News

U.S.-based Diversified Energy said on Wednesday it will acquire privately held Birch for about $1.8 billion, expanding its presence in the oil- and gas-rich Permian Basin. Here are a few details: * Birch produces about 68,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day and holds 480 net wells. * The acquisition will be funded primarily through a $1.5 billion asset-backed securitization arranged with investment firm Carlyle, along with existing credit facilities. * Diversified Energy and [Read more]

OTTAWA - The Bank of Canada stuck to the sidelines Wednesday as governor Tiff Macklem suggested the re-escalating trade war with the United States is not the only risk monetary policymakers are monitoring. The central bank left its policy rate unchanged at 2.25 per cent for a seventh consecutive decision. The move was widely expected by economists. The bank has been watching to see whether cost pressures from the war in Iran could spread into other pockets of the consumer [Read more]

U.S. crude oil output and demand for crude oil and petroleum products rose in June, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) said in its Petroleum Supply Monthly report, which was delayed until Tuesday. Crude output climbed to 13.79 million barrels per day (bpd) in June, up from 13.76 million bpd in May. The monthly record high was 14.00 million bpd in October 2025. U.S. demand for crude oil and petroleum products rose to 20.74 million bpd in June, up from 20.07 million bpd in May. [Read more]

U.S. Energy Secretary Chris Wright said on Wednesday that the U.S. would have very strict control over the flow of funds resulting from an oil deal announced earlier this week with North American Blue Energy Partners (NABEP). "The United States government negotiated this deal very carefully. We take business practices and confidence and operations extremely seriously," Wright said at a press conference in Caracas. Venezuelan businessman Alejandro Betancourt, who leads the company, is not [Read more]

OTTAWA - Finance Minister FranÇois-Philippe Champagne is expected to announce an extension of the gas tax holiday at a press conference in Ottawa on Wednesday. The Liberals temporarily suspended the federal 10-cent-per-litre excise tax on gas in April when the United States' war on Iran caused global fuel prices to spike. Gas prices are rising again as the conflict between the U.S. and Iran intensifies and as the Strait of Hormuz remains a supply line choke point. The excise tax [Read more]

Iran has added more ships it deems as non-compliant and subject to fines, confiscation or detention if they try to sail through the Strait of Hormuz, according to a government website. Tehran said on August 24 it had blacklisted 45 tankers that had broken its rules for navigating the Strait of Hormuz, and would take action against ​any vessels transferring loads, escalating its threats over the key waterway six months into a ‌war that began with U.S. and Israeli strikes on Iran. In an [Read more]

U.S. crude oil stockpiles fell sharply last week amid strong demand from the refining sector and higher exports, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday. Crude inventories fell by 4.5 million barrels to 424.5 million barrels in the week ended August 28, the EIA said, compared with analysts' expectations in a Reuters poll for a 1.1 million-barrel draw. Crude stocks at the Cushing, Oklahoma, delivery hub rose by 80,000 barrels in the week. U.S. exports rose by 691,000 bpd to [Read more]