This week, the Nobel Prize in Physics, the most prestigious award of its kind, was given for breakthrough work on quantum mechanics, emphasizing just how critical the field has become in building our understanding of the world around us, and how we can harness that understanding to design a smarter and more sustainable future. Quantum mechanics have already fundamentally changed the way we live, enabling the advent of cellphones, cameras, and fiber optic cables. And they will continue to change the world in ways that we haven’t even dreamed…

Guyana has strengthened military cooperation with France to safeguard the oil-rich Essequibo region, escalating tensions with Venezuela just as the United States expands maritime strikes on vessels linked to Caracas. The defense announcement follows new reports of French assistance in surveillance and air patrols over Guyana’s western frontier, where ExxonMobil-led production continues to rise above 640,000 barrels per day, UPI reported.  Venezuela maintains its long-standing claim over Essequibo, an area that encompasses most of Guyana’s…

Russian President Vladimir Putin last week signed a decree that appears to target the assets of foreign companies that continue to operate in Russia and that have not yet been seized by the government. The decree calls for the accelerated privatization of state property to ensure defense capability, but it refers directly to "unfriendly actions" of the United States and other countries and organizations aligned with them that aim to impose "restrictive measures against citizens of the Russian Federation and Russian legal entities.” The decree…

French state utility EDF is in talks with banks about a potential initial public offering of its Italian subsidiary Edison, according to sources cited by Reuters, in a move that could unlock billions in capital as EDF ramps up financing for its nuclear revival at home. EDF has begun sounding out major European lenders including BNP Paribas and Société Générale to assess investor appetite for a Milan listing that would value Edison between €7 billion and €10 billion ($8-11 billion). The group would likely retain…

A new survey published by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development offers a strong near-term economic outlook for Central Asian states. But the bank adds that the region is prone to fluctuations in commodity prices, reliance on remittances, and dependence on Russian and Chinese markets. The EBRD’s Regional Economic Prospects 2025 edition projects regional growth this year to reach 6.1 percent, and slow to 5.2 percent in 2026. “Central Asia Central Asian economies continued to post solid growth in the…

The Rare Earths MMI (Monthly Metals Index) moved sideways from September to October, rising by 2.13%. Over the last two weeks, U.S. officials have signaled a decisive shift in how they secure critical minerals. Analysts have taken note of large global rare earths projects aimed at diversifying away from Chinese dominance, which currently accounts for approximately 90% of rare earth processing capacity.  How is USA Rare Earth Reshaping the Supply Chain? U.S.-listed USA Rare Earth (USAR) is currently pursuing its own mine-to-magnet strategy.…

Gold prices were surging above $4,000 per ounce on Tuesday for the first time ever, as escalating political tension in the United States and renewed fears over global financial stability drove investors out of risk assets and into safe havens. Spot gold jumped more than 3% in intraday trading, building on a rally that has lifted the metal over 50% since January. The latest rally comes as markets brace for potential Federal Reserve rate cuts later this year and as investors increasingly view bullion as a hedge against policy and geopolitical chaos. …

Cenovus Energy is raising its takeover bid for MEG Energy in the best and final offer to buy the company that has seen rival bids from Cenovus and Strathcona Resources in recent months.  Cenovus announced on Wednesday a sweetened offer for MEG Energy shareholders, which values the target company at US$6.16 billion (C$8.6 billion) including debt.   The fully pro-rated consideration for MEG represents a value of approximately US$21.37 (C$29.80) per MEG share at Cenovus’s closing share price on October 7, 2025, an increase of…

Cenovus Energy is raising its takeover bid for MEG Energy in the best and final offer to buy the company that has seen rival bids from Cenovus and Strathcona Resources in recent months.  Cenovus announced on Wednesday a sweetened offer for MEG Energy shareholders, which values the target company at US$6.16 billion (C$8.6 billion) including debt.   The fully pro-rated consideration for MEG represents a value of approximately US$21.37 (C$29.80) per MEG share at Cenovus’s closing share price on October 7, 2025, an increase of…

Australia’s role as a resource powerhouse is changing due to global economic forces beyond its control: the fall in oil prices and the record-smashing increase in the price of gold. The country and continent are rich in deposits of iron ore, its number one export, as well as copper, coal, aluminum, lithium and natural gas. Australia also has vast reserves of gold, found for example at the Boddington open-pit mine in Western Australia owned by US-based miner Newmont; the Cadia mine in New South Wales known for its gold and copper production;…

Crude oil inventories in the United States increased by 3.7 million barrels during the week ending October 3, after gaining 1.8 million barrels in the week prior, according to new data from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released on Wednesday. The increase brings commercial stockpiles to 420.3 million barrels according to government data, which is still 4% below the five-year average for this time of year. The EIA’s data release follows API’s figures that were released a day earlier, which suggested that crude oil…

Russia has raised its oil production close to the ceiling in the OPEC+ deal, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday.  “Production is growing... Just as we are unable to decrease it quickly, we are increasing it steadily. We will fulfil our quota,” Russian news agency Interfax quoted Novak as saying.  Russia’s oil production in August was about 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) below its OPEC+ quota.   Russia’s oil production averaged 9.173 million bpd in August, compared to the 9.259…

Russia has raised its oil production close to the ceiling in the OPEC+ deal, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday.  “Production is growing... Just as we are unable to decrease it quickly, we are increasing it steadily. We will fulfil our quota,” Russian news agency Interfax quoted Novak as saying.  Russia’s oil production in August was about 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) below its OPEC+ quota.   Russia’s oil production averaged 9.173 million bpd in August, compared to the 9.259…

Russia has raised its oil production close to the ceiling in the OPEC+ deal, Russian Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said on Wednesday.  “Production is growing... Just as we are unable to decrease it quickly, we are increasing it steadily. We will fulfil our quota,” Russian news agency Interfax quoted Novak as saying.  Russia’s oil production in August was about 90,000 barrels per day (bpd) below its OPEC+ quota.   Russia’s oil production averaged 9.173 million bpd in August, compared to the 9.259…

On the evening of October 2, a massive fire broke out at Chevron’s El Segundo refinery just southwest of Los Angeles. The blaze was visible across the South Bay and drew a large emergency response, but it was ultimately contained without injuries. While the fire was limited to a single process unit, the facility’s importance to California’s fuel supply means the incident could ripple through regional gasoline markets almost immediately, exacerbating an already challenging situation. Built in 1911,…

Oil prices rose early on Wednesday after an industry report showed on Tuesday that the crude stocks at the key Cushing hub fell further and OPEC+ somewhat eased fears of an imminent glut with a planned modest increase in output.   As of 8:05 a.m. EDT on Wednesday, WTI Crude prices were up by 1.44% at $62.62, while the front-month Brent Crude futures traded 1.42% higher at $66.38.  Cushing, Oklahoma, is the physical delivery spot for oil bought and sold in West Texas Intermediate futures contracts.   The American Petroleum…

Some of Europe’s top economies where wind power plays a key role in electricity supply had to curtail a record amount of generation capacity between January and September as grids were unable to dispatch the surge in renewable energy output.    When excess wind or solar output threatens to overwhelm grids, operators are being paid to reduce generation from their renewable energy assets.  The curtailment rates in Spain, Germany, France, and south Sweden rose in the nine months of the year compared to the same period of…

Some of Europe’s top economies where wind power plays a key role in electricity supply had to curtail a record amount of generation capacity between January and September as grids were unable to dispatch the surge in renewable energy output.    When excess wind or solar output threatens to overwhelm grids, operators are being paid to reduce generation from their renewable energy assets.  The curtailment rates in Spain, Germany, France, and south Sweden rose in the nine months of the year compared to the same period of…

The OPEC+ group continues to return modest volumes of supply to the market, cautious not to sink oil prices as demand weakens after the summer. The production hikes are estimated to be lower than the headline figures suggest—some producers lack the capacity to boost output further, while others are compensating for previous overproduction. While the lower-than-planned production increases support oil prices, they also reduce the spare capacity of the OPEC+ producers. Not that many of them have any meaningful spare production capacity. Except…

Just five years ago, no one could predict the surge in electricity demand that the United States is currently experiencing because of the proliferation of data centers as AI takes center stage in the tech industry. Many, however, predicted that nuclear is due for a renaissance—and it is getting it, in both conventional form and, in the future, in small modular reactors. A lot of studies have looked into the amount of energy that AI data centers consume, and while their calculations may vary, the overall conclusion does not: AI consumes enormous…