U.S.-Israeli war on Iran causes major oil, gas disruptions
BNN Bloomberg
The U.S.-Israel war on Iran has disrupted oil and natural gas exports from the Middle East and forced production stoppages from Qatar to Iraq.
Below are the main energy disruptions so far.
Production shutdowns
OPEC’s second-largest producer, Iraq, slashes output: Iraq has cut nearly 1.5 million barrels per day - about half of its output - due to storage limits and the lack of an export route, officials told Reuters. They said the country may have to shut 3 million bpd, nearly all of its output, within days if exports do not resume.
QatarEnergy LNG halted: Qatar stopped operations at its LNG facilities on Monday, affecting some of the world’s largest plants and a source that supplies about 20 per cent of global LNG. QatarEnergy also suspended parts of downstream output on Tuesday. It declared force majeure on LNG shipments on March 4.
Saudi disruptions: Saudi Arabia, the world’s top oil exporter, suspended output at its 550,000 bpd Ras Tanura refinery and has begun rerouting crude loadings from eastern ports to Yanbu on the Red Sea. The refinery was struck again on March 4, without sustaining damage, the Saudi defense ministry said.
Iran’s Supreme Leader Ayatollah Mojtaba Khamenei says that the leverage of closing the Strait of Hormuz should be used and that Iran’s attacks on Gulf Arab neighbours will continue. His first statement since his appointment was read on state television Thursday by a news anchor.
Prime Minister Mark Carney is again heading overseas, this time to Norway to observe NATO Cold Response exercises as Canada deepens ties with Nordic countries.
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service says the threat level in Canada from Iran or its proxies has not changed since the war in Iran began nearly two weeks ago, while adding that threat-related activities are “likely to continue.”
Ottawa is letting an unnamed automaker import a higher quota of U.S.-made vehicles without tariffs because the company is selling and making more cars in Canada than first expected.
World shares tumbled on Monday, with Japan’s benchmark Nikkei 225 index plunging more than 5%, after oil prices spiked at nearly $120 a barrel, casting a shadow over economies heavily dependent on imports of oil and gas from the Middle East.
Prime Minister Mark Carney announced Sunday the date for three upcoming byelections.
The price of oil surged higher and showed no signs of halting its rapid climb a week after the U.S. and Israel launched major attacks on Iran that escalated into a war in the Middle East.
Scott Moe says Canada needs to separate its trade talks from its national security concerns when dealing with certain countries if it is serious about diversifying trading partners beyond the United States.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has landed in Japan on the final stop of a 10-day trip that also included Australia and India.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has landed in Japan on the final stop of a 10-day trip that also included Australia and India.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has landed in Japan on the final stop of a 10-day trip that also included Australia and India.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has landed in Japan on the final stop of a 10-day trip that also included Australia and India.
As Iran continued to exchange airstrikes with Israel and U.S. bases on Thursday, Canada’s top military commander said its Armed Forces are in talks to possibly help defend Persian Gulf states against bombing from Iran.