Russia's invasion of Ukraine on Thursday shocked the globe and sent oil prices soaring above $100, the relatively tepid reaction of Western leaders has brought oil prices backpedal on Friday because it becomes clear that Russia's energy exports are unlikely to be sanctioned. One might think that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine would have triggered a way stronger response from the international community. Instead, there seems to be hesitancy and squabbling between European leaders. the actual fact that oil prices are hovering around $100 per barrel and gas prices have skyrocketed to $50 per mmBtu will definitely have played a task in feeding this hesitancy. It seems that Russian oil and gas flows are too important to international markets for Western powers to focus on them with sanctions. the shortage of sanctions on Russia's energy exports is that the main reason we've seen oil prices fall back on Friday. Russia’s Invasion into Ukraine Lifts Commodities. the biggest war in Europe since WWII sent commodities worldwide into an upward spiral, with European gas soaring to the equivalent of $50/mmBtu, oil above $100 per barrel, and wheat trading at all-time highs. Bank Reluctance to house Russia Dents Prices. Russia’s flagship Urals grade collapsed on the rear of the Kremlin-led invasion into Europe as leading buyers of the barrels were unable to open letters of credit in Western banks to ensure payment, with banks wary of potential sanctions. Iraq Wants Partners to Develop Oil Frontiers. The Iraqi government is negotiating a house Saudi Aramco (TADAWUL:2222) and Halliburton (NYSE:HAL) to develop and operate oil and gas reserves within the country’s westernmost Anbar province, a neighborhood largely undeveloped after its 2017 retaking from the Islamic State. Disruption Fears Push Asian LNG Prices Higher. Amid concerns that Russia’s invasion might disrupt global LNG flows as Europe tries to confirm stable gas supply, spot Asian LNG prices shot up some 30% on, with the JKM LNG market already trading above $37 per mmBtu. Iraq Halts Major Field for Sudden Maintenance. Iraq has temporarily halted production at its 400,000 b/d West Qurna-2 field, reportedly to attach new wells and new pipelines, presumably leading to another month-on-month decline in total Iraqi crude production. US Offshore Wind Auction Draws Record Interest. the primary offshore wind lease sale under President Biden, offering 6 leases off the coasts of latest York and New Jersey, exceeded all expectations and raked in $3 billion in bids up to now, with Equinor (NYSE:EQNR), BP (NYSE:BP) and EDF (EPA:EDF) vying for the leases. Nigeria Sues JP Morgan for $1.7 Billion. Nigeria’s government launched a $1.7 billion lawsuit against US investment bank JP Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM) for its alleged negligence in transferring funds for an oilfield license won by Shell (LON:SHEL) and ENI (NYSE:E) to an organization owned by the country’s former oil minister rather than government accounts. TotalEnergies Reports Huge Namibia Discovery. French oil major TotalEnergies (NYSE:TTE) made a major discovery of sunshine oil off the coast of Namibia, with the much-anticipated Venus-1 wildcat unearthing a net pay of 84 meters of high-quality sandstone reservoirs. ExxonMobil Gets Out of Shallow Water Nigeria. Nigeria’s Seplat Energy (LON:SEPL) bought the whole share capital of ExxonMobil’s (NYSE:XOM) shallow water business in Nigeria for $1.28 billion, marking the US major’s conclusive exit from the country. China Tinkers with Coal Prices Again. Amidst once-again soaring coal prices, China’s economy planner NDRC has set a “reasonable” price range for the country’s benchmark 5500 kcal thermal coal at Qinhuangdao hub, at $90-120 per metric tonne, arguing this bandwidth is mutually acceptable for both miners and power generators.
Anticipating Deal Breakthrough, Iran Starts Hoarding Crude. in step with vessel-tracking data, the whole amount of oil stored on tankers has increased by 30 million barrels over the past three months, with Iran increase a flotilla of anchored VLCCs off its coast that might be activated as soon as sanctions are cleared. Saudi Aramco has the Time of Its Life. Despite news circulating that Saudi Aramco (TADAWUL:2222) is continuously under-performing its OPEC+ production target, the Saudi NOC has seen its shares rising to an all-time high ($11.3 per share) on the rear of Russia’s invasion, gaining quite 16% year-to-date. Ecuador Gives Amazon Drilling Deal to China. China’s state-owned CNPC landed the primary drilling go for Ecuador’s Ishpingo oilfield, located within the environmentally sensitive Yasuni park, seemingly forming a component of Quito getting even its plentiful debts vis-à-vis China. Aluminum Prices Drop Off Record Highs. After concerns about Russian supply being potentially sanctioned pushed aluminum prices to an all-time high of $3,480 per metric tonne on, Friday trading saw them drop off once it had become known that the EU/US won't sanction aluminum flows. Thanks for reading and we’ll see you next week.