Under the terms of the agreement, Veren shareholders will receive 1.05 shares of Whitecap for each Veren share held. The combined company will be led by Whitecap’s existing management team under the Whitecap name with four Veren directors joining Whitecap’s board, including the current President and CEO of Veren, Craig Bryksa.
A consortium of Azeri state company Socar, BP Plc and Israel’s NewMed Energy LP will get the right to explore in one offshore block, in a signing overseen by Azerbaijan Economy Minister Mikayil Jabbarov and Israeli Energy Minister Eli Cohen, according to the Israeli energy ministry. The agreement gives Socar another foothold in important Israeli assets after the company bought a 10% stake in the Tamar gas field earlier this year.
Potentially rekindling the market’s geopolitical risk premium, US President Donald Trump said in a social media post that the administration will view maritime attacks by the Houthi militia as equivalent to direct affronts by Tehran. That followed Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth’s comments on Sunday that US strikes on Houthi sites will be “unrelenting” until the group stops targeting vessels in the Red Sea.
Authorities are recommending an increase in the blend of ethanol in regular gasoline to 30 percent from the current level of 27.5 percent. That’s after technical tests sponsored by the country’s Ministry of Mines and Energy indicated there would be no harm to car engines.
There was a 3-rig slide in drilling activity in the Permian Basin, falling to 301 in the most proflic basin—a figure that is 15 fewer than this same time last year. The count in the Eagle Ford saw an decrease of 1 active drilling rig, coming in at 48. Rigs in the Eagle Ford are 7 below where they were this time last year.
With higher production came a surge in Guyana’s crude oil exports in recent years. More than half of these are going to Europe, where refiners have been increasingly appreciating Guyana’s crude grades—Liza, Unity Gold, and Payara Gold. These crudes are sweeter and lighter compared to the crude of some other South American exporters, such as Mexico or Colombia.
Over the past decade, the global energy sector has turned its attention to Latin America thanks to the region’s critical role in the ongoing electrification drive. Latin America produces nearly 40% of the world’s lithium supply, and is home to over 65% of global reserves.
The independent refiners, for their part, boosted purchases of Russia’s Far East flagship ESPO blend and more February-loading cargoes were delivered to the Shandong and Jiangsu provinces, primarily to teapot refiners, Vortexa has estimated. In January, the independent refiners preferred to reduce runs rather than seek alternative barrels amid uncertainties surrounding ESPO supply.
According to the STEO, the EIA now sees the Brent spot price averaging $74.22 per barrel this year and $68.47 per barrel next year. In its previous STEO, which was released in February, the EIA projected that the Brent spot price would average $74.50 per barrel in 2025 and $66.46 per barrel in 2026.
US crude eked out a 0.2% gain for the week, barely skirting an eighth straight weekly decline that would have been its longest such losing streak since 2015. US President Donald Trump’s salvos against the country’s major trading partners have weighed on crude prices since mid-January, raising the prospect of sputtering economic growth and falling oil consumption. Long-term inflation expectations jumped by the most since 1993, painting a gloomy picture for future energy demand.