It is no secret to the world that the US government has been obstructing the construction of the Nord Stream 2 pipeline for many years by imposing all types of political and economic sanctions on related parties. The stake is high behind the US' suppression of the project, because the pipeline could enable more cheap gas supplies from Russia to Europe, depriving US suppliers of a prime export market.
Whether the Nord Stream 2 will promote energy cooperation between Russia and Europe, or become a trigger of tensions across the Atlantic will remain to be seen. While the US doesn't really care about Europe's energy security, Washington won't tolerate anything that threatens its energy trade.
What the US government wants is to preserve its global hegemony in the energy sector. The US energy hegemony is one of the important pillars of American global hegemony. So, the US will do everything in its position to ensure global energy supply patterns are in line with its global geopolitical power play. If the energy cooperation between Russia and Europe were allowed to unfold without any complications, it is conceivable that many things would be out of the control of the US.
If anything, the energy crisis is another example demonstrating why Europe needs to have the ability to independently form its own political and economic policies including energy security. Europe needs to be clear that its interests are not the same as the US', and it cannot completely follow the US lead on many issues, or it will end up hurting itself.
Read more at:
GT Voice: Europe needs an energy policy independent of US interference - Global Times
Showing posts with label energy supplies. Show all posts
Showing posts with label energy supplies. Show all posts
12/29/21
9/26/19
European Gas Supplies: Russia, Ukraine OK with EU law for gas transit
On 19 September in Brussels, Russia, Ukraine and the European
Commission held trilateral gas talks at a political level on the
long-term transit of Russian gas via Ukraine to Europe as of next year
with both sides agreeing in principle that a future contract should be
based on EU law, European Commission Vice President for Energy Union Maroš Šefčovič
said, adding that Ukraine is gradually implementing EU energy rules. He
also noted that Russian gas monopoly Gazprom is well acquainted with
them in its commercial relations.
The Commission wants to secure reliable and uninterruptible Russian gas transit through Ukraine into EU countries. The current gas transit contract between Ukraine’s Naftogaz and Gazprom is valid until the end of December 2019. In 2018, 40% of gas supplied by Russia to the EU was delivered within this contract.
Russia, Ukraine OK with EU law for gas transit | New Europe
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The Commission wants to secure reliable and uninterruptible Russian gas transit through Ukraine into EU countries. The current gas transit contract between Ukraine’s Naftogaz and Gazprom is valid until the end of December 2019. In 2018, 40% of gas supplied by Russia to the EU was delivered within this contract.
Russia, Ukraine OK with EU law for gas transit | New Europe
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5/7/18
Solar Power Future Bright: New Estimates Show Rapid Growth in Off Grid Renewables - by Irena
The supply of electricity from mini-grids and small solar devices, such as solar home systems and solar lights is growing especially fast.
This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.
During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.
New data from IRENA shows that about 115 million people worldwide currently rely on the basic energy services provided by solar lights, while another 25 million obtain a higher level of renewable energy services through solar home systems or connection to a solar mini-grid. In addition to solar power, over 6 million people are currently connected to hydropower mini-grids, while another 300,000 people use biogas power.
The supply of electricity from mini-grids and small solar devices, such as solar home systems and solar lights is growing especially fast. This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.
During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.
Read morL New Estimates Show Rapid Growth in Off-Grid Renewables - Modern Diplomacy
This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.
During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.
New data from IRENA shows that about 115 million people worldwide currently rely on the basic energy services provided by solar lights, while another 25 million obtain a higher level of renewable energy services through solar home systems or connection to a solar mini-grid. In addition to solar power, over 6 million people are currently connected to hydropower mini-grids, while another 300,000 people use biogas power.
The supply of electricity from mini-grids and small solar devices, such as solar home systems and solar lights is growing especially fast. This part of the energy sector, including power generation from these sources, is often missing from official energy statistics. But evidence of their growing importance can be seen in solar panel import statistics and development project databases.
During 2017, IRENA collected detailed data about off-grid power developments to determine current estimates of off-grid capacity. Data sources included biannual market surveys from the Global Off-Grid Lighting Association, the OECD-DAC development project database, national and regional power plant databases, off-grid data gathered via IRENA questionnaires, and information obtained from organisations such as REN21 and the Alliance for Rural Electrification.
Read morL New Estimates Show Rapid Growth in Off-Grid Renewables - Modern Diplomacy
4/4/16
Energy: Japan Embracing Coal While The Rest Of The World Is Trying To Cut Emissions - by Samantha Page
Scotland just closed
its last coal-fired power plant. England said it will be coal-free in
the next decade. The United States has the Clean Power Plan, which
doesn’t exactly end coal, but it puts a pretty hefty damper on it. Even
China has made a series of announcements signaling they are dropping coal.
Japan, on the other hand, is planning to build 45 domestic coal plants, and the Japanese foreign investment bank is considering financing a massive project in Indonesia. As host of the next G7 meeting and a powerful player on the international stage, Japan’s doubling down on coal is not great news for the climate — and environmentalists are wondering how long it will last.
Coal has been a primary source of generation since electric power became widespread, accounting for 32 percent of generation in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in 2014, according to the International Energy Agency. And it has contributed hugely not only to climate change, but also to the air pollution that kills millions of people each year.
Mining for coal is notoriously hard and dangerous, and it, too, has taken a massive environmental toll in the United States and abroad.
Right now, there are five coal plants under construction and another 41 under development in Japan, according to Kimiko Hirata, international director for the Kiko Network, a Japanese environmental coalition.
And it is unclear how those plans will fit with the world’s recent pledge in Paris to keep global warming under 2°C. Japan’s Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) is equivalent to 18 percent below 1990 levels by 2030, a goal Climate Action Tracker rates as “inadequate.”
In light of this, and the recent arrival of inexpensive wind and solar, much of the world is trying to move away from coal generation. In fact, according a new report from CoalSwarm, the Sierra Club, and Greenpeace, coal generation has declined for two years in a row. In Japan, though, coal consumption went up nearly 5 percent just last year.
Read more: This Country Is Embracing Coal While The Rest Of The World Is Trying To Cut Emissions | ThinkProgress
Japan, on the other hand, is planning to build 45 domestic coal plants, and the Japanese foreign investment bank is considering financing a massive project in Indonesia. As host of the next G7 meeting and a powerful player on the international stage, Japan’s doubling down on coal is not great news for the climate — and environmentalists are wondering how long it will last.
Coal has been a primary source of generation since electric power became widespread, accounting for 32 percent of generation in Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) countries in 2014, according to the International Energy Agency. And it has contributed hugely not only to climate change, but also to the air pollution that kills millions of people each year.
Mining for coal is notoriously hard and dangerous, and it, too, has taken a massive environmental toll in the United States and abroad.
Right now, there are five coal plants under construction and another 41 under development in Japan, according to Kimiko Hirata, international director for the Kiko Network, a Japanese environmental coalition.
And it is unclear how those plans will fit with the world’s recent pledge in Paris to keep global warming under 2°C. Japan’s Intended Nationally Determined Contribution (INDC) is equivalent to 18 percent below 1990 levels by 2030, a goal Climate Action Tracker rates as “inadequate.”
In light of this, and the recent arrival of inexpensive wind and solar, much of the world is trying to move away from coal generation. In fact, according a new report from CoalSwarm, the Sierra Club, and Greenpeace, coal generation has declined for two years in a row. In Japan, though, coal consumption went up nearly 5 percent just last year.
Read more: This Country Is Embracing Coal While The Rest Of The World Is Trying To Cut Emissions | ThinkProgress
3/31/15
Energy Supplies: Oil - Its all about Geopolitics
The Oil and Energy Insider reports that when
it comes to geopolitical events affecting oil prices, there is no
shortage of possibilities. Whether it is the outbreak of a war, a
terrorist attack, a massive industrial accident, or a financial crisis,
these events usually take the oil markets by surprise. It is not too
often that there is a major geopolitical event that will have enormous
influence over oil prices yet is known ahead of time. But we are in the
midst of one of those rare moments: we are arriving at the deadline for
the negotiations over Iran’s nuclear program, with the clock running out
at midnight
on March 31. The two sides are furiously negotiating, trying to
overcome their differences to make history. A comprehensive agreement
between Iran and the West was always going to be extraordinarily
difficult and would involve painful concessions on both sides. But there
is some indication that a deal is there to be grabbed if the major
world powers want it.
The Russian Foreign Minister had previously bailed on the talks, saying that he would only return if a deal looked realistic. However, he did in fact decide to fly back to Switzerland and rejoin the talks on March 31 as there were signs of progress. “The chances are high. They are probably not 100 percent but you can never be 100 percent certain of anything. The odds are quite 'doable' if none of the parties raise the stakes at the last minute,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Russian media in Moscow.
The outcome of the negotiations will have an immediate effect on the price of oil, one way or another. If the parties come to terms – and reach a truly historic resolution to such an intractable problem – it could lead to the removal of sanctions on Iran and the return of Iranian oil to the global market. Iran could probably ramp up production by an additional several hundred thousand barrels per day over the course of a few months with the potential to ultimately add around 1 million barrels per day. Still, if a deal is sealed in Switzerland, the oil markets will react immediately, most likely falling by several dollars per barrel. If the two sides fail to come together, that would be bullish for oil, although perhaps not quite as dramatically, since it would essentially continue the status quo regarding Iran over the last three years. Another possibility that is looking increasingly likely is that Iran and the West reach a rough outline of an accord, and push off the thorniest issues until June when the final agreement must be reached. That would leave the oil markets in a status of limbo over the next three months regarding Iranian oil.
Speaking of a flood of oil, the Energy Information Administration released new data that showed that the growth in oil production in the U.S. in 2014 was the highest in over 100 years. The United States has long been an oil producer – dating back to the 19th century. It was even the world’s largest oil producer in the early 20th century. By the 1970’s however, its vast oil fields appeared to be tapped out, and production went into decline. We have all read about how new drilling techniques have unlocked shale oil, but for drillers to be able to ramp up production to such a degree in a very oil-mature country is impressive. Last year, the U.S. added 1.2 million barrels per day to its output, the largest production gain since record-keeping began in 1900.
But the next chapter is uncertain. Low oil prices are forcing big-time cutbacks. The question is where oil prices go next. The looming oil storage “crisis” threatens to crush oil prices much further. However, the worst may be avoided as U.S. consumers and refiners pick up the slack. In fact, refiners churned through 15.5 million barrels per day in mid-March, a record for the time of year when many units are taken offline for maintenance. With unusually large margins right now, refiners are taking advantage and buying up oil, paying enough to keep some oil out of storage. Refining demand is now stronger than expected, and that may divert oil away from storage in Cushing Oklahoma, as refiners pull oil down to the Gulf Coast. It is not just because refining margins have improved, but also because U.S. drivers are hitting the roadways, pushed on by low gasoline prices. Gasoline demand in the U.S. jumped by 6 percent in January, the largest surge in demand in over 20 years. If that keeps up, oil markets may find an equilibrium not just through supply rebalancing – which is where market analysts have kept most of their attention – but also through a pickup in demand.
EU-Digest
The Russian Foreign Minister had previously bailed on the talks, saying that he would only return if a deal looked realistic. However, he did in fact decide to fly back to Switzerland and rejoin the talks on March 31 as there were signs of progress. “The chances are high. They are probably not 100 percent but you can never be 100 percent certain of anything. The odds are quite 'doable' if none of the parties raise the stakes at the last minute,” Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov told Russian media in Moscow.
The outcome of the negotiations will have an immediate effect on the price of oil, one way or another. If the parties come to terms – and reach a truly historic resolution to such an intractable problem – it could lead to the removal of sanctions on Iran and the return of Iranian oil to the global market. Iran could probably ramp up production by an additional several hundred thousand barrels per day over the course of a few months with the potential to ultimately add around 1 million barrels per day. Still, if a deal is sealed in Switzerland, the oil markets will react immediately, most likely falling by several dollars per barrel. If the two sides fail to come together, that would be bullish for oil, although perhaps not quite as dramatically, since it would essentially continue the status quo regarding Iran over the last three years. Another possibility that is looking increasingly likely is that Iran and the West reach a rough outline of an accord, and push off the thorniest issues until June when the final agreement must be reached. That would leave the oil markets in a status of limbo over the next three months regarding Iranian oil.
Speaking of a flood of oil, the Energy Information Administration released new data that showed that the growth in oil production in the U.S. in 2014 was the highest in over 100 years. The United States has long been an oil producer – dating back to the 19th century. It was even the world’s largest oil producer in the early 20th century. By the 1970’s however, its vast oil fields appeared to be tapped out, and production went into decline. We have all read about how new drilling techniques have unlocked shale oil, but for drillers to be able to ramp up production to such a degree in a very oil-mature country is impressive. Last year, the U.S. added 1.2 million barrels per day to its output, the largest production gain since record-keeping began in 1900.
But the next chapter is uncertain. Low oil prices are forcing big-time cutbacks. The question is where oil prices go next. The looming oil storage “crisis” threatens to crush oil prices much further. However, the worst may be avoided as U.S. consumers and refiners pick up the slack. In fact, refiners churned through 15.5 million barrels per day in mid-March, a record for the time of year when many units are taken offline for maintenance. With unusually large margins right now, refiners are taking advantage and buying up oil, paying enough to keep some oil out of storage. Refining demand is now stronger than expected, and that may divert oil away from storage in Cushing Oklahoma, as refiners pull oil down to the Gulf Coast. It is not just because refining margins have improved, but also because U.S. drivers are hitting the roadways, pushed on by low gasoline prices. Gasoline demand in the U.S. jumped by 6 percent in January, the largest surge in demand in over 20 years. If that keeps up, oil markets may find an equilibrium not just through supply rebalancing – which is where market analysts have kept most of their attention – but also through a pickup in demand.
EU-Digest
3/14/15
Energy Supplies: Germany: The creeping death of Germany′s energy giants
Germany's energy giants are lumbering behind the rapid advance of
renewable energy. They might stay afloat for a while, but they don't
seem flexible enough to achieve a turnaround, says DW's Henrik Böhme.
"Darling, have you switched on the fuel cell yet?" In 10 or 20 years from now, that may be a common question in German households. Many people will be producing the energy they need for heating and electricity themselves, be it via solar panels on their rooftops or fuel cells in their basements.
Decentralization is the buzzword. And the power required elsewhere, say, for street lights, electric motors, or the bakery nearby will be largely generated through renewables. Even large industrial compounds will be in a position to generate enough electricity for their own needs.
Nuclear power stations will all have been switched off by then, with only a few coal-fired or gas-fired plants still in operation. One way or another, Germany's power landscape is bound to undergo dramatic changes.
That's been obvious for a couple of years now. But the German utilities' age-old business models don't seem to be working anymore. All they know is big and heavy - they're used to nuclear and coal power stations guaranteeing billions in profit, year-in year-out, and they seemed to secure their earnings without any trouble. And then they grew fat and began making mistakes.
Read more: Opinion: The creeping death of Germany′s energy giants | Opinion | DW.DE | 11.03.2015
"Darling, have you switched on the fuel cell yet?" In 10 or 20 years from now, that may be a common question in German households. Many people will be producing the energy they need for heating and electricity themselves, be it via solar panels on their rooftops or fuel cells in their basements.
Decentralization is the buzzword. And the power required elsewhere, say, for street lights, electric motors, or the bakery nearby will be largely generated through renewables. Even large industrial compounds will be in a position to generate enough electricity for their own needs.
Nuclear power stations will all have been switched off by then, with only a few coal-fired or gas-fired plants still in operation. One way or another, Germany's power landscape is bound to undergo dramatic changes.
That's been obvious for a couple of years now. But the German utilities' age-old business models don't seem to be working anymore. All they know is big and heavy - they're used to nuclear and coal power stations guaranteeing billions in profit, year-in year-out, and they seemed to secure their earnings without any trouble. And then they grew fat and began making mistakes.
Read more: Opinion: The creeping death of Germany′s energy giants | Opinion | DW.DE | 11.03.2015
12/10/14
Energy Supplies: As German Utilities Enter a ‘New World’ of Energy, Are Any US Companies on the Same Path? :
E.ON, one of Germany’s largest utilities, announced a radical move last
week to spin off its centralized fossil-fuel assets into a separate
company to focus exclusively on renewablaels, distributed energy and
“innovative, customer-oriented solutions.”
German laws requiring power providers to purchase solar and wind have caused wholesale electricity prices to tumble, making centralized gas, nuclear and coal power plants in the country far less valuable. E.ON expects to lose $5.5 billion this year, due in large part to financial troubles with its conventional power business.
Another leading German utility, RWE, lost $3.8 billion last year for the same reason.
“It will become increasingly difficult for a company with a broad portfolio to be successful and to grow in both the new and the conventional energy world," said Johannes Teyssen, E.ON's CEO and board chairman, during a press conference last week.
“A good indicator of the world we’re entering here is certainly far ahead in Europe and particularly in Germany,” he later added. And so this could be where other markets are headed.
Utilities in the United States currently enjoy low natural gas prices and face less aggressive renewable energy mandates. Nonetheless, the plummeting cost of solar and wind energy, and new technologies that allow customers to control and moderate their electricity usage is transforming the energy landscape and putting utilities on the defensive.
Readx more:
German laws requiring power providers to purchase solar and wind have caused wholesale electricity prices to tumble, making centralized gas, nuclear and coal power plants in the country far less valuable. E.ON expects to lose $5.5 billion this year, due in large part to financial troubles with its conventional power business.
Another leading German utility, RWE, lost $3.8 billion last year for the same reason.
“It will become increasingly difficult for a company with a broad portfolio to be successful and to grow in both the new and the conventional energy world," said Johannes Teyssen, E.ON's CEO and board chairman, during a press conference last week.
“A good indicator of the world we’re entering here is certainly far ahead in Europe and particularly in Germany,” he later added. And so this could be where other markets are headed.
Utilities in the United States currently enjoy low natural gas prices and face less aggressive renewable energy mandates. Nonetheless, the plummeting cost of solar and wind energy, and new technologies that allow customers to control and moderate their electricity usage is transforming the energy landscape and putting utilities on the defensive.
Readx more:
3/27/14
Energy Supplies: 'EU`s choosing Azerbaijan as main energy source positive factor for Malta also'
Prime Minister of Malta Joseph Muscat has said
the European Union`s choosing Azerbaijan as the main energy source is a
positive factor for his country too.
Maltese Enemalta Corporation chose Electro Gas consortium, part of whose shares belong to SOCAR, for construction of a new power plant, AzerTAc reports.
Read more: News.Az - 'EU`s choosing Azerbaijan as main energy source positive factor for Malta too'
1/18/14
Canadian Energy Supplies: Northern Gateway pipeline report draws lawsuit
A coalition of environment groups has filed a lawsuit in Federal Court alleging serious flaws with the Joint Review Panel's final report that recommended the pipeline be approved because “Canadians will be better off with this project than without it.”
The group is seeking a court order to prevent the federal cabinet from acting on the panel's report to approve the proposed pipeline.
Ecojustice lawyers representing ForestEthics Advocacy, the Living Oceans Society and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation allege the Joint Review Panel's 419-page report contains legal errors and that its approval is based on insufficient evidence.
"The JRP did not have enough evidence to support its conclusion that the Northern Gateway pipeline would not have significant adverse effects on certain aspects of the environment," said Ecojustice staff lawyer Karen Campbell, in a statement released on Friday.
"The panel made its recommendation despite known gaps in the evidence, particularly missing information about the risk of geohazards along the pipeline route and what happens to diluted bitumen when it is spilled in the marine environment."
Read more: Northern Gateway pipeline report draws lawsuit - British Columbia - CBC News
The group is seeking a court order to prevent the federal cabinet from acting on the panel's report to approve the proposed pipeline.
Ecojustice lawyers representing ForestEthics Advocacy, the Living Oceans Society and the Raincoast Conservation Foundation allege the Joint Review Panel's 419-page report contains legal errors and that its approval is based on insufficient evidence.
"The JRP did not have enough evidence to support its conclusion that the Northern Gateway pipeline would not have significant adverse effects on certain aspects of the environment," said Ecojustice staff lawyer Karen Campbell, in a statement released on Friday.
"The panel made its recommendation despite known gaps in the evidence, particularly missing information about the risk of geohazards along the pipeline route and what happens to diluted bitumen when it is spilled in the marine environment."
Read more: Northern Gateway pipeline report draws lawsuit - British Columbia - CBC News
6/23/13
Energy Supplies: Norway and Russia agree to joint oil and gas exploration
Norway's Statoil and Russia's Rosneft have signed agreements that will result in their Joint Venture to explore offshore frontier areas in the Sea of Okhotsk and in the Barents Sea.
The companies have also concluded a Heads of Agreement to explore shale oil opportunities in the Samara region.
The agreements were signed by Statoil CEO Helge Lund and Rosneft Chairman and President Igor Sechin in St. Petersburg during the International Economic Forum, and Statoil and Rosneft have made another significant step forward in the partnership entered into on 5 May 2012 between the two companies.
Read more: Norway and Russia agree to joint oil and gas exploration
The companies have also concluded a Heads of Agreement to explore shale oil opportunities in the Samara region.
The agreements were signed by Statoil CEO Helge Lund and Rosneft Chairman and President Igor Sechin in St. Petersburg during the International Economic Forum, and Statoil and Rosneft have made another significant step forward in the partnership entered into on 5 May 2012 between the two companies.
Read more: Norway and Russia agree to joint oil and gas exploration
6/13/13
Global Energy Supplies: Germany's RWE buys 40 percent stake in Suriname oil block
Suriname's state oil company, Staatsolie, said on Wednesday that German energy company RWE DEA AG bought a 40 percent stake in an offshore block where Staatsolie is also partnered with Malaysia's Petronas.
Petronas is expected to invest $25 million in Block 52, which lies about 130 kms (80 miles) off the coast of the South American nation. In a statement, Staatsolie did not give further details on the German company's level of involvement.
Last year, Staatsolie signed a production sharing deal with Apache Corp of the United States to invest $230 million in the exploration of a different offshore block.
Staatsolie, founded in 1982, produces about 16,000 barrels of oil a day - mainly for local use. Global energy companies are showing growing interest in the potential of South America's northeastern shoulder. A 2011 discovery off French Guiana was described as a "game-changer" for the region's oil prospects.
Read more: Germany's RWE buys 40 percent stake in Suriname oil block | Reuters
Petronas is expected to invest $25 million in Block 52, which lies about 130 kms (80 miles) off the coast of the South American nation. In a statement, Staatsolie did not give further details on the German company's level of involvement.
Last year, Staatsolie signed a production sharing deal with Apache Corp of the United States to invest $230 million in the exploration of a different offshore block.
Staatsolie, founded in 1982, produces about 16,000 barrels of oil a day - mainly for local use. Global energy companies are showing growing interest in the potential of South America's northeastern shoulder. A 2011 discovery off French Guiana was described as a "game-changer" for the region's oil prospects.
Read more: Germany's RWE buys 40 percent stake in Suriname oil block | Reuters
5/13/13
Energy Supplies: Turkey agrees energy deal with Kurdish north Iraq - by Daniel Dombey
Turkey has defied both Washington and Baghdad by agreeing an energy deal with the north of Iraq that the US warns could further fracture the Middle Eastern state, but which Ankara sees as central to its own future.
Read more: Turkey agrees energy deal with Kurdish north Iraq - FT.com
Read more: Turkey agrees energy deal with Kurdish north Iraq - FT.com
4/9/13
Netherlands: Energy Supplies: Gazprom, Shell ink Arctic cooperation deal in Amsterdam
Russia’s export monopoly Gazprom and the Anglo-Dutch energy giant Royal Dutch Shell have signed a tentative deal to develop hydrocarbons in the Russian Arctic, Russian and Dutch media reported.
The deal was signed on Monday (8 April) in Amsterdam by Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller and Jorma Ollila, chairman of Royal Dutch Shell. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin were also present.
The deal is a framework agreement for cooperation in the Arctic and does not refer to any specific hydrocarbon deposits, Russian media reported.
Under existing rules, only Russian companies with more than 50% state ownership and no less than five years’ experience working in marine exploration are allowed to develop the Russian continental shelf, the website RIA Novosti said.
Only Rosneft and Gazprom meet these requirements and can involve other companies in joint ventures.
Royal Dutch Shell also signed a memorandum with Gazprom Neft, Gazprom’s oil arm, on cooperation in exploring and producing shale oil in Russia.
Read more: Gazprom, Shell ink Arctic cooperation deal | EurActiv
The deal was signed on Monday (8 April) in Amsterdam by Gazprom chief executive Alexei Miller and Jorma Ollila, chairman of Royal Dutch Shell. Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte and visiting Russian President Vladimir Putin were also present.
The deal is a framework agreement for cooperation in the Arctic and does not refer to any specific hydrocarbon deposits, Russian media reported.
Under existing rules, only Russian companies with more than 50% state ownership and no less than five years’ experience working in marine exploration are allowed to develop the Russian continental shelf, the website RIA Novosti said.
Only Rosneft and Gazprom meet these requirements and can involve other companies in joint ventures.
Royal Dutch Shell also signed a memorandum with Gazprom Neft, Gazprom’s oil arm, on cooperation in exploring and producing shale oil in Russia.
Read more: Gazprom, Shell ink Arctic cooperation deal | EurActiv
3/26/12
Shale Boom in Europe Fades as Polish Wells Come Up Empty
Europe’s best hope for a shale-gas boom is fading as explorers in Poland confront rising taxes, a lack of rigs and rocks that are harder to drill than expected.
“The growth of shale in Poland will be slower than in the U.S. because it would need to build the infrastructure the U.S. already had available,” said Laura Loppacher, an oil and gas analyst at Jefferies International Ltd. in London. “We know the gas in place is there, but it’s unclear if it can be extracted at a rate that’s commercial.”
For more: Shale Boom in Europe Fades as Polish Wells Come Up Empty - Businessweek
8/26/09
MSNBC: U.S. Senator Ted Kennedy dies at 77 -
For the complete report with msnbc.com click on this link
Sen. Edward M. Kennedy, the liberal lion of the Senate who lost two of his brothers to assassins' bullets, has died after battling a brain tumor. He was 77. For nearly a half-century in the Senate, Kennedy was a steadfast champion of the working class and the poor, a powerful voice on health care, civil rights, and war and peace. To the American public, though, he was best known as the last surviving son of America's most glamorous political family, the eulogist of a clan shattered again and again by tragedy. His family announced his death in a brief statement released early Wednesday.
Senate Democratic Leader Harry Reid said early Wednesday that both the Kennedy family and the Senate have "lost our patriarch." Reid promised that Congress, while mourning Kennedy's loss, would renew the push for the cause of Kennedy's life, health care reform. "Ted Kennedy's dream was the one for which the founding fathers fought and for which his brothers sought to realize," Reid said in a statement. "The liberal lion's mighty roar may now fall silent, but his dream shall never die."
8/25/09
Energy Tribune - China’s Oil Power Play - by Michael J. Economides
For the complete report from the Energy Tribune
China’s Oil Power Play - by Michael J. Economide
If one is looking for a sign of the changing world order, the size and scope of recent Chinese moves in the energy field should serve the purpose. It was only a few years ago that the US and its oil companies, in their quest to secure vital oil and gas, were accused of all sorts of transgressions from imperialistic exploitation to coddling corrupt regimes to finding pretexts to invade Iraq, twice. In retrospect it is not quite clear how much of “always blame the Americans even if you are wrong you are right” was justified, but one thing is certain. The insinuations implied that the US government and its foreign policy understood the importance of energy supply to its economy. This is no longer the case, with the American national debate (and that of several other developed countries) consumed by climate change, carbon emissions, and the preposterousness of solar and wind energies as substitutes for real energy sources. While any realistic and even charitable estimate puts solar and wind as contributing less than 1 percent of world energy demand for the next 20 years, more than 85 percent will still derive from oil, gas and coal; this while world energy demand will increase by more than 40 percent. The lion’s share of the latter will go to China.
4/23/09
LA Times: EU passes new rules on opening up gas and electricity markets after nearly 3 years - by Aoife White
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EU passes new rules on opening up gas and electricity markets after nearly 3 years - by Aoife White
The European Union on Wednesday approved new rules for opening up gas pipelines and electricity grids to competition — a move that regulators claim could help bring down energy prices and improve energy security. But consumers and some lawmakers said nearly three years' of negotiations on the rules had watered them down so much that they could not challenge the grip large energy firms' have over the European market.
2/4/09
Global Post: Pipeline talks put Turkey at center stage - by Nichole Sobecki
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Pipeline talks put Turkey at center stage - by Nichole Sobecki
Recep Tayyip Erdogan's visit to Brussels last week, his first since Turkey began negotiations to join the European Union in 2005, threw the spotlight on an issue given fresh impetus by the recent gas crisis between Russia and Ukraine: the Nabucco pipeline project. Nabucco, symbolically named for Giuseppe Verdi's 1842 operatic masterpiece that became a rallying cry for a generation of Italians determined to fight off Austrian military occupation, promises a different kind of freedom — that of energy independence from Russia. Erdogan's visit, amid the distractions of the U.S. presidential inauguration, served to remind all parties to a summit beginning this week that Nabucco could become a key sticking point in negotiations over EU accession, which Erdogan described as a "top priority" for Turkey.
If construction on Nabucco begins next year, as currently envisaged, the new pipeline could be operational by 2013. Bulent Aliriza, director of the Turkey Project at Washington, D.C.-based think tank the Center for Strategic and International Studies, says the advantages for European countries, and for Turkey, are "undeniable." "Europeans need the gas, and linked to that, they want to break away from the Russian monopoly," he said. "There is gas in and around the Caspian, and Turkey wants to be the key conduit in the transportation of this gas to Europe."
1/13/09
Trend Capital : Turkmenistan to emphasize diversification of energy resources market and its economy
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Turkmenistan to emphasize diversification of energy resources market and its economy
On the background of gas crisis between Russia and Ukraine, as well as global economic recession, Turkmenistan will more emphasize diversification of sale markets of energy resources and is economy, local experts believe.
“Presence of gas Kolndikes is not a guarantee of success and this fact dramatizes the latest news. There is always need for alternative routes. It is necessary to rely on interior reserves in order not to be a hostage of the Holland disease (dependence of treasury on deliveries of raw materials). The Turkmen government will emphasize thee milestones, as well,” a Turkmen expert told via telephone, keeping anonymity. He said that Turkmenistan has faced with a “mirror situation” around deliveries of energy resources to Tajikistan and some part to Afghanistan due to absence of customers’ contract with the transit Uzbek government. Although Russia and Ukraine having a transit contract cannot agree on a price for the Ukrainian market, a transit issue has become a leverage of pressure.
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