US Senate censures Saudi crown prince
The US Senate today censured Saudi crown prince Mohammad bin Salman in an extraordinary challenge to the decades-old US-Saudi alliance.
The resolution, passed by a voice vote, states that "the Senate believes crown prince Mohammad bin Salman is responsible for the murder of Jamal Khashoggi," a dissident journalist killed in the Saudi consulate general in Istanbul, Turkey.
The Senate action is also a rebuke of President Donald Trump's handling of the bilateral relationship. The White House has urged senators to desist from any measure that would harm the US-Saudi alliance.
The resolution acknowledged that relations with Riyadh are important for US national security and economic interests. But it went on to condemn Riyadh's handling of the Yemen civil conflict, "apparent detention of the prime minister of Lebanon, undermining the unity of the Gulf Cooperation Council, expulsion of the Canadian ambassador and suppression of dissent within the Kingdom."
Senators who advanced the measure blamed crown prince Mohammad for those missteps.
"Saudi Arabia is a strategic ally and is worth saving but not at any cost," senator Lindsey Graham (R-South Carolina) said. "The crown prince is dangerous and has put the relationship at risk."
Trump two weeks ago sent defense secretary Jim Mattis and secretary of state Mike Pompeo to dissuade the senators from censuring Riyadh. But their arguments only emboldened the senators.
Pompeo said that "there is no direct reporting connecting the crown prince to the order to murder Jamal Khashoggi." Mattis added that, based on the intelligence he reviewed, "we have no smoking gun that the crown prince was involved."
Graham, in a reference to the instrument allegedly used in Khashoggi's murder, "There is no smoking gun — there is a smoking saw."
While nothing that he has "great respect" for Pompeo and Mattis, Graham conceded that "if they were in a Democratic administration I would have been all over them for being in the pocket of Saudi Arabia."
The Senate today also approved a resolution by a 56-41 vote that directs the Pentagon not to support Saudi-led military operations in Yemen. The White House already said Trump would veto it. A procedural vote in the House of Representatives ensured that the Yemen resolution would not come up for a vote before the end of the current Congress.
House speaker Paul Ryan (R-Wisconsin) would not commit to bringing the Senate resolution censuring crown prince Mohammad to a vote before Congress adjourns.
Both votes in the Senate stem from dissatisfaction with the administration's decision not to penalize Saudi leaders over the killing. Graham and other senior senators, after being briefed last week by CIA director Gina Haspel, said US intelligence analysts hold the Saudi leader responsible for the murder.
Trump said crown prince Mohammad should not be targeted regardless of what the US intelligence community may conclude, citing national security interests and Riyadh's cooperation in keeping oil prices stable.
A Saudi official inquiry backed by the Trump administration pins the blame on unauthorized actions by lower-level government agents. Riyadh says the case should not be politicized. The Saudi embassy in Washington was not immediately available for comment.
The US administration on 15 November placed 17 mid-ranking Saudi officials on its sanctions list, charging them with organizing and implementing Khashoggi's killing.
US secretary of energy Rick Perry visited Saudi Arabia on 8-9 December, expressing support for Riyadh and pledging US assistance for the Saudi civilian nuclear program — one of the components of Saudi Arabia's effort to diversify its oil-dependent economy.
The Senate vote is also a challenge for the administration that has justified the re-imposition of sanctions on Iran by describing Tehran as the principal threat to the stability of the Middle East.
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Small private Libyan firm exports oil through blockade
Small private Libyan firm exports oil through blockade
London, 19 September (Argus) — A small Libyan private firm appears to have been granted an exemption from an oil blockade, which has more than halved the country's exports. Arkenu Oil, which describes itself as a private oil and gas development and production firm, is scheduled to export 1mn bl of Sarir and Mesla crude from Marsa el-Hariga to Italy's Trieste on the Maran Poseidon, according to an official document seen by Argus . The tanker has been chartered by Turkish trader BGN and is currently loading its cargo. This is the first Arkenu shipment set to be exported since the country's eastern-based administration ordered a blockade on oil fields and terminals on 26 August in response to an attempt by its rival administration in the west to replace the central bank governor. It is also Arkenu's third known shipment since July. Arkenu exported a 1mn bl cargo on the Zeus on 10 July and another 1mn barrel cargo on the Yasa Polaris on 16 August, according to official documents and ship-tracking data. These were also Sarir and Mesla grade. Arkenu's exports are significant given that crude sales have historically been the preserve of NOC and a handful of international oil firms that hold stakes in the country's upstream such as Eni, TotalEnergies and OMV. Arkenu, which is based in the eastern city of Benghazi, is supposedly able to export its own crude based on an agreement with NOC which allocates it an unspecified share of production from its subsidiary Agoco's Sarir and Mesla fields in return for carrying out work to boost output at the sites. But there remain questions related to the legality of the deal, the nature of the work Arkenu is supposed to be carrying out and the company's technical capabilities. The three known Arkenu cargoes are worth around $240mn at prevailing market rates, Argus estimates. There has been no increase to Agoco's production capacity since the Arkenu deal was struck, one Libyan oil industry source said. Sarir and Mesla accounted for most of Agoco's roughly 280,000 b/d output in 2023. Arkenu and NOC have yet to reply to a request for comment. "The Haftar family is deliberately and selectively allowing crude exports that generate dollars outside the Libyan state, and they are doing so within the context of a blockade they imposed," said Jalel Harchaoui, a Libya specialist at the UK's Royal United Services Institute. "While the Libyan state struggles to figure out how to import food and medicine next month owing to the central bank crisis, the Haftars' strange oil blockade permits crude exports that profit a private Libyan entity," Harchaoui added. The leadership crisis at the central bank has degraded Libya's ability to carry out international financial transactions. "The only beneficiary from these Mesla and Sarir sales is an unknown private Libyan company with an account in Switzerland and the UAE, with zero dollars being deposited in the state," the oil industry source added. General Khalifa Haftar's Libyan National Army (LNA) controls the country's east and southwest and is the real force behind the blockade. Haftar is understood to be allowing some exports to continue as long as these revenues do not reach the central bank in Tripoli, which is controlled by the rival administration in the west. Libya's crude exports have averaged 410,000 b/d so far this month, according to Kpler. While this is well below pre-blockade levels of around 1mn b/d, it is well above levels seen in some past blockades. Rising exports in recent days suggests Libya's total crude production has picked up from an earlier Argus estimate of around 300,000 b/d to possibly around 500,000 b/d. Libya was producing 1mn b/d before the blockade. By Aydin Calik Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions
Citgo auction result delayed amid last-minute motions
Houston, 18 September (Argus) — The US court-appointed special master overseeing the auction of US refiner Citgo plans to object to a last-minute motion from the Venezuelan government to delay the sale process by four months. The Republic of Venezuela and state-owned oil company PdV filed a motion on Tuesday seeking a four-month pause in the sale of its refining subsidiary Citgo, which is being auctioned off to satisfy debts owed by PdV. Special master Robert Pincus said in a court filing today that he intends to object to Venezuela's motion for a pause. The last-minute motion from Venezuela comes days after the US District Court for the District of Delaware was expected to announce results of the winning bidder. The court asked for a second extension to the auction process in August, delaying announcing a successful bidder to on or about 16 September with a sale hearing on 7 November. But Pincus is now dealing with last-minute legal challenges filed last week outside of the Delaware courts by so-called "alter ego" claimants seeking to "circumvent" the Delaware court's sales process and "jump the line" for enforcing claims against PdV, the special master said in a filing last week. Bidders for Citgo's 804,000 b/d of refining capacity, terminals, retail fuel stations and other plants expect the assets to be sold free and clear of future claims by PdV creditors. Unresolved legal liabilities could lower the value bidders are willing to pay for Citgo, decreasing the pool of money available to those owed by PdV. By Nathan Risser Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
US seeks to purchase 6mn bl for SPR
US seeks to purchase 6mn bl for SPR
Washington, 18 September (Argus) — President Joe Biden's administration is trying to purchase 6mn bl of sour crude for delivery to the US Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) as part of a plan to issue solicitations when prices are "favorable for taxpayers." The US Department of Energy (DOE) today released a solicitation to purchase up to 6mn bl of sour crude for delivery in February-May to the SPR's Bayou Choctaw site in Louisiana. If the purchase is successful, it would be the largest single purchase since the Biden administration launched its crude purchase program in early 2023. The solicitation offers a chance for the administration to buy crude for the SPR at a lower price than earlier purchases. Nymex WTI crude futures for delivery in February settled at $68.41/bl on Tuesday. The lowest-priced crude purchase under Biden was a 1.7mn purchase at a price of $72/bl in June 2023, and the average purchase price is about $76/bl. Bids for the solicitation are due by noon ET on 25 September. DOE has already purchased more than 50mn bl of sour crude for the SPR, of which 30mn bl have already been delivered. On 9 September, DOE said it purchased 3.42mn bl of sour crude for the SPR's Bryan Mound storage site at a price of $72.46/bl from the trading firm Macquarie Commodities Trading. The crude will be delivered in January-March, adding to an earlier purchase of nearly 2.5mn bl that will be delivered to the Bryan Mound site over the same time frame. By Chris Knight Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2024. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.
TMX is a fossil fuel subsidy of at least C$8.7bn: IISD
TMX is a fossil fuel subsidy of at least C$8.7bn: IISD
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