IIR News Intelligence

The weekend saw rekindled military action in the Middle East that continues to create problems in the global energy sector.

Equinor has dropped its 2030 targets for renewable energy while at the same time increasing its investment in key North Sea drilling projects.

Crude oil prices moved lower on Friday even after a suspected Iranian drone hit a vessel off the coast of Oman. One analyst said the market focus has shifted from what's missing to what's coming.

Crude oil prices moved lower on Friday even after a suspected Iranian drone hit a vessel off the coast of Oman. One analyst said the market focus has shifted from what's missing to what's coming.

More than $800 million of ethanol-related construction is underway in the U.S., with billions of dollars' worth of future projects in the planning and engineering pipeline.

Global capital investment in energy is expected to reach about US$3.4 trillion in 2026, 5% higher than 2025 spending and a continuation of the long-term post-COVID increases in annual outlays for energy, according to a report from the International Energy Agency. Nearly 60% of spending will go to the Electric Power sector.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season begins with NOAA and Industrial Info Resources forecasting near- to below-normal activity. While El Niño is expected to suppress storm development, warm Atlantic waters would support tropical cyclone formation and rapid intensification. For energy and industrial operators, risk remains elevated due to the 25 refineries, 14 LNG facilities, along with petrochemical assets, and power infrastructure along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking eight lithium projects in Bolivia, totaling US$4 billion of investment, and 23 facilities for natural gas.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking 161 oil and gas production projects in Colombia, totaling US$719 million of investment.

In the last year, the U.S. has made "an unprecedented number of policy changes in the biofuels space" at both national and state levels. Changes involve finished products and feedstocks.

EP Petroecuador's 110,000 barrel-per-day Esmeraldas Refinery, Ecuador's largest refining facility, continues to make progress in the gradual recovery of its operations following the fire that occurred on March 1 at the 26,000-barrel-per-day Visbreaker 1 (Sevia 1) unit.

Other nations blasted, and some U.S. trade groups supported, the results of a Section 301 trade investigation by the U.S. Trade Representative.

Federal data from Monday show the U.S. Strategic Petroleum Reserve holds 340.3 million barrels, the lowest since 1983.

A disturbance over northeastern Mexico could briefly organize as it moves into the northwestern Gulf of Mexico later this week. The primary threat to Gulf Coast energy and industrial operations will be widespread heavy rainfall, flash flooding, and localized power outages.

A formal signing ceremony is expected to take place in Geneva on Friday to sanction a truce between the United States and Iran. Oil prices collapsed on the news, though the global economy has already been severely damaged.

U.S. President Donald Trump announced an agreement Sunday to maintain a ceasefire between the U.S. and Iran, which would lead to a reopening of the Strait of Hormuz. The two sides would have 60 days to negotiate details, including the fate of Iran's nuclear development program.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season begins with NOAA and Industrial Info Resources forecasting near- to below-normal activity. While El Niño is expected to suppress storm development, warm Atlantic waters would support tropical cyclone formation and rapid intensification. For energy and industrial operators, risk remains elevated due to the 25 refineries, 14 LNG facilities, along with petrochemical assets, and power infrastructure along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking about $1.6 billion worth of bromine-production projects worldwide, with TETRA part of more than $800 million

BP continues its withdrawal from renewable energy and carbon capture projects with the announcement that it will sell its stakes in two of the U.K.'s leading carbon capture and storage (CCS) projects.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking $22 billion of U.S. plastics-manufacturing projects, part of a global market totaling more than $325 billion

Industrial Info Resources is tracking a number of unplanned ethylene shutdowns in the Middle East caused by the ongoing conflict.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking activity at ethylene units across the U.S., including those online, planned, under construction or offline.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney has included critical minerals in a list of nation-building projects.

Chile is closer to its first commercial rare-earth project after Aclara received environmental approval for its Penco Module project, which could produce about 800 tonnes of rare-earth oxides per year.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking $2 billion in third-quarter U.S. project kickoffs for the rolling, processing, finishing and fabrication of metals

Industrial Info is tracking nearly $7 billion worth of U.S.-based steel-manufacturing projects set to kick off in the third quarter

The Panamanian government published the SGS audit on the shuttered Cobre Panama mine, which showed an 87.73% compliance rate.

The volume of lithium oxide in the Carolinas is enough to make laptop batteries for the next 600 years. But the United States is still playing catch-up with the likes of Australia and China.

Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney continued his efforts to build up the economy with the launch of a sovereign wealth fund. Through trade and investments, Canada aims to become an energy superpower.

With less than 40 days until hurricane season, early U.S. forecasts point to a generally quieter Atlantic driven by El Niño.

A federal trade court has ordered the U.S. government to refund, with interest, all levies paid by importers under a 1970s-era law used by the president but recently struck down the U.S. Supreme Court.

Global response has been muted so far to President Donald Trump's proclamation of a new set of tariffs on most goods produced by nearly every country in the world.

Spring 2026 will feature a transition, supporting warm conditions along the West Coast and southern U.S.

In a 6-3 decision Friday, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that President Donald Trump exceeded his legal authority in unilaterally imposing unbounded tariffs on nearly every country in the world using a 1970s-era emergency economic law.

U.S. confectionery makers, including manufacturers of some of the most popular candy lines, are underway or planning more than $1.6 billion worth of construction.

The 2026 Atlantic hurricane season begins with NOAA and Industrial Info Resources forecasting near- to below-normal activity. While El Niño is expected to suppress storm development, warm Atlantic waters would support tropical cyclone formation and rapid intensification. For energy and industrial operators, risk remains elevated due to the 25 refineries, 14 LNG facilities, along with petrochemical assets, and power infrastructure along the Gulf and Atlantic coasts.

Renewables gain new momentum replacing some transportation fuels choked off behind the Strait of Hormuz. According to Industrial Info Resources data, there are nearly 5,000 renewable fuel projects around the world, with an investment value of $303 billion.

Farmers and consumers alike are pressed by rising fertilizer and fuel costs, resulting from Hormuz blockades. According to Industrial Info Resources data, more than 28,000 food and beverage projects worldwide total $428 billion of investment.

The labor market is increasingly tight, with Industrial Info Resources estimating 705,000 journeymen-level craftsmen will be needed across the U.S. in 2026

Industrial Info Resources is tracking 67 active capital projects at U.S. pasta and rice plants that are in various stages of development with a combined value of $585 million.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking $19 billion worth of projects in the U.S. semiconductor and computer sector that are set to kick off in the third quarter

Industrial Info Resources is tracking $20 billion worth of active and planned projects at U.S. cargo ports.

Other nations blasted, and some U.S. trade groups supported, the results of a Section 301 trade investigation by the U.S. Trade Representative.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking nearly $240 million worth of maintenance projects and programs set to begin in 3Q26 at U.S. vehicle manufacturing and automotive parts plants.

President Donald Trump said he may not renew the USMCA ahead of a July 1 deadline, although it is suspected he won't rip up the agreement altogether in favor of negotiating changes past that date. The White House also may look to sign separate bilateral agreements with Canada and Mexico in addition to the trilateral framework.

By 2028, GM hopes to begin delivering new battery technologies for both its EVs as well as its new foray into the energy-storage sector.

According to Industrial Info Resources data, major developments in Indiana and North Carolina lead the U.S. with $76 billion worth of Pharmaceutical & Biotech Industry projects under construction. This is buoyed by high-dollar efforts from industry giants such as Eli Lilly and Company, Novo Nordisk and Johnson & Johnson.

Industrial Info Resources is tracking more than $40 billion of research laboratories presently under construction in the U.S., with a heavy preponderance of projects in Massachusetts, Texas and California.

The labor market is increasingly tight, with Industrial Info Resources estimating 705,000 journeymen-level craftsmen will be needed across the U.S. in 2026

With less than 40 days until hurricane season, early U.S. forecasts point to a generally quieter Atlantic driven by El Niño.

The industry produces 55% more GHG emissions than the automotive sector

Danish pharmaceutical company Novo Nordisk has confirmed a 430 million-euro (US$493 million) project to expand its key Irish manufacturing site to produce the tablet form of its weight loss drug Wegovy.