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Lithium battery

Lithium Market Set To Explode – All Eyes Are On Nevada

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While other commodities are collapsing in this market, lithium—the critical mineral in the emerging battery gigafactory war—is poised to explode, and going forward Nevada is emerging as the front line in this pending American lithium boom… For several years, experts have been predicting a lithium revolution, and while investors were being coy at first, the reality of the battery gigafactories is now clear, and nothing has hit this home more poignantly than Tesla’s recent supply agreements with lithium providers who will be the first beneficiaries of this boom, followed by a second round of lithium brine developers that are climbing quickly to the forefront.

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OPEC Self-Destruction Thanks To Saudi Oil Strategy?

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This article shows that the Saudis cannot achieve, or even come close to, their estimated 2014 net export revenue if they prolong their current strategy. This doesn’t mean the Saudis won’t stay the course despite its peril to their own situation. To repeat the two modified Keynes quotes: This doesn’t mean the Saudis won’t stay the course despite its peril to their own situation. To repeat the two modified Keynes quotes at the beginning of this article: “A government can stay irrational longer than it can stay solvent.” “Even in the short term, you’re dead, if you commit suicide.”

“A government can stay irrational longer than it can stay solvent.”

“Even in the short term, you’re dead, if you commit suicide.”

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More “Funny” Data from the Government

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In the past, I documented the overstatements by both the IEA and EIA in 2014 & 2015 in terms of supply, inventory and understatements of demand. Others also noticed these distortions and, whether intentional or not, they exist and they are very large in dollar terms. These distortions, which are affecting price through media hype and/or direct/indirect price manipulation, are quite possibly the largest in financial history.

Putting numbers behind it, with worldwide production running some 95 million barrels per day, and assuming $55 per barrel for oil, the market for crude oil is about $5.2 billion per day. Each $10/Barrel change is worth nearly $1 billion/day or $365 Billion/year for the worldwide crude oil market. Add the worldwide equity market caps of oil and oil related equities and debt you have a scandal that is in the trillions; a number that cannot be ignored.

According to Cornerstone Analytics, who have documented the IEA systematically underestimating demand in 2012-2013 only to revise it higher quarters if not years later, the EIA has created the appearance of an imbalance of supply by some 500 million barrels or $2.5 trillion in the last 5 quarters alone. This has easily swung oil by at least $20/barrel if not more.

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Just When You Thought Bonds Were Safe

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In today’s article Jared Dillian compares the 2/10 yield curve to a “Double Black Diamond” ski slope. In other words, it’s wickedly steep! The yield curve he is talking about here is the 10 year treasury yield minus the 2 year treasury yield. This spread measures the steepness of the yield curve. When it is high there is a big difference between the 10 year treasury yield and the 2 year. When it is small investors are not receiving much benefit for taking on longer term risk. Normally the yield curve is positive and longer-term rates are significantly higher than shorter-term rates. In abnormal cases the yield curve becomes “inverted” and short-term rates are actually higher than long-term rates. As Jared tells us, if even a small amount of inflation returns it will create havoc in the long term bond market.

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Is Tesla Changing The Dynamics Of Global Energy?

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Tesla’s announcement last week about creating a new line of batteries for use by businesses, consumers, and the electrical grid at large is a game-changer for the industry. Currently, when individuals or companies need back-up power, they usually rely on generators. Effective battery storage for large amounts of energy would be a game changer in that it would enable a separation of generation and use of energy produced through clean fuels like solar and wind power.

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Top 12 Media Myths On Oil Prices

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The upstream oil and gas industry is not a black hole. There’s no mystery wrapped in an enigma here.

There are a lot of meetings with engineers, chemists and geologists. There’s a constantly evolving learning curve. And then there’s all the regulations and compliance. But all-in-all it’s pretty straight forward, that is, until the media gets a hold of it. That’s when it becomes complicated. It’s as though we are getting reports from the mysteries of the deep ocean or life in the great galaxies beyond. There is so much hyperbole and unsupported guesswork that investors don’t have a chance. So, in a small effort to set the record straight, let’s see if we can’t dispel some of the misinformation.

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