The world is finally realizing, after trying to rid itself of nuclear power following the 2011 Fukushima nuclear disaster, that the power of the atom will be the heart of clean, reliable electricity generation - not unreliable solar and wind. The latest sign that a nuclear renaissance is beginning to gain steam is news from Bloomberg on Monday morning that Tokyo Electric Power Co. will be loading fuel rods into one of the reactors at the Kashiwazaki Kariwa nuclear plant in Niigata prefecture.  The Kashiwazaki Kariwa is significant because…

Oil traders were making big bets amid geopolitical uncertainties, Bloomberg data shows, as 3 million barrels worth of options contracts snapped up by speculators. While the move is largely seen as a Hail Mary, about 3,000 lots of June $250 call options in US crude oil traded for just 1 cent each on Tuesday—trades that Bloomberg likened to a lottery ticket due to the unlikely event that it would actually pay out. But certainly one that would pay out handsomely, if it paid out at all. The trades, according to Bloomberg, were apparently paired…

Tohoku University researchers have made a groundbreaking advancement in battery technology, developing a novel cathode material for rechargeable magnesium batteries that enables efficient charging and discharging even at low temperatures. Details of the findings were published in the Journal of Materials Chemistry A. This innovative material, leveraging an enhanced rock-salt structure, promises to usher in a new era of battery energy storage solutions that are more affordable, safer, and higher in capacity. Unleashing Disordered Rocksalt Oxides…

Sales of hybrid vehicles in Australia are outpacing that of electric vehicles, a new report released Tuesday night showed. Hybrids outsold EVs three quarters in a row, with 95,129 vehicles sold. Electric vehicle sales in Australia sold just 69,593 over that same period, the quarterly EV Index published by the Australian Automobile Association showed. The report also showed a declining sales trend for ICE vehicles, which fell more than 8% in the fourth quarter of last year, although their overall market share is still 78.18% of total vehicle…

Sales of hybrid vehicles in Australia are outpacing that of electric vehicles, a new report released Tuesday night showed. Hybrids outsold EVs three quarters in a row, with 95,129 vehicles sold. Electric vehicle sales in Australia sold just 69,593 over that same period, the quarterly EV Index published by the Australian Automobile Association showed. The report also showed a declining sales trend for ICE vehicles, which fell more than 8% in the fourth quarter of last year, although their overall market share is still 78.18% of total vehicle…

Via Metal Miner   Tata Steel workers associated with the Unite Trade Union at Port Talbot recently voted to strike over plans to replace the site’s two blast furnaces with electric arc furnaces. The decision immediately led to discussions about the near and long-term future of the UK steel industry as well as Tata’s production capabilities. “Around 1,500 Tata steelworkers based in Port Talbot and Newport Llanwern have voted decisively for industrial action over the company’s plan to close its blast furnaces and shed…

Earlier this month, the Science Based Targets initiative caused a revolt among its employees when it announced it would allow the use of carbon credits to offset Scope 3 emissions. The revolt promptly made SBTi change its mind under pressure from those claiming carbon credits were no way to advance the net-zero agenda because all they did was allow emitters to keep emitting. A lot of poor countries would beg to differ, beginning with Guyana—the oil hotspot. Guyana’s president Irfaan Ali made headlines this month…

China’s crude oil imports hit a record high in 2023, rising by 10% year-over-year and breaking the previous record from 2020 when the world’s top crude oil importer took advantage of the price crash to gorge on cheap crude. Last year, China’s crude oil imports averaged 11.3 million barrels per day (bpd), up by 10% compared to 2022, according to Chinese customs data compiled by Bloomberg and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). After China lifted the Covid-related restrictions in early 2023, Chinese refiners…

China’s crude oil imports hit a record high in 2023, rising by 10% year-over-year and breaking the previous record from 2020 when the world’s top crude oil importer took advantage of the price crash to gorge on cheap crude. Last year, China’s crude oil imports averaged 11.3 million barrels per day (bpd), up by 10% compared to 2022, according to Chinese customs data compiled by Bloomberg and the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA). After China lifted the Covid-related restrictions in early 2023, Chinese refiners…

China is raising from Wednesday the retail prices of gasoline and diesel to reflect the recent increase in international crude oil prices, the Xinhua news agency reported on Tuesday, citing the top economic planner of the world’s second-largest economy. Beginning on April 17, retail gasoline prices will be raised by $27.60 (200 Chinese yuan) per ton, and diesel prices will go up by $27 (195 yuan) per ton, according to a decision of China’s National Development and Reform Commission (NDRC). Under the current pricing mechanism…

Nigeria’s crude oil reserves have increased by 1 billion barrels while natural gas reserves have jumped by 2.573 trillion cubic feet (TCF), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said. As of January 1, 2024, Nigeria’s combined proven reserves of crude oil and condensate stood at 37.50 billion barrels, while the reserves of associated natural gas and non-associated gas stood at 209.26 trillion cubic feet, NUPRC’s chief executive Gbenga Komolafe said. Of the oil and condensate reserves, crude…

Nigeria’s crude oil reserves have increased by 1 billion barrels while natural gas reserves have jumped by 2.573 trillion cubic feet (TCF), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said. As of January 1, 2024, Nigeria’s combined proven reserves of crude oil and condensate stood at 37.50 billion barrels, while the reserves of associated natural gas and non-associated gas stood at 209.26 trillion cubic feet, NUPRC’s chief executive Gbenga Komolafe said. Of the oil and condensate reserves, crude…

Nigeria’s crude oil reserves have increased by 1 billion barrels while natural gas reserves have jumped by 2.573 trillion cubic feet (TCF), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) has said. As of January 1, 2024, Nigeria’s combined proven reserves of crude oil and condensate stood at 37.50 billion barrels, while the reserves of associated natural gas and non-associated gas stood at 209.26 trillion cubic feet, NUPRC’s chief executive Gbenga Komolafe said. Of the oil and condensate reserves, crude…

The campaign for institutional investors to divest from oil giants like BP and Shell hasn’t made any progress due to the way index providers dominate the market, a new study has found. Only 60 institutional investors worldwide have sold all of their shares in BP and Shell, representing about three per cent and four per cent of their shareholders, a paper published earlier this year by David Whyte of Queen Mary University of London has revealed. These shares have all been promptly bought up by massive asset managers like Blackrock and Vanguard,…

Oil prices have fallen back at the start of this week despite heightened geopolitical risk after Iran attacked Israel with more than 300 missiles and drones. Traders appear to be focused on fundamentals, awaiting a more tangible event for oil markets before pushing prices any higher.- For the first time in more than a year, the US count of drilled-but-uncompleted wells (DUCs) rose in March to 4,522, up 9 wells compared to February, signaling that US production growth is stalling.- Usually, when companies start to build up fracklogs, it is an indication…

Russia exported the highest level of oil from its ports in 11 months in the week to April 14, as export terminals likely shipped more crude that couldn’t be processed at refineries knocked offline by Ukrainian drone attacks, tanker-tracking data monitored by Bloomberg showed on Tuesday.  In the second week of April, Russia’s crude oil shipments jumped by as much as 560,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 3.95 million bpd—the highest level since May last year, according to the data reported by Bloomberg’s Julian Lee. …

Russia exported the highest level of oil from its ports in 11 months in the week to April 14, as export terminals likely shipped more crude that couldn’t be processed at refineries knocked offline by Ukrainian drone attacks, tanker-tracking data monitored by Bloomberg showed on Tuesday.  In the second week of April, Russia’s crude oil shipments jumped by as much as 560,000 barrels per day (bpd) to 3.95 million bpd—the highest level since May last year, according to the data reported by Bloomberg’s Julian Lee. …

The Federal Government of Iraq (FGI) centred in Baghdad several weeks ago ordered the speeding up of crucial repairs to its own oil export pipeline into Turkey while keeping its embargo on oil exports from the semi-autonomous Kurdistan Region of Iraqi (KRI) based in Erbil in place, a senior source who works closely with Iraq’s Oil Ministry exclusively told OilPrice.com last week. According to a subsequent statement from Iraqi’s Deputy Oil Minister for Upstream Affairs, Basim Mohammed, the pipeline is likely to be operational and…

Last year, the U.S. made major lithium breakthroughs with the potential to make the country self-sufficient in the critical battery metal for decades. In September, a group of scientists funded by Lithium Americas Corporation (NYSE:LAC) reported that the McDermitt Caldera, a volcanic crater on the Nevada-Oregon border, houses 20 to 40 million metric tons of lithium deposits. For perspective, that volume is nearly double the 23 million metric tonnes found in Bolivia.  In December, the U.S. Department of Energy announced that…

A decade ago, master limited partnerships (MLPs), were a favored investment class for income investors. They have unique tax advantages that resulted in significant advantages over other income equities. In a nutshell, MLPs aren’t taxed at the corporate level. MLPs pass profits directly to unitholders in the form of periodic distributions. This arrangement avoids the double taxation of corporate income and dividends affecting traditional corporations and their shareholders and, all things being equal, should deliver more money to unitholders.…