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Iran warns new US-Israeli strikes will broaden war
Iran warns new US-Israeli strikes will broaden war
Dubai, 20 May (Argus) — Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC) warned on Wednesday that any renewed US or Israeli strikes on the country would lead to a broadening of the war beyond the Mideast Gulf region. "If the aggression against Iran is repeated, the regional war that was promised will extend beyond the region this time, and our crushing blows will land you… in places you cannot imagine," the IRGC said. The threat comes in response to incendiary rhetoric aimed at Iran's leadership, even as diplomacy has been taking place since a ceasefire was agreed in early April. US president Donald Trump said on Monday that "serious negotiations are now taking place" but warned Tehran, again, that "the clock is ticking" and that Iran had "better get moving, FAST, or there won't be anything left of them." Trump also said he was ready to carry out a new attack on Iran on Tuesday, but decided to postpone it after an intervention from the leaders of Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the UAE. Around six weeks of intense US and Israeli bombing targeting key officials, facilities and infrastructure linked to Iran's leadership, military and energy caused significant damage, but largely failed to weaken the regime's grip on power. The strikes also prompted Tehran and the Iranian armed forces to effectively close the strait of Hormuz, which has dramatically disrupted the movement of commercial vessels through the key waterway ꟷ including crude, oil products and LNG tankers. This in turn forced several Mideast Gulf countries that depended heavily on the strait to export oil and LNG to shut-in meaningful amounts of production, putting upward pressure on commodity prices. Front-month Ice Brent futures are hovering above $110/bl, more than 50pc up from before the US and Israel launched their initial salvo on Iran on 28 February. These new threats show Washington and Tel Aviv "have not learned from the major and strategic defeats" of the past few weeks, the IRGC said, warning that Iranian retaliation for any new strikes would be more widespread and more intense. While the US and Israel "attacked us with all their capabilities [in the initial phase of the war]… we did not use all of our capabilities," the IRGC said. Trump said on Tuesday he had put off a "major attack for a little while… hopefully forever," after the Mideast Gulf leaders told him they felt "they are very close to making a deal [with Iran]." "If we can do that where there is no nuclear weapon going into the hands of Iran, and if [the Mideast Gulf countries] are satisfied, we will probably be satisfied also," Trump said. Iranian state broadcaster IRIB said on Wednesday that Pakistan's interior minister had arrived in Tehran for talks with unnamed Iranian officials. Pakistan has been acting as the primary mediator between Iran and the US, and hosted a first round of talks between the sides in Islamabad in April. By Nader Itayim Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US investment in ethane export infrastructure grows
US investment in ethane export infrastructure grows
Midstream operators are upbeat about the prospects of continued ethane export demand growth as Mideast Gulf disruption continues, writes Joseph Barbour Houston, 19 May (Argus) — US midstream firms have announced further investments in ethane infrastructure in their latest first-quarter results releases in the wake of strengthening international demand for the petrochemical feedstock given a tighter LPG export market. Energy Transfer plans to build a 3mn bl (169,000t) ethane storage cavern at its Mont Belvieu NGL storage and fractionation hub in Texas, the company said on 5 May. Completion of the cavern is scheduled for 2027. This announcement comes as the firm extends most of its existing long-term ethane contracts out to 2041 and considers whether to further expand its Nederland LPG and ethane export facility on the Gulf coast, where it launched 182,000 b/d (3.8mn t/yr) of capacity in 2021 . "There's between 500,000 and 750,000 b/d of ethane interest around the world from new [ethane-fed] crackers," co-chief executive Marshall McCrea said earlier this month. Energy Transfer is also expanding its Marcus Hook LPG and ethane terminal to ship 20,000 b/d more ethane, which is on track for completion in the third quarter of next year. Enterprise Products — the only other US midstream firm that exports ethane — is also aiming to increase its ethane shipments overseas. The company began loading propane from its Neches River terminal near Beaumont, Texas, in April , which was originally built to ship 120,000 b/d of ethane and ethylene, following an upgrade that allows it to export a further 180,000 b/d of ethane or 360,000 b/d of propane, or a reduced combination of the two. Enterprise expects to begin loading ethane from the expanded capacity this month, although it says it will be prioritised for propane contracts before 300,000 b/d of LPG capacity at the company's Houston LPG terminal comes on line later this year. The planned expansions to US ethane infrastructure are happening alongside a growing pull on LPG exports. Energy Transfer and Enterprise reported record NGL exports during the first quarter, most of which was LPG — the latter shipping 1.1mn b/d of NGLs, up 10pc on the year, and the former shipping 19pc more without disclosing the volume. Demand for US LPG and ethane continues to be bolstered by the US-Israel war with Iran, which has effectively shut off Mideast Gulf LPG supply. The impacts from Middle Eastern supply disruption are likely to extend well into the future, Enterprise said. The winds of war Other midstream firms in the US NGL space are similarly upbeat on export demand. The current environment "will continue to [provide strong] tailwinds for Gulf coast exports", Phillips 66 vice-president Don Baldridge said on 29 April, adding that the firm's Freeport LPG terminal should benefit from this. The facility in Texas shipped a record-high 319,000 b/d (2.5mn t) during the first quarter, Kpler data show — the company did not provide an estimate. Targa Resources declared force majeure on LPG loadings at its 175,000 b/d Galena Park LPG terminal in Texas in March, yet it expects loading to reach a new high at the facility in the second quarter. The company's planned expansion of Galena Park to 625,000 b/d is on track for completion in the third quarter of 2027 and will be "much needed when it comes on line", Targa said in early May. The midstream operators reported other NGL operational records in January-March. Enterprise, Energy Transfer and Targa posted quarterly highs in NGL fractionation — at 1.9mn b/d, 1.21mn b/d and 1.15mn b/d, respectively. Targa's 150,000 b/d fractionator 11 in Mont Belvieu, Texas, came on line in April, with its same-sized 12 and 13 fractionators due to start up in early 2027 and 2028, respectively. Energy Transfer's 165,000 b/d fractionator IX in Mont Belvieu is scheduled to open in the fourth quarter. And Enterprise and Energy Transfer achieved record NGL pipeline transportation volumes of 4.88mn b/d and 2.43mn b/d, respectively. US ethane exports Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Japan’s LPG demand to fall faster than expected: Meti
Japan’s LPG demand to fall faster than expected: Meti
Stronger demand from the city gas and industrial sectors will not prevent overall consumption from falling, writes Reina Maeda Tokyo, 20 May (Argus) — Japan's LPG demand is expected to drop more quickly than previously anticipated, as a result of waning household consumption, pressured by urbanisation and energy efficiency gains, economy, trade and industry ministry Meti's latest forecast says. Domestic demand is forecast to fall by 7pc to 11mn t by the financial year 2030-31 ending in March, from 12mn t in 2025-26. The projection puts demand at 11.1mn t in 2029-30, which is down by 2.4pc from Meti's forecast last year for it to stand at 11.4mn t . The decline is still gradual, dropping by 0.6pc on the year to 11.8mn t in 2026-27. Demand is expected to fall in the residential, commercial, autogas and petrochemical sectors. Fuel efficiency gains in the autogas sector, with more LPG hybrid vehicles, will weigh on demand, as will the trend for decarbonisation across all sectors, Meti says. But LPG demand from the city gas sector is forecast to rise by 4.9pc from 2025-26 to 1.5mn t in 2030-31. City gas distributors continue to import and use more LPG because of Japan's higher intake of US LNG, which has a lower calorific value than other LNG and requires more LPG to bring it in line with Japanese standards. Industrial-sector demand is expected to grow this year as users switch from fuel oil for power generation, although this move is expected to be temporary. LPG demand from the industrial sector is expected to drop by 6.4pc to 2.3mn t in 2030-31. Japanese LPG distributors have separately reported a slight decline in their sales in 2025-26 because of weaker demand. Itochu Enex's sales fell by 1.9pc on the year to 408,000t, while Toho Gas' sales dropped by 0.2pc to 473,000t. Nicigas' sales were steadier on the year at 287,000t thanks to an increase in residential customers, offsetting weaker demand from industrial buyers. Japan's LPG imports declined by 1pc to 9.9mn t in 2025-26 owing to weaker demand, finance ministry data show. Japan LPG demand forecast Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Iran launches maritime authority, insurance platform
Iran launches maritime authority, insurance platform
London, 19 May (Argus) — Iran has launched a new maritime authority to tighten its control over shipping in and around the strait of Hormuz. It has also introduced an insurance platform to provide cover for Iranian shipping and cargoes transiting the waterway. The Persian Gulf Strait Authority (PGSA) will manage navigation through the waterway, while the "Hormuz Safe" platform will offer "secure digital insurance for maritime cargo" for Iranian vessels transiting it. The PGSA will act as the legal authority representing Iran in managing transit through the strait, according to Iran's semi-official Fars news agency. Vessels intending to transit the waterway will receive rules and regulations from the authority and must obtain a permit to pass, state news agency Press TV said. Ships must comply with this framework. Passage without permission will be considered illegal, Fars reported. Iran claimed control of a broader area of the strait and surrounding waters on 4 May, from the western-most point of Iran's Qeshm Island to Umm al-Quwain on the UAE's west coast, and from Kuh Mobarak in Hormozgan province to southern Fujairah on the UAE's east coast. Separately, the Hormuz Safe platform will provide Iranian shipping companies and cargo owners with "fast, verifiable digital insurance", according to its web page. It will offer cover for cargoes in the Mideast Gulf and surrounding waterways, with payments settled in cryptocurrency. There is no indication that Hormuz Safe policies extend beyond Iranian ships and cargoes. Iran has launched the initiatives as geopolitical tension remains high in the Mideast Gulf. The US and Israel's war with Iran has involved strikes on shipping in and around the strait of Hormuz, pushing up western insurance costs and sharply reducing traffic through the waterway. A ceasefire is now in place, but the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps' tight control of the strait and a US naval blockade of Iranian ports continue to weigh on exports of oil, gas and other commodities from the region. Iran created an official PGSA account on social media platform X on 18 May to provide operational updates and developments related to shipping through the strait. By Leonard Fisher-Matthews Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2026. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
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