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Tag: Patrick De Haan

  • Pump prices could rise after US, EU hit Russian oil companies with new sanctions and oil spikes

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    Oil prices spiked Thursday after the U.S. announced massive new sanctions on Russia’s oil industry in an attempt to get Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table and end Moscow’s brutal war on Ukraine.U.S. benchmark crude jumped 6%, to $62 per barrel midday Thursday and analysts say if the situation remains static, U.S. consumers will soon be paying more at the pump.Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, said while it was difficult to predict with certainty because of the number of moving parts, consumers will likely see a bump in prices as early as next week, if not sooner.“We’ll probably start to see motorists be impacted by the sanctions at the pump in the next couple days and it might take five days for that to be fully passed along,” De Haan said, adding that the full impact also depends on whether the Russian or U.S. positions change.“Russia will feel pressure to come to the table in light of the new developments or President Trump may react when he sees oil prices rising to levels that become uncomfortable, so I don’t think this is going to be very long lasting,” De Haan said.Oil prices have been relatively low for the past few years and last week the cost for barrel of U.S. benchmark crude fell below $57, its lowest level since early 2021. The price for a barrel of U.S. benchmark crude did rise near $79 a barrel early this year, just before President Donald Trump took office, a price not necessarily considered outrageously elevated by most analysts.The broad, extended decline in oil prices pushed the average price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. last week under $3 for the first time since December of last year, according to GasBuddy.For much of 2025, inflation has been held mostly in check, partly due to cheaper prices at the pump. However, that could change quickly as higher energy costs have a downstream effect on prices for virtually all products and services across industries.“The impact to a lot of Americans is that products derived from crude, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel are all likely to see price increases,” De Haan said.The main reason oil and gas have stabilized at lower levels this year is that the group of countries that are part of the OPEC+ alliance of oil-exporting countries have continued to boost production. Earlier this month, OPEC+ leaders announced they would raise oil production by 137,000 barrels per day in November, the same amount announced for October. The group has been raising output slightly in a series of boosts all year after announcing cuts in 2023 and 2024.Russia is the leading non-OPEC member in the 22-country alliance. The group’s next meeting is scheduled for Nov. 2.The sanctions against Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil follows calls from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as well as bipartisan pressure on Trump to hit Russia with harder sanctions on its oil industry, the economic engine that has allowed Russia to continue to execute the grinding conflict even as it finds itself largely internationally isolated. The European Union on Thursday announced its own measures targeting Russian oil and gas.The price for Brent crude, the international standard, rose $3.57 on Thursday to $66.15 per barrel.

    WASHINGTON —

    Oil prices spiked Thursday after the U.S. announced massive new sanctions on Russia’s oil industry in an attempt to get Russian President Vladimir Putin to the negotiating table and end Moscow’s brutal war on Ukraine.

    U.S. benchmark crude jumped 6%, to $62 per barrel midday Thursday and analysts say if the situation remains static, U.S. consumers will soon be paying more at the pump.

    Patrick De Haan, head of petroleum analysis for GasBuddy, said while it was difficult to predict with certainty because of the number of moving parts, consumers will likely see a bump in prices as early as next week, if not sooner.

    “We’ll probably start to see motorists be impacted by the sanctions at the pump in the next couple days and it might take five days for that to be fully passed along,” De Haan said, adding that the full impact also depends on whether the Russian or U.S. positions change.

    “Russia will feel pressure to come to the table in light of the new developments or President Trump may react when he sees oil prices rising to levels that become uncomfortable, so I don’t think this is going to be very long lasting,” De Haan said.

    Oil prices have been relatively low for the past few years and last week the cost for barrel of U.S. benchmark crude fell below $57, its lowest level since early 2021. The price for a barrel of U.S. benchmark crude did rise near $79 a barrel early this year, just before President Donald Trump took office, a price not necessarily considered outrageously elevated by most analysts.

    The broad, extended decline in oil prices pushed the average price for a gallon of gas in the U.S. last week under $3 for the first time since December of last year, according to GasBuddy.

    For much of 2025, inflation has been held mostly in check, partly due to cheaper prices at the pump. However, that could change quickly as higher energy costs have a downstream effect on prices for virtually all products and services across industries.

    “The impact to a lot of Americans is that products derived from crude, gasoline, diesel and jet fuel are all likely to see price increases,” De Haan said.

    The main reason oil and gas have stabilized at lower levels this year is that the group of countries that are part of the OPEC+ alliance of oil-exporting countries have continued to boost production. Earlier this month, OPEC+ leaders announced they would raise oil production by 137,000 barrels per day in November, the same amount announced for October. The group has been raising output slightly in a series of boosts all year after announcing cuts in 2023 and 2024.

    Russia is the leading non-OPEC member in the 22-country alliance. The group’s next meeting is scheduled for Nov. 2.

    The sanctions against Russian oil giants Rosneft and Lukoil follows calls from Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy as well as bipartisan pressure on Trump to hit Russia with harder sanctions on its oil industry, the economic engine that has allowed Russia to continue to execute the grinding conflict even as it finds itself largely internationally isolated. The European Union on Thursday announced its own measures targeting Russian oil and gas.

    The price for Brent crude, the international standard, rose $3.57 on Thursday to $66.15 per barrel.

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  • 1,300 Florida gas stations have run out of fuel. Hurricane Milton could cause even more trouble.

    1,300 Florida gas stations have run out of fuel. Hurricane Milton could cause even more trouble.

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    New York (CNN) — Gas stations in many areas of Florida are running out of gasoline, as residents prepare for Hurricane Milton.

    Demand for gas has surged as some residents in Milton’s path are trying to fuel up before they evacuate. Others who plan to stay put are trying to fill gas tanks so they’ll be able to power their generators should they lose electricity for an extended period.

    Gas price tracking service GasBuddy reported that as of 2 pm Tuesday afternoon, 17.4% of gas stations statewide were without fuel, a dramatic spike from just 3% on Monday. With about 7,500 stations in the state, that estimate means there are about 1,300 currently without gasoline.

    The situation was far worse in areas facing mandatory evacuation orders. In Fort Myers, on the state’s Gulf Coast, 70% of stations were without gas as of Monday night.

    “It’s a testament to how fast the storm is moving and how intense it is,” said Patrick De Haan, an energy analyst at GasBuddy. “It’s a game changer.”

    Florida Governor Ron DeSantis tried to tamp down panic buying and drivers topping off tanks, which can make shortages worse. DeSantis in a press conference Tuesday morning assured residents that the state is working to bring emergency supplies of gasoline to stations that have run out of gas.

    He said the state’s reserves include 110,000 gallons of gasoline and 268,000 gallons of diesel fuel. And he said while those reserves are falling because of distribution that has already taken place, there are 1.2 million gallons of both fuels currently in route to the state. DeSantis said 27 fuel trucks were escorted by the Florida Highway Patrol to deliver fuel to stations in the anticipated impact area of the storm.

    “We have been dispatching fuel over the past 24 hours as gas stations have run out,” he said at a press conference early Tuesday. “There is no fuel shortage. Fuel continues to arrive to the state of Florida. But lines at gas stations have been long and gas stations are running out quicker than they otherwise would.”

    Problems could persist after Milton passes

    Once the storm passes, problems getting gasoline into the state could persist if there is damage to the Port of Tampa from the hurricane, said gasoline market experts. That’s because that port is a key entry point for much of the gasoline that arrives in the state, via tanker or barge.

    From there, it is distributed the rest of the state by tanker trucks and by a pipeline leading to the Orlando area. But there are no pipelines bringing gasoline from refineries on the Gulf Coast or northern states as fuel is moved around much of the rest of the country.

    “The Port of Tampa is critical to supply for much of the state,” said Tom Kloza, global head of energy analysis for OPIS, which tracks gasoline prices for AAA. “It is one of most crucial pieces of fuel infrastructure in the country. I’d be hard pressed to find a market more dependent on waterborne supply and more susceptible to hurricane and storm surge.”

    The port has been closed due to the storm, although DeSantis said it has fuel at its gasoline terminals currently, and continues to operate ahead of the storm. It could take a little while for it to reopen to tankers and barges once the storm passes, said Andy Lipow, oil analyst with Lipow Oil Associates.

    “They will not return until the storm has passed and the Coast Guard checks for debris sunk in the channel and put back the navigation buoys,” he said.

    And the real fear is that the hurricane and storm surge could cause significant damage to the port.

    “We are assuming, it doesn’t mean it’s going to happen, but we are assuming that there’s going to be significant damage to the Port of Tampa, so we’re operating as if there’s going to be a significant interruption in their ability to receive fuel,” said DeSantis. He said state officials are working to make other arrangements to get fuel into the state.

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