Divided oil world
The global crude supply landscape has transformed over the past two years, bringing some blessings and many curses for producers
Opec's decision in November 2014 not to cut production—one it has maintained at every meeting since—sparked a global output free-for-all, sending oil prices down in the process. Almost two years on, ahead of another unofficial Opec meeting in Algeria, Brent wasn't even able to sustain a price at $50 a barrel, its inflation-adjusted level since the 1970s. Demand is hardly roaring ahead, but the real culprit remains too much supply. In August, global oil production was 96.9m barrels a day—just 300,000 b/d less than a year ago. That's hardly the kind of supply retreat anyone expected when prices started to crumble. The relentless nature of the supply glut continues to thwart forecasters. In Jan
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5 March 2026
Gas is a central pillar of Colombia’s energy system, but declining production poses a significant challenge, and LNG will be increasingly needed as a stopgap. A recent major offshore gas discovery offers hope, but policy improvements are also required, Camilo Morales, secretary general of Naturgas, the Colombian gas association, tells Petroleum Economist
4 March 2026
The continent’s inventories were already depleted before conflict erupted in the Middle East, causing prices to spike ahead of the crucial summer refilling season
4 March 2026
The US president has repeatedly promised to lower gasoline prices, but this ambition conflicts with his parallel aim to increase drilling and could be upended by his war against Iran
4 March 2026
With the Strait of Hormuz effectively closed following US-Israel strikes and Iran’s retaliatory escalation, Fujairah has become the region’s critical pressure release valve—and is now under serious threat
