Beryl aims between Corpus Christi, Houston

Spanish Market: Crude oil, LPG, Natural gas, Oil products
07/07/24

Tropical storm Beryl was expected to regain hurricane strength today before coming ashore between Corpus Christi and Houston, Texas, early Monday.

As of 11am ET today the center of the storm was about 195 miles southeast of the refining and oil export hub of Corpus Christi with maximum sustained winds of 65mph. Moving northwest at 10mph, its landfall was expected at about 2am ET Monday, according to the National Hurricane Center (NHC).

The track of the storm's landfall has moved toward the east for the past two days, moving Corpus Christi out of the area likely to see the highest winds and storm surge. The most powerful winds and storm surge should be centered on areas near Matagorda Bay, according to the forecast, with 4-6ft of storm surge expected. Galveston Bay, which include numerous refineries and petroleum export terminals along the Houston Ship Channel and Texas City, was expected to see 3-5ft of storm surge.

The port of Corpus Christi was closed to all traffic as of Saturday afternoon while the ports of Houston, Galveston, Freeport and Texas City were set to "Yankee" status at 8am ET today, suspending all inbound traffic, bunkering and lightering operations. The Houston-area ports were expected to close to all traffic later today as the storm nears landfall, according to the US Coast Guard.

Disruptions to US Gulf oil and gas operations so far appear to be limited given Beryl's approach to the west of most US offshore and gas operations. Mexican offshore operations were halted late last week when the storm first entered the Gulf after passing over the Yucatan peninsula.

Early last week Beryl was a Category 5 storm, which made it the strongest on record for the month of July, as it left a trail of destruction in the Caribbean.

The second named storm of the 2024 Atlantic hurricane season, Beryl followed tropical storm Alberto, which came ashore in northeastern Mexico late last month. This year's Atlantic hurricane season is expected to be more active than normal, according to the US National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, with 4-7 major hurricanes that pack sustained winds of 111mph or higher possible.

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17/11/25

Cop: Ministers left with mountain of work at Cop 30

Belem, 17 November (Argus) — Ministers gathering for the second week of the UN Cop 30 climate summit are tasked with piecing together informal negotiations, including on a potential roadmap on transitioning away from fossil fuels, responses to the lack of ambition in new climate plans, and other topics on the official agenda. Ministers will have to wrap up talks held in informal presidency consultations on four key topics — unilateral trade measures, climate finance obligations, emissions reporting and responses to climate plans — even though it remains unclear how a potential deal might look. The Brazilian Cop 30 presidency released a note on 17 November highlighting where parties continue to disagree. Gaps remain on finance, with some countries eyeing a work programme, while developed countries reaffirm that their obligations towards developing countries are covered under the new $300bn/yr finance goal agreed last year in Baku . There are also five options on the response to climate plans. One is to have an "annual consideration" under official negotiations of the report weighing country targets and actions, while another is to have an unnamed roadmap to accelerate implementation, international co-operation and investment to be published before Cop 31. Some negotiating groups, including the alliance of small island states (Aosis) and the Environmental Integrity Group (EIG) are supporting the creation of a fossil fuel phase-out roadmap, while the "EU strongly welcomes the idea for a roadmap being discussed at Cop 30," energy commissioner Dan Jorgensen said. Germany, Spain, Switzerland and the UK have also signalled support. But UK energy minister Ed Miliband pointed out the difficulty for some countries to move away from fossil fuels, including reliance on hydrocarbons for energy and jobs. Brazil and Colombia are also supporting the roadmap. But few other developing oil producers have spoken in favour of it, pointing to their dependence on hydrocarbons, the need for increased finance flows and a just transition. "It's acceptable that Nigeria is ready to transition, but transitioning now has to be consistent with a bunch of economic priorities," the director general of Nigeria's national council on climate change Omotenioye Majekodunmi said. Transitioning away from fossil fuels "must recognise the very strong differences in economic opportunities," she said. The Arab Group, which includes major oil producers Saudi Arabia and the UAE, wants to focus on the climate finance obligations of developed countries. The calls for a fossil fuel roadmap have yet to turn into something more tangible, according to the presidency. Brazilian environment minister Marina Silva said that she does not expect a decision on this at this Cop but welcomes the "beginning of the construction". Even if a roadmap fails to materialise in Belem, the pressure on fossil fuels is likely here to stay at climate summits. Official talks Ministers will also need to agree on official items this week, including adaptation, just transition and the UAE dialogue, which aims to advance the implementation of the global stocktake (GST). The GST agreed two years ago at Cop 28 in Dubai featured the call to transition away from fossil fuels and triple renewable energy capacity by 2030, which has since received some pushback. To help them, the Brazilian presidency asked countries to finish all technical works on the agenda items by 18 November. Cop 30 chief executive Ana Toni struck a positive note about negotiations at the end of the first week, saying several texts have already been approved, but conceded that a lot of work remained to be done. An informal text on the just transition work programme featured options with language on fossil fuels and the phase-out of fossil fuel subsidies, but the paragraphs face opposition. The text recognises the role of transitional fuels — largely natural gas — while transition minerals have been included within the scope of the programme. "To get, you must give, and being honest, we need to be giving more," UN climate body UNFCCC executive secretary Simon Stiell said. "The issues that may not be priorities for you are clearly issues and priorities for other nations," he added. By Lucas Parolin and Caroline Varin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Chile turning right in presidential elections

17/11/25

Chile turning right in presidential elections

Santiago, 16 November (Argus) — Far right Juan Antonio Kast and communist Jeannette Jara, who represents a coalition of left and centrist parties, got the most votes in Chile's presidential elections on Sunday and will face each other in a runoff on 14 December. Forecasts call for 59-year-old Kast, founder of the Republican Party of Chile, to comfortably beat 51-year-old Jara in the second round by picking up the votes of other rightwing candidates. Combined this would give Kast more than 50pc of the vote. Jara was chosen to run for president in a center-left primary and faced no real contenders on the left in the first round. With almost 78pc of polling stations counted, Jara led with 27pc of the votes against Kast's 24pc but far from the 50pc required to win outright. Concerns about rising crime and immigration have dominated the campaign. Kast promises an "emergency government" that would use physical barriers to shut the border to illegal immigrants, expel undocumented migrants and crack down on organized crime. He has attacked Jara, a former minister in leftwing President Gabriel Boric's government, for representing continuity to an unpopular government. Boric's approval rating is 30pc. Jara has tried to distance herself from the Boric government and raised the possibility of renouncing or suspending her communist party membership if elected. Populist Franco Parisi placed a surprising third with around 19pc of the votes, Johannes Kaiser who is to the right of Kast picked up 14pc and center-right former mayor Evelyn Matthei, once a front-runner, scraped 13pc. Jara's result is well below the 30pc ceiling her team expected and unlikely to provide sufficient momentum to win enough voters put off by the ultraconservative Kast who opposes abortion and same-sex marriage. An admirer of Chile's former authoritarian dictator Augusto Pinochet, Kast has promised to cut public spending by $6bn in 18 months — the equivalent to 1.7pc of GDP — and reduce corporate tax to 23pc from 27pc. Jara says she will boost the minimum wage, ease permitting and build Chile's green hydrogen potential and massive copper and lithium resources to attract foreign investment. She also promises to cut electricity rates by 20pc for the first 85kWh of consumption per month. The right's strong showing in the presidential election suggests it will also do well in the congressional elections for the chamber of deputies and half of the senate, with votes still being counted. Earlier polls suggested the right could win a majority in both houses. By Emily Russell Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Cop: 'Tangible' transition from fossil fuels needed

15/11/25

Cop: 'Tangible' transition from fossil fuels needed

Belem, 15 November (Argus) — Kazakhstan's deputy minister of natural resources Mansur Oshurbayev today called for a "tangible, not rhetorical" transition away from fossil fuels at a panel during the UN Cop 30 climate summit in northern Brazil. Nigerian and Fijian representatives at the same panel noted the need for "real alternatives" for industry and workers, and for the finance to support a transition, respectively. The topic of moving away from fossil fuels has drawn attention at Cop 30, with host country Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva calling for a roadmap to overcome dependence on them . But talks on the topic are moving slowly. Cop 30 chief strategy and alignment officer Tulio Andrade said earlier this week that they are not on the formal negotiation table. Almost 200 countries agreed to transition away from fossil fuels at Cop 28 in 2023. Some developing nations such as Colombia are eager for a phase-out plan at Cop 30, but others, especially in the Middle East and Africa, are concerned that it might hinder their development, according to delegates. A growing number of countries are discussing an option similar to the so-called Baku to Belem roadmap , which sets out paths to scale climate finance for developing countries to $1.3 trillion/yr by 2035. A fossil fuel phase-out roadmap could look similar, a French delegation source said. Any reduction in fossil fuel production can only come "with real alternatives for firms, workers and regions", Oshurbayev said during the panel. "We must preserve and redeploy this human capital into activities that support the climate transition and do not directly compete with the coal and oil and [natural] gas operations", he added. The phase out of fossil fuels is a "difficult conversation", the director general of Nigeria's national council on climate change Omotenioye Majekodunmi said. Around 80pc of Nigeria's economy relies on fossil fuels and the country uses about 40GW of fossil-powered generators to generate electricity, he said. But there have been some strides at the national level, such as removing taxes on photovoltaic systems, solar panels and batteries, which will allow "small mom and pop shops and homes to adopt renewable energy options other than burning gasoline and diesel", he said. The country also removed long-standing fuel subsidies in 2023. The Netherlands' vice-minister of climate and energy Michel Heijdra called on countries to reduce fossil fuels subsidies earlier in the week during a Cop 30 high-level event. And fossil fuel subsidies throughout the world are mostly "underpriced, underused or unjust", the deputy chief of IMF's climate policy division Diego Mesa said. Nigeria is also considering creating an additional tax on oil products, Majekodunmi said, which would encourage the country to "reimagine alternative energy sources to drive its economy". The country will rely on natural gas as a "transition fuel" as it winds down over-dependence on fossil fuels, Majekodunmi said. Electrification can also help countries reduce fossil fuel usage, Oshurbayev said. Bold and joint action will be needed to mitigate the consequences of irreversible climate change, including to phase out fossil fuels, the permanent secretary of Fiji's environment and climate change ministry Sivendra Michael said. And any such action will require financing, he told Argus on the sidelines. Some countries, such as India and Saudi Arabia, are pressing for the climate finance obligations of developed countries to developing countries to be addressed at this summit. This is one of four contentious topics that did not make it onto the official agenda, but that countries are discussing in consultations overseen by the Cop presidency. "The ball is [in the] rich countries' court", Michael said. The technical phase of Cop 30 is now wrapping up, as countries' ministers are starting to arrive. The talks will shift into a political phase from 17 November. By Lucas Parolin and Rhys Talbot Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

14/11/25

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

Belem, 14 November (Argus) — A group of 10 countries led by Chile called for a global effort to cut energy demand from the transport sector by 25pc by 2035, aligning it with the Paris Agreement goal of limiting global warming to 1.5°C above pre-industrial levels. The coalition was formed at the UN Cop 30 climate summit, which is underway in Belem, northern Brazil. Brazil, Colombia, Costa Rica, the Dominican Republic, Honduras, Norway, Portugal, Slovenia and Spain are the other signatory countries so far. "We are committed to making transport a key pillar of climate action, agreeing a shared framework for resilient and low emissions transport systems", Chile's transport minister Carlos Abogabir told journalists at Cop 30. Cutting energy demand from transport — the second-largest emitting sector — allows for "a clear measurable direction towards a net zero scenario in the transport sector in 2050", he added. Chile is a natural leader for the coalition as it is a global leader in efforts to electrify its public transport fleet. The country's capital Santiago is the city with most electric buses outside of China, Abogabir said. It had around 3,000 electric buses in 2024, according to a report by Agora Verkehrswende, a non-governmental organisation focused on climate neutrality in transport. But it will have 4,400 by March, Abogabir added. The coalition will now work to create a roadmap to reach the pledge's goal and measure progress for future Cops, according to Slocat, a global partnership that promotes sustainable, low-carbon transport. Sustainable fuels, renewable sources Although the pledge will heavily rely on electrification, it also calls on countries to shift one-third of energy powering transport to sustainable biofuels and renewable sources. Brazil is the second-biggest biofuel producer globally, trailing only behind the US. But it will consider any route that both decarbonizes its fleet and drives national industry, Brazilian minister of cities Jader Barbalho Filho told Argus , mentioning specifically liquid nitrogen and biomethane. Including existing and expected projects, Brazil could have 2.4mn m³/d of biomethane capacity by 2027, data from hydrocarbons regulator ANP show. The shift to sustainable biofuels and renewables sources plays well into Brazil's Belem 4x pledge , which calls for a global effort to quadruple global output and use of sustainable fuels by 2035, Filho added. "The Chilean government looked for us [to present the transport pledge] exactly because we already have [Belem 4x]", he said. The Belem 4x pledge now has 23 country signatories, Cop 30 chief executive Ana Toni said today. By Lucas Parolin Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

Croatia's Omisalj crude receipts drop in October

14/11/25

Croatia's Omisalj crude receipts drop in October

Barcelona, 14 November (Argus) — Crude receipts at the Croatian terminal of Omisalj fell in October, as a refinery served by the port caught fire and a disagreement continued between Omisalj's terminal operator and Hungary. Overall Mediterranean crude imports dropped sharply in the month. Omisalj receipts declined to 75,000 b/d last month, from 145,000 b/d in September, according to Argus tracking. Deliveries averaged 125,000 b/d in January-October, up from 110,000 b/d across 2024. The terminal serves Croatian firm Ina's 90,000 b/d Rijeka refinery and is the start of the 400,000 b/d Adria pipeline that can supply three landlocked refineries — Mol's 161,000 b/d Szazhalombatta in Hungary and 115,000 b/d Bratislava in Slovakia, and NIS' 96,000 b/d Pancevo in Serbia. Receipts fell as the US sanctioned NIS, and Szazhalombatta had a fire . There were sharp words over transit conditions between Mol and Janaf, in a long-running dispute. October deliveries to Omisalj comprised 45,000 b/d of Azeri BTC Blend, plus 30,000 b/d of Caspian CPC Blend. Argus assessed average crude quality at Omisalj in January-October at 37°API and 0.7pc sulphur, lighter than the 2024 average of 35.8°API and 0.7pc sulphur. Seaborne crude receipts at Mediterranean terminals — including Croatia, Spain, Greece, France's Fos-Lavera and Italy excluding Trieste — fell to 3.39mn b/d from 3.63mn b/d on the month. This was the lowest since June, when there were major works at two Greek refineries and Spain sharply cut crude purchases as a consequence of the end-April Iberian power outage. October arrivals were down on a combination of a string of planned and unplanned works and an ownership dispute in Italy, unplanned maintenance in France, Szazhalombatta's fire and the US' NIS sanctions. For refineries functioning correctly, middle distillate and gasoline cracks are buoyant . Greek's Helleniq Energy expects them to stay strong to year-end . For the second month in a row the biggest crude supplier to the Mediterranean region was the US, with 495,000 b/d down from 565,000 b/d in September. Libya supplied 440,000 b/d and Iraq 445,000 b/d. This was the most Iraqi crude in the Mediterranean since November 2023, supported by strong Greek demand for Basrah Medium, plus returning Kirkuk supply . By Adam Porter Mediterranean Europe crude imports mn bl Send comments and request more information at feedback@argusmedia.com Copyright © 2025. Argus Media group . All rights reserved.

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Beryl aims between Corpus Christi, Houston

Related news posts

Cop: Ministers left with mountain of work at Cop 30

Cop: Ministers left with mountain of work at Cop 30

Chile turning right in presidential elections

Chile turning right in presidential elections

Cop: 'Tangible' transition from fossil fuels needed

Cop: 'Tangible' transition from fossil fuels needed

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

Cop: 10 countries pledge to align transport with 1.5ºC

Croatia's Omisalj crude receipts drop in October

Croatia's Omisalj crude receipts drop in October

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