SINGAPORE: Oil prices gained for a second session on Thursday, supported by worries over supply amid US sanctions on Russia, a larger-than-forecast fall in US crude oil stocks, and an improving global demand outlook.

Brent crude futures rose 25 cents, or 0.3 percent, to $82.28 per barrel by 7:46 a.m. Saudi time, after rising 2.6 percent in the previous session to their highest since July 26 last year.

US West Texas Intermediate crude futures rose 28 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $80.32 a barrel, after gaining 3.3 percent on Wednesday to their highest since July 19.

US crude oil stocks fell last week to their lowest since April 2022 as exports rose and imports fell, the Energy Information Administration said on Wednesday.

The 2 million-barrel draw was more than the 992,000-barrel fall analysts had expected in a Reuters poll.

The drop added to a tightened global supply outlook after the US imposed broader sanctions on Russian oil producers and tankers. The new US sanction measures have sent Moscow’s top customers scouring the globe for replacement barrels, while shipping rates have surged too.

The Biden administration on Wednesday imposed hundreds of additional sanctions targeting Russia’s military industrial base and evasion schemes.

Meanwhile, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and its allies, which have been curtailing output collectively over the past two years, are likely to be cautious about increasing supply despite the recent price rally, said Commodity Context founder Rory Johnston.

“The producer group has had its optimism dashed so frequently over the past year that it is likely to err on the side of caution before beginning the cut-easing process,” Johnston said.

Limiting oil’s gains, Israel and Hamas agreed to a deal to halt fighting in Gaza and exchange Israeli hostages for Palestinian prisoners, according to an official.

On the demand front, global oil expanded by 1.2 million barrels per day in the first two weeks in 2025 from the same period a year earlier, slightly below expectations, JPMorgan analysts wrote in a note.

The analysts expect oil demand to grow by 1.4 million bpd year-on-year in coming weeks, driven by heightened travel activities in India, where a huge festival gathering is taking place, as well as by travel for Lunar New Year celebrations in China at the end of January.

Some investors are also eying potential interest rate cuts by the US Federal Reserve before the end of the year following data on an easing in core US inflation — which could lend support to economic activities and energy consumption. 

RIYADH: Industrial technology company Hexagon has made a significant investment in King Saud University to help train the next generation of mining talent in the Middle East, according to a top official.

Speaking to Arab News on the second day of the Future Minerals Forum, which is being held in Riyadh from Jan. 14 to 16, Dave Goddard, executive vice president of mining at Hexagon, explained that the training would utilize advanced digital tools and software.

The agreement, finalized during the forum, builds on Hexagon’s ongoing collaboration with mining ventures in the region. This follows a landmark deal in 2024 with Saudi Arabian Mining Co. to launch the region’s first-of-its-kind digital mine.

The initiative also aligns with the Kingdom’s broader efforts to position mining as the third pillar of its industrial economy.

“One of the things that’s important for us is to give back to the mining community and ensure the long-term viability of the mining industry,” Goddard said. “And the only way that happens is people retire every year, and college students come into the environment as well.”

He continued: “So, what we’ve done is we’ve made a partnership with the universities in order to provide them some digital tools that the mining companies use, so that when they graduate, and they go into industry, they are already digital natives. They already have the skills and attributes necessary to enter into the digital mining realm. And so that’s what we’re really doing: investing in the future of mining by investing in the future leaders of mining.”

Goddard also elaborated on the firm’s partnership with Ma’aden.

“We have a partnership agreement with Ma’aden, our primary customer here in Saudi Arabia. And we have a partnership with them to build a digital mine, where we’re providing the tools, materials, and software to digitalize their mining operations in order for them to be an optimal miner and a world-class miner, which they currently are,” he said.

Regarding the mining process, Goddard described it as breaking down large rocks into smaller pieces to extract valuable minerals or compounds.

“You have a mine plan that has a digital representation of what that ore looks like inside the ground, and then you have a digital representation of the truck that is carrying that mineral around, and you have a digital representation of the drill that is drilling through the material,” Goddard explained.

“When you take that software and those digitalization parameters, what you’re really doing is reflecting the real world in a digital model and allowing yourself to model an optimal process to extract that real-world material in a digital manner,” he added.

He also mentioned the company’s drill assist product, which helps equipment drill 30 percent faster than a human.

“In terms of a fleet management system, we can provide the same material flow rate using 20% fewer trucks if you use our fleet management system. So, if you think about it, there’s not only the cost savings, but there’s also an energy savings because you’re using less material,” Goddard said.

“And that energy savings correlates to less impact on the environment, a lower carbon emission, and a smaller carbon footprint. So, we help our mining customers address not only their operational challenges but also their sustainability challenges as well,” he added.

Goddard further highlighted how mining influences global wealth and standards of living.

“Knowing that the world around us would not exist without mining and the natural materials that mining provides, as the wealth of the world grows and people enjoy richer lifestyles, demand for mineral resources will increase. And we want to be in the middle of that, providing the tools necessary to optimize the extraction of those resources,” he said.

He also discussed Hexagon's approach to providing digital solutions for mining operations.

“What we have are two different portfolios,” Goddard explained. “One is a planning portfolio that allows mining companies to optimize the extraction sequence in order to maximize the material that comes out of the mine. The second portfolio is our operations portfolio, which helps them optimize equipment and material movement during the actual mining operations and extraction activities.”