In the wake of the ongoing 2026 Strait of Hormuz crisis, a growing number of tankers and commercial vessels are deliberately switching off their Automatic Identification System (AIS) transponders—commonly known as “going dark”—to navigate the world’s most critical energy chokepoint. There is a difference between “Going Dark” and a Tanker in the Dark Fleet” – […]
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In a wide-ranging Bloomberg Surveillance interview aired today, Chevron Chairman and CEO Mike Wirth painted a sobering picture of ongoing disruptions in the Strait of Hormuz while signaling that the industry is accelerating plans for alternative infrastructure to reduce reliance on the critical chokepoint. Wirth confirmed that multiple vessels transiting the Strait of Hormuz have […]
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In a stark alert to markets, top executives from ExxonMobil and Chevron have highlighted an impending physical oil supply crunch that could drive Dated Brent crude prices sharply higher—potentially to $150–$160 per barrel—within the coming weeks. The warnings center on critically low global inventories of crude and refined products, exacerbated by the ongoing closure of […]
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Europe is staring down a structural gas deficit heading into the critical summer refill season. Storage levels sit near historic lows, Russian pipeline flows have all but vanished, and Middle East LNG supply disruptions (triggered by the ongoing Strait of Hormuz constraints since late February) have forced buyers to scramble for every available cargo—primarily from […]
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Alaska is experiencing a genuine renaissance in its oil and gas sector. After decades of declining production that saw output fall from a peak of nearly 2 million barrels per day two decades ago to below 600,000 barrels per day in recent years, the state is poised for a significant rebound. Record-breaking lease sales, major […]
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The Delaware Basin, the western half of the mighty Permian, is buzzing with deal-making energy. According to Reese Energy Consulting’s May 21, 2026, update, “Looks like the Delaware this week is host of Party Central in Perm Town for upstream M&A and a midstream FID.” With crude prices volatile and recently tipping toward $100 per […]
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U.S. energy drillers added rigs at the fastest pace in years this week, with Baker Hughes reporting a solid +7 increase in the active rotary rig count to 558 for the week ending May 22, 2026. This marks the largest weekly gain in recent memory and extends a four-week streak of increases—the first such sustained […]
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A major shift is underway in global energy geopolitics. According to reports, ExxonMobil is close to finalizing contracts to produce oil in up to six fields across multiple regions in Venezuela, and may announce them as soon as this month. This comes just four months after Exxon CEO Darren Woods described Venezuela as “uninvestable” under […]
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Devon Energy (NYSE: DVN) has secured a major expansion of its premier position in the Delaware Basin, acquiring 16,300 net undeveloped acres in the core of the play in Lea and Eddy Counties, New Mexico, for approximately $2.6 billion through a Bureau of Land Management (BLM) oil and gas lease sale. The deal, announced on […]
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Wall Street has a blind spot the size of a supertanker — and it’s called the energy sector. In a recent wide-ranging interview on Kitco News, veteran investor Ted Oakley, founder and managing partner of Oxbow Advisors, sat down with anchor Jeremy Szafron and delivered a blunt assessment: Wall Street is completely mispricing energy. Oakley […]
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