Saudi Aramco shares surge 10% as historic IPO begins trading

Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest initial public offering (IPO), surged past expectations as it debuted on the country’s stock exchange on Wednesday morning. Shares of the state-owned oil company rose to 35.2 Saudi riyals ($9.38) from 32 riyals in early deals in Riyadh, up 10% and hitting their daily limit. The price gives it a valuation […]

Billionaires Circle Distressed Assets in U.S. Oil and Gas Patch

Billionaires are circling the distressed U.S. oil and gas patch, looking to pick up assets on the cheap at a time when the state of the industry is scaring off other investors. Sam Zell has teamed up with Tom Barrack Jr. to buy oil assets in California, Colorado and Texas at fire-sale prices from companies […]

Goldman: Go Long On Fracking

Judging by the share price of shale oil and gas producers, you would think the industry is one from which to keep well away. Goldman Sachs, however, is recommending clients go long on the premise that the fracking industry, while depressed now, is simply going through a down cycle. In other words, today’s pain is […]

Why Banning Fossil Fuel Investment Is A Huge Mistake

Activist global warming strategies have now caused the European Investment Bank to ban its fossil fuel project funding. After more than a year of internal and external lobbying by several EU member states and an ever-growing list of activist NGO and pressure groups, the EIB has decided to cut its financial support for all new […]

Why Even Saudi Aramco Is Now Talking About ‘Peak Oil’

The world is turning its back on oil. But how quickly? Technological advances in renewable energy and electric cars, accelerated by the threat of climate change, could mean the world’s thirst for petroleum tops out sooner than companies such as Exxon Mobil Corp. or Saudi Arabia’s Aramco are banking on. “Peak oil” once signified the […]

The Aramco IPO’s internal dynamics

Domestic only—the key aspect of Aramco IPO The state energy giant’s decision to proceed with a share sale is no surprise, but the lack of an international listing is a crucial point “A significant milestone in the history of the company and important progress towards delivering Saudi Vision 2030”. Thus Yasir al-Rumayyan, chairman of state-owned […]

Saudi Arabia Will Compromise on Valuation to Make Aramco IPO a Success

Saudi Arabia will compromise on valuation to ensure the initial public offering of Aramco is a success. The Kingdom is ready to accept less than the $2 trillion Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman has long insisted the state oil giant is worth. Bankers will instead target a valuation of $1.6 trillion to $1.8 trillion after […]

Saudi Crown Prince Gives Green Light for Aramco IPO

Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman finally gave the go-ahead for the initial public offering of Aramco, deciding there’s enough support from local investors for what’s likely to be a record share sale. The crown prince made the decision at a meeting he chaired on Friday and an official announcement is likely as soon as […]

Oil majors struggle to counter Extinction Rebellion narrative

Oil companies are squarely in the aim of Extinction Rebellion’s campaign against fossil fuels, and they are struggling to find a response. Instead of running away when confronted by climate change activists, it is time the industry’s top executives from companies such as BP, Shell and Total provided these campaigners with some hard economic facts […]

I Feel It Coming – Natural Gas Exports To Mexico Swell, But Is a Tidal Wave Coming?

For some time now, natural gas producers in the Permian and the Eagle Ford have been counting on rising pipeline exports to Mexico to help absorb a lot of the incremental production in their plays. Their hopes have been bolstered in the past couple of years by the build-out of a number of new pipelines […]

The Legacy of T. Boone Pickens

Billionaire oilman T. Boone Pickens passed away a few weeks ago, and this week’s episode of Industry Focus: Energy dives deep into the legacy he left behind. Analysts Nick Sciple and Jason Hall talk about some of the many aspects of Pickens’ life, from the culture shift he pioneered in investing to his philanthropy and […]

Final Collapse Is Inexorable

This week central planners pursued their primary mission with steadfast conviction.  They planned.  They prodded.  They prearranged tomorrow to save us from ourselves.  Some also grubbed a little graft for their trouble. Other central planners took to debasing the dollar to price fix the federal funds rate within a narrow band of tolerance.  What in […]

Speculators Are Abandoning Oil

1. China’s bauxite imports surge – There are concerns that Indonesia might put a ban on bauxite exports, the raw material used for aluminum production, following restrictions on nickel exports. Nickel prices recently spiked. – “While such a development would support bauxite and in turn aluminum prices, it would be less impactful for China than […]

UC System Announces Divestment From Fossil Fuels

The University of California system has announced its intention to completely divest from fossil fuels.  Officials in charge of investments insist that their decision to move toward more “sustainable” and environmentally conscious investments is simply in the practical interest of beneficiaries, rather than a product of political opinion. In an opinion piece in the Los Angeles […]

Oil Prices Jump Most on Record After Saudi Arabia Strike

Oil posted its biggest ever intraday jump, briefly surging above $71 a barrel after a strike on a Saudi Arabian oil facility removed about 5% of global supplies and raised the specter of more destabilization in the region. In an extraordinary start to trading on Monday, London’s Brent futures leaped almost $12 in the seconds […]

T. Boone Pickens, a Texas oil tycoon who led legendary corporate raids, dies at 91

T. Boone Pickens, a shrewd, publicity-savvy Texas oil tycoon who helped usher in the era of hostile takeovers and corporate “greenmail” in the 1980s, and who later became an influential voice on environmentally sound energy policy, died Sept. 11 at his home in Dallas. He was 91. His death was announced by his spokesman Jay […]

Crude Oil: Up And Down And Going Nowhere

Summary Trading in a range. A tightly coiled spring. The trade war holds the key. Oil-related equities lag the market. UCO and SCO continue to offer an opportunity to grind profits. I do much more than just articles at Hecht Commodity Report: Members get access to model portfolios, regular updates, a chat room, and more. […]

Pessimism, Possible ‘Takeunders’ on the Oil Industry Horizon

BP Plc agreed to sell its entire business in Alaska to closely held Hilcorp Energy Co. for $5.6 billion, ending a six-decade presence in the state as oil production there declines. Tom Loughrey, president of Friezo Loughrey Oil Well Partners, and Mark Rossano, founder & CEO of C6 Capital Holdings, talks with Bloomberg’s Alix Steel […]

Aramco IPO Could be Heading to Asia

Grand scale (ad)ventures or Mega Projects have been making headlines for decades, while looking at Dubai, Doha or Riyadh. Still, the Aramco IPO story, proponed by Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, beats them all. The battle for a stake in the oil world’s largest cookie-jar, Saudi Arabia’s national oil company Saudi Aramco, keeps fueling […]

Why Saudi Arabia Needs An Aramco IPO

At the start of the year, hopes and expectations were that the US and China would come to a relatively speedy resolution on trade and the world economy would be set once again on a moderate path of expansion. These hopes have been repeatedly disappointed. Instead the failure of negotiations has seen the US escalate […]

Saudi Aramco Reports $47 Billion in Earnings, a Drop From a Year Earlier

The oil giant Saudi Aramco is prepared for an initial public offering, its chief financial officer said on Monday, reviving the prospects for a long-awaited listing that could be a major step toward diversifying Saudi Arabia’s economy. The state-owned company has been moving toward greater financial transparency as it courts international investors, and the suggestion that it was […]

Saudi Aramco IPO: ‘Fool Me Once, Shame On You, Fool Me Twice.’

Summary Aramco to be “IPO-ed in 2018.” We were “clear all along the timeframe would be 2020 or 2021.” IPO shelved due to a host of problems. KSA has to reform before an IPO. Perhaps Aramco will sell reserves to China to diversify risk. This idea was discussed in more depth with members of my […]

Peak energy, peak oil, and the rise of renewables

Global energy demand is headed toward a plateau over the next ten to 20 years, as the world focuses on electrification, energy efficiency, and more service-driven economic growth. Read more > Listen to the podcast (duration: 31:40) >

Even Boone Pickens is falling out of love with oil

Venerable oil baron Boone Pickens is giving up on oil — sort of. Less than 18 months ago, his fund launched an exchange-traded fund tracking stocks of companies expected to benefit from any increase in Brent crude oil prices. But soon, BOON — the ticker of the NYSE Pickens Oil Response ETF — will be […]

Why I’m still bullish on oil for the long run

Today I wanted to look at the world’s most important commodity: oil. I say it’s the most important commodity because, despite the huge advances made in alternative energy, it remains the single most important source of global power. Roughly one third of global energy comes from burning oil. Indeed, roughly 85% of global energy comes […]

Energy Sector’s Impact Shrinking

Oil has surged this year and energy stocks have rallied, but interest in the sector continues to shrink day by day. The weighting of energy equities within the S&P 500 is at its lowest level since at least 1990, according to Bloomberg—last standing at a mere 4.87%. That makes energy the fourth-smallest sector, ahead of […]

Aramco to Restart IPO Preparations

Saudi Arabia is restarting preparations for a potential initial public offering of oil giant Aramco, months after putting the planned listing on hold, people familiar with the matter said. Aramco, the world’s most profitable company, recently held talks with a select group of investment banks to discuss potential roles on the offering, according to the […]

Buying Into the Energy Transition

New energy’s time has come. It’s less than four years since the Paris Agreement set the long-term goal to limit the rise in global temperature to well below 2°C. Back then, the oil and gas industry had zero appetite to invest in decarbonization. Paris lit the fuse. I caught up with Valentina Kretzschmar, Research Director, […]

Is ExxonMobil Making a Strategic Mistake?

Integrated energy giants Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE:RDS-B) and Total (NYSE:TOT) have both made significant investments in the electric- and renewable-power spaces, preparing for a future with less carbon-based fuels. ExxonMobil (NYSE:XOM) isn’t following them down this road, instead redoubling its efforts on oil, natural gas, and the products they are turned into. Why is Exxon […]

Saudi Aramco allows sneak peek into its finances

The company’s mammoth $12bn global bond offering allowed a glimpse into its treasure chest for the first time The world’s focus, not surprisingly, has been on Saudi Aramco’s $111bn of net income recorded in 2018, making it the most profitable company in the world. But elements of the upstream story were largely ignored. For example, […]

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