Oil & Energy Online

Is It Déjà Vu All Over Again?

Echoes of last year in backwardated markets and rising prices.
Echoes of last year in backwardated markets and rising prices. Though we are a year and a half removed from the oil price shock precipitated by the Russia invasion of Ukraine, the… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/it-deja-vu-all-over-again/

Is Another Basis Blowout Brewing?

Losses in imports and lower production add additional pressure to anemic US inventories
Losses in imports and lower production add additional pressure to anemic US inventories During the 2022-2023 heating season, we saw U.S. distillate supplies fall to critically… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/another-basis-blowout-brewing/

OPEC+ and Russian Cuts Not Affecting Oil Prices as Expected

Inflation, Recession Fears Moderate Price Pressures
Inflation, Recession Fears Moderate Price Pressures Oil prices this June were a far cry from the sky-high prices we saw one year ago, following the Russian invasion of Ukraine… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/opec-and-russian-cuts-not-affecting-oil-prices-expected/

Is it Time To Consider Supply Contracts?

Learn from last year and resolve supply issues before they arise.
Learn from last year and resolve supply issues before they arise. Last year, energy marketers were facing an oddity they hadn’t encountered for some time; the prospect of… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/it-time-consider-supply-contracts/

It’s Hedging Season

Setting your company up for price certainty in a volatile market
Setting your company up for price certainty in a volatile market Hedging is a risk management strategy used by players in financial markets to protect themselves against adverse… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/its-hedging-season/

Tightening Markets Ahead

OPEC and Russia Announce Production Cuts
OPEC and Russia Announce Production Cuts West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil futures prices plummeted nearly 50 percent lower from a summer 2022 high of $123.68/bbl to a low… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/tightening-markets-ahead/

2023 Hedging Survey

There hasn’t been a “normal” year for our annual Hedging Survey in quite some time
There hasn’t been a “normal” year for our annual Hedging Survey in quite some time There hasn’t been a “normal” year for our annual Hedging Survey in quite some time. In 2020,… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/2023-hedging-survey/

Basis as the Basis for Smart Hedge Strategies

Knee-jerk reactions to every crisis are bound to lead to buyer’s remorse
Knee-jerk reactions to every crisis are bound to lead to buyer’s remorse I’ve become wary of making the last year’s crisis the prime focus for dealing with or predicting next… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/basis-basis-smart-hedge-strategies/

Russian Sanctions Make Minor Shifts in the Market … So Far

Supply and demand remain steady in the early days of Russian price caps
Supply and demand remain steady in the early days of Russian price caps It has been a year since Russia invaded Ukraine and fighting continues. Following the invasion, both WTI… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/russian-sanctions-make-minor-shifts-market-so-far/

The Only Certainty is Uncertainty

What we know, and what we know we don’t know
What we know, and what we know we don’t know 2022 began, as many years do, with optimism. The Dow Jones Industrial average, often positively correlated with crude oil futures… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/only-certainty-uncertainty/

Breaking Down the Market Breakdown

The hows and whys of the price and supply issues facing the fuel industry
The hows and whys of the price and supply issues facing the fuel industry By now you’ve been exposed ad nauseum to the term “backwardation” and no doubt experienced the cause and… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/breaking-down-market-breakdown/

Winter Hedging Outlook

Market risks are high so proceed with caution
Market risks are high so proceed with caution As we head into the new heating season, I thought that we might take a look at some elements that could impact the heating oil… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/winter-hedging-outlook/

Low Stock Levels, High Basis Risks

How did we get to this point, and where do we go from here?
How did we get to this point, and where do we go from here? U.S. distillate stockpiles hit seasonal five-year lows late last year and continued to set weekly five-year lows from… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/low-stock-levels-high-basis-risks/

Really Bad Timing for a Major Hurricane

As winter approaches, energy marketers are hoping to avoid the perfect storm!
As winter approaches, energy marketers are hoping to avoid the perfect storm! By the time this edition of Oil & Energy hits the proverbial newsstands, it will be August and we… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/really-bad-timing-major-hurricane/

The Foreign Interference Loophole

How Wall Street nearly broke the U.S. economy … again
How Wall Street nearly broke the U.S. economy … again On March 8, 2022, U.S. crude oil prices hit $123.64 per barrel. The price spike was widely regarded as a product of… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/foreign-interference-loophole/

As the World Teeters

Volatile oil markets reflect economic turmoil and geopolitical chaos
Volatile oil markets reflect economic turmoil and geopolitical chaos Crude oil and refined products options markets have been pricing in significantly higher and increasing… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/world-teeters/

WAP: Wet and Put

How the right combination of hedging strategies can mitigate basis-blowout risks
How the right combination of hedging strategies can mitigate basis-blowout risks Cash market price differentials to front-month NYMEX HO futures shot up in April and remained… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/wap-wet-and-put/

About that Basis Blowout…

Recent oil market advance poses significant challenges to hedging next winter
Recent oil market advance poses significant challenges to hedging next winter By now everyone is acutely aware of the oil price volatility that has invaded our end-of-winter… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/about-basis-blowout/

2022 Hedging Survey

Hedgers confront major market disruptions head-on
Hedgers confront major market disruptions head-on There are price spikes and then there are Price Spikes. As questions were being drafted for Oil & Energy’s 2022 Hedging… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/2022-hedging-survey/

Energy Markets in Crisis Mode

How geopolitical uncertainty is impacting oil and gas prices
How geopolitical uncertainty is impacting oil and gas prices In March, Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent energy prices to their highest levels since the 2008 recession. Both WTI… https://oilandenergyonline.com/articles/all/energy-markets-crisis-mode/