Tag: Robert Boslego

Saudi Arabia's "Mini Oil Embargo" May Backfire

Posted on by Robert Boslego

On October 20, 1973, Saudi King Faisal announced KSA was joining in an oil embargo against the United States and Europe in favor of the Arab position in the Yom Kippur War. In an interview with international media, King Faisal said:

“America's complete Israeli support against the Arabs makes it extremely difficult for us to continue to supply the United States with oil, or even remain friends with the United States."

The price of oil quadrupled in short order, a few months. The oil shortage in America was managed by gasoline rationing by President Nixon. Drivers could buy gasoline on “odd” or “even” days, depending on the last digit of their license plate. There was also a maximum dollar amount set on purchases of $10. Motorists often had to wait in line for an hour to buy gas.

The economic impact on the U.S. and the world economy was devasting. It caused a massive recession in 1974-75, even though the embargo was lifted in March 1974. The Saudis and other OPEC producers learned how “inelastic” (i.e., non-responsive to price) gasoline demand was and their ability to stuff their coffers even with small cuts to production. Continue reading "Saudi Arabia's "Mini Oil Embargo" May Backfire" →

World Oil Supply, Demand And Price Outlook, February 2019

Posted on by Robert Boslego

The Energy Information Administration released its Short-Term Energy Outlook for February, and it shows that OECD oil inventories likely bottomed last June at 2.806 billion barrels. It estimated a 12 barrel gain for January to 2.875 billion, 10 million barrels higher than a year ago.

Throughout 2019, OECD inventories are generally expected to rise after June. At year-end, EIA projects ending the year with 2.957 million barrels, 94 million more than at the end of 2018.
For 2020, EIA projects that stocks will build another 105 million barrels to end the year at 3.062 billion. That would push stocks into glut territory.

Energy Outlook

Oil Price Implications

I updated my linear regression between OECD oil inventories and WTI crude oil prices for the period 2010 through 2018. As expected, there are periods where the price deviates greatly from the regression model. But overall, the model provides a reasonably high r-square result of 80 percent. Continue reading "World Oil Supply, Demand And Price Outlook, February 2019" →

U.S. Crude Production Outperforms In November

Posted on by Robert Boslego

The Energy Information Administration reported that November crude oil production averaged 11.900 million barrels per day (mmbd), up 345,000 b/d from October. This estimate capped a spectacular 6-month gain of 1.436 mmbd from June through November, a period when capacity takeaway constraints had been expected to slow down the growth in Texas.

November crude oil production

The year-over-year gains have been especially impressive with the November figure being 1.801 mmbd. And this number only includes crude oil. Other supplies (liquids) that are part of the petroleum supply add to that. For November, that additional gain is about 500,000 b/d. Continue reading "U.S. Crude Production Outperforms In November" →

U.S. Petroleum Supply Expected To Surge To 2025

Posted on by Robert Boslego

The Energy Information Administration released its Annual Energy Outlook for 2019, and what a difference a year has made. Due to shale oil’s production response in 2018, EIA’s outlook through 2025 shows supplies surging.

Energy Information Administration

The production forecast includes both crude oil and “other supply,” which will be explained in greater detail below. Often, U.S. production is generally limited to crude oil, but other liquids included in petroleum supply, have become a major component and are expected to rise even faster than crude alone.

Total liquids are projected to rise from 17.5 million barrels per day (mmbd) in 2018 to 22 mmbd in 2025 in EIA’s reference (base) case. In its high price scenario, EIA projects 2025 volume could be 26.4 mmbd. By comparison, Russia is producing just over 12 mmbd and Saudi Arabia just over 10 mmbd with its recent cutback. And so US output could be roughly the number two and three highest country volumes combined. Continue reading "U.S. Petroleum Supply Expected To Surge To 2025" →

World Oil Supply, Demand And Price Outlook, January 2019

Posted on by Robert Boslego

The Energy Information Administration released its Short-Term Energy Outlook for January, and it shows that OECD oil inventories likely bottomed last June at 2.806 billion barrels. It estimated an 8 barrel gain for December to 2.883 billion, 39 million barrels higher than a year ago.

Throughout 2019, OECD inventories are generally expected to rise. At year-end, EIA projects ending the year with 2.951 million barrels, 68 million more than at the end of 2018.

EIA also extended its outlook through 2020 for the first time. It projects that stocks will build another 75 million barrels to end the year at 3.025 billion. That would push stocks into glut territory.

Short-Term Energy Outlook

Oil Price Implications

I performed a simple linear regression between OECD oil inventories and WTI crude oil prices for the period 2008 through 2017. As expected, there are periods where the price deviates greatly from the regression model. But overall, the model provides a reasonably high r-square result of 79 percent. Continue reading "World Oil Supply, Demand And Price Outlook, January 2019" →