Unconfirmed Houthi strike claims on Saudi oil sites and a reported mine hit in Hormuz pushed Brent past $111. With diesel at $6.32, truckers, farmers and grocery shoppers carry the load, and U.S. barrels and refineries are the cushion. By Energy News Beat | Tuesday, Oct. 20, 2026 | Pump prices as of 7:19 a.m. […]
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The global liquefied natural gas (LNG) market is locked in an intensifying bidding contest between Asia and Europe, driven by severe disruptions to Qatari supplies through the Strait of Hormuz amid the US-Iran conflict that began in late February 2026. Spot prices have more than doubled—surging roughly 150% from pre-conflict levels near $10.40 per million […]
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The 2026 US-Iran war and the effective closure of the Strait of Hormuz have delivered a sharp shock to the global helium market. Helium, extracted primarily as a byproduct of natural-gas processing, has no short-term substitutes in many critical applications. Qatar’s Ras Laffan complex—source of roughly one-third of world supply—saw production halted after Iranian strikes […]
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Iran says two loaded tankers hit mines. Ukraine ended a brief energy truce, the SPR put 17 million more barrels on offer, European wholesale gas sits $25 above the U.S. benchmark, and the Secretary of State is touring the world’s largest single-site refinery. Here is how this week’s five biggest stories land in your tank […]
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Brent closed Friday at $109.86 and the futures market prices $100 oil into spring. Gas costs about nine times more in Europe and Asia than at Henry Hub, the U.S. benchmark, coal demand is headed for a record, and five of the world’s eight oil chokepoints have trouble. Here is what it means for your […]
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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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Chinese refiners are set to slow the pace of inventory drawdowns this month as crude imports recover, according to Energy Aspects. More overseas crude is expected to arrive from November, allowing China to preserve its substantial stockpile buffer against further supply disruptions. Analyst Jianan Sun of Energy Aspects noted that recent purchases of Iraqi and […]
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Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) Navy said on Monday, October 12–13, 2026, that it struck a third “violating” or “offending” supertanker in the Strait of Hormuz within roughly 48 hours, sparking an onboard fire. The IRGC stated the vessel had switched off its navigation systems, ignored warnings, and attempted to exit via an unauthorized […]
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Supertankers are racing into the Persian Gulf for record fees, and that single migration is redrawing how crude moves. More than 40 percent of the world’s roughly 850 very large crude carriers are now inside the Gulf or within a couple of days’ sail of it, according to Signal Ocean data cited by Bloomberg. Empty […]
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Russell Hardy did not wake up on October 6 and decide to scare a room full of energy executives. He runs Vitol, the biggest independent oil trader on the planet, and he was describing what his people are actually seeing when they try to move barrels. The seven-month war involving the United States, Israel, and […]
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