Transportation

Energy companies are racing to build a major pipeline that will carry fuel to the U.S. West Coast. This could be a lucrative endeavor, as the closure of two Californian refineries is expected to drive up gasoline prices on this isolated market. West Coast motorists have been paying some of the highest fuel prices in the nation due to the limited regional production and the lack of connectivity to the Gulf Coast refinery hub. According to the Energy Information Administration, there are no pipelines that deliver fuel from the Gulf Coast to California and few that do so from across...

Amtrak, the U.S. passenger rail company, said Tuesday that it had set records for revenue and ridership in a single year. It also cut its losses by 15 percent to $598 millions and is aiming for profitability by 2028. Amtrak is a major effort in rehabilitating the infrastructure of the Northeast corridor between Boston, Massachusetts and Washington. It is expanding service throughout the United States by purchasing new Acela trains with higher speeds and replacing regional trains from next year. Amtrak reported that in the twelve months ending September 30, it had 34,5 million trips made by customers, an increase...

Five sources familiar with this process said on Monday that U.S. major oil company Chevron was examining options to purchase global assets from sanctioned Russian oil giant Lukoil. Last week, the U.S. Treasury cleared potential buyers to speak to Lukoil regarding foreign assets. Chevron will join Carlyle, and other firms to compete for Lukoil's portfolio of at least $20 billion. Last month, the United States imposed sanctions against Russia's two largest oil companies, Lukoil & Rosneft, in an effort by President Donald Trump’s administration to force Moscow to peace talks with Ukraine. Five sources confirmed that Chevron was looking at...

Airbus' regional aircraft fleet in the Middle East is expected to double by 2044 to 3,700 planes, a senior official revealed on Sunday. Airbus's Head of Marketing for Africa and the Middle East, Grainne Van den Berg, told a recent press conference that the European planemaker anticipates Middle East passenger traffic to grow at a rate of 4,4% per year over the next 20 years. Van den Berg said that Airbus expects services in the region will double by 2044 to $29.9 billion. The forecast was made ahead of the Dubai Airshow - the Middle East's largest aviation event, which...

On Thursday, the discount between West Texas Intermediate and Western Canada Select futures (the North American benchmark) decreased slightly. WCS for Hardisty, Alberta delivery in December settled at $11.65 per barrel, which is $1.65 below the U.S. benchmark WTI. This was down from $11.70 a barrel on Thursday. Michael Berger, Enverus analyst, stated that Canadian crude storage levels are below the average for the past five years. Trans Mountain, the pipeline that exports Canadian crude via the Pacific Coast to U.S. markets and Asian ones, has not been apportioned in November. This is another factor contributing to the narrow differential....

After the government shutdown ended, major U.S. Airlines are asking the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) to remove the mandatory 6% domestic flight reductions at 40 major airports. The cuts were imposed in order to address safety concerns regarding air traffic. The FAA's order, which requires far more drastic cuts, is not being followed by most airlines. Cirium, a firm that provides aviation analytics, reported airlines cancelled just 2% of flights on Friday, down from 3.5% Wednesday and Thursday. The FAA and union officials announced that air traffic controllers, and other FAA staff, began receiving their back pay on Friday. This...

Enbridge, a Canadian pipeline operator, approved on Friday a $1.4 billion expansion to its Mainline and Flanagan-South pipelines. This will add new capacity for Canadian Heavy Crude into the U.S. Midwest region and Gulf Coast. The project will increase the takeaway capacity of Canadian crude oil and improve access to U.S. refining facilities, improving flow of oil sands into major export outlets. Enbridge is balancing its growth in liquids with its push to natural gas utilities, low-carbon fuels and other areas. Enbridge announced that Mainline Optimization Phase I (MLO1) would add 150,000 barrels of oil per day (bpd) to its...

The oil prices rose around 2% Friday due to supply concerns after Novorossiysk, the Black Sea port, stopped oil exports in response to a drone attack by Ukraine that targeted an oil depot at the main Russian energy hub. Brent crude futures rose $1.50 or 2.4% to $64.51 per barrel at 1115 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate crude gained $1.57 or 2.7% to $60.26 per barrel. Officials in Russia said that the attack on Friday damaged a vessel in port, apartment buildings and an oil depot at Novorossiysk. Three members of the crew were injured. Two industry sources said that...

Cirium, an aviation analytics company, and airline officials report that U.S. carriers have cut fewer flights on Friday than required by the requirement to cut 6% domestic flights from the 40 busiest American Airports. Federal Aviation Administration announced late Wednesday that it would not increase cancellation requirements and freeze mandatory flight reductions at 6%. This was in line with what had been previously announced. Cirium reported that airlines cancelled just 1.4% of flights for Friday after cancelling 3.5% on Wednesday and Thursday. The FAA may revise or add to the order. United Airlines announced that it had cancelled 134 flights...

Siemens Energy, a German company, announced on Thursday that it would pay its first dividend for four years and also raise its outlook for the mid-term period due to strong demand in gas turbines, power transmission technologies, and services. Christian Bruch, CEO of the company's wind-turbine division, said that the success "was hard-earned" and not a result of chance. He was referring to the years of cost cutting and restructuring in response to a quality crisis. Siemens Energy, which is Germany's sixth-most valuable listed company, has since then benefited from an increase in demand for energy equipment. This was partly...

Alphabet Waymo announced on Wednesday that it would begin offering robotaxi rides using freeways in San Francisco, Los Angeles and Phoenix as it expands amid competition within the self-driving sector. Waymo is expanding its operations in San Jose to include the Mineta San Jose International Airport. This airport will be the second in the service area, after Phoenix Sky Harbor. Zoox, backed by Amazon, offers free robotaxi rides around and on the Las Vegas Strip. Tesla is expanding its robotaxi service to include safety monitors and driver. Waymo, the company behind the robotaxi service that is offered in the U.S....

Sources say that CPC Blend oil was revised down to 1.45 million barrels a day (bpd), from 1.55million bpd in November. Two sources confirmed that the November loading schedule has been cut due to the cancellation of two Suezmax cargoes, each weighing about 130,000 tons, supplied by Tengizchevroil led by Chevron. In October, Kazakhstan's oil output declined due to a decrease in TCO production. Sources said that CPC Blend oil exports have also been affected by the lower output of Kazakhstan's Karachaganak Oilfield, operated Karachaganak Petroleum Operating. This oilfield had to reduce production because of a Ukrainian drone attack on...

Four of the eight main opposition coalitions won seats in Georgia's Parliament just over a month ago. All but one of the eight leaders are either in prison, exiled or facing criminal charges. The ruling party wants to outright ban the main opposition groups. Many in the tiny South Caucasus nation of 3.7 millions have been shocked by the slide towards one-party rule. Georgia was a democratic country that appeared to be on the rise in the years after the fall of the Soviet Union. It seemed poised to join the EU, and escape Russia's influence. Brussels' assessment, however, says...

Two industry sources and LSEG data show that the Russian port of Novorossiysk resumed oil loadings Sunday, after a suspension lasting two days due to a Ukrainian drone and missile attack. Novorossiysk temporarily halted oil exports on Friday, equating to 2.2 millions barrels of oil per day or 2% global supply. According to two anonymous industry sources, loadings have resumed. According to LSEG, two tankers - the Suezmax and Aframax classes Rodos - are loading oil on the port's berths. Two oil berths were damaged by a Ukrainian drone at the Russian Black Sea port Novorossiysk on Friday, which forced...

Following talks between their respective Presidents at the Kremlin, Russia and Kazakhstan agreed to increase their partnership in oil following the talks on Wednesday. Kazakhstan, a landlocked country, is heavily dependent on Russia for its energy exports. More than 80% its oil is exported via a pipeline run by the Caspian Pipeline Consortium that runs to a terminal in Russia's Black Sea. The Russian President Vladimir Putin met with the Kazakh President Kassym Jomart Tokayev on Wednesday, where they discussed gas projects and U.S. sanctions against Russian oil companies. Tokayev, in a televised statement following the meeting with Putin, said:...

In an opaque market, the differentials between urals crude and other grades remained stable on Monday as participants assessed the impact of sanctions placed on Lukoil last month and Rosneft the previous month on the supply of this grade to India and Turkey. Sources in the trade said that two Indian state refiners bought 5 million barrels from spot markets as they continued to search for alternatives to Russian oil supplies. Sources said that Lukoil declared force majore at its Iraqi field of oil, while Bulgaria was preparing to seize the Burgas refinery as its international operations buckled due to...

Hungary announced on Saturday that it has been granted an indefinite exemption from U.S. sanction for its use of Russian oil and natural gas. This is contrary to a White House official, who claimed it was only granted a year-long exemption. Last month, U.S. president Donald Trump imposed sanctions related to Ukraine on Russian oil firms Lukoil & Rosneft. These sanctions carried the threat of additional sanctions against entities who buy oil from these firms. Viktor Orban met with Trump, a longtime ally of Trump, at the White House last Friday in order to push for a reprieve. Hungary heavily...

The Suez Canal has seen two tankers with around 1.5 million barrels each of Russian Urals crude drop anchor in the sea. This is an indication of the difficulties Moscow faces selling oil following the tightening of Western sanctions last month. According to tracking data provided by LSEG, OilX and LSEG, the vessels Sikar and Monte 1 both carried oil from Russia’s Baltic port Primorsk at the beginning of October. They have remained anchored for more than a week near this canal. The United States, along with the European Union, have tightened sanctions on Russia's oil industry in an effort...

The price differential between Urals and Brent for December arrived in India on Thursday, as the flagship blend of Russia was traded at its steepest discount in over a year. This is due to new U.S. sanctions against Russia's top oil producers. The price difference for Russia's flagship Urals oil in Indian ports has widened from $2 to $4 per barrel under Brent for December arrival. This is the largest discount in about a month. According to estimates and shipping and trading sources, Russia's oil imports to western ports will decrease in November due to higher refinery runs but remain...

According to two industry sources, and LSEG ship tracking, Russia's Black Sea Port of Tuapse suspended fuel exports while the local refinery halted crude processing following the November 2 Ukrainian drone attack on its infrastructure. Ukraine announced on Sunday that its drones had struck Tuapse - one of Russia's major Black Sea oil port - causing an explosion and damage to at least one vessel. This was part of Kyiv’s effort to undermine Russia’s war economy through targeting its energy infrastructure. The regional administration confirmed that the strike caused an fire in the port. Since several months, Ukraine has been...

Calculations on Saturday showed that the average daily supply of natural gas to Europe by Russian energy giant Gazprom via the TurkStream pipeline increased 5% from previous months. The only remaining transit route for Russian gas into Europe is through Turkey after Ukraine decided not to renew a transit agreement with Moscow that expired in January. Calculations show that the total Russian gas supplied to Europe through TurkStream in the first 10 months of the year was 14.7 billion cubic metres (bcm), compared to 13.7 bcm for the same period last year. Gazprom exported 26.6 billion cubic meters of gas...

U.S. sanctions against Russian oil producer Rosneft rekindled German discussions about nationalising its business, including the refinery on which Berlin relies for the majority of its fuel. Two sources familiar with these talks said that the U.S. sanctions had prompted the discussion. The situation reveals the complex web of links between Germany and Russia that supplied Europe's industrial superpower with energy during the decades preceding the war in Ukraine. The U.S. Treasury announced on Wednesday that it had granted a license exempting Rosneft’s German arm of the U.S. Sanctions until April 2026. The two sources said that Berlin prefers to...

The differential between dated Brent and Urals crude remained unchanged on Monday as buyers of both grades awaited clarity about the impact of new Western sanctions on Russian oil imports. Last week, the European Union (EU), Britain and the U.S. imposed sanctions on Russia, including those affecting its two largest oil producers, Lukoil, and Rosneft. The U.S. gave companies until November 21, 2011 to end their transactions with Russian oil producers. Four sources familiar with the discussions said that OPEC+ is likely to increase output modestly in December as it continues with its monthly increases aimed at regaining market share....

Hayan Abdel Ghani, the Iraqi oil minister, said that Iraq was in negotiations with OPEC over its quota within the available capacity of 5.5 millions barrels per day. In April, the country, OPEC’s largest overproducer submitted plans to further reduce oil production to compensate for pumping beyond agreed quotas. Abdel-Ghani stated that Iraq was committed to its OPEC quota despite having a larger production capacity. Total oil exports are currently at 3.6 million bpd. Abdel-Ghani said that the fire which broke out in Zubair's southern oilfield on Sunday has not affected exports. Abdel-Ghani said that exports from Iraq's Kurdistan north...