The summer of 2026 tested the U.S. electric grid with record heat and rising demand. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration’s Hourly Electric Grid Monitor (based on Form EIA-930 data), three major regional transmission organizations (RTOs) set new peak hourly load records.Eia PJM (serving roughly 65–67 million people across all or parts of 13 […]
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Europe’s remaining coal plants are generating unexpected profits while Asia burns more coal to fill an LNG gap created by Middle East disruptions. Global demand is heading for a record high in 2026. The rebound is real but uneven, largely temporary in the West, and more structural in Asia—until nuclear and cleaner alternatives scale meaningfully. […]
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Morgan Stanley is leading an equity and debt fundraising for America First Refining’s planned $4 billion oil refinery at the Port of Brownsville, Texas—the first major new U.S. oil refinery in roughly half a century—according to the company. Chief Commercial Officer Tom Ramsey said at a Crude Oil Quality Association conference in Galveston on October […]
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European benchmark natural gas prices remain near multi-year highs in mid-October 2026, approaching levels last seen at the end of 2022. The Dutch Title Transfer Facility (TTF) front-month contract traded around €86 per megawatt-hour (MWh)—roughly $96.50/MWh—after a sharp rally driven by constrained Middle East LNG supplies and historically low storage heading into winter. Prices have […]
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Vice President JD Vance says the administration “has used” the Defense Production Act to expand Delek’s 74,000-barrel-a-day plant in East Texas. Diesel is $6.32 and nobody has published the dollars, the barrels or the start date. Here is what is real, what is not yet, and whether one small refinery can be the start of […]
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Oil prices fell about 2% on October 15, 2026, after reports that the Trump administration is considering easing sanctions on vessels in the so-called “shadow fleet.” Brent crude futures dropped about $2.28 (2.2%) to around $103.78 a barrel, while WTI fell about $1.34 (1.4%) to roughly $93.75, reversing prior gains. The move reflected hopes that […]
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The Iran war that began around February 28, 2026, with U.S.-Israeli strikes and subsequent Iranian responses, has reshaped OPEC+ crude production and, more sharply, refined product exports. Pre-war levels (roughly February 2026) represented a relatively stable baseline after earlier OPEC+ quota management. Current output remains under significant stress from Strait of Hormuz disruptions, infrastructure attacks, […]
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As of mid-October 2026, U.S. drilling activity continues to firm. Baker Hughes reported its closely watched weekly rotary rig count at 603 for the week ending October 9 (up 5 week-over-week and up 56 year-over-year from 547). WellDatabase’s U.S. Rig Report dated 10.14.2026 showed 608 total rigs (up 6 week-over-week and up 52 year-over-year). Enverus’ […]
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California’s Cap-and-Invest and Low Carbon Fuel Standard added about 47 cents a gallon in July (CEC). Washington’s carbon auction and clean-fuel rules add roughly 36–74 cents. The federal RFS is a separate 1-to-45-cent fight over gross credits versus net pump pass-through. We map the published estimates, keep taxes and refinery closures in their own buckets, […]
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The September 2026 Consumer Price Index delivered a clear message: energy prices—especially gasoline and diesel—drove the latest inflation jump. Headline CPI rose 0.6% month-over-month and accelerated to 3.7% year-over-year, up from 3.4% in August, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics.Bls Gasoline prices surged 9.1% in a single month and accounted for more than half […]
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