The Sep’25 Brent futures contract strengthened slightly from $69.20/bbl at 21.20 to see resistance at $69.80/bbl this morning between 8.00-8.30 BST but softened to $69.30/bbl at 11.37 BST (time of writing). PetroChina has approved a $9.56 billion refinery and petrochemical complex in Dalian, northeast China, following the closure of an older nearby plant, according to sources. The new Changxing Island site will include a 200 kb/d refinery, a 1.4 million mt/year ethylene plant, and units for polyethylene, polypropylene, and polyolefin elastomers. Gulf Coast refiners are importing more crude from the Middle East and South America to replace lost Venezuelan and Mexican supplies. US sanctions and falling output cut Gulf imports of Venezuelan and Mexican heavy crude. In July, imports rose from Colombia (+100%), Guyana, Brazil (+58%), and the Middle East (highest since January). Kazakhstan’s oil exports via Black Sea ports resumed after a brief halt, as Russia’s FSB cleared foreign tankers. The stoppage followed new Russian rules requiring FSB approval for foreign ships, linked to sanctions tensions with the EU. Exports through the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC), including Chevron and Exxon, had been blocked. Kazakhstan’s Energy Ministry is also discussing operations and added security at Russia’s Baltic port of Ust-Luga. BP reported contamination in tanks at Turkey’s BTC Ceyhan terminal, though other loadings continue. BP will exit Australia’s AREH green hydrogen project, where it holds a 63.57% stake, as it shifts focus back to oil and gas. The 26 GW project, aimed at producing 1.6 million mt of green hydrogen annually, will continue with partners InterContinental Energy and CWP Global. Finally, the front-month Sep/Oct spread is at $0.83/bbl and the 6-month Sep/Mar’26 spread is at $2.42/bbl.
