Crews clean up after oil geyser near Vancouver

Experts assessed on Wednesday the environmental damage from a ruptured pipeline that showered a residential area near Vancouver with crude oil, some of which seeped into a Pacific Ocean inlet.

Crews attempted to mop up pools of thick black oil left by the accident on Tuesday in Burnaby, British Columbia, when a road construction crew struck the line used to load crude from Alberta on to ships in Vancouver's port.

The Buses From Brazil

Despite constant warnings over the past decade about climate change and peak oil, nine in ten Americans still commute via car. Even relatively transit-friendly Oakland is only slightly better, with 72% of residents driving to work daily. With a new proposal aimed at introducing an innovative mode of transit, AC Transit is hoping to make a dent in that number.

For the past few decades, light rail has been the vogue for American cities wanting to improve their transit options. However, prohibitive capital costs and high operation expenditures have prevented it from getting off the ground in any serious manner in most US cities. While we were busy chasing trains, Latin America was experimenting with a cheaper method of high capacity public transport – bus rapid transit, or BRT.

British professor shot in Nigeria

Gunmen wounded a British professor and a security guard in oil-rich southern Nigeria on Wednesday, a day after a Nigerian oil worker was killed.

Alberta building unions threaten oilsands strike

Five Alberta construction unions have voted in favor of their first strike in a quarter of a century as they seek higher wages and improved working conditions at a slate of multibillion-dollar oilsands projects.

Investors handed a no-lose proposal

How hungry are investors for profits? Yesterday's merger between Transocean Inc. and GlobalSantaFe Corp., two offshore oil and gas drilling companies, shows that investors are ravenous.

The deal does not give shareholders on either side a premium for their shares. Instead, it monetizes part of the two companies' back orders of drilling contracts to 2015 -- worth a combined US$33-billion--and has handed both shareholder groups nearly half of that value in the form of a special dividend.

Clean Coal: How to Make Rock into Biofuel

Despite a Senate battle leaving out important funding for liquid coal research in the new energy bill, gasification remains an important engineering process to our green future.

Economic Theory and OPEC - Part 2

Murray Duffin notes that “the supply of light sweet crude has surely peaked already, and about 70% of world refining capacity is geared to light sweet crude (2007). He adds that upgrading refineries to handle heavier crude is going to be an expensive proposition, but I suspect that this is exactly the sort of challenge that the oil producers of the Middle East are in position to accept.

Quake cleanup delays reactor core checks

Tokyo Electric Power Co. may not be able to begin reactor core checks of its quake-hit nuclear power plant in Niigata Prefecture until September because it needs to clean up contamination inside one of the seven reactors and remedy other safety woes, company officials said Monday.

Japan says nuclear closure could affect CO2 target

Japan's plan to cut carbon dioxide emissions under the Kyoto Protocol could be affected if an earthquake-hit nuclear power plant is closed for a long time, the country's trade minister said on Tuesday.

Attacks on Mexico pipelines show extensive knowledge of energy infrastructure, officials say

Saboteurs who blew up natural gas pipelines that shut down one of Mexico’s main industrial regions this month also crippled a crude oil pipeline, U.S. officials said Tuesday.

The operation indicated extensive knowledge of Mexico’s energy infrastructure, the officials said.

Not only were oil and natural gas pipelines made targets, but also the bombers knew enough about energy installations to destroy the shutoff valves along several pipelines that allow for the wide national distribution of oil and natural gas.

“These are massive steel valves,” a U.S. official familiar with the bombing investigation told McClatchy Newspapers. “These are major, very expensive shutoff valves that control the flow of all this petroleum (and natural gas). This wasn’t a round tube in the middle of nowhere.”

The bombers knew which side of the valve they should strike, ensuring that crude oil did not flow to a nearby refinery and that natural gas did not flow to foreign and Mexican manufacturers in the central Bajio region, the official said.

Lester R. Brown: Water Tables Falling and Rivers Running Dry

As the world’s demand for water has tripled over the last half-century and as the demand for hydroelectric power has grown even faster, dams and diversions of river water have drained many rivers dry. As water tables fall, the springs that feed rivers go dry, reducing river flows.

Scores of countries are overpumping aquifers as they struggle to satisfy their growing water needs, including each of the big three grain producers—China, India, and the United States. More than half the world’s people live in countries where water tables are falling.

Renewable energy projects will devour huge amounts of land, warns researcher

Large-scale renewable energy projects will cause widespread environmental damage by industrialising vast swaths of countryside, a leading scientist claims today. The warning follows an analysis of the amount of land that renewable energy resources, including wind farms, biofuel crops and photovoltaic solar cells, require to produce substantial amounts of power.

Dramatic increase in biofuel consumption

Consumption of biofuels in the EU rose dramatically during 2006, new figures reveal.

Biofuel use in the EU went up by 78 per cent from 2005 to 2006 - from 3 million to 5.38 million tonnes - according to a report published by EurObserv’ER, an industry consortium for renewable energy.

Manpower crisis cripples oil industry

The shortage of manpower felt throughout all sectors of the oil industry is not just a Middle East problem, it's worldwide.

China's risky bet in Somalia

Chinese investments have come under attack in recent months, and a general wariness about closer ties with Beijing has become part of the political dialogue in most African countries where China does business. Days after the June meeting in Somalia, a Chinese mining executive was kidnapped in Niger. The incident followed the killing of nine Chinese workers in Ethiopia, near the border with Somalia, in April. Chinese workers have also come under attack in Nigeria in recent months.

China consumes record amount of oil in first half

China's consumption of apparent crude oil and refined oil products hit a record high in the first half of the year, totaling 173.03 million tons and 106.112 million tons respectively, up 6.8 percent and 9.6 percent on the previous year.

UK: Passengers to pay billions more as rail capacity expands

Farepayers will nearly double their contribution to the cost of running the railways by the middle of the next decade, the government said yesterday.

Pakistan heading towards serious gas crisis: study

Pakistan is heading fast towards serious gas crisis as its demand and supply ratio is not showing equilibrium beyond 2007, Hagler Bailly, Pakistan, claims in a feasibility study conducted in 2006, for Iran-Pakistan-India (IPI) gas line project.

Interview with Rafael Ramírez, Minister of Energy and Petroleum, Pdvsa CEO

There is indeed operational emergency and the board of directors declared it. If we do not speed up the bidding processes, production plans are at risk. This means chaos.

We're all big energy wasters, says Lunn

As energy ministers from the U.S., Mexico and Canada met in Victoria yesterday to sign an agreement to co-operate on energy science and technology, Natural Resources Minister Gary Lunn pointed at private homes as pools of energy waste.

Appliances such as microwaves and televisions, left on 24 hours a day, are one of Canada's largest untapped sources of energy, Lunn said.

Energy divides House Democrats

The masters of the House have been wrestling among themselves over what to include in an energy bill, with large blocs of Democrats at odds over issues such as fuel mileage standards, oil and gas drilling and tax provisions targeting the energy companies.

One cable collapses, plunging Barcelona into total darkness

The collapse of a single power cable has brought chaos to Barcelona, with thousands of residents in one of Europe's most sophisticated cities struggling without power for a second day yesterday.

Spain's second city which is famed for its stylish urban efficiency, scrambled for candles, emergency generators and manual typewriters, while the electricity company, Fecsa-Endesa, warned that supply might not be fully restored "for days or weeks".

Soaring Prices for Salvaged Metals Spark a Wave of Property Crimes

On several occasions this month, thieves dug up hundreds of feet of underground copper cable used to illuminate ball fields in Anne Arundel County, forcing the organizers of a youth baseball tournament to reschedule a half-dozen games. "We got hit three times in eight days," said Ray Fox, president of the Linthicum Ferndale Youth Athletic Association.

Theft sparks Nigeria kerosene shortage, tanker jam

Constant theft of kerosene from a pipeline near Nigeria's largest city Lagos has caused a shortage across the country and long tanker queues offshore, the head of the national oil company said on Tuesday.

Thieves regularly bore into the fuel pipeline near the country's main import terminal at Atlas Cove, siphoning fuel into jerry cans for sale on a thriving black market.

ConocoPhillips Profit Plunges on Exit From Venezuela

ConocoPhillips, the third-largest U.S. oil producer, said second-quarter profit tumbled 94 percent after Hugo Chavez's government seized the company's assets in Venezuela.

Fed's Poole says energy costs not hurting US economy

Oil prices may be rising as fast as they did in the 1970s, but energy in the United States remains relatively inexpensive and is not damaging the US economy, St. Louis Federal Reserve Bank President William Poole said Tuesday evening.

The Upside of Down, by Thomas Homer-Dixon

The Upside of Down isn't an environmental book, exactly, though it does deal with environmental and energy issues. While it shares some themes with more explicitly environmental books (like Jared Diamond's Collapse), the core of the book is more political and sociological. Homer-Dixon is asking why societies collapse - what are the pressures our society faces today, and what, if any, are the positive results from the kind of collapse he's talking about?

Color it green

A recent report from the United Nations predicts that as much as one-quarter of the world's electricity could come from renewable sources by 2030.

The U.N. noted that more than $100 billion has been invested worldwide into wind, solar and biofuels in 2006 -- nearly double what was spent in the preceding year. While energy from renewable sources accounts for only 2 percent of the world's total, the U.N. found that nearly 20 percent of all power plants under construction are in this sector.

Going nuclear

The industry is gearing up to build its first new plants in decades. But are we comfortable with that? A road trip into America's nuclear future.

Russia delays Iran nuclear plant to 2008

Russia has no chance of finishing Iran's first nuclear power station before autumn 2008, a year behind schedule, a Russian subcontractor helping to build the plant told RIA news agency on Wednesday. Russia has used the Bushehr nuclear plant as a lever in relations with Tehran which chilled this year after a row over missed payments for building the plant in southwest Iran.

The Hidden Agenda behind the Bush Administration's Bio-Fuel Plan

In the mid-1970’s Secretary of State Henry Kissinger, a protégé of the Rockefeller family and of its institutions stated, "Control the oil and you control entire nations; control the food and you control the people." The same cast of characters who brought the world the Iraq war, the global scramble to control oil, who brought us patented genetically manipulated seeds and now Terminator suicide seeds, and who cry about the "problem of world over-population," are now backing conversion of global grain production to burn as fuel at a time of declining global grain reserves.

Saudi Arabia 'to keep dollar peg until 2010'

Saudi Arabia will ride out the latest spell of dollar weakness and maintain the riyal's exchange rate against the US currency at least until 2010, Jadwa Investment said in a research note.

...Markets have been betting delays to a regional monetary union project and the dollar's decline to record lows against the euro this month would tempt some Gulf states to change dollar-pegged exchange rates, especially after Kuwait broke ranks and adopted a currency basket in May.

Ed Koch: Is There a Viable Solution to Our OPEC Dilemma?

Every presidential candidate, Republican or Democrat, should now be asked - "If you become President, will you direct the Department of Justice to sue OPEC?"

Japan crude imports to rise on extra demand

Japan's crude oil demand is expected to rise on year in August as refiners are likely to step up imports to meet extra demand from utilities for sweet crude and low-sulfur C-fuel oil after Tokyo Electric Power Co. (9501.TO) shut its Kashiwazaki-Kariwa nuclear power plant last week following a strong earthquake.

Oil firms find reserves elusive

This decade's high crude prices mean there's plenty of incentive for Daniel O'Byrne, chief operating officer of Calgary-based Provident Energy Trust, to keep finding oil and gas for his company to produce. But he faces a problem - there's less and less reserves to locate, and the costs of developing them haven't stopped going up.

The third trillion barrels of oil: the three steps to finding them

Today the mind-set of assumed surplus appears to be changing rapidly. People (and governments in particular) are increasingly concerned with where the next barrel is coming from. The prevailing mind set is becoming one of anxiety and insecurity. And not just about the quantity of supply – but who controls it. Concern about climate change adds to our fears. Energy has risen to the very top of political agendas around the world, and it's likely to stay there for the foreseeable future. That is the context in which we are looking for the third trillion.

So where do we look for the third trillion?

Preparing for tougher times

Belarusian President Alyaksandr Lukashenka is reshuffling senior officials, at the same time as his energy minister is in Moscow for talks over an unpaid US$500m gas debt. The two issues are related, for cheap energy and a strong “power vertical” have been the bedrock of Mr Lukashenka’s rule. With the era of cheap Russian energy coming to a close this year, it is all the more important for Mr Lukashenka to be sure he has a firm political grip on the country.

What to Say to Those Who Think Nuclear Power Will Save Us

As the energy crisis heats up, you may need a refresher on the evidence against nukes.

The Western Governor's Association Energy Efficient Buildings Workshop

Energy Efficiency can and will do more to meet the challenges of Global Warming, Peak Oil, Environmental Degradation, and Energy Security than any other form of Alternative Energy.

More of NASA's James Hansen on Old King Coal

One other reality, albeit not physics, must be recognized: we can not (successfully) demand that countries such as Saudi Arabia and Russia not mine and sell their oil. And it hardly matters how fast they mine it. We can conserve energy and oil to beat the band, but the readily available oil is still going to be mined in coming decades, not 500 years from now. So, there is just one way we can keep CO2 within, or at least within hailing distance of, the dangerous limit. Indeed, it is a sensible, doable proposition: we must agree to use coal only in (truly) clean-coal power plants at which the CO2 is captured and sequestered. By phasing out existing old-fashioned dirty coal plants over the next few decades, we can keep CO2 below 450 ppm

Petrologistics: OPEC oil output to rise in July

OPEC oil output is expected to rise this month due to higher supply from members including Nigeria, Iraq and Angola, a consultant said on Wednesday.

OPEC's 10 members subject to output limits, all except Iraq and Angola, are expected to pump 26.9 million bpd, up from 26.8 million bpd in June, said Conrad Gerber, head of Petrologistics, which tracks tanker shipments.

The estimate, while showing rising supply in some OPEC countries, indicates top world exporter Saudi Arabia is keeping a cap on output in spite of a jump in oil prices towards a record high above $78 a barrel.

Iran, Analysts Dampen Hints of Imminent OPEC Move

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries doesn't yet see any indication of heightened demand for its oil, a top Iranian oil official said Tuesday, with other officials and analysts pouring cold water on the prospect of an impending change in the producer group's current "do-nothing" policy.

United States Oil Reserves: Four Scenarios

Having evaluated current data on reserves, consumption and production of oil in the United States, I have compiled four charts which illustrate various scenarios of what might occur over the next ten to twenty years. The data sources for this brief study are the United States Department of Energy and the CIA World Factbook. *All chart numbers reflect billions of barrels.

Pemex, BP Agree to Collaborate on Technology

Mexican state oil company Petroleos Mexicanos said Tuesday that it signed three technology-sharing agreements with the U.K.'s BP PLC (BP), including one for deepwater exploration.

The five-year agreements, which are technical in nature and don't involve funding, also include a general collaboration accord and studying the potential of injecting air instead of nitrogen in fractured deposits to improve extraction.

Oil firms get U.S. letters in bribery probe: report

Eleven oil and oil-services companies have received letters from the U.S. government seeking information in a probe into suspected bribery of customs agents in Nigeria and elsewhere, according to a Dow Jones report on the Wall Street Journal's Web site on Tuesday.

Toyota plug-in hybrid to hit the roads

Toyota Motor Corp. said Wednesday that it had taken a step closer to launching its plug-in hybrid vehicle, which has become the first of its kind to get a roadworthiness certificate in Japan.

The Fragile State of Oil

For the last 147 years, ever since Edwin Drake drilled his first well in Pennsylvania, we've enjoyed cheap and easy-to-get oil. Unfortunately, those days have come to an end.

When will the dam break?

Oil Junkies for Jesus vs the Oil Crisis

US involvement in Iraq is complicated by weird theology. Fundamentalist Christians insist upon an unconditional pro-Israeli policy no matter what! Israel is God's chosen nation. To oppose Israel, they say, is to damn our nation to hell. Another complication is our nation's symbiotic relationship with oil producing "infidels". GOP faithful believe that middle east oil is ours to plunder. Oil Junkies for Jesus openly boast of stealing Iraqi oil. For them, waging war for oil is not a war crime, it's a crusade, it's not an atrocity its a commandment. SUV's are not abominable energy hogs, they are God's own chariot. While we fear the mother of all energy crunches, Hubbert's Peak, oil junkies for Jesus look forward to just flying away from it all.

Are Britain's Floods Linked to Global Warming?

Though Britain is known for its typically rainy climate, the torrential downpours of the past month have been anything but typical. The relentless rains have brought central Britain the worst floods it's seen in half a century, and some wonder whether global warming might be to blame.

Study: Rising temperatures pose danger

Rising temperatures in eastern Canada are making it more dangerous for the native Inuit population in the province of Quebec to travel and hunt by snowmobile, and a new study recommends that they return to using the traditional dogsled.

Drip, drip of global warming spells change in northern Russia

It is summer in this reindeer-herding village in northern Russia and with not an iceberg in sight, residents are acquiring a taste for bathing in the local river.

"We used to have ice on the river all year round. The warming process is speeding up," said the worried head of the state-controlled reindeer company at Kanchalan, Arkady Makhushkin.