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

• SPR Not Getting Refilled Anytime Soon

• U.S. Investors Turn Their Backs on Climate Resolutions

• Upcoming Oil and Gas Events

• Tweet of the Day

SPR Not Getting Refilled Anytime Soon

Guess what the DoE did this week?

It issued an invitation for bids for 3 million barrels of crude for January 2024 delivery.

That’s the latest DoE attempt to bring back some oil into the SPR.

After it drained close to 200 million barrels from it last year.

Easier to sell than to buy

Selling those barrels last year was easy.

It even served the purpose for which it was done.

Retail fuel prices fell.

Now comes the hard part, though: refilling the strategic oil reserve of the nation.

So far, it has been an epic failure.

First, the DoE aims at lower than market prices.

And when market prices were low enough, the DoE didn’t buy. Nobody knows why.

Unless they think it’s not worth it, and the SPR is obsolete anyway.

Yes, there are people who do believe this.

Is it a strategic reserve if it’s empty?

Since the start of 2023, the DoE has bought 5 million barrels for the SPR.

Also, since the start of 2023, 20 million barrels have been withdrawn from the reserve.

Because there are mandated oil sales that the DoE must carry out.

Rather, there were.

Earlier this year, Congress put an end to that, eliminating the risk of another 140 million barrels in withdrawals…

From a reserve that currently contains just 27 million barrels.

If the DoE adds just 5 million barrels annually, guess how long it would take to replenish the SPR.

We’d better drop the “strategic” from SPR’s name.

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U.S. Investors Turn Their Backs on Climate Resolutions

Large U.S. investors in Big Oil are withdrawing their support for climate resolutions.

The trend stands in marked difference to the behavior of European investors.

An ocean apart

An activist investor group complained this week that their resolutions at Big Oil didn’t get enough support.

At least not from BlackRock, JP Morgan, and State Street.

However, they did get the support of UBS, Amundi, and HSBC.

But are they happy with it?

Of course not.

Sadly, the unhappiness will likely continue as the world’s leading asset managers feel which way the wind is blowing.

Which is not due to the transition.

You only have to look at the financial reports of Big Oil and then at those of wind and solar majors.

European asset managers don’t seem to mind.

That’s because activist pressure is a lot stronger in Europe, especially in the corporate world.

U.S. investors, however, are proving themselves nicely pragmatic.

Follow This or follow the money

The activist group Follow This complained that support for its resolutions at Big Oil has been falling.

Well, of course, it’s been falling.

Big Oil made some Big Money last year.

It is still making a lot this year, even though profits are off the crisis records of 2022.

What investor in their right mind would want this to change by supporting climate resolutions?

These resolutions would slash oil and gas profits.

And last time I checked, the investor did not mean charitable worker.

Upcoming Oil & Gas Events

• November 6-8: IPAA Annual Meeting, JW Marriott San Antonio Hill Country Resort and Spa, San Antonio, TX

• November 8: Colorado Oil and Gas Association 39th Annual Meeting, Denver, CO

• November 8: IADC Annual General Meeting, Hyatt Regency Austin, TX

• November 9: Deepwater Executive Summit, Hyatt Houston West, Houston, TX

• November 13: LOGA State of the Industry Series, Le Pavillion Lafayette, LA

• November 14: LOGA State of the Industry Series, Petroleum Club of Shreveport, Shreveport, LA

Around the Global Patch

🇮🇷 Disarray looms over Iran's proposed oil embargo.
🇨🇦 Canada's awkward move: fossil fuel subsidy redux at COP28.
🇷🇺 Rystad reports: Russia's oil exports soar to a six-month high.

Tweet of the Day

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