Free Republic

Satellite imagery revealed a massive suspected oil slick spreading near Kharg Island, Iran’s main oil export terminal, in what experts say could be evidence that Tehran’s oil infrastructure is buckling under mounting U.S. pressure. The slick, seen in Copernicus Sentinel satellite images between Wednesday and Friday, covered roughly 45 square kilometers west of the island, according to analysts cited by Reuters. The incident is emerging as a potential sign that Trump’s maritime pressure campaign is achieving one of its central objectives: overwhelming Iran’s export system to the point where Tehran can no longer move or store crude fast enough to...

In case of any doubt about Norway’s commitment to maintain – and expand – its production of gas and oil offshore, the energy minister, Terje Aasland, has a pithy response: “We will develop, not dismantle, activity on our continental shelf.” This week, to the alarm of environmental campaigners, he announced that three gasfields off the country’s southern coast would reopen by the end of 2028 – nearly three decades after they closed – to meet a shortfall caused by the impact of the war in Ukraine and disruption to supplies from the Middle East. The decision will help keep gas...

“As we warned: the regime has run out of storage capacity. For days now, they’ve been faking tanker transfers while pouring massive amounts of extracted oil straight into the ocean. Deliberate. Criminal. Environmental catastrophe. They are literally poisoning the sea. This is ecocide in real time.”

China had a head start on controling rare earths. Trump cut off oil from Iran to China, and uses that as leverage to get access to China rare earths. Israel is pioneering new rare earth extraction technology in the Negev, and working on recycling old electronics and batteries for their rare earth content.

The Norwegian government has been heavily criticised for approving plans to reopen three North Sea gasfields nearly three decades after they were closed to help fill the gap in energy supplies created by the Middle East war. Amid sharp price rises in oil and gas since the US and Israel’s attack on Iran in February, Oslo has also given its approval for oil and gas companies to explore in 70 new locations in the North Sea, Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea. The decision by the Labour-run government goes against the advice of the country’s environment agency and has infuriated left-leaning...

American attack helicopters sank six Iranian small boats in the Strait of Hormuz on Monday — as the Trump administration works to back the regime into a corner — forcing it to choose between allowing ships through the strait or attacking them and provoking a return to war. Two US-flagged cargo ships successfully passed through the strait as part of a new American initiative, “Project Freedom.” Frustrated by the lack of progress with Iranian negotiators, Trump is allegedly forcing Iran’s hand by deploying US warships directly into the Strait of Hormuz to escort neutral vessels that have been trapped in...

Beijing's empire isn't built on factories, AI labs, or rare earths. It's built on a single nation the West spent two decades dismissing — Iran. And the day Tehran's regime falls, the entire architecture China assembled over thirty years folds inward like wet cardboard. In this deep dive, we expose the hidden financial, energy, and geographic dependencies binding Beijing to Tehran — from the secret yuan-settled oil deals and the petroyuan experiment, to the Belt and Road's only viable land corridor, to the $9–12 billion annual "shadow fleet" subsidy quietly underwriting Chinese export manufacturing. We examine why China cannot quietly...

Iran fired 12 ballistic missiles, three cruise missiles, and four drones at the UAE today, says the Emirati Defense Ministry. The attacks caused three moderate injuries. Since the start of the war on February 28, Iran has fired 549 ballistic missiles, 29 cruise missiles, and 2,260 drones at the UAE, which has suffered more Iranian attacks than any other country.

Asian economies are dramatically increasing imports of discounted Russian crude amid global supply disruptions. A temporary U.S. sanctions waiver is enabling more Russian oil to flow into global markets. The shift risks boosting Moscow’s war revenues while exposing the limits of Western energy sanctions. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, several major world powers introduced strict sanctions on trade with Moscow. .. However, some countries, such as India and China, have used these sanctions as an excuse to buy discounted crude and gas from Russia, in a bid to reduce costs and boost energy security. Imports of Russian...

In this episode of The Winston Marshall Show, I sit down with Harriet Hageman for a controversial conversation on corruption, immigration, foreign policy, and free speech. Hageman lays out explosive claims surrounding alleged fraud involving the Southern Poverty Law Centre, arguing that the organisation fabricated and funded extremist activity while profiting from it. We unpack the broader implications of those allegations, the role of media narratives, and what potential indictments could reveal. The conversation then turns to what she describes as systemic fraud tied to mass migration, focusing on Minnesota and the Somali community. Hageman argues that failures of governance,...

US Oil & Gas Association@US_OGA·7hWe see where the Regime has trolled the SecDef. Admirable. But let's show them how it's done...."If you have to export 1.5 million barrels oil in 5-gallon buckets instead of tankers, because a US Naval blockade has choked off your export capacity, that's 12.6 million Home Depot buckets per day.To assist you in your efforts, here is the link to Home Depot where you can find those buckets for $3.98. There are 17,644 currently available.P.S. For the mullahs: 1 barrel = 42 gallons."ransomnote: The post above is in response to the following post.

Venezuela’s oil exports rose to 1.23 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, the highest level since 2018, as shipments to the United States, India, and Europe accelerated. Exports climbed 14% from March levels, according to shipping data and PDVSA documents, with 66 cargoes leaving Venezuelan ports during the month. That compares with 61 vessels in March carrying about 1.08 million bpd. Since the January capture of Nicolas Maduro and the installation of an interim government, Washington has eased sanctions and taken control of Venezuelan oil sales. That shift has reopened access for trading houses and joint-venture partners, including Chevron,...

President Donald Trump granted a key approval Thursday for a major new oil pipeline from Canada into the U.S. that’s been dubbed “Keystone Light” over its similarities to a contentious project blocked by the Biden administration. The three-foot-wide (1 meter) Bridger Pipeline Expansion would carry up to 550,000 barrels (87,400 cubic meters) of oil a day from Canada through Montana and Wyoming, where it would link with another pipeline. The pipeline needs additional state and federal environmental approvals before construction, which company officials expect to start next year. Environmentalists hope to stop the project over worries that the pipeline could...

The Trump administration is arguing that the war in Iran has already ended because of the ceasefire that began in early April, an interpretation that would allow the White House to avoid the need to seek congressional approval… While the ceasefire has since been extended, Iran maintains its chokehold on the Strait of Hormuz, and the U.S. Navy is maintaining a blockade to prevent Iran’s oil tankers from getting out to sea... Under the War Powers Resolution, the law that sought to constrain a president’s military powers, President Donald Trump had until Friday to seek congressional authorization or cease fighting....

Americans are staring at $4+ gas and asking a simple question that should have a simple answer. If the United States is the largest oil producer on Earth, why does it still feel like an oil-importing country every time prices spike? That question matters far beyond the gas station. It cuts straight into inflation, consumer behavior, Fed policy, and where capital flows next. What looks like a pricing anomaly is actually a structural reality that investors ignore at their own risk.This Was Supposed to Be the Easy PartGasoline prices have climbed to an average of roughly $4.26 per gallon, the...

Brent crude over $119 as Trump sticks with blockade A late update: Oil is now approaching its highest level since the Iran war began. Brent crude has risen over $119 a barrel, up 7% today, after president Donald Trump told Axios he will not lift a naval blockade of Iran’s ports until he secures a deal with Tehran to address the country’s nuclear program. ...

Oil prices jumped more than 5% Wednesday, on a report that President Donald Trump is prepared to keep the U.S. Navy blockade of Iran in place for an extended period. International benchmark Brent crude futures rose more than 5% to $117.58 per barrel at 11:21 a.m. ET, U.S. West Texas Intermediate futures with June delivery rose more than 5% to $105.33 per barrel. Trump has decided in recent meetings to continue the blockade of Iran rather than resume bombing or walk away from the conflict, U.S. officials told The Wall Street Journal. The president has told his aides recently to...

The shock announcement Tuesday comes after the UAE was the target of missile and drone attacks for weeks by fellow OPEC member Iran. Tehran’s attacks on shipping in the Strait of Hormuz has also severely constrained the UAE’s ability to export oil, threatening the foundation of its economy. The UAE has played an influential role in OPEC’s decisions over nearly six decades. It was the group’s third-largest oil producer in February behind Saudi Arabia and Iraq. The UAE’s OPEC membership originated with the Emirate of Abu Dhabi in 1967, seven years after the organization was founded. The UAE came to...

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) is quitting the Opec and Opec+ groups of major oil producing nations next month after nearly 60 years of membership. The UAE said its decision would help it meet growing global energy demand in the long term after recent investments to boost its production capacity. It is seen as a blow to the cartel, with one analyst describing the exit as "the beginning of the end of Opec". The Gulf state's energy minister said being a country with no obligation under the groups would give it more flexibility. Opec was formed in 1960 by five...

The United Arab Emirates announced Tuesday that it will exit OPEC on May 1. “This decision follows a comprehensive review of the UAE’s production policy and its current and future capacity and is based on our national interest and our commitment to contributing effectively to meeting the market’s pressing needs,” the UAE energy ministry said in a statement.