US President Joe Biden just wrapped up a trip to the Middle East with a closely watched visit to Saudi Arabia. His national security director signaled that the success of his oil diplomacy will be judged in the coming weeks, not immediately. So will OPEC+ agree to increase production at its Aug. 3 meeting to help ease global prices? Ellen Wald, president of Transversal Consulting and senior nonresident fellow at the Atlantic Council's Global Energy Center, spoke with senior editor Meghan Gordon about the debate around Saudi Arabia's spare oil capacity, US-Saudi relations, and how Russia likely loomed over the talks. Stick around after the interview for Jordan Blum with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers.
The International Energy Agency, in its road map for achieving net-zero emissions by 2050, set a near-term target for the deployment of carbon capture capacity at 1.7 billion metric tons by 2030, a level that is more than 40 times the global capacity in 2021. The most significant action the US has taken towards reaching that goal has been to provide funding for various types of carbon management technologies and infrastructure through the bipartisan infrastructure law. Specifically, the bill gives the Department of Energy $12.1 billion for carbon projects. S&P Global reporter Brandon Mulder spoke with Assistant Secretary for Fossil Energy and Carbon Management Brad Crabtree, whose office is tasked with allocating that $12 billion to help jumpstart the carbon capture industry. They spoke about the DOE’s priorities, the new Carbon Negative Shot initiative and possible enhancements to the federal 45Q tax credit. Stick around after the interview for Chris van Moessner with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Jasmin Melvin in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
Consulting firm ScottMadden’s latest energy industry update, fittingly titled “Under Pressure,” outlines how rising post-pandemic energy demand, ambitious decarbonization targets, soaring commodity prices, and geopolitical tensions have all combined to put immense pressure on the global energy industry. As a result, the US power sector is seeing its resolve to hold to more aggressive climate goals challenged. With the run-up in natural gas prices, coal generation has risen; wind and solar projects are being held up by the long and growing backlog of projects sitting in interconnection queues across the country; and some wonder if the clean energy transition will need to hit the brakes, at least temporarily, to ensure that utility customers can continue to afford their electricity bills. S&P Global editor Ellie Potter spoke with ScottMadden partner Cristin Lyons, who leads the firm’s energy practice, about market dynamics and challenges facing the power sector as it seeks to meet the administration’s goal to decarbonize by 2035, as well as some recent actions taken by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission that could help bring renewable projects online more quickly. Stick around after the interview for Starr Spencer with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Jasmin Melvin in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
Global energy markets have gone through dramatic shifts since Russia's invasion of Ukraine, and the risks around high prices and tight supply are not expected to ease anytime soon. Atul Arya, chief energy strategist for S&P Global Commodity Insights, spoke with senior editor Meghan Gordon about those challenges. They discuss how the war has changed the pace of the energy transition away from fossil fuels, whether the focus on energy security is on the rise, and how today's energy crisis compares to the oil shocks of the 1970s. They also look at the long-term impacts of Europe severing economic ties with Russia and the latest outlook for US oil supply growth. Stick around after the interview for Jordan Blum with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Meghan Gordon in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
The Texas Railroad Commission -- which regulates the state's oil and gas industry, not railroads -- just went through perhaps its highest profile election. Chairman Wayne Christian faced oil and gas lawyer Sarah Stogner who posed tough questions about his enforcement record and the commission's response to the 2021 Texas blackout. Christian won with 65% of the vote, but the campaign raised the profile of the arguments against him. Now he's facing Democrat Luke Warford in the November general election. Senior editor Meghan Gordon spoke with Warford when he was in Washington, DC, recently. We also reached out to the Christian campaign but didn't hear back. Warford argues the commission's poor oversight of the industry deserves blame for the 2021 grid failure and that the regulators have done little since then to ensure that the grid is ready for the next round of extreme weather. He's also campaigning on cutting down on flaring exemptions, which he calls economically wasteful as international demand soars for Texas gas and climate concerns increase. Stick around after the interview for Starr Spencer with the Market Minute, which looks at the current lack of oil and gas investment and questions around meeting long-term demand. This podcast was produced by Meghan Gordon in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
The new geopolitical scene is shaking up the outlook for LNG globally. The club of LNG suppliers has greatly expanded, with the US and others looking to increase their export capacity. This has created an environment for more favorable prices and contracts for importers as the desire for energy transition and energy security is boosting global demand, including in countries that have historically not had natural gas, according to AG&P CEO Joe Sigelman. AG&P is a private LNG and infrastructure solutions platform based in Singapore. The company is focused on fast-tracking development of LNG import terminals, and was able to turn around a major import facility in the Philippines from conception to commissioning in 17 months. Sigelman joined senior editor Jasmin Melvin on the podcast to give his take on the future demand picture for LNG and share his thoughts on how geopolitics and US domestic policies are playing into business decisions for those operating in the sector. Stick around after the interview for Chris Van Moessner with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Jasmin Melvin in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
Alberta Premier Jason Kenney recently made the rounds in Washington, talking to lawmakers and State Department officials about the role Canada, and specifically Alberta’s oil sands, can play in ensuring North American energy security and easing American drivers’ pain at the pump. And his frustration with the lack of proactive outreach by the Biden administration to Alberta, which accounts for over 60% of US oil and gas imports, was clear. Kenney joined senior editor Jasmin Melvin on the podcast to share his concerns and hopes for future collaboration between the US and Canada. He discussed Alberta’s ability to increase its crude exports to the US as well as federal policies in Canada and the US that he worries will inhibit resource development. Stick around after the interview for Jordan Blum with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Jasmin Melvin in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
As the US and Europe move to cut methane emissions, will the demand pull for cleaner LNG spread to price-sensitive Asia? Ben Cahill, a senior fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, published a report this month looking at how concerns about methane emissions might spread elsewhere in the world, and how the focus on methane could reshape the LNG market. Cahill argues that it will take some time before the market -- and Asian buyers in particular -- start paying a premium for cleaner gas. But he does believe demand for this so-called differentiated LNG will develop eventually. Stick around after the interview for Starr Spencer with the Market Minute, a look at the stabilizing US rig count and other trends from first-quarter earnings calls. This podcast was produced by Meghan Gordon in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
As Europe aims to phase out Russian oil imports within months, attention is starting to shift to whether the US will impose secondary sanctions on Russian oil customers. Edward Fishman, who was the Russia and Europe sanctions lead at the State Department during the Obama administration, argues the US should take that step. Fishman, nonresident fellow at Columbia's Center for Global Energy Policy, outlines how escrow accounts can be used to keep oil revenues from going to Russia without threatening a shock to global energy supplies. He draws on Iran sanctions history to make the case that China and India would have incentive to comply with US secondary sanctions. Fishman was a member of a Stanford University working group that outlined steps the Biden administration could take to expand sanctions on Russian energy, transportation, insurance and banking. Stick around after the interview for Chris van Moessner with the Market Minute, a look at near-term oil market drivers. This podcast was produced by Meghan Gordon in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.
The shipping sector faces a massive challenge in decarbonizing to meet global climate goals. To accelerate those efforts, leaders at the COP26 climate change conference in Glasgow last year agreed to develop at least six green shipping corridors by 2025 and many more by 2030. The Biden administration has fully supported the plan and is urging private industry to also get on board. One of the more significant corridors to emerge is between the Port of Los Angeles, the busiest container port in the Western Hemisphere, and the Port of Shanghai, the world's largest port. Christopher Cannon, chief sustainability officer at the Port of Los Angeles, spoke with senior editor Meghan Gordon about how plans for the Los Angeles-Shanghai green shipping corridor are shaping up. They discussed the role fuel producers will play and which alternative fuels look most promising. Cannon also gives an update on efforts to ease West Coast port congestion and predicts another possible port backup when Chinese cities emerge from pandemic lockdowns. Stick around after the interview for Jordan Blum with the Market Minute looking at how workforce issues in the rail sector could affect shipments of oil feedstocks, ethanol, coal, grain and other commodities. This podcast was produced by Meghan Gordon in Washington and Jennifer Pedrick in Houston.