On modest crude price gains and more

In what's coming up to mid-February, oil benchmarks are largely holding on to geopolitical risk gains made since the start of the month. That's after the U.S. response to an attack on its military base in Jordan allegedly by Iranian-backed militia and Israel's rejection of a ceasefire in Gaza.

Of late, Brent futures have found support around $80 per barrel mark but it remains to be seen whether the level will hold. For what its worth, the global proxy benchmark still remains in technical backwardation. It was though bemusing to read a recent Financial Times editorial declaring "The days of $100 oil prices are over" in a rapidly decarbonising world where "demand will continue but potential world supply is likely to peg back the cost." Indeed. 

In fact, it's something yours truly agreed with former BP boss Bob Dudley back in 2017 at the World Petroleum Congress in Istanbul, who if the Oilholic recollects well, was positioning his company to even weather a $30 per barrel oil price. Speaking of CEOs, Occidental's boss Vicki Hollub told Business Insider that oil oversupply may well be keeping prices low, but the situation is about to flip! 

And of course, Goldman Sachs analysts reckon we may be about to enter a commodities supercycle with a potential for driving oil prices as high as - yup you guessed it - $100 per barrel. Well we shall see, but for now $70-$80 will do, and the Oilholic seriously doubts we'll hit $100 imminently! Elsewhere, oil giant BP hiked its dividend by 10% and accelerated the pace of share buybacks in a bid - by its new CEO Murray Auchincloss - to woo investors. 

And finally, here is one's take via Forbes on US President Joe Biden's arguably barmy plan to pause the approvals of new LNG export projects for a review. All at a time when his country has become the world's largest LNG exporter! Clever eh? Well that's all for now folks. More market thoughts to follow later in the month. Keep reading, keep it here, keep it 'crude'! 

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© Gaurav Sharma 2024. Photo © Terry McGraw from Pixabay.

Can oil really hit $150? (And more!)

As the current crude oil trading year enters its final two months marked by festive breaks and potentially higher consumer demand as the Northern Hemisphere's winter approaches - thoughts inevitably turn to what price levels we will likely encounter in 2024.

With hostilities in the Middle East failing to lift crude prices despite all the talk of risk premiums and potential supply disruptions, being bullish about oil early in 2024 is proving hard. That's because concerns over crude demand are outweighing concerns over supply. 

We're talking muted demand from the economic powerhouses of Germany and China, lower consumer confidence levels in key OECD markets and elevated interest rate levels kept there by major global central banks, especially the US Federal Reserve. 

It therefore came as a surprise to The Oilholic when the World Bank opined that crude prices could hit $150 if hostilities in the Middle East escalate! Here are this blogger's thoughts on that via Forbes. Simply put - don't hold your breath! 

And let's not forget, Brent hasn't even capped a more realistic $100 per barrel level the bulls crave. The benchmark's January 2024 contract is barely higher than current levels, and contracts further out into the summer of next year are even lower. That implies Brent remains in backwardation mode.

Away from the crude price, the latest quarterly earnings posted by energy majors provided plenty of talking points. More so, after the return of megadeals as ExxonMobil swooped for Pioneer Natural Resources and Chevron swooped for Hess Corp. 

Other deals may follow as the energy majors fish for viable plays. It's led many, including this blogger, to wonder if a supermajor itself could be vulnerable? The prime candidate for finding itself in this position is BP; a chronically undervalued supermajor in the Oilholic's opinion. More on the subject here via Forbes. 

Is it possible? Yes, especially in a industry built on big ticket deals. Will it happen? Probably no, not least down to BP's $100 billion plus valuation (however discounted that may appear to some). But as yours truly noted on Forbes - that the company has had to bat away questions about being a takeover target is pretty extraordinary and indicative of how far it has fallen. Well that's all for now folks. Keep reading, keep it here, keep it 'crude'!

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© Gaurav Sharma 2023. Photo: Oil pump jack model at the AVEVA World 2023 Conference, Moscone Center, San Francisco, US. © Gaurav Sharma October 2023. 

Crude oil stuck in the $80s, Europe's LNG woes & more

We're four months from the end of crude trading year 2023 and oil prices appear to be stuck at $80+ per barrel levels. And for all the market chatter of $100 per barrel oil prices, a July and early August rally, tightness in the physical market and all else in between - there seems to be no convincing bullish or bearish pattern either way. So here are one's musings on the direction of travel and what hedge funds are up to via Forbes. 

The global crude market for all intents and purposes remains challenging. Tight physical supply in the wake of Saudi and Russian cuts, unexpected industry outages and summer demand can only do so much to support higher prices when the wider economic climate remains dicey in a high interest setting. Simply put, as long as global central banks remain hawkish, the crude market is unlikely to fire up to levels (shall we say three figures) the perma-bulls hope for. 

Away from crude prices, here are some thoughts on the Europe's LNG woes, the jet fuel market and the rapidly dwindling 'war windfall' of oil and gas majors. Away from musings on Forbes, the Oilholic is busy getting back on the speaking circuit, resuming dialogues with energy industry movers and shakers for market insights, offering analysis on international broadcasts, and more. All in all - it's been a hectic four weeks. But fear not, blogging here will also pick up pace shortly. Just getting a few things on track for the exciting road ahead. That's all for now folks! More soon! Keep reading, keep it 'crude'!

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© Gaurav Sharma 2023. Photo © Image by Terry McGraw from Pixabay. 

On Guyana & other 'crude' musings

As the month of July comes to a close, it seems the Saudis have indeed achieved near-term success with global oil benchmarks - Brent and WTI - now above $80 per barrel. It's a price level that Riyadh can live with. Although it is worth wondering at what cost (i.e. the good old debate about losing market share vs propping up the market without the help of friends / foes)? 

On a related note, while for much of OPEC+ the recent uptick in crude prices may come as a relief, for one new non-OPEC kid on the crude exploration block it has the makings of a spectacular boost in fortunes - Guyana. Here are the Oilholic's thoughts via Forbes on this micro-state in Latin America, with a population of less than a million people, and its full-blown oil boom. 

Guyana's headline crude production which came in at less than 100,000 barrels per day (bpd) as recently as 2020 has grown nearly four-fold to just shy of 383,000 bpd in 2023, and is still growing, according to the country's Ministry of Natural Resources. That said all the market chatter of it either joining or being asked to join OPEC is a load of nonsense that been denied by the oil producers' organization itself.

Elsewhere in the Oilholic's world, yours truly offered his perspective market perspectives on CGTN and Asharq Business News following the conclusion of the OPEC International Seminar earlier this month, and noted OMV's potential recoverable natural gas find of approximately 48 TWh, or 28 million barrels of oil equivalent. This discovery carries the potential to alter the natural gas market in Central Europe, and is Austria's largest gas discovery in the last 40 years. So watch this space! That's all for the moment folks! Keep reading, keep it 'crude'!

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© Gaurav Sharma 2023. Photo © Image by Omni Matryx from Pixabay.