Oil could hit $150 per barrel on Iran curbs, Venezuela crisis

London - Opec's spare capacity at lowest level.

Fret not over escalating trade tensions and rising crude supply! Some of the world's most prominent energy investors are convinced the price will return to record highs.
Prominent hedge funds such as Andurand Capital and Westbeck Capital are betting oil could skyrocket to $150 a barrel from around $75 now.
The main driver is expected to be upcoming US sanctions on Iran's energy sector, which kick in come November.
"Our view is that by November 4, we will have lost between 1.3 and 1.4 million barrels (of output) a day. It is a very big number. That's based on the view that the US will allow a few temporary exception waivers....Ultimately, we could see losses from Iran exceed two million barrels a day," said Jean-Louis Le Mee, CEO of London-based Westbeck.
Pierre Andurand, who runs the $1.2-billion Andurand Commodities Fund and predicted the rise and subsequent crash in the oil price in 2008, responded on Twitter by pointing out Opec's spare capacity was at its lowest ever. "There is going to be a real issue," he wrote, predicting prices above $150 per barrel within two years."
Aside from the risk to Iranian supply, Venezuela's crude production, which has already collapsed as a result of economic crisis, could fall below one million barrels per day by the end of the year, compared with two million bpd in mid-2017, Will Smith, Westbeck chief investment officer said.