DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

An Iranian navy vessel fired shots during the second seizure attempt, Navy Fifth Fleet spokesperson Timothy Hawkins said. British maritime security company Ambrey said a warship with a multinational navy task group was in the area at the time and had requested the Iranian navy to "cease harassing" one of the merchant ships. Iran seized two oil tankers in a week just over a month ago, the U.S. Navy said. Refinitiv ship-tracking data shows the Richmond Voyager previously docked in Ras Tannoura in eastern Saudi Arabia before Wednesday's incident in the Gulf of Oman. The Richmond Voyager was sailing away from the Gulf with Singapore listed as its destination, Refinitiv ship tracking showed.

Persons: Timothy Hawkins, Hawkins, Ambrey, IRNA, Lisa Barrington, Jonathan Saul, Rami Ayyub, Jason Neely, David Holmes Organizations: U.S . Navy, Chevron, Richmond Voyager, Navy Fifth Fleet, Reuters, Marshall, Suez, Dubai, Thomson Locations: DUBAI, Iran, Gulf of Oman, U.S, Iranian, Oman, United States, Hormuz, Ras Tannoura, Saudi Arabia, Gulf, Singapore, Marshall Islands, Greece, U.S . Gulf, Mexico, Galveston, Washington

☆ Ports in China's oil hub Shandong scrutinizing old tankers -sources
▼ + stars: | 2023-06-05 | by ( Muyu Xu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Qingdao and Lanshan are two of the top five biggest Chinese oil importing ports, according to data from Kpler. Shandong is home to numerous independent refineries known as teapots that account for up to one-fifth of China's processing capacity. Port authorities could detain ships for days to rectify any issues, prompting shippers to divert cargoes to other Chinese ports, the sources said. Almost all tankers hauling crude to Qingdao for independent refiners are more than 10 years old, said Vortexa analyst Emma Li. In April, tankers calling at Shandong ports experienced delays after customs authorities stepped up checks on diluted bitumen cargoes.

Persons: Seapalm, Emma Li, Eikon, Muyu Xu, Florence Tan Organizations: Kpler, Shandong Maritime Safety Administration, Reuters, Seapalm Shipping, Thomson Locations: SINGAPORE, China's Shandong, Qingdao, Rizhao, Lanshan, Shandong, Tokyo, Cameroon, Seychelles, Jiangsu, Hebei, Liaoning, Beijing

☆ EU will go easy on Indian resale of Russian fuel
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-23 | by ( Shritama Bose | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

Yet, the risk of an energy inflation resurgence makes a European Union ban on Russian oil reselling a tough call. The war in Ukraine has offered India an opportunity to boost purchases of discounted Russian oil. European imports of oil derivatives jumped to 200,000 barrels per day after the EU banned Russian crude products imports on Feb. 5 from 154,000 barrels previously, according to Kpler data. And New Delhi argues oil products substantially transformed in a third country cannot be subject to EU sanctions. loadingTo avoid an open clash with India, the EU could try to target European companies buying Russian-origin refined oil.

☆ US military to bolster defensive posture in Gulf after Iran seizes tankers
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

WASHINGTON, May 12 (Reuters) - The U.S. military will work to bolster the defensive posture in the Gulf region following Iran's seizure and harassment of commercial shipping vessels in recent months, U.S. officials said on Friday. In the past two years, Iran has harassed, attacked or interfered with the navigational rights of 15 internationally flagged commercial vessels, officials said. "The Department of Defense will be making a series of moves to bolster our defensive posture in the Arabian Gulf," White House spokesperson John Kirby told a news briefing. The U.S. Navy said on May 3 the Panama-flagged oil tanker Niovi was seized by Iran's Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps Navy while passing through the Strait of Hormuz. Days earlier, Iran had seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman.

☆ A fleet of aging tankers is transporting sanctioned oil around the globe — and it's becoming an insurance nightmare because nobody knows who owns them
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-09 | by ( Huileng Tan | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

It's throwing up concerns about a fleet of secretive tankers transporting sanctioned oil globally. Authorities still don't know who to approach for damages, per various media reports. It has delivered an oil cargo to the eastern China province of Shandong before making its way to the shipyard, Bloomberg reported, citing ship-tracking data. The fire has been put out, but authorities don't know who to approach for damages according to various media reports. Russia itself has also put together a "shadow fleet" of more than 100 oil tankers in a bid to skirt Western sanctions, the Financial Times reported in December.

☆ Iran seizes second oil tanker in a week in Gulf, US Navy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-03 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

DUBAI, May 3 (Reuters) - Iran has seized a second oil tanker in a week on Wednesday in Gulf waters, the U.S. Navy said, the latest escalation in a series of seizures or attacks on commercial vessels in Gulf waters since 2019. In Iran's first response, Tehran's prosecutor announced the oil tanker was seized on a judicial order following a complaint by a plaintiff, the judiciary's Mizan news agency said. The incident comes after Iran on Thursday seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman called the Advantage Sweet. The Niovi oil tanker seized on Wednesday had been travelling from Dubai toward the UAE's Fujairah port when it was forced by IRGCN boats to change course towards Iranian territorial waters, the Navy said. Since 2019, there have been a series of attacks on shipping in the strategic Gulf waters at times of tension between the United States and Iran.

☆ Iran seizes oil tanker in Gulf, U.S. Navy says
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-27 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +5 min

[1/4] Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker Advantage Sweet, which, according to Refinitiv ship tracking data, is a Suezmax crude tanker which had been chartered by oil major Chevron and had last docked in Kuwait, sails at Marmara sea near Istanbul, Turkey January 10, 2023. Iran's army said it had seized a Marshall Islands-flagged oil tanker in the Gulf of Oman after it collided with an Iranian boat, injuring several crewmen, Iranian state media reported. The vessel's destination was listed as the U.S. Gulf of Mexico port of Houston, ship tracking data showed. Iran last November released two Greek-flagged tankers it seized in the Gulf in May in response to the confiscation of oil by the United States from an Iranian-flagged tanker off the Greek coast. The U.S. Navy, whose Fifth Fleet is based at the Gulf island state of Bahrain, called on Iran to immediately release the tanker.

☆ China's big refineries crowd out teapots for discounted Russian oil
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Muyu Xu | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +4 min

SummarySummary Companies Hengli, Shenghong join Russian oil purchasesChina's April Russian oil imports likely to exceed March recordTeapots turn to cheaper Iranian oil, diluted bitumenSINGAPORE, April 21 (Reuters) - Chinese state oil giants and major private refiners are sweeping up more Russian crude, supporting prices and forcing smaller independents to seek out cheap alternatives such as Iranian oil, according to trade sources and shipping data. Shenghong imported a Urals crude cargo of about 720,000 barrels in March and 1 million barrels in April, Kpler showed. China's overall Russian crude imports, including pipeline and ships, rose to a record 9.61 million tonnes, or 2.26 million barrels per day (bpd) in March, customs data showed on Friday. TEAPOTSSmaller Chinese independent refineries, known as teapots, snapped up almost all of the ESPO supplies between November and January when others steered clear of Russian oil around the start of the European Union ban on Dec. 5. With the return of big buyers, price-sensitive teapots are looking for alternatives such as Russian Arctic grades, Iranian and Venezuelan oil.

[1/2] A general view shows a special ship, "Neptune", the floating liquefied natural gas terminal, during the inauguration of the Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG) terminal 'Deutsche Ostsee' in the port of Lubmin, Germany January 14, 2023. Northweat Europe LNG imports Northwest Europe LNG importsAnalysts estimate that Europe accounted for more than a third of global spot market trades in 2022, from around 13% in 2021. Such exposure could reach more than 50% this year if no long-term contracts were signed. Morten Frisch, senior partner at Morten Frisch Consulting, said Europe ideally needs about 70-75% of its LNG supply under firm long-term sale and purchase agreements (SPAs). LNG spot market prices LNG spot market pricesBut they are expected to rise again, with a hot summer that could cut hydro levels, a cold 2023-2024 winter and a rebound in Chinese LNG demand all seen as among the risk factors for price.

NEW DELHI/LONDON, April 6 (Reuters) - Global fuel suppliers are turning to longer and costlier routes that produce more carbon emissions to move their diesel and other products as Western restrictions on Russian cargoes have reshuffled global energy shipping patterns. The ban comes on top of a halt late last year on Russian crude sales into the bloc as well as Western price caps. Also in March, Russian clean products shipped to Togo reached 973 million MT-NM, up from zero in November. Conversely, Russian exports to the Netherlands dropped to 238,200 tonnes in February from 1.15 million tonnes in September. Those longer distances are being done at higher costs for Russian products than for typical shipments from Europe.

Europe typically imported an average of 154,000 barrels per day (bpd) of diesel and jet fuel from India before Russia's invasion of Ukraine. That increased to 200,000 bpd after the European Union banned Russian oil products imports from Feb. 5, Kpler data showed. OIL PRODUCTSAs Europe's ban kept Russian products out, India's diesel exports to the continent rose 12-16% to 150,000-167,000 bpd in the last fiscal year, the Kpler and Vortexa data showed. The key European buyers of Indian diesel are France, Turkey, Belgium and the Netherlands, the Kpler data showed. Indian oil products exportsBesides increasing exports to Europe, India has also boosted vacuum gas oil (VGO) shipments to the U.S.

Oil prices jumped over 6% on Monday, with U.S. crude futures topping $80 per barrel. The U.S. pumped nearly 12.5 million bpd in January, according to the latest government data. U.S. cash crude prices strengthened on Monday, with Mars Sour gaining 50 cents to trade at a $1.40 discount to U.S. crude futures . U.S. seaborne crude exports last month hit 4.74 million bpd, the highest monthly total since at least January 2020, Vortexa data showed. "This development should bode well for already strong U.S. crude exports with increased medium- and heavy-sour Canadian crude exports from the U.S. in order to supply a global market which is already short on sour crude," said Rohit Rathod, senior oil market analyst at Vortexa.

☆ US has replaced Russia as Europe's biggest crude oil supplier
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-28 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

London CNN —The United States is now the biggest supplier of crude oil to the European Union. In December, 18% of the bloc’s crude imports came from America, EU data office Eurostat said Tuesday. Oil independenceImports of Russian crude into the bloc were volatile between February and April last year, Eurostat said. By the end of the year, “the EU’s biggest suppliers of crude oil were the United States, Norway, and Kazakhstan, showing that the EU managed to adapt to the changing oil market landscape and virtually remove its dependence on Russian oil,” Eurostat said. India and China, in particular, have ramped up oil imports from Russia since the invasion of Ukraine.

Hefty Chinese buying, alongside robust Indian demand, has been spurred by steep price discounts but is providing Moscow much-needed revenue after the Group of Seven imposed a $60 price cap on Russian crude. Tanker tracking consultancies Vortexa and Kpler estimated nearly 43 million barrels of Russian crude oil, comprising about at least 20 million barrels of ESPO Blend and 11 million barrels of Urals, are set to reach China in March. The previous high for Russian seaborne crude imports was 42.48 million barrels in June 2020, shiptracking data showed. The data also pointed to record arrivals of rarely bought oil from Russia's Arctic, with three tankers carrying about 3.15 million barrels due to reach China this month, after 2.7 million barrels landed in February. Most of these cargoes were bought by China's independent refiners, which are larger customers of seaborne Russian oil than the state importers.

☆ China's imports of Russian oil are on track to hit a record high as Beijing doubles down on steep discounts
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-02 | by ( Zahra Tayeb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

China's seaborne imports of Russian crude are on course to hit a record high in March, according to Reuters. Analytics firms Vortexa and Kpler estimate nearly 43 million barrels of Russian crude will reach China this month. The hefty buying comes as China snaps up Russian oil at huge discounts, and the nation relaxes its COVID-19 policies. China has been a top buyer of Russian oil since President Vladimir Putin invaded Ukraine last year. It's also been snapping up Russian crude in the absence of Western buyers, which has subsequently led to lower prices for Asia.

☆ Putin's war in Ukraine brought chaos and change to the global energy market. These 4 charts show how the conflict transformed the oil and gas landscape.
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-24 | by ( George Glover | Zinya Salfiti | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +6 min

These four charts show how the war has changed global energy markets over the past year. Here are four charts that capture the most striking changes that took hold in oil and gas markets over the past year. Russia has found other oil buyersBut Russia has still managed to find other buyers for its oil. India too has aggressively ramped up its purchases of Russian oil and now imports 1.2 million barrels each day, according to Vortexa. "The natural gas market has become even more global as demand for liquefied natural gas continues to rise," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank.

"Judging by the customs statistics, some of the benefit was captured by refiners in India and China, but the main beneficiaries must be oil shippers, intermediaries and the Russian oil companies," he added. As a further complication, some Russian oil grades, including Pacific grade ESPO, are also worth more than Urals. After decades of low profits or losses, sections of the global shipping industry are enjoying a financial boom from moving Russian oil. A year ago, a similar journey would have cost a seller of Russian oil $0.5-$1.0 million depending on shipping rates. Nayara is 49%-owned by Russian state oil major Rosneft, run by Putin's ally Igor Sechin, meaning some of the profits are indirectly captured by Russia.

☆ The Iranian armada of 'ghost' ships carrying Russian oil is growing, evading the intensifying Western sanctions on Moscow crude
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Zahra Tayeb | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Iran's "ghost" armada that carry Russian oil is growing as Western sanctions on Moscow crude intensify. Meanwhile, the volume of Russian crude shipped on the "ghost" ships surged to more than 9 million barrels in January from less than 3 million barrels in November, according to the FT report. Asia has become a key buyer of Russian oil since the country invaded Ukraine last year, buying the commodity at steep discounts. The measure aims to limit Moscow's ability to fund its war against Ukraine, while still keeping Russian oil flowing through global markets to prevent a shortage. Per the FT, Russia has been luring shipowners and operators with premium rates which is at least 50% above normal market rates.

☆ Premarket stocks: State of the Union, recession, crypto woes and more tech layoffs: What investors are watching
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-07 | by ( Nicole Goodkind | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +5 min

Wall Street will also be watching closely for clues about the ongoing debt ceiling debate, tax policy, foreign relations and more. The unemployment rate ticked down a tenth of a percentage point to 3.4% — the lowest jobless rate since May 1969. European diesel prices fall as Russian ban kicks inEurope’s ban on Russian diesel arrived this week without inflicting more pain on the region’s economy. Russia accounted for 29% of the region’s total diesel imports last year, data from Rystad Energy shows. Countries have prepared for the latest ban by ramping up imports of Moscow’s diesel in recent months.

☆ Russian diesel prices fall in Europe despite latest ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-02-06 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

“Those stocks should act as a buffer against the immediate loss of Russian diesel imports,” Williams said. However, he added that the United States could redirect some of its current diesel exports to South America to Europe, with Russian diesel then “find[ing] a home” in South America. OilX’s Crosby noted that there are “many more” potential buyers of Moscow’s diesel compared with its crude exports. “Most Russian diesel barrels will manage to make it to global markets,” he said. “The notion that Russian diesel will have a very hard time finding new homes is beginning to lose credibility.”— Julia Horowitz contributed reporting.

☆ Russia is selling record amounts of crude oil to India to plug the gap in its energy exports after the EU ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-26 | by ( Jennifer Sor | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +3 min

Russia is selling record amounts of crude oil to India to plug its shortfalls from the EU oil ban, according to Vortexa. Indian imports hit a record 1.2 million barrels a day in December, and 1.3 million barrels a day in the first two weeks of January. The energy analytics firm said Russia handed off 1.2 million barrels a day of its crude oil to India in December, notching a new record high. Russian crude now accounts for 60% of India's oil imports, compared to 48% in December. Oil markets could be further disrupted when the EU bans Russian oil products, including diesel and fuel oil, on February 5.

☆ Saudi Arabia stays top crude supplier to China in 2022, Russian barrels surge
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-20 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

China, which refused to condemn the attack, cranked up procurement of Russian barrels and has largely ignored the sanctions imposed by Western nations on seaborne Russian crude from Dec. 5. In December, it brought in 6.47 million tonnes of crude oil from Russia, or 1.52 million bpd, compared to 1.7 million bpd in the same period in 2021. Saudi Arabia shipped a total of 87.49 million tonnes of crude to China in 2022, equivalent to 1.75 million bpd, customs data showed, on par with the level in 2021. No Venezuelan crude imports were recorded by Chinese customs throughout 2022 and a total of 780,392 tonnes of crude oil from Iran arrived in China. (tonne = 7.3 barrels for crude oil conversion)Reporting by Andrew Hayley and Muyu Xu; Editing by Janane VenkatramanOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Europe’s ban on Russian diesel could send pump prices even higher
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-17 | by ( Anna Cooban | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +4 min

That has included a ban on all Russian seaborne crude oil imports, which came into force in December. Russia is the bloc’s biggest supplier, making up 29% of its total diesel imports last year, data from Rystad Energy shows. “On diesel we see the opposite, where imports have picked up — almost a final dash before the finish line,” he added. But importing diesel from suppliers further afield, including the United States and Saudi Arabia, will push up freight costs, feeding into higher consumer prices, he said. But León said that the impact of the ban won’t be felt immediately in Europe because of the large amount of diesel in its stocks.

☆ Factbox: Europe rushes to stock up on diesel ahead of Russian ban
▼ + stars: | 2023-01-16 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Buyers are rushing to fill European oil storage tanks with Russian diesel, with flows this month on track to hit a one-year high. FEB. 5 EU BANThe European Union banned seaborne Russian crude imports from Dec. 5 and will ban Russian oil products from Feb. 5, in a move aimed at depriving Moscow of revenue. The Group of Seven nations (G7), Australia and the 27 European Union countries also implemented on Dec. 5 a price cap on Russian crude. This allowed non-EU countries to continue importing seaborne Russian crude oil, but it will prohibit shipping, insurance and re-insurance companies from handling cargoes of Russian crude around the globe, unless it is sold for less than $60. DIESEL PRICESSince Europe is heavily reliant on Russian diesel imports, the Feb. 5 ban is expected to support profit margins for the fuel, analysts say.

The ban is likely to create a diesel supply shortfall that Europe hopes to fill with Chinese fuel, some of which will be produced from Russian crude. China has raised its first batch of 2023 export quotas for refined oil products by nearly half from a year ago. "But without Chinese exports pushing swing barrels westward, Europe is unlikely to replace the 0.5 million bpd loss in Russian diesel exports come the embargo," Energy Aspects analysts said. Russia has long been the main diesel supplier for Europe, where refineries do not produce enough to meet domestic demand from its large diesel car fleet. Reuters GraphicsAn EU ban on Russian crude imports that took effect in December will be broadened to include refined fuels from Feb. 5.

Search resuls for: "Vortexa"

25 mentions found