The Oct’25 Brent Futures contract initially rallied to $68.23/bbl at 15:37 BST before falling to $67.36/bbl at 16:07 BST. Prices have since fallen further to $67.26/bbl at 17:30 BST (time of writing).In the news, PetroChina has proposed a $5.59 Bn deal to acquire three natural gas storage facilities from its parent company, China National Petroleum Corporation. The acquisition will add nearly 11 Bn cubic meters of gas storage capacity and aims to boost efficiency and support China’s growing reliance on natural gas as it shifts away from coal. In other news, Russia has raised its August crude oil export target from western ports by 200Kb/d to around 2 mb/d after Ukrainian drone strikes shut down refineries, freeing up more crude for export. However, uncertainty remains due to ongoing attacks, shifting repair schedules, and limited vessel availability. Ust-Luga port is operating at half capacity, with some volumes redirected to Novorossiisk and Primorsk. Brazil’s Petrobras could return to Nigeria soon, according to Nigerian President Bola Tinubu, who expressed support during a joint news conference with Brazil’s President Lula da Silva. Petrobras exited Nigeria over a decade ago to focus on domestic priorities, but Tinubu said reforms and improvements in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector now make the country an attractive partner again. Petrobras is reportedly in talks to re-enter Nigerian deepwater exploration and to buy stakes in African assets from ExxonMobil, Shell, and TotalEnergies. Finally, the front-month Oct/Nov spreads are at $0.53/bbl and the 6-month Oct/Apr spread is at $1.49/bbl.
