Texas to pass Iraq and Iran as world's No. 3 oil powerhouse

as informed in In fact, Texas is pumping so much oil that it will surpass OPEC members Iran and Iraq next year, HSBC predicted in a recent report. Some oil execs believe the amount of oil in the Permian rivals Saudi Arabia's Ghawar Field, the world's largest conventional oilfield. The United States is pumping more oil than ever before, making it less reliant on the turbulent Middle East for imports. That means Texas will account for more than half of America's total oil production. Oil supplies from Iran are likely to plunge due to tough sanctions from the United States.

US could ask Russia for more oil as Iran sanctions loom

Despite thorny U.S.-Russia relations, the U.S. may press Russia and other producers to expand on their just-announced deal to increase crude output, as the U.S. attempts to cut off Iran from the world oil market. Novak told CNBC on the weekend that the hike was sufficient for now. Analysts expect sanctions against Iran to remove about 500,000 barrels a day from the world market by the end of the year. The sanctions on Iran and the U.S. exit from its nuclear agreement were also opposed by Russia, but sources say Russia was key in swaying Iran. Cohen said, "The broader thing is the sanctions have a potential to get much worse on Russia.

Iran threatens to block Strait of Hormuz over US oil sanctions

As it stated in A potential confrontation between the US and Iran is brewing in the Strait of Hormuz after Tehran threatened to block the Gulf passageway in retaliation for Washington's looming sanctions against Iranian oil exports – a threat the US military said would be immediately countered. "The Americans have claimed they want to completely stop Iran's oil exports. "First, Iran expects more concrete action from all parties to the nuclear agreement to sustain economic channels. Second, sustaining oil exports and market share is a red line for Iran. "If Trump implements his threat to squeeze Iran's oil exports, Tehran is prepared to escalate against the US to impose direct costs for global oil markets.

collected by :Frank Ithan