Politically, Biden is trying to reap the rewards of the industry he was trying to kill. Joe Biden is counting on the industry he has taunted, slandered and sought to destroy to help the EU unleash the shackles of its energy-dependent slavery to Russia. A slavery that EU leaders fooled themselves into. At the same time, Biden’s policies restricting US manufacturing and transportation could have made an even bigger difference for the European continent.
But despite his efforts, Biden proudly promised an energy supply for Europe that was produced by private and public companies. He’s drained them of capital, made drilling more difficult, brought smaller independent producers to the brink of closure over proposed methane rules to reduce “methane leaks from oil and gas operations” that don’t do enough for small producers, anything but default them.
The Wall Street Journal reported that Biden was meeting with European Union leaders at a summit in Brussels, where devising a transatlantic plan to cut Europe’s purchases of Russian energy is a key issue. On Friday, the US and EU said they would work to deliver an additional 15 billion cubic meters of LNG to the 27-nation bloc this year, using supplies from the US and other countries. The EU imported a record 22 billion cubic meters of liquefied natural gas (LNG) last year. This happened because they decided to shut down nuclear power plants and gas fields and increase their unreliable use of wind and solar.
Bloomberg reported that the US has already shipped more LNG to Europe, with shipments doubling to a record 4.4 billion cubic meters in January and a similar level in February. Delivery of another 15 billion cubic meters could be feasible as long as Europe continues to pay a premium for cargo compared to Asian buyers. A significant boost for the global LNG supply will only come from 2025, when new projects are to go online.
But these projects wouldn’t come online if it weren’t for the determination of the US oil and gas industry. Biden explained that these moves would increase energy and national security. But while he’s beginning to understand the importance of energy to national security, he still shows no signs of using his power as president to make the US energy industry’s job easier. Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen famously told investors not to invest in fossil fuels, but now says high oil prices are threatening global growth. But now the White House is calling for more oil production. Biden said this sudden revelation is not a sign that he is abandoning his green agenda but is preparing to double it. God help us all.
The Russia/Ukraine war, which is mainly financed by the poor energy policies of Europe and the USA, is dragging on. Russia has threatened nuclear weapons and energy policies, and America’s lack of leadership still has the world flirting with a third world war. Russia is already threatening that on the Feast of the Annunciation it will respond to NATO strengthening its defenses.
Today Pope Francis will attempt to rededicate Russia and Ukraine to the Immaculate Heart of Mary in response to Our Lady of Fatima’s requests. For those who don’t know, Our Lady of Fatima was a Marian apparition that took place during World War I, which predicted World War II and also warned that Russia would spread its mistakes around the world unless the world repented would. A great book on this is The Pope and a President by Paul Kengor, which shows the parallels between these prophecies and the fall of the Soviet Union.
Germany is also trying to get out of Russian oil, but India and China are swallowing the reduced Russian barrels. According to “Spiegel”, Germany plans to cut purchases of Russian oil by 50% in the summer. The magazine quotes an internal memo from the Federal Ministry of Finance.
Despite signs the US is being called upon to restore global energy supplies and geopolitical stability, oil prices are falling. One reason is margins. Reuters reports that ICE increased margins for May futures by 19% effective March 25, the third margin update this year. ICE increased front-month Brent crude futures margins to $11,902 per 1,000 barrels, up from $10,030 previously, following updates effective Jan. 6 and March 14. According to ICE, this is the third margin update for ICE (NYSE: ) Brent futures in 2022. The move relates to initial margin, which is collateral paid to a clearing house by investors in futures markets in order to to cover the default risk of this investor.
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