In its goal of pursuing statehood, the Islamic State became an oil state at the worst time. When international oil prices were trading closer to $100/bbl, it’s estimated that IS could have been making $6 million a day from black market oil sales. The oil price decline is altering the way IS conducts its business… Keep reading →
The fallout from declining oil prices continues materializing on a daily basis – several companies announced workforce reductions this week – and Baker Hughes is one of the latest to make that difficult decision. “This is what I hate about this industry, frankly, is these brutal cycles we have to go through,” said Martin Craighead, chief executive… Keep reading →
The extremely steep and fast oil price decline is hitting companies hard, with projects cancelled and workers being laid off. As analysts scramble to evaluate which companies are most vulnerable in the lower oil price environment, some are trying to figure out when oil prices might recover some of their recent losses. For his part,… Keep reading →
When you live in a state heavily influenced by oil, saddle up and hold on for the ride. What comes up must come down, and real estate has room on the downside. The real question is really just how much. My clients are all energy professionals, and when I visit with them, nine out of… Keep reading →
Implicitly or explicitly Opec countries are battling with US oil producers over the commodity price. There is much evidence to suggest that given US production growth volumes – Gulf Coast output alone is up 1.9 million barrels per day since 2010 – and weak global demand, Opec could only marginally impact prices by cutting production.… Keep reading →
Recovery from the dramatic supply-driven oil price slide of 1986 took 5 years. Will the current cycle follow the same pattern? This piece plays a bit of Monday morning quarterback and suggests that if Saudi/Opec did more to moderate prices over the past 6 years the current supply glut could have been avoided. [Bloomberg via… Keep reading →
Michael Liebreich, chairman of the advisory board at Bloomberg New Energy Finance, said: “The orthodox view of unlimited oil demand growth simply does not hold in a world of super-efficient engines, electric vehicles, desperate air pollution problems, and action on climate. The US economy has grown by 8.9% since 2007, while demand for finished petroleum… Keep reading →
Today was a big day in Keystone XL news, with the House voting to approve a pipeline construction bill – the president already said he would veto – and the Nebraska Supreme Court mostly blessing the controversial oil transport project. But a final decision could still be months away as two separate processes continue to… Keep reading →
The US Strategic Petroleum Reserve was established at a time when US refining configuration and oil production profile looked very different. Given new realities, Energy Secretary Moniz is calling for system modifications. “The Government Accountability Office warned in 2006 that in an emergency, refineries configured to use heavy crude would not be able to efficiently… Keep reading →
There is abundant speculation about how much further oil prices might fall and when US oil production growth will begin to decline. The consensus among analysts and investors is that oil prices are likely to reverse course and start trending upward sometime later this year or next. With US land-based rig counts trending down over… Keep reading →
