by Riyoko Shibe
Scotland has a proud – and extensive – energy history. For much of the 20th century, the refinery at Grangemouth was a major hub around which a community not only formed but flourished. However, this was not to last. After decades of stagnation, the refinery is set to close in 2025. What lessons can we learn from Grangemouth’s history? Can this Scottish town help inform the nation’s transition away from fossil fuels?
Since the beginning of the 20th century, Tehran’s development has been closely linked with the oil industry. However, this connection to oil and petroleum culture has created its own set of challenges for the country’s ability to moving toward renewable energy practices.
by Sean Field and Mette M. High
In May 2020, the two main financial regulators in the United States (the SEC and CFTC) launched investigations into the multi-billion-dollar US Oil Fund (USO). Over the last decade, USO has attracted huge numbers of private household investors eager to invest in oil. Its shares are easily bought and sold on internet trading platforms and the share price closely tracks movements in the spot price of the West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil benchmark. But USO has been a volatile investment proposition.
by Sean Field and Mette M. High
When West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude oil plummeted to a closing price of –US $37.63 on 20 April 2020, the spot price of Brent crude oil only fell to US $17.36. This striking price difference between these two rival crude oil benchmarks highlights important dynamics that pertain to not only the supply and demand of oil, but also the social construction of futures markets.
by Mette M. High and Sean Field
When the COVID-19 pandemic struck, demand for crude oil fell suddenly. The pandemic exposed the logistics and storage constraints of the US landlocked oil infrastructure that was oversupplied by domestic and imported crude. But it also raised fundamental questions about the role and importance of financial trading on the futures market.
Across the world, energy systems are making the transition from fossil fuels to renewables. This energy transition, unlikely as it may sound, is influenced in a small but meaningful way, by whaling. This post considers how findings from environmental research conducted in collaboration with a small whaling community in the Caribbean provide key evidence for the healthy and sustainable benefits of renewable energy systems, especially in the context of small island developing states.
by Sean Field and Mette M. High
In a world that has been described as ‘petromodern’ and with oil as its beating blood, how can oil trade in negative prices? And how does this highlight the relationship between the physical and virtual dimensions of oil markets?
The global pandemic we are currently living through has plunged us in a state of unprecedented crisis. From the way we live our lives, carry out our work, care for our loved ones, the fundamental structures of our society and our economy have been shattered to the core.