Good morning!

Everyone shares photos of occasional drone strikes on Dubai hotels — and I have compiled something more economically devastating: a selection of Iran's strikes on the oil infrastructure in the Persian Gulf.

🔴 The 1st photo and video: the consequences of the strike on the Saudi Ras Tanura refinery.

The 2nd photo shows a fire on a tanker sailing through the Strait of Hormuz in defiance of Iran's ban. In general, traffic has not stopped there and tankers generally ignore this ban.

For some reason Iran is holding back — since the infrastructure is defenseless, they could possibly knock out half of all oil refining in Saudi Arabia at once, as they already did in 2019.

💡 Anytime you've ideas to suggest, interesting topics to share, or feel that some facts are unfairly overlooked — don’t hesitate to drop a comment here or DM the channel.

✈️ Stay informed - @devilsbelow

No One Cares How Many People Died?

Yet another landslide in eastern DRC fuels information warfare

🌐Another major landslide at DR Congo’s Rubaya coltan mine on Tuesday results in an undefined death toll, with Kinshasa and M23 pointing at strikingly different numbers of victims.

⏩ The landslide follows a similar tragedy on February 28, which allegedly killed some 200 miners.

🔸 From the beginning, both tragedies were about the Kinshasa-M23 tug-of-war, and to lesser extent about the victims. The Congo mines ministry claimed the death toll this time also amounted to 200 people, including 70 children — while AFC/M23 said “only 5-6” people died.

🔸 While the Rubaya mine is currently under control of AFC/M23, in early February it was mentioned on the list of projects Kinshasa offered to the US under the Strategic Partnership Framework.

The Tuesday landslide is now turning into an excellent reason for Kinshasa and Washington to increase pressure on the rebels and Rwanda to squeeze the asset under the pretext of greater safety for workers — and having turned into a politically sensitive propaganda tool, people's deaths are unlikely to be ever investigated.

#News

✈️ Stay informed - @devilsbelow

🚢📉 According to Kpler, tanker traffic through the Strait of Hormuz has fallen by 90% since the start of the Middle East war.

➡️The Strait of Hormuz is the only sea route from the Persian Gulf to the Indian Ocean. It is a key export route for oil, petroleum products, and liquefied natural gas from Gulf countries to global markets.

🟦The Strait of Hormuz closure in facts and figures:

🔵 Around 200 tankers carrying oil and petroleum products are effectively blocked in the Persian Gulf, with vessel traffic completely halted, according to Lloyd's List;
🔵The most acute congestion problem is observed among very large tankers (VLCCs); there are currently 60 such vessels in the Persian Gulf;
🔵 Among shipowners, the South Korean company Sinokor holds the largest share with six very large tankers (VLCCs) in the region;
🔵 This route typically carries 20 million barrels per day of oil and petroleum products, accounting for approximately 20% of global consumption;
🔵 About 20% of global oil trade and up to 30% of liquefied natural gas exports from the Persian Gulf countries pass through Hormuz, with no alternative routes for Qatar and the UAE;
🔵 More than 80% of the oil, petroleum products, and LNG transported through the strait are destined for Asian countries—China, India, Japan, and South Korea.

✅@NewEasternOutlook

❗️ Energy Insecurity: How US President’s Whims Raised Costs for Everyone

As was easy to predict, the latest Trump-provoked exchange of explosive pleasantries in the Middle East has already driven up oil prices. On some markets, prices have surged by 12% compared to the moment the first Tomahawks were launched.

🔸 While one might hear that oil-producing countries like Nigeria and Angola benefit from this, the reality is that even there, it’s more about wealth shifting from people’s pockets into government ledgers and oil companies’ books: part of the increased revenue will come from higher domestic prices.

🔸For places without their own black gold, there’s only sympathy to offer. Even before such price hikes, rumors of fuel shortages alone have sparked panic at gas stations in several cases.

📣 The most extreme reaction came from Guinean drivers, who created a fuel shortage themselves by rushing to stockpile due to rumors of supply cuts, forcing the national oil company SONAP to issue a denial.

Similar denials were released by authorities in Kenya, Uganda, and Zambia. In Tanzania, the president herself took the initiative and demanded that strategic reserves be reinforced.

💸 Although there are no serious supply problems yet, further destruction of infrastructure in the Persian Gulf may indeed lead to long-term price increases — and the rise in oil prices will affect not only motorists, but also all consumers, as transportation of everything from food to iPhones will become more expensive.

Have you felt the price hike yet, or is it still not noticeable?

✈️ Stay informed - @devilsbelow