No current plan for the UAE to leave OPEC oil alliance, sources say
The OPEC logo pictured ahead of an informal meeting between members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) in Algiers, Algeria.
Ramzi Boudina | Reuters
The United Arab Emirates does not intend to leave the influential OPEC oil alliance at this time, two senior officials with knowledge of the matter told CNBC, after a recent report signaled internal talks over such a departure.
The sources spoke on condition of anonymity as they are not allowed to publicly discuss the topic. The UAE oil ministry and Adnoc, the state-owned oil company of the United Arab Emirates, did not immediately respond to CNBC requests for comment.
On March 3, the Wall Street Journal reported that rising political disagreements between OPEC+ chair Saudi Arabia and the UAE have once more sparked questions over the latter’s future in the producers’ coalition.
Such a departure would remove the cooperation of the third-largest producer of the OPEC subgroup and hint at further disunity within the alliance after the recent exits of Ecuador and Qatar — at a time when oil prices remain trapped between limited global spare capacity and potential demand increases from a reopening China.
The Brent contract with May expiry was trading at $84.76 per barrel at 1 p.m. London time, down by $1.07 per barrel from the previous close price. The front-month Nymex WTI contract was at $78.72 per barrel, lower by 96 cents per barrel from the previous settlement price.
Abu Dhabi has historically been a staunch ally of Saudi Arabia in OPEC dynamics and, alongside Kuwait and Riyadh, shaped the informal Gulf trifecta that has occasionally stepped in to assist group policies with additional, voluntary production cuts. Beyond oil strategy, the close ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE have started to show some strain, as the two countries have diverging aims in the conflict in Yemen and vie for foreign investment.
Oil divisions first emerged in the summer of 2021, a year into a spartan Saudi-led production strategy to drastically lower OPEC+ output in response to the Covid-19 demand shock for transport fuels. OPEC+ decisions require unanimous endorsement, and the UAE at the time exercised its veto to hold up a group meeting until it earned a concession that it — alongside Russia, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and Iraq — should receive a higher production “baseline.” Baselines are the reference level that determine the starting point for a country’s pro-rata contribution to OPEC+ collective cuts or increases. The higher the baseline, the higher the level to which an OPEC+ member country may produce without violating its commitments.
Individual members’ bids to increase their OPEC+ quotas have largely died down in recent months, as underinvestment, sanctions, sabotage and infrastructural collapse saw the quotas of several countries surpass their production capacity. The UAE is one of a handful of OPEC+ members that has remaining spare capacity and is working to bolster it. Paris-based watchdog, the International Energy Agency, found that the Emirates’ most recently produced 3.23 million barrels per day in February, well below its country’s IEA-assessed sustainable capacity of 4.12 million barrels per day. Abu Dhabi is working to hike its spare capacity to 5 million barrels per day by 2027.
The tense discussions of 2021 sparked questions of potential pressure that the state-owned Abu Dhabi National Oil Company could be exercising on the oil ministry to reduce oil cuts that rein in national revenues. Three sources indicated to CNBC that there is currently no friction between Adnoc and the ministry over the UAE’s ongoing participation in OPEC+. The two organizations are fully aligned, one of the sources said.
Striking a balance between the profit priorities of national oil companies and the OPEC+ loyalties of oil ministries often epitomizes the challenge that OPEC+ member countries face to choose between short and long-term gains. The coordination between the two entities is seamless in some countries: Saudi Arabia’s state-controlled Aramco typically awaits the conclusion of OPEC+ meetings before releasing its official formula prices to customers at the start of the month.
Adnoc is in a cycle of growing and diversifying the reach of its business. The company is expected to float 5% of its Adnoc Gas business in a highly anticipated public offering and begin trading on March 13. Adnoc is also looking to open a full-fledged Geneva office for its trading subsidiary on an uncertain timeline.
Volkswagen is advertising its 2024 ID.4 Standard at $999 down, $149/month for 24 months. That’s an average monthly lease cost of just $184/month plus tax and license, making it the cheapest of all January EV lease offers we’ve found.
We haven’t seen a great lease deal like this on a five-passenger electric SUV since last April, when Toyota slashed the average lease cost of its bZ4X XLE down to $191/month for 2023 model and $227/month for a 2024 model. In-stock bZ4X inventories were depleted in a few weeks, and dealers subsequently started to hike their asking prices as they collected deposits for ordered and in-transit vehicles. It stands to reason that the same phenomena could occur with this incredible ID.4 lease offer, so act quickly if you’re intrigued by this deal.
Equipped with a 62kWh battery and a single motor that drives the rear wheels, the ID.4 in Standard trim (MSRP $41,160) can travel 206 miles on a full charge and achieve 60mph from standstill in 7.3 seconds. Consumers that require more range or performance can opt for an array of higher trim levels, ranging from the ID.4 Pro RWD (291 miles, 0-60mph in 6.1 seconds, MSRP $46,300) to the top-of-the-line fully-equipped ID.4. Pro S AWD (263 miles, 0-60mph in 4.6 seconds, MSRP $55,300).
For those that prefer to buy rather than lease, Volkswagen is running a $10,500 Retail Customer Bonus Cash incentive on the ID.4 which means that the ID.4 Standard can be bought for just $30,660.
As far as dealer offers, a quick survey of a few VW dealers shows that VW of Thousand Oaks in southern California, VW of West Islip in New York and King VW in Maryland have dealer discounts of about $2000 that should stack on top of manufacturer incentives to lower the monthly cost of a lease or reduce the final price on a purchase.
We can help you find a great deal on an in-stock Volkswagen ID.4. Also, check our Electric Vehicle Price Guide and Electric Vehicle Lease Guide over the next week or two as we find the best dealer offers on EVs in the US.
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Hamburger Hochbahn AG operates the city of Hamburg’s bus system, and they’ve just placed an order with Daimler Buses for 350 fully electric Mercedes-Benz eCitaro buses to be delivered to the northern German city for use as zero-emission public transport.
Hamburger Hochbahn AG becomes the latest bus operator to put in a major order with Daimler – as I type this, fully 95 examples of the Mercedes-Benz eCitaro electric buse have already been deployed on the streets of Hamburg through Vhh.mobility, with both Mercedes and Vhh.mobility calling the bus fleet’s arrival a major step towards CO2-neutral local transport.
“I am very pleased that, together with vhh.mobility, we can make a significant contribution to emission-free local transport in the Hamburg metropolitan region,” says Till Oberwörder, CEO of Daimler Buses. “Our battery-electric eCitaro city bus offers an excellent overall package: The modern, long-range electric drive ensures that passengers reach their destinations quietly and locally CO2-neutrally. Advanced assistance systems also increase safety in all road traffic conditions.”
When discussing their order, Hamburger Hochbahn AG representatives said they were particularly impressed by the low total cost of ownership (TCO) and the ease of maintenance offered by the Mercedes eCitaro electric bus over its service life.
The Mercedes eCitaro buses ship with 98 kWh battery packs, configured in either 294, 392, 490, or 588 kWh specifications, depending on what’s needed by the bus operator. Hamburger Hochbahn AG plans to convert its entire fleet to emission-free drive systems by 2030, and the company goes to great efforts to ensure that 100% of the energy it uses to charge those vehicles comes from sustainable and truly “green” sources.
Electrek’s Take
Replacing diesels with electric vehicles in heavily populated areas has solid, observable, measurable benefits – not just in terms of cost, but in terms of reducing surface-level air pollution and improving overall quality of life. There’s absolutely no way to continue to justify the use of diesel in urban transit, and it’s great to see that Hamburg agrees.
SOURCE | IMAGES: Daimler Trucks, via Power Progress.
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Electric equipment from XCMG can now be ordered with interchangeable battery swap tech, enabling heavy trucks and construction equipment to swap out their BYD-developed, 400 kWh battery packs in just three minutes, and top-off as quickly as diesel.
Xuzhou Construction Machinery Group Co., Ltd. (XCMG, for short) may not be a household name here in the US, but the Chinese multinational is the third largest manufacturer of construction machinery in the world – and, with the launch of a full line of heavy equipment featuring battery-swap technology, they’re making a case for becoming the number 1 HDEV manufacturer sooner than later.
And we’re not just talking about off-highway and heavy equipment – the XCMG’s swappable BYD batteries are making their way to on-road trucks as well … but we’ll get to that.
XCMG ZNK95 electric autonomous haul truck
XCMG showed off its latest electric equipment at last month’s Bauma China show, including an updated version of its of its 85-ton autonomous electric mining truck. Known as the ZNK95 (above), the truck features a fully cab-less design – meaning there isn’t even a place for an operator to sit, let alone operate. That’s too bad, too, because what operator wouldn’t want to experience a dedicated permanent magnet synchronous electric drive system capable of putting out 800 kW (1070 hp) and 22,000 Nm (16,200 lb-ft) of torque?
But autonomous solutions aren’t about hp and torque – they’re about keeping operators out of extreme and dangerouns environments. To that end, XCMG says its new HDEVs are fully capable of operating in high-altitude, extremely cold environments with temperatures as low as -40°C (a temp. that most diesels wouldn’t be able to start at, let alone run).
Even in those extreme climates, the XCMG gets the job done with an autonomous driving system that integrates a number of multiple cutting-edge technologies that combine environmental perception, decision-making and planning, vehicle control, and communication into a single dashboard that can be monitored by the fleet manager.
The system can even diagnose faults on individual vehicles and bring them back to service before they break down in the field – a huge potential problem if a truck or dozer gets caught underground!
The ZNK95 has already been deployed at a large, open-pit mine in Inner-Mongolia, China, that has adopted a comprehensive unmanned and electrified construction solution from XCMG Machinery for its latest “green” mining operation. The company says the mine will emit 149,000 fewer tons of harmful carbon emissions than it would with diesel haul trucks annually by the time its full order of ZNK95s is delivered in 2026.
But wait, there’s more …
If you needed a reminder that China is light-years ahead of the US when it comes to electrification tech (and, yes, I know light-years measure distance and not time – grow up), you should know that XCMG’s swappable battery tech, which features 400 kWh packs using BYD blade-style battery cells packed at a facility that’s run as a JV between XCMG and BYD, is such a non-event in a country that’s seen millions of swaps that it didn’t even merit a press release at Bauma.
The trucks were just shown, and even that was after more than 1500 of the battery-swap capable MDEVs (XCMG’s new XG2 EX630S cabovers) was already delivered to customers in China and put into service.
In fact, the only reason I know about it at all was because I follow Etrucks New Zealand, an XCMG dealer, on LinkedIn, and he was talking it up.
“XCMG are by far the dominant EV exhibitor at Bauma Shanghai. Here a truck crane solution to swap construction machine batteries,” said Ross Linton, owner and President of Etrucks New Zealand. “Here a truck crane solution to swap construction machine batteries.”
XCMG battery swap crane
I’ll be at CES next week, where I’m sure Caterpillar will be playing up its 100th anniversary, John Deere will once again show off a new, updated remote/autonomous solution, and Volvo will reveal another new addition to its HDEV line-up. None of them are likely to show up with a practical battery-swap EV solution that’s ready to deploy, today.
Instead, they’re all playing catch up – if they’re aware of XCMG at all.
SOURCES | IMAGES: Etrucks New Zealand, International Mining, USS.
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