Generic Hero BannerGeneric Hero Banner
Latest market news

Mideast contagion risk increases

  • Market: Condensate, Crude oil, Natural gas, Oil products
  • 29/07/24

The risk of Israel's war with the Palestinian militant group Hamas in Gaza spreading into the wider Middle East region appeared to step up a notch at the weekend with Jerusalem saying it is preparing for fighting on its northern border with Lebanon.

The move, announced by the Israeli Defence Force (IDF), came after Israel pinned a 27 July rocket attack that killed 12 people in the Golan Heights on Lebanon-based Hezbollah — like Hamas, an Iran-backed group. The IDF said it is "greatly increasing its readiness for the next stage of fighting in the north." The White House also blamed Hezbollah for the strike, saying its was "their rocket, and launched from an area they control."

Israel and Hezbollah have exchanged fire almost daily since 8 October last year, a day after Hamas first attacked Israel. Those skirmishes had mostly targeted military sites, but the weekend strike was by far the deadliest on civilians inside Israeli territory.

The prospect of violence spreading in the Middle East has been a concern, not least in Washington, since the war began between Hamas and Israel. On 13 April, Iran attacked Israel directly for the first time and Israel retaliated five days later. The Yemen-based Houthi militant group launched a campaign of targeting commercial vessels in the Red Sea in what it said was a direct response to Israel's actions in Gaza, and recently directly hit central Tel Aviv with a drone.

International crude markets did not react to the weekend's events. Ice Brent front-month crude was mostly unchanged today.

Separately, Turkish President Erdogan Recep Tayyip Erdogan on 28 July increased his rhetoric against Israel, hinting at intervention in the Gaza conflict. This may put in doubt Ankara's involvement in any multinational post-war force in Gaza, a "day after" scenario the UAE and the US are attempting to work on.

"We must be very strong so that Israel can't do these things to Palestine," Erdogan said in a televised speech in his hometown of Rize, where he enjoys overwhelming support.

"Just as we entered Karabakh, just as we entered Libya, we might do the same to them," he said. "There is nothing we cannot do. Only we must be strong."

Erdogan has adopted a more aggressive stance towards Israel since his AKP party's poor showing at municipal elections in March, with the Palestinian struggle for statehood being a key cause for his conservative Muslim support base.

His comments were non-specific as to the nature of any potential Turkish involvement in Palestinian territories. In Libya and Nagorno-Karabakh, Ankara provided military hardware — especially unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) — and advisors that helped shape outcomes of both conflicts.

Israel's foreign minister Israel Katz said Erdogan was following "in the footsteps of Saddam Hussein" with threats to attack Israel. "Just let him remember what happened there and how it ended," he said on X.

US secretary of state Anthony Blinken on 28 July reiterated Washington's desire to prevent the conflict from escalating.

"We don't want to see it spread," he said in Japan. "The best way to do that in a sustained way is to get the ceasefire in Gaza."


Sharelinkedin-sharetwitter-sharefacebook-shareemail-share

Related news posts

Argus illuminates the markets by putting a lens on the areas that matter most to you. The market news and commentary we publish reveals vital insights that enable you to make stronger, well-informed decisions. Explore a selection of news stories related to this one.

News
24/02/25

Gasoline price in southern Germany down on ample supply

Gasoline price in southern Germany down on ample supply

Hamburg, 24 February (Argus) — Suppliers in southern Germany are lowering gasoline prices compared with the nationwide average on ample supply and slow demand. Gasoline availability in Southern Germany has remained sufficient enough to cover local demand even though refinery outages hampered supply, because demand has remained slow, around Karlsruhe especially. This has forced some suppliers to keep prices well below the national average. Gasoline prices in the region have fallen significantly compared with the rest of the of Germany with discounts of over €2,20/100l in the past week. Production at the Bayernoil consortium's 215,000 b/d Vohburg-Neustadt refinery in Bavaria and the Miro joint venture's 310,000 b/d Karlsruhe refinery is still restricted. Both facilities experienced technical problems within days of each other at the end of January. While a third of Miro's production capacity is expected to remain offline until the beginning of March, the operators of the Bayernoil refinery began the process of bringing the affected units back online on Sunday. Meanwhile, suppliers in Cologne are selling gasoline with a premium of up to €1,60/100l to the national average. This sudden price jump points toward reduced availability at Shell's 334,000 b/d Rhineland refinery complex. Although traders in the region have not reported any gasoline shortages, the upcoming end of crude refining at the 147,000 b/d Wesseling plant of the Rhineland refinery in March could already be having an effect on prices. By Natalie Muller Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Find out more
News

Italy's Saipem to merge with Norway's Subsea 7


24/02/25
News
24/02/25

Italy's Saipem to merge with Norway's Subsea 7

London, 24 February (Argus) — Italy's Saipem and Norway's Subsea 7 have agreed to merge, creating a global energy services company with revenues of around €20bn/yr ($21bn/yr) and an order backlog of €43bn. The move is designed to create the scale to tackle large and complex energy projects focused on engineering and construction (E&C) but also on energy transition projects such as wind and carbon capture. Saipem held talks with Subsea 7 over a possible tie-up several years ago but failed to reach an agreement. "The combination will give us a scale that is more in harmony with the magnitude of the projects in offshore energy for oil and gas and renewables industries," said Kristian Siem, chairman of Subsea 7. Under the merger, Subsea 7 will be folded into its Italian rival, with shareholders of the Norwegian company receiving 6.688 Saipem shares for each share they own, along with an extraordinary dividend of €450mn. Each set of shareholders will hold 50pc of the new company on completion. Saipem's largest shareholders — oil and gas firm Eni and state lender CDP — and Subsea 7's largest shareholder Siem Industries have all entered into a separate agreement to support the deal. The new company, Saipem 7, will have a fleet of more than 60 vessels which management says will give it the flexibility to better respond to client requests. "The new company is very, very much an offshore E&C company," said Subsea 7 chief executive John Evans, noting that over 80pc of its operating income comes from this segment. "The two fleets are very compatible and complementary and will allow clients to have a single global service provider to provide everything from ultra-shallow water in the Middle East to ultra-deep in some of the newer provinces," he said. Asked if the new company would be asset light by leasing more of its vessels, Evans said the model of combining older company-owned ships and leased units would continue. "You have to remember that with our backlogs we will be very busy for the next 2-3 years," he said. The merger is expected to generate annual synergies of around €300m in the third year after completion, driven in large part by fleet optimisation and procurement. It is scheduled to close in the second half of 2026 with a binding merger agreement expected mid-2025. Saipem 7 will be listed in both Milan and Oslo and will be headquartered in Milan, although the offshore E&C business will be run as a separate business based in London. Saipem chief executive Alessandro Puliti, who will take over the role of chief executive at Saipem 7, said any decision to spin off the offshore E&C division at a later stage would be evaluated on an opportunistic basis. Puliti said the new company is expected to pay a dividend of at least 40pc of free cash flow after repayment of lease liabilities. By Stephen Jewkes Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Grangemouth refinery site to get $253mn in public funds


24/02/25
News
24/02/25

Grangemouth refinery site to get $253mn in public funds

Edinburgh, 24 February (Argus) — The UK government has committed £200mn ($253mn) for investment in clean energy for the site where UK-Chinese firm Petroineos' 150,000 b/d Grangemouth refinery, due to be permanently shut this year, is located. The government said on 23 February that it will work alongside private sector partners to develop new industries and leverage additional funding through the £200mn in public investment allocated from the UK's National Wealth Fund (NWF). The NWF was set up last year by the government to support investment in clean energy industries and mobilise private sector involvement across the UK. "The funding will be available for co-investment with the private sector to help unlock Grangemouth's full potential and secure our clean energy future," UK prime minister Keir Starmer said. Petroineos is planning to close the Grangemouth refinery in Scotland, this year and turn it into an import terminal because of high costs and declining fuel demand in Europe. Refineries in Europe have long faced competitiveness issues from larger and newer refineries in other regions including the Mideast Gulf, Asia-Pacific and Africa. Around 30 refineries have closed in Europe since 2000, while 2.5mn b/d of crude distillation capacity was added outside the region in the past three years alone. Only around 65 workers will be retained by Petroineos to run the terminal once the Grangemouth refinery closes. The government committed to provide a training guarantee for the staff at the refinery to gain new skills at local colleges. UK union Unite welcomed the announcement, saying that the "significant investment should be the start of a real industrial plan for Grangemouth that both safeguards Scotland's energy security and delivers the jobs of the future." But the union warned that clear timescales for the development of Grangemouth and details on jobs were needed. Unite is supporting the conversion of the refinery into a biorefinery for the production of sustainable aviation fuel (SAF). Petroineos said last year that it did not deem the refinery conversion viable, after having considered it. The firm did not immediately reply to a request for comment following the release of the new government funding. The UK government announcement comes after Scotland's first minister John Swinney committed to allocate £25mn from the proceeds of the Scottish offshore wind leasing round ScotWind to establish a just transition fund for Grangemouth. "The aim is to expedite any of the potential solutions that will be set out in the Project Willow report, as well as other proposals that will give Grangemouth a secure and sustainable future," he said last week. Project Willow is a feasibility study commissioned by the UK and Scottish governments to identify long-term industrial options for the site. The report is due to be released this spring. By Caroline Varin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Republicans target US energy rules for disapproval


21/02/25
News
21/02/25

Republicans target US energy rules for disapproval

Washington, 21 February (Argus) — Republican leaders in the US House of Representatives hope to disapprove at least seven energy-related measures issued under former president Joe Biden using a filibuster-proof process created under the Congressional Review Act. House majority leader Steve Scalise (R-Louisiana) on Thursday released a list of 10 rules that his party has prioritized as "potential targets" for disapproval votes, which require only a simple majority to pass in each chamber. Republicans previously used the law in 2017 to successfully unwind more than a dozen rules, and they hope to do so again to repeal Biden-era rules they say will unnecessarily raise costs on businesses and consumers. A US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulation that implements a $900/t charge on oil and gas sector methane leaks is among the rules that Republicans want to disapprove. If those implementing rules are scrapped, it would provide a temporary reprieve from a 31 August deadline for operators having to pay billions of dollars in potential fees on methane emitted in 2024. Republicans hope to vote later this year to permanently end the methane charge, which was created by the Inflation Reduction Act. House Republicans also hope to disapprove an offshore oil and gas safety rule for drilling in deepwater "high pressure, high temperature" environments that Scalise's office says will increase "burdens on energy operations". Other rules that Republicans will target for disapproval are energy conservation for gas water heaters, energy efficiency labeling standards and air pollution restrictions on rubber tire manufactures. Two of the energy measures House Republicans say they plan to target might not qualify for disapproval under the Congressional Review Act, which can only be used on a "rule". The first is a waiver that would allow California to boost in-state sales of electric vehicles and plug-in hybrids, and that President Donald Trump's administration has tried to make eligible for repeal. The second is the US Commodity Futures Trading Commission's decision to release voluntary guidance for exchanges that allow trading of carbon offset futures. By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

News

Freeze cuts Oklahoma oil and gas output


21/02/25
News
21/02/25

Freeze cuts Oklahoma oil and gas output

New York, 21 February (Argus) — Frigid weather in Oklahoma this week has shut in about a third of state oil and natural gas production, according to analysts and pipeline flow data. About 35-40pc of daily oil and gas output in Oklahoma have been lost to freeze-offs from 19-21 February, Energy Aspects analyst David Seduski told Argus . That amounts to cuts of about 150,000 b/d of crude and 2.5 Bcf/d (71mn m³/d) of gas over the period relative to average daily production in the state, US Energy Information Administration data show. The drop was observable in publicly available data for most interstate pipelines across the state, including Kinder Morgan's Natural Gas Pipeline Company, Howard Energy Partner's Midship Pipeline and Energy Transfer's Panhandle Eastern Pipe Line Company and Enable Gas Transmission pipelines, FactSet energy analyst Bailey McLaughlin said. Production will probably continue to be lost through the weekend as cold weather lingers in the state. Freeze-offs occur when temperatures drop low enough to prevent oil and gas production from reaching the wellhead by causing the water contained in the oil and gas stream to freeze. Freeze-offs in Oklahoma typically occur when temperatures fall below 22°F (-6°C), McLaughlin said. This is a higher threshold than the temperature required to curtail output in colder producing regions such as North Dakota, which has also lost production to freeze-offs in recent weeks. The spot gas price at ANR Oklahoma, a regional trading hub on TC Energy's ANR Pipeline, on Thursday surged to $7.715/mmBtu, double the week-earlier price and the highest since 17 January. By Julian Hast Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Generic Hero Banner

Business intelligence reports

Get concise, trustworthy and unbiased analysis of the latest trends and developments in oil and energy markets. These reports are specially created for decision makers who don’t have time to track markets day-by-day, minute-by-minute.

Learn more