By the time this column is published, we will be halfway through the first quarter of 2023, giving us an indication of how the year will unfold for the PVF industry.

In 2023, ongoing supply growth coupled with weaker demand growth will ease tight markets and see some relief in the price pressures that forced energy prices higher.

December is the end of a turbulent year for the PVF sector of our economy: supply-chain constraints, rising costs of material, labor shortages, escalating energy costs, international conflicts and a political environment hostile to fossil-fuel energy sources.

We are midway through the fourth quarter of the calendar year 2022. The months of November and December are not only impacted by the holidays, limiting the number of shipping days — we all will be impacted by rising fuel costs.

Oil and gas prices continue to stay high because of low inventory, low production and high demand. This summer, the United States consumed larger amounts of natural gas to meet electricity demand. Read on to discover what else is happening in the energy sector.

The month of August is the midpoint in the third quarter of 2022, with oil pricing as of this writing (mid-July) at $103.88 for WTI and $105.77 for Brent — still in the $100 range but down from record highs. 

Experts predict that increased summer demand and constrained U.S. production will shoot oil prices up to $140 a barrel. 

Uncertainty in the energy market continues as the war in Ukraine rages on and supply chain issues resulting from the COVID-19 pandemic persist.

As the bombing of Ukraine by Russian forces continues, about 3 million barrels of oil a day are removed from global markets.