Historic First China Begins Oil Extraction In Afghanistan

In a surprising (if not quite shocking) move, late on Friday Canada blocked Petroliam Nasional Bhd.’s C$5.2 billion takeover of Progress Energy Resources Corp. saying the bid by the Malaysian state-owned company “wasn’t in Canada’s national interests.” As BusinessWeek explains, “in what investors say is a test case for the $15.1 billion bid by CNOOC […]

War No Matter Who Wins Election

Once again emphasizing there is no fundamental difference between Obama and Romney when it comes to attacking Iran, the American Jewish Committee has published the answers to a questionnaire sent to the candidates. From the Jewish Telegraphic Agency website: “I am prepared to use all elements of American power” to prevent Iran from obtaining a […]

Kuwait security forces break up mass protest

Security forces battled protesters in one of Kuwait’s biggest demonstrations on Sunday night, in the latest deepening of a political crisis that will be watched nervously by monarchies across the oil-rich Gulf. Authorities fired teargas and stun grenades as thousands took to the streets of Kuwait City to oppose changes to the electoral law that […]

Canadians could free themselves from oil imports, but will they?

You are not alone if you think it’s odd that Canada–the world’s ninth largest exporter of crude oil and petroleum products and the main supplier of oil imports to the United States–is itself a longtime oil importer, importing more than 40 percent of its oil needs this year. The situation results from historical pipeline development […]

After the Boom in Natural Gas

THE crew of workers fought off the blistering Louisiana sun, jerking their wrenches to tighten the fat hoses that would connect their cement trucks to the Chesapeake Energy drill rig — one of the last two rigs the company is still using to drill for natural gas here in the Haynesville Shale. At its peak, […]

The Myth of Affordable Energy – Interview with Ed Dolan

We were fortunate enough to speak with the well known economist Ed Dolan on various energy and economic issues. In the interview Ed talks about the following: • Why cheap energy is not vital to economic growth • Why high oil prices aren’t necessarily a bad thing • Why the U.S. Oil and gas boom […]

Climbing The Ladder Of Awareness

When it comes to our understanding of the unfolding global crisis, each of us seems to fit somewhere along a continuum of awareness that can be roughly divided into five stages: Dead asleep. At this stage there seem to be no fundamental problems, just some shortcomings in human organization, behaviour and morality that can be […]

An economy awash in oil

Marion King Hubbert’s famous theory of “peak oil” has gained a great deal of traction in the scientific literature of various fields. Want to read up on peak oil and urban planning? Check. Peak oil and tourism? No problem, you’re not the first. Peak oil and public health? Where to even begin? There have been […]

Saudi Insider Likely Key to Aramco Cyber-Attack

Last weekend’s disclosure that Iranian cyber warriors had disabled some 30,000 computers owned by the Saudi oil giant Aramco is attracting considerable attention here, particularly in light of a warning last week by Pentagon chief Leon Panetta that Washington could face a “cyber-Pearl Harbor”. The alleged Iranian hand behind the attack, first reported Saturday by […]

Bioplastics: Are They the Solution?

Bioplastics are simply plastics derived from renewable biomass sources, like plants and microorganisms, whereas conventional plastics are synthesized from non-renewable fossil fuels, either oil or natural gas. It’s a common misconception, however, that a bioplastic necessarily breaks down better in the environment than conventional plastics. Bioplastics are nevertheless marketed as being better for the environment, […]

Heinberg: Scapegoat-in-Chief The Race for the Oval Office

The first two U.S. presidential debates have been painful to watch. Both candidates are running on platforms constructed from verbal hallucinations about the nation’s past, present, and future. And the American people are being asked to choose between those hallucinations in order to select the best available scapegoat for the next four years of national […]

Call it eco-agriculture

“Call it eco-agriculture, sustainable agriculture, organic farming, or agroforestry, it is the future of food and humanity’s relationship with our home planet.” The Great Change by Albert Bates

Global Water Crisis, US Eyes Canada’s Great Lakes

The number of people living in areas affected by severe water stress is expected to increase to almost four billion people…   OECD Environmental Outlook to 2030 The Stockholm International Water Institute has kindly provided some statistics we should all be aware of: The 10 largest water users (in volume) are India, China, the United […]

Saudi Arabia reveals plans to be powered entirely by renewable energy

Saudi Arabia says it wants to use fossil fuels to produce other goods rather than use it for power generation. Photograph: Fayez Nureldine/AFP/Getty Images Saudi Arabia, the world’s biggest oil producer, has plans to become 100% powered by renewable and low-carbon forms of energy, according to an influential member of the royal family. But the […]

Iranian Latest

The above shows the available public data on Iranian oil production as of this moment.  The slide continues.  You may wonder if there’s a little sign of stabilization in the OPEC secondary numbers in the last month, but the previous month also showed that sign but then it got revised away.  So I think for […]

Is technology push sufficient as a policy approach?

I came across an article from the Breakthrough Institute which argues for the benefits of government support for new energy technologies. The story is a few months old, but still highly relevant – in any case a related story is back on their front page this week. The technology in question is hydraulic fracturing (fracking) to extract […]

China Tensions Are Rising

On Nov. 8, two days after the U.S. presidential election, the People’s Republic of China will convene its 18th National Congress, thus transferring leadership of the government for only the fourth time since 1949. (I wrote a column in April about what investors should watch for over the next six months in China.) In this […]

Brief Comparison of Five Empire Collapse Cases to US-Europe Today

Let’s step away from the noise for a moment and look at the big picture. This isn’t about doom and gloom, or fear, but objective facts. Undoubtedly, the Western hierarchy dominated by the United States is in a completely unsustainable situation. Across the West, national governments have obligations they simply cannot meet–both to their citizens […]

The scientists who turned fresh air into petrol

1   A small British company has produced the first “petrol from air” using a revolutionary technology that promises to solve the energy crisis as well as helping to curb global warming by removing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Air Fuel Synthesis in Stockton-on-Tees has produced five litres of petrol since August when it switched […]

U.S. Winter Seen Harsher Than Last Year, Boosting Fuel Demand

The coming U.S. winter will probably be cooler than a year ago, boosting demand for heating fuels such as natural gas, a panel of forecasters said. While December will be warmer than normal, temperatures will drop through February, increasing natural gas use by 13 percent over the same period from last year, Commodity Weather Group […]

Degrowth offers alternative to global consumer culture

If everyone lived like the average American, according to the Global Footprint Network, the Earth could sustain only 1.7 billion people — a quarter of today’s population — without undermining the planet’s physical and biological systems. Over-consumption in industrialized societies and among developing world elites causes lasting environmental and human impacts. In his chapter, “The […]

Radiation level is picking up in Tokyo

According to the report of Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology, radiation level is picking up in Tokyo. The precipitation is 0.5mm/10min, wind is coming from north at 3.0m/s. fukushima-diary

Countdown to Armageddon

Countdown to Armageddon This week: 1. LMFAO 2. 2012 hottest year ever 3. Romney’s and Obama’s pipe dreams 4. Keystone Xl Blockade in Texas 5. Benjamin Netanyahu’s coke problem 6. Nobel War Prize 7. Spanish loot supermarkets 8. Parliament surrounded in Madrid 9. Molotov cocktails party in Athens 10. Savage Fam 11. Will Potter’s “Green […]

Goldman sees end to rising prices

Wall Street giant Goldman Sachs, one of the biggest banks in commodity trading, has called an end to the oil price super-cycle, reversing years of bullish recommendations, citing a rise in unconventional oil supplies in the United States and Canada. Goldman has been highest predictor among major oil price forecasters but said on Thursday “long-dated” […]

China Unlikely to Replicate US Shale Gas Boom

China is unlikely to replicate the shale gas boom of the United States in speed or scale, but low drilling costs and high local gas prices make it attractive to drill for unconventional gas reserves, says the top executive at one of the few foreign companies drilling for gas in China. China has ambitious plans […]

Is the world heading towards Doomsday?

There is no secret in the fact that the population of our world is growing. From 3 billion in 1960, it now stands at just over 7 billion and by the middle of the century, if you accept the worst-case scenario, it could be nearly 11 billion. Putting aside for a minute the problem of […]

Exxon seeks to quit flagship Iraq oil project

Exxon Mobil wants to leave its flagship Iraqi oil project after upsetting Baghdad by signing a deal last year with the autonomous northern Kurdish region, which the central government deemed illegal. It wants to leave its contract to develop the giant West Qurna-1 oilfield in southern Iraq , diplomatic sources said on Thursday, because of […]

Challenges of estimating global oil supplies

There’s been a great deal of debate over the last few years about how long it will be until global oil supplies run out. Are we approaching, or have we already passed, ‘peak oil’ – the point beyond which economically viable oil supplies begin to decline? Whether we like it or not, our modern world […]

Keeping Peak Oil Reality In Mind # 14: Getting Anywhere

An observation worth noting … and pondering, from Glen Bottoms. Oil has us literally over the barrel. If this situation is to change, we will all need to recognize that our present course is not sustainable. All of our institutions are geared to an era that was designed for a different set of circumstances that […]

Push is on to Fuel Vehicles with Natural Gas

A natural gas boom in Pennsylvania is not only helping to heat homes, but it can also help fuel cars and trucks! The push is on to get companies to switch to natural gas vehicles and to build fueling stations. CNG stands for compressed natural gas. These days, it’s cheaper than gasoline you use in […]

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