OPEC+ FALLOUT: OPEC+’s production cut plunges the Biden administration back into unwelcome waters of worrying about global oil supply and makes its SPR refill efforts all the more complicated.
“From a supply side perspective, the cuts signal the group is willing to defend a price floor well above $80 per barrel and prioritize revenue versus market share,” Rystad senior vice president Jorge Leon said in a note this morning. “From a demand-side perspective, these cuts may be signaling that OPEC+ believes that there are enough recessionary indicators in the market.”
Another wrinkle for the SPR: The Department of Energy had already all but written off the possibility of acquiring oil this year to replace emergency barrels sold in the last. The cut complicates its fixed-price repurchase plan more, with WTI straying even further now from the administration’s preferred price range, trading above $80 per barrel this morning.
…RUSSIAN CRUDE EXPORTS SHOW NO SIGNS OF SLOWING: Meanwhile, OPEC+ member Russia has shown no signs that it has slashed oil production by 500,000 bpd as it vowed to do beginning in March. Last month, Russian oil shipments increased by 1 million bpd, according to ship-tracking data compiled by Bloomberg, bringing its shipments to a new record-high of 4.13 million bpd in the final seven days ending March 31.
The bill, led by Sens. Shelley Moore Capito, Tom Carper, and Sheldon Whitehouse, would establish a joint initiative involving the Commerce Department and Energy Department to work with nations seeking to develop advanced nuclear energy programs. PacifiCorp revealed its plans in a regulatory filing on Friday. The company, which operates in six western states, including California, Wyoming, and Oregon, published a resource plan proposing to acquire 1,500 megawatts of advanced nuclear energy from three total Natrium reactors by 2033.
The U.S. has some domestic companies working on HALEU, including Centrus Energy, which is also a DOE fund recipient and recently completed construction of advanced uranium enrichment centrifuges and associated support systems at its Ohio demonstration facility.
Other automakers are still working on certifying which of their models are eligible. Treasury has a working list here.