Good morning, here's what the Oilman has for you today:

• LNG Trade Set For Massive Growth

• Investors Grow Cold to ESG

• Upcoming Oil and Gas Events

• Tweet of the Day

LNG Trade Set For Massive Growth

The global LNG trade hit a record in 2022 and is set for continued growth.

The market should swell by 25% over the next five years.

LNG sure has all the markings of one healthy industry.

The versatile fuel

LNG trade used to be a niche market not so long ago.

But as gas demand grew, LNG became a favorite.

It is, after all, pretty convenient to move across oceans.

Thanks to this growing appetite, China last year topped the list of largest importers.

Japan remained second.

And Europe joined the club of big buyers after the divorce with Russian pipeline gas.

These three will continue to drive stronger LNG demand.

So, will emerging economies try to switch from coal to something less polluting?

As long as they can afford it, that is.

The price problem

LNG can be quite expensive.

It’s certainly more expensive than pipeline gas.

This is offset by the fact it can be shipped anywhere.

But the higher price can make it unaffordable for some buyers.

Even for Europeans, the LNG bill got a bit steep last year.

They were quick to accuse U.S. exporters of doing it on purpose.

Imagine a business trying to maximize its profits.

How dare they!

Blame-laying won’t shake off Europe’s dependence on LNG, though.

Or China’s or Japan’s, for that matter.

LNG is energy security on demand. If you have the cash, that is.

Hard to give up once you get a taste of it.

Today’s Edition Is Brought To You By ROX Exploration

Invest in the future of energy with ROX Exploration – a family-owned, independent company dedicated to exploring, developing, and producing oil and natural gas assets. ROX's team of experts drills and operates properties throughout Oklahoma.

If you're an accredited investor looking to diversify into direct oil & gas working interest offerings, then connect with ROX Exploration today.

Investors Grow Cold to ESG

Investors have pulled out a total of $14 billion from ESG-focused funds since the start of 2023.

The U-turn is being blamed on higher rates and stricter regulatory rules.

Even funds are not such big fans of ESG anymore.

Another bubble burst

ESG investing was all the hype a couple of years ago.

It was supposed to be the future of investing.

It was also supposed to be the driver of the energy transition.

Until investors realized that ESG is very good, but profits are also important.

An outflow of billions followed, and funds started dropping ESG designations from their products.

They’re also dropping so-called clean stocks and switching to more conventional investing.

Not surprising after wind and solar stocks got pummeled amid soaring costs.

What’s surprising is it didn’t happen sooner.

Drop the “sustainable” and see investments spike

It appears that investors have gotten fed up with all the talk about sustainability.

Especially since the talk is not being supported by income.

So fund managers are literally renaming their funds, dropping the “sustainable” from it.

And they are seeing increases in investor cash inflows as a result.

Who’d have thought it, right?

Certainly not the activist investors.

You know, the ones that got themselves voted into Big Oil boards to try and change the industry from within.

So much for the bright future of ESG investing.

Someone must have forgotten that you can talk your own book all you want, but the market always wins in the end.

Upcoming Oil & Gas Events

• November 28: TIPRO/IPAA Leaders in Industry Luncheon, Petroleum Club of Houston, Houston, TX

• November 28: NDPC Christmas Gala, Lumen Vitae University Center, Bismarck, N.D.

• November 28-29: UTA Oil and Gas Conference, Hilton Americas, Houston, TX

• November 29: DUG Appalachia Conference & Exhibition, David L. Lawrence Convention Center, Pittsburgh, PA

• November 30: IPAA Texas Hold’Em Tournament, The Post Oak Hotel, Houston, TX

Around the Global Patch

🇱🇾 Libya's historic Erawin Oil Field debut: maiden export milestone.
🇳🇴 Norway defies IEA and accelerates oil investments.
🇬🇧 Gas strike in Ukraine's Carpathian Mountains.

Tweet of the Day

Thanks for reading today's Oil Patch!

Stay oily, my friend.

Two quick requests before you go:

• If you found this useful, forward this email to a friend to spread the word. 👇

• Take 1 second to answer the poll below, and please tell us what you think 👇👇