What’s impacting oil prices?
No more peace talks with Iran
** Oil prices held steady over the weekend even as President Trump canceled any more peace talks with Iran. “They can call us anytime they want,” he said on Saturday.
Naval blockade still in effect
** As the naval blockade of the Strait of Hormuz continues, the US military command overseeing American forces in the Middle East just picked up a third aircraft carrier, increasing its available firepower in a way it hasn’t seen in decades. The Nimitz-class aircraft carrier USS George H.W. Bush is currently in the Indian Ocean and within US Central Command’s area of responsibility.
Middle East oil producers cut production
** Persian Gulf oil producers have been forced to cut production by roughly 6% due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz as local storage facilities reach capacity. Last Monday, the US began a blockade of all vessels passing through the Strait of Hormuz that call at Iranian ports or are headed there.
Supertanker stalled in Strait of Hormuz
** A US-sanctioned supertanker laden with Iranian oil appeared to halt its transit through the Strait of Hormuz on Friday, with traffic through the waterway otherwise at a virtual standstill. The Yuri, carrying 2 million barrels of crude loaded from Kharg Island, re-appeared on ship-tracking platforms Kpler and Vortexa off Sirri Island earlier this week, after having stopped signaling its location for days.
Ordered to turn around
** Under the blockade, US Central Command (Centcom) said it has ordered 33 vessels to return to port, and the DoD has said it will continue to stop ships suspected of “providing material support to Iran – anywhere they operate”.
US Energy
** Bill Gates-backed TerraPower breaks ground on its 345-MW Natrium advanced nuclear plant in western Wyoming.
** Phillips 66 and Kinder Morgan advance their proposed Western Gateway petroleum pipeline to deliver fuel from Midwest and Gulf Coast refineries to Arizona and California.
** A new research paper shows Ohio has had more renewable energy projects rejected by state regulators and projects withdrawn than 19 other states, largely because of a 2021 law that gave more weight to local opposition.
** U.S. utilities’ plans to collectively spend $1.4 trillion on grid infrastructure upgrades by 2030 will be passed on to consumers’ bills where major utilities often plan large capital expenditures.
** Environmental groups sue the Army Corps of Engineers over a water permit it issued for the Southeast Supply Enhancement project.