Planning for Income Alternatives in Saudi Arabia

Alternative energy sources to generate income are being considered. Natural gas is at the top of the list of competitors to replace petrol, according to Dr. Arab. Nuclear energy should be taken into consideration as well but because it is a high-risk alternative, nuclear planning was postponed. The options remaining are solar, wind and water […]

Is There Plenty of Oil?

First came Holstein, then Mad Dog, and soon, Thunder Horse. Atlantis will join them next year. The four giant oil fields, operated by BP PLC (BP ) and located under thousands of feet of water off the coast of Louisiana, are just beginning to pump their first barrels. At their peak rates later in the […]

Japan Considering Up to 1 Trillion Yen Aid to Russia in Pipeline Bid

Japan is considering extending up to 1 trln yen in aid to Russia to help finance a pipeline from Siberian oil fields if Moscow gives Tokyo preference over Beijing in the project, the Tokyo Shimbun reported. The bulk of the sum being considered — between 900 bln yen and 1 trln yen — would be […]

Iran-EU nuke talks face threat of top resignation

A senior official involved in the nuclear negotiations told the FT Mr Rowhani had offered his resignation on Saturday to Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. “I don’t know if the leader will accept or not, but if Mr Rowhani goes, the whole negotiating team might go with him,” he said. “This is very serious […]

Peak Oil and What It Means to You

Peak oil has been of hot debate lately, with many naysayers saying there is a huge oil well to the center of the planet. With the Mexican Cantarell Oil field expecting to decline at 15% year over year and the Saudi Arabian Ghawar Oil field in a similar predicament, it seems that peak oil will […]

Russian-German pipeline ruffles Polish feathers

Russia has opted to press ahead with the construction of a major gas pipeline to Germany threatening similar projects in the region and compounding Moscow’s diplomatic snub to Poland and Lithuania over Kaliningrad’s anniversary celebrations. President Vladimir Putin told chancellor Gerhard Schroder on Sunday (3 July) that construction of a €5 billion gas link running […]

Oil Prices Surge

WORLD oil prices rose in London overnight, after making huge gains the previous Friday on expectations of a big rise in petrol, or gasoline, consumption during the long US holiday weekend. The price of Brent North Sea crude oil for delivery in August gained 36 cents to 57.90 dollars per barrel after finishing 1.96 dollars […]

Russian Crude Oil Output Up 3 Pct Yr-onYr in H1

Russian crude oil production was up just 3 pct in the first half of this year from a year earlier, confirming the slowdown seen since autumn 2004, according to figures from the energy ministry published today. Russia, the world’s second biggest oil exporter, extracted 230.2 mln tonnes of crude oil during the first half of […]

Heating Bills Likely to Double

Residents can expect to pay twice as much to heat their homes this year over last, and thatPortsmouth Herald

Higher taxes sap Russian oil exports to Europe

Russian oil exports to Europe fell in June and average daily oil output rose at the slowest annual pace of this year as higher taxes discouraged investment in fields. Exports from Russia, the world’s second-biggest oil supplier, to countries outside the Commonwealth of Independent States fell to 4.22 million barrels a day in June, down […]

Housing may sting more than dot.com bust

Study: 15 states, representing 35% of the economy, are vulnerable to a housing correction. WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Whether it’s a national bubble or just pockets of regional froth, an end to surge in home prices could inflict economic harm that would make the 2000 tech bust look tame in comparison. CNN

Asia Scrambling to Curb Energy Use

Governments around Asia have implemented short-term energy-saving measures, but analysts say they are likely to have little impact as consumers shilded from high prices or with strong economies keep buying. Following are details of measures several Asian countries have taken or will plan to take to save energy

Water Shortage May up Japan Utilities’ Oil Demand

Water shortages in western and southern Japan have forced at least two utilities to reduce hydroelectric generation and crank up oil-fired power plants, spurring market expectations that utilities’ demand for oil may rise this summer, traders said on Friday. A possibly serious dearth of water in coming months may also affect nuclear power plants, which […]

China courting Canadian uranium

Chinese officials and investors have been sizing up the Canadian uranium sector, in what may be the early stages of an attempt to nail down raw materials for a nuclear building boom. A Chinese delegation visited Cameco Corp. last fall, says Alice Wong, a spokeswoman for the Saskatoon-based uranium giant.

‘Energy hub’ may cushion coming crisis

Saint John is surrounded by energy. Point Lepreau’s nuclear generators hum to the west and plumes of steam waft above Irving Oil’s refinery in the east. Along the coast the Coleson Cove power station churns out electricity and oil tankers glide in and out of the port, while natural gas hisses in underground pipelines.With talk […]

Who will get Unocal? Maybe both Chevron and CNOOC

As the battle between China’s CNOOC Ltd. and Chevron Corp. to buy Unocal (UCL.N: Quote, Profile, Research) drags on, speculation is emerging that they may eventually agree to carve up the U.S. producer. By splitting up some of Unocal’s assets, such as stakes in its Indonesian natural gas fields, CNOOC (0883.HK: Quote, Profile, Research)(CEO.N: Quote, […]

Japan and China face off over energy

Japan has come up with two crisis scenarios relating to China’s relentless quest for energy sources. The first one foresees a battle between the two countries, the second assumes the isolation of Tokyo. Both scenarios portray a shocking future for Japan.

Driven by energy shortages, China races to expand nuclear power industry

The shadows of Chernobyl and Three Mile Island no longer reach to the pine-crested hillsides of Hangzhou Bay, where China is rushing to expanding a nuclear power station to meet soaring demand for electricity for its economic boom.  Driven by crushing fuel shortages, smog and ambitions to profit from its hard-won nuclear prowess, Beijing has […]

China fails to secure Russia deal

Chinese President Hu Jintao yesterday failed to secure major concrete promises of more oil from Russia to fuel his booming economy. Hu’s visit to Moscow had been billed by commentators as a mission to agree access to more crude oil and gas, but as expected Russia held off making promises of increased volumes, signing only […]

Geologists looking to mountains for crude oil

A consortium of the U.S. Department of Energy, several states, 17 energy companies and an industry group plans an exhaustive study in search of new oil reserves beneath the Appalachian foothills. The two-year review is being sparked by record-high prices for crude oil and the country’s continuing need for it.

India, Turkey to study energy cooperation

India and Turkey have set up a joint working group to study cooperation in the oil and gas sector even as state-owned Indian Oil Corporation plans to bid for a Turkish refinery, Petroleum Minister Mani Shankar Aiyar said Friday. “We have set up a joint working group in hydrocarbons which will report to the India-Turkey […]

Hell or High Water

This time, however, Britain is not alone. Spain is rationing water amid its worst drought for 60 years, draining public swimming pools. Portugal’s crops are so badly hit it has applied for EU food assistance. Severe droughts are hitting countries from Cuba to Cambodia to Australia. It is too early to tell whether the dwindling […]

When the Oil Wars Blow

Occasionally, there are tipping-point moments and we are witnessing one at the moment. Seismic change is afoot. As oil prices breach $60 a barrel and pessimists warn that the world could be as little as 10 years away from a first-order resources crisis, China’s largest oil company, CNOOC, has launched a The Observer

Oil Traders Increase Bets for $80 Crude on Supply Concerns

Record oil prices may increase to $80 a barrel this year, options contracts on the New York Mercantile Exchange show. Investors are speculating OPEC won’t produce enough oil to compensate for any disruption to supplies. New York Mercantile Exchange data show 6,900 options contracts outstanding that allow the buyer to purchase crude oil for December […]

North Korea: The Post Carbon Worst Case Scenario

Glimpses of a Hermit Nation: “A decade after a massive famine, North Koreans are still struggling. In Chongjin, deprivation spurs change.” MicroHydro’s Comments: This is an excellent article by the LA Times about what happened in North Korea after their oil supply was cut off by the collapse of the Soviet Union.  Warning, all the worst fears of the most pessimistic doomers were realized.

Note, the LA Times requires (free) registration – Take the time, this article is worth it.

Los Angeles Times

US Sees Security Cooperation Hitches with Venezuela

Chavez says the Bush administration backed a short-lived coup against him in 2002. He has threatened to cut off oil supplies to the U.S. if Washington tries to invade or harm him. In a television broadcast Sunday, the Venezuelan president said his intelligence services had detected a war games exercise being practiced by the U.S. […]

New Oil Fields Discovered in Egypt

Egypt’s Oil Minister revealed on Saturday that three new oil fields were discovered near the Gulf of Suez with a total reserve of 70 million barrels of crude. A statement released by the Egyptian Oil Minister Sameh Fahmi on Saturday said that the new discoveries were the first in 40 years in the area, lying […]

Big Fire Hits Pakistan Oil Terminal

A large fire engulfed a terminal owned by Pakistan’s largest oil marketing firm in the southern city of Karachi before it was put out on Sunday but authorities said it was unlikely to hit the country’s oil supplies. Officials at Pakistan State Oil (PSO) said work at a lubricant manufacturing terminal near the National Refinery […]

Rail woes may bring US power summer of discontent

07/01/05, NEW YORK (Reuters) – Nobody is talking about blackouts just yet, but a long, hot summer combined with railroad disruptions could spell disaster for U.S. coal-burning power plants. With the steamiest days of the year still to come and with repairs on the rail track serving the coal mines of the Powder River Basin […]

Are the Desert Kingdom’s Foundations Built on Sand?

Saudi Arabia is running out of oil reserves, and we should put ourselves on a ‘war footing’ to prepare for a future without the black gold, according to a new book by Texan oil banker Matt Simmons. In Twilight in the Desert, which will be published in the UK later this week, Simmons argues that […]

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