U.S. crude oil production surged to an all-time high in March, reaching 13.488 million barrels per day, according to newly released monthly EIA data. That edges out the previous monthly record of 13.450 million bpd set in October 2024, and an increase over the 13.153 million bpd in February. The increase reflects steady momentum from the Permian and Gulf Coast operators—even as drilling activity slows elsewhere. But while the supply side flexed its muscle, demand told a different story. Total petroleum product supplied—a broad proxy…

U.S. crude oil production surged to an all-time high in March, reaching 13.488 million barrels per day, according to newly released monthly EIA data. That edges out the previous monthly record of 13.450 million bpd set in October 2024, and an increase over the 13.153 million bpd in February. The increase reflects steady momentum from the Permian and Gulf Coast operators—even as drilling activity slows elsewhere. But while the supply side flexed its muscle, demand told a different story. Total petroleum product supplied—a broad proxy…

This year, the world will generate more nuclear energy than ever before. “The market, technology and policy foundations are in place for a new era of growth in nuclear energy over the coming decades,” the International Energy Agency (IEA) wrote in a report published last month.  “It’s clear today that the strong comeback for nuclear energy that the IEA predicted several years ago is well underway, with nuclear set to generate a record level of electricity in 2025,” stated IEA Executive Director Fatih Birol. “In…

EOG Resources is making a bold northeast push, announcing Friday it will acquire privately held Encino Acquisition Partners for $5.6 billion, including debt. The move positions EOG as a dominant Utica shale player, with 1.1 million net acres and 275,000 boe/d in combined production. The seller, Encino Energy, backed by the Canada Pension Plan Investment Board, controls 675,000 net core acres in the play—most of it contiguous and liquids-rich. That’s precisely what EOG is after. CEO Ezra Yacob called it a “third foundational play”…

The total number of active drilling rigs for oil and gas in the United States fell yet again this week, according to new data that Baker Hughes published on Friday, following a 10-rig decrease last week, and a 6-rig decrease the week before that. The total rig count in the US fell by 3 to 563 rigs, according to Baker Hughes, down 37 from this same time last year. The number of oil rigs fell by 4 to 461 after falling by 8 during the previous week—and down by 35 compared to this time last year. The number of gas rigs rose by 1 this week, to…

The European Union says China, including Hong Kong, is responsible for "approximately" 80 percent of the circumventions of sanctions against Russia even though Beijing continues to deny it. According to a classified report by the German Foreign Ministry, seen by German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung and the state television networks NDR and WDR, EU sanctions commissioner David O'Sullivan told a meeting in Brussels earlier this month that, while sanctions have a significant impact on Russia's economy, difficulties continue. The media outlets said…

A turbulent week for global energy markets saw oil prices slide amid OPEC+ uncertainty and escalating U.S.-China tensions. The double whammy of OPEC+’s unpredictability and Donald Trump’s heated rhetoric over China ‘totally violating its agreement’ with the US put oil prices under renewed pressure, sending ICE Brent slightly below $64 per barrel with WTI balancing on the edge of the $60 per barrel threshold. Should the weekend bring an OPEC+ surprise of a bigger-than-expected unwinding, the downslide could very well continue…

Defying Lower Oil Prices, Saudi Aramco Goes on Borrowing Spree - Saudi Arabia’s national oil company, Saudi Aramco, is seeking to borrow more from the financial markets to meet its investment needs, having raised $5 billion this week in its first dollar-bond sale of 2025. - The company’s net debt rose to its highest since 2022 as of April 2025, up 18% quarter-on-quarter to 25 billion, although Aramco’s gearing ratio remains relatively low at 5.3%, a fraction of BP’s more than 25%. - According to the IMF, Saudi Arabia’s…

Just under a year ago, I wrote a piece here suggesting that readers look at buying stock in NuScale (SMR), a young company that designs and builds small modular reactors (SMRs). SMRs are a reputedly safer, more manageable type of nuclear reactor, and my argument then was that a shift in where government green energy money was being targeted, towards nuclear power and away from wind and solar, would be good news for NuScale. That has panned out, particularly over the last week or so, with the stock now trading at more than three times what it was…

WTI futures ended Thursday’s session just below a $62.59 pivot, paring earlier gains as a late-week rally fizzled. Crude prices initially rose following a U.S. trade court ruling that overturned broad Trump-era tariffs, which briefly lifted sentiment across risk assets. However, the upside lacked conviction, with futures retreating into the close and pushing prices down roughly 1% for the week. Brent tracked similarly. The subdued response signals a market lacking directional confidence, with traders opting to stay sidelined ahead of clearer…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict Ukraine is protesting Russia's construction of power lines to the occupied Zaporizhzhia nuclear plant, a move Kyiv says solidifies annexation. The UN insists there’s no immediate nuclear threat. The IAEA says there are no indications that Russia is gearing up to restart the nuclear plant, but clear preparations to hook the plant up to Russia’s own grid, stealing Kyiv’s power in a continuation of the weaponization of energy. This is Europe’s biggest nuclear power plant, and currently,…

There was a time when Libya's internal chaos lit up the radar in Washington, Moscow, Ankara, and Brussels. Not anymore. In 2025, the country is in the middle of an undeclared but escalating civil war, and no one with real leverage is rushing in to break it up. Instead, they're recalibrating—cautiously hedging their bets as oil flows continue and proxy advantages are rebalanced.  Eastern forces aligned with General Khalifa Haftar are again inching toward the gates of Tripoli. Clashes in the capital in early May weren’t just a warning…

A supertanker carrying 2.1 million barrels of Russia’s Far Eastern ESPO crude grade has been anchored near China for days in what traders say is an unusual pattern that could suggest weaker demand in the Asian market. The Big Star supertanker loaded ESPO from three smaller vessels near Russia’s Zarubino port in the Far East earlier this month and headed to China’s port of Jieyang in the southern province of Guangdong, according to ship-tracking data from LSEG cited by Reuters. However, the Big Star has been stationed at anchor…

This weekend, OPEC+ may debate boosting oil production in July by more than the 411,000-bpd monthly hikes it has announced for May and June, sources with knowledge of the discussions at the production group told Reuters on Friday. For two months now, OPEC+ has been pursuing a policy to unwind the production cuts by monthly volumes triple that of the original plans, and the eight countries doing the cuts have decided to boost May and June oil production by 411,000 barrels per day in each of the two months. The new OPEC+ strategy – largely…

The European Commission considers allowing European Union countries more flexibility in reaching a 90% emissions cut target by 2040, diplomats told Reuters on Friday, amid growing backlash against the too stringent EU climate policies. In early July, the European Commission is set to propose a 2040 climate target that would include cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, according to Reuters’ sources with knowledge of the talks. But the 90% target could be made more flexible by allowing EU member states to…

The European Commission considers allowing European Union countries more flexibility in reaching a 90% emissions cut target by 2040, diplomats told Reuters on Friday, amid growing backlash against the too stringent EU climate policies. In early July, the European Commission is set to propose a 2040 climate target that would include cutting greenhouse gas emissions by 90% by 2040 compared to 1990 levels, according to Reuters’ sources with knowledge of the talks. But the 90% target could be made more flexible by allowing EU member states to…

China has waived a short-lived 125% tariff on U.S. ethane imports, but American shipments to China could be hindered by a U.S. requirement of export licenses. Ethane, a natural gas liquid primarily extracted from raw natural gas during processing, is mainly used as a feedstock for ethylene production, one of the most important building blocks in the petrochemical industry. China has waived a 125% tariff on U.S. ethane imports it had levied in early April. The tariff removal led EIA to expect strong growth in U.S. ethane production and exports.…

India is exporting more diesel on the east of Suez route into Southeast Asia in May, with shipments to the region on track for a four-year high, Reuters reported on Friday, quoting vessel-tracking data and trade sources. India is estimated to have shipped 600,000 metric tons, or 4.47 million barrels in total, to Southeast Asia in May, according to data from tanker-tracking services Vortexa, LSEG, and Kpler. This is the highest such volume since 2021, as higher margins and lower shipping costs support more volumes heading east of India instead of…

Libyan authorities have arrested three suspects accused of breaking into the headquarters of the National Oil Corporation (NOC), the Attorney General's Office said shortly after the eastern government warned it could declare force majeure on oilfields and oil export terminals. Representatives of a militia broke earlier this week into the NOC headquarters in Tripoli, and demanded that they be given jobs protecting the building. In response to the incident, the Benghazi-based eastern government of Libya said it might declare force majeure on oil…

Tankers carrying Iranian crude to China are turning off their trackers, Kpler has reported, as cited by Bloomberg, as the threat of new U.S. sanctions looms large despite ongoing nuclear deal negotiations. “Ship-to-ship transfers have been used to mask the origin of those cargoes,” a Kpler analyst told the publication. “Now they’re switching signals off for longer, so that it’s now even harder to trace those flows back to the source, which is Iran,” Muyu Xu also said. The U.S. State Department earlier this month…