‘Relentless’ growth could see the US topple Russia, Saudi Arabia as world’s largest oil producer

“This year promises to be a record-setting one for the U.S.,” the IEA said in its closely-watched report published Friday The latest monthly report from the IEA comes at a time when crude futures have climbed to highs not seen since the early days of a slump in December 2014 One of the main beneficiaries […]

China’s birthrate dropped despite allowing 2-child families

The birthrate in China fell last year despite the country easing its family planning policies and allowing all couples to have two children, a result parents say of the stresses of urban life. There were 17.2 million births in the country last year, down from 17.9 million in 2016, the National Bureau of Statistics reported […]

Consumerism’s Dirty Little Secret: Are We Buying All the Wrong Things?

I have some terrible news… You’re stranded in the desert! For three days, you’ve traveled in the heat without food or water. Your eyelids are heavy and your legs even heavier. Your lips are cracked, too dry now to even bleed. For miles and miles, all you see is sky, rock and sand. Your foot […]

As Petro-Yuan Looms, Bundesbank Adds Renminbi To Currency Reserves

Just days after China’s (denied) threat to slow/stop buying US Treasuries, and just days before the launch of China’s petro-yuan futures contract, Germany’s central bank confirmed it would include China’s Renminbi in its reserves. The FT reports that Andreas Dombret, a member of Deutsche Bundesbank’s executive board, said at the Asian Financial Forum in Hong […]

What’s The Limit For Permian Oil Production?

The ‘hottest shale play’ has been the media’s favorite cliché for the Permian Basin over the past year. And while cliché, the basin straddling West Texas and New Mexico has lived up to this description—its oil production, unlike that in other basins, did not fall off a cliff during the downturn, it recently beat its […]

Banks expected to share tiny proportion of mammoth Saudi Aramco IPO

The banks that will advise and execute Saudi Aramco’s stock market listing are expected to share a tiny proportion of the $100 billion Riyadh hopes to raise in its initial public offering, according to banking sources and industry insiders. Investment banks involved in the listing IPO-ARMO.SE are expected to share a fifth of a percent […]

New York City Will Divest Pension Funds from Fossil Fuel Companies

Today New York Mayor Bill De Blasio announced a goal to divest New York City’s pension funds from fossil fuel reserve owners within five years. This makes New York the first major American city to announce such a move. According to a statement, the city’s five pension funds have approximately $5 billion invested in over 190 […]

Saudi Arabia’s Ambitious Plans for Nuclear Energy

It’s not clear that the plans will work as expected in terms of the announced timeline of completing 16 reactors (17.6 Gwe) by 2032. The cost of the program is close to $90 billion which over a period of more than two decades for a feasible schedule would involve a significant diversion of oil revenue […]

A Unifying Theory of Energy

A unifying theory of energy is the second installment of an energy trilogy beginning with The Energy/Environment Algorithm. Investopedia describes a ‘Tragedy of The Commons’ as an economic problem in which every individual tries to reap the greatest benefit from a given resource. As demand exceeds supply consumers directly harm others who are no longer […]

To save our oceans, we must halt human population growth

As a lifelong surfer who has never lived more than a mile from the ocean, I heartily agree with every claim they make about the perils of overfishing and the destruction of coral reefs. I am afraid my young grandson will inherit oceans that are vast wastelands and never know the joys I experienced in […]

Exxon discovers oil, gas in Papua New Guinea

Exxon Mobil Corp. has discovered natural gas and oil in the western province of Papua New Guinea and has begun evaluating the find with its partners. The Texas oil company drilled an exploration well more than 8,900 feet into the earth and found hydrocarbons in sandstone reservoirs, confirming that the gas-rich field encompassing the Toro […]

Prepare For The Imminent Economic Collapse 2018

Will the US Economic Collapse Happen in 2018? The economic forecast for 2018 is more than bleak, and there is more than enough economic data out there to show there could be an economic collapse and stock market crash in 2018.

Million Barrels Per Day Could Go Offline In 2018

Venezuela’s oil production has been falling for years, but 2018 could mark a new, darker chapter for the South American nation.   Late last year, Venezuela’s government defaulted on millions of dollars’ worth of debt, with larger and more significant payments maturing this year. The ability to service billions in debt payments this year is almost […]

Tom Whipple: Peak Oil Review – 15 January 2018

Quote of the Week “Just like Florida, our states are unique with vibrant coastal economies. Providing all of our states with the same exemption from dangerous offshore oil and gas drilling would ensure that vital industries from tourism to recreation to fishing are not needlessly placed in harm’s way.” Letter from 22 Democratic US senators […]

The equations are changing for the oil industry

In 1846, the US was the behemoth of the whaling industry, with Nantucket Island and New Bedford, Massachusetts its twin capitals. Demand for whale oil, as industrial lubricants or as fuel for heating and lighting, had driven the growth of the whaling industry by a factor of fourteen since 1816. New Bedford had the highest […]

The world is not awash in oil yet


The past seven years were both very exciting, and very difficult for the global energy markets. Today’s market faces two key challenges, both the product of human innovation and technological advancement. The first is the challenge faced by oil producers to rebalance the market amid new supplies from unconventional sources due to new and improved […]

Buy Oil, Make Money

The last time I got into a row over oil prices with Christian DeHaemer, the U.S. oil industry was in a far different state. It was years ago, before the Bakken in North Dakota became a household name. Back then, our shouting matches would reach a crescendo in the office, and he just happened to […]

Texas oil tycoon Pickens closing energy hedge fund

Oil tycoon T. Boone Pickens is throwing in the towel on his energy focused hedge fund after a 22-year-long “roller coaster ride.” “It’s no secret the past year has not been good to me, from a health perspective or a financial one,” Pickens wrote in a Linkedin post Friday, referring to the series of strokes […]

Oil Could Hit $80 a Barrel This Year

Tightening global supplies and rising demand for crude oil helped prices for the commodity start the year with a bang—hitting their highest levels in more than three years—and many analysts believe the market has the fuel it needs to continue the rally to as high as $80 a barrel. “The reason that oil will soar […]

China’s Official Military Newspaper Warns: “War Is Not Far”

“War is not far from us. Regional situations around China are complex and unstable, and dangers are hiding under the peace. China cannot afford a military failure, so we must be fully aware of potential crisis and be prepared for battle at all times. When the country is on the brink of becoming a great […]

The Seneca Effect: a Book Review by Jantje Hannover

This is a review of the German edition of “The Seneca Effect” written by Jantie Hannover for the site of the radio station “Deutschelandfunk.” Very well done by someone who really read the book. Here I report a translation made mainly using “Google Translate,” and also some intervention on my part. Not a very good […]

Are we ‘Beyond Meat’?

With the world’s population increasing, we’re increasingly seeing pollution and the mass consumption of land jeopardising the earth’s future for generations to come. Can we help? Slowly, people are realising the importance in nurturing the earth and what can be done to positively progress. Start-up ‘envirotech’ companies are using their knowledge of global warming to […]

Hope Wanes for ‘Elephant’ Oil Discoveries in Norway’s Arctic

After a disappointing year for drillers, Norwegian authorities are reviewing their hopes for the Nordic country’s hottest exploration area. “In the part of the Barents Sea that’s currently open, you’ve sort of tried the elephants — the big opportunities,” Bente Nyland, the head of the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate, said in an interview. “You’re now down […]

How the Collapse of Venezuela Really Happened

Today we welcome back our friend Jose, who wrote the awesome article about Christmas in Venezuela. It was so well-received that I invited him back to do a recurring series. In this piece, he begins telling us the story about how his country started the slide into a slow-motion collapse. Jose is a heck of […]

Will The Dollar Survive The Rise Of The Yuan And The End Of The Petrodollar?

This might seem a frivolous question, while the dollar still retains its might, and is universally accepted in preference to other, less stable fiat currencies. However, it is becoming clear, at least to independent monetary observers, that in 2018 the dollar’s primacy will be challenged by the yuan as the pricing medium for energy and […]

Oil Reaches $70 a Barrel for First Time in Three Years

Oil topped $70 a barrel in London for the first time in three years as production cuts by OPEC and rising demand whittle away a global surplus. Brent crude futures, used in the pricing of more than half the world’s oil, rose as much as 1.2 percent to the highest since Dec. 4, 2014. Prices […]

Thieves steal chunk of China’s new solar highway

Thieves in China have vandalised a newly opened solar highway, less than a week after the road was christened with much fanfare. The one-kilometre stretch of road in the eastern city of Jinan consists of solar panels under a layer of transparent concrete, allowing cars to drive over the photovoltaic cells. But just five days […]

Keeping Fossil Fuels Underground Makes No Sense

What would happen if climateers succeed in their campaign to keep fossil fuels in the ground? The experience of Walt Disney World in Orlando more than 40 years ago provides some answers. In 1973, two years after it opened, plans to expand Disney World beyond the original theme park were jeopardized when war broke out […]

Bedazzled by Energy Efficiency

To focus on energy efficiency is to make present ways of life non-negotiable. However, transforming present ways of life is key to mitigating climate change and decreasing our dependence on fossil fuels. Energy efficiency policy Energy efficiency is a cornerstone of policies to reduce carbon emissions and fossil fuel dependence in the industrialised world. For […]

Iran Sanctions Will Help China’s Petro-Yuan

In a few days, U.S. President Trump may try to re-impose sanctions on Iran, a dramatic step that could heighten tensions between the two countries. Some analysts believe the move could contribute to a much broader global economic power shift from the U.S. to China. The connection between the issues may not be obvious at […]

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