MBS just told Putin to f off

[Recursion]

https://www.npr.org/2020/03/08/813439501/saudi-arabia-stuns-world-with-massive-discount-in-oil-sold-to-asia-europe-and-u-

Oil prices are poised to drop dramatically after Saudi Arabia announced a stunning discount in oil prices — of $6 to $8 per barrel — to its customers in Asia, the United States and Europe.

The world's second-largest producer this weekend also said it will actually boost oil production instead of cutting it to stem falling prices, in a stunning reversal in policy from just two days ago.

The benchmark Brent oil price already plunged 9.4%, to $45.27 per barrel, on Friday. The drop came after Saudi Arabia, the rest of OPEC and Russia failed to agree on production cuts to combat falling prices due to fears that the coronavirus epidemic will halt world economic growth. Oil prices are down more than 30% this year.

There's some kind of power struggle and consolidation going on in Ryadh, and MBS seems to have won it. The prize is he just told Putin to go fuck himself on oil prices, which will continue to fall for the time being.

[LakeArenal]

1. What or who is MBS?

[Recursion]

2. Mohammad bin Salman bin Abulaziz al Saud, crown prince of Saudi Arabia

And effectively the leader of the country in all but name

[LakeArenal]

3. Thanks

[Baitball Blogger]

18. The one who put the kill on Khasoggi?

[Recursion]

22. The same (nt)

[Baitball Blogger]

25. Do you get the impression he's trying to curry favor with the American people?

But, not Russia? Can't see the angle, since oil prices may be the one thing that will help Trump, but at the cost of pissing off Russia. Trump will be ambivalent (And I mean that in the olden version of the definition.)

[HarlanPepper]

17. Saudi Arabia's answer to Caligula.

[LakeArenal]

20. Or our wanna be trumpigula?

[HarlanPepper]

21. Yes, that too.

Although one could make the argument MDS has the potential to be much more sadistic given that SA is an absolute monarchy and he can literally do anything he wants to anyone. Trump only thinks he has that power.

[FoxNewsSucks]

28. Mr. Bone Saw

[Me.]

4. Good

Putin has it coming and if his economy continues to get worse his position, which id already fragile in Russia, may become tenuous. Too much time spent on our election. And whatever slaps he gives truly evil MBS are well deserved. But what is Jared going to do with MBS having less money?

[coti]

5. Good in that it hurts Putin, bad in that lower oil prices seriously reduce incentive to switch

to alternative fuels.

[Me.]

9. Not Nexessarily

Climate change: Did we just witness the beginning of the end of Big Oil?

• The energy sector is notorious for booms and busts, but oil and gas stocks’ weighting in the S&P 500 has not been this low since as far back as 1979.
• Investors have lost faith in oil companies, but it is not yet clear whether that is a permanent change caused by fear of increasing advances made by renewable-energy sources like wind, solar and electric batteries, or a temporary reluctance to invest caused by low oil prices…
By Thursday, though, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos — a man whose every latest decision is equated with doom for whoever is on the other side of the competition — announced his company would reach a goal of carbon neutrality by 2040, a decade ahead of the Paris Agreement goal. Bezos said 10,000 electric-delivery vehicles will be on the roads in just three years (2022) and 80% of Amazon will be operating on renewable energy by as early as 2024. By 2030 all of Amazon and 100,000 delivery trucks will be 100% powered by renewable energy. On the same day, Google announced it was investing $2 billion in new renewable-energy projects, a record corporate purchase.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2019/09/22/climate-change-did-we-just-witness-beginning-of-end-of-big-oil.html

The Reason Fossil Fuel Companies Are Finally Reckoning With Climate Change

“The pressure to abandon oil and gas is already in force. In recent years, protesters have swarmed Shell’s headquarters; advocates representing 17,000 Dutch citizens have sued the company; and powerful investors successfully coerced executives to say they will reduce emissions. In 2015, countries around the world promised to aggressively tackle greenhouse-gas emissions, in order to meet the target laid out by the Paris Agreement: goals that require buying and burning significantly less oil and gas.

Shell CEO Ben van Beurden has a bird’s-eye view of the situation from his corner office at the company’s global headquarters in the Hague. “We have to figure out what are the right bets to take in a world that is completely changing because of society’s concerns around climate change,” he says.”

https://time.com/5766188/shell-oil-companies-fossil-fuels-climate-change/

[Hermit-The-Prog]

23. Thanks!

[Me.]

26. ...

[2naSalit]

7. Oil is russia's economy.

This a major blow to putin.

[IADEMO2004]

19. oil, trolls, hackers

[tman]

6. Great, but this probably helps trump in November.

[2naSalit]

8. Won't be enough help.

[Me.]

12. Right

and there certainly won't be enough ready cash to do any more private bailouts for he and his family. Also, he will have to walk the line between the two.

[rockfordfile]

15. Just shows trump is un-American

[rockfordfile]

10. Both are a pos

[duforsure]

13. Trumps in a real bad situation,

Being owned and compromised, and the prince has him compromised also. Watch how quickly they force him to pick sides. Trump will screw up making them both mad.

[dweller]

14. price per gal reg is $2.27

as of yesterday here in NC (where i am)

✌🏼

[Demonaut]

16. War is coming

[Captain Zero]

24. Working my way through Rachel's book on Oil - BLOWOUT

This possibly does several things.

Probably causes Europe to go buy oil from Saudis and that dries up Russia's sales to Europe.
Or Russia has to sell to Europe at the Saudi prices, which might mean no more exploration in Russia
and eventually Russia can't sell at all because they have less and less easily obtainable cheap oil they can get at.

Russia is weakened without oil to sell.

the American companies doing the technology for Russia to drill and frack at their difficult to reach oil will probably be negatively effected.

This sends things tumbling sideways in a lot of different directions. probably not in a good way overall.

[LiberalArkie]

27. And just closed all the schools and universities in SA