Daniel Yergin, vice-chairman of IHS Cera, has published an op-ed in the Wall Street Journal to commemorate the 40th anniversary of the Arab Oil Embargo of 1973. The piece drives home a central point: oil production and pricing can adapt relatively quickly to changing circumstances, provided that governments refrain from stepping in to influence them. “A… Keep reading →
The 40th anniversary of the Arab oil embargo against states that supported Israel during the Yom Kippur War is an appropriate occasion to evaluate the state of the international oil market. The embargo started on October 16th, 1973. The global petroleum system was irrevocably altered by the embargo and the global oil business forever transformed… Keep reading →
When the Energy Policy and Conservation Act was signed into law by President Gerald Ford in 1975, Ford said it would put the United States “solidly on the road to energy independence.” The legislation included a ban on most exports of domestically produced crude oil. For many, shutting in domestic oil production – effectively self-sanctioning… Keep reading →
Insight for Industry – U.S. Crude Oil Export Restrictions Cause Refining Mismatch and Light Oil Price Discount The dramatic increase in domestic oil production over the past decade – facilitated by drilling technology improvements – has rekindled the crude oil export debate. Allowing crude oil exports would provide an additional market for light crude derived… Keep reading →
As prices drop to around $80 per barrel, more attention is being focused on the mindset of Saudi Arabia, the world’s largest oil exporter. The 20 percent decline in oil prices over the past three months has been attributed to a wide range of factors, including declining growth in China, poor growth in Europe, and… Keep reading →
Daniel Yergin, Pulitzer Prize winning author and Vice Chairman of global consulting firm IHS spoke at the 2014 EIA Conference in Washington D.C. on Monday. EIA, the U.S. Energy Information Association is the statistics arm of the federal Department of Energy and the conference featured leading figures from industry, academia and government. Yergin stated emphatically… Keep reading →
In October 2013, exactly 40 years after the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo, the Energy Information Administration (EIA) announced that the US produced more crude oil than it imported. According to EIA, estimated domestic crude oil output averaged 7.7 million barrels per day in October – the highest in 25 years – while oil imports were 7.6.… Keep reading →
With all the coverage of the 1973 Arab Oil Embargo – which began on this day 40 years ago – it’s interesting to get a major oil company’s perspective. And not just any oil company, but one of the original “7 Sisters,” London-based BP. This video features commentary from former BP Chairmen, Sirs Eric Drake… Keep reading →
Classic economic theory says markets behave rationally, but the global oil market is largely an exception where emotion and politics can influence price formation as much as supply and demand. While various actors like Opec and consuming-country governments can impact prices to a certain extent, price movement in the modern oil business is bound by… Keep reading →
Most oil analysts and market observers feel nostalgic this week, as they consider how the global oil market changed in the 40 years following the Arab oil embargo. Citi’s Ed Morse credits the embargo with triggering the largest transfer of wealth in modern history – due to the spate of oil company nationalizations that followed… Keep reading →
