barrels of crude oil in August to China, the biggest such shipment in over two years. Longer term, however, rival forecasting agency OPEC cut its forecasts for global oil demand in 2026 to 2029 because of slowing Chinese demand, the group said in its 2025 World Oil Outlook published on Thursday. Both benchmark futures contracts lost more than 2% on Thursday as investors worried about the impact of Trump's evolving tariff policy on global economic growth and oil demand. "Prices have recouped some of this decline after President Trump said he plans to make a 'major' statement on Russia on Monday. This could leave the market nervous over the potential for further sanctions on Russia," ING analysts wrote in a client note. Trump has expressed frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin due to the lack of progress on peace with Ukraine and Russia's intensifying bombardment of Ukrainian cities. The European Commission is set to propose a floating Russian oil price cap this week as part of a new draft sanctions package.
European Commission proposes Russian oil price cap 15% below global price (Reuters) - The European Commission proposed on Friday a floating price cap on Russian oil of 15% below the average market price of crude in the previous three months, EU diplomats said. The European Union and Britain have been pushing the Group of Seven nations to lower the cap for the last two months after a fall in oil futures made the current $60 a barrel level largely irrelevant. Brent crude has since rebounded somewhat, and settled on Friday at $70.36 per barrel. The G7 price cap, aimed at curbing Russia's ability to finance the war in Ukraine, was originally agreed in December 2022. The new floating cap would be revised according to the average price every three months, one of the diplomats added. The EU diplomats, who were not authorized to speak publicly, said technical details of the latest proposal still needed to be discussed, but the idea seemed to assuage concerns of the EU's maritime states - Malta, Greece and Cyprus. Despite repeated attempts from European leaders, the U.S. administration has not agreed to lower the cap, prompting the Europeans to push ahead on their own. The price of Russia's Urals oil remained $2 per barrel below the $60 per barrel limit on Friday. The cap bans trade in Russian crude oil transported by tankers if the price paid was above $60 per barrel and prohibits shipping, insurance and re-insurance companies from handling cargoes of Russian crude around the globe, unless it is sold for less than the price cap. The Commission initially proposed in June to lower the cap from $60 a barrel to $45 a barrel as part of its 18th package of sanctions on Russia. The Kremlin said on Friday it has good experience in tackling challenges such as a floating Russian oil price cap, which could be introduced by the European Union. EU sanctions must be agreed unanimously by member states to be adopted.
Oil rises over 2% as investors weigh market outlook, tariffs, sanctions (Reuters) - Oil prices rose over 2% on Friday as the International Energy Agency said the market was tighter than it appears, while U.S. tariffs and possible further sanctions on Russia were also in focus. Brent crude futures settled up $1.72, or 2.5%, at $70.36 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $1.88, or 2.8%, to $68.45 a barrel. For the week, Brent rose 3%, while WTI had a weekly gain of around 2.2%. The IEA said the global oil market may be tighter than it appears, with demand supported by peak summer refinery runs to meet travel and power generation. Front-month September Brent contracts were trading at about a $1.20 premium to October futures. "The market is starting to realize that supplies are tight," U.S. energy firms this week cut the number of oil and natural gas rigs operating for an 11th straight week, energy services firm Baker Hughes said. The last time that happened was July 2020, when the COVID-19 pandemic cut demand for fuel. Short-term market tightness notwithstanding, the IEA boosted its forecast for supply growth this year, while trimming its outlook for growth in demand, implying a market in surplus. "OPEC+ will quickly and significantly turn up the oil tap. There is a threat of significant oversupply. In the short term, however, oil prices remain supported," Commerzbank analysts said. Further adding support to the short-term price outlook, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said Russia will compensate for overproduction against its OPEC+ quota this year in the August-September period. Another sign of robust short-term demand was the prospect of Saudi Arabia shipping about 51 million barrels of crude oil in August to China, the biggest such shipment in more than two years. On a longer-term basis, however, OPEC cut its forecasts for global oil demand in the 2026-2029 period because of slowing Chinese demand in its 2025 World Oil Outlook, published on Thursday. Saudi Arabia's energy ministry said on Friday the kingdom had been fully compliant with its voluntary OPEC+ output target. On Thursday, both benchmark futures contracts lost more than 2% as investors worried about the impact of U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs on global economic growth and oil demand. Trump told NBC News on Thursday that he will make a "major statement" on Russia on Monday, without elaborating. Trump has expressed frustration with Russian President Vladimir Putin due to the lack of progress in ending the war in Ukraine and Russia's intensifying bombardment of Ukrainian cities. The European Commission is set to propose a floating Russian oil price cap this week as part of a new draft sanctions package, but Russia said it has "good experience" of tackling and minimizing such challenges.
Israel bombs British ship seized by Houthis - Israel has bombed a British-owned ship captured by the Houthis as part of a wave of air strikes against the Yemen-based terror group. The ship, Galaxy Leader, was hijacked in November 2023 by terrorists rappelling from a helicopter in a commando-style raid that caught the world’s attention. The cargo vessel, registered in the Bahamas, is owned by a British company which is partly owned by the Israeli businessman Rami Ungar. Its seizure became a symbol of the terror group’s aggression in the Red Sea, and they have reportedly fitted radar to it, making it a floating observation platform. The crew was released in January 2024. According to the IDF, the Israeli attack on Sunday night involved approximately 50 missiles and bombs. They said the attack, the first on Yemen in nearly a month, was in response to repeated Houthi attacks on Israel.The IDF said: “The Houthi terrorist regime’s forces installed a radar system on the ship, and are using it to track vessels in international maritime space in order to promote the Houthi terrorist regime’s activities.” The strikes also hit the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Isa and Salif, as well as the Ras Qantib power plant on the coast. Hours later, Israel said two missiles were launched from Yemen. Attempts were made to intercept them, though the results were still under review.
Yemen's Houthis Take Credit for Attack on Ship in Red Sea and Fire More Missiles at Israel - Yemen’s Houthis on Monday took credit for the attack on the Magic Seas, a Greek-owned bulk carrier that came under fire on Sunday, forcing the crew to abandon ship. The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, also fired more missiles at Israel following a round of Israeli airstrikes against Yemeni ports.The attack on the Magic Seas marked the first time the Houthis targeted a commercial ship this year. Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said the attack was carried out over claims that the company that owns the ship repeatedly “violated” the Houthis’ ban on vessels entering Israeli ports, which it has implemented in response to Israel’s genocidal war on Gaza.According to Al Jazeera, Michael Bodouroglou, a representative of Stem Shipping, one of the Magic Seas’ commercial managers, said that the ship had been carrying iron and fertilizers from China to Turkey, and had nothing to do with Israel. The ship was targeted with small arms, rockets, and drones, and Saree claimed that it sank.Another ship, the Greek-owned Eternity C cargo vessel, was attacked in the Red Sea on Monday, and two crew members were reported wounded and two missing. So far, no one has claimed responsibility.Saree also announced a series of missile and drone attacks targeting Israel, operations that he said would continue until Israel ends its war and siege on Gaza. “We are fully prepared for a sustained and prolonged confrontation, to confront hostile warplanes, and to counter attempts to break the naval blockade imposed by our armed forces on the enemy, in triumphing for our people in Gaza,” he said.According to Israeli media, a ballistic missile fired from Yemen fell short of its target, marking the fourth missile attack within two days. The Israeli military also said that it intercepted a drone fired from Yemen on Monday.The Israeli airstrikes that hit Yemen on Sunday night targeted the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Isa, and Salif, which are all located in the Hodeidah Governorate on the Red Sea. Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz dubbed the attack “Operation Black Flag” and also said that it targeted the Galaxy Leader, a ship the Houthis seized in 2023 when the Yemeni group first started its attacks on Israel-linked shipping.
Yemen Houthis sink second Red Sea cargo ship in a week -BBC Six crew members have been rescued and at least three others killed after a cargo ship was attacked by Yemen's Houthis and sank in the Red Sea, a European naval mission says. The Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated Eternity C was carrying 25 crew when it sustained significant damage and lost all propulsion after being hit by rocket-propelled grenades fired from small boats on Monday, according to the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) agency. The attack continued on Tuesday and search rescue operations commenced overnight. The Houthis said they attacked the Eternity C because it was heading to Israel, and that they took an unspecified number of crew to a "safe location". The US embassy in Yemen said the Houthis had "kidnapped many surviving crew members" and called for their immediate release. Authorities in the Philippines said 21 of the crew were citizens. Another of them is a Russian national who was severely wounded in the attack and lost a leg. It is the second vessel the Houthis have sunk in a week, after the group on Sunday launched missiles and drones at another Liberian-flagged, Greek-operated cargo ship, Magic Seas, which they claimed "belong[ed] to a company that violated the entry ban to the ports of occupied Palestine". Video footage released by the Houthis on Tuesday showed armed men boarding the vessel and setting off a series of explosions which caused it to sink. All 22 crew of Magic Seas were safely rescued by a passing merchant vessel.
Houthis killed and kidnapped cargo ship crew following attack in Red Sea, U.S. Embassy in Yemen says -- Several people remain missing Wednesday following an attack by Yemen's Houthi rebels on a Liberian-flagged cargo ship in the Red Sea. Six castaway crew members of the Greek-owned Eternity C were recovered from the sea, a European Union naval force said Wednesday. The Houthi rebels killed three mariners and wounded two others, the EU Operation Aspides said, and several crew members were kidnapped, according to the U.S. Embassy in Yemen. "We call for their immediate and unconditional safe release," the U.S. Embassy said in a statement. "The Houthis continue to show the world why the United States was right to label them a terrorist organization." A statement from the EU naval mission in the Red Sea said the crew of the ship included 22 sailors, among them 21 Filipinos and one Russian, as well as a three-member security team. Those rescued were five Filipinos and one Indian. The attack on the merchant vessel followed a claim by the Houthis to have attacked and sank another vessel on Monday in the Red Sea, a vital maritime trade route. The twin assaults are the first Houthi attacks on shipping since November 2024 and could signal the start of a new campaign by the Iran-backed Yemeni rebels threatening the waterway, which had begun to see more ships pass through it in recent weeks. The Eternity C bulk carrier had been heading north toward the Suez Canal when it came under fire by men in small boats and by bomb-carrying drones on Monday night. Security guards on board also fired their weapons. The European Union Operation Aspides and the private security firm Ambrey both reported those details. While the Houthis haven't claimed the attack, Yemen's exiled government and the EU force blamed the rebels for the attack. The EU force offered the casualty information, saying one of the wounded crew members lost his leg in the attack. The crew remain stuck on board the vessel, which is now drifting in the Red Sea.
Six crew rescued, 15 missing after Houthis sink latest Greek ship in Red Sea (Reuters) - Rescuers pulled six crew members alive from the Red Sea after Houthi militants attacked and sank a second ship this week, while the fate of another 15 was unknown after the Iran-aligned group said they held some of the seafarers. The Houthis claimed responsibility for the assault that maritime officials say killed four of the 25 people aboard the Eternity C before the rest abandoned the cargo ship. Eternity C went down Wednesday morning after attacks on two previous days, sources at security companies involved in a rescue operation said. The six rescued seafarers spent more than 24 hours in the water, those firms said. The United States Mission in Yemen accused the Houthis of kidnapping many surviving crew members from Eternity C and called for their immediate and unconditional safe release. "The Yemeni Navy responded to rescue a number of the ship's crew, provide them with medical care, and transport them to a safe location," the group's military spokesperson said in a televised address. The Houthis released a video they said depicted their attack on Eternity C. It included sound of a Yemen naval forces' call for the crew to evacuate for rescue and showed explosions on the ship before it sank. Reuters could not independently verify the audio or the location of the ship, which it verified was the Eternity C. The Houthis also have claimed responsibility for a similar assault on Sunday targeting another ship, the Magic Seas. All crew from the Magic Seas were rescued before it sank. The strikes on the two ships revive a campaign by the Iran-aligned fighters who had attacked more than 100 ships from November 2023 to December 2024 in what they said was solidarity with the Palestinians. In May, the U.S. announced a surprise deal with the Houthis where it agreed to stop a bombing campaign against them in return for an end to shipping attacks, though the Houthis said the deal did not include sparing Israel. Leading shipping industry associations, including the International Chamber of Shipping and BIMCO, denounced the deadly operation and called for robust maritime security in the region via a joint statement on Wednesday. "These vessels have been attacked with callous disregard for the lives of innocent civilian seafarers," they said. "This tragedy illuminates the need for nations to maintain robust support in protecting shipping and vital sea lanes."
Surviving Crew Members Kidnapped By Houthis After Greek-Owned Cargo Ship Attacked -Houthi attacks on commercial ships in the strategic Bab el-Mandeb/Southern Red Sea corridor have intensified following U.S. airstrikes on three Iranian nuclear facilities, ordered by President Trump. This marks a significant escalation of asymmetric Iranian-proxy operations aimed at choking the critical maritime chokepoint. Last weekend, rebel forces attacked the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned cargo ship Eternity C, resulting in the deaths of at least three mariners and injuries to several others. The ship lost propulsion and is now adrift with the crew still on board.Between Sunday and Monday, the Houthis launched another assault on the bulk carrier Magic Seas using small boats and bomb-laden drones.Rebels later released video footage showing their fighters boarding the vessel, strategically placing explosives throughout the ship. The detonation ultimately led to the vessel's sinking, marking one of the most brazen and well-documented Houthi maritime attacks to date. Update (1252ET): One of the two commercial ships attacked by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels—the Liberian-flagged, Greek-owned cargo ship Eternity C—has sunk, resulting in the deaths of at least four crew members, with 15 still missing. The other ship, Magic Seas, was also attacked and sank earlier this week (crew rescued). Here's more from Reuters: Rescuers pulled six crew members alive from the Red Sea on Wednesday and 15 were still missing from the second of two ships sunk in recent days in attacks claimed by Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthi militia after months of calm. Four of the 25 people aboard the Eternity C cargo ship were killed before the rest of the crew abandoned the vessel, which sank on Wednesday morning after being attacked on Monday and Tuesday, sources at security companies involved in a rescue operation said.Since late 2023, more than 100 ships in the strategic Bab el-Mandeb/Southern Red Sea corridor have been targeted by Houthi rebels using drones and missiles. These attacks are expected to continue until a ceasefire is reached in the Israel-Hamas war.. The attacks on Eternity C and Magic Seas mark the first Houthi strikes in the critical maritime chokepoint since President Trump announced a truce with the rebels in May.Update(1505ET): Things have gone from bad to worse regarding the situation of the Greek-owned cargo ship Eternity C, which was sunk in a deadly Houthi raid. The missing mariners aboard the ship are now confirmed kidnapped, after at least four were killed.The US embassy accused Yemen's Iran-backed militants Wednesday of kidnapping crew members from the Eternity C in the Red Sea earlier this week - an attack which was carefully documented and filmed for the world to see by the attackers (see below)."After killing their shipmates, sinking their ship and hampering rescue efforts, the Huthi terrorists have kidnapped many surviving crew members of the Eternity C. We call for their immediate and unconditional safe release," the embassy said in a statement on X. Below is more from the Houthi statement, claiming the captive and surviving crew members are 'safe'... will President Trump get involved? It appears at least 15 have been taken.
Israeli Defense Minister Orders Plan To Build Concentration Camp for Gaza's Civilian Population - Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz has ordered the IDF to prepare a plan to establish a camp to concentrate the entire civilian population of Gaza on the ruins of the southern Gaza city of Rafah.According to Haaretz, Katz said that once Palestinian civilians are pushed into what he is calling a “humanitarian city,” they will not be allowed to leave. The idea is to first transfer 600,000 civilians from the al-Mawasi tent camp on the coast in southern Gaza, followed by the rest of the civilian population.Katz said that if conditions permit, the “city” could be built during a potential 60-day ceasefire, comments that will make Hamas less likely to agree to a temporary truce. The Israeli defense minister also said that during the ceasefire, Israel will maintain control of the “Morag Corridor,” a strip of land between Rafah and Khan Younis.Katz also suggested the camp can facilitate the government’s ultimate goal of ethnic cleansing, which it refers to as “voluntary migration,” telling reporters that Israel will implement “the emigration plan, which will happen.”Israeli Finance Minister Bezalel Smotrich has previously said that the goal of Israel’s current military operation, dubbed Gideon’s Chariots, is to create a concentration camp south of the Morag Corridor and pressure the civilians forced into it to leave.“The Gazan citizens will be concentrated in the south. They will be totally despairing, understanding that there is no hope and nothing to look for in Gaza, and will be looking for relocation to begin a new life in other places,”Smotrich said in May.Katz’s comments come after Reuters reported that the controversial US-backed Gaza Humanitarian Foundation (GHF) had proposed to the US government the idea of creating camps it called “Humanitarian Transit Areas” inside Gaza or possibly outside Gaza.The GHF plan describes the camps as “large-scale” and “voluntary” places where the Palestinian population could “temporarily reside, deradicalize, re-integrate and prepare to relocate if they wish to do so.”Katz said Israel is seeking “international partners” to manage the zone and that four aid distribution sites would be set up inside the camp, suggesting the GHF will be involved in the plan. GHF aid sites are secured by American security contractors, who have been credibly accused of using live ammunition and stun grenades to disperse crowds of hungry Palestinian civilians.
Almost 800 people killed in Gaza while trying to get food aid since end of May -At least 798 Palestinians have been killed by Israeli forces while attempting to access humanitarian aid in Gaza since the end of May, the UN Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reported on Friday.A spokesperson for the office told reporters that 615 of those killed died in the vicinity of aid distribution centers operated by the so-called Gaza Humanitarian Foundation since May 27. An additional 183 were killed along routes used by aid convoys.The alarming death toll comes amid growing international concern over the distribution mechanism currently in place in Gaza.The organizations urged a return to the UN-led distribution mechanism that operated in Gaza until March. Since late May, aid has been gradually allowed into Gaza but is being distributed through the foundation.
Israeli Airstrike Slaughters 10 Children Waiting for Nutritional Aid Near Medical Clinic in Gaza - Warning: Graphic footage below. On Thursday, a US-backed Israeli airstrike hit near a medical clinic in central Gaza’s Deir el-Balah as civilians gathered to receive nutritional aid, killing 16 Palestinians, including 10 children and three women.The clinic is run by Project HOPE, an American aid group, and the organization’s regional director, Natia Deisadze, confirmed that civilians were waiting to “receive essential nutrition support” at the time of the strike.The New York Times said that it verified CCTV footage that showed a strike hit two men who were walking near a group of women and children. Smoke and dust filled the screen, and other footage shows dead and wounded women and children strewn along the side of the street.Aftermath of the Israeli airstrike in Deir el-Balah (via Reuters) Based on the CCTV footage and the video of the aftermath, there’s no evidence that the two men who were directly hit with the airstrike were armed. According to Reuters, the IDF claimed that it struck a Hamas “militant” who participated in the October 7, 2023, attack on southern Israel but offered no evidence.State Department spokeswoman Tammy Bruce was asked about the massacre and referred the reporter to the state of Israel. “I can’t speak to that particular event, I would direct you to the country of Israel,” she said. Bruce claimed that the US “decries” civilian casualties but made clear the US will continue to back Israel.“It’s a war. We stand by Israel, to say the least. And we also know that Israel, when it is due, investigates, and we’ll await to see what their actions will be,” Bruce said.
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