| Few things in are more complex than energy logistics, and the world is about to get a masterclass.
Different crude grades with different chemical make-ups with different reliabilities lead to different refining dependencies. Some crudes are thick (heavy). Others thin (light). Still others are laden with impurities (sour), while others are pure (sweet). Small mismatches in crude quality can typically be managed with some creative blending.
That’s totally not what’s about to happen.
Cancelled ship insurance policies. Customers and shippers not wanting to be caught with potentially-sanctioned oil. Investor abandonments. War disruptions. Sabotage. The world’s single-largest crude grade by volume – Russia’s Urals blend – is vanishing from the market. Within weeks some 5% of global oil production will be gone. For years. At a minimum. |
