Oil & Gas Refining

Phillips 66, a U.S.-based refiner, announced on Tuesday that it would acquire the remaining 50% of WRB Refining shares from Cenovus for $1.4 billion. This will give it complete ownership of two major U.S. refining plants. WRB includes Wood River Refinery in Illinois, and Borger Refinery in Texas. These refineries have a combined capacity of 495,000 barrels a day (bpd) for crude oil. The refineries, which would add approximately 250,000 bpd of net refining to Phillips 66’s capacity, can process both heavy and medium sour as well as sweet crudes and produce a large percentage of transportation fuels. Phillips 66...

Blue Water Acquisition Corp announced on Friday that it had submitted a $10 billion offer for Citgo Petroleum's parent company, which is owned by Venezuela. The offer also includes a $3.2billion settlement proposal to bondholders of Venezuelan bonds in default. The court has said that it will accept unsolicited bids if they are received after the deadline. Blue Water Acquisition Corp. is a special-purpose acquisition company that was formed to identify high-potential businesses in diverse sectors and to complete them. The company offers cash or stock distributions for creditors and settlements for PDVSA 2020 bonds holders to be paid in...

Indian Oil Corp, a top refiner in India, has opted to buy West African oil and Middle Eastern grade instead of buying U.S. crude. This was revealed by trade sources on Friday. People said that the state refiner bought from TotalEnergy a million barrels from each Nigerian oil grade Agbami or Usan, and Shell a million barrels from Abu Dhabi's Das crude. Das oil was purchased on a free-onboard basis, and Nigerian oil on a delivery basis. Both are due to arrive in Indian ports by the end of October or early November. IOC purchased 5 million barrels U.S. West...

ConocoPhillips, a U.S. oil company, will start company-wide layoffs on Nov. 10 according to a notice that was sent out by the company Thursday. ConocoPhillips' CEO Ryan Lance told employees via video on Wednesday that the company would be cutting 20-25% from its workforce in order to undergo a restructuring. Later, the company confirmed that report. ConocoPhillips spokeswoman Dennis Nuss stated that the company informed the Texas Workforce Commission on Thursday that they anticipate the number of job cuts in Houston will reach the threshold required to report the information to the state. Nuss said that ConocoPhillips offers 60-day notice...

The Energy Information Administration reported on Thursday that U.S. crude inventories increased last week, as refineries prepared for maintenance, and gasoline stocks decreased ahead of the long Labor Day Weekend. The EIA reported that crude inventories increased by 2.4m barrels, to 420.7m barrels for the week ending August 29. This was compared to analysts' expectations based on a poll of a 2m barrel draw. John Kilduff of Again Capital said, "This report is a bit bearish with the crude build." He added that refineries would be reducing production for maintenance in autumn, which could put pressure on crude stock levels....

They announced on Thursday that Brazil's Raizen, and Mexico's Femsa, have decided to end their partnership, established in 2019, through the joint venture Grupo NOS, which operates an extensive network of convenience shops across Brazil. In response to operational challenges and high levels of debt, sugarcane processor Raizen has embarked on a divestment plan. The Brazilian company said that the agreement, which was described by both parties as amicable, did not include any cash considerations. Raizen will also receive 1,256 Shell Select convenience stores and Shell Cafe convenience shops. Femsa will receive 611 Oxxo shops, a distribution centre located in...

SK On, a South Korean company, announced on Thursday that it had signed a contract with Flatiron Energy Development in the United States to supply lithium iron phosphate batteries (LFP) for energy storage systems. SK On will be supplying up to 7.2 gigawatt-hours (GWh) in ESS batteries from 2026 to 2030. This is its first order of LFP batteries for energy storage systems. The company didn't disclose the value. SK On announced in a press release that it would begin mass production of LFP batteries dedicated to ESS in the second half next year. It also plans to convert a...

Two sources with knowledge of the situation said that repairs are expected to take two weeks. The catalyst leaks at Nigeria's 650,000 barrels per day Dangote refinery have caused the unit to be taken offline. IIR Energy, a company that monitors the industry, said in a Tuesday note that the refinery's Residue Catalytic Cracking unit (RFCCU), which produces 204,000 bpd of catalytic residue, has been off-line since August 29. Sources requested anonymity in order to discuss confidential information. Dangote didn't immediately respond to an inquiry for comment. Since its opening last year, the massive Dangote refining plant has dramatically increased...

The election commission of Guyana announced on Wednesday that the ruling People's Progressive Party had won 123,923 total votes in an incomplete tally for general elections. This translates to five districts. The official tallies of four additional districts are still pending. However, the figures look good for President Irfaan Ali who is running for reelection on behalf of the PPP. The partial results showed a shakeup in the opposition of the South American nation. The newcomer We Invest in Nationhood party (WIN), founded only three months ago by Azruddin Mohammed, came in second in the vote count, with 50,829 votes...

According to documents filed by the officer overseeing sale, a $5.89 billion offer from an affiliate hedge fund Elliott Investment Management was recommended as the winning bid in a U.S.-court-organized auction for shares of the Venezuelan-owned refiner Citgo Petroleum. Robert Pincus, a court officer, made the recommendation despite an attempt by a Gold Reserve subsidiary to sweeten their $7.4 billion deal earlier in the week. Pincus, in a ruling earlier this month said that an improved offer from Elliott's subsidiary Amber Energy was superior. The court then gave the Gold Reserve Group three days to match the bid. Pincus stated...

California's Energy Commission decided on Friday to set aside for a temporary period penalties for excessive refinery profits, which were adopted in response to the rise of gasoline prices over $8 per gallon by 2022. The delay of five years in implementing penalties comes at a time when Phillips 66 Los Angeles refinery prepares to start shutting down production next week, ahead of a complete closure. California's Democratic governor Gavin Newsom proposed the penalties but has now changed direction due to fears of price spikes after 2026 following the closure of a Phillips 66 plant and a Valero Energy Corp....

Mukesh Ambani is the chairman of Reliance Industries. It is India's largest company. He said that Indian companies need to collaborate to protect the South Asian country from geopolitical and external shocks. Why it's Important Reliance operates the largest refining facility in the world, located in Gujarat, the western state, and is India's leading buyer of Russian oil. The United States doubled the tariffs it imposes on Indian products to 50% as a punishment for purchasing Russian oil. This is among the highest rates Washington has ever imposed and on par with Brazilian products. Economists warn that this could have...

Two analysts and a trader reported on Tuesday that Chinese refineries had purchased 15 cargoes for delivery in October and November as Indian demand for Moscow’s exports has declined. India is the largest buyer of Russian oil by sea. It has been sold at a discounted price since Western nations have shunned purchasing and placed restrictions on Russian exports due to Moscow's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Indian state refiners stopped buying Russian oil last month as the discounts shrank. Donald Trump, the U.S. president, has also threatened to punish countries that buy Russian crude. Richard Jones, an Energy Aspects...

Peter Magyar, the leader of Hungary's opposition party, has asked Russia to refrain from interfering in its politics. He said that there was no way for meaningful co-operation without respecting his country's sovereignty. The Russian Foreign Intelligence Service published a statement earlier this week in which it described Magyars as loyal to the "globalist elites", and claimed that the European Commission is considering "regime changes in Budapest." Magyar's Tisza Party, which is ahead of Prime Minister Viktor Orban’s Fidesz at the polls in the majority of polls before the parliamentary elections next spring, has published an open-letter to Russia's ambassador...

Reliance Industries will likely return to its Middle Eastern oil sources if India succumbs to the pressure of U.S. president Donald Trump, who wants to reduce Russian imports. India is being heavily pressured by Washington to cut off its energy ties with Russia after Moscow invaded Ukraine in 2022. Reliance, India's largest buyer, operates at Jamnagar, Gujarat, the world's most advanced refining facility. It can process 1.4 million barrels of oil per day. Due to their geographic proximity, Reliance will likely switch to Middle Eastern crude suppliers if they stop buying Russian crude. Anh Pham is a senior analyst with...

After the latest round European Union sanctions, Indian private refiners who have used cheap Russian crude in order to boost their margins will need to find ways to work around it and depend more on traders for finding new markets for products. In recent years, refiners like Reliance Industries or Nayara Energy have benefitted from the pressure that sanctions imposed on Russia's crude oil prices due to its invasion in Ukraine. Many of these refiners have exported their refined products to European buyers. In its 18th package against Russia, which was approved on Friday by the European Union, it banned...

By Martin Vladimirov Czechia, on April 7, has the infrastructure, reserves and access to other suppliers that it needs to stop importing Russian oil. Three years after Russia's invasion of Ukraine on a large scale, the Czech Republic has continued to delay a strategic shift despite viable alternatives. According to a Center for the Study of Democracy analysis, Czechia imported Russian crude oil worth 1.5 billion euros in 2024. The volume was down 30% compared to 2023. However, this wasn't due to a proactive strategy to phase out Russian crude. It was mainly the result of 3 major disruptions in...

According to three trading sources, and shipping data, Turkey's biggest oil refiner Tupras is now buying Russian Urals crude after stopping earlier this year because of stronger U.S. Sanctions against Moscow. Tupras didn't immediately respond to a comment request. Three sources confirmed that Tupras had resumed purchases following the price of Urals crude falling to its lowest level since 2023 earlier this month. The price was comfortably below the $60 per barrel G7 cap. The price cap imposed on Russian oil by the Group of Seven, the European Union, and Australia prohibits the use of Western services like insurance, flagging,...

On Monday, the price of Russia's ESPO blend oil fell below $60 per barrel Western cap for the first ever time as Brent international benchmark dropped to its lowest levels in many years. Calculations based on data from three trading sources showed this on Tuesday. Brent futures dropped $1.37 or 2.1%, to settle at $64.21 a barrel on Monday. This is the lowest price since April 2021. According to three traders who were involved in the market for ESPO blend oil, the price of the grade was a few dollars below $60 per barrel at the Kozmino port loading basis....

LSEG data and market sources showed that the decline in Russian seaborne diesel and gasoline exports was due to unplanned maintenance at local refineries. In January and February, drone attacks targeted Russian refineries owned and operated by Rosneft in Ryazan, Syzran, and Saratov as well as Lukoil Volgograd. The traders said that the fall in oil processing in March was due to the resultant decline in processing. Calculations based on LSEG data and other market sources showed that the total diesel and gasoil exported from Russian ports dropped to 3.8 million metric tonnes, a 5% drop from February. According to...

China's oil demand will increase by 1.1% to 765 millions metric tons in 2025, a think-tank affiliated with the state energy company China National Petroleum Corp. (CNPC) announced on Tuesday. This is due to a better than expected growth of the economy and an increasing demand for petrochemicals. According to Wu Mouyuan of the CNPC Economics and Technology Research Institute, China's plastic consumption per capita is still around 60% less than that of developed nations. Wu said that China's booming electric vehicles (EV) sector will also drive the consumption of plastics. Plastics are used more in EVs than gasoline vehicles....

Kherson, a Ukrainian city on the frontline of the conflict with Russia for three years, has more reasons than others to want to see an end to it. They are wary of talks because they have experienced occupation and constant attacks after Russian forces were pushed out. Serhiy (64), a security guard, is lying in a hospital with his foot bandaged. He claimed he was on his way to work as a security guard, when he was struck by a grenade that was dropped by a drone operated by Russian forces. He refused to reveal his family name, and asked...

On Wednesday, Russia accused Ukraine of trying to sabotage the 30-day moratorium against striking each other's infrastructure. This came a day after Russian president Vladimir Putin and U.S. president Donald Trump agreed on such a temporary stop. Ukraine also accepted the proposal for a moratorium, but claimed that Russia knocked out electricity to some of their railways as well as hospitals and homes on Wednesday. Moscow claimed that a Ukrainian drone hit an oil depot located in southern Russia. Russia has repeatedly cut off Ukraine's power grid during the three-year conflict, causing frequent blackouts. Ukraine has responded with drone attacks...

Next week, the Russian Deputy Premier Alexander Novak will be in charge of a meeting between government officials and oil companies to discuss an possible ban on gasoline exports for fuel producers starting March 1. Novak's Office declined to comment. One source said that the meeting could take place either on Tuesday or Thursday. The TASS news agency reported last week that the Federal Anti-Monopoly Service could impose a one-month export ban on gasoline by large producers to stabilize wholesale prices before the planting season. A measure that was originally implemented in March last year prohibits traders and resellers from...