A Strong Start To July
It’s a strong start to July with refined products rallying more than a nickel in the early going, and crude oil prices reaching fresh 2.5 year highs. The OPEC meeting is underway and will likely create some volatility today as rumors start trickling out of the meeting ahead of the official announcement.
Tropical storm Elsa has formed in the Atlantic, and looks like it will hit Florida early next week. It’s still early in the season so the waters haven’t reached their warmest levels yet which should keep this storm from reaching hurricane strength. The forecast cone currently keeps the storm east of the oil refining and production region of the Gulf of Mexico, and if that holds, this should not be a supply threat beyond some headaches in the ports as the storm passes.
Wednesday’s DOE report added to the bullish sentiment for oil as US inventories saw another large decline, a 6th straight week of falling inventories, and one of the largest monthly declines on record. Total US Petroleum demand climbed for a third straight week and is holding above its seasonal average for this time of year. The exception in the report was gasoline, which saw a drop in the weekly demand estimate and a build in inventories. The DOE also reduced its gasoline demand estimates from the spring in its latest monthly update, although that’s done little to stop the rally as RBOB futures just reached their highest level in nearly 7 years in the past few minutes.
The exception to the weaker gasoline fundamentals is the PADD 4, which has by far the fewest people and thus the least amount of gasoline of the districts and is typically ignored in the weekly statistics given its volume amounts to a rounding error. This week however it could be the canary in the coal mine for the industry as it deals with the resumption in demand following so many refinery closures in the past year. Regional inventories have dropped to their lowest levels in nearly a decade as Colorado’s sole refinery struggles through a turnaround, and 2 of the main backup options nearby are no longer operating as oil refineries.
RINs have been uncharacteristically quiet the past couple of days after the Supreme Court ruling rippled through the market Friday and Monday. That relative lack of volatility may not last long however as grain prices saw a strong rally following the USDA’s crop report which showed fewer acres planted than many reports expected, setting the stage for stronger values in the back half of the week.
Abandoning ship: Shell continues to shed assets, with a sale of its share in a California production JV coming according to a new Reuters report. Meanwhile, Chevron is looking to sell some of its stake in the Permian, which should provide a good test of the new theory that US producers are showing discipline in their spending even now that prices are near 3 year highs pushing companies back into the black.
The EIA this morning published a note highlighting that non-fossil fuel sources reached 21% of total energy consumption in the US last year, the highest levels in more than a century, when wood was the renewable energy of choice. The report does point out that Nuclear power remains the largest non-fossil fuel category by usage, while petroleum’s share has held relatively steady the past several years. Those various sources of energy are facing multiple tests this week as temperatures & electricity usage have surged from coast to coast.
Another EIA report yesterday highlighted vulnerable areas of the country’s power grid this summer, with the majority of the country listed as an elevated or high risk of outage. New York was one of the relatively few states given a low risk status in the report, and right on cue, government officials are calling for conservation this week as the heat wave is giving their grid a tough test.
Click here to download a PDF of today’s TACenergy Market Talk.
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Energy Markets Rally Again Thursday After A Choppy Wednesday Session
Energy markets are trying to rally again Thursday after a choppy Wednesday session. RBOB gasoline futures are leading the push higher, on pace for a 3rd consecutive day of gains after finding a temporary floor Tuesday and have added 12 cents from those lows.
Equity markets are pointing sharply lower after a weak Q1 GDP estimate which seems to have contributed to a pullback in product prices over the past few minutes, but don’t be surprised if the “bad news is good news” low interest rate junkies start jumping in later on.
The DOE’s weekly report showed sluggish demand for gasoline and diesel, but inventory levels in most markets continue to follow their typical seasonal trends. Refinery runs held fairly steady last week with crude inputs down slightly but total gross throughputs up slightly as most facilities are now back online from a busy spring maintenance season and geared up for peak demand this summer.
Propane and propylene exports spiked to a record high north of 2.3 million barrels/day last week, which demonstrates both the US’s growing influence on global product markets, and the steady shift towards “other” products besides traditional gasoline and diesel in the level of importance for refiners.
The EIA acknowledged this morning that its weak diesel consumption estimates reflected the switch to Renewable Diesel on the West Coast, although they did not provide any timeline for when that data will be included in the weekly survey. The agency acknowledged that more than 4% of the total US consumption is now a combination of RD and Biodiesel, and that number is expected to continue to grow this year. This morning’s note also suggested that weak manufacturing activity was to blame for the sluggish diesel demand across the US, while other reports suggest the freight recession continued through Q1 of this year, which is also contributing to the big shift from tight diesel markets to oversupplied in several regions.
Valero kicked off the Q1 earnings releases for refiners with solid net income of $1.2 billion that’s a far cry from the spectacular earnings north of $3 billion in the first quarter of 2023. The refining sector made $1.7 billion, down from $4.1 billion last year. That is a pattern that should be expected from other refiners as well as the industry returns to a more normal market after 2 unbelievable years. You wouldn’t guess it by looking at stock prices for refiners though, as they continue to trade near record highs despite the more modest earnings.
Another pattern we’re likely to see continue with other refiners is that Renewable earnings were down, despite a big increase in production as lower subsidies like RINs and LCFS credit values sting producers that rely on those to compete with traditional products. Valero’s SAF conversion project at its Diamond Green joint venture is progressing ahead of schedule and will give the company optionality to flip between RD and SAF depending on how the economics of those two products shakes out this year. Valero also shows part of why refiners continue to disappear in California, with operating expenses for its West Coast segment nearly 2X that of the other regions it operates in.
Week 16 - US DOE Inventory Recap
Energy Markets Trading Quietly In The Red As Ethanol Prices Rally To Five-Month High
Energy markets are trading quietly in the red to start Wednesday’s session after a healthy bounce Tuesday afternoon suggested the Israel-Iran-linked liquidation had finally run its course.
There are reports of more Ukrainian strikes on Russian energy assets overnight, but the sources are sketchy so far, and the market doesn’t seem to be reacting as if this is legitimate news.
Ethanol prices have rallied to a 5-month high this week as corn and other grain prices have rallied after the latest crop progress update highlighted risks to farmers this year, lower grain export expectations from Ukraine, and the approval of E15 blends this summer despite the fact it pollutes more. The rally in grain and renewables prices has also helped RIN values find a bid after it looked like they were about to test their 4-year lows last week.
The API reported small changes in refined product inventories last week, with gasoline stocks down about 600,000, while distillates were up 724,000. Crude oil inventories increased by 3.2 million barrels according to the industry-group estimates. The DOE’s weekly report is due out at its normal time this morning.
Total reported another upset at its Port Arthur refinery that’s been a frequent flier on the TCEQ alerts since the January deep freeze knocked it offline and damaged multiple operating units. This latest upset seems minor as the un-named unit impacted was returned to normal operations in under an hour. Gulf Coast basis markets have shrugged off most reports of refinery upsets this year as the region remains well supplied, and it’s unlikely we’ll see any impact from this news.
California conversely reacted in a big way to reports of an upset at Chevron’s El Segundo refinery outside of LA, with CARBOB basis values jumping by more than a dime. Energy News Today continued to show its value by reporting the upset before the flaring notice was even reported to area regulators, proving once again it’s ahead of the curve on refinery-related events. Another industry news outlet meanwhile struggled just to remember where the country’s largest diesel seller is located.
Click here to download a PDF of today's TACenergy Market Talk