The Oil Drum

IEA warns on oil inventories after big Q1 drop

Oil stocks in consumer nations posted the biggest first-quarter drop in a decade and may fall further in coming months, the International Energy Agency said, keeping the heat under crude prices.

Germans demand China signs oil pact

An international initiative to promote transparency in the oil industry's often-murky finances will fail unless China participates, a German official said on Thursday.

Schwarzenegger to Michigan: Get off your butt

California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger pulled no punches Wednesday in telling Detroit automakers to "get off your butt" and increase the fuel efficiency of their cars and trucks, saying they are "still lagging behind."

Cold, Soggy Weather Further Delays US Corn Seeding

Rain, snow and cold temperatures across the US Midwest on Wednesday threatened to further push back the already delayed start of corn seeding and could lead to less corn being planted, agronomists said.

World Bank Chief Says Clean Energy a Vital Issue

Clean energy, renewable energy and climate change may well become the World Bank's main focus in years to come despite the issue's absence from the lender's formal agenda at its meeting this weekend, President Paul Wolfowitz said on Thursday.

EPA publishes energy trends in manufacturing report

The report details energy consumption trends and related air emissions from the following sectors, which together represent 85% of the industrial energy use in the United States:

• Aluminum
• Forest Products
• Motor Vehicles
• Cement
• Iron & Steel
• Motor Vehicle Parts
• Chemical
• Metal Casting
• Petroleum Refining
• Food
• Metal Finishing
• Shipbuilding

Analysis: Violence threatens oil, Iraq

Last week a bomb successfully targeted a pipeline connecting the Rumaila oil field, which produces nearly half or Iraq's 2 million barrels per day, to the southern network. The attack was rare, since the oil infrastructure is seen as important for the country and a prize for the intra-sectarian battles, but could foreshadow new instability.

We cannot look from the sides as we are led towards crisis over Iran

Bush and Blair have spent four years preparing an onslaught that is about oil, rather than non-existent nuclear weapons.

Shell strikes deal to extract Iraqi gas

Shell is poised to become the first oil major to step back into Iraq after reports that it had signed a deal to extract natural gas in the Kurdish northern region.

China Reiterates: East China Sea Gas Projects are in EEZ

China on Thursday repeated that its gas exploration projects in the East China Sea, seen as problematic by Japan, are in China's exclusive economic zone.

The comments reiterating China's official position came after Chinese Premier Wen Jiabao said in a speech in Tokyo that the two countries should shelve their disputes and try to find a solution to the issue through joint exploration of the area.

Scotland: Cautious approval for plan to end rail network private ownership

Passenger groups and business leaders yesterday said they would not oppose a not-for-profit organisation taking control of train operations after The Herald revealed top level informal talks have already taken place.

Sustainable energy has powerful future

OPPONENTS of renewable energy from the coal and nuclear industries, and their political supporters, are disseminating the fallacy that renewable energy cannot provide base-load power to substitute for coal-fired electricity.

Jeff Vail: The Self-Sufficient Gourmand (On 1/3 Acre!)

I laid out the kinds of food I would like to “survive” on—those things that I usually cook at home: a wide assortment of ultra-thin-crust pizzas, Spanish tapas, Mediterranean appetizers, hearty salads, fresh fruit, occasional Thai or Indian curries, etc. Fortunately (and perhaps not coincidentally), the climate constraints that I am dealing with (in this case, Southern Arizona) work fairly well for these food crops. How much land will it take to keep one person “in curry” with these lofty culinary goals? My answer may surprise you: about 1/3 of an acre.

Chevron, Weyerhaeuser to Develop Biofuel

Oil major Chevron Corp. and timber outfit Weyerhaeuser Co. on Thursday said they will look into jointly commercializing the production of biofuels from cellulose, the basic material of all green plants.

Climate Change and Peak Oil: An Integrated Policy Response for Australia

Climate change and peak oil are inextricably linked. Each one is a major issue in its own right, but their convergence has received minimal attention, which is unfortunate as it is likely to have far greater impact than the sum of the individual parts. Policy must ensure that solutions to the one reinforce, and do not conflict with, solutions to the other.

Author warns of oil catastrophe

David Strahan quit his job with the BBC to spend two years researching and writing his new book, The Last Oil Shock.

The book, which has just been published, is described as a wake-up call to a world sleepwalking towards catastrophe.

Gas supplies low heading into summer season

Refinery problems in the United States have driven up petroleum prices around the world, the International Energy Agency said yesterday, and analysts say refiners are going to have to run full-out to build inventories before the summer driving season.

In its monthly report, the Vienna-based IEA said global crude output was down sharply as a result of production cuts by the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries. However, it added: "The primary driver of higher prices has been the tight U.S. gasoline market."

We're Preparing For a Crisis

We eight have come to believe that a crisis is coming – on April 30, to be precise. (An oil shock, or something to do with oil.) We have no proof – it's just something a guy said in an unguarded moment. He may have been putting us on. But we don't think so. We have decided to prepare.

A greener planet begins under the kitchen sink

Next week [Diane MacEachern] is launching a national campaign and a website, BigGreenPurse.com, urging women to shift at least $1,000 of their annual household spending to green products. On average, people spend $18,000 a year on groceries and household goods.

Oilfield Technology and the Race Against Peak Oil

Opinions differ about future capabilities of oilfield technology. Some argue that technology will allow us to unlock trillions of barrels worth of oil out of unconventional and not-yet-discovered resources. Others argue that every technology in use today was developed twenty or thirty years ago; not only that, but growing service industry bottlenecks could halt several desperately needed development projects in their tracks. While both sides in this debate have valid points, I think it’s important to remain focused on progress underway at major projects and depletion of large existing fields, and not argue about potential resources thirty years into the future.

New fellow speaks on energy

Paul is a proponent of figuring out how to implement energy that is needed in cheap, efficient ways that have little or no negative impact on the environment. While he displayed knowledge of many of the popular proposed solutions to the “energy crisis” such as hydropower, solar power, nuclear power and various forms of ethanol, he said that if he were in charge of the United States’ energy policy, he would focus on comparing the solutions rather than trying to develop new ones.

Oil Is Root Of All Ills

The vast imported-petroleum needs of the West, India and China, and the resulting huge profits that pour into oil-exporting states, have super-sized the Middle East’s problems.

Weekly Offshore Rig Review: Caribbean Dreams

When one thinks of the Caribbean, visions of white sandy beaches and fruity cocktails with little pink umbrellas are not far behind. Perhaps furthest from that mental vacation is the large oil and gas deposits found offshore.

Uganda: Fuel Stations Ration Diesel Sales

THE persistent shortage of diesel has led to its rationing at some filling stations in Kampala. At GAPCO on Kampala Road, customers could not purchase more than sh20,000 worth of diesel.

"We limit people who come to fill big cars, even regular customers," said Sachin Pawar, the manager.

Bahamas: Push For Biodiesel Facility

According to the project plan, the most cost effective feedstock in The Bahamas is used cooking oil which is available in relatively high quantities. Waste cooking oil is further boosted through tourist related activities.

Ghana: Energy - Paradigm Shift Advocated

Reading from most of the experts on energy in Ghana and even from our own SNEP (Strategic National Energy Plan 2006), World Bank reports on how to generate energy for Ghana and the continent, there seems to be an underlying paradigm. Most of the studies and reports treat Ghana as just another country in the temperate North. Most of the solutions put forward seem to assume parameters that are not very relevant to us. It is not uncommon to read reports making a strong case against the lack of energy when the sun is not available in the winter; the problem with this line of argument is that we live on the equator and we will not be seeing winter and snow anytime soon.

Analysis: Increasing Auto Sales In Asia

Recent news reports indicate that auto sales have been rising in Asian countries like India and China, despite increasing concerns about pollution, global warming, and eventual oil depletion. An article in the Times of India was headlined "Auto sales grow 13.5% in '06-07", and reports from Forbes.com and MarketWatch indicated that DaimlerChrysler and Ford sales had increased substantially in northeast Asia. Other articles focused on the purchase of luxury vehicles by wealthy Chinese and Indians.

Chavez: Troops to escort oil takeovers

President Hugo Chavez said Thursday that soldiers will accompany government officials when they take over oil projects in the Orinoco River basin next month.

..."On May 1 we are going to take control of the oil fields," Chavez said. "I'm sure no transnational company is going to draw a shotgun, but we will go with the armed forces and the people."

Carolyn Baker - Conspiracy: If You're Not In One, You Need to Start One

This past weekend I received a call from two friends who with their three children are facing foreclosure on their home. For the past three years I have been warning them about an impending housing bubble, but like many families, they never believed it could actually happen to them. At the beginning of the conversation they stated, “We’re calling you because everything you’ve said that would happen to the economy in the past three years has happened. So we want to know if you think the housing market will bounce back?”

Once again, I had to tell my friends the ugly truth: The days of “bouncing back” are over. The world as we have known it is ending, and the tectonic plates of the economic landscape of the United States and the world are shifting beneath our feet.

Running On Empty? Not Yet

The theory that oil supplies have peaked and are on their way down has made more than a few Americans nervous. They should relax. A new study confirms that the market, if left alone, will provide for decades.

Saudi Arabia and Russia sign $100 million oil pipeline deal

Saudi Arabia and Russia have signed a $100 million deal for laying an oil pipeline in the world's biggest sand desert, Rub Al Khali (Empty Quarter).

Asia's growth in domestic demand will outstrip US

Gulf investors should be quick in taking advantage of the Asian investment opportunities as the the continent's growth in domestic demand has the potential to overtake that of the US and emerge the key driver of global economy said an expert in Dubai yesterday.

Understanding OPEC: Cheaters Never Win

Baseball is a frustrating sport, and not just because there's all that standing around waiting for something exciting to happen. No, it's frustrating because unless your home team is the Yankee's, you're at a disadvantage. See, the Yankee's have more money than God, and therefore, they simply play the game by a different set of rules.

OPEC is the Yankees of the oil market. This not-so-secret society sits on 80 percent of the world’s oil reserves, and is responsible for 51 percent of the oil that's traded internationally on any given day. On paper, it wields enormous power over the world economy, and thus, any investor in the energy market should hang on every word coming out of the Cartel's whenever-we-feel-like-it meetings in Vienna.

Battling over the world's oil reserves

George Bush invaded Iraq for power, prestige and oil. Whilst the catastrophe of the occupation has dealt a huge blow to the prestige of US imperialism around the world and its power in the Middle East has been severely undermined, US and British oil companies are still set to get their hands on Iraq's oil.

Spring Break - Kunstler

The EIA is a perfect reflection of the public it serves. It appears to conduct daily business in a responsible way while it resolutely refuses to face the obvious realities of the future.

George Will: Fuzzy Climate Math

In a campaign without peacetime precedent, the media-entertainment-environmental complex is warning about global warming. Never, other than during the two world wars, has there been such a concerted effort by opinion-forming institutions to indoctrinate Americans, 83 percent of whom now call global warming a "serious problem."

Nuclear power is not the answer

BRITAIN'S SUPPLIES of oil and natural gas are running out. Oil and gas prices have been rising. On a world scale supplies are limited, and many experts are talking about shortly reaching the position of "Peak Oil", at which point production will start to fall. Even capitalist governments are waking up to the reality of global warming, and its link with emissions of greenhouse gases produced by the burning of fossil fuels, and the enormous cost it will bring to the system.

Paul Leventhal, Who Opposed Commercial Use of Nuclear Power, Dies at 69

Paul Leventhal, who as president of the small but influential Nuclear Control Institute was one of the most vocal opponents of expanding the commercial use of nuclear power, died Tuesday at his home in Chevy Chase, Md. He was 69.

UW-RF launches Institute for Sustainability

Meant to address energy, environmental, social and economic issues at the local, regional and global levels, UW-River Falls officials have created the St. Croix Institute for Sustainable Community Development.

Is Fort Wayne ready to become a city that draws young workers?

Could Fort Wayne actually implement a downtown proposal instead of merely talking about it? Is Fort Wayne on the path toward having a walkable, compact downtown that utilizes mixed-use developments to create a live-work-play environment? Is Fort Wayne taking steps to re-densify in the face of peak oil and the increasing cost of expanding suburbs?

Nissan, NEC to make hybrid batteries

Nissan and electronics maker NEC will produce batteries for ecologically friendly vehicles, the companies said Friday, signaling efforts by the Japanese automaker to catch up with rivals that have a head start in green technology.

Oil price nears 70 dollars in London

The price of Brent North Sea crude hit a seven-month high of 69.59 dollars a barrel Friday on concerns that current oil supplies may be insufficient to meet demand.

Brent North Sea crude for May delivery later stood at 69.21 dollars per barrel in London electronic trading, up 49 cents from Thursday. The contract expires at the close.

Rich, but Green

Hang in there, well-heeled but green-minded luxury-brand shoppers. If you can’t quite picture yourself, your family and all your stuff crammed into the small, quirky-looking and (shudder) increasingly common Toyota Prius, more choices are coming.

Search for survivors after Norwegian ship capsizes

Rescuers were hoping for "a miracle" Friday as they continued the search for five people missing after a Norwegian oil rig support vessel capsized in freezing waters off north Scotland, killing three.

The Bourbon Dolphin overturned about 75 nautical miles (140 kilometres) west of the remote north Shetland Islands near the Transocean Rather oil platform at about 5:00 pm (1600 GMT) Thursday.

Old marine terminals seen as a danger

Many of the marine terminals handling millions of gallons of petroleum products every day in California were built in the early 1900s, when oil was carried by ships one-tenth the size of today's tankers. And many of them are in disrepair and vulnerable to devastating spills and fires, particularly in the event of an earthquake or other calamity, state officials say.

Big money at stake in disputed oil deals

Oil and gas companies could get a windfall of billions of dollars if they win a lawsuit against the government over disputed royalty payments from deep-water leases in the Gulf of Mexico, a congressional report said Thursday.

Gulf states have right to nuclear energy: UN atomic chief

The head of the UN atomic watchdog said on Thursday that the oil-rich Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) has the right to develop nuclear energy for peaceful ends.

"It is a natural right for the GCC countries to possess nuclear energy in order to use it for peaceful purposes," said the head of the Vienna-based International Atomic Energy Agency, Mohamed ElBaradei.