The rapid buildout of Permian gas processing plants and other NGL-related infrastructure in Texas and southeastern New Mexico isn’t just continuing, it’s accelerating. In today’s RBN blog, we discuss the latest project announcements and why gas and NGL production in the Permian are still rising.
There are three main factors affecting today’s propane market: export economics, dock space and storage levels. The Iran war has dramatically shifted export economics and filled dock space, yet storage remains at all-time highs. In today’s RBN blog, we look at what’s in store for the rest of 2026.
Supply disruptions in the Persian Gulf have sent global propane prices soaring, sharply widening the spread between international and U.S. prices. That has created a major opening for U.S. exporters, but with spot terminal fees at record highs as key export hubs already running near capacity, upside is constrained by loading capacity.
A lot of attention has been paid to the massive volumes of crude oil and LNG currently trapped in the Persian Gulf. What’s sometimes overlooked, however, is that Kuwait, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are also major exporters of refined products, and that they and Qatar also send out copious amounts of LPG.
Well, 2025 is now in the books, allowing us time for reflection, resolution-making and pretending we always knew how the year would turn out. And unlike many, we also look into the rear-view mirror to see how we did with last year’s predictions. That’s what we’ll do in today’s blog.
Talks between President Trump and China's President Xi have led to a suspension of the port fees.
The USTR began assessing fees on Chinese-owned, -operated, or -built vessels on October 14. Recent modifications to the Section 301 fees exempt some ethane/LPG vessels.
After dodging the huge tariffs on exports of U.S. LPG and ethane to China — at least until August 12 — a new wrinkle has emerged. Enterprise Products Partners said in a filing May 29 that the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS) has flagged its exports of butane and ethane to China as a security risk; specifically, that they pose an “unacceptable risk of use in or diversion to a military end use.” Details about the licenses and how they will apply are limited at this point, but it appears they will be required for these exports to continue. In today’s RBN blog, we examine the potential impact on the ethane and butane markets.
