An oil tanker run by BP Plc is being kept inside the Persian Gulf in fear it could be seized by Iran in a tit-for-tat response to the arrest by Gibraltar last week of a vessel hauling the Islamic Republic’s crude.
British special forces seized a supertanker off Gibraltar carrying Iranian oil to Syria in violation of European and U.S. sanctions against the war-torn country.
An oil tanker thought to be carrying Iranian oil to Syria has been detained by Royal Marines in Gibraltar.
The North Sea oil industry must keep a lid on costs if measures taken by Opec and its allies push crude prices much higher, top Aberdeen energy experts have said.
Uncertainty relating to Iran and the US-China trade war has led volatile oil prices and the postponement of a key OPEC meeting. The recent exchange of words between US and Iranian leaders has not calmed markets.
Crude kept rising following its biggest weekly gain since late 2016 after PresidentDonald Trump said he would impose “major additional sanctions” on Iran, exacerbating tensions in the oil-rich Middle East.
Oil in London headed for its biggest weekly gain since February as escalating tensions between the U.S. and Iran fanned fears of conflict that would disrupt energy supplies from the Middle East.
OPEC proposed mid-July meetings with its allies in Vienna to discuss extending production cuts, after talks between Russia and Iran made some progress toward resolving a standoff over the date.
The Strait of Hormuz has become a key battleground in the stand-off between the United States and Iran, with claims and counter-claims on either side of an argument ostensibly about oil.
Foreign Secretary Jeremy Hunt has warned of the "great risk" of a drift to war with Iran following the attacks last week in the Gulf on two oil tankers.
Oil tanker owners face spiraling insurance costs to load cargoes from the world’s largest crude-export region after the latest round of attacks on vessels.
Donald Trump has confirmed the assessment of senior advisers and publicly accused Iran of being behind recent attacks on oil tankers near the strategic Strait of Hormuz in the Persian Gulf.
Britain is currently backing the US in its assessment that Iran is responsible for suspected attacks on two oil tankers in the Gulf of Oman, the Foreign Secretary has said.
Two oil tankers near the strategic Strait of Hormuz have reportedly been attacked, leaving one ablaze and adrift as sailors were evacuated from both vessels and the US navy rushed to assist amid heightened tensions between Washington and Tehran.
The U.S. State Department sought to quash speculation that the Trump administration is easing its clampdown on Iranian oil exports after a sanctions waiver program ended May 2, saying there was no softening in the American stance that any country buying Iran’s oil would be subject to penalties.
Oil started the week strongly after Saudi Arabia and other OPEC+ members signaled intentions to keep supplies constrained for the rest of the year, while U.S. tensions with Iran ratcheted up as President Donald Trump threatened the country in a tweet.
The US said on Monday that it won’t extend the sanctions waivers for eight countries importing crude oil from Iran. The move could remove around 1.1 million barrels per day from the market.
Oil pulled back from a six-month high as an industry report signaling a gain in U.S. crude inventories partly offset concerns over America’s campaign to halt Iranian exports.
Oil extended gains after leaping to a six-month high on Monday as the U.S. said it’ll no longer give any buyer of Iranian crude a waiver from sanctions aimed at cutting the OPEC producer’s exports to zero.
The Trump administration said it won’t renew waivers that let countries buy Iranian oil without facing U.S. sanctions, a move that roiled energy markets and risks upsetting major importers such as China and India.
Six months after the U.S. rocked oil markets by letting Iranian exports continue, its decision to end sanctions waivers that allowed shipments is also set to reverberate across the globe.
Higher crude prices should encourage North Sea oil companies to dial down the caution and bring forward more new projects, a prominent petro-economist said yesterday.
Brent crude nosed above $70 for the first time since November but couldn’t hold the gains, as signs of tightening global supplies were countered by an uncertain economic outlook.
Since the Arab Spring in 2011, the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) region has faced continued political upheaval. But energy production and export remains central to its prosperity.
Uncertainty over U.S. waivers for buyers of Iranian oil is starting to grip the market again, under very different circumstances than when American sanctions were set to go into effect last year.