Wednesday, June 25, 2025
Oil market fundamentals return with aplomb
Monday, June 23, 2025
Crudely heading down uncharted 'dire straits'?
The Americans dropped 14 “bunker buster” bombs against three nuclear facilities in Iran - Fordo, Natanz and Isfahan. The move came just over a week on from Israel's own campaign of attacks on Iran's nuclear and military targets began. Inevitably, Iran responded with retaliatory missile strikes of its own on Israel.
But the latest escalation by the US takes the oil market into uncharted waters (or straits shall we say). Early on in Israel's campaign, many assumed Iran's oil and gas infrastructure would not be attacked. However, that myth was shattered after Israel attacked Shahran Oil Terminal in Tehran, and two natural gas fields that Iran shares with Qatar.
It hinted at the possibility that the Israelis were in no mood to compromise. Thereafter, oil futures capped the $75 mark, and lurked some 20% above last month's levels using Brent as a benchmark.
Unsurprisingly, old market chatter that Iran would somehow close or attempt to close the Strait of Hormuz has resurfaced, as yours truly discussed in an interview with Germany's ARD Radio 1 on Tuesday while out in the Middle East.
The Oilholic also discussed the direction of the market with Turkiye's Anadolu News Agency noting that if the crisis persists and / or worsens, crude price points will have to recalibrate to a new normal around $80 per barrel Brent prices. However, if tensions or the conflict are quickly diffused, we could see a drop to $70 or below, as and when more normalized market fundamentals kick in once again.
The Oilholic also subsequently said in a BBC interview on Friday that the very fact we happen to be discussing oil breaching a $80 ceiling and not a $100 one is because the market remains well supplied ahead of the US summer driving season.It's also a perception helped in no small part by the Saudis via OPEC+ and a decision by the producers' group to raise production for three successive months.
Monday, September 21, 2015
Bypassing the Strait of Hormuz from Fujairah
Among a plethora of crucial subjects up for discussion at a time of low oil prices, much thought in a new place one hadn’t been to before, went towards pondering over an old critical topic – crude oil shipping lanes in the Middle East.
The region's geopolitical tensions have threatened to disrupt oil shipping and other maritime movements at various points over the last five years and counting, even though an actual maritime disruption thankfully hasn’t take place (so far). But whether it’s the Suez Canal, Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Strait of Hormuz, through which a fifth of the world’s oil passes, the threat of naval affray will ever go away.
PIC’s Fujairah Refinery project, currently on cards, will process domestic crude oil, including Murban and Upper Zakum, with ready storage and dispatch facilities. And of course, those playing contango would wonder if Fujairah and rival Omani ports could (in the not to distant future) provide a Middle Eastern storage hub to rival onshore storage elsewhere. Discussions with key EMF 2015 delegates under Chatham House Rules point to a high degree of optimism on the subject of enhanced storage in Middle East whether or not contango plays pay-off.
Senior ADNOC, Gulf Petrochem, IPIC executives, policymakers and others told this blogger that what’s afoot in Fujairah is about future proofing and providing the region with a world class facility to process, store and ship domestic crude. Everything else would be secondary.
In any case, by the time planned works and storage enhancements come onstream, the current contango play might well be over and done with! That's all from the UAE folks. Keep reading, keep it ‘crude’!
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Tuesday, August 27, 2013
On Bukha’s oil & the beauty of Khasab





Using a decent pair of binoculars, the Oilholic spent a good few hours this evening noting how Iranian smugglers dock off the Port of Khasab (see below right for an aerial view) and conduct a 'cash and carry' trade. First off, differentiating a decidedly tacky Iranian boat from an Omani Dhow or a local motorboat is quite easy. The smugglers' communication method is rather rudimentary including a signalling system involving a combination of torchlights and car headlights. As for the cargo, do not be alarmed – it includes things as non-sinister as western branded biscuits, stimulants such as tea, coffee and cigarettes and of course dodgy satellite TV recorders.

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© Gaurav Sharma 2013. Photo 1: Bukha oil on display in Khasab, Oman. Photo 2: Model of Mesopotamian ships. Photo 3: Oil tankers in the Strait of Hormuz. Photo 4: Khasab Castle. Photo 5: Collage of sights in Khasab. Photo 6: Port of Khasab as seen from Oman Air flight 917 © Gaurav Sharma, August 2013.
Sunday, August 25, 2013
The Strait of Hormuz & Omani moves

As the world frets about Egyptian problems affecting oil tanker (and other) traffic from the Suez Canal, the Omanis are doing their utmost to mitigate one other potential threat – the one from Iran to close the Strait to oil traffic, should it be provoked by the West. The country is investing heavily in improvements and new build of its ports infrastructure.
The idea is to challenge nearby Dubai's dominance as a port hub and that too on the 'wrong' side of the Strait and prone to the Iran effect. Were you to look at a regional map, you'd find that all four of Oman's sea-port hubs/developments currently seeing investment (Muscat, Sohar, Salalah and lately Duqm) won't be affected in the highly unlikely event of the Strait becoming strife and blockade marred.
Of the four ports named above - Duqm, an erstwhile fishing village rather than a port, starts afresh complete with a new refinery, petrochemical plant, beachfront hotels and well, housing too. Billions are being invested in Duqm, with a figure nearing US$2 billion-plus being touted around.

Speaking of Emiratis buying things, Etihad Airways' sudden acquisition of a 49% stake in Serbia’s JAT and the latter's subsequent rebranding into Air Serbia has a strange ring to it. It's not that Etihad can’t make acquisitions and buy stakes! In fact, far from it – the airline already has stakes in Virgin Australia, Air Berlin, Aer Lingus, Air Seychelles and Jet Airways.
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To email: gaurav.sharma@oilholicssynonymous.com
Thursday, August 30, 2012
G7’s crude gripe, “Make oil prices dive”

Thursday, August 23, 2012
The drivers, the forecasts & the ‘crude’ mood

With an average forecast of a rise in consumption by 1 million bpd over 2012 based on statements of various agencies and independent analysts, price spikes are inevitable despite a dire economic climate in Europe or the OECD in general.
Monday, April 02, 2012
Crude market’s health & farewell to the Bay Area
Unfortunately for debaters on the subject of market speculation, Alcatraz (pictured left) often called “The Rock” and once home to the likes of Al Capone and Machin Gun Kelly was decommissioned in 1963 can no longer be home to either speculators or politicians, though it seems quite a few seagulls kind of like it!
- Compared to three months ago, fears of a very bearish tail risk have subsided to an extent (e.g. Eurozone, US data) and macro environment is gradually turning supportive.
- Concurrently, risks of a very bullish tail risk remain (e.g. war against Iran or the Straits of Hormuz situation).
- OECD crude oil inventory levels are at five year lows.
- OPEC spare capacity is quite low at 1.9 million barrels per day (bpd), of which 1.6 million bpd is in Saudi Arabia alone.
- Ongoing significant non-OPEC supply disruptions in South Sudan, Syria, and Yemen thought to be in the circa of 0.6 million bpd.
- Broad based appetite for risk assets has been strong.
- Low interest rate and high liquidity environment is bullish.