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OPEC+ Prepares to Stop Raising Oil Output Targets

OPEC+ is preparing to approve one more production increase for September and then put the monthly quota parade on hold through the end of the year. Saudi Arabia, Russia, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Kazakhstan, and Oman are expected to raise their combined September target by about 188,000 barrels per day when they meet on August 2, sources told Reuters. That would match the increases announced for June, July, and August and complete the return of a 1.65-million-bpd voluntary cut agreed in 2023, adjusted for the UAE's departure from OPEC in May. Then OPEC+ appears ready to stop. One source said current production targets would remain in place from October until new quotas take effect in January 2027. No final decision has been made. The pause would leave another 2 million bpd of group-wide cuts in place through the end of 2026. Deciding what happens to ...

Escalating Protests in Libya Threaten Oil and Gas Supply

The anti-government protests in Libya over power cuts and high electricity bills over the past few days escalated on Tuesday, with protesters entering the Mellitah Oil and Gas complex and threatening to halt gas and fuel supplies for both the domestic and international markets. Libya's capital Tripoli has been the main stage of protests against the Government of National Unity led by Abdul Hamid Dbeibah. Protesters blocked streets and roads out of the capital earlier this week as a sign of protest against frequent and spreading power cuts and high electricity rates. The demonstrations spread to the Mellitah Gas processing plant, where protesters are reportedly trying to stop natural gas exports to Italy via a pipeline, to solve Libya's gas and power shortage problem. The protests are expanding to the Mellitah Oil and Gas complex intended to halt gas exports to Italy in ...

Here we go again. Why oil keeps tumbling even when the Iran war drags on

Sound familiar? A pause in fighting between the United States and Iran has given oil traders hope that a diplomatic resolution could restart the flow of oil traffic out of the Middle East. Oil prices tumbled 8% Monday, on pace for crude's biggest single-day decline since May 25. The "news" that oil markets are trading on is thin at best: The Trump administration paused plans to escalate the war. And a lack of fighting this weekend suggested that maybe the two countries could return to the negotiating table. This war has widened and has no easy solution. The United States lacks a clear exit strategy. Iran remains incentivized to exercise maximum control over shipping traffic entering and exiting the oil-rich region. Traffic through the Strait of Hormuz remains effectively halted, and significantly lower through the Bab-al-Mandeb strait – with oil tankers ...

Saudi Arabia Blames Iran-Backed Militias for Attack on Oil Facilities

Saudi Arabia and Jordan said on Monday their air defences had intercepted and destroyed drones targeting their territory, underscoring the continued regional threat despite a temporary pause in hostilities between Iran and the US. Saudi Arabia's Ministry of Defence said several drones targeting oil facilities in the Eastern Province and the capital Riyadh were intercepted and destroyed before reaching their targets. Military spokesman Maj Gen Turki Al Malki said the drones came from Iraqi territory and accused Iran-backed militias of carrying out the attacks. He described the attempted strikes as "terrorist" attacks targeting Saudi energy infrastructure and said the kingdom reserves the right to defend itself and respond "at the appropriate time and place". No casualties or damage were reported, and Saudi authorities did not disclose the number of drones intercepted. Iraq's Prime Minister Ali Al Zaidi subsequently ordered an investigation. The Iraqi ...

Inflation spike: Oil prices could derail economy, Treasury warns

Treasury has warned the Australian economy could be hit by an inflation spike and slower growth through the second half of the year as America's war against Iran, Houthi attacks in the Red Sea, and Ukraine's assault on Russian oil refineries upend the global petroleum market. Amid forecasts from the chief economist of the nation's biggest bank that the "clock was ticking" on oil spiking towards $US150 a barrel, Treasury is increasingly worried of a price crunch as nations run down their oil reserves, and supplies out of the Middle East and Russia dry up. Brent crude eased to $US85 on Monday after hitting $US100 a barrel late last week on concerns the renewal of hostilities between the United States and Iran will leave oil refiners struggling to get adequate supplies in coming months. Retail prices have now climbed to their highest level ...

Pennsylvania roads are being coated in radioactive wastewater—here’s why

Pennsylvania's roughly 100,000 oil and gas wells produce wastewater that's many times saltier than seawater and contains radium, a known carcinogen. For decades, that saltwater, called brine, was spread on dirt and gravel roads across the state to control dust and on paved roads to melt ice. The state Department of Environmental Protection halted the practice in 2018, but residents continue to report oil and gas brine being spread in their communities. Now, a permit issued by the Department of Environmental Protection in May 2026 could open a new path for oil and gas well wastewater to be sold as a commercial product that road maintenance operators or snow removal businesses could purchase. William Burgos and Nathaniel Warner, professors of environmental engineering at Penn State, have spent years testing whether oil and gas brine actually works as a road dust suppressant. Road ...

Baker Hughes flags lower spending by oil and gas producers in 2026

Baker Hughes said on Monday it expects annual global spending by oil and gas producers to decline modestly this year, with growth in Latin America, offshore Africa, and onshore in North America offset by lower spending in Europe and the Middle East. Energy markets this year have been roiled by repeated flare-ups in the conflict between the U.S. and Iran, forcing producers to take a more cautious stance instead of increasing drilling activity. "Customers remain focused on maximizing production from existing assets while preserving flexibility to respond to evolving market conditions," CEO Lorenzo Simonelli said on a conference call with analysts after the company reported earnings on Sunday. Shares of the oilfield services provider were up more than 6%, after it beat quarterly profit estimates, with industrial and energy technology orders doubling year-over-year to a record $7.1 billion. But Baker warned that the ...

The next oil shock could be far worse than the last

For decades, the global economy has lived with a simple assumption: oil markets are resilient. Wars come and go, supply chains adjust, governments intervene, and eventually prices stabilize. But today's energy crisis is exposing the dangerous limits of that confidence. The latest surge in crude oil prices is not merely another temporary reaction to geopolitical turmoil—it is a warning that the world's emergency buffers are rapidly disappearing. The renewed conflict involving the United States, Iran, and Tehran-backed Houthi forces has once again turned the Middle East into the epicenter of global economic anxiety. The Strait of Hormuz, through which nearly one-fifth of the world's oil flows, has become increasingly unstable. At the same time, attacks in the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait have disrupted another of the world's most vital maritime corridors. Together, these two chokepoints handle roughly one-quarter ...

WA co-leads coalition opposing federal regulator’s unlawful plan to fast-track gas pipeline projects

A proposed rule from the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to unlawfully fast-track more natural gas pipeline projects would likely raise consumers' energy bills, increase air pollution, and worsen climate change, Attorney General Nick Brown and a coalition of attorneys general argued today in comments submitted to the commission. The multistate coalition submitted comments regarding the commission's proposed rule, issued on May 21, to expand the category of pipeline projects that are automatically authorized under its "blanket certificate." That change would allow more projects to bypass review required under the Natural Gas Act to ensure that the projects serve the needs and interest of the public. The commission "must ensure that new pipelines do not unfairly burden everyday consumers, the air we breathe, and the water we use," the AGs wrote in the comment letter. "This illegal rule would leave Washingtonians stuck with ...

Red Sea Tanker Traffic Falls to Multi-Month Low After Houthi Threats

Tanker traffic through the Bab el-Mandeb Strait slumped to a multi-month low on Sunday amid Houthi attacks on Saudi oil infrastructure on the Red Sea coast. Only 11 tankers carrying commodities transited the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint between the Red Sea and the Arabian Sea on Sunday, the lowest in months, according to Kpler's shipping data cited by Reuters. Tanker traffic at the Red Sea started to slow a week ago after the Iran-aligned Houthis in Yemen announced a blockade on Saudi shipments and threatened strikes on tankers. The Houthis carried out several such attacks on vessels last week, targeting two Saudi oil tankers. This has pushed some Saudi and Western ship operators to have vessels turn north in the Red Sea toward the Suez Canal or to make U-turns just before previously planned inbound moves into the Red Sea from the Bab ...

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