With oil plummeting near an 18-year low amid unprecedented supply and demand shocks, Russia finally admitted: crude is too cheap. “Of course it’s a low price, we would like to see it higher,” Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said on a conference call, signaling for the first time that the country’s …
Read More »Iran’s Economic Growth Positive despite Sanctions
Iranian President Hassan Rouhani said the domestic economy has reflected a positive and growing trend in the oil and non-oil sectors in the current Iranian calendar year (started in March 2019), despite intensified US pressures on the country. Speaking on the sidelines of a cabinet meeting in Tehran on Wednesday, …
Read More »History Shows the 2020 Oil-Price War Won’t End Soon
How long can the vicious oil-price war between Saudi Arabia and Russia last? If history is any guide, the battle will be a long one. Riyadh has waged four price wars, including the current one, over the last 35 years. All of them lasted at least a year, and prices …
Read More »Russia to Keep Oil Flowing by Extending Arctic Shifts
Russian oil and gas workers in the Arctic Yamal peninsula could see their shifts extended by months to shield the energy industry and its employees from the spread of coronavirus. The region’s governor recommended in an order published on Tuesday that the shifts of those currently working in the region …
Read More »Europe Warned about Virus Impact on Clean Tech
Governments across Europe should keep clean energy top of mind as they consider measures to protect their economies against a likely recession caused by the coronavirus, the International Energy Agency (IEA) has said. The European Commission is paying close attention to the economic impact of the coronavirus, saying border shutdowns …
Read More »Mediation between the Two Oil Powerhouses may be Impossible Right Now
Attempts by some OPEC members to mediate between the cartel’s leader, Saudi Arabia, and Russia have failed and this Wednesday’s meeting of an OPEC+ technical committee has been scrapped amid the “full on war” between the friends turned foes, sources told Reuters on Monday. The meeting of the Joint Technical …
Read More »Oil Crisis Too Large for SPR Fix
On March 13, President Trump proposed using the Department of Energy to buy oil for the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) in a bid to soak up some surplus oil from the market. Oil prices received a jolt on the news just before the close of trading on Friday. However, the …
Read More »Russia Keeps Saudis at Arm’s Length, as Oil Price Fall Continues
Russia, the world’s largest energy exporter, said the current oil-price slump was expected and it doesn’t plan talks with Saudi Arabia for the time being. The decision to keep the Saudis at arm’s length comes as oil tumbles to a four-year low, continuing its slide after the collapse of OPEC+ …
Read More »Russia Sees No Need for Talks with Saudis Even as Oil Tumbles
Russia, the world’s largest energy exporter, said the current oil-price slump was expected and it doesn’t plan talks with Saudi Arabia for the time being. The decision to keep the Saudis at arm’s length comes as oil tumbles to a four-year low, continuing its slide after the collapse of OPEC+ …
Read More »World Is Heading for Biggest Ever Oil Surplus
After a dizzying drop in demand and an about-face in Saudi Arabian production policy, global oil markets face the possibility of the biggest crude surplus ever recorded, according to IHS Markit.Should the price war between the kingdom and Russia persist and the world tip into recession due to the coronavirus, …
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