West Texas Intermediate was under pressure again on Friday for a second day in a row, falling below $69 a barrel, though it remained on pace for a nearly 1% gain for the week.
These moves in the commodity come as the U.S. encouraged OPEC and its allies to increase their output in order to lower prices and fuel an economic recovery. On top of this, the International Energy Agency also lowered its forecast for demand in oil for the rest of the year as Covid cases spike again.
In an interview with CNBC’s “Trading Nation,” Tocqueville Asset Management portfolio manager John Petrides gave his outlook on the energy market.
“The energy sector was brought through the wringer last year when the price of oil collapsed from around $50 to $15, and then it rebounded all the way up to north of $70 sort of 12 months later,” he said. “The space is very volatile; OPEC is a complete wild card, and obviously you have the pressure from the ESG [investors] and reducing carbon footprint,” he added.
Despite these concerns, Petrides said energy is “under-owned,” as it makes up only approximately 3% of the S&P 500. He suggests that the sector is valuable, pointing to its past earnings season.
“We heard from all of the energy players that they’re cutting capital expenditures,” he said. These companies also announced plans to redeploy their capital to cutting debt, repairing balance sheets and buying back stock.
Most importantly, however, Petrides points out that in the current low-yield environment, these companies have increased their dividend, making their stocks more attractive to investors. More specifically, he likes Chevron, calling the company “a beacon of safety” within a volatile oil market.
In the same “Trading Nation” interview, Miller Tabak’s chief market strategist, Matt Maley, was bullish on the sector.
In addressing the ESG concerns, he said, “We’re not going completely away from fossil fuels any time soon. It’s going to take multi-decades to move away from it.”
Taking a technical perspective, Maley points out how energy equities have outperformed the fundamental commodity itself: crude oil.
“Just like the stock market tends to move ahead of the economy in both directions, the energy stocks do the same thing,” he said. ”We saw even most recently, at the beginning of the summer, oil stocks rolled over in early November, and crude oil didn’t roll over for a couple more weeks, then it followed it lower.”
Maley suggests that the opposite is taking place more recently, specifically Monday with the move in crude.
“In the most recent pullback, crude oil went back down and retested its July lows, but if you look at the XLE, the energy stock ETF, it did not retest its lows, it outperformed,” he said. ”That’s telling me that WTI is going to bounce back, and when it does, that will exacerbate the rally in the XLE, and it will take off again.”
Investors should, however, keep an eye on the $65.20 level, Maley said. “If crude oil does break below that level, we’d have to readjust my thinking, but right now, I’m quite constructive on the group.”
Disclosure: John Petrides owns Chevron personally.
Leading yard operation 3PL YMX Logistics has announced plans to deploy fully twenty (20) of Orange EV’s fully electric Class 8 terminal trucks at a number of distribution and manufacturing sites across North America.
As the shipping and logistics industries increasingly move to embrace electrification, yard operations have proven to be an almost ideal use case for EVs, enabling companies like Orange EV, which specialize in yard hostlers or terminal tractors, to drive real, impactful change. To that end, companies like YMX are partnering with Orange EV.
“This relationship between YMX and Orange EV is a significant step forward in transforming yard operations across North America,” said Matt Yearling, CEO of YMX Logistics. “Besides the initial benefits of reduction in emissions and carbon footprint, our customers are also seeing improvements in the overall operational efficiency and seeking to expand. Our team members have also been sharing positive feedback about their new equipment and highlighting the positive impact on their health and day-to-day activities.”
This Orange looks good in blue
One of the most interesting aspects of this story – beyond the Orange EV HUSK-e XP’s almost unbelievable 180,000 lb. GCWR spec. – is that this isn’t a story about California’s ports, which mandate EVs. Instead, YMX is truly deploying these trucks throughout the country, with at least four currently in Chicago (and more on the way).
“Our collaboration with YMX Logistics represents a powerful stride in delivering sustainable yard solutions at scale for enterprise customers,” explains Wayne Mathisen, CEO of Orange EV. “With rising demand for electric yard trucks, our joint efforts ensure that more companies can access the environmental, financial, and operational benefits of electrification … this is a win for the planet, the workforce, and the bottom line of these organizations.”
We interviewed Orange EV founder Kurt Neutgens on The Heavy Equipment Podcast a few months back, but if you’re not familiar with these purpose-built trucks, it’s worth a listen.
On today’s thrilling episode of Quick Charge, we’ve got the all-new Hyundai IONIQ 9 and its “a “rolling living room” pivoting captain’s chairs, Kia gets a go-fast 7 passenger SUV and an updated EV6, while Honda announces plans to start producing solid-state batteries at its new facility in just a few weeks.
We’ve also got big news for American workers – a Minnesota power company is ditching coal for solar while ExxonMobil and LG Chem get to work extracting thousands of tons of lithium out of Tennessee’s soil.
Today’s episode is sponsored by BLUETTI, a leading provider of portable power stations, solar generators, and energy storage systems. For a limited time, save up to 52% during BLUETTI’s exclusive Black Friday sale, now through November 28, and be sure to use promo code BLUETTI5OFF for 5% off all power stations sitewide. Learn more by clicking here.
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Arevon Energy has kicked off operations at Vikings Solar-plus-Storage – one of the US’s first utility-scale solar peaker plants.
The $529 million project in Imperial County, California, near Holtville, features 157 megawatts of solar power paired with 150 megawatts/600 megawatt hours of battery storage.
Vikings Solar-plus-Storage is designed to take cheap daytime solar power and store it for use during more expensive peak demand times, like late afternoons and evenings. The battery storage system can quickly respond to changes in demand, helping tackle critical grid needs.
Vikings leverages provisions in the Inflation Reduction Act that support affordable clean energy, strengthen grid resilience, boost US manufacturing, and create good jobs.
The Vikings project has already brought significant benefits to the local area. It employed over 170 people during construction, many local workers, and boosted nearby businesses like restaurants, hotels, and stores. On top of that, Vikings will pay out more than $17 million to local governments over its lifespan.
“Vikings’ advanced design sets the standard for safe and reliable solar-plus-storage configurations,” said Arevon CEO Kevin Smith. “The project incorporates solar panels, trackers, and batteries that showcase the growing strength of US renewable energy manufacturing.”
The project includes Tesla Megapack battery systems made in California, First Solar’s thin-film solar panels, and smart solar trackers from Nextracker. San Diego-based SOLV Energy handled the engineering, procurement, and construction work.
San Diego Community Power (SDCP) will buy the energy from the Vikings project under a long-term deal, helping power nearly 1 million customer accounts. SDCP and Arevon have also signed an agreement for the 200 MW Avocet Energy Storage Project in Carson, California, which will start construction in early 2025.
Vikings is named after the Holtville High School mascot, and Arevon is giving back to the local community by funding scholarships for deserving Holtville High students.
Arevon is a major renewable energy developer across the US and a key player in California, with nearly 2,500 MW in operation and more than 1,250 MW under construction.
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