Why Oil Investors Should Keep An Eye On ESG Scores (Source: 30 July 2022): By David Messler - Climate change and its perceived impacts from projected warming of the Earth through Anthropogenic Global Warming-AWG have instituted profound changes in how the world approaches energy sources. It comes as no surprise really, that legacy energy companies have borne the brunt of these changes given that their output, oil, and gas, are viewed as being key contributors to AWG. The result has been a rapid roll-out of individual strategies to reduce their individual Green House Gas-GHG, emissions-Scope 1, 2, and in the case of upstream oil and gas operators to change their product mix to reduce Scope-3 emissions. (Source: Oil Price)
How Renewable Forests Could Solve A Major Electric Vehicle Problem (28 July 2022): By Felicity Bradstock - Automakers and energy companies are racing to find innovative options to boost electric vehicle (EV) battery technology as governments around the world attempt to curb the sale of diesel and petrol cars, increasing EV uptake. The latest experiment in this space is the use of wooden components in lithium-ion batteries, as companies invest in making their EVs greener. Finish-Swedish firm Stora Enso and Volkswagen-backed Northvolt have partnered in the development of a sustainable battery that uses an anode manufactured from lignin-based hard carbon, which is sourced from renewable wood from Nordic forests. Through the Joint Development Agreement, the two companies hope to establish the first industrialized battery using the anode, made up wholly of European raw materials, reducing the battery’s carbon footprint. (Source: Oil Price)
Germany Could Still Avoid Severe Gas Shortages (27 July 2022): By Tsvetana Paraskova - Germany has a chance to avoid natural gas shortages in the coming months if households and businesses conserve gas and energy and Russia doesn't cut supply further, Klaus Müller, the president of Germany's Federal Network Agency, Bundesnetzagentur, said on Wednesday. Earlier this week, Russia warned that gas supply via Nord Stream—the main natural gas link between Russia and Germany—would be cut to just 20% of the pipeline's capacity, days after Gazprom restarted the pipeline at 40% capacity after regular maintenance. The Russian explanation for the even lower gas flows to Europe is that another turbine at a compressor station is up for maintenance and repairs, while the one that Canada returned from repairs has yet to be installed. (Source: Oil Price)
IMF: Global Economy Heading Towards Worst Slowdown In 50 Years (26 July 2022): By City A.M - The global economy could be hurtling toward one of the sharpest slowdowns in recent memory, the International Monetary Fund (IMF) warned today. A full shut-off of Russian gas flows to Europe and more upside inflation shocks would plunge growth into among the worst brackets since the 1970s. The global economic watchdog said if existing headwinds intensify, expansion will drop to 2.6 percent and two percent in 2023 respectively, “putting growth in the bottom 10 percent of outcomes since 1970”. In the organization’s most likely scenario, expansion is healthier, but the IMF said the likelihood of its gloomy forecast materializing is much stronger than usual. (Source: Oil Price)
American Refiners' Record Profits Won't Last (25 July 2022): By Charles Kennedy - While U.S. refiners are set to post over profit hikes of over 600% for the quarter, and global refiners are also reeling in revenues, the precipitous fall in gasoline prices and consumption over the past two weeks could reverse that going forward. After nearing $60 per barrel in June, the U.S. 321 gasoline crack spread fell last week to $37.57 per barrel, according to Reuters, with the EIA noting that while refinery production increased in June to take advantage of the high crack spread, gasoline demand began to decline in April. Summer demand for gasoline in the United States has declined over the past two weeks, and in some parts of Asia, seasonal demand is also down, while gas prices are lowering and stockpiles are growing. (Source: Oil Price)
Heatwaves Could Cause Energy Crunch In Central Asia (24 July 2022): By Eurasianet - Kyrgyzstan’s state power supplier has warned of possible energy shortages as consumers set a new daily record for power consumption in summer. Central Asia is being gripped by the same heatwave blanketing much of the northern hemisphere. On July 19 electricity consumers increased consumption by around 20 percent compared to the same day over the previous two years, according to data released by the National Energy Holding. They consumed a record 34 million kilowatt hours, compared to 28 million on the same day in 2020 and 29 million in 2021. The power supplier did not offer any explanation for the rise in consumption. But a key factor is likely increased use of air conditioning to combat what the company laconically described as “ongoing abnormally hot weather.” (Source: Oil Price)
Lummus Introduces Industry's first net zero ethane cracker (14 July 2022): Lummus Technology announced the launch of a major enhancement to its leading ethane feed steam cracker that is capable of achieving zero CO2 emissions from an ethylene plant. Lummus developed this next generation design as part of its comprehensive strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from all of its technology offerings. The cracker, which is the industry's first, is now available for commercial use to decarbonize a process in petrochemical manufacturing that is very carbon intensive. It can be incorporated into both new and existing ethane crackers, and at sites and facilities of different sizes. (Source: HP)
Biden: Inflation Data Does Not Reflect Impact Of Gasoline Price Decline (13 July 2022): By Charles Kennedy - U.S. President Joe Biden said on Wednesday that the June inflation data showing the highest inflation in the United States in more than 40 years is “out-of-date” because gasoline prices have been falling over the past 30 days and are $0.40 a gallon off the record in mid-June. Today, the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics announced consumer prices for June 2022, saying that over the last 12 months, the all items index jumped by 9.1 percent—the fastest consumer price increase since November 1981. The energy index rose 7.5 percent over the month and contributed nearly half of the all items increase, with the gasoline index rising 11.2 percent, the Bureau of Labor Statistics said. (Source: Oil Price)
BlackRock Is Bracing For “Persistent Inflation” (12 July 2022): By City A.M - The world’s biggest asset manager BlackRock said the era of steady growth and inflation was over as it revealed it had slashed its exposure to developed market equities and was bracing for extended period of volatility. In its mid-year outlook statement yesterday, the investor said it was now bracing for a “persistent inflation amid sharp and short swings in economic activity” after a fundamental reshaping of the global macroeconomic environment. “The Great Moderation, a period of steady growth and inflation, is over, in our view,” BlackRock Vice Chairman Philipp Hildebrand and his team said. “Instead, we are braving a new world of heightened macro volatility – and higher risk premia for both bonds and equities.” (Source: Oil Price)
Solving The Energy Transition Conundrum (11 July 2022): By Osama Rizvi - The COP26, held in Glasgow last year, saw participating countries pledge that they will wean themselves off coal, a promise that has seen very limited progress since. Meanwhile, the IEA in its annual report titled Net Zero by 2050 warned that if the world is to reach the net-zero goal by 2050 there should be no new investments in oil, gas, and coal developments. That was in 2021. Today, floods are sweeping Bangladesh, India, and China. Food shortages are causing problems in the developing world with countries like Peru, Sri Lanka, and Ecuador suffering from large-scale protests and political instability. Meanwhile, heat waves of unprecedented magnitude have caused blackouts on a massive scale. (Source: Oil Price)
Gasoline Prices See The Largest Drop In Nearly 15 Years (8 July 2022): By Julianne Geiger - While gasoline prices are still $1.50 higher per gallon than they were this time last year, they fell sharply overnight in what was the largest one-day drop in nearly 15 years, according to AAA data. The current price for a gallon of gasoline in the United States is averaging $4.721 on Friday, down from $4.752 per gallon on Thursday—a 3.1-cent drop. The weekly change is even more significant at 12.1 cents. According to Gas Buddy’s Patrick De Haan, more than 5,800 gas stations across the country are offering gasoline at $3.99 per gallon or less. (Source: Oil Price)
Big Oil CEO Believes Carbon Prices Need To Double (7 July 2022): By Felicity Bradstock - Climate economists and major energy firms believe that the price of carbon should be raised to incentivize greater investment in carbon capture technology and renewable energy innovation. As, without setting a minimum carbon pricing scheme at the international level or introducing carbon taxes, companies are not being incentivized enough to pledge or meet net-zero carbon goals by 2050. The CEO of Exxon Mobil, Darren Woods, stated in an interview that he thinks direct air capture, through the incorporation of carbon capture and storage (CCS) technologies in oil and gas operations is “the holy grail.” He added, “if you can overcome some of those technology hurdles, get your cost down, you’ve got a technology then that can address this in a very cost-efficient way.” Exxon estimates the CCS market could be worth as much as $4 trillion by 2050. (Source: Oil Price)
TotalEnergies quits Russia's Kharyaga oil project in wake of sanctions (6 July 2022): Reuters - TotalEnergies has agreed to transfer its remaining stake in Russia's Kharyaga oil field to the country's state producer Zarubezhneft, the French company told Reuters, in its first major divestment in Russia in the wake of Western sanctions. "TotalEnergies has agreed to transfer to Zarubezhneft the remaining 20% interest that the company held in the Kharyaga oil field," a spokesperson for TotalEnergies told the news agency on Wednesday. "This transaction is subject to the approval of the Russian authorities," the spokesperson said, without elaborating on the terms of the stake transfer. The Kharyaga oil project is operated under a product sharing agreement. As the part of the agreement, TotalEnergies received some 100,000 tons of oil for exports as every month. (Source: HP)
Russia To Hit Gazprom With $20 Billion Windfall Tax (5 July 2022): By Michael Kern - Russia’s lower house of parliament approved on Tuesday amendments in the country’s tax code that would slap a windfall tax on Gazprom of the equivalent of $20 billion between September and November, which will boost Russia’s tax revenue income. The amendment still needs to be approved by the upper house of the Russian Parliament and President Vladimir Putin before becoming law. Under the plans, gas giant Gazprom will pay $6.5 billion (416 billion Russian rubles) per month for three months, on top of its other taxes. For September to November, this means that Gazprom will have to pay an additional $20 billion (1.25 trillion rubles) for those three months. Gazprom and Russia are seeing a windfall of revenues from gas sales as the Russian invasion of Ukraine sent energy prices soaring. Gazprom’s recent reduction of gas supply to Europe has also pushed up European prices higher amid concerns that the EU will face a winter of recession and rationing if it doesn’t have its gas storage at least 80% full by October. (Source: Oil Price)
The Futuristic Vehicles That Could Compete With EVs (4 July 2022): By Felicity Bradstock - Despite leading the green transport market, electric vehicles (EVs) may not be the only option available in the future. Several climate-friendly alternatives to electric battery vehicles are being researched and designed, although most are getting little public attention. So, will the green car of the future be electric, or will other technologies catch up to offer other market leaders? The sale of EVs doubled in 2021, compared to the previous year, reaching 6.6 million. This meant that around 10 percent of global car sales were electric. The International Energy Agency predicts that EVs will contribute over 30 percent of vehicle sales by 2030, with uptake rates increasing alongside the implementation of climate policies around the globe. But as EV sales continue to rise, we may well see other green vehicles arrive on the market, as automakers compete to create the most innovative carbon-neutral vehicles. (Source: Oil Price)
Oil Should Stay In Triple Digits: Analyst (1 July 2022): By Julianne Geiger - Crude oil prices should stay in the triple digits, Kpler’s head of Sweet Crude Analysis Matt Smith told Yahoo Finance. There won’t be a continued downward pressure on oil, according to Smith. “I don’t think that we’re going to see continued downward pressure on oil. I think what we’re seeing in the last couple of weeks in the oil market is this selloff as oil has got swept up in broader market sentiment as we’ve seen a selloff in equities, etc. It’s a risk appetite thing,” Smith told Yahoo Finance. Instead, Smith sees crude oil prices supported by OPEC, because while they are saying they continue to put more oil onto the market, they are failing to boost their exports. In fact, as Smith points out, we’ve seen Saudi Arabia’s exports drop in recent months. (Source: Oil Price)