Inside the U.S.–Israel–Saudi Plan to Cut Iran Out of Global Oil
US Crude Oil Inventories See Surprise Build: API Sodium-ion batteries are gaining momentum… Simon Watkins is a former senior FX trader and salesman, financial journalist, and best-selling author.
He was Head of Forex Institutional Sales and Trading for… Whatever officially occurs next in the on-again/off-again negotiations towards a peace deal between the U.S.
and Iran, unofficially Tehran knows that it has established de facto control over both the world’s two key maritime energy transit routes -- the Strait of Hormuz and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait -- for at least as long as the Islamic regime remains in place in Iran.
Washington, London, Brussels, Beijing, and Moscow know it too.
The Strait of Hormuz remains effectively controlled by vast Iranian forces down its full eastern stretch, precluding any oil or liquefied natural gas (LNG) moving out from the Middle East and making its way either East through the Gulf of Oman and then the Arabian Sea to the big Asian buyers of China and India, or West into the Gulf of Aden.
Meanwhile, the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen control what happens to tankers trying to access the Bab el-Mandeb Strait from the Gulf of Aden, and before sailing up into the Red Sea before passing through the Gulf of Suez and into the Mediterranean Sea.
Before ‘Operation Epic Fury’ was launched by the U.S.
and Israel on 28 February, Iran had flagged the possibility that it would close both waterways if it were threatened; following the attacks, and Tehran’s closure of the Strait of Hormuz and interference in the Bab el-Mandeb Strait, the Islamic Republic has now permanently formalised its future response to any such threats.
and Saudi Arabia mitigate this situation, and when might they become effective? Or is another, more secretive plan currently being discussed between Washington, Tel Aviv, and the Gulf states, offer an even better option for dealing with Tehran? A major piece of the infrastructure connected to the U.S./Saudi idea that marks a broader geopolitical shift involves the MERA Oil private consortium -- a joint venture between the U.S.’s MWG Enterprises, the Patel Family Office, and PWS (an associate of the Saudi-headquartered AHQ Group) -- formally announced at the end of last month.
Following three years of discussion between the partners on possible sites, the group has entered the final stage of selecting a host for their planned US$5 billion integrated refinery and energy export corridor that will be located outside the Strait of Hormuz.
The final location has yet to be formally announced, but the planned development centres on a 200,000-barrel-per-day (bpd) integrated refinery linked to deepwater port infrastructure, large-scale storage of crude and refined products, and marine export facilities.
Its position outside the Strait of Hormuz is specifically designed to provide a route-resilient export platform with direct access to international shipping routes, according to the cons.
| Product | Price | Change |
|---|---|---|
| Brent Crude | $102.14/bbl | +0.34% |
| WTI Crude | $96.90/bbl | +0.21% |
| EN590 Diesel | $846/MT | +0.18% |
| Jet Fuel A-1 | $1090/MT | +0.55% |
| Mazut M100 | $450/MT | -0.15% |
| Bitumen 60/70 | $470/MT | +0.08% |
| Sulphur Gran 99.5% | $470/MT | -0.44% |
| Urea 46% Gran | $650/MT | +1.12% |
| NPK 16-16-16 | $460/MT | -0.28% |
| Nat Gas TTF | $15.42/MMBtu | +0.92% |
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