The US military and its regional allies conducted additional airstrikes against ISIS-controlled oil infrastructure in Syria and Iraq. “The U.S. said on Sunday that its forces along with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates targeted four modular refineries and a command facility north of Raqqa—Islamic State’s de facto capital in northeastern Syria. The U.S. Central Command said it was continuing to assess the attacks, adding that ‘initial indications are that they were successful.’” [Wall Street Journal]

The dramatic increase in US natural gas liquids production and exports is not only creating new domestic investment opportunities underpinned by cheap feedstock, but also spurring overseas development of naphtha-based crackers resulting in new global petrochemical market dynamics. “The emergence of the USA as a key global exporter of light-end commodities and purity products split from NGL streams is not just redrawing traditional trade patterns, it is also influencing wider market dynamics and global petrochemical feedstock trends and investment decisions.” [Oxford Institute for Energy Studies]

A new IEA report says falling PV panel prices and technology advancement could make solar power the world’s top electricity generation source by 2050, up from less than 1% of global capacity today. “’The rapid cost decrease of photovoltaic modules and systems in the last few years has opened new perspectives for using solar energy as a major source of electricity in the coming years and decades,’ said IEA Executive Director Maria van der Hoeven.” [Reuters via the Guardian]