Crude oil
Residual fuel fills Venezuela's storage tanks as exports cut to minimum
Most ships bound for Venezuelan ports for December and early January cargo deliveries have made U-turns, as the blockade spooks even vessels not under sanctions.
Indian Oil buys first Colombian oil under Ecopetrol contract
Indian refiners are scouting for crude as tighter U.S. and European Union sanctions on Moscow's producers and vessels are disrupting Russian oil imports.
China begins issuing second batch of 2026 crude import quotas to refiners
The newest allocation, combined with a small batch issued in late November, accounts for about 70% of the refiner's total quota for next year.
EIA: U.S. crude, fuel inventories rose in the week ended December 19
Monday's data release was delayed over six hours and released after the oil market had closed.
Five energy market trends to track in 2026, the year of the glut
This past year was a wild one for the oil and gas industry, punctuated by the 12-day Israel-Iran war in June, U.S. President Donald Trump's trade wars, the intensified targeting of energy infrastructure in Russia in its war against Ukraine, OPEC’s often perplexing production decisions and the recently threatened U.S. blockade of Venezuela.
China's 2026 first batch fuel export quotas steady year on year
China manages its refined fuel exports via a quota system to balance the supply-demand fundamentals in its local market.
China's teapots boost Russian ESPO buying amid record discounts
Discounts for Russian ESPO Blend crude loading in January have widened to a record $7–$8 per barrel versus ICE Brent upon delivery in Chinese ports, as Western sanctions pressure weighs on the grade.
Asia oil floating storage seen declining on lower exports, China buying
The volume of oil stored on board ships in Asian waters, which has tripled since September to a 3-yr high, is poised to decline as producers of sanctioned oil slow exports and Chinese refiners ramp up buying.
Gazprom in talks with Hungary's MOL over NIS stake sale
The United States announced sweeping sanctions targeting Russia's oil sector in January over Moscow's war in Ukraine, but, for NIS, their application was postponed several times before finally coming into effect on October 8.
bp picks first outsider CEO Meg O'Neill after abrupt Auchincloss exit
O'Neill, who will take over in April following the abrupt exit of Murray Auchincloss, becomes bp's first external CEO in its more than century-long history and the first woman to lead any of the world's top five oil majors.
- Vyterra Renewables receives funding to advance its Nova Scotia low-carbon fuel oil project 3/26
- BASF inaugurates €8.7-B Verbund site in Zhanjiang, China 3/26
- Partners sought from construction and engineering for program to decarbonize £1 T/yr global market for low-carbon jet fuel 3/26
- OCI Global completes handover of Beaumont New Ammonia to Woodside 3/26
- Iran war chokes petrochemical supply, sends plastic prices soaring 3/26
- Russia's vast Kirishi oil refinery halts operations after drone attacks 3/26

