Crude oil imports into China are set to rise by about 1.2 million barrels per day in the final quarter of the year from the current one, although they will likely remain lower than pre-war levels, Bloomberg has reported, citing energy consultancies. Oil purchases by Chinese refiners are climbing back towards 10 million barrels daily but may not hit that number until the end of the year, according to analysts from Rystad Energy, Energy Aspects, and FGE NexantECA. Fourth-quarter import rates could reach 9.9 million barrels daily, which would be much…

First gas from Australia’s Beetaloo shale basin is scheduled to start flowing next month, with initial production of 37 million cu m, Reuters has reported, noting hopes that the country could replicate the U.S. shale gas success story. The Beetaloo basin is located in the Northern Territory and is estimated to hold some 500 trillion cu ft of gas. It has been compared to the giant Marcellus shale play in the United States. The government of the Northern Territory is hoping that Beetaloo will turn it into another LNG production hub. Development…

Crude oil prices were on course to book a second consecutive weekly gain as the prospects of peace in the Middle East dimmed further amid U.S. threats of the “toughest sanctions in history” against Iran and continued Ukrainian drone attacks on Russian refineries. At the time of writing, Brent crude was trading at $93.50 per barrel, and West Texas Intermediate was trading at $86.43 per barrel. The price climb followed a Wednesday social media statement by President Trump that the U.S. is preparing “Economic Warfare and Isolation…

Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva has hailed a new offshore oil discovery by Petrobras (NYSE: PBR) near the mouth of the Amazon River as a "passport to the country's future", continuing his support for controversial oil and gas drilling in Amazon's ecologically sensitive regions. Last week, the state-run Oil & Gas giant announced it has found oil at the Morpho-1 well (Block FZA-M-59) in the mouth of the Amazon roughly 180 kilometres (112 miles) off the coast of Amapa state, “All of our studies indicate substantial potential.…

The Yemeni Houthis are planning to seize land along the Yemeni coast in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, tightening their control of the chokepoint. The information comes from the minister of information in the government that the Houthis are fighting in Yemen and suggests further disruption to marine traffic on one of the world’s busiest trade routes. “The Houthi militia... is working to create the conditions for seizing control of the Bab al-Mandab Strait by expanding its presence along the western coast and attempting to control strategic…

Global electric vehicle sales have surged this year following the oil supply disruption in the Middle East and the second oil price shock in four years. The accelerating EV adoption that began with the spike in oil and fuel prices earlier this year is set to remain a trend in the global markets and could push the share of EVs in the passenger fleet above earlier expectations, analysts at Wood Mackenzie say. Challenges to accelerated adoption still remain, including the need for billions of U.S. dollars in investments in critical battery minerals…

Washington is tightening the screws on Iran and loosening the rules on gasoline at the same time as Americans are paying more than $4 a gallon. The Environmental Protection Agency on Thursday authorized an early switch to cheaper winter-grade gasoline, allowing sales of gasoline blended with 10% ethanol beginning September 1 rather than waiting for the normal mid-September seasonal transition. The administration says ending summer-blend requirements early could add hundreds of thousands of barrels per day to domestic gasoline supply and provide…

Solar power is far and away the world’s fastest-growing form of energy production, beating out every other form of energy on Earth in 2025. Despite a recent political pivot away from renewable energies in the world’s largest economy, solar power additions continue to shatter its own records year over year as the sector has long since outgrown any need for subsidies. Solar power has simply become too cheap to fail. “We have a plentiful and cheap source of electricity that can be built quickly, almost anywhere in the world,”…

Europe has discovered something unusual during the latest energy crisis: its emergency system actually works. The closure of the Strait of Hormuz removed or disrupted one of the largest flows of oil and gas in the world. Prices rose, shipping routes changed, insurance costs increased, and concerns emerged over the availability of refined products, particularly aviation fuel. Yet Europe did not run out of oil, diesel, or jet fuel. That outcome should not be dismissed. It resulted from decades of mandatory stockholding, coordinated emergency planning,…

China is buying more Russian oil to replace missing Iranian barrels. The problem for India is that some of those Russian barrels used to be its barrels. China’s seaborne imports of Russian crude are estimated at 1.25 million barrels per day in August, according to Kpler data, cited by Reuters. That is down from 1.423 million bpd in July, but July and August are still China’s strongest months for Russian seaborne crude since April. The shift comes as Chinese imports of Iranian oil remain crushed by the Middle East war and U.S. blockade.…