Crisis may prime the pumps

The rise and rise of oil prices is renewing interest in the “peak oil” theories which originated in 1956 when the geologist M King Hubbert predicted that US oil production would peak in about 1970, which it did. While demand has risen sharply in recent years because of the strongest performance of the world economy […]

For China’s Orphans, Coal Is a Lifesaver

Advocates Brush Off Green Concerns, Citing Children’s Needs First …As Beijing Olympic officials scramble to clear the air and fulfill its promise for a “Green Olympics,” there remains a small group of Chinese that can’t get enough of the black stuff: the poor, who by the millions use coal to heat their homes. In 2005, […]

As oil passes $100, the question: will it stop?

Oil futures hit a record $100 a barrel in futures trading this week, after attacks in Nigeria, Africa’s leading oil producer. But most analysts expect that prices will decline from the current spike. A Reuters poll of 37 energy analysts’ expectations yielded an average prediction of $74 a barrel for this year, compared with about […]

Big oil taking political beating ahead of earnings

HOUSTON, Jan 4 (Reuters) – Eye-popping profits earn respect on Wall Street but the billions big oil companies reaped in the fourth quarter are raising the wrath of U.S. presidential candidates trying to cater to voters’ pocketbooks. Large oil companies have long been a target of politicians — mostly Democrats, who blame them for gouging […]

Dealing With the Dragon

On both Wednesday and Thursday, the price of oil briefly hit $100 a barrel. The new record made headlines, as well it should have. But what does it mean, aside from the obvious point that the economy is under extra pressure? Well, one thing it means is that we Almost all the foreign policy talk […]

OPEC oil output rises in Dec – Reuters survey

LONDON, Jan 4 (Reuters) – OPEC oil production rose last month beyond the rate targeted in a deal to boost output, led by a rebound in supply in the United Arab Emirates, a Reuters survey showed on Friday. OPEC’s 10 members bound by output targets, all except Iraq, Angola and Ecuador, pumped 27.39 million barrels […]

David Strahan: Hear no peak

Just as the Financial Times The idea that there are

Samoa: Five thieves steal one million litres of petrol

FIVE people in American Samoa have been charged after allegedly stealing almost a million litres of diesel from oil companies. Radio New Zealand reports the men may have made $US90,000 ($A102,000) from the scheme between January 2005 and May 2007. …Small Pacific nations have been hard hit by high world oil prices, which yesterday surged […]

High oil costs must spur fuel efficiency, says IEA

Oil at $100 a barrel should remind consuming countries of the need to improve fuel efficiency, the International Energy Agency said on Thursday as US figures showed a fall in crude oil stocks for a seventh successive week. The IEA, which represents rich oil-consuming countries, urged its member governments to do more to curb their […]

At $100 Oil – What Can the Scientist Say to the Investor?

The following post is my cut and paste review of a new paper by Charles Hall, Robert Powers, and William Schoenberg titled “Peak Oil, Investments, and the Economy in an Uncertain Future”. This paper, along with 16 others (including 2 by theoildrum.com contributors), will be part of an upcoming book edited by Professor David Pimentel, […]

Economy and Geopolitics Decide Where Oil Goes Next

NOW that the price of crude oil has crossed the $100-a-barrel threshold, and then retreated slightly, what direction will it take now? Many experts say it will go up, then down, and then maybe up again. That, anyway, has been the pattern of the last several years of volatile prices. The arguments for even higher […]

OPEC Distances Itself From Report Raising Supply Concerns

LONDON -(Dow Jones)- The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries distanced itself Friday from a recent report raising questions about the group’s future supply capacity. The report, which appeared in the December issue of the OPEC Review published by the organization’s Vienna-based Secretariat, indicated that OPEC could realistically fail to supply its share of global oil […]

Uganda: Domestic Flights Halted Over Fuel Scarcity

DOMESTIC flights across the country have been suspended. The decision follows the fuel scarcity due to the election violence that has engulfed Kenya, the main supply route. “We are running out of aviation fuel. We can’t afford to supply our domestic operators anymore. Eagle air has since suspended its flight due to the shortage,” said […]

U.S. fliers may face separate jet-fuel fees

NEW YORK Most U.S. airlines have a poor record of managing exposure to volatile fuel prices. Only discount carrier Southwest Airlines hedges most of its fuel needs, while others like American Airlines and Delta Air Lines are mainly at the mercy of the market. Fare increases, the traditional way airlines boost revenue, do not help […]

Fresh fighting erupts near Sudan oil areas: ex-rebels

JUBA, Sudan (AFP) – Fresh fighting erupted between southern Sudanese forces and Khartoum-backed Arab tribesmen near key oil areas of the country on Friday, former southern rebels said, further denting hopes of an end to north-south hostilities. Dozens of people have been reported killed since fighting first erupted late last month near the disputed Abyei […]

StatoilHydro shuts Veslefrikk oil platform due to North Sea storm

OSLO, Norway: Norwegian state-controlled oil company StatoilHydro ASA on Friday shut down production from its 35,000 barrel-per-day Veslefrikk oil field and reduced staffing at two other fields due to a North Sea storm with strong winds and huge waves. StatoilHydro spokesman Gisle Johanson said it was not clear how long the production and staff cuts […]

Hundred dollar oil to hit soft drink makers hard

As petrol prices temporarily rose above the dreaded $100 per barrel mark for the first time this week, beverage manufacturers have revealed their concerns over the possible cost implications for their operations. The British Soft Drinks Association (BDSA) said that while rising commodity costs were never welcome, higher oil prices would not only significantly impacted […]

Oil Price Touches $100 a Barrel; Signal of Pending Oil Shortages Ignored

The price for West Texas Intermediate (WTI) oil touched $100 on January 2, 2008, a new milestone. According to TheOilDrum.com, WTI oil price has been giving a very clear signal of pending shortage for over five years now, and in breaching the symbolic $100 a barrel mark, continues to do so. Those driving the world […]

Peak nationalism

…It would be natural to assume that ever increasing price reflects ever greater scarcity. And so it does, in a sense. Booming bits of the world, such as China, India and the Middle East have seen demand for oil grow with their economies. Meanwhile, Western oil firms, in particular, are struggling to produce any more […]

Australia: Oil hits new record high

…The latest price increase has prompted a call for the Federal Government to take the lead in preparing Australians for the possibility of oil rationing. The volunteer-based Association for the Study of Peak Oil says global oil production could start to decline from 2012. Convenor Bruce Robinson says it raises the prospect of oil shortages. […]

Nigerian militants threaten ‘bloody fight’ in 2008

Lagos, Nigeria – The violence in Nigeria’s oil producing Niger Delta region, which has helped to push the price of crude oil to the US$100 mark, seems set to worsen in the new year, after the region’s main militants threatened to unleash a ”bloody fight in 2008” to paralyse ”100 per cent of Nigeria’s oil […]

Transport spending plans based on oil at just $50

A government document meant to underpin future UK transport policy is based on an oil price of $50 a barrel – about half the current level, raising serious questions about the logic of resulting spending commitments. The report, Road Traffic Forecasts for England 2007, was drawn up by economists at the Department for Transport to […]

SK: How Will $100 a Barrel Oil Impact Consumers?

From downtown Seoul cab drivers to Namdaemun Market wholesalers, Wednesday’s oil spike of $100 a barrel is set to make everyday life a little harder, and pricier for average Koreans to pay their bills. “What news to start the New Year with,” said Ko Sang-tae, an owner of Hana Taxi, a company operating some 30 […]

EU feels uneasy about soaring oil prices

The European Union (EU) ushered in the new year in an uneasy mood on Thursday after world oil prices touched 100 U.S. dollars a barrel one day ago. “If this high level of (oil) prices maintain its way, it will have an impact on the (European) economy,” Amelia Torres, EU spokeswoman for economic and monetary […]

Soaring Oil Price a Warning Signal for Korea’s Economy

High oil prices, high commodity prices and high interest rates could mire Korea’s economy in low growth. In that case, households already burdened with debts of W600 trillion (US$1=W937) could see a further reduction in real income, fewer jobs and increased interest payments. They would also put a heavy strain on macroeconomic management by the […]

Swiss Inflation Rate Rises to 12-Year High on Energy

Swiss inflation unexpectedly accelerated to the fastest pace in more than 12 years in December, led by higher energy costs. Consumer prices increased 2 percent from a year earlier after rising 1.8 percent in November, the Federal Statistics Office in Neuchatel said today. That’s the highest rate since October 1995. Economists forecast it would be […]

That biofuel may not be as green as you think it is

In this week’s edition of Science, a feature discusses a recent study examining the total environmental impact from various types of biofuels. The actual study was carried out by R. Zah et al., at the behest of the Swedish government. While nearly all crop-derived biofuels emit less greenhouse gases than fossil fuels, whether or not […]

The heavy price of $100 a barrel

Britain could see an Npower is expected to announce double-digit increases in gas and electricity prices today and motorists have been hit by record petrol prices, adding to a squeeze on incomes from softening house prices and higher credit costs.Kris Voorspools, analyst at Fortis Bank in Brussels, insists a shortage of the right kind of […]

Oil, Gold Hit Records

The price of gold could peak at US$1,200 an ounce this year, Mr. Norman said. Production from the world’s biggest producer, South Africa, has sunk to levels not seen since the 1930s, he said, and despite a long-standing bull run for the price of gold, a finite supply of the precious metal means not enough […]

FPTV: The Future of Oil (video)

Are we running out of oil? FPTV speaks with Vijay Vaitheeswaran and Robert L. Hirsch about their conflicting views on the future of the world’s greatest addiction. Vijay Vaitheeswaran is correspondent for The Economist and coauthor, with Iain Carson, of Zoom: The Global Race to Fuel the Car of the Future (New York: Twelve Books, […]

« Previous Page — Next Page »

LATEST NEWS HEADLINES

• Why the IEA is Wrong About Peak Oil Demand
• Did we inadvertently speed global warming?  
• Venezuela’s Oil Monopoly Eases
• Why Germany is Choosing Natural Gas Over Nuclear Power
• U.S. coal-fired electricity generation decreased in 2022 and 2023

• America Cracks Down on Methane Emissions from Oil and Gas Facilities
• Meet America’s Newest Oil Trader Extraordinaire: Joe Biden
• Is It Time To Refill America’s Strategic Petroleum Reserve?
• Oil prices set to end year 10% lower as demand concerns snap winning streak
• What’s Driving America’s New Oil and Gas Boom?
• China’s peak oil demand bombshell eviscerates Danielle Smith’s energy strategy