Oil & Gas

Gauging the global backlash against Russia

10 Mar 2022

The shockwaves from President Vladimir Putin’s invasion of Ukraine are reverberating around the world. In our Viewsroom podcast, Breakingviews columnists debate the country’s isolation, the impact on Asia, Europe’s plan to wean itself off Russian gas, and the fallout for banks.

Venezuela gives Washington lesson in realpolitik

9 Mar 2022

The Latin American country’s oil could conveniently replace U.S. imports from Russia. But the regime of Nicolás Maduro has been under U.S. sanctions since 2017. Easing them would amount to accepting the lesser of two evils, with nearly 30 million Venezuelans as pawns.

It’s time for Macron to pull Total out of Russia

9 Mar 2022

French governments usually don’t hesitate to meddle in corporate affairs. The oil major’s refusal to sell its 19% stake in oligarch-controlled Novatek suggests uncharacteristic modesty from President Macron. Given the damage to France’s reputation, this doesn’t make sense.

Ukraine speeds global rush to self-sufficiency

9 Mar 2022

Sanctions cutting off Russia’s access to chips and payments systems, plus spiking food and energy prices, will prompt governments to rethink trust in free trade, already rattled by the U.S.-China trade war and Covid-19. An inefficient protectionist era may be in the offing.

U.S. Russian oil ban ineffective without partners

8 Mar 2022

Russia produces about 10% of global oil. Given most of its exports go to Europe and Asia, an American import ban is relatively economically easy, especially if other unpalatable foreign policies are considered. But hitting Russian pockets needed much greater coordination.

Russian debt coin toss will get harder to call

8 Mar 2022

Gazprom and Rosneft are repaying bonds despite fears Moscow may renege on its own debt. The depressed prices of Russian corporate debt mean investors who rightly bet on repayment can double their money. Yet rising tensions and murky workouts mean the trade will get riskier.

EU charts expensive path towards energy freedom

8 Mar 2022

The European Commission wants to lop over 70% off Russian gas use this year by ramping up LNG purchases, green energy and gas storage. It implies Europeans consuming less energy and paying more than feared for what they use. Pooled EU resources may be needed to cushion the blow.

West’s loaded oil weapon points to power rationing

7 Mar 2022

The U.S. and Europe could ban Russian crude imports to increase pressure on President Vladimir Putin. While oil is a better target for sanctions than gas, alternative supplies are far from assured. Companies and consumers may have to reduce demand, possibly by government decree.

Russia’s reverse globalisation will test Putin

7 Mar 2022

The country spent three decades integrating into the global economy. The president’s invasion of Ukraine threatens to wind the clock back within weeks. How the nation copes without Western technology, capital and consumer goods will help decide whether Vladimir Putin backs down.

Oil self-sanctioning is unstable weapon for West

3 Mar 2022

Traders and utilities are refusing to buy crude and gas from Russia, even though sanctions allow it. Insofar as this turns up the heat on the Kremlin, U.S. and EU leaders may not mind. The danger is that spiking prices alarm voters and lead to strains in the Western alliance.

Capital Calls: Snowflake’s no snowflake

3 Mar 2022

Concise views on global finance: The data warehouse firm doubled revenue, but the stock was whacked. Snowflake’s solid finances mean missteps are valuation conundrums, not existential threats.

Big Oil haunted by $100 crude trauma

2 Mar 2022

Prices are high, and Russia’s 8% of global supply might evaporate, but Chevron and Exxon promised this week their focus is lower costs and returning capital. That’s a far cry from last time’s destructive investment binge. They may end up ruing missed drilling opportunities.

Capital Calls: Ford’s private equity playbook

2 Mar 2022

Concise views on global finance: The Detroit automaker’s reorganization plan makes explicit the goal of squeezing its traditional car business for cash to fund its electric future.

How Europe can kick its Russian gas habit

1 Mar 2022

Conflict in Ukraine shows the folly of the continent depending on gas from Moscow. Speeding up renewable energy would help. To get to zero in a decade, however, Europe will also need other sources of gas, more nuclear power, multi-nation coordination and even consumer rationing.

Chevron’s green fuel deal is cheap and cheerful

28 Feb 2022

The $276 bln oil giant is buying sustainable diesel firm Renewable Energy for around $3 bln. A solid investment return makes it financially sensible. It's also a bet on the transition away from fossil fuels. For now, though, it's a tiny one compared to Chevron's European peers.

BP’s bruising Russian exit almost worth the pain

28 Feb 2022

The UK oil giant is getting out of its 20% stake in $39 bln Rosneft. Russia’s pariah status maximises the hit to its income statement. But the crisis has forced BP to take a step that could eventually allow investors to take a more generous view of its green transition.

Biden’s fossil-fuel enmity backs him into a corner

25 Feb 2022

The U.S. president’s climate stance has made him few friends in the oil patch. But U.S. drillers can fill gaps caused by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine. Expediting applications and rolling back regulations is a climbdown, but it would curb two foes: rising prices and low popularity.

Ukraine war gives impetus to climate backsliders

24 Feb 2022

Politicians are supposed to be fast-tracking decarbonisation. Russia’s invasion may speed the long-term shift to renewable energy. But it could also empower fossil fuel fans to ease energy security fears via new supply. Investors, lured by high crude prices, may go along with it.

West has some cover to ramp up Russian sanctions

24 Feb 2022

Sberbank and VTB halved after troops invaded Ukraine, suggesting Moscow’s banks and oligarchs may end up pariahs, like the Nord Stream 2 pipeline. A Russian tit-for-tat might hit European gas supplies. The one comfort is that end of winter makes it less of an immediate problem.

Oil’s 1970s parallels overlook key difference

23 Feb 2022

Crude prices are nudging $100 a barrel, the highest in more than seven years. Geopolitical tensions, tight supply, and high inflation invite comparisons with 1973, when oil costs quadrupled. This time, however, OPEC is more likely to ease a crisis than exacerbate it.