Year: 2021

The oil market continues to surprise, with WTI apparently firmly above $60, a level that could be equated with the pre-pandemic norm (as norm as any oil price can be, which admittedly isn’t very). Considering the global economy remains fragile with numerous areas still suffering badly from the pandemic, including Europe, source of 15% of world oil demand (in normal times), inventories remain adequate and spare crude production capacity is still near thirty year highs, such price levels might appear unjustified. Assuming this isn’t just a financial stimulus driven asset…

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COVID-19 restrictions together with unexpected weather events such as hurricanes and severe cold winters slashed the gas and LNG demand in China. In a poll Verdict conducted to analyse the biggest concerns for China’s gas and LNG sector in 2021, a majority 35% responded that slower growth of gas demand to be the biggest concern. While 25% of the respondents believed that growing consumption of coal for power generation is the biggest concern, 21% voted that LNG import projects delays are the biggest concern. Capex cuts by China’s LNG developers…

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The volume of investments in Azerbaijan’s oil and gas sector decreased by 6.2 percent in January-March 2021, the State Statistics Committee has reported. Investments in the non-oil and gas sector also declined by 32.2 percent in the reported period. Some AZN 2.3 billion ($1.3bn) was directed to fixed capital in the first quarter of the year, which is by 19.4 percent less than in the corresponding period of 2020. Of this, AZN 1.7 billion ($1bn) or 74.5 percent was spent on production areas, AZN 398.2 million ($234.2M) or 16.8 percent…

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