Oil Ground Up

Rory Johnston navigates listeners through the financial market dynamics of the world's oil and gas sector. Get the latest fundamentals behind the price action and hear from industry experts from the field and from the corporate offices of the world's leading energy producers.

  1. HACE 4 DÍAS

    Why There is No Off-Ramp for Trump’s Gulf War

    Matt Reed, Vice President at Foreign Reports, joins the Oil Ground Up Podcast to analyze the unprecedented and total closure of the Strait of Hormuz, a crisis that has now entered its third week with no clear off-ramp in sight. The conversation explores how a prolonged blockage represents more than a recessionary risk, threatening a "global depressionary event" that could fundamentally break energy markets and trigger double-digit contractions in regional economies. Reed breaks down the strategic impasse, noting that while the Trump administration seeks to degrade Iranian military capacity, Tehran is focused on regime survival by raising the global cost of intervention. The episode details a significant escalation in violence, highlighting recent Iranian strikes that targeted critical refineries in Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, as well as the destruction of Qatari LNG facilities. A major point of concern is the vulnerability of the East-West pipeline at Yanbu, demonstrating that even infrastructure designed to bypass the Strait is now within the reach of Iranian drones and missiles. The speakers address the "mystifying" price disconnect between Brent paper markets and the extreme physical scarcity reflected in $170 cash prices for Dubai crude and $200 jet fuel in Asia. In a surprising turn, the discussion touches on potential White House desperation, including rumors of seizing Iranian territory or offering sanctions relief to restore global supply. Finally, Reed concludes that the Strait remains a "shooting gallery" where commercial ships are ineligible for insurance, creating a crisis of lost time that could take years to repair.

    57 min
  2. 13 MAR

    View from the Gulf: Nader Itayim on Iran’s "Existential War" and the 8 Million Barrel Shutdown

    Nader Itayim of Argus Media joins the Oil Ground Up podcast to analyze the unprecedented escalation of the direct conflict between Iran, Israel, and the United States and its devastating impact on global energy markets. The discussion explores how Iran has transitioned from decades of "proxy warfare" to what leadership now describes as an "existential war," abandoning its traditional "strategic patience" in favor of lashing out to create maximum economic chaos. Itayim details the severe physical disruptions to the market, revealing that nearly 8 million barrels per day have been shut in across Saudi Arabia, the UAE, Kuwait, and Iraq. A major focus is placed on the strategic maneuvers of Saudi Aramco, which is "sweating its assets" by utilizing the East-West pipeline to bypass the Strait of Hormuz and export crude through the port of Yanbu. Host Rory Johnston and Nader critique the Trump administration's lack of a clear endgame, highlighting the tension between military goals like "sinking the Navy" and the urgent need to prevent a full-scale global economic depression. The conversation delves provides insight into the fragmented leadership within Tehran, where various power centers like the IRGC may be operating independently to target regional refineries and critical infrastructure. But what does an end game to this conflict look like? Rory and Nader question whether the Gulf can ever return to being a "safe neighborhood" after such a profound display of regional instability.

    1 h y 4 min
  3. 12/12/2025

    From Super Major to Super Surplus: Parsing Chaos in the Oil Market with Doug Terreson

    The Oil Ground Up podcast welcomes Doug Terreson to parse the dynamics of the chaotic and confusing current oil market. Terreson details his illustrious career path, which included drilling oil wells for Schlumberger, managing one of the world’s largest energy funds on the buy side at Putnam, and managing the global energy group at Morgan Stanley and Evercore for 30 years. He explains how his research note, "The Era of the Super Major" (1998), spurred the industry's most significant consolidation phase since 1911 by forcing companies to pivot from growing production to a value-based model. This focus on value was reinforced by "The Pledge" in 2017, which mandated greater capital discipline, flat spending, and tying intrinsic value metrics to CEO pay. Discussing the present, Terreson analyzes the complex situation where fundamental analysis points to potentially massive inventory builds that have never been seen before. However, he suggests the market must also account for aggressive geopolitical currents, including a potential strategic push from the U.S. and allies that may be defunding three different global conflicts. Finally, Terreson shares his long-term view on the refining sector, recalling his profitable "Golden Age of Refining" call and asserting that utilization rates and margins are poised to rise again due to zero net growth in global refining capacity.

    1 h y 7 min

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Rory Johnston navigates listeners through the financial market dynamics of the world's oil and gas sector. Get the latest fundamentals behind the price action and hear from industry experts from the field and from the corporate offices of the world's leading energy producers.

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