Saudi's take 100% control of America's largest oil refinery
These are the same nikkaz that spend tens of thousands of dollars per female to fly them in to Dubai just to defecate on them, you can't assume they reason the way we do. Bin Laden was a f*ckin' billionaire and still felt the need to attack the US
ill
Superstar
Saudis have no problem self-sabotaging if theres a greater reward at the end. Case in point - 1973 oil embargo or the current oil price war to fade out shale/fracking
This hasn't been a US owned refinery in a long time.
Menelik II
I wanna see receipts!
Its Wahhabi oil now.
Family Man
Banned
9/11 was a collaborative job between the US and Saudi Arabia.
Shell isn't an American company, so them selling their 50% stake to the other 50% holder isn't some titanic shift in the oil refinery game. If this was such a big deal, national security problem two foreign companies shouldn't have been allowed to own it in the first place.
thatrapsfan
Superstar
Totally agree.
This is not a relevant political story. Its only a headline because people are convinced the Saudis hold puppet strings. Saudi cannot afford to impose an embargo on the U.S… When the U.S. increased financial and security ties with Saudi after the 70s embargo it ensured the latter is dependent on a healthy U.S. economy for its own growth. Saudi investment., which they threatened to withdraw after that 9/11 bill, is a relative drop in the bucket compared to total foreign investment in the U.S
thatrapsfan
Superstar
Those are not equivalent stories. Competition over market share with shale producers is not the same thing as an embargo. Lower oil prices are actually a boon for American consumers, unlike the latter. Competition for market share also doesn't mean Saudi stops exporting to the U.S. market . Besides it hasn't been successful. Shale production is reaching record production levels this year and has been one of the few areas of growth for the oil majors.
Now ask yourself why there has never been a possibility of an embargo after 1973. In 1973, a much smaller percentage of Saudi oil wealth was invested in the U.S. and its security ties were much less extensive. Can't say the same on either front in 2017. Same for this story. What exactly is the long-term aim that Saudi could hope to achieve by "sabotaging" a refinery that they own? Its actually part of ARAMCO's plans to diversify its holdings in light of the challenges its faced as a result of shale growth.
Analyzing this through: Trump/Obama, conspiracy, or terrorism will lead to pretty poor assessments.
88m3
Fast Money & Foreign Objects
