U.S. commercial crude oil inventories rose last week, but Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) draws and sharp declines in key refined products left overall oil and product stocks tighter, according to the Energy Information Administration’s (EIA) Weekly Petroleum Status Report released today for the week ending July 31, 2026. Key Inventory Highlights (Week Ending July 31, […]
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Global oil refineries outside active conflict zones are operating near or at maximum capacity, with almost no remaining buffers to absorb further shocks. Saudi Aramco CEO Amin Nasser made the point clearly this week: the system is stretched thin, leaving “little shock absorbers or buffers” against higher fuel prices. A combination of the ongoing war […]
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In late June 2026, President Donald Trump publicly singled out ExxonMobil, Chevron, Shell, and BP, accusing the “big Oil Companies” of failing to lower gasoline prices at the pump in line with falling crude oil costs. In comments to the media and on Truth Social, he argued that with oil prices dropping sharply, Americans should […]
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The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released its Weekly Petroleum Status Report on July 29, 2026, covering the week ending July 24, 2026. Commercial crude oil inventories (excluding the Strategic Petroleum Reserve) fell by 7.2 million barrels (precisely 7.167 million barrels) to 404.5 million barrels. This marked a sharp draw that far exceeded market expectations […]
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Global demand for liquefied natural gas (LNG) carriers is set to be significantly stronger than previously expected over the next decade. French containment-system specialist Gaztransport & Technigaz SA (GTT) has raised its forecast for LNG carrier gas-containment system design orders to about 550 vessels in the 2026–2035 period, up from its earlier estimate of more […]
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U.S. drilling activity showed mixed signals this week as different rig count providers reported divergent weekly moves against a backdrop of solid year-over-year gains. The latest WellDatabase US Rig Report (dated July 24, 2026) puts the active U.S. rig count at 575, up 1 from the prior week and up 47 from a year earlier. […]
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Recent data confirms that fossil fuels (coal, natural gas, and oil) still supply 57% of global electricity generation. Wind and solar together reached about 17% of electricity in 2025, according to Ember’s Global Electricity Review. This marks progress from a decade ago, yet it tells only part of the story. Electricity represents a minority slice […]
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The explosive growth of data centers, driven primarily by artificial intelligence, is reshaping America’s electricity landscape. High-end projections now show data centers potentially consuming up to 20% of total U.S. electricity by 2035 in aggressive scenarios—roughly a four- to five-fold increase from today’s ~4-5% share. Even as AI model developers announce efficiency gains, the underlying […]
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The latest WellDatabase US Rig Report (dated July 18, 2026) shows the U.S. active drilling rig count at 567, marking a solid +11 week-over-week (WoW) increase and +37 year-over-year (YoY) gain. This reflects resilient drilling activity amid a stable-to-rising trend over the past 12 months, with the count holding in the mid-to-high 500s range. Key […]
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Crude oil inventories held at storage facilities in Cushing, Oklahoma, fell below 20 million barrels during the week ending June 19 until the week ending July 10, according to our Weekly Petroleum Status Report. Storage facilities for crude oil and petroleum products require a minimum volume of product in their tanks and pipe infrastructure to remain […]
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