Vitol CEO flags supply uncertainties as he predicts oil prices of $70-$80/bbl by 2025
Russell Hardy, the CEO of Vitol - the world's biggest independent oil trader - said that global oil prices will remain in the $70 - $80 range per barrel in 2025. Geopolitical risk creates uncertainty about supply. The world oil price has been capped due to concerns over a reversal of OPEC+'s supply cuts by 2025, and China’s slow oil demand growth despite the risks of disruption in Middle East supply. He said that the market was driven by a concern over the balances of 2025.
Palm oil no longer follows rival oils in price, and Indian imports are down.
Malaysian palm oils futures continued to decline for a third consecutive session on Wednesday. This was due to the drop in prices of vegetable oils that compete with palm oil and a decrease in India's imports. The benchmark palm-oil contract for delivery in November on Bursa Malaysia's Derivatives exchange closed at 3888 ringgit (US$893.79) a metric ton, down by 1.09%. A palm oil trader said that the strengthened ringgit had made palm oils significantly less competitive.
Palm oil prices fall as rival oils rise, and Indian imports decline.
Malaysian palm futures continued to decline on Wednesday. This was due to a fall in the prices of competing vegetable oils, and a decrease in India's imports of palm oil. By midday, the benchmark palm oil contract on Bursa Derivatives exchange for November delivery was down by 0.97% at 3,893 Ringgit ($895.97). It was on course to drop for a third consecutive session. A palm oil trader said that the strengthened ringgit had made palm oil significantly less competitive.
US CFTC fines energy traders
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission ordered TOTSA TotalEnergies Trading SA on August 27 to pay a fine of $48 million for alleged gasoline price manipulation. Ian McGinley, CFTC Director of Enforcement, said that the CFTC had "guarded the integrity of the market in numerous cases during the past 20 years" by detecting these benchmark-related scheme and prosecuting them. The U.S. regulator has fined several companies for what they call oil and gas market malpractice.
Vietnam's second LNG Terminal seeks cargo for commissioning tests
Two industry sources have confirmed that the Cai Mep terminal in Vietnam is looking for a cargo so it can begin commissioning tests. This will make the terminal the second terminal in Vietnam to receive the fuel. In order to reduce its reliance on coal and increase the amount of electricity generated by the country, Vietnam is planning to build LNG import terminals as well as a fleet 13 LNG-fired plants. These could make up 15% of total installed capacity in 2030.
Vietnam's second LNG Terminal seeks cargo for commissioning tests
Two industry sources have confirmed that the Cai Mep terminal in Vietnam is looking for a cargo so it can begin commissioning tests. This will make the terminal the second terminal to import the fuel. In order to reduce its reliance on coal and increase the amount of electricity generated by the country, Vietnam is planning to build LNG import terminals as well as a fleet 13 LNG-fired plants. These could make up 15% of total installed capacity in 2030.
KPMG Flags Oil Trader ZenRock's Questionable Deals
ZenRock Commodities Trading Pte Ltd is unlikely to continue its core oil trading businesses in the long term, its court-appointed supervisor KPMG Services said in a report that also raised concerns over transactions by the Singapore-based trader.ZenRock was placed under interim judicial management in May after one of its creditors HSBC Holdings PLC alleged that it engaged in a series of "highly…
Trafigura Merging China Oil Operations in New Shanghai Trading Desk
Swiss commodities merchant Trafigura plans to merge its three-year-old crude oil marketing office in Qingdao, in east China's Shandong province, with an oil desk being set up in Shanghai, according to three sources with knowledge of the matter.Trafigura earlier this year created a head oil trader position in its Shanghai office, which has long focused on metals, said the sources. Huang Shufu, from the company's Singapore-based oil team…
Sembcorp Begins Proceedings Against Hin Leong Affiliate
Sembcorp Industries on Monday said its Sembcorp Cogen unit had begun legal proceedings to assert ownership over some gasoil reserves stored in tanks at Singapore's Universal Terminal, partly owned by oil trader Hin Leong Trading Pte Ltd.Just last week, Sembcorp Cogen terminated its gasoil supply and storage agreement with Hin Leong Trading, which is being monitored by Singaporean authorities.Sembcorp Cogen on April 24 obtained a court order to restrain Universal Terminal from moving…
Record Oil Output Cuts Fail to Make Waves in Coronavirus-hit Market
The minimal impact on oil prices from a global deal for record output cuts showed that oil producers have a mountain to climb if they are to restore market balance as the coronavirus shreds demand and sends stockpiles soaring, industry watchers said.After several days of discussions, oil producing and consuming countries aim to remove nearly 20 million barrels per day (bpd) or 20% of global supply from the market…
China Fixes First U.S. Crude Cargo Since Latest Tariff Threat
Chinese oil trader Unipec chartered a supertanker to ship U.S. crude to China in September, trading sources said, the first such cargo since U.S. President Donald Trump announced additional tariffs on Chinese import, ending a monthlong trade truce.Unipec, the trading arm of state refiner Sinopec , has fixed the Very Large Crude Carrier (VLCC) Anne to load U.S. crude in mid-September, according to a shipbroker and Refinitiv Eikon data.
Vitol Builds Refinery for New Ship's Fuel
Vitol, the world's largest independent oil trader, has started building a small oil refinery at its storage terminal in Malaysia that will provide low-sulfur fuel for ships, a senior company official said on Monday.The project consists of a crude distillation unit that can process 30,000 barrels per day of crude and is located on the same site as Vitol's oil storage terminal at Tanjung Bin in the southern Malaysian state of Johor…
Record Number of VLCC Liftings at LOOP
Medium-sour crudes from the U.S. Gulf of Mexico are being snapped up by overseas buyers, paving way for a record six supertankers to load at the Louisiana Offshore Oil Port (LOOP) in a matter of weeks, according to people familiar with the matter.The six scheduled loadings in late May and early June would double the record of Very Large Crude Carriers (VLCCs) reached in December. An unusual influx of Gulf of Mexico crudes to the U.S.
Petrobras Fires Employee Accused of Corruption
Brazil's state-controlled oil company Petroleo Brasileiro said on Wednesday it had fired a Houston-based employee accused of participating in a corruption scheme involving bribes allegedly paid by trading giants including Glencore.Rodrigo Garcia Berkowitz, who worked as an oil trader, is just the latest Petrobras employee to be ensnared by graft allegations, amid Brazil's Car Wash investigation, which has uncovered a sweeking corruption scandal implicating politicians and businesses.(Report
Petrobras Sells Stake in Africa Unit
Brazil's Petroleo Brasileiro SA will sell its 50 percent stake in a Nigerian oil and gas exploration venture to a consortium led by top oil trader Vitol for $1.53 billion, the latest step in the state-controlled oil company's debt reduction drive, according to a securities filing on Wednesday.The other 50 percent stake in Petrobras Oil and Gas BV, also known as Petrobras Africa, is owned by Brazilian investment bank BTG Pactual…
Cepsa Float Fail Could Jeopardize Other Energy Listings
The shelving of Spanish energy company Cepsa's initial public offering (IPO) may damage prospects for a string of oil-related companies planning to go public.Returning Cepsa to the Madrid stock exchange this week in a flotation valuing the firm at up to 8 billion euros ($9.3 billion) had been expected to test investor appetite for energy listings amid resurgent oil prices.But the company, owned by Abu Dhabi's Mubadala…
Cheniere Inks 15-year LNG Sales Pact with Vitol
Cheniere Energy Inc said on Monday that it signed a 15-year agreement to supply liquefied natural gas (LNG) to the world's largest oil trader, Vitol Inc.Cheniere said it will sell 700,000 tonnes of LNG every year to Vitol, starting 2018 and the purchase price will be pegged to the Henry Hub monthly average, plus a fee.The United States has become a major LNG exporter in the last two years, mostly due to the ramp up of Cheniere's Sabine Pass terminal in Louisiana.
U.S. Imports of Nigerian Crude Fall to 3-year Low
U.S. crude oil imports from Nigeria in July plunged to the lowest level in three years and are continuing to slip as Asian and European buyers increase purchases, trade flow data from Thomson Reuters and market intelligence firms Genscape and Kpler show.A narrowing spread between benchmark Brent and Oman crude futures <DUB-EFS-1M>, trading at less than $2 a barrel compared with more than $4 in May, has made Nigerian crude more attractive to Asian buyers than U.S. refiners.
China Shifts to Iranian Tankers to Keep Oil Flowing Amid US Sanctions
Chinese buyers of Iranian oil are starting to shift their cargoes to vessels owned by National Iranian Tanker Co (NITC) for nearly all of their imports to keep supply flowing amid the re-imposition of economic sanctions by the United States.The shift demonstrates that China, Iran's biggest oil customer, wants to keep buying Iranian crude despite the sanctions, which were put back after the United…
Sonatrach in Talks with 14 Foreign Firms on Trading Venture -CEO
Algerian state energy firm Sonatrach is in talks with 14 international firms for a joint venture to trade oil and gas products after agreeing to buy its first overseas refinery, its CEO said on Thursday."I am happy to say that 14 firms are on the list to do a JV on trading with us," Abdelmoumen Ould Kaddour told reporters during a visit to the port city of Bejaia, without giving details or names.The trading JV will also include gas sales.Potential partners, which have held talks with Sonatr
