China cut off exports of oil to North Korea

BEIJING - China cut off oil exports to North Korea in September, amid heightened tensions over that country's nuclear and missile programs, Chinese trade statistics show.

Energy boom to cool: experts

Energy companies are churning out big profits, but there are signs that firms are growing more cautious as costs rise and prices drop for oil and natural gas.

Grain Drain: Get Ready for Peak Grain

Unless this year’s harvest is unexpectedly different from six out of the last seven years, the world’s ever-decreasing number of farmers do not produce enough staple grains to feed the world’s ever-increasing number of people. That’s been a crisis of quiet desperation over the past decade for the 15,000 people who die each day from hunger-related causes. It’s about to cause a problem for people who assumed that the sheer unavailability of food basics, usually seen as a problem of dire poverty, would never cause a problem for them.

Warned of costs, world seeks way to fight warming

OSLO (Reuters) - U.N. climate talks in Kenya next week will hunt for new ways to fight global warming, stung by a warning that long-term inaction may trigger a cataclysmic economic downturn.

But delegates say the 189-nation talks from November 6-17 look unlikely to make any big breakthroughs and may shy away from setting a firm timetable for working out a successor to the U.N.'s Kyoto Protocol, the U.N. plan for curbing global warming which runs out in 2012.

OPEC says British climate change report "unfounded"

A hard-hitting report on climate change published by the British government on Monday has no basis in science or economics, OPEC's Secretary-General Mohammed Barkindo said on Tuesday.

Oil firms drill for deepwater profits

With global demand for oil showing no sign of abating, the industry is going to ever greater lengths to secure supplies.

U.N. chief asks new uses for atom energy

UNITED NATIONS - U.N. nuclear chief Mohamed ElBaradei urged the world's nations Monday to adopt a broad new plan for the use of atomic energy to address mounting concerns about the further spread of sensitive technology.

He said a new approach is essential because rising global demand for energy has made atomic power a more attractive option and proliferation threats remain a serious challenge, including North Korea's recent test, Iran's uranium enrichment program, and nuclear trafficking.

Kuwait: We want our piece of the oil pie

At yesterday's opening session of Kuwait's second legislative session of the eleventh Parliament, about 50 citizens rallied in silent protest in front of Parliament requesting a bailout of citizens' financial debts. The group calling itself, "Al Takafal Al Ishtemai" were draped in black scarves and adorned with black badges saying "Yes to the waiver of loans".

Researcher urges shift to solar power, carbon trading

India: Energy map reveals rising dependency on coking coal

A new National Energy Map for India, prepared by the Energy and Resources Institute, along with the office of the principal scientific advisor, has predicted that in a high growth scenario, import dependency for coking coal will increase to 85% in 2031. The figure amounts to 2,475 million tonnes of coal imports, creating the need for securing supplies. Import dependency, in fact, will be across all the energy sectors, be it crude oil, coal or even nuclear, but as R Chidambaram, principal scientific advisor to the Union government, puts it, “In the short term, we need the world, but in the long term, the world will need us (for nuclear technology).”

Uganda: Sorting Out the Power Problem

Loadshedding has become a way of life in Uganda. And even when the power is available, its cost is ever rising.

Power cuts have become more frequent because of drastically rising demand. This demand is an indicator of growth, but also of poor planning.

NZ clean and green - or poor

Dire forecasts about the impact of climate change could trigger a new round of trade protectionism based on environmental barriers and tariffs – damaging this country's ability to sell goods to lucrative markets.

A key risk was consumers opting to buy local products in an effort to cut carbon emissions from transporting goods, known as "food miles".

U.S. drops royalty claims against Chevron

The U.S. Interior Department has dropped claims that the Chevron Corp. underpaid the government for natural gas produced in the Gulf of Mexico, the New York Times reported on Tuesday.

The decision could have far-reaching impacts, allowing energy companies to avoid paying hundreds of millions of dollars in royalties, the Times reported.

‘Switch to Renewable Power Before You’re Forced to’

The world is slowly but steadily shifting from fossil fuels toward renewable energies. It is unavoidable for related industries to fit themselves into the wind of change or otherwise fade away, said Lee Hyun-seung, chief of GE Energy Korea.

Investigators: BP ‘knew of safety problems’

HOUSTON - BP's global management was aware of "significant safety problems" at the Texas City refinery and 34 other locations around the world well before last year's deadly explosion at the U.S. plant, investigators said on Monday.

[Update by Leanan on 10/31/06 at 8:33 AM EDT]

BOSTON WORLD OIL CONFERENCE: ASPO-USA positions itself to be a big player

● The Doomed “Plan B”

● Extensive Matt Simmons’ Transcripts

● Conference Highlights

● Protest – Energy Equity

● Challenging Renewable Dogma