Getting a barrel of crude oil out of the ground in Saudi Arabia costs around $25. The market price right now is around $95. So where does that $70 go - and why has the price at the pump jumped so sharply since the war in the Middle East began?

We follow the money behind a tank of petrol: from the oil field, through the world's most dangerous shipping lane, through the commodity markets, through a refinery, and right back to you, waiting at the pump.

We hear from the former Saudi Aramco executive who oversaw production of the world's largest oilfield, one of the world's biggest tanker operators making real-time decisions about whether to sail through a war zone; the chief economist of one of the world's largest commodity traders; and an energy analyst who has been tracking the refining crisis that most commentators have missed.

What product do you want us to follow next? Get in touch with the team by sending us an email to [email protected]

Presenter: Sam Fenwick

(Photo: A worker pumps gasoline into a car at a petrol station in Bangkok, Thailand, on the 26th of March 2026. Credit: Rungroj Yongrit/EPA/Shutterstock)