Copper has become an essential building block in modern construction and energy. In the coming years, the global demand for copper is expected to increase significantly as it is used more widely for renewable energy projects and transmission. The Australian mining major BHP expects the demand for copper to grow by around 70 percent, to 50 million tonnes, by 2050, as it is used more widely for a range of applications. The adoption of electric vehicles (EVs), renewables, and data centres around the world is expected to drive copper demand beyond…

Uzbekistan’s interest in connectivity with Afghanistan is driven by economic opportunity, energy cooperation, security needs, and geopolitical strategy - factors that will help Uzbekistan access new markets and stabilize the region. Ambassador Javlon Vakhabov of the International Institute for Central Asia in Tashkent, Uzbekistan, calls it “Stability Through Connectivity.” That is, Uzbekistan favors pragmatism over trying to isolate Afghanistan, and a policy that balances humanitarian support and regional security. The Central…

US President Donald Trump on June 5 compared Russia's war against Ukraine to children fighting in comments during a visit by German Chancellor Friedrich Merz, telling reporters at the White House that "sometimes you're better off letting them fight for a while." Trump downplayed prospects for an immediate peace between the countries despite his diplomatic efforts to push the two sides to negotiate a cease-fire and eventually a peace deal. The US president has become increasingly frustrated over the lack of progress toward either goal. During last…

Artificial intelligence is all over the media—and so is its energy consumption, which is spurring something of a new tech race. That race, however, besides innovation, includes some simpler moves, such as a return to a kind of power generator that had been consigned to history. Single-cycle gas turbines used to be popular before combined-cycle technology emerged. It was much more efficient and a lot cleaner, Bloomberg reported this week in a story looking into the latest developments in AI and securing the energy for its continued growth.…

In a move that fuses domestic revival with international strategy, the Trump administration has greenlit the expansion of Montana’s Bull Mountains coal mine—unlocking nearly 60 million tons of coal destined for key U.S. allies Japan and South Korea. The approval, announced Friday by the Department of the Interior, comes under President Trump’s national energy emergency directive, signaling a bold return to coal as a cornerstone of U.S. energy policy and foreign leverage. The mine’s expansion, led by Signal Peak Energy, is…

In a move that fuses domestic revival with international strategy, the Trump administration has greenlit the expansion of Montana’s Bull Mountains coal mine—unlocking nearly 60 million tons of coal destined for key U.S. allies Japan and South Korea. The approval, announced Friday by the Department of the Interior, comes under President Trump’s national energy emergency directive, signaling a bold return to coal as a cornerstone of U.S. energy policy and foreign leverage. The mine’s expansion, led by Signal Peak Energy, is…

In a move that fuses domestic revival with international strategy, the Trump administration has greenlit the expansion of Montana’s Bull Mountains coal mine—unlocking nearly 60 million tons of coal destined for key U.S. allies Japan and South Korea. The approval, announced Friday by the Department of the Interior, comes under President Trump’s national energy emergency directive, signaling a bold return to coal as a cornerstone of U.S. energy policy and foreign leverage. The mine’s expansion, led by Signal Peak Energy, is…

In a move that fuses domestic revival with international strategy, the Trump administration has greenlit the expansion of Montana’s Bull Mountains coal mine—unlocking nearly 60 million tons of coal destined for key U.S. allies Japan and South Korea. The approval, announced Friday by the Department of the Interior, comes under President Trump’s national energy emergency directive, signaling a bold return to coal as a cornerstone of U.S. energy policy and foreign leverage. The mine’s expansion, led by Signal Peak Energy, is…

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 3-rig decrease last week, and a 10-rig decrease the week before that. The total rig count in the US fell by 4 to 559 rigs, according to Baker Hughes, down 35 from this same time last year. The number of oil rigs fell by 9 to 442 after falling by 4 during the previous week—and down by 50 compared to this time last year. The number of gas rigs rose by 5 this week, to…

The U.S. Treasury Department has unleashed a sweeping wave of sanctions targeting a sprawling network of companies and individuals accused of facilitating Iranian oil and petrochemical exports in violation of existing sanctions. The action, announced Friday, strikes at the financial and logistical infrastructure underpinning Iran’s shadow energy trade—particularly its crude exports to Asia. At the center of the designations is Nasser Zarrin Ghalam and Partners Company, based in Tehran, which U.S. authorities say orchestrates illicit…

The U.S. Treasury Department has unleashed a sweeping wave of sanctions targeting a sprawling network of companies and individuals accused of facilitating Iranian oil and petrochemical exports in violation of existing sanctions. The action, announced Friday, strikes at the financial and logistical infrastructure underpinning Iran’s shadow energy trade—particularly its crude exports to Asia. At the center of the designations is Nasser Zarrin Ghalam and Partners Company, based in Tehran, which U.S. authorities say orchestrates illicit…

ICE Brent is poised to close the week above $66 as trade optimism lifts sentiment, while stubborn geopolitical tensions and shifting wildfire risks keep supply concerns alive. June 6th, 2025 ICE Brent futures are set to close this week above $66 per barrel, a more than 3% weekly gain after markets were buoyed by the prospect of US-China trade talks all the while derailed US-Iran and Russia-Ukraine negotiations have kept geopolitical risk premia intact. Supply risks from Canada’s wildfires seem to be subsiding after Alberta saw some rain earlier…

The fuel economy standards issued under former President Biden exceeded legal authority, the U.S. Department of Transportation said on Friday. Under the so-called Corporate Average Fuel Economy Program (CAFE), the Biden Administration included electric vehicles (EVs) in calculating fuel economy regulations. Now the Trump Administration published a ‘Resetting the Corporate Average Fuel Economy Program’ rule, in which it declared that the Biden-era rule and rule-making exceeded legal authority. Last month, Transportation Secretary Sean…

Wary of the ‘Hockey Stick’, Oil Traders Hedge Their 2025 Exposure - Open interest in WTI calendar spread options - contracts that see market participants bid on the future value of crude oil futures across different delivery months – has reached an all-time high as traders expect this year’s assumed oversupply to only materialize in 2026. - The prompt spread between July and August was trading around $0.90 per barrel for most of this week, whilst the difference between December 2025 and December 2026 was a mere $0.50 per…

HSBC’s forecast that Brent Crude prices would remain around $65 per barrel later this year could be too optimistic as OPEC+ continues to raise production, which will result in a bigger-than-expected surplus after the summer ends. “Our new scenario assumes regular hikes from October to December and leaves the 2.2mbd of voluntary cuts fully unwound by the end of 2025,” the bank said in a note on Friday carried by Reuters. OPEC+ producers have just said they would boost July production by another 411,000 barrels per day (bpd), citing…

Venezuela hasn’t waited long to replace Western service providers in its oil industry after the U.S. sanctions, and has signed at least nine agreements with foreign firms, including from China, sources with knowledge of the deals told Bloomberg. Under the U.S. sanctions, Western oil producers were given time until May to wrap up their operations in Venezuela, home to the world’s biggest crude oil reserves. U.S. licenses for the biggest oilfield service providers – Schlumberger, Halliburton, Baker Hughes, and Weatherford International…

Politics, Geopolitics & Conflict On June 1, Ukraine executed Operation Spiderweb, a meticulously planned drone offensive targeting five Russian airbases, including facilities in Siberia. The operation reportedly damaged or destroyed approximately 34% of Russia's strategic bomber fleet, including nuclear-capable aircraft, marking a significant escalation in Ukraine's military capabilities. In retaliation, Russia launched a massive missile and drone assault across Ukraine on June 6, with Kyiv experiencing one of the deadliest attacks since April.…

Turkey is back in the spotlight this week, and Erdogan is at it again. This time, he’s gotten rid of five more opponents as he rather brazenly and publicly picks off his rivals one by one (or in this case, five by five). On Thursday, Erdogan fired five district mayors from the opposition Republican People’s Party (CHP), allegedly for corruption. That move is intended to shore up his previous move in March to arrest Istanbul’s Mayor, Ekrem ?mamo?lu, his most dangerous political rival, on alleged financial crimes charges. That single…

On the surface, this is not a good time to be investing in alternative energy in the US. The current White House administration is not just pro-fossil fuel but often seems to be actively opposed to alternative and “green” energy.  However, as the recent support for nuclear power, or at least the small modular reactor version of it, shows, that really isn’t the case. Donald Trump may have a curious hatred of wind turbines but other than that, this administration does understand that the energy demands of a modern industrialized…

Light crude oil futures rallied this week, closing Thursday at $63.37 per barrel—up approximately 4.2%—as the market digested a cocktail of bullish catalysts. Traders responded to unplanned supply disruptions in Canada, measured output policies from OPEC+, and escalating geopolitical tensions, while contending with uncertain demand signals and trade-related optimism. OPEC+ Holds Course as Saudi Arabia Defends Market Share OPEC+ stuck to its plan of a 411,000 barrel per day increase for July, reassuring traders who feared a steeper hike…