TODAY"S TOP #ENERGY #HEADLINES - February 25, 2022

        

         TODAY'S TOP ENERGY HEADLINES 

    ' In the Know, Ahead of Markets, Deciding Wisely...'

February 25, 2022

Editor's Comments

Do not be surprised when the price of gas at the pump is twice the cost of today. Do not be shocked when the price of a new car becomes unaffordable. Nor should you question the food budget when it exceeds half a monthly paycheck. A year from now this may be the new economic normal. An economic normal defined as hyperinflation.

Why now? Many reasons and certainly the war in Ukraine is contributing as Russia provides 10% of global oil production and an estimated 25% of the natural gas used by the EU. Russia is also a major exporter of industrial metals and minerals, as well as wheat. 

But it is not just Russia causing the shortages as they have been happening worldwide. Agriculture is obviously being affected by climate change and ecocide while water shortages and rising fertilizer costs are adding to the cost of producing agricultural commodities including livestock. 

Signs are everywhere and they are unlikely to reverse as the global population continues its upward path, climate, and ecological conditions worsen, and industrial metal and non-metallic minerals along with fossil fuels move towards exhaustion as predicted by many experts and researchers in 2040-2050.

That said, many leading money managers are shifting their portfolios from stocks, bonds, and currencies to booming commodity prices sectors for safety and higher returns. The shortages are widening in most areas and along with it the prices. Some say over $700 billion is now invested in the asset class - an amount not recorded in over 14 years.

What does this mean for Main Street? Time to adjust your thinking and budgets to the new economic gun in town - Hyperinflation!

Not good...

T A McNeil

CEO Founder

First Financial Insights

• Oil steadies on waning supply worries over Ukraine crisis
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• Oil Steadies as U.S. Avoids Harsh Sanctions, Iran Nears Endgame
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• Russia Response Could See Oil Burst Through $100

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• Shipping Fuel Costs: The Unseen Enemy In The Fight Against Inflation
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• Banks Have Spent $1.5 Trillion On Coal Since 2019
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• Energy sector methane emissions 70% higher than official figures -IEA
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• Antarctic Sea Ice Shrinks to Smallest Surface Area on Record
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• Climate Scientists Warn of a ‘Global Wildfire Crisis’
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• Saudi Arabia Slams Shortsighted Campaign Against Oil
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• Nigeria sues JP Morgan for $1.7 billion over oil deal
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• China’s Solar Power Growth to Soar in 2022 on Project Pipeline
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• China’s trucked LNG price hits record high, Central Asian gas supply shrinks
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• ‘These Waters Are Hot’: U.S. Auction Opens Up Offshore Wind Rush
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• White House again contemplates SPR release as oil prices stay above $90/b
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• US gas production rebound continues amid bullish growth outlook
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• Biden Delays Oil Permits as Gasoline Prices Surge on Ukraine
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• Germany freezes Nord Stream 2 gas project as Ukraine crisis deepens
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• Biden’s Russian Bond Ban Gives a Jolt to Global Debt Traders
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• Germany Says It Can Do Without Russian Gas. That’s a Tall Order
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• Airbus to Use A380 Superjumbo as Hydrogen-Powered Test Bed
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• How Europeans Are Responding to Exorbitant Gas and Power Bills
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• Russian troops in Ukraine spell uncertainty for oil and gas markets
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• Russia’s Natural Gas Will Be “Almost Impossible” To Replace
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• Airbus and CFM collaborating on hydrogen combustion demonstration program

Daily #Inspirational #Wisdom Quotes - February 25, 2022

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February 25, 2022

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The most effective way to do it - is to do it.

- Emilia Earheart

TODAY'S TOP #ENERGY #HEADLINES - February 24, 2022

 TODAY'S TOP ENERGY HEADLINES 

' In the Know, Ahead of Markets, Deciding Wisely...'

February 24, 2022

Editor's Comments

Stocks Sailing into Perfect Storm

Soon we will sail into the darkest months of the year. The possibility that both the economy and markets will not make it back to home port has never been greater. Human arrogance tests the limits of nature to an unfortunate outcome. Welcome aboard!

Despite the sophisticated character of global markets, our instinctive behavior still appears to be deeply tied to the rhythms of nature. Winter is coming, so mammals begin to prepare for the long dark days of the cold months ahead. Our instincts tell us to preserve, protect, and act with greater caution. This sets the stage for a fear-based panic, caused by a harvest of nuts that appears insufficient to survive the coming cold winter days. Our intelligence feeds an arrogance that we are above such primal rhythms. History suggests otherwise.

So with heads cleared of the giddy sultry summer days, we revert back to the mean of our karma and revisit the cold facts. Starting with the most volatile August in recent memory, it reminds us of shore-bound birds racing from the looming storm. This is volatility no doubt tied to the debt of drunken economies that have eroded the possibility of prosperity by their very size. Still, economists and policymakers continue to play parlor games with age-old ideas that have little to do with reality. So resources are dwindling. The earth is in overshoot. Shortages are growing. Hyperinflation is knocking. Social unrest is pandemic. Economic policies are trapped. So? 

Drifting back to those Gatsby's summer days of 1929, the markets then too began to sense that stirring of a storm. The economy was headed for colder winter days, with few nuts to be found. The roaring debts of those carefree times; had consumed, what was meant to be stored. Welcome aboard!

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• Oil hits highest since 2014 on Russia-Ukraine escalation
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• Oil, Gold Advance as Putin Orders Forces to Regions of Ukraine
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• West prepares Russia sanctions after Putin orders troops into Ukraine

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• Oil prices jump, nearing $100 a barrel, as Ukraine developments roil energy markets.
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• Russia faces new sanctions after Putin recognises breakaway Ukraine regions
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• Oil majors and commodity traders at risk from new sanctions on Russia
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• Tightening oil market eyes Iran nuclear talks, as deal could be near
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• Iraq in Talks With Halliburton, Saudi Aramco to Develop Oil, Gas in Western Desert
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• COP27 Will Turn Attention to Climate Justice for Poor Nations
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• U.S. Nears Return to Iran Nuclear Deal
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• Western Oil Companies Grapple With Uncertainty In Kurdistan
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• Middle Eastern Oil Nations Hike Prices As Production Falters
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• TotalEnergies Announces Major Oil Discovery Offshore Suriname
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• Got a Covid Booster? You Probably Won’t Need Another for a Long Time
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• Are U.S. Shale Firms Spending Enough On New Oil Projects?
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• Refinery Explosion Threatens To Send Gasoline Prices Soaring
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• UCSC chemists develop gallium-aluminum composite for rapid generation of hydrogen under ambient conditions
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• As inflation hits 30-year high, UK households start to buckle
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• Wind Power Is Back in Europe as Storms Spur Record Output
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• Ukraine Invasion Could Crush Russia’s Nord Stream 2 Ambitions
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• Russia will continue uninterrupted supplies of gas, LNG to global markets: Putin
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• Shell warns of ‘incredibly’ tight gas market, but ready to supply more LNG to Europe

Daily #Inspirational Wisdom #Quotes - February 23 ,2022

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February 23, 2022

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'What lies behind us and what lies ahead of us are tiny matters compared to what lives in us'

Henry David Thoreau

TODAY'S TOP #ENERGY #HEADLINES -February 23, 2022

 

 ' In the Know, Ahead of Markets, Deciding Wisely...'

February 23, 2022

Editor's Comments

Observing oil/energy markets reminds me of a high-end Los Vegas poker game where the outcomes fluctuate daily amoung multivariable factors, including, but not limited to - physics, geo-politics, random and deterministic mathematics. logic, and psychology - to name a few. The volatility is high and at times irrational - so if you don't have a strong stomach and nerves of steel  - then l suggest you return to a game of chess or checkers with granny.

Despite all the risks and volatility, there are three factors that give us comfort and confidence as professional betters:

Within 50 years or less, we will deplete all practical production of reserves if we don't blow them up. Two, demand will remain and massive shortages could drive prices to $1,000 a barrel or more. Three, there are no practical economic and physical replacements for fossil energy sources. indeed as most resources are facing economic depletion by 2050.

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All in all, energy markets still look pretty good economically for fossil fuels over the longer term (2050); save for untoward acts of stupidity or nature.

T.A. McNeil

CEO Founder

First Financial Insights

TODAY'S TOP ENERGY NEWS

• Crude oil futures slip after opening surge as risk appetite wanes
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• Oil Prices Seesaw as Russia Menaces Ukraine
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• Oil falls on fresh hope of diplomacy over Ukraine crisis
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• The Cure For High Oil Prices Might Just Be Higher Oil Prices
• Vitol CEO Sees Oil Above $100 for a ‘Prolonged Period’ This Year
• Kuwait, Iraq target new hydrogen and solar projects
• China Plans to Feed 80 Million People With ‘Seawater Rice’
• First Hydrogen Train in Japan to Hit the Rails for Test Run
• Ford’s CEO Is Exploring Ways to Separate Its EV Business to Unlock Tesla-Like Value
• What “Energy Independence” Really Means For The U.S.
• LNG trade grew 6% in 2021 amid gas price volatility, says Shell
• Europe’s Two Biggest Economies Grow Strongly as Virus Recedes
• U.K. Services Roar Back With Strongest Growth in 8 Months
• Europe’s New Emissions Standards Are Accelerating The EV Race
• Shell calls for more LNG supply-side investment on looming demand gap

Daily #Inspirational Wisdom #Quotes - February 22 ,2022

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February 22, 2022

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'Learning is the only thing the mind never exhausts, never fears, and never regrets.'

Leonardo da Vinci

TODAY'S TOP #ENERGY #HEADLINES -February 22, 2022

 ' In the Know, Ahead of Markets, Deciding Wisely...'

February 22, 2022

Editor's Comments

Now, what should we be worried about these days?

Here's a shortlist: 

1 - Nuclear war

2 - Deadly Pandemics

3 - Sixth extinction

4 - Climate Change

5 - Global Economic and Civilization Collapse

6 -  Famine and Pestilence

7 -  Resource Depletion and Degradation

Did we miss anything? What about the root cause; overpopulation and entropy?

Hopefully, I guess that is it for now as the only things that seem to be missing are large asteroids headed our and mean invading aliens...  

T A McNeil

CEO Founder

First Financial Insights

TODAY'S TOP ENERGY HEADLINES

Who Blinks First?

• Oil Posts First Weekly Loss Since December as Rally Cools Off
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• Crude oil futures ease further as risk-off mood lingers
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• Oil Down this Week with Increased Geopolitical Tensions

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• Climate Change Is Seen as Most Worrying Threat to World Security
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• Iran Rises Above Russia On The Oil Market Radar
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• Iraq’s January oil output down by 160,000 bpd
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• China Says the Winter Olympics Are Carbon Neutral. They Aren’t
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• Frackers Hold Back Production as Oil Nears $100 a Barrel
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• Column: U.S. gas stocks need big rebuild ahead of next winter:

• California Is So Parched That It Just Recorded Its Driest January Since 1984
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• Frackers Hold Back Production as Oil Nears $100 a Barrel
• Not Even $200 Oil Will Make Shale Giants Drill Aggressively
• The U.S. Will Be A Net Oil Importer In 2022
• The Oil And Gas Rig Count Continues To Soar
• Los Angeles Looks To Launch Massive Hydrogen Network
• Cash Waha Hub falls as Permian gas production climbs to new record high
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• U.S. Is Exporting Every Molecule of LNG Possible
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• Gazprom deliveries at lowest level over last 6 months, von der Leyen says
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• Any EU sanctions on Russia should not hit energy -Draghi
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• Europe Is Running Out Of Space For LNG
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• More Bad News For European Energy Markets As French Nuclear Generation Drops

#Energy Supplies Face #Disruptions and Upward #Prices

 Editor's Comments

As expected world oil supplies are coming under stress as shortages and production issues take hold. On the demand side, we are seeing a return to pre-pandemic levels which calculates into the obvious conclusion - Higher Prices. But of course, what is on everyone's mind is how high will they go? Estimates from leading Banks are calling for prices of $120 a barrel particularly if there is a conflict in Ukraine in the next few weeks

While the waters in the near-term energy markets are muddy - one consequence is certain - long-term prices will go up over the next 25 years as depletion and diminishing production returns from the large reserves come into play. It is not hard to imagine benchmark crude prices exceeding $1000 a barrel bringing about unprecedented hyperinflation that would be devastating to the economy and valuations in stocks and bonds, real estate, commodities, and currencies.

To put it simply we are heading into rough seas - albeit wisely forecasted in 1972, but denied by the various vested economic and political interests who sought a business as usual approach. Today, we confront the consequences of the unknown, unknowns - meaning all bets are off.

T A McNeil

CEO Founder

First Financial Insights

February 18, 2022

Supply #Shortages Are Wreaking #Havoc On The Energy #Industry

By David Blackmon for OilPrice.com - Feb 17, 2022,

• The energy sector is facing shortages on all sides, with commodity prices soaring around the world and very little hope that it will be solved in the near term.
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• Frac sand is the latest vital material that the energy industry can’t get enough of, a shortage that will hinder the ability of U.S. shale producers to increase production and bring down oil prices.
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• This global energy shortage of everything is a result of years of bad planning and underinvestment, and consumers could suffer the consequences for years to come.

Energy-related news has been filled lately with reports about shortages of, well, everything. Oil prices have spiked into the mid-$90s per barrel as explosive demand outstrips supply. Global supplies of diesel are shrinking as the refining industry lacks the capacity to keep up with demand. 

The price for natural gas in the U.S. is up 25% over the past week, largely as a result of Europe’s thirst for the commodity now creating shortages in Asia and other parts of the world. We see daily reports of supply shortages impacting key minerals like copper, lithium, as well as commodities like steel and aluminum, all of which are critical elements for facilitating supplies of fossil fuels and renewables.

The situation has become so dire that it prompted Jeff Currie, global head of commodities research at Goldman Sachs, to warn on Monday that “I’ve been doing this 30 years and I’ve never seen markets like this...This is a molecule crisis. We’re out of everything, I don’t care if it’s oil, gas, coal, copper, aluminum, you name it we’re out of it.” In January, Currie warned that oil prices could rise above $100 per barrel by summer due to the tight market. With prices already approaching that level in mid-February, it now seems he was being overly optimistic. 

On top of all these mineral shortages, it seems the domestic U.S. oil and gas industry can now add frac sand to its list of materials in low supply. Reuters reported Tuesday that drillers in the Permian Basin and elsewhere are experiencing difficulties in obtaining enough of the stuff to keep their fracking programs moving ahead according to plan. 

"We can't get enough sand,” the story quotes Michael Oestmann, CEO of Permian operator Tall City Exploration as saying, “We're running less than the number of (fracking) stages we could pump in a day because we've run out of sand every day. Ultimately it will slow everyone down if it doesn't resolve itself."

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ENERGY MARKETS FACE UNCERTAIN GEOPOLITICAL ISSUES

Daily Inspirational #Wisdom #Quotes - February 20, 2022

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 'Happiness can only exist in acceptance'

George Orwell

Daily #Inspirational #Wisdom #Quotes - February 21 2022

 Daily Inspirational Wisdom Quotes

February 21, 2022

 

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Only I can change my life. No one can do it for me.

- Carol Burnett

 

OPEC Production Problems Push Oil Prices Higher

By Josh Owens - Feb 11, 2022, 2:00 PM CST

News of an 'imminent' nuclear deal with Iran sent oil prices lower this week, but the reality of OPEC underproduction soon shifted sentiment and sent prices higher on Friday.

Friday, February 11th, 2022

Wherever you looked this week, it seemed that Iran was at the center of all oil market news. The prospect of a breakthrough in the nuclear deal, a breakthrough that was assumed to be imminent by several participants, drove oil prices lower over the week after last week’s bull run to mid $90s. The fact that Iran’s crude would take several months to reach markets if a deal were agreed upon shows that this was largely driven by sentiment. On the fundamental front, OPEC+ underperformance is potentially flirting with 1 million b/d in February, news that led even the IEA to get involved in pushing for more oil. The IEA joined the ranks of India and other major importers, all calling upon Middle Eastern exporters to bring more crude into the markets.

IEA Calls Out Saudi Arabia and UAE. The International Energy Agency (IEA) stated that Saudi Arabia and the UAE could use their spare capacity to compensate for the ever-worsening underperformance of OPEC+, with the missing volumes totaling some 800,000 b/d since the start of 2021. 

Global Shortage Spreads to Diesel. Global shortages of diesel have become the new talk of the town as inventories in Northwest Europe fell to their lowest level since at least 2008, whilst Singapore gasoil stocks also dropped to multi-year lows of 8.2 million barrels. 

Libya Gets Closer to the Brink, Again. The prospects of oil production in Libya were hampered after the eastern-based parliament in Tobruk named Fathi Bashagha the country’s new prime minister, unbeknownst to the other government in Tripoli, ratcheting up risks of further infighting. 

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TOP DAILY #ENERGY #HEADLINES - February 10, 2022

' In the Know, Ahead of Markets, Deciding Wisely...'

EDITOR'S COMMENTS

Oil prices have settled in to take a breather but it may not last long as demand remains strong while there are no significant supply additions on the horizon. Oil prices per se may not have a significant impact on inflation- but don't be fooled as energy costs affect everything in the economy and its supply chains. (transportation, plastics, fertilzers, pharmaceuticals, and so on.)

At the same time, other agricultural and mineral prices are rising due to shortages - creating a perfect storm of factors that could cause a jump in inflation to 7.5% or more.  Consumers are already under stress as more than 60% are having a hard time making ends meet.

The road ahead looks pretty bumpy, to say the least

T.A McNeil

Founder CEO

First Financial Insights

• Short-Term Energy Outlook

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• Analysis: After oil, gas and coal, global fuel shortage spreads to diesel
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• JPMorgan: Oil Could Easily Hit $120 If Russia-Ukraine Tensions Escalate

OTHER HEADLINES OF NOTE

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• Iraq may import Qatari gas in 15 months if talks, infrastructure finalized
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• Guyana’s Oil Production To Increase Three-Fold Next Month
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• India’s Crude Demand Is Rising Despite High Oil Prices
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• US inflation might have hit a new 40-year high in January
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• $90 Oil Offers The Best-Ever Economics For U.S. Shale
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• New Breakthrough Could Speed Up Nuclear Fusion Development

IF YOU WANT TO LEARN MORE ABOUT THE ABOVE JUST COPY AND PASTE TO GOOGLE SEARCH

British scientists make nuclear fusion breakthrough

Daily #Inspirational #Wisdom Quotes - February 26, 2022

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February 26, 2022

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' Luck is believing you're lucky '

- Tennessee Williams