Opinion Trade Europe needs to revisit Gulf relations or lose out to Asia The recent EU-GCC summit could not have come at a more critical moment October 28, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas US sanctions unlikely to stop Iran’s oil smugglers Tighter US economic sanctions are unlikely to disrupt Iran’s oil exports in the long run because Tehran has developed a sophisticated system of oil smuggling, using a dedicated fleet of tankers and middlemen in multiple countries, industry observers say. The regime in Tehran has been under US sanctions since the Islamic revolution of 1979. But […] October 23, 2024
Oil & Gas Oil steadies despite Middle East uncertainties Oil prices inched higher in early trade on Wednesday on uncertainty over what may happen next in the Middle East conflict. Earlier, demand concerns knocked the market to its lowest since early October in the previous session. Brent crude oil futures rose 14 cents, or 0.2 percent, to $74.39 a barrel by 02:50 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate […] October 16, 2024
Oil & Gas IEA confident global oil supply can absorb disruption Escalating tensions between Israel and Iran are fuelling concerns that an attack on Iranian production facilities could disrupt global oil supply. But forecasts by the International Energy Agency (IEA) suggest there are adequate global supplies to absorb the impact of such an event. Iran, a major oil exporter and Opec member, ships 1.6 million barrels […] October 15, 2024
Opinion Oil & Gas The talk is of oil, but gas is most at risk in the Iran-Israel conflict Leaders must wake up to the threat to global gas supply October 15, 2024
Analysis Construction Middle East crisis further hinders late project delivery The escalating Middle East conflict involving Israel, Lebanon and Iran is further hindering already stretched construction timelines in the Gulf. Safe passage through the Strait of Hormuz is threatened, with concerns that Iran will close the waterway. This route is critical to GCC oil and gas exports. Building projects in the Middle East suffered some […] October 9, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas Fears for Strait of Hormuz oil gateway in Iran-Israel face-off The prospect of a sustained Iran-Israel conflict is raising concerns that Iran could respond by closing the Strait of Hormuz, the waterway critical to GCC oil and gas exports. Last month about 15 million barrels per day (bpd) of crude passed through the Strait of Hormuz, 36 percent of global seaborne oil exports, according to […] October 8, 2024
Oil & Gas Oil prices up after strongest weekly rise in over a year Oil prices fell and then rose again on Monday after posting their steepest weekly rise in over a year last week. Brent crude futures fell to $77.74 per barrel before rising again to $79.14 per barrel. US West Texas Intermediate dipped to $74.18 per barrel and then rose to $75.53 per barrel. Brent rose by […] October 7, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas Iran’s energy installations may be targeted in Israeli strikes Brent neared $79 a barrel on Friday, surging over 10 percent in a week, as markets and the wider world waited for a response to Iran’s attacking Israel with nearly 200 ballistic missiles on Tuesday. Israeli prime minister Benjamin Netanyahu may order an attack on one of Iran’s major oil centres or less significant installations […] October 4, 2024
Opinion Logistics Conflict will severely disrupt Middle East logistics Air cargo is particularly hard hit by escalating conflict in the Middle East October 3, 2024
Analysis Tourism Gulf hospitality industry shrugs off war concerns Middle East hospitality veterans downplayed concerns over wider regional tensions this week, saying the industry has survived crises before and is poised to do so again. Government officials and corporate executives spoke during the Future Hospitality Summit, which is taking place in Dubai this week, just as military action intensified in Israel, Lebanon and Iran, […] October 3, 2024
Opinion Aviation Regional airlines will remain fluid in the Israel-Iran conflict Current events are unlikely to cause significant disruption in countries with large domestic markets October 2, 2024
Opinion Oil & Gas War, oil, safe haven assets and risk premium in the GCC Geopolitical risk premium could well rise to $130 a barrel if Iran responds further to an Israeli attack October 2, 2024
Oil & Gas Oil prices jump 3% as Middle East conflict intensifies Oil prices rose by more than 3 percent on Wednesday as Israel vowed retribution for Iran’s ballistic missile attack on its regional adversary. The conflict has intensified rapidly, with Israel also ordering more soldiers into Lebanon to battle the Iran-backed group Hezbollah. There is little sign of de-escalation despite international pleas. That has sent oil […] October 2, 2024
Opinion Oil & Gas Opec’s no-win situation on oil prices There’s not much that the quota-bound bloc members can do for now September 17, 2024
Opinion Logistics Houthi attacks are an ecological disaster waiting to happen More must be done to enable faster recovery of damaged vessels in the Red Sea September 4, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas Iran’s oil keeps flowing – and that suits the US for now Iranian oil exports are hitting record highs despite Western sanctions, delivering a windfall of $35 billion a year to the government in Tehran. Energy analysts expect this to continue, given the big discounts on Iranian crude and the effects of the conflict in Ukraine. “Iran has been a beneficial influence in offsetting impacts of war,” […] July 10, 2024
Analysis Economy Pezeshkian has a strong mandate – and a slew of problems It was not supposed to be this way. Masoud Pezeshkian, the sole reformist candidate, has won the second round of Iranian presidential elections to replace Ebrahim Raisi, and the fears of conservatives in the Iranian regime have come to pass. Conventionally, conservative candidates withdraw at the last minute ahead of a first round of voting, […] July 9, 2024
People & Lifestyle Masoud Pezeshkian is elected president of Iran Masoud Pezeshkian urged people on Saturday to stick with him on “the difficult road ahead” after beating Saeed Jalili in the run-off for Iran’s presidential election. The election was called following the death of former president Ebrahim Raisi in a helicopter crash in May. Pezeshkian, a 69-year-old cardiac surgeon, has pledged to promote a pragmatic foreign policy, ease […] July 6, 2024
Oil & Gas Iran to build new pipeline for Turkmenistan gas Iranian companies will construct a new 125 km pipeline to expand Turkmenistan’s gas delivery capacity to 40 billion cubic metres a year, according to a media report. Iran will receive 10 billion cubic metres a year of gas from Turkmenistan, which will be shipped to Iraq, Associated Press reported, quoting Turkmenistan’s foreign ministry statement. The value […] July 4, 2024
Oil & Gas Iran, Iraq and Libya among worst offenders on gas flaring Environmentally ruinous flaring of gas at upstream oil and gas facilities has risen to its highest level for five years, despite pledges to end the practice, the World Bank has said. Iran, Iraq and Libya were among the biggest contributors in 2023, according to a World Bank report published on June 20. Along with six […] June 25, 2024
Analysis Oil & Gas Iran needles the West with its growing oil production goals Iran has said it intends to raise its oil output to 4 million barrels per day from about 3.5 million bpd currently. Industry experts are sceptical about Tehran’s ambitions and say the announcement may be motivated by forthcoming elections. Javad Owji, the Iranian minister of petroleum, said on Thursday that 23 oil industry projects – […] June 3, 2024
