The complex crude glut picture
The swelling crude supply story involves the key plot twists of reluctant buyers, limited oil stocks and refiners playing the long game
The IEA is adamant the crude oil surplus is growing. Much of this oil was produced by Russia and now sits on ships, waiting for buyers. Potential customers, however, who are threatened by US sanctions on Russian oil, cannot be found. Rising tanker rates and increasing crude differentials reflect the situation as more Russian oil ends up in floating storage. It has been recently reported that Urals crude dropped below $40/bl as Dated Brent sold for more than $60/bl. Meanwhile, product inventories are tight and refinery margins are approaching record levels. Refining profits have been boosted by the sanctions on Russian crude as well as the instinct of processors to keep inventories tight when
Also in this section
9 March 2026
Petroleum Economist analysis sees increases in output from Saudi Arabia, Venezuela and Kazakhstan among others before region’s murky descent
9 March 2026
Energy sanctions are becoming an increasingly prominent tool of US foreign policy, with the country’s growth in oil and gas production allowing it to impose pressure on rivals without jeopardising its own energy security or that of its allies, argues Matthew McManus, a visiting fellow at the National Center for Energy Analytics
6 March 2026
The March 2026 issue of Petroleum Economist is out now!
6 March 2026
After Europe’s rapid buildout of floating LNG import capacity, Exmar CEO Carl-Antoine Saverys says future growth in floating gas infrastructure will increasingly be driven by developing markets as lower prices, rising energy demand and the need to replace coal unlock new opportunities for unconventional and tailor-made solutions
