Oil Price Ignores Long-Term Supply Worries

You could be excused for seeing a grim metaphor for the death of the oil age in the scenes of destruction visited on the U.S. Gulf coast this summer.

However, production from the ocean floor is growing more quickly than from any other type of reserve and is supposed to allay concerns about ‘peak oil’, the idea that the amount of crude the world can produce might suddenly decline.

Now, so far, this notion hasn’t had much of an impact on energy prices.

But, as cheaper oil fields are run down and more crude is drawn from expensive, hard-to-reach offshore reserves, the costs of energy supply are starting to rise.

Drilling agency imposes conflict-of-interest rules

WASHINGTON – Scandalized by federal regulators who had sex with oil company executives and negotiated with them for jobs, the agency that oversees offshore drilling is imposing a first-ever ethics policy that bars inspectors from dealing with a company that employs a family member or personal friend.

Michael Bromwich, head of the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, said the new policy should help restore credibility to his beleaguered agency, which was widely criticized under its former name — the Minerals Management Service — for being too close with oil and gas companies.

President Barack Obama and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar have pledged to end the agency’s “cozy relationship” with industry and slow the revolving door between government and the energy industry.

Pemex looks to shale

Pemex is considering opening an entire line of exploration that concentrates on shale gas wells in the northern state of Coahuila.

Pemex board member Hector Moreira told Market News International the new line could reduce the company’s dependence on natural gas imports.

OPEC oil output falls to lowest since Nov 2009

LONDON (Reuters) – OPEC crude oil supply fell in August to the lowest since November 2009 as reduced supplies from Nigeria, the United Arab Emirates and Iraq offset increased output in Angola, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday.

Supply from the 11 members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries with output targets, all except Iraq, averaged 26.83 million barrels per day (bpd) last month, down from 26.95 million bpd in July, according to the survey of oil companies, OPEC officials and analysts.

The Gas Bulls of Summer Turn into Bears

Recently, the last of the raging bulls on natural gas prices traded in their horns for bear uniforms – and we don’t mean the Monsters of the Midway variety! By throwing in the towel on gas prices for this year, these bulls-turned-bears then proceeded to claw their future gas price forecast by stating they expected $6 per thousand cubic feet (Mcf) to be the long-term average. The reality is that these bulls of summer were really merely acknowledging the power of the market as natural gas prices are about two dollars per Mcf below where they were at the start of 2010, and well below the $7.50/Mcf average gas price the bulls had forecast.

Feds downplay risk of leak when well cap moved

The federal government’s point man on the Gulf of Mexico spill response said Wednesday there is no “significant risk” that more oil will leak into the sea when engineers remove the temporary cap Thursday that first contained the gusher in mid-July.

Retired Coast Guard Adm. Thad Allen said vessels will remain on standby just in case to collect any leaking oil.

FACTBOX – Key political risks to watch in Uganda

(Reuters) – Uganda expects to become an oil-producing nation in 2011, but a protracted dispute with British exploration firm Heritage Oil may delay production and risks unsettling other investors.

With the potential to be a top 50 oil producer, Uganda stands to reduce its budget dependence on foreign aid and improve poor infrastructure.

Nissan starts selling all-electric Leaf sedan today

At long last, Nissan begins taking actual orders today for the first next-generation fully electric car from a major automaker, the Leaf.

Carpooling

Passengers might be the most under-appreciated factor in how much fuel and money you waste. As I write this, for example, a business headline boasts of Toyota’s multi-million-dollar plan to boost fuel efficiency by 25 percent, with the usual discussion of what this will mean for the economy and the climate. Any of us, however, can boost the efficiency of our cars by several hundred percent instantly, with no additional expense or technology, simply by getting more people in the car.

This fact is also forgotten when we judge car owners by the wastefulness of their vehicles. An SUV is a spectacularly inefficient machine compared to a Prius, for example, but pack that Dodge Durango full of people and suddenly it is greener than the electric hybrid driven alone.

Transit systems easier to predict with smart phone apps

Allen Stern says he had a 40-minute wait between buses when he lived in Manhattan. Using a free mobile app that became available about a year ago, he could at least tap into the Metropolitan Transit Authority with his cellphone and find out exactly how far away the next bus was from his stop.

Jatropha: A new form of energy

SINGAPORE – Biotechnology firm JOil is confident that it can breed and genetically engineer the Jatropha plant to be a more sustainable alternative to fossil fuel and other biofuels.

It plans to create a Jatropha hybrid that can produce more fruits and match the four to six tonnes of oil per hectare that palm trees can generate.

Pedal power takes off as exercise produces electricity

Pedal power is gaining traction as thousands of bikes and elliptical machines are retrofitted to produce electricity.

Gyms are using sweat equity to help power their facilities. A Brooklyn eatery uses it to make smoothies. Female inmates at a Phoenix jail pedal to power their TV to watch soap operas. Actor Ed Begley Jr. bikesrides a bike to run his toaster.

Obama lobbied to add solar panels to White House

A campaign to make the White House greener is intensifying as a group of environmentalists plan this month to give President Obama a solar panel that used to sit atop 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.

Points of departure

There is a strong correlation between energy consumption and economic growth. We can for sure hope for “decoupling” – to be able to have continued economic growth while maintaining or even reducing energy use – but no country has ever managed this Indian rope trick and that does not bode well. Maybe we are high on energy, listening a little to closely to the voice of intoxication, but it will unfortunately all too soon be replaced by a massive hangover.

The Peak Oil Crisis: Prospects for China

The key question in all this is how much longer China’s economic miracle can continue before the realities of finite mineral resources force a slowdown? Another five years of 10 percent annual economic growth will result in Beijing increasing its oil consumption by another 2.5-3 million barrels per day. This alone would likely mop up much of the world’s spare capacity to produce oil and result in very large price increases. When China’s ever growing demand is added to that of India, Brazil and the oil exporting states, the likelihood that we will see a substantial increase in oil prices within the next five years becomes very high.

Secret German military study warns of dramatic oil crisis

Berlin : A confidential German army study warned of a looming oil crisis which could have dramatic political and economic consequences for the world, the Hamburg-based weekly news magazine Der Spiegel said Tuesday.

According to the report, a think-tank of the German army has for the first time ever analyzed the security policy dimensions of the peak oil problem.

Peak Oil from a Security Studies Perspective

The Strategic Institute of the German Bundeswehr has now published a document on the implications of peak oil for security (more precisely: the study was leaked). The study is very well written and recommended as an essential read not only for geostrategist but especially for those involved in global sustainability questions. In fact, at least in wording the authors care about such diverse issues as environmental impact of unconventional oils and the impact of global-marked-induced land-use change on indigenous populations. It is worthwhile to have a closer look on some of their results:

Remembering Matt Simmons

Matt Simmons, a long time friend of the Maine coast and its islands and a student of the winds and waters of Gulf of Maine, loved to tell the story of his first trip to Maine, courtesy of a labor strike while he worked construction one summer as a college student in his home state of Utah. When a labor dispute suddenly shut down the construction site, he and a buddy were only too happy to collect their strike checks and head out on a jaunt. They went north into the Canadian Rockies then turned right and headed toward the Inscrutable East, dipping back down into the United States via the border at Jackman, where they drove along the shores of Moosehead Lake before ending up in Boston. On a lark, Matt ducked into the Harvard Business School, which had not had a long history at that point of actively recruiting students from Mormon country in Utah, but the visit was enough to entice him to apply and enroll. Matt loved telling that story because it held the kinds of mutually opposed contradictions he loved to explore-a businessman who owed his right future to a labor strike. If genius is the ability to hold mutually opposing ideas in the mind at the same time without being paralyzed, Matt Simmons would certainly qualify.

Oil Drops, Caps Worst Month Since May, as Hurricane Earl Threatens Demand

Oil tumbled, capping its worst month since May, on forecasts Hurricane Earl will pelt the U.S. East Coast, curbing fuel demand during the Labor Day holiday weekend.

Crude dropped the most in 12 weeks amid speculation that stormy weather will keep beachgoers and travelers at home. Labor Day is the traditional end of the U.S. summer driving season, the peak gasoline demand period. U.S. gasoline demand slid to a 12-week low last week, MasterCard Inc. reported today.

“It’s the last thing we need,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy. “It’s a big gasoline consumption weekend. Given how poor the gasoline demand has been, it will be a final parting blow for the summer driving season if people won’t hit the beach in droves.”

Ethanol Surpasses Gasoline for First Time Since December

For the first time since December, ethanol prices are higher than gasoline as corn surges and refiners profit from tax breaks.

Gas Prices Explained

So what determines the price of gasoline? Speculators? Evil conspiring oil companies? Well, actually no. It’s demand and supply, of course. On the demand side the American automobile fleet gets better gas mileage than it did a few years ago and Americans, whacked by the recession and high unemployment rates, are driving a bit less than they used to. In addition, thanks to government subsidies, about 9 percent of what goes into our gas tanks is ethanol produced from corn, which also reduces the demand for refined crude. On the supply side, global oil supplies are ample and refiners in the U.S. evidently believed the Obama administration’s rosy “recovery summer” scenarios and stockpiled a lot of gasoline.

Sinopec Plans to Cut September Oil Processing by 4% at Refinery in Hainan

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Asia’s biggest refiner, will process 4 percent less crude oil at its Hainan plant in September compared with last month, an official at the refinery said.

FACTBOX-Key political risks to watch in Saudi Arabia

(Reuters) – Saudi Arabia, under the rule of an ageing King Abdullah, has the dilemma of making reforms that keep the austere clerical establishment that opposes change on side and violent Islamist militants at bay.

Any instability at the helm of Saudi Arabia, which controls more than a fifth of the world’s crude oil reserves and is a regional linchpin of U.S. policy in the Middle East, would be a concern for the rest of the Arab Gulf region.

FACTBOX-Key political risks to watch in Yemen

(Reuters) – Rising al Qaeda militancy, a surge in violence in a secessionist south and crushing poverty will be this year’s critical tests for Yemen, neighbour to top oil exporter Saudi Arabia.

Reid hopeful for GOP energy votes after elections

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid said he hoped to pick up Republican votes for a pared-down energy bill after the midterm congressional elections.

“Maybe after the elections we can get some more Republicans to help us on these issues,” Reid, a Democrat, told reporters in a teleconference on Tuesday.

Sinopec Sees Solid Gas Growth Ahead

While oil production experienced sluggishness in the first half, natural gas production showed solid growth. China is ramping up gas production as it seeks to find alternatives to coal, which emits high carbon levels. It is set to raise the country’s energy needs from the current 3% to 10% by 2020.

Insurance likely to reduce BP’s liability for Gulf of Mexico oil spill

BP PLC has taken on some of the blame for the Deepwater Horizon rig that spilled millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf of Mexico earlier this year, but the company is still expected to have limited liability for mistakes made misreading pressure data that indicated a blowout was imminent.

BP Raises $363 Million in Malaysian Asset Sale to Help Pay for Gulf Spill

BP Plc, seeking cash to help pay for the worst U.S. oil spill, agreed to sell its Malaysian chemical assets to Petroliam Nasional Bhd. to focus on projects in China and India.

BP will sell its 15 percent stake in Ethylene Malaysia Sdn and 60 percent interest in Polyethylene Malaysia Sdn for $363 million, the London-based company said today in a statement. It will also be eligible for a possible $48 million dividend from the ethylene unit.

A Nuclear Giant Moves Into Wind

Exelon, a nuclear giant that recently backed away from building new nuclear plants, is moving into wind.

Canada company builds major waste-to-biofuel plant

VANCOUVER, British Columbia (Reuters) – A Canadian company started construction on Tuesday on what it says is the world’s first industrial-scale plant to turn municipal waste into biofuel.

Privately-owned Enerkem Inc said the C$80 million ($75 million) facility in Edmonton, Alberta, will produce enough biofuel to keep more than 400,000 cars a year running on a 5 percent ethanol fuel blend.

Thorium Cures the Free Market

Obama could kill fossil fuels overnight with a nuclear dash for thorium … If Barack Obama were to marshal America’s vast scientific and strategic resources behind a new Manhattan Project, he might reasonably hope to reinvent the global energy landscape and sketch an end to our dependence on fossil fuels within three to five years.

New Warnings About Costs of Nuclear Power

As anticipation grows about a possible renaissance for the nuclear power industry — and about its potential for curbing greenhouse gas emissions — some politicians are stepping up warnings about the high cost of such projects.

Last week, Traicho Traikov, the Bulgarian economy and energy minister, said the cost of building a second plant near the Danube River had reached 9 billion euros, or $11.4 billion, according to the Sofia News Agency.

The original cost of the project for two reactors was expected to be just under $4 billion.

Homeowners Must Pay Off Energy Improvement Loans

Many homeowners who participated in a program that let them repay the cost of solar panels and other energy improvements through an annual surcharge on their property taxes must pay off the loans before they can refinance their mortgages, two government-chartered mortgage companies said Tuesday.

The guidance came from Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac as efforts to resolve a dispute over the program — called Property Assessed Clean Energy, or PACE — have failed.

Calif. rejects ban on plastic shopping bags

SACRAMENTO, Calif. – California lawmakers have rejected a bill seeking to ban plastic shopping bags after a contentious debate over whether the state was going too far in trying to regulate personal choice.

The Democratic bill, which failed late Tuesday, would have been the first statewide ban, although a few California cities already prohibit their use.

A Greener Champagne Bottle

“This is how we’re remaking the future of Champagne,” he said, pointing to the area just below the neck. “We’re slimming the shoulders to make the bottle lighter, so our carbon footprint will be reduced to help keep Champagne here for future generations.”

The Champagne industry has embarked on a drive to cut the 200,000 metric tons of carbon dioxide it emits every year transporting billions of tiny bubbles around the world. Producing and shipping accounts for nearly a third of Champagne’s carbon emissions, with the hefty bottle the biggest offender.

Cleaner Cars, A to D

The Obama administration has proposed new stickers for cars and light trucks that will make it easier to see whether you are buying a fuel-efficient one or a guzzler, and how much it contributes to global warming. The stickers are a symbol of how far this country has come in providing a wider range of environmentally responsible choices to help ensure cleaner air and a healthier planet.

L.A. mayor, Latino activists take on oil companies over Proposition 23

They say the ballot initiative to suspend the state’s climate change law would hurt low-income communities already suffering the most from pollution.

Jeff Rubin: High energy prices make Copenhagen green

There is certainly much to be said for Denmark’s leadership in green energy. While North American carbon emissions have risen by around 30 per cent since 1990 (the reference point for the Kyoto Accord), Denmark’s emissions are actually lower than they were two decades ago. That’s generally ascribed to the fact that a world-leading 20 per cent of the power generated in Denmark comes from wind.

Less commonly known is the source of the other 80 per cent. I was surprised to discover that it comes from good old King Coal. In fact, coal’s share of power generation in Denmark’s power grid is basically the same as it is in China.

Tiny creatures reveal ancient sea levels

“It was a very big surprise,” says David Barnes, lead author of the study at the British Antarctic Survey, of the find of similar bryozoans 2400 kilometres apart in seas on either side of the West Antarctic ice sheet, which is 2 kilometres thick.

“The most likely explanation of such similarity is that this ice sheet is much less stable than previously thought and has collapsed at some point in the recent past,” he says.

“And if the West Antarctic ice shelf has been lost in recent times we have to re-think the possibility of loss in future with climate change.”

Interview with Michael Smith (Part 2 of 2)

I feel the peak/plateau period is much delayed because of the recession. Currently I am looking at around 2020 – perhaps as late as 2025. But of course it is dependent on what happens to the global economy (and the environment) between now and then. When I first started forecasting in the late 1990s, I had a production plateau beginning around 2016. Over time, supplies got tighter and tighter and oil prices started to rise, and the plateau moved nearer to around 2012. Now it has moved out to 2020, showing how uncertain this modeling can be because so many technological, financial, political and social variables are at work. The fluctuation points to volatility of course which is a signal of tight energy supply. If there is a new surge in economic growth and China and India continue to grow and mop up oil supplies, then it will move back to 2016 very quickly.

Pemex Plans to Invest $269 Billion in Next 10 Years to Increase Oil Output

Petroleos Mexicanos, the state-owned oil company, plans to invest $269 billion by 2019 to increase production, the company’s chief executive officer said.

Pemex, as the company is known, should not have trouble having its planned investments approved by Congress and will spend about $27 billion a year over the next decade, CEO Juan Jose Suarez Coppel, said today at a conference in Mexico City.

Mexico sees big potential near Tsimin oil find

MEXICO CITY (Reuters) – Mexico’s state oil company Pemex is increasingly optimistic about the potential of what appears to be a new cluster of light crude oil fields around its Tsimin discovery, according to company executives.

The side-by-side Tsimin and Xux discoveries are believed to hold the equivalent of 1.5 billion barrels of proved, probable and possible oil reserves said Manuel Teran, a Pemex engineer working on the discoveries, at a petroleum engineering conference this weekend.

For BP, post-spill advertising comes at an unknown cost

FORTUNE — The coverage of BP’s Deepwater Horizon spill is teaching the typically secretive oil industry something about life in the limelight. Now, the company has to account for every cent it spends.

Bahamas Bans Offshore Drilling

The Public is advised that The Ministry of The Environment has suspended consideration of all applications for oil exploration and drilling in the waters of The Bahamas. The Ministry seeks, by this decision, to maintain and safeguard an unpolluted marine environment for The Bahamas, notwithstanding the potential financial benefits of oil explorations.

Additionally all existing licenses will be reviewed to ascertain any legal entitlement for renewal.

Coal India May Set Up Power Plants Because of Shortfall in Rolling Stock

Coal India Ltd., the world’s largest producer of the fuel, said it may be forced to set up power plants to use coal that’s piling up because there aren’t enough railway wagons to carry supplies to utilities.

“It’s not a business we would naturally like to be in because there are already so many players,” Chairman Partha Bhattacharyya said in New Delhi today. “If stocks keep building up, we may not have an option.”

Russia to protect domestic car makers with higher import duty

Russia will gradually raise the import taxes for the foreign-made cars, Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin said Monday.

Putin noted this would be done to stimulate foreign companies to build their production facilities in Russia.

Electricity and climate change

Also as a result of global warming, the countries of this region are witnessing dramatic increases in the demand for electric power, as the use of air-conditioning increases in households, shops, places of worship, offices, hotels and factories. And as a result of the exceptional hot weather, the sale of all types of air-conditioning devices flourished, and their stocks were effectively depleted in Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Egypt and other countries, while their retailers achieved exceptional profits, after taking advantage of the circumstances.

Why “green wizards” get us nowhere new…

So, first question, what is a ‘green wizard’? Greer defines green wizards thus, “individuals who are willing to take on the responsibility to learn, practice and thoroughly master a set of unpopular but valuable skills – the skills of the old appropriate technology movement – and share them with their neighbours when the day comes that neighbours are willing to learn”. The idea, as I read it, is that any notion of a co-ordinated response, a la Heinberg’s ‘Powerdown’, a scenario where communities self-organise and work with, or without, their local authorities, to start the rebuilding of that settlement’s resilience, reduce its oil dependency and carbon footprint, is now for the bin, condemned as impractical and unrealistic. Greer appears to have given up any notion that such a thing might be possible, stating “a movement is a great thing if you want to hang out with congenial people and do interesting things together. It’s just not usually a good way to make change happen”.

Are People Smarter Than Chipmunks?

After witnessing this eccentric behavior, I began wondering why the chipmunk would behave so illogically. It didn’t take too long to realize that it simply doesn’t possess the right equipment to understand the threat posed by a car. A chipmunk’s brain and the behavior produced by it are the result of ages of natural selection – a process that took place in the absence of roads and cars. The mind of a chipmunk, therefore, is incapable of properly interpreting the data coming its way, especially when it’s coming at 60 miles per hour.

The chipmunk’s maladaptive behavior has some prominent parallels with our own predicament. The data are approaching us at a fast and furious clip. We have ample and disturbing evidence about climate destabilization, dwindling energy resources, social breakdowns, and a host of environmental maladies. We know that the economy is a subsystem of the finite planet, and that increasing the scale of the economy impinges on the earth’s ecosystems. In an age of biodiversity die-offs and political buy-offs, however, we don’t seem to possess the wherewithal to interpret the data correctly.

Lenders Back Off of Environmental Risks

Blasting off mountaintops to reach coal in Appalachia or churning out millions of tons of carbon dioxide to extract oil from sand in Alberta are among environmentalists’ biggest industrial irritants. But they are also legal and lucrative.

For a growing number of banks, however, that does not seem to matter.

After years of legal entanglements arising from environmental messes and increased scrutiny of banks that finance the dirtiest industries, several large commercial lenders are taking a stand on industry practices that they regard as risky to their reputations and bottom lines.

New Study Links Toxic Pollutants to Canadian Oil Sands Mining

Native Canadians living downstream from the oil sands mines in Alberta have long contended that their high cancer rates were related to the expanding excavation of bitumen for the production of synthetic crude. Their assertions have been disputed by the reports of a joint oil industry-government research panel that concluded that natural causes — and not mining — were responsible for the high levels of various metals in the sub-Arctic Athabasca River.

But now a new study in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences is backing the position of the Native Canadians. Led by several University of Alberta researchers, the study found that unusual levels of lead, mercury, zinc, cadmium and other toxic pollutants were found near oil sands mining sites or downstream from them. The levels exceeded federal and provincial government guidelines.

Crude Oil Heads for First Monthly Slide Since May on Slowing Global Growth

Oil fell, headed for its first monthly decline since May, before a report forecast to show U.S. crude inventories increased to the most in a month.

Futures dropped as much as 1.7 percent, extending their decline from the highest level in a week reached on Aug. 27, after the Commerce Department said incomes rose 0.2 percent, less than the 0.3 percent estimate by economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. An Energy Department report tomorrow may show crude stockpiles gained 1.55 million barrels last week.

Oil Supply Climbing to One-Month High in Bloomberg Survey

U.S. crude oil inventories probably increased to a one-month high last week amid signs that U.S. economic growth is slowing, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Supplies rose 1.55 million barrels, or 0.4 percent, in the seven days ended Aug. 27 from 358.3 million a week earlier, according to the median of 12 analyst estimates before an Energy Department report tomorrow. The gain would leave stockpiles at the highest level since July 23.

OPEC Oil Output Declined on Iraqi Pipeline Bombing, Bloomberg Survey Shows

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries’ crude-oil output fell in August to a seven- month low, led by Iraq, where production was hobbled by a pipeline bombing, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Production slipped 75,000 barrels, or 0.3 percent, to an average 29.15 million barrels a day, the lowest level since January, according to the survey. Output by members with quotas, all except Iraq, dropped 5,000 barrels to 26.805 million, 1.96 million above their target.

Japan Issues Storm Warnings, Cancels Okinawa Flights as Typhoon Approaches

Typhoon Kompasu slammed Japan’s southern island of Okinawa, causing the country’s two biggest airlines to cancel flights, disrupting some shipping and closing an oil refinery owned by Brazil’s Petroleo Brasileiro SA.

Ras al Khaimah seeking electricity for growth

Ras al Khaimah’s Government is in talks with the Federal Electricity and Water Authority (FEWA) to boost power supplies to the emirate as it attracts more businesses to its industrial zones and completes development projects.

Russia eyes Rosneft sale

Russia may consider selling a stake in state-controlled oil producer Rosneft in 2011 to 2013, Economy Minister Elvira Nabiullina said today.

LUKOIL to get tax breaks for Caspian oil fields

(Reuters) – Russia’s No.2 oil firm LUKOIL’s CEO said on Tuesday that the government is ready to introduce tax breaks for oil extracted from the company’s Korchagin fields on the Caspian Sea.

‘Fracking’ fractures N.Y. county

A controversial method of natural gas drilling — known as “fracking” — has begun to tap the energy-rich Marcellus Shale, a huge geological formation that underlies much of New York, Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia. In New York, fracking has been stalled by opposition from environmental groups, legislators and people such as the Diehls.

Bad weather delays BP bid to recover blowout preventer

WASHINGTON (AFP) – A bid to recover a key valve that failed to prevent the blowout of the BP well in the Gulf of Mexico has been delayed because of bad weather, the pointman for the US response to the oil spill said Monday.

“We are in a hold pending calming of the current weather,” retired coast guard admiral Thad Allen told reporters, adding that it would be two or three days before the operation could begin.

No gas concerns Memphis officials (Michigan)

Two gas stations in the city but no gas to be pumped has prompted Memphis Mayor Dan Weaver to explore strategies for getting a station open to serve residents.

“I’ve been spinning my wheels talking to people trying to get us a gas station in town,” he said at a recent City Council meeting where he asked officials to consider options such as asking the city’s attorney to advise on issues such as eminent domain.

Stickers would help auto buyers compare fuel economy

DETROIT — In its first major overhaul of fuel-economy ratings in 30 years, the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation on Monday released two proposed window stickers designed to make it easier for consumers to compare vehicles.

One version gives cars and trucks a grade from A+ to a D, compares vehicles with three sliding scales and gives an estimated annual fuel cost. The other version omits the grade. At first, only electric vehicles would rate an A+.

Toyota Prius May Lead Japan Car Sale Collapse as Subsidies End

The Prius hybrid has spearheaded sales growth for Toyota Motor Corp. in Japan for more than a year, helped by government subsidies. The model will likely bear the brunt of plunging demand as the support ends.

“A collapse in sales is unavoidable,” said Hiromi Inoue, the new-car sales chief for Tokyo Toyopet Motor Sales Co. “The daily pace of orders for the Prius is already dropping. We are bracing ourselves for the coming crisis.”

Russian billionaire Prokhorov to roll out hybrid car models in December

Russian billionaire Mikhail Prokhorov will present three electric vehicle models in December for public approval, he said on Tuesday.

“If they don’t like them, they can say ‘we don’t want these cars.’ We will hold a vote on the Internet,” said Prokhorov, an active blogger.

Prokhorov said he will decide where to produce the cars after the presentation.

The Biking Boom Breeds Discontent

Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg and other city leaders have praised the increase in cycling for reducing congestion and pollution and making the city streets safer overall. To accommodate the surge in bike commuters, the city has installed hundreds of bike racks and roughly 200 miles of new bike lanes in the past three years, with plans for future expansion.

Yet according to a recent weeklong investigative series by Tony Aiello, a reporter with New York City’s WCBS-TV (Channel 2), the cycling boom is breeding discontent. Titled “Bike Bedlam,” the segments turned a critical eye on reckless riders who flouted traffic laws, and profiled a young father who was killed by a cyclist riding the wrong way on a one-way street in Midtown Manhattan. A former bike shop owner declared that cyclists were “way out of control.”

Blowin’ in the Wind

Pattern Energy wants to do what T. Boone Pickens couldn’t: deliver Texas’ overabundance of wind power to less-windy states.

The wind and transmission line developer aims to build a $1 billion, 400-mile transmission line to carry electricity generated by Texas wind turbines to Mississippi where it could be distributed across existing lines to Georgia, Alabama, Tennessee, and other states in the South.

Red Books And Yellowcake – The Permanent Quest For Uranium

Only taking the world’s present 439 civil reactors and ignoring the 200-plus reactors called “research and military”, these civil reactors will need about 68 000 tonnes of uranium in 2010, but world mine output will be less than 55 000 tonnes. If the vaunted “Nuclear Renaissance” takes place as planned by the industry and about 200 – 225 new reactors are added in 2010-2020, world uranium fuel needs will grow to about 125 000 tonnes a year by 2020.

And You Thought Radiation Was a Problem for Nuclear Plants?

A power plant has overexposed its workers to radiation, and the Nuclear Regulatory Commission is proposing a fine. The plant, though, is not a reactor; it runs on coal.

E.P.A. Turns Down Request to Ban Lead Bullets

The Environmental Protection Agency on Friday rejected a request that it ban lead bullets, saying it does not have the legal authority to do so. The American Bird Conservancy and the Center for Biological Diversity had petitioned for the ban.

To Win, the Green Movement Needs to Understand Leverage, not Just Footprints

A few years ago I got into a heated debate about Al Gore’s Inconvenient Truth with a green-minded friend of mine. My hippy friend couldn’t stand the movie—not because of anything it said, but because of the ‘hypocrisy’ of flying around the world to preach about climate change. “Doesn’t he know this sends his carbon footprint through the roof?!” exclaimed my irate drinking buddy.

“He probably doesn’t care.” replied I. “Nor should he.”

I’ve wondered before why so much of the environmental movement is focused on individual virtue instead of collective success. Yet I’m increasingly realizing that that’s just one part of a broader issue I have with greens—we spend too much time talking about impact, and not enough talking about leverage.

Greenpeace claims to have shut down Greenland oil well

Greenpeace claims its activists have shut down a ”dangerous” oil drilling operation by a British energy company in the Arctic.

Author Simon Singh Puts Up a Fight in the War on Science

The British Chiropractic Association sued Singh, hoping to use Britain’s draconian libel laws to force him to withdraw his statements and issue an apology. Losing the case would have cost Singh both his reputation and a substantial amount of his personal wealth. Such is the state of science, where sometimes even stating simple truths (like the fact that there’s no reliable evidence chiropractic can alleviate asthma in children) can bring the wrath of the antiscience crowd. What the British chiropractors didn’t count on, however, was Singh himself. Having earned a PhD from Cambridge for his work at the Swiss particle physics lab CERN, he wasn’t about to back down from a scientific gunfight. Singh spent more than two years and well over $200,000 of his own money battling the case in court, and this past April he finally prevailed. In the process, he became a hero to those challenging the pseudoscience surrounding everything from global warming to vaccines to evolution.

Three degrees is at least one too many

It is fittingly ominous that 2010, year of the next big climate change conference, has been the hottest in recorded history. The heat rises inexorably yet the world dithers and looks away. None of the excitement that surrounded the opening stages of the climate summit at Copenhagen last year looks like materialising this November at Cancú*in Mexico.

Japan Forsees Starting Carbon-Emissions Trading in 2013, Panel Reports

Japan plans to start emissions trading in 2013, as the government revived a climate-protection draft law that was scrapped earlier this year when then Prime Minister Yukio Hatoyama resigned.

Cap-and-Trade Is Beginning to Raise Some Concerns

Critics have warned for years that this form of offsetting would encourage profiteering, with little or no value in efforts to curb climate change.

More recently, opponents of offsetting have likened the system to the kind of financial engineering on Wall Street that helped precipitate the recent banking crisis.

Review Finds Flaws in U.N. Climate Panel Structure

UNITED NATIONS — The United Nations needs to revise the way it manages its assessments of climate change, with the scientists involved more open to alternative views, more transparent about possible conflicts of interest and more careful to avoid making policy prescriptions, an independent review panel said Monday.

The review panel also recommended that the senior officials involved in producing the periodic assessments serve in their voluntary positions for only one report — a statement interpreted to suggest that the current chairman of the climate panel, Rajendra K. Pachauri, step down.

Virginia Case Against Climate Researcher Is Rejected

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — The state attorney general has failed to back up accusations that a former University of Virginia climate change researcher defrauded state taxpayers in obtaining government grants, a judge ruled Monday.

Climate Change and the Wealth of Nations

Professor Kahn isn’t skeptical about global warming, but he is (quite reasonably) skeptical about our ability individually and collectively to reduce carbon emissions: “attempts to reduce or reverse our carbon output — to mitigate the damage that we’ve already done — aren’t going so well” and “evidence shows that very few individuals have cut back on their carbon-producing activities at all.” Consequently, he predicts, “the world is going to get hotter.”

But while this would lead many people to doomsday scenarios, Professor Kahn is an optimist who believes “that we will save ourselves by adapting to our ever-changing circumstances.” He says this salvation will come from “a multitude of self-interested people armed only with their wits and access to capital markets.” In short, the same economic system that led to global warming will rescue us from it.

Climate ‘sceptic’ Bjørn Lomborg now believes global warming is one of world’s greatest threats

One of the world’s most prominent climate change sceptics has called for a $100bn fund to fight the effects of global warning, after rethinking his views on the severity of the threat.

Atlantic Rising: sea level rise threatens the Orinoco Delta in Venezuela

Rising sea levels are forcing the migration of indigenous peoples and threatening the freshwater ecosystem of catfish and piranha found in the Orinoco Delta near the coast of Venezuela.

Arctic ice: Less than meets the eye

Barber, an environmental scientist at the University of Manitoba in Winnipeg, Canada, went to sleep one night at midnight, just before the ship was due to reach a region of very thick sea ice. The Amundsen is only capable of breaking solid ice about a metre thick, so according to the ice forecasts for ships, the region should have been impassable.

Yet when Barber woke up early the next morning, the ship was still cruising along almost as fast as usual. Either someone had made a mistake and the ship was headed for catastrophe, or there was something very wrong with the ice, he thought, as he rushed to the bridge in his pyjamas.

This is a letter I received from a reader (with the name changed). Below the fold is an expanded version of my answer to him. I would be interested in what other people’s thoughts are on this subject as well.

Hello,

My name is John Smith. I have been following the peak oil situation since about 2005. A few years back I thought I had a handle on what I could expect from peak oil. Then, the recession hit, and changed (delayed) everything.

My problem is, I have not seen an rigorous peak oil studies/projections that take recent events into account on peak oil projections going forward. As an expert on the subject, could you please point me to some literature that would be of help?

I do not know what the future holds, but it is clear to me that realities have changed, and with it, the timeline of peak oil.

Regards,
John

Dear John,

Curve fitting techniques including Hubbert Linearization, and forecasts based on amounts of reserves and dates of discovery, can be useful tools but, unfortunately, they provide only rough estimates. Now that we are so close to the peak oil date, the deficiencies of these techniques become more of a problem, because a difference of 5 or 10 years in peak date becomes more of an issue.

One thing that these techniques do not tell us is how much oil is really economic. In a way, this is equivalent to saying that these techniques do not tell us how much oil has a high enough Energy Return on Energy Invested (EROEI) that it really can be recovered and sold at a price that customers can afford. We are only now learning what this price might be. A rough estimate is that if the prices are above about $85 a barrel, they will send the economy into recession. It may be that in some places, enhanced oil recovery can be economically used, while in other places it is too expensive, and reserves should be adjusted accordingly.

Another problem with this type of technique is that these techniques were developed in a period when the world economy was growing rapidly, and it was reasonable to assume that the world economy would continue to grow rapidly. Thus, it seemed reasonable to assume that as much oil as could be produced, would be produced. But once oil production starts hitting economic limits, it sends the economy into a downward spiral. Instead of inadequate supply, what one gets is inadequate demand, because the value that the oil can produce is too low to provide consumers enough benefit that they can afford to buy high priced oil, plus all of the other goods they need to sustain their lifestyles. It is not clear that these techniques model inadequate demand as well.

It seems to me that what one really needs is models which consider both geological factors and economic factors, but at this point, I don’t think we really have good models of this type. It is not just recession that is an issue, either. For example, if a country’s tax rate on oil companies goes up, I would expect oil production to go down. It may be higher tax rates on oil companies that bring us down off the current peak oil plateau–not geological constraints.

It would probably also be helpful to adjust the models to reflect improvements in technology. If a better method is developed for extracting very heavy oil, for example, extraction of some such oil may become economic, when it has not been in the past.

Recent Forecasts

We published one recent post showing peak oil projections, but which did not look at economic issues. This was Steve Mohr’s thesis. He used several techniques which give a range of peak oil dates from 2005 to 2019. Regarding OPEC Oil Production, in his thesis paper itself, he says, “OPEC oil production peaks broadly in line with literature peak dates which range from 2008 to 2042.” All of these are very broad ranges.

Another recent estimate of peak oil dates is Forecasting World Crude Oil Production Using Multicyclic Hubbert Model by Ibrahim Sami Nashawi, Adel Malallah, and Mohammed Al-Bisharah of Kuwait University, published in March 2010. This model estimates a peak date of 2014. It was discussed a bit in Drumbeat. It also does not consider economic issues.

Jean LaHerrere and Jean Luc Wingert published an analysis in October 2008 called Forecast of liquids production assuming strong economic constraints. It develops a peak date range of 2012 to 2027. It concludes:

Since 2001 we in ASPO France have claimed that future oil production will be a bumpy plateau with chaotic oil price, but we did not plot any curve, only saying that the smooth peak model (below-ground constraint only) with the estimated ultimate could be disturbed by above-ground constraints. The strong financial crisis the world is now facing will of course have some impact on the world economical situation and oil consumption. Is the financial system going to collapse or not and how quickly is it going to recover? We do not try to answer these questions but imagined two crisis models. Reality will probably be none of the two but we can see that with these simple scenarios, the possible oil peak dates vary below 90 Mb/d from 2012 to 2027 with the same ultimate of 3 Tb. The tensions on oil production will be realised for some years, the risk would be to forget the necessary efforts that have to be made to increase our energy efficiency.

Colin Campbell used to publish forecasts of world oil production, but retired from this after ASPO Ireland’s Newsletter 100 in April 2009. In the final newsletter, this forecast was shown:

Dr. Campbell’s forecasts did not particularly take into account economic conditions, as far as I know. He expected oil production to decline after 2008.

There have also been a number of forecasts based on analyses of oil megaprojects, by Chris Skrebowski and by “ace” (Tony Eriksen) and by Sam Foucher. These studies are fairly different from the general modeling done by others, mentioned above, in that they look specifically at large known projects, and when they are expected to be online, and compare these to expected losses in oil production due to natural declines in oil production. They require keeping abreast of a large amount of detail data, and even then a considerable amount of judgment is required: If capacity of a given amount will be added, how much will really be produced, and for how long? How much impact will infill drilling and enhanced oil recovery have? The most recent projection of this type that we published was by “ace”. It was published in November 2009, and showed oil production declining production after that date.

Information on Connection between Oil Production and Recession

If you want to read more about the connection between oil prices and recession, one possibility is Jeff Rubin’s book, “Why Your World is about to get a Whole Lot Smaller.” I have also written about the issue, for example, in this post and this post and this post.

We will continue to run posts forecasting future oil production, using modeling techniques, as they become available.

Thanks for asking.

Sincerely,

Gail Tverberg, Editor
The Oil Drum

Kurt Cobb – Personality profile: Do you “go with the flow” or do you “stock up” just in case?

Why is it that some people believe they can really store up much of anything? Yes, it is wise to have emergency supplies in case of a power outage or other disruption that might make it difficult to get food, heat and even water. But can one really stock up for a lifetime?

The illusion that we can is given to us by money. We are told that if we save enough, we can have a comfortable old age. But what is money other than a claim on the current flow of goods and services? It’s not really a stockpile of anything. So, its value depends entirely on the smooth flow of energy and resources through the economy.

And yet, there are people who believe that money will somehow make them immune to the breakdown of this flow. Yes, enough money might make it easier for someone to get scarce goods during such a breakdown. But, ultimately a community that fails to function won’t be able to provide you with anything no matter how much money you have.

Veils, Boomerangs, and Goldilocks

I don’t have an answer to this question. I’m not sure anyone does. What I can say, however, is three things:

1. Whether from the wall or the brakes, a lot of us are going to get whiplash. There’s no scenario I see to avoid some measure of hardship. But I’ll take whiplash over broken bones. How about you?

2. I know we’re on a train here, but if you haven’t already, you might want to think about putting on a seat belt. The seat belt in this case is personal resilience and community resilience.

3. We increase our odds of stopping the train in time (and reducing casualties) if we help more and more people understand there’s a wall up ahead.

A Hell of an Anniversary

HCN’s founder, Tom Bell, marks our 40th year with a prediction: We’re all doomed

How should progressives respond to the end of the Oil Age?

This serves as a valuable reminder that like most modern people, self-described progressives are also accustomed to technological fixes for nearly every problem and challenge, and the very possibility that some breakthrough technology or solution isn’t just around the corner is scarcely fathomable; that alternative energy might not be able to replace fossil fuels is so alien and so far removed from popular consciousness that this possibility need not even be discussed or rise to the level at which it is worthy of being dismissed in “The Progressive”: apparently it “goes without saying”– the presumed untapped riches of renewable energy is, after all, “the only way”

U.S. Gulf Drilling Critical to U.S. Economy, Energy Security

The current drilling moratorium in the deepwater Gulf of Mexico and proposed legislation that would add increased regulations, costs and taxes to offshore drilling pose a threat to U.S. energy and economic security, according to energy advisors with the Deloitte Center for Energy Solutions.

Adding layers of regulation will make it more difficult to drill for and develop U.S. resources, and rules that create a punitive tax and royalty regime likely will result in companies investing in projects overseas. For smaller companies with no overseas operations, the consequence of added regulation and associated costs may mean going out of business.

Kazakh tax has Western oil firms over a barrel

This month, Britain’s BG Group and US oil giant Chevron faced a case of Hobson’s choice – either start paying Kazakhstan more than $1m (£650,000) a day in unwarranted export duties, or see their oil and gas exports stopped dead at the border. There are no prizes for guessing which option they took.

Power Hungry: Iraqis Ask ‘Where Is The Electricity?’

The country is generating almost double the amount of electricity it did immediately before the 2003 invasion, but the amount is still woefully inadequate to meet ordinary Iraqis’ needs.

“It comes for one hour although it is not for a whole hour. It goes on and off all the time. Technically we have the electricity for about 20 minutes only,” says one Baghdad resident who wished to remain anonymous.

‘Iran seeks nuclear fuel self-sufficiency’

An Iranian political analyst says the inauguration of the country’s first nuclear power plant has been a step in the direction of becoming self-sufficient in the field of nuclear energy.

Iran offers Lebanon upgrading of defence capabilities and solution to energy crisis

Beirut – The Iranian ambassador to Lebanon Ghazanfar Roknabadi declared, according to An Nahar, that his country is prepared to support the Lebanese armed forces with equipment according to their needs and Iranian capacity.

Diminishing Returns From Middle East Projects

As my fellow blogger Malini Hariharan wrote last week “the projects environment in the Middle East has irrevocably changed” and with it the rather glib and outdated assumption still being frequently made that building capacity in the region represents a licence to print money.

First of all, as Malini pointed out, further supplies of advantaged gas feedstock are no longer available with high sulphur content meaning that extra processing costs could push non-associated prices to $4/mmBTU and above.

Malaysia: Pro-coal group adds new twist to coal controversy

KOTA KINABALU: The controversial proposal to build Sabah’s first coal-fired power plant has taken a new twist with the arrival of a new pro-coal pressure group, the People’s Assembly Action Committee (PAAC).

The newly formed pro-coal lobby has incurred the wrath of anti coal-fired power plant coalition, Green SURF (Sabah Unite to Re-Power the Future), for claiming that the people in the east coast of Sabah support the project.

For green movement, a change in climate

On Thursday, some of the country’s most respected environmental groups – in the midst of their biggest political fight in two decades – sent a group of activists to Milwaukee with a message.

We’re losing.

They put on what they called a “CarnivOil” – a fake carnival with a stilt-wearing barker, free “tar balls” (chocolate doughnuts), and a suit-wearing “oil executive” punching somebody dressed like a crab. It was supposed to be satire, but there was a bitter message underneath: When we fight the oil and gas industry, they win.

Prefab home assembled in hours wins green honor

In Newport Beach, Calif., a modern factory-built home assembled in hours and finished in days has recently earned a coveted green certification.

The two-story boxy model, ideal for narrow urban lots, won the top or platinum rating from the private U.S. Green Building Council’s LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) program.

Greenest wines? Vintners avoid heavy glass bottles

Many vintners are striving to be organic and eco-minded in their farming, but only a handful have addressed the packaging issue, according to a 2010 ranking of 25 major wineries.

Biofuels Firms Buy Up African Land, Cause Deforestation, Food Output Loss

Biofuels companies from the U.K. to Brazil and China are buying up large swaths of Africa, causing deforestation and diverting land from food to fuel production, the environmental group Friends of the Earth said.

Across the continent almost 5 million hectares of land, an area bigger than the Netherlands, have been sold to cultivate crops for biofuels since 2006, Friends of the Earth’s Brussels- based European division said today in a 36-page study.

Crude Falls From Seven-Day High on Skepticism About U.S. Economic Recovery

Oil fell from its highest price in more than a week on concern that last week’s 2.3 percent gain was optimistic, given the outlook for fuel demand in the U.S., the world’s biggest user of crude.

Futures erased earlier gains after the dollar strengthened against the euro, making dollar-priced commodities less attractive for investors in other currencies. The Commerce Department reported on Aug. 27 the U.S. economy grew at an annual rate of 1.6 percent in the second quarter, down from an estimate of 2.4 percent last month.

U.S. Gasoline Falls to $2.6979 a Gallon as Crude Declines, Lundberg Says

The average price for regular gasoline at U.S. filling stations fell to $2.6979 a gallon as supplies of the motor fuel increased and crude prices dropped.

Gasoline declined 7.43 cents in the two weeks ended Aug. 27, according to a survey of 2,500 filling stations nationwide by Trilby Lundberg, an independent gasoline analyst in Camarillo, California.

Risk-Taking Rises as Oil Rigs in Gulf Drill Deeper

In a remote reach of the Gulf of Mexico, nearly 200 miles from shore, a floating oil platform thrusts its tentacles deep into the ocean like a giant steel octopus.

The $3 billion rig, called Perdido, can pump oil from dozens of wells nearly two miles under the sea while simultaneously drilling new ones. It is part of a wave of ultra-deep platforms — all far more sophisticated than the rig that was used to drill the ill-fated BP well that blew up in April. These platforms have sprung up far from shore and have pushed the frontiers of technology in the gulf, a region that now accounts for a quarter of the nation’s oil output.

Major offshore accidents are not common. But whether through equipment failure or human error, the risks increase as the rigs get larger and more complicated.

BP’s life on ‘frontiers’ of energy industry at risk

LONDON — At a celebration of BP’s centennial last October, CEO Tony Hayward boasted to guests that the oil company “lives on the frontiers of the energy industry.”

But this week, in the first major sign that the Gulf of Mexico oil spill may have caused lasting damage to the company’s long-term strategy of embracing projects with high risks, BP was frozen out of a potentially lucrative license to drill for oil off the coast of Greenland.

In Oil Inquiry, Panel Sees No Single Smoking Gun

HOUSTON — More than four months after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig explosion, there appears to be no single smoking gun that implicates one person or company in the disaster. Instead, several missteps and oversights by the crew are being explored by federal investigators as possible triggers of the emergency.

Mr. Feinberg and the Gulf Settlement

Mr. Feinberg’s plans for distributing BP’s money, announced last Monday, seem magnanimous and fair. They would provide swift, short-term relief for Gulf Coast residents, and a process for measuring — and appropriately compensating — long-term losses. Mr. Feinberg must be willing to make adjustments along the way. But everyone will get a hearing, and his fund is sure to be vastly better than the BP operation it replaces.

RWE joins Kurdistan’s gas effort

Kurdish hopes of exporting natural gas from northern Iraq have been bolstered by a German company’s offer of assistance.

On Friday, the big German gas and power company RWE signed a co-operation agreement with the regional government of the semi-autonomous Iraqi Kurdistan. The object is to create pipeline routes and other infrastructure for marketing Kurdish gas.

Russia Will Boost Oil Exports to China With New Pipeline From East Siberia

Prime Minister Vladimir Putin opened the Russian section of an oil pipeline that will boost oil exports to China from East Siberia.

“This is an important project because we are beginning to diversify the delivery of our energy resources,” Putin said at today’s opening of the pipeline in Skovorodino in Russia’s Far Eastern Amur region, in comments posted on his official website. “Thus far, shipments were made to our European partners.”

Shell near finishing new Nigeria pipe

Supermajor Shell said today its Nigerian joint venture, Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), was close to completing a new $1.1 billion pipeline to the Bonny export terminal which will have a capacity of 600,000 barrels per day.

Chevron to explore for oil off Liberia

Reuters) – Chevron Corp has signed a deal with Liberia to explore for oil and gas in three deepwater blocks off the West African country’s coast, an official in the president’s office said.

Italian energy agency asks for ENI gas rule change

(Reuters) – Italian energy authorities want the government to amend gas market rules approved earlier this month that would let ENI (ENI.MI) control up to 65 percent of the Italian market, the Authority for Electrical Energy and Gas said on Monday.

Saudi and Kuwait make Khafji gas plans

A joint venture between Saudi Arabia and Kuwait plans to build gas and natural gas liquids collection and distribution facilities at the Khafji oilfield, according to reports.

‘Lukoil must stay public’

Russia’s Lukoil should not buy back its remaining shares from ConocoPhillips according to the company’s chief executive Vagit Alekperov.

Alekperov, who had said the same before Lukoil decided to proceed with the first part of the buyback earlier this month, said that it would be hugely beneficial for Lukoil if the remaining stake were sold on an open market, the business daily Vedomosti reported.

Norway’s natural gas production down in July

(Reuters) – Norway’s natural gas production fell to a preliminary 7.5 billion cubic metres in July from actual production of 8.5 billion cubic metres in June, the Norwegian Petroleum Directorate said.

With Neighbors Unaware, Toxic Spill at a BP Plant

TEXAS CITY, Tex. — While the world was focused on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a BP refinery here released huge amounts of toxic chemicals into the air that went unnoticed by residents until many saw their children come down with respiratory problems.

For 40 days after a piece of equipment critical to the refinery’s operation broke down, a total of 538,000 pounds of toxic chemicals, including the carcinogen benzene, poured out of the refinery.

Rather than taking the costly step of shutting down the refinery to make repairs, the engineers at the plant diverted gases to a smokestack and tried to burn them off, but hundreds of thousands of pounds still escaped into the air, according to state environmental officials.

‘Central banks, governments can’t print barrels of oil and shale gas is no game changer’

In our view, shale gas is not a game changer.First and foremost, shale gas suffers from very high depletion rates.

The Republican Who Dared Tell the Truth About Oil

Matt Simmons understood the wages of addiction and wasn’t afraid to sound warnings, even to George W. Bush.

Sign of the Times

Cook argued that even if we could buy ourselves a few more decades or even a century, a crisis was inevitable–one that would threaten the lives of billions around the world. Although people today tend to think mainly of how a declining oil supply would affect the economy, Cook was more concerned that without abundant fossil fuel or a renewable replacement for it, the global population would be unsustainable.

Losing our way on roads

Everyone pays for public transport, first through taxes and then through fares, and it is time everyone had access to it, just as they do to roads. Instead, Melbourne’s transport planning has for decades been focused on building more roads while applying pain-killing injections to a moribund public transport network.

Transition movement eyes bleak future and sees opportunity to plan for change

Climate change. Dwindling oil supplies. A precarious economy. Disruptions to the national food supply.

The future, some believe, is likely to throw a large wrench into life as we know it. The assumptions that we make – that there will be food at the grocery store, gas at the filling station, a regular job to go to on Monday morning – may be tested in a way that’s hard to imagine. And there could be considerable hardship if we don’t put those assumptions aside and begin planning for change.

Environmental Sustainability, Peak Oil and World Hunger

Last year, The United Nations reported that over one billion people in the world are starving. That’s more than 16% of the world population that are in extreme want for food; meanwhile industrialized nations waste almost equal to their consumption. And considering the general girth of industrial waistlines, that’s a lot of food.

What’s the value of home-grown food?

While my garden has so far been unprofitable, at least in financial terms, there are apparently people out there — even in space-scarce cities — who grow lots and lots of food in their backyards. Like enough to feed their families, or to make a significant dent in their grocery bills.

Curious how they do it, I set out to find someone whose backyard vegetable garden was a substantial source of food and a real money-saving venture.

European Commission Receives 19 National Renewable-Energy Plans, 8 Missing

The European Union’s regulatory body has received 19 national renewable-energy action plans and will prepare legal action against the remaining eight EU countries if their strategies aren’t submitted “very soon.”

German Solar-Power Capacity May Exceed Wind by 2020, State Adviser Says

Germany probably will have more production capacity at solar power plants than from wind-energy turbines within a decade, a government energy adviser said.

Europe’s biggest electricity producer by the end of the decade will likely have about 42 gigawatts of installed capacity from photovoltaic panels that turn sunlight into power, compared with 41.9 gigawatts of wind power, both onshore and offshore, Stefan Kohler, chairman of the DENA agency, an energy adviser to the government, said today at a briefing in Berlin.

Scale down industry call from climate change expert

SCALE down industry, strengthen local resilience and “include nature” in all development models.

That is the call from retired industrial chemist Hugh Laue, now a green business consultant, chairman of the Zwartkops Trust and a leading campaigner in Nelson Mandela Bay against climate change.

Japan plans to bind large firms to CO2 caps: draft

Japan’s compulsory emissions trading scheme is set to start in April 2013 and cover large CO2 emitting companies, a draft of the government’s proposals showed on Monday, but several issues are still open to debate.

UN climate change panel to face Himalaya error verdict

An international committee reviewing the “processes and procedures” of the UN’s climate science panel is set to report on Monday.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) has faced mounting pressure over errors in its last major assessment of climate science in 2007.

The review was overseen by the Inter-Academy Council, which brings together bodies such as the UK’s Royal Society.

The findings are to be unveiled at a news conference in New York.

FACTBOX – Errors, findings by UN panel of climate scientists

Following is an overview of errors and overall findings in a 2007 IPCC report:

Greenhouse-Gas Regulation Backed by a Majority in Defense Council’s Poll

A majority of U.S. voters say the government should regulate greenhouse gases linked to global warming and that the Environmental Protection Agency is up to the job, a poll for the Natural Resources Defense Council found.

The Urgent Islands

If a country sinks beneath the sea, is it still a country? That is a question about which the Republic of the Marshall Islands — a Micronesian nation of 29 low-lying coral atolls — is now seeking expert legal advice. It is also a question the United States Senate might ask itself the next time it refuses to deal with climate change.

The age of easy, cheap oil maybe getting over slowly

The Arctic is thought to hold the world’s largest reserves of untapped oil and gas, with as much as a fifth of remaining undiscovered oil located there. It is also one of the most remote and extreme regions on the planet. As per a 2008 US Geological Survey report, the Arctic Circle could hold estimated 90 billion barrels of recoverable oil. It also said the Arctic holds around 30 percent of the world’s undiscovered natural gas and 20 percent of the undiscovered natural gas liquids.

But with the specter of dwindling energy resources haunting some, exploiting these new “frontier” resources is becoming increasingly apparent. Martin Pratt, director of research at IBRU underlined that “for any state, control over hydrocarbons is significant as other resources dwindle.”

Deepwater Horizon fears resurface as rigs probe for oil under Arctic ice

In a few days’ time, officials at the Bureau of Minerals and Petroleum in Greenland will reveal the winners of a new round of licences to drill for oil and gas in its waters. The announcement promises to be explosive.

Among those waiting are most of the world’s leading oil companies, including ExxonMobil, Shell and Norway’s StatOil. Watching with equal attention will be the planet’s leading green groups, who they have pledged to block every effort to drill in the Arctic.

Natural Gas Supply on the Rise

Though the ongoing surge in the commodity’s demand (on account of hot weather) has erased a hefty surplus over last year’s inventory level, following a high of 101 Bcf for the week ending April 23, the specter of a continued glut in domestic gas supplies still exists, with storage levels remaining 6.2% above their five-year average. In fact, the latest build, though in line with market expectations, has send natural gas inventories above the 3 Tcf mark for only the second time since January 1, 2010.

Further pressurizing the commodity is the rapid rise in the number of drilling rigs working in the U.S. (the natural gas rig count has climbed 48% from the seven-year low reached last July) that signals a supply glut later this year in the face of consumer worries regarding high unemployment and economic recovery.

Venezuela’s Chavez says oil price “stabilized”

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on Friday that oil prices were stabilizing, giving his South American OPEC member nation’s crude an average barrel price of nearly $70 this year.

“The price of oil recovered and it’s more or less stabilized,” he said in comments carried live on TV.

Iraq says it may abide by OPEC quotas in 2-3 years

BAGHDAD (AP) — Iraq’s oil minister says Baghdad will consider abiding by OPEC quotas once its crude production increases to at least 4 million barrels a day in two to three years.

Hussain al-Shahristani says there is no rush to discuss quotas with other members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries while Iraq’s production level remains at the current 2.5 million barrels a day.

Gulf Navigation Seeks to Acquire Oil Tankers as Economy Recovers, CEO Says

oil-tanker owner, is seeking to buy new crude carriers as an improving global economy boosts shipping volumes, the company’s chief executive officer said.

Gulf Navigation may acquire two very large crude carriers, or VLCCs, this year, Per Wistoft said in an interview Aug. 26. Oil output that’s set to rise by 2011 will bring enough added crude supply onto the market to necessitate 45 more VLCCs, Wistoft said in Dubai.

Kuwait posts $22.4 billion budget surplus

KUWAIT CITY — OPEC member Kuwait posted a budget surplus of 22.4 billion dollars in the past fiscal year on the back of strong oil revenues, an economic report said on Sunday, citing official figures.

It is the third largest windfall in the Gulf state’s history and its 11th consecutive year of budget surpluses, which have allowed Kuwait to accumulate 145 billion dollars in public revenues, according to AFP calculations based on official figures.

Qatar July Consumer Prices Decline 2.9% as Housing Costs, Fuel Prices Drop

Qatari consumer prices fell in July for the seventh consecutive month this year on lower housing and fuel costs in the world’s largest exporter of liquefied natural gas.

Consumer prices declined 2.9 percent in July, compared with a 2.8 percent fall in June, the Qatar Statistics Authority said on its website today. Rent, fuel and energy prices declined 15.3 percent in July, compared with the same month last year, the data showed.

Putin hails China ties at oil pipeline completion

(Reuters) – Russian Prime Minister Vladimir Putin on Sunday opened a pipeline branch to carry Siberian oil to China and hailed Russia’s energy business in China as an important counterweight to its traditional European clients.

Brazil Needs Billions to Drill Really Deep

Brazil has a sunken-treasure problem. The discovery three years ago of a huge offshore stash of oil unleashed a gusher of nationalist euphoria. At somewhere between 9 billion and 15 billion barrels, it was the largest find in the Western Hemisphere in more than a quarter century. President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva hailed the find as a ticket to Brazil’s “second independence,” and called on the country’s legislators to tighten state control over the oil industry.

Iraq says Kurd gas deal with Germany’s RWE illegal

(Reuters) – Iraq’s Oil Ministry said on Sunday the agreement Germany’s RWE (RWEG.DE) signed with the Kurdish Regional Government, which included possible future gas supply for the Nabucco pipeline project, is illegal.

Alaskans sound off on Arctic offshore drilling

ANCHORAGE – Alaska’s U.S. senators urged the Obama administration Thursday to get Arctic Ocean offshore petroleum development back on track.

The Alaskans who live closest to the proposed drilling rigs said federal regulators have not done enough to ensure the industry protects the environment and prepares for a catastrophic spill.

If drilling moratorium drags on it could drain Gulf of Mexico activity, expert says

Only a few rigs have left the Gulf of Mexico because of the federal deepwater drilling moratorium, but the directive could dampen long-term activity in the Gulf if it drags on, a senior policy adviser at the American Petroleum Institute said last week.

BP Internal Report Said to Find Engineers Misread Gulf Well Test Results

BP Plc’s internal investigation of the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster found company engineers misinterpreted pressure data that indicated a blowout was imminent, according to a person familiar with the report.

BP managers aboard the Transocean Ltd.-owned rig misread a test of the Macondo well’s stability on April 20 and began replacing drilling fluid, which is heavier than oil and natural gas, with seawater, said the person, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the report’s findings haven’t been publicly released.

On Louisiana coast, residents bemoan a lost summer

(Reuters) – On a typical summer weekend in Grand Isle, Louisiana, Frank Besson’s small gift shop would be filled with customers picking up a souvenir as they headed back home from a weekend visit to the beach.

But this summer, business at the Nez Coupe is down about 95 percent, Besson said, as most of this coastal community’s beaches remain shut. Motels are filled with workers hired by BP Plc to clean up its oil spill, not tourists.

Energy Holdings of Billionaires

That’s Buffett, Icahn, and Paulson — three of the most legendary investors in the game.

But do you know what they all have in common besides being multi-billionaires?

They each added to energy positions in the last quarter.

New Zealand – Greens: Govt ignoring imminent oil crunch

The Government is ignoring international warnings of an imminent oil supply crunch and price spike, the Green Party says.

Co-leader Russel Norman revealed today he had been asking the Government to open a formal inquiry into the impact of these problems but had been rebuffed.

Study: Drinking water polluted by coal-ash dump sites

A new study identifies 39 additional coal-ash dump sites in 21 states that pollute drinking water with arsenic, lead and other heavy metals.

The analysis comes as the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency begins regional hearings on whether to regulate coal ash waste from coal-fired power plants. It will hold the first of seven hearings Monday in Arlington, Va. A public comment period ends Nov. 19.

China coal drive will not end health risks: report

(Reuters) – China’s drive to promote clean coal technology is unlikely to reduce significantly the health risks of extracting what remains the dirtiest of fossil fuels, environmental group Greenpeace said.

A hopeless cause without nuclear power

HONG KONG, PACIFIC PERSPECTIVES — Ask the average environmentally concerned person how our power generators will achieve the tough emissions reductions needed to play their part in cutting global warming, and you will probably get a simple, clear answer: wind and solar.

Recent research by the International Energy Agency shows that nearly half of interviewees worldwide think that wind and solar power will be the two main sources of electricity generation by 2040. There is just one problem: That idea is naive, overoptimistic and almost certainly mistaken. Quite literally, it is “hot air.”

India Risks Nuclear Isolation With Break From Chernobyl Accord

India’s push to end a three-decade ban on buying nuclear equipment from abroad may founder on laws passed by its own parliament.

Jordan to Sign Nuclear Cooperation Deal With Japan, Jordan Times Reports

Jordan and Japan are due to sign a nuclear cooperation treaty to allow Japanese companies to export atomic technology to the Middle Eastern kingdom, Minister of Planning and International Cooperation Jaafar Hassan was cited as saying by the Jordan Times.

Ethanol Futures Soar to Seven-Month High in U.S. on Increased Corn Demand

Ethanol futures soared to a seven- month high in Chicago as corn advanced after a report showed increased demand for U.S. exports.

7 U.S. troops killed in Afghan weekend attacks

KABUL, Afghanistan (AP) — Seven U.S. troops have died in weekend attacks in Afghanistan’s embattled southern and eastern regions, while officials found the bodies Sunday of five kidnapped campaign workers for a female candidate in the western province of Herat.

Two servicemen died in bombings Sunday in southern Afghanistan, while two others were killed in a bomb attack in the south on Saturday and three in fighting in the east the same day, NATO said. Their identities and other details were being withheld until relatives could be notified.

Good Companies Guide: easing the planet’s growing pains will help business to profit

In the face of a looming environmental and demographic crisis, weak companies will go to the wall. Only those that address the needs of a rapidly changing world will prosper.

Earth’s response to human stresses on the natural landscape

Globally the supply of phosphorus is dwindling. Phosphorus is an intrinsic part of our DNA. We add phosphorus-rich fertilizers to increase world food production, but much washes off into rivers and lakes, where it feeds excessive growth of weeds and algae and removes dissolved oxygen. When animal manure is applied directly to fields, rain also washes off some phosphorus that pollutes streams. Phosphorus is generally not recovered from human waste water treatment, so a “peak phosphorus” crisis is approaching.

Like the peak oil crisis, it is double-edged. We have a growing population dependent on finite resources — phosphorus and food, oil and energy — and growing waste problems affecting the natural environment, including fresh water pollution and atmospheric greenhouse gas pollution. Yet in both cases, we are afraid to invest in non-polluting sustainable solutions, because they are costly and require structural changes in society.

A Sticky Climate Protest

Climate change protest is becoming a sticky business in Britain.

Last Thursday, hundreds of activists with Climate Camp, a grass-roots protest group, descended on the headquarters of the Royal Bank of Scotland to protest the bank’s financing of carbon-intensive energy projects like mining and processing of Canada’s tar sands into oil.

After thousands of years, Canada’s ‘majestic’ ice shelves disintegrating

Canada is home to plenty of ice, but the ancient, undulating ice shelves on the north coast of Ellesmere Island are something special.

For starters, the shelves are “beautiful landscapes,” says earth scientist John England, at the University of Alberta, who considers the “majestic” shelves in Canada’s Arctic a national treasure.

They are also unique in the Northern Hemisphere and home to the oldest sea ice in the northern half of the planet, says England, noting the shelves are 3,000 to 5,500 years old.

And they are disintegrating. A century ago, they covered almost 10,000 square kilometres, an area one and half times the size of Prince Edward Island.

A new US oil rush could rock OPEC

It contains hundreds of billions of barrels of light crude oil and thousands of wells and should be scaring the pants off any oil exporter needing high crude prices to balance its budget.

It is the Bakken Shale oilfield, which sprawls across two Canadian prairie provinces and two western US states including North Dakota, under 500,000 square kilometres of land.

Its US portion is described as the country’s largest oil deposit outside Alaska. With its biggest and most accessible part in Canada, the Bakken could prove to be one of the largest oilfields in the world.

The American Association of Petroleum Geologists says it is the biggest continuous oil accumulation it has ever assessed.

PetroChina Vows Global Expansion as Price Controls Curb Profit

PetroChina Co., Asia’s biggest company by market value, pledged to step up acquisitions and boost cooperation with global oil companies after profit growth slumped because of state controls on fuel prices at home.

“PetroChina will continue to expand globally,” President Zhou Jiping said at an earnings briefing in Hong Kong yesterday. “We will boost profitability at existing projects and seek new opportunities around existing ventures in Central Asia, the Middle East, Africa, the Americas and the Asia-Pacific.”

How the Media Covered the Gulf Oil Spill Disaster

The oil spill was by far the dominant story in the mainstream news media in the 100-day period after the explosion, accounting for 22% of the newshole — almost double the next biggest story. In the 14 full weeks included in this study, the disaster finished among the top three weekly stories 14 times. And it registered as the No. 1 story in nine of those weeks.

Like it or not, tolling may be the future for highway funding

With a scarcity of federal dollars forecast for transportation, tolling roadways may be the best option for having ready cash to maintain the many miles of highways in the Philadelphia region.

Montgomery County planner Leo Bagley said future transportation funding could drop from the current $500 million to about $300 million a year and leave the region in the lurch to pay for road and bridge maintenance.

Officials: Oil spill impact may last years

Though crews are expected to finish cleaning the Kalamazoo River by the end of September, the economic impact could be far-reaching.

Officials fear some of the crude oil, which could have seeped into the ground and out of sight, will continue to affect the river environment and the local economy for years to come.

Walking the Walk

The Italians have a word, arrangiarsi, which means the art of making do. It seems fitting that a culture with such a long and often disrupted history could turn a survival skill into an art form. Along with re-purposing, recycling, and repairing, one basic skill that fits the category is the saving and replanting of seeds.

Until the large scale development of hybridized and genetically modified plants, nearly everyone who planted saved their own seeds. These handed-down or “heirloom” seeds, tested in the laboratory of real world necessity, are in fact the backbone of agriculture. Unfortunately, large agribusiness interests, and corporations such as Monsanto are making it very difficult for farmers to do what they have always done.

What are the ingredients of a sustainable food system?

After a week of debate and discussion at the Oregon Sustainability Experience (OSE), a gentlemen approached with an answer I had long awaited. He leaned in and cut through the louder talk around the room. He said, “A friend of mine has a good definition of sustainability. He says, ‘Enough for everyone forever.’” Upon hearing those four words I could not help but smile. That’s it. That is the meaning of the word of a week devoted to exploring the value of sustainable agriculture. This small moment had brought meaning to all the places I had seen and the people I had met.

A Green Idea That Sounded Good Until the Trees Went to Work

Despite widespread recognition that choosing the trees was a mistake — in fact, the species is no longer planted except in certain areas — the city is fighting those who must deal with its ruinous effects. Property owners who ask to replace or remove the trees face a lengthy and expensive battle.

The Rare Earth Element Crisis

A Congressional Research Service report considers whether U.S. dependency on foreign sources of rare earth elements threatens the defense and technology industries.

1,000-Megawatt Plant in Calif. Marks New Milestone in Solar Expansion

Federal regulators are nearing final approval of what would be the largest solar power plant in the world, a milestone that sets a new standard for the industry and marks a major advancement in the Obama administration’s efforts to expand renewable energy production nationwide.

It’s time to flick the switch

On a barren lake-bed in central Djibouti, engineers are preparing to drill deep into the earth in search of subterranean heat that could cut the country’s power bill by as much as two thirds.

Canadian firm really goes green with hemp car

TORONTO (Reuters) – Canadian developers are plotting a small revolution in the still-tiny market for electric cars, with a concept vehicle made from hemp set to debut at a specialised auto show next month.

The four-seat car, called the Kestrel, has an outer shell of a hemp-based composite, which developers say is lighter than glass fibre and more resilient than steel. It will debut at the EV (Electric Vehicles) tradeshow in Vancouver.

Fossil record hints at possible global warming surge

Brace yourself New Zealand, the oceans around us may are ready to deliver a giant belch which will speed up global warming in our area.

A study of the fossil record from oceans around New Zealand shows a sudden discharge of carbon dioxide into the atmosphere at the end of the last ice age and scientists say it raises the possibility it could happen again as part of global warming.

Climate change: Will Russian heat wave prompt serious action from Moscow?

Will the heat wave and drought that have created so much havoc in Russia cause the leadership in that country to take climate change more seriously? The answer is important not only for Russia itself but for the world community. Russia is the third-biggest emitter of greenhouse gases globally, behind only China and the United States.

Dealing With Scarcity

Julian Cribb, in his book “The Coming Famine” (which I reviewed today over in Arts), contends that we’ve already seen peak oil – the time when production can do nothing but decline. He then goes on to deduce that since we’ve likely seen peak fertilizer, peak water, and peak land as well, we’ve probably seen peak food. This at a time, as we all know, when not only is the world’s population growing but it’s becoming generally better off – that is, more and more people want to eat like Americans.

But as Mr. Cribb details in “The Coming Famine” – and as I discussed in The Times and at TED – that’s simply impossible. Why? Because we have most likely seen peak everything — and meat and much of the other stuff that constitute some 80 percent of the calories in the typical American diet take way more energy, water and land to produce than unprocessed plants.

(The review is here.)

Asia’s glaciers in retreat, could signal crop failure and flooding in the future

Asia’s glaciers are retreating, which could mean drought, plus crop losses upstream and flood conditions downstream for millions of people.

Statoil not investing in Mexico

Statoil chief Helge Lund said Norway’s largest oil and natural gas company will refrain from investing in Mexico for now as the business environment for the sector is still unclear.

Venezuela eyes Sept PDVSA issue, Q4 growth

CARACAS (Reuters) – Venezuela is preparing a $2 billion dollar-denominated bond issue by state oil firm PDVSA for September, a senior government source told Reuters on Wednesday.

“We’re getting it ready for the start of September, during the first two weeks,” the source said.

Enbridge pipeline has dent at St. Clair River

The Enbridge Energy pipeline that ruptured in Marshall last month, spilling more than 800,000 gallons of oil, shows structural anomalies closer to Metro Detroit that need to be investigated, according U.S. Rep. Candice Miller.

Cuba looks cooperate on offshore safety

Cuba’s oil industry wants to work with its counterparts in the United States and Mexico to promote safe drilling practices and avoid the kind of well blowout and spill seen recently in the Gulf of Mexico, a leading drilling industry expert said today.

Nuclear safety agency model may aid oil drilling

(Reuters) – Oil exploration companies like BP Plc and their drilling partners could learn from a little-known U.S. nuclear industry watchdog group that focuses on sharing safety know-how and peer criticism, executives involved with the group said.

BP tells U.S. panel Halliburton should have warned of well hazard

In a new twist in the case, BP has declared that Halliburton, which had warned that the cement job on the Macondo well might not function properly, should have stopped the operation outright. If Halliburton knew the cement process was unsafe, it had an obligation to refuse to proceed – and to do otherwise would be, BP said in a statement, “morally repugnant.”

Louisiana’s Treasurer Says `Chuckleheads’ Caused Gulf Oil Spill

Louisiana Treasurer John Kennedy said “chuckleheads” on the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig caused the explosion and oil spill, and said the isolated incident shouldn’t delay resuming Gulf of Mexico exploration.

U.S. spill panel skewers offshore drilling policy

(Reuters) – The BP oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico was a massive “failure” in oversight for the oil industry and the U.S. government, the co-chairman of the White House oil spill commission said on Wednesday.

BP executive says blowout preventer was not connected properly

As BP and Transocean officials struggled to contain the oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico, they discovered that the plumbing on the blowout preventer was connected improperly, a BP executive testified Wednesday.

“It would mean that the pipe rams could not be closed,” said Harry Thierens, BP executive vice president for drilling and completions. “I was frankly astonished that this could have happened.”

Removal of BP’s blowout preventer delayed – US gov’t

(Reuters) – BP Plc’s efforts to fish out pipe remnants inside equipment atop its blown-out Gulf of Mexico well delayed retrieval of a failed blowout preventer, the top official overseeing the oil spill response said on Wednesday.

“We probably took a 24- to 36-hour hit on the timeline,” retired Coast Guard Admiral Thad Allen said.

BP VP: 12-24 Hours Wasted after Oil Rig Exploded

(AP) A BP vice president says critical time was wasted in the hours after the Gulf of Mexico well explosion trying to learn what changes had been made to a device meant to prevent oil from leaking from the blown-out well.

AAA predicts Labor Day travel boost, but expects shorter trips

DENVER — More Americans will get away for the Labor Day weekend this year, yet stick closer to home as they try to get the most for their money, AAA said Thursday.

As sales fall, is the hybrid car fad over?

Will it turn out that hybrid cars were just a fad that will go the way of bell-bottom pants?

The sales numbers so far this year seem to point to the possibility. Ford Escape Hybrid sales were off 23.7% through the first seven months of the year, Toyota Camry hybrid sales were down 42.5% and Honda Civic Hybrid sales fell 72%, Autodata reports. Toyota Prius sales are up only 4% even though the model is still fairly new.

Americans want smaller homes, not McMansions

Is the McMansion era over? This is the question that Trulia, a real estate site, asks in releasing survey results that suggest — yes, in fact — it is.

Slightly more than half of Americans, or 55%, say 1,400 to 2,600 square feet would be their ideal home size. Only 9% say their dream home is 3,200 square feet, according to July 22-26 Trulia-Harris Interactive Survey.

Green technology is key to future

GREEN, clean industries are the way of the future but Fraser Coast people must act now if the region’s idyllic lifestyle is to be maintained, says Maggie John of Transition Towns.

“Oil has fuelled much of the massive population growth and the extraordinary achievements of the last 150 years. It is the lifeblood of industrial society,” Ms John said.

Group calls for more home-growing

A BROMSGROVE group, which has held a meeting to highlight the problem of climate change and peak oil, is urging more residents, local farmers, garden centres, schools and other groups to get in touch and help format a strategy to cut food miles.

Transition Town Bromsgrove’s (TTB) last meeting saw two main questions posed – one about how interest in local food issues could be raised and another on how self-production of food within Bromsgrove district could be increased.

Honolulu’s long-standing trash woes growing worse

HONOLULU – Gigantic piles of shrink-wrapped garbage have been moldering in the heat of a Hawaii industrial park for more than five months, waiting for a place to be shipped.

That wait appeared to end Monday when city officials inked a deal to dispose of the 40 million-pound pile of odious rubbish over the next six months by mostly burning it in an existing waste-to-power plant.

But bigger problems remain for Honolulu as the state’s largest city struggles to find a home for all its waste.

Electricity crisis hits Venezuelan oil exports

The electricity crisis hitting Venezuela threatens to reduce further fuel exports, which recorded a year-on-year decrease of 16.3 percent in the second quarter of 2010, thus worsening the negative effects of the economic fall on the oil sector.

The Venezuelan government was forced this year to install dozens of thermal power plants to alleviate a stringent electricity rationing. Fueling these plants is costing several billion dollars in refined products that were intended for export.

Egypt’s energy crisis stirs public unrest

The Egyptian government has announced its intention to continue decreasing electric output pending the end of a heat-wave which saw temperatures climb to 40 degrees Celsius.

Pemex Chief: Watching Mkt to Decide When to Begin Crude Imports

MEXICO CITY (MNI) – Mexico’s state oil company Pemex will begin importing crude oil for the first time in decades after watching the markets for the best moment to buy, Pemex Director General Juan Jose Suarez said Tuesday.

Suarez told local radio that Pemex is concluding the analysis of how different mixtures on the market react in the country’s refineries, and will wait for an opportunity to buy, making the plan seem much more definite than it did only a day earlier.

“We will be watching for opportunities, and when they come, we will carry out” the import, Suarez said in an interview with Radio Formula.

Aramco, Exxon Said to Plan 2013 Shutdown for Maintenance at Yanbu Refinery

While countries in the Persian Gulf hold more than half the world’s crude oil reserves, they import fuels for lack of processing capacity. Imports help cover supply when refineries undergo maintenance when temperatures are cooler.

Saudi Aramco is buying gasoline from September through the end of the year, traders with knowledge of the tenders said last week. The company is buying at least four cargoes of gasoline a month, according to the traders, who asked not to be identified since the talks aren’t public.

Five gang members held for stealing fuel from tourist buses

A GANG that stole fuel from tourist buses which came to the city for the World Expo has been busted.

The gang had three cars which were refitted and equipped with oil suction tubes, police said. In total the converted cars could carry 1,000 liters of fuel, according to local police.

Hezbollah chief calls for nuclear energy

BEIRUT, Lebanon (UPI) — Lebanon has the right to consider nuclear power as a way to address an energy crisis in the country, the Hezbollah secretary-general declared.

Lebanon has suffered from rolling blackouts since the 25-year civil war ended in 1990.

Demystifying nuclear power

Zhou Shirong is deputy director of nuclear safety at China’s environmental protection ministry. Here, he talks to Cao Haidong and Meng Dengke about managing construction standards – and public anxiety.

Job Losses Over Drilling Ban Fail to Materialize

WASHINGTON — When the Obama administration called a halt to virtually all deepwater drilling activity in the Gulf of Mexico after the Deepwater Horizon blowout and fire in April, oil executives, economists and local officials complained that the six-month moratorium would cost thousands of jobs and billions of dollars in lost revenue.

Oil supply firms went to court to have the moratorium overturned, calling it illegal and warning that it would exacerbate the nation’s economic woes, lead to oil shortages and cause an exodus of drilling rigs from the gulf to other fields around the world. Two federal courts agreed.

Yet the worst of those forecasts has failed to materialize, as companies wait to see how long the moratorium will last before making critical decisions on spending cuts and layoffs. Unemployment claims related to the oil industry along the Gulf Coast have been in the hundreds, not the thousands, and while oil production from the gulf is down because of the drilling halt, supplies from the region are expected to rebound in future years. Only 2 of the 33 deepwater rigs operating in the gulf before the BP rig exploded have left for other fields.

BP Oil Spill Has Little Impact on Global Drilling

A negative impact has been even harder to find in other countries despite the fact that companies around the world use much the same equipment under similar industry protocols. Large offshore accidents in Mexican, British and Australian waters since the late 1970s barely slowed deepwater development, and history may well be repeating itself.

BP vice president testifies before federal panel

HOUSTON — A BP vice president says critical time was wasted in the hours after the Gulf of Mexico well explosion trying to learn what changes had been made to a device meant to prevent oil from leaking from the blown-out well.

UN report on Nigeria oil spills relies too heavily on data from Shell

Report blaming 90% of spills in Ogoniland on locals stealing crude from pipelines allows companies to shirk responsibility.

Belarus eyes self-sufficiency via Iran, Venezuela oil deposits

Belarus planned to produce 9.3 million tons of crude oil in Iran over the next 10 years, RIA Novosti news agency reported Wednesday.

The Belarus-Iraninan joint venture, Belpars Petroleum Co. Ltd, will develop oil reserves in Jufeir and build its infrastructure, according to a document entitled Belarus’ Strategy of Development of Energy Potential.

Coordinated attacks kill dozens in Iraq

BAGHDAD — Suicide bombers killed more than 50 people in apparently coordinated attacks on Iraqi security forces in Baghdad and elsewhere on Wednesday, less than a week before U.S. troops formally end combat operations.

Oil’s Not Running Out… Yet

It’s a cliché, but true nonetheless, that the world runs on oil. Remove the oil and within a few days we’d be back in the Middle Ages, albeit with better teeth (at least for a while).

Investors should be aware that the market for oil is changing; it is becoming much more difficult to produce oil cheaply and this will create some interesting opportunities in the future.

FACTBOX – Key facts about biofuels in Brazil

GETULIO VARGAS Brazil (Reuters) – Brazil is seeking to boost its production of biodiesel and create jobs in the countryside by encouraging biofuels companies to buy raw materials from small farmers.

The biodiesel push is meant to mirror a sugar-cane ethanol program that has vastly reduced Brazil’s reliance on fossil fuels for motor vehicle use.

The following are key facts about Brazil’s biofuels sector:

Sharon Astyk: Could rationing be made palatable?

Could a system of energy rationing, or even rationing of high energy goods and foods work in the US? The conventional answer is that it is politically impossible to even consider it, and that the public would never go along with it. But a closer look at the history of rationing during the second World War suggests that it might not be so unthinkable, and that in fact, rationing has historically been viewed as highly positive, pro-democratic and good public policy by the general populace. Now there are obvious historical differences between now and the past, but the framing of rationing may be more important than the exact historical context – in World War II, for example, where few real risks of famine or severe shortage existed, rationing was quite popular. Now, facing actual shortages and potential crisis, rationing is probably not as hard to sell as many people believe.

Bill McKibben – Beyond Oil: Activism and Politics

On May 6, a little more than two weeks after the explosion of the Deepwater Horizon drilling rig, the first oil washed ashore. It was found on the beaches of the Chandeleur Islands off the coast of Louisiana — one of America’s first wildlife refuges, established by Teddy Roosevelt in 1904 after a decade-long struggle with the plume trade, which was killing off our seabirds. We don’t normally think of hydrocarbons as possessing a strong sense of irony, but there you go.

In fact, the BP spill and its aftermath were a slap in the face of the environmental movement in so many ways. You would have thought the most visible ecological tragedy of our time might have led our government to take real action against our worst problems. Instead, the same week that the well was finally capped the Senate punted on doing anything — anything — about climate change.

In pursuit of a richer lifestyle

Some dreams just won’t die. Switching the daily grind of the big smoke for a veggie patch and a few chickens in the hinterland, or by the sea, has lost none of its appeal. If anything, baby boomers risk being shoved aside by Gen Xers as they desert the “corporate conveyer belt” in favour of a balanced life.

“Baby boomers are deeply hierarchical and competitive and want to be successful but Gen X haven’t bought into that,” says KPMG demographer Bernard Salt. “They see what is ahead of them, working 60 or 70 hours a week and think ‘that is not for me’.”

Students imagine new possibilities in intensive summer agroecology program

WOLF LAKE, Ind. – If there is a common thread among the seven students from five colleges who studied in Merry Lea Environmental Learning Center of Goshen College’s Agroecology Summer Intensive (ASI) this year, it is one of new possibilities.

“Now I know that there are ways to survive as a small farmer,” said Emma Regier, a biology major at Bethel College (North Newton, Kan).

Oil analyst: U.S. policy detached from market reality

The world is running out of oil.

This prediction could be made today, of course, but it also has been stated with moral certainty numerous times since 1909, Princeton researcher Roger Stern said Monday night at the University of Tulsa. The problem is not only that the forecast has been wrong, but that this “oil scarcity syndrome” has driven U.S. national security policy in the Middle East for most of the past century, he added.

“U.S. policy is detached from market realities,” Stern told a crowd at Helmerich Hall. “So it has been led by allies such as the Saudis.”

The National Energy Policy Institute invited Stern to present his talk titled “Peak Oil, War and Illusion.” The think tank, based on the TU campus, is seeking domestic answers to help wean the U.S. off oil produced by hostile or duplicitous regimes such as the one in Saudi Arabia.

Crude Oil Trades Near Seven-Week Low in New York Before U.S. Supply Report

Crude oil traded near its lowest level in seven weeks before a U.S. government report on fuel supplies, paring earlier gains as equity markets retreated.

The U.S. Energy Department will probably report today that crude stockpiles gained 300,000 barrels last week after three weeks of declines, a Bloomberg survey showed. European stock indexes declined, led by shares of oil and gas companies.

“U.S. consumption is still very low, product inventories are sky-high,” said Tobias Merath, Zurich-based head of commodity research at Credit Suisse Group AG. “In every market we’ve seen fears of a double-dip recession and oil has been particularly affected.”

Natural Gas Futures Premium at Narrowest in Seven Years

Natural gas for January delivery is trading at the smallest premium to September futures in seven years as traders speculate that economic growth will slow.

China’s Crude Oil Demand Growth May Slow in Third Quarter as Economy Cools

China’s apparent crude demand growth may slow “noticeably” in the third quarter as the world’s fastest-growing major economy cools, said the China Petroleum & Chemical Industry Association.

Fuel Oil, Gasoil Refining Margins in Asia Increase as Supplies Fall: Wrap

Refining margins for fuel oil and gasoil rose for a second day on concern that supplies will fall as the region imports less and refiners reduce utilization rates amid slowing economic growth.

Growing dangers in new oil exploration

Cairn, the next BP? asks the stencilled message that has appeared on various walls and pavements across Scotland since the start of the climate change protests last week. It is a neat epigram for the dilemma facing humanity in the wake of the Deepwater Horizon disaster.

Regardless of how quickly renewable energy is developed, the world will depend on oil for many years to come, to keep the lights on and the traffic moving (as well as making the steel to build offshore wind turbines). But at what price?

Fossil Fuels Remain a Mainstay

Scientists generally agree that to limit global warming to less than 2.4 °C–and avoid the worst effects of climate change–greenhouse-gas emissions must be reduced 50 percent by 2050. But humanity is a long way from being weaned from the petroleum, natural gas, and coal whose use causes much of this pollution.

In fact, global energy demand is expected to increase about 40 percent over the next two decades. By 2030, the use of petroleum, coal, and natural gas is expected to jump by 23 percent, 44 percent, and 37 percent, respectively. “You look at the world of renewables and you see a lot of progress, but they are not going to outpace the growing demand for energy,” says Peter Jackson, a senior director at IHS Cambridge Energy Research Associates, an energy consultancy and think tank.

Drillers May Face Months of Waiting Even After Obama Lifts Deep-Water Ban

President Barack Obama’s administration may agree to an early end for its moratorium on deep-water oil and gas drilling while backing new regulations that may keep rigs idle for months afterward.

Will Robots Clean Up Future Oil Spills?

One result of the recent undersea oil gusher in the Gulf of Mexico is the emergence of a hot market for remedial technologies that go beyond the hapless boom-burn-disperse approach traditionally used to handle such spills.

Norway launches more oil initiative

Norway’s Minister for Research and Higher Education Tora Aasland today launched a new research institute aimed at increasing safety and boosting oil recovery on the Norwegian shelf.

Shell plant shut in Nigeria amid protests

Shell has shut down an oil facility in southern Nigeria due to protests by a group of local women, a company spokesperson said on Wednesday, after a similar demonstration targeted a Chevron pipeline.

Brazil, Petrobras clash over reserve size – report

(Reuters) – Energy giant Petrobras and Brazil’s government clashed over the size of oil reserves to be used in an oil-for-stock swap, Folha de S.Paulo newspaper reported on Wednesday, further complicating the operation amid a dispute over the price to be used for that oil.

The government believes an offshore area to be used in the exchange holds more than 4.5 billion barrels, while Petrobras management says the area holds less than 4 billion barrels, Folha reported, citing no sources.

Statoil May Seek Own Shale Gas Projects, Expansion in China, CEO Lund Says

Statoil ASA may take the lead on shale gas projects and is considering investments in China to tap demand in the world’s fastest growing major economy, Chief Executive Officer Helge Lund said.

Norway’s largest oil and gas company in 2008 bought a stake in U.S. gas shale areas from Chesapeake Energy Corp., which it added to this year, and it now has people working with the U.S. company to gain knowledge of how to extract the fuel. Resources are also in place in China for a potential expansion there, Lund said today in an interview in Stavanger, Norway.

The Best Peak Oil Investments: Why Invest for Peak Oil?

If increased volatility is not the result of speculation, it probably has to do with other changes in the structure of the oil market.

Except for geopolitical events such as the wars and oil embargoes mentioned above, the supply of oil tends not to be volatile. Demand fluctuates with changes in economic activity, and so the demand for oil will be more volatile when economic activity is more volatile. Hence, the price volatility associated with the large spike in oil prices leading up to 2008, along with the subsequent rapid decline and recovery may be attributable to changes in oil demand. However, the years from 2002 to 2007 were characterized by remarkably steady economic growth. Hernce the high oil price volatility during 2002-07 must indicate that the ability of the oil supply to respond to changing demand had decreased compared to earlier periods.

‘One Hundred Mornings’ without electricity

What would you do if the electric grid went dead tomorrow? If grocery stores shut down because trucks no longer had gas to make food deliveries? Self-sufficiency and food security are popular topics in the environmental community today — making for the popularity of books ranging from the somewhat ominous “The Post-Petroleum Survival Guide and Cookbook” to the more sanguine “Farm City”.

And now, a film called “One Hundred Mornings” takes a look at the kind of life we might have in a post-petroleum scenario, when society breaks down and people have to quickly learn to fend for themselves.

Grace Announces Rare Earth Surcharge for FCC Catalysts and Additives

COLUMBIA, Md.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–Grace Davison, an operating segment of W. R. Grace & Co., today announced the implementation of a rare earth surcharge for its fluid catalytic cracking (FCC) catalysts and additives for the petroleum refining industry. Effective October 1, 2010, Grace will implement a global rare earth surcharge due to rapidly escalating prices as a result of recently imposed export tariffs and quota restrictions by major producers in the rare earth market.

The Gates Path to an Energy Revolution

Jason Pontin, the editor in chief of Technology Review, recently spoke with Bill Gates about everything from software entrepreneurship to promoting polio vaccination in northern Nigeria. But the heart of the conversation, published today on the magazine’s Web site, was about how to make non-polluting energy technologies so cheap that coal reverts to being the shiny black rock it was before the industrial revolution.

(The interview is here)

Biden: U.S. to halve cost of solar power by 2015

Vice President Joe Biden released a report Tuesday that says the United States is on track, within five years, to halve the cost of solar power — putting its on par with grid electricity — and slash by 70% the cost of batteries for electric vehicles.

Clean-power projects turn landfills’ methane into electricity

Landfills, with the tendency to belch noxious greenhouse gases, have long gotten a bad rap from environmentalists.

But now several clean-power technology companies believe waste can be a source of environmentally friendly energy.

Province to test plug-in cars

If all goes according to plan, 5 per cent of all cars in Ontario will be electric by 2020 — and this week, the province is one car closer to its goal.

Well, sort of. At its Scarborough headquarters Tuesday, Toyota Canada handed over the keys to one of its new Prius Plug-In Hybrids, which it will be lending to Ontario for a year.

China to lift installed hydropower capacity by 50%

China will expand its installed hydropower capacity to 300 million kilowatts by 2015 from the current 200 million in an effort to cut carbon dioxide emissions, the country’s top energy official said here Wednesday.

Zhang Guobao, director of the National Energy Administration (NEA), told the popular web port Sina.com in an on-line interview that such an expansion is needed for China’s goal to reduce its carbon dioxide emissions per unit of gross domestic product (GDP) by 40 to 45 percent by 2020.

Grand Canyon’s future at ‘grave risk,’ report says

Haze blurs the skies over the Grand Canyon, tour planes break the backcountry silence, uranium mines are making a comeback near the canyon’s rim and the Colorado River has lost its muddy mojo.

Add to those threats a perpetually underfunded budget and the picture that emerges is a national park where efforts to protect resources are increasingly compromised, a conservation group said Monday.

Russian gas tanker forges Arctic passage to China

MOSCOW (AFP) – A Russian gas tanker is this month making a historic voyage across the famed Northeast passage as receding ice opens up an elusive trade route from Asia to the West sought for centuries by explorers.

Pro-Environment Groups Outmatched, Outspent in Battle Over Climate Change Legislation

Clients in the oil and gas industry unleashed a fury of lobbying expenditures in 2009, spending $175 million — easily an industry record — and outpacing the pro-environmental groups by nearly eight-fold, according to a Center for Responsive Politics analysis.

James Hansen’s Storms of my Grandchildren

Just how many more emissions could we let off before reaching such runaway warming? Hansen points to several signs that we are already on the verge, and that continued “business-as-usual” fossil fuel use will most certainly tip us over, quite possibly within the next few decades. Calculating the degree of climate forcings on the planet, Hansen argues we need to not only begin reducing fossil fuel consumption, but get back to a carbon dioxide level of 350 parts per million (ppm), down from our present (and steadily growing) 387 ppm.

How? Looking at various government and agency estimates of how many fossil fuels remain (an issue with little consensus, to say the least, with many arguing we may have already passed global peak oil production), Hansen determines that what oil and conventional gas remains is largely out of U.S. hands, but that runaway warming could be prevented by phasing out coal use, particularly since coal is more abundant and has a higher carbon output than oil or gas. To do so, Hansen calculates that we must half emissions by 2020, and phase out coal emissions by 2030.

Global Warming Deniers Aren’t “Experts” At All: It’s Time for a New View of Science

Imagine a gigantic banquet. Hundreds of millions of people come to eat. They eat and drink to their hearts’ content— eating food that is better and more abundant than at the finest tables in ancient Athens or Rome, or even in the palaces of medieval Europe. Then, one day, a man arrives, wearing a white dinner jacket. He says he is holding the bill. Not surprisingly, the diners are in shock. Some begin to deny that this is their bill. Others deny that there even is a bill. Still others deny that they partook of the meal. One diner suggests that the man is not really a waiter, but is only trying to get attention for himself or to raise money for his own projects. Finally, the group concludes that if they simply ignore the waiter, he will go away.

This is where we stand today on the subject of global warming. For the past 150 years, industrial civilization has been dining on the energy stored in fossil fuels, and the bill has come due. Yet, we have sat around the dinner table denying that it is our bill, and doubting the credibility of the man who delivered it. The great economist John Maynard Keynes famously summarized all of economic theory in a single phrase: “There is no such thing as a free lunch.” And he was right. We have experienced prosperity unmatched in human history. We have feasted to our hearts’ content. But the lunch was not free.

Jeff Rubin: Unpaid environmental costs distort trade

Greening our economy isn’t just about what we produce—it’s also about what we consume. Sending smokestack industries off to distant shores in search of cheap labor markets to make the things we consume may lessen the carbon footprint of our own economies, but it sure doesn’t do much for the global footprint. And since there are no borders in the atmosphere, it’s really the global imprint that counts.

Take steel, for example. The mass migration of North American steel production to China certainly hasn’t lessened the industry’s global environmental footprint.

FACTBOX – China’s fledging shale gas exploration

(Reuters) – China last week launched its first national shale gas research centre to support the country’s development of the fuel.

Encouraged by the boom in shale natural gas drilling in the United States and driven by recurring domestic gas shortages, China has fast-tracked plans to explore the unconventional fuel in its homeland.

Oil Falls a Fifth Day on Concern Over U.S. Supply Gains, Slowing Recovery

Oil declined for a fifth day on speculation U.S. crude and fuel inventories increased last week as economic growth slows.

Oil fell to a seven-week low as the dollar strengthened against the euro, undermining investors’ need to hedge against inflation using dollar-priced assets. U.S. crude supplies probably rose last week while distillate fuel stockpiles may hit the highest level in 27 years, a Bloomberg News survey shows.

Gas prices continue unusual pre-Labor Day fall

In robust economic times, pump prices don’t typically begin to fall until after Labor Day. This year, demand has remained weak, which is one reason the prices are dropping earlier than usual, he said.

PFGBest analyst Phil Flynn thinks pump prices will fall by 10 to 25 cents a gallon in the next couple of months, barring a hurricane in the Gulf of Mexico that shuts down production. Other analysts predict prices will be 10 to 15 cents lower.

Peter Tertzakian: As U.S. economy sputters, China’s importance to oil producers grows

In fact, crude oil stocks are only a bit above last year at this time, a couple of million barrels, but bear in mind that this is not positive indication if levels today are being compared against a period when the economy was mired in the Great Recession. Refined product inventories are also filling to the brim. In the big tanks there are now 223 million barrels of gasoline, 10 million barrels in excess of last year’s levels, which is a record for mid-August. Vacationing drivers have pumped a bit more gasoline this summer, but not enough to keep up with refineries that continue to keep supplies high.

Saudi Aramco says crude oil may end year higher

Saudi Aramco, Saudi Arabia’s state oil and gas producer, said crude prices may end the year as high as $82 a barrel because of demand from China and India.

Heating Oil and Diesel Rising to 27-Year High in Survey

U.S. heating oil and diesel inventories probably climbed to a 27-year high as the slowing economic recovery curbed demand, a Bloomberg News survey showed.

Supplies of the distillate fuels rose 1 million barrels, or 0.6 percent, in the seven days ended Aug. 20 from 174.2 million a week earlier, according to the median of 13 analyst estimates before an Energy Department report tomorrow. The last time supplies were so high was January 1983, two months after the U.S. exited a recession.

OPEC faces pricing dilemma

LONDON – OPEC is happy with oil prices at the current level of US$70-US$80 per barrel but this will hamper the global economic recovery and energy demand, consultancy CGES warned yesterday.

Gasoil Exports to Reach Record This Month as Japan Refinery Output Rises

Gasoil exports from Japanese refiners may rise to a record this month after plants return from maintenance and boost processing amid increased demand for fuel as temperatures soar.

UK petroleum analyst Michael Smith – interview (1 of 2)

POR: They announced further discoveries in Bohai Bay several years ago, but it doesn’t seem that China’s production reality is going to match the hype.

Smith: That’s right, some large discoveries were announced but large reserves don‘t necessarily mean large production. I worked on the Bohai Bay back in the 1980s and admit I did not fully appreciate the volume of reserves in the area. The reservoirs are difficult and the oil is often heavy so that significant investment is required in shallow water platforms and wells. China is doing that but this takes time. Bohai Bay will eventually produce a lot of oil, but, of course, plateau and peak are all about rates not volumes.

Cracks in the Iranian Monolith

The Iranian regime loves to boast of its military strength, international clout and hold on domestic power. Much of this is accepted by outside experts, but in fact the regime is in trouble. Iran’s leaders have lost legitimacy in the eyes of the people, are unable to manage the country’s many problems, face a growing opposition, and are openly fighting with one another.

Total oil-sands project comes under fire

A battle is brewing over a proposed oil-sands project by a French-based company that has drawn more than two dozen opponents from Canada, the United States and France at today’s deadline for submissions to a joint federal-provincial environmental review panel.

While a wide range of environmental and faith-based groups, including an Anglican bishop from Atlantic Canada, are urging the panel to reject the Joslyn North Mine project in Alberta, officials from Total E&P Canada Ltd. say they are committed to managing their project’s ecological footprint and working with conservation groups to find the best options available.

Outage forces Enbridge to ration oil pipeline space in U.S. system

The outage of an Enbridge Inc. pipeline following a rupture and oil spill four weeks ago has forced the company to limit individual shipper volumes on two other major lines in its U.S. system, a spokeswoman said yesterday. The company, which ships the bulk of Canada’s oil exports to the United States, is rationing space on Line 5, a 490,000-barrel-a-day pipeline to Sarnia, Ont., from Superior, Wis. It is also rationing on Southern Access, a 400,000-barrel-a-day line to Flanagan, Ill., from Superior.

Plan for LNG tankers on DeRenne worries neighbors

The natural gas that heats local homes and powers electric plants sails into Chatham County’s Elba Island as a liquid in huge, domed ships. It leaves the area as a vapor in underground pipelines.

Except for the looming presence of five enormous blue storage tanks on the river, the distribution process is largely invisible to most area residents.

But that may not be the case for long.

Cairn Drops in London After First Greenland Well Fails to Find Crude Oil

Cairn Energy Plc fell in London trading after its first well off Greenland found natural gas rather than crude oil.

An exploration well encountered gas in thin sands in the Baffin Bay basin, the company said in a statement in London today. The find is “indicative of an active hydrocarbon system” and the well hasn’t yet reached target depth, it said.

UK regulator says safety record of British oil and gas industry is not good enough

LONDON (AP) — Britain’s health and safety executive said Tuesday the country’s oil and gas industry must improve safety after a rise in the number of leaks from oil rigs operating in British waters.

The Health and Safety Executive said it had also recorded a major rise in the number of serious injuries on about 300 offshore oil and gas installations covered under an annual safety report.

Crews wrestle with pipe stuck in BP well

Engineering crews working on the BP oil well disaster Monday continued efforts to remove an obstacle to their undersea endgame: a 3,000-foot drill pipe that is stuck in the blowout preventer and extends far down the well.

Specifically, the pipe is jammed in a shear ram, a last-resort safety device that is supposed to seal an oil well and quell a gusher like the one that erupted below the Deepwater Horizon rig April 20 off the Louisiana coast in the Gulf of Mexico.

Four Months After Rig Explosion, BP Panel Still Probing Who Was in Command

More than four months after the Gulf of Mexico rig explosion that killed 11 men and triggered a record oil spill, a U.S. investigative panel is still trying to find out who held ultimate authority aboard the vessel.

Chaos described as BP hearings resume

The night of the massive Deepwater Horizon explosion, few in the crew knew who was in charge or understood the chain of command, and the vessel’s captain hesitated before making critical safety decisions, according to testimony Monday before a federal panel investigating the cause of the disaster that killed 11 crew members.

Rig Survivor Blames BP’s `Screwed-Up Plan’ for Gulf Oil Blowout

BP Plc’s ‘screwed-up’ well design caused the Gulf of Mexico explosion that killed 11 workers and created the worst oil spill in U.S. history, a Transocean Ltd. rig supervisor who barely survived the disaster says.

Insurers pay high price for disasters

Aftershocks from the fatal explosion at the Deepwater Horizon oil rig are continuing to be felt a long way from the Gulf of Mexico.

China’s massive traffic jam could last for weeks

BEIJING – A massive traffic jam in north China that stretches for dozens of miles and hit its 10-day mark on Tuesday stems from road construction in Beijing that won’t be finished until the middle of next month, an official said.

Bumper-to-bumper gridlock spanning for 60 miles (100 kilometers) with cars moving little more than a half-mile (one kilometer) a day at one point has improved since this weekend, said Zhang Minghai, director of Zhangjiakou city’s Traffic Management Bureau general office.

Meet Obama’s point man on electric cars

WASHINGTON — David Sandalow starts his five-mile commute each day by unplugging an orange extension cord connecting his Toyota Prius hybrid to an outlet in his brick carport.

His Prius, which was converted two years ago to allow him to recharge the battery from an electric outlet, gets more than 80 miles per gallon and lets him drive 30 miles on a single charge. He fills up his car with gasoline about once every month or two, an oddity in a transportation sector long dominated by the internal combustion engine.

Charging guides for electric cars to be issued

China will issue three standards in October to regulate charging facilities for electric cars, the Shanghai Securities News reported Monday, citing an unnamed source from the State Electricity Regulatory Commission.

Prius gets sound option to protect pedestrians

TOKYO (AP) — Toyota’s Prius hybrid is becoming a little less quiet with a new electronic humming device that is the automaker’s answer to complaints that pedestrians can’t hear the top-selling car approaching.

The 12,600 yen ($148) speaker system that goes under the hood of the third-generation Prius sets off a whirring sound designed to be about the same noise level as a regular car engine so that it isn’t annoying, Toyota Motor Corp. said Tuesday.

Q&A: Peak oil – what is it and should we worry?

Oil, a finite resource, is being used at a rate of some 86 million barrels per day.

This astounding figure is merely a point on an upward curve; the International Energy Agency predicts that global demand for oil will grow 1% each year until 2030 when it will have reached 105 million barrels per day, mostly a result of the needs of the transport sector. This growth will come not from developed countries – where demand is expected to actually fall – but from the booming economies of places like China, India and the Middle East. In fact, China is expected to overtake the US as the world’s biggest spender on oil and gas imports by 2025.

One day it’ll all run out. But before that will come the day when oil production plateaus and then declines.

America: The house that oil built

“No matter what we do we are going to feel the adverse effect of energy crisis on our living standards,” Dresser warned America back in 1976.

Why?

Because the American living standard was [is] built on cheap energy. Period. And, for decades now, we’ve done almost everything imaginable to avoid dealing with this reality.

But, like much needed surgery, the pain can only be put off for so long.

Sustainable Agriculture and Urban Gardens in Cuba

Organic agriculture continues to be supported and expanded at government and grassroots levels. Havana now grows well over half its fresh food organically and locally. Cuba hopes to be self sufficient in the production of most of its basic foods within the next decade.

All Cuban young people are introduced to agriculture and food production as part of their education, spending at least one summer during their high school years,farming in the countryside.

The energy emergency has arrived

Wednesday’s Sustainable Centre County page is all about energy, with columns on how to build a regional energy system around the sun, food and biodiesel crops. Bustling as it seems, I think the Marcellus methane-energy boom will fizzle out soon. Investing time and money to release colossal Earth farts is a luxury, and we’re not a rich society anymore.

Growth won’t restart because oil prices will keep rising. As we revisit the Dow milestones of the past few decades — heading back down — physical and biological imperatives will be far more pressing than the political and economic calculations underpinning the gas boom. Complex institutions will break apart, replaced by simpler regional cooperatives now rising from grass roots.

Church of Life After Shopping

This church comes complete with its own Stop Shopping Gospel Choir, which has traveled the world, singing anti-consumerist songs such as “Back Away (From Walmart)” and “Shopocalypse.”

Sermons are delivered opposing a consumer culture that demands big dams built to supply electricity to factories that produce more consumer goods; they sing gospel to tree-sitters in Northern California who were protecting great old-growth trees from logging, and organize many more events that muster either support from believers or ridicule from critics.

They have even coined a word to describe America’s consumption of fossil fuels. The fact that Americans make up only 5 percent of the world’s total population but consume more than 25 percent of its energy, they call it “fuel-aholics.”

Illinois: 5 States Seek to Close Possible Carp Route

Five states are asking a federal judge in Chicago to take emergency action to close two shipping locks and install barriers to prevent Asian carp from overrunning the Great Lakes via a “carp highway.”

In the Fields of Italy, a Conflict Over Corn

An agronomist, defying the government, has planted genetically modified corn. Environmentalists have also taken matters into their own hands.

Populist before it was capitalist

However, feeding popular prejudice required that the property rights of landowners in general must be sharply restricted compared with their position in England. Whereas in England landowners owned both the game on their land and the fish in the streams running through their land, in the United States, as R J Smith of the Center for Private Conservation has ably pointed out, rights of landowners were much more restrictive, so hunting and fishing by the populace at large were allowed without restrictions. The result was a classic “tragedy of the commons”, wiping out buffalo herds and east coast salmon alike. Capitalism defines and protects property rights; populism allows unrestricted access, thereby destroying the amenity concerned.

PG&E pushes ‘pumped hydro’ for energy storage

Despite all the advances in battery technologies, pumped hydro storage–essentially pumping water uphill and releasing it through a generator later–remains one of the cheapest ways to store bulk electricity on the grid.

California utility Pacific Gas & Electric on Friday filed a request with state regulators to fund a feasibility study for adding a pumped hydro facility which could store as much energy as a power plant can supply.

Robert Bryce: Wind Power Won’t Cool Down the Planet

The wind industry has achieved remarkable growth largely due to the claim that it will provide major reductions in carbon dioxide emissions. There’s just one problem: It’s not true. A slew of recent studies show that wind-generated electricity likely won’t result in any reduction in carbon emissions—or that they’ll be so small as to be almost meaningless.

Deregulation, the Forsaken Panacea for Climate Change

The European Union mandated liberalization (their term for deregulation) throughout the region four years ago. The fear of a behemoth like EDF of France coming into Italy and snatching a chunk of its customers made the Italian utility Enel roll out the largest grid modernization project in the world five years ago. It thereby transformed its one-trick energy delivery pipe into a multi-faceted platform for customer care. Countries like Germany and Spain have become global leaders in renewable energy. Competition has driven industry consolidation, with big fish such as EDF, Enel, E.ON, and Vattenfall snapping up smaller utilities and improving productivity through economies of scale. Choice now on tap, customers are finally able to dump dirty energy purveyors and switch to greener providers.

No wonder Europe is far ahead of the rest of the world in deploying almost every type of clean energy.

Putin roasted over global warming doubt

MOSCOW (AFP) – Prime Minister Vladimir Putin queried Monday whether man is to blame for climate change only to spark a heated response from a German scientist., during a visit to a remote Russian Arctic zone.

Australia’s electorate sends climate-change message

Although Australia’s national election has failed to produce a clear winner, the result is pushing climate change up the political agenda once more.

Both the incumbent Labor party and the Liberal–National opposition failed to secure an overall majority after this weekend’s vote. That means that the Australian Greens, who now have a record 11% of the vote and advocate aggressive action on climate change, could become key players. Along with a handful of conservative rural independents, the Greens are being wooed by both major parties to help them form a government.

Stoking a food crisis

GLOBAL wheat markets reeling from Russian droughts, thousands of cattle killed by heat in Kansas, the United States, and countless crop acres wiped out by floods in Pakistan are glimpses of what can be expected as the world struggles to battle climate change. But as concerns mount over extreme weather hitting global food systems this year, governments are no closer to forging a pact to fight climate change.

When temperatures rise as a result of smokestack and tailpipe emissions, droughts, heat waves, and floods become more frequent and more intense. As the number of extreme weather events mount, they will likely create havoc in agricultural markets and could lead to food riots in poor countries like those in 2007 and 2008 when prices hit records on market speculation.

Geoengineering won’t curb sea-level rise

Unless they involve extreme measures, geoengineering approaches to offset the effects of human-driven climate changes won’t do much to combat rising sea levels, an international team of scientists reports in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

That is because sea levels respond slowly to changes in Earth’s temperature, says John Moore, a palaeoclimatologist at Beijing Normal University and lead author of the study.

“We’ve got this 150-year legacy of fossil-fuel [burning], land-use changes, et cetera,” he says. “You can’t just slam on the brakes instantaneously.”

Earth’s Plant Growth Fell Because of Climate Change, Study Finds

Drought linked to climate change has reversed a decades-long trend of increased global plant growth, according to a new analysis of NASA satellite data.

“Earth has done an ecological about-face,” a NASA statement said. “Global plant productivity that once flourished under warming temperatures and a lengthened growing season is now on the decline, struck by the stress of drought.”

Can Africa break its ‘resource curse’?

London, England (CNN) — Many African countries are blessed with oil and mineral wealth that has the potential to transform their economies. But historically, those resources have often been more of a curse than a blessing.

There are numerous examples of African nations where the discovery of natural resources has been followed by economic instability, conflict and environmental damage. So common is the phenomenon that it even has its own name — the “resource curse.”

Michael T. Klare is a professor of peace and world security studies at Hampshire College in Massachusetts, United States, and the author of the books “Resource Wars” and “Blood and Oil.”

Venezuela, More Deadly Than Iraq, Wonders Why

CARACAS, Venezuela — Some here joke that they might be safer if they lived in Baghdad. The numbers bear them out.

In Iraq, a country with about the same population as Venezuela, there were 4,644 civilian deaths from violence in 2009, according to Iraq Body Count; in Venezuela that year, the number of murders climbed above 16,000.

Even Mexico’s infamous drug war has claimed fewer lives.

Norway’s oil past its prime but still alluring

Norway (Reuters) – Norway’s oil and gas production will remain attractive in the years ahead despite declining oil output, especially for smaller oil companies and offshore services looking for drilling and upgrade contracts.

China’s nine-day traffic jam stretches 100km

BEIJING (AFP) – Thousands of vehicles were bogged down Monday in a more than 100-kilometre (62-mile) traffic jam leading to Beijing that has lasted nine days and highlights China’s growing road congestion woes.

The Beijing-Tibet expressway slowed to a crawl on August 14 due to a spike in traffic by cargo-bearing heavy trucks heading to the capital, and compounded by road maintenance work that began five days later, the Global Times said.

The state-run newspaper said the jam between Beijing and Jining city had given birth to a mini-economy with local merchants capitalising on the stranded drivers’ predicament by selling them water and food at inflated prices.

Hearings into cause of oil spill begin in Houston

HOUSTON — Federal investigators are hearing testimony from BP executives in a joint probe into the cause of the explosion that led to the massive oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

Bjork Takes On Magma in Drive to Give Iceland Voters Final Say

Singer-songwriter Björk Gudmundsdottir is spearheading a push that one poll shows is backed by 85 percent of Icelanders to put foreign energy takeovers to referenda if enough people oppose the deals.

Iran says it will mass produce assault boats

TEHRAN, Iran – State TV says Iran has inaugurated production lines for two types of assault boats. The defense minister describes them as a boost to the country’s navy.

Monday’s report says one of the boats — dubbed Zolfaghar, after a famed sword — has been equipped with cruise missiles. The second, Seraj or Light, is a high-speed patrol boat with a fiberglass body.

Calls to tackle rising oil imports

BEIJING – China, which is set to import more than 55 percent of its oil needs this year, should seek greater diversification of oil imports, build more stockpiles and improve conservation to enhance energy security, said analysts.

The country will see a continuous increase in oil imports, as domestic production cannot keep pace with the fast growing economy, said Zhou Dadi, a researcher with the Energy Research Institute under the National Development and Reform Commission.

“We should have long-term plans to address oil security,” he added.

Oil hovers below $74 amid growth uncertainty

KUALA LUMPUR, Malaysia – Oil prices hovered below $74 a barrel Monday in Asia as uncertainty about the global economy’s prospects outweighed possible production disruptions in the Gulf of Mexico due to hurricane season.

Hedge Funds Cut Gasoline Bets Most Since 2006

(Bloomberg) — Hedge funds cut bullish bets on gasoline by the most in almost four years as petroleum stockpiles surpassed the highest level since 1990 and the U.S. vacation season drew to an end.

Hedge funds and other large speculators reduced wagers on rising prices by 74 percent the week ended Aug. 17, the most since October 2006, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission reported on Aug. 20. Gasoline has dropped 21 percent since reaching its 2010 high of $2.4351 a gallon on the New York Mercantile Exchange on May 3.

Kuwait signs oil pact with Iraq

KUWAIT CITY //Kuwait has signed an agreement to share oil from cross-border fields with Iraq and is waiting for its northern neighbour to reciprocate, the emirate’s oil minister has said.

The deal could help to smooth the often thorny relationship between the two countries 20 years after Saddam Hussein’s armies occupied Kuwait – an incursion that sparked the First Gulf War.

OPEC Export Revenues on The Rise

2010 OPEC oil export revenue levels have seen a significant recovery from the previous year-an $181B increase-according to projections from the EIA August 2010 Short-Term Energy Outlook (STEO).

Kuwait in $35bn oil upgrade

KUWAIT CITY // Kuwait is about to embark on major oil projects worth almost US$35 billion (Dh128.45bn) as part of the government’s four-year development plan, says Sheikh Ahmed Abdullah Al Sabah, the oil minister.

The investments include a fourth refinery, a project that has stalled before in the country’s parliament.

Pakistan Gas Import Plans Delayed by Floods, Iran Sanctions

Pakistan, experiencing its worst- ever flooding, will face increasing shortages of natural gas and electricity because of international sanctions against Iran and a contract dispute with an European energy supplier.

“Pakistan is desperate as it faces huge power shortages,” said Alexis Aik, head of the global gas team at FACTS Global Energy in Singapore. “It was looking to speed up liquefied natural gas imports, which are more viable than pipeline imports.”

Iran Says Turkey May Help Build Two Petrochemical Units in Country’s South

Turkey and Iran may jointly build two petrochemical units, state-run Press TV news channel reported, citing Iran’s Deputy Oil Minister.

Iran and Turkey are discussing construction of an urea and an ammonia unit in the industrial hub of Assaluyeh in southern Iran, Press TV said, citing Abdolhossein Bayat, who is also the managing director of National Iranian Petrochemical Co.

SKorea’s pension fund eyes US pipeline stake

SEOUL, South Korea — South Korea’s national pension fund says it is interested in buying Chevron’s 23.4 percent stake in Colonial Pipeline.

National Pension Service official Kim Hee-seok said on Monday that the fund is in talks with the U.S. oil pipeline operator, but emphasized that nothing has been decided on who will buy the stake.

Nabucco Gas Project Plans Georgian, Iraqi Feeder Pipelines; Avoids Iran

Nabucco Gas Pipeline International GmbH plans to supply the natural-gas transmission route to Europe with links to Turkey’s borders with Georgia and Iraq and has decided against a link to the country’s border with Iran.

China’s 1st deep-water drilling vessel being built

DALIAN – Construction of the world’s largest deep-water oil drilling vessel has started in northeast China’s Liaoning province.

Norway oil fund gives Israeli outfits the boot

Norway has excluded two Israeli companies from its $450 billion oil fund, claiming the outfits’ activities in the Palestinian Occupied Territories are in breach of the fourth Geneva Convention.

Green light for Egypt clean fuel plant

Egyptian Refining Company (ERC), the joint venture leading a US$3.7 billion (Dh13.57bn) project to build a petroleum refinery within sight of the pyramids of Giza, has secured $2.6bn from a banking syndicate to finance the development.

“We are delighted to announce the debt package for what we believe stands as one of the largest project finance deals ever assembled in Africa,” said Marwan Elaraby, the managing director of Egypt’s Citadel Capital, which owns 85 per cent of ERC.

Sinopec Margins Set to Extend Slump as Fuel Prices Trail Crude

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Asia’s biggest refiner, may extend a slump in profit from making gasoline and diesel as government price controls prevent the company from passing on higher crude-oil costs to customers.

Margins from processing oil fell 45 percent in the first six months as crude costs surged 84 percent, the company known as Sinopec said in its earnings statement yesterday. The stock declined the most in almost two months after second-quarter net income dropped 10 percent from a year earlier compared with a 40 percent increase in the preceding three months.

Compensation czar takes charge of $20 billion BP fund

NEW ORLEANS (Reuters) – A $20 billion compensation fund for economic victims of the BP Gulf oil spill opens for business on Monday amid accusations that the rules established by its administrator are unfair.

Kenneth Feinberg who will run the fund said those who sustained financial loss because of the spill could claim for damages and he promised claimants more generous treatment than they would get if they sued the energy giant for damages.

Gulf claims chief defends no-sue rule

NEW ORLEANS — The new administrator for damage claims from gulf oil spill victims said yesterday that it was his idea, not BP’s, to require that anyone who receives a final settlement from the $20 billion compensation fund give up the right to sue the oil company.

Oil’s gone? Dispute’s not evaporating

But did the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history really just evaporate? The government says so, but then again, it also reiterated BP’s low-ball estimates of the oil flow early on, just as it supported BP’s contention that there were no underwater plumes of oil. Now it tells us the oil is mostly gone.

‘Cash for clunkers’ car dealers investigated

WASHINGTON — The government is investigating at least 20 car dealerships it claims violated the rules of last year’s cash-for-clunkers program. Government auditors say up to $94 million in rebates may be ineligible because they lack the proper documentation.

One year after the $3 billion car-buying frenzy, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration has reached an enforcement phase. Nine dealers have paid a total of $71,500 in fines.

Shakeup for Wellington property

In residential areas changes include density restrictions increasing to medium in areas around some housing centres, starting with Johnsonville and Kilbirnie.

“This is an important step in allowing more people to live closer to services and public transport, and to a more sustainable city better equipped to adjust to the threats of climate change and peak oil,” a council spokesman said.

“We have some greenfields development provided for, but it is also important that we don’t rely on sprawl as so many cities have with all the transport problems that brings.”

Proliferation of old-style coal plants increases despite public outcry

WYODAK, WYO. — Utilities across the country are building dozens of old-style coal plants that will cement the industry’s standing as the largest industrial source of climate-changing gases for years to come.

Going Green, Without Being Preachy About It

With a white Kangol cap tipped on his shaved head just so on a recent swampy morning, Sean Meenan led a group of girls, ages 11 to 14, around the cobalt blue, lime green and Sunkist orange outdoor patio of Habana Outpost, the ecologically conscious restaurant he owns in Fort Greene, Brooklyn.

He showed off the solar panels, a rainwater-collection system that feeds the toilets, a recycling and composting station, wheat-board wall paneling and corn-based plastic cups. There was even a blender powered by a bicycle.

Statoil Chief Says Oil Producer Is Committed to Renewable Energy Projects

Statoil ASA, Norway’s biggest oil and gas producer, is committed to developing its renewable- energy investments, Chief Executive Officer Helge Lund said.

“We plan to develop and deliver on the positions we have taken,” Lund said today at a press conference in Stavanger. “There’s no reason in my view to question our commitment to our strategy. It remains firm and has broad support in the management team and the board of directors.”

South Africa: Renewable Energy ‘Will Boost Jobs, Manufacturers’

Johannesburg — ENVIRONMENTAL campaigners want the government to adopt ambitious targets on renewable energy. This would help SA secure global funds for climate mitigation, cut greenhouse gas emissions, create jobs, and create a secure energy supply, say the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) and Greenpeace.

By 2030, at least half of SA’s electricity should come from renewable resources, according to a WWF report released last week.

Nuclear Plant’s Use of River Water Prompts $1.1 Billion Debate With State

BUCHANAN, N.Y. — Just beneath the wind-stippled surface of the Hudson River here, huge pipes suck enough water into the Indian Point nuclear plant every second to fill three Olympic swimming pools. And each second they take in dozens of organisms — fish and crabs, but mostly larvae — that are at the center of a $1.1 billion debate: should the plant have to put in cooling towers that would vastly reduce the intake of water?

Australia Steps Up Renewable Energy Efforts

SYDNEY — Australia has plans to build the biggest wind farm in the southern hemisphere by 2013, part of its scramble to fight climate change and harness its abundance of clean energy sources — wind, solar, waves, geothermal energy and bioenergy.

A mixed result for the environment

On the face of it, the failure of the Labor Party, under the leadership of Julia Gillard, to secure victory in the Australian elections is a setback for those who argue that democratic political systems are capable of meeting the immense challenge of climate change.

Yasuní and the New Economics of Climate Change

(CNN) — Yasuní is both a place and a metaphor.

The place is a UNESCO Biopshere Reserve in the Ecuadorian Amazon where two indigenous communities, the Tagaeri and the Taromenane, live in voluntary isolation. Below the biosphere lie the oil fields Isphingo, Tambococha and Tiputini, abbreviated to ITT.

Yasuní the metaphor is the initiative for paying to keep that oil underground and leave the biological and cultural diversity undisturbed.

Cuts jeopardizing quality of Environment Canada’s weather service: report

OTTAWA — Sustained cuts to Environment Canada weather-service programs have compromised the government’s ability to assess climate change and left it with a “profoundly disturbing” quality of information in its data network, says a newly released internal government report.

The stinging assessment, obtained through an access-to-information request, suggests that Canada’s climate network infrastructure is getting progressively worse and no longer meets international guidelines.

Food crisis threatens Bolivia due to climate change

Persistent drought, cold weather and flooding, all attributed to climate change, are threatening Bolivia with a food crisis, the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) and experts have recently warned.

FAO coordinator Einstein Tejada said one fifth of Bolivia’s territory now suffer from the effects of climate change, causing food prices to rise.

Thomas Homer-Dixon: Disaster at the Top of the World

The Arctic is warming twice as fast as the rest of the planet, and this summer its sea ice is melting at a near-record pace. The sun is heating the newly open water, so it will take longer to refreeze this winter, and the resulting thinner ice will melt more easily next summer.

At the same time, warm Pacific Ocean water is pulsing through the Bering Strait into the Arctic basin, helping melt a large area of sea ice between Alaska and eastern Siberia. Scientists are just beginning to learn how this exposed water has changed the movement of heat energy and major air currents across the Arctic basin, in turn producing winds that push remaining sea ice down the coasts of Greenland into the Atlantic.

Globally, 2010 is on track to be the warmest year on record. In regions around the world, indications abound that earth’s climate is quickly changing, like the devastating mudslides in China and weeks of searing heat in Russia. But in the world’s capitals, movement on climate policy has nearly stopped.

Analysts warn of threat to oil price stability

The deteriorating global economic outlook and weakening OPEC discipline could force oil prices as low as US$50 per barrel within the next year, analysts say.

“We see both lower prices and a tighter range ahead but with increased risks,” Lawrence Eagles, an analyst at the US investment bank JPMorgan Chase, wrote in a recent report. “Weaker economic growth, energy efficiency and [OPEC] intransigence provide downside risks.

“If demand drops, the Gulf Trio [of] Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and the United Arab Emirates, are likely to demand cuts from ‘leaky’ [OPEC] members to rebalance the market, but any delay in response risks a fall in prices [to] as low as $50 a barrel.”

Crude prices have defied expectations before

In contrast with the previous two years, oil prices have held steady in the first eight months of this year.

Except for minor spikes in May and earlier this month, they have seldom strayed outside a narrow US$70 to $80 per barrel price band.

Peak oil alarm revealed by secret official talks

Speculation that government ministers are far more concerned about a future supply crunch than they have admitted has been fuelled by the revelation that they are canvassing views from industry and the scientific community about “peak oil”.

The Department of Energy and Climate Change (DECC) is also refusing to hand over policy documents about “peak oil” – the point at which oil production reaches its maximum and then declines – under the Freedom of Information (FoI) Act, despite releasing others in which it admits “secrecy around the topic is probably not good”.

Experts say they have received a letter from David Mackay, chief scientific adviser to the DECC, asking for information and advice on peak oil amid a growing campaign from industrialists such as Sir Richard Branson for the government to put contingency plans in place to deal with any future crisis.

Comfortable to the Point of Panic

Lately, it feels as if the United States has become too comfortable, particularly in regards to the energy picture.

“Why is that?” you ask.

I’ll let you decide this one.

Splashed across headlines this week has been overly-optimistic news — enough for people to sit back and relax.

Sinopec Net Unexpectedly Rises as China’s Economic Growth Spurs Oil Demand

China Petroleum & Chemical Corp., Asia’s biggest refiner, unexpectedly posted a 6.7 percent increase in first-half profit as a rebound in the nation’s economy spurred demand for oil, gas and petrochemicals.

BP moves to remove drill pipe from capped well

(CNN) — BP on Saturday was conducting a “fishing” operation aimed at finding and removing up to 3,500 feet of drill pipe from the capped Gulf well.

“[The pipe] is more than likely in several pieces,” said BP spokesman Bill Salvin, who said the procedure will take at least two days.

Spill Fund May Prove as Challenging as 9/11 Payments

At first blush, it would seem that Kenneth R. Feinberg, the man tapped to dole out BP’s $20 billion oil spill compensation fund, has been down this path before.

As the special master who administered the $7 billion Sept. 11 Victim Compensation Fund, he wrestled with visceral questions of how much money each victim of the attacks was entitled to, endured the occasional emotionally charged taunts and criticisms from widows and grieving relatives, and succeeded in persuading the families of a vast majority of the victims to accept cash settlements rather than file lawsuits.

But some analysts say his new assignment could prove even trickier.

Arctic communities anxious for Harper’s visit

If the weather is clear next week, possibly on the very day Prime Minister Stephen Harper drops in for a visit, whale hunters in this economically depressed Arctic Ocean outpost could watch their former and future prosperity being towed to Alaska.

The last drilling rig in Canada’s Beaufort Sea is on the move, to a standby position in U.S. waters to drill a relief well in case of an oil spill.

The giant circle-shaped Kulluk, now owned by Shell, joined a dozen rigs or island platforms punching delineation holes into a promising oil basin in the early 1980s, but the rigs’ number steadily dwindled as exploration and environmental logistics north of 70 degrees latitude took the shine off Arctic drilling.

“It’s the end of an era,” says consultant Jim Guthrie, who has monitored the boom and bust of the region’s offshore industry since Dome Petroleum was a polar heavyweight. He still doesn’t believe it’s over for good.

Chevron Ex-Chief Executive O’Reilly Named to Saudi Aramco Board by King

Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah named David O’Reilly, who built Chevron Corp. into the world’s fourth- largest publicly traded oil company, to be a board member at state-run Saudi Aramco.

O’Reilly, Chevron’s chairman and chief executive officer for a decade, will serve a three-year term on oil producer Aramco’s board, according to a statement posted on the website of the official Saudi Press Agency yesterday. King Abdullah also confirmed Khalid Al-Falih as Aramco’s president and CEO.

Iraq police, protesters clash over power shortages

BASRA, Iraq – Iraqi police used water cannon and batons to disperse protesters in the southern city of Nassiriya after protests flared over crippling electricity shortages and inadequate services, officials said on Sunday.

Unrest over Iraq’s dire public services, while U.S. troops prepare to end combat operations seven years after the invasion, has sharpened frustration with political leaders who have yet to form a government more than five months after an election.

Shell and BASF to appeal ruling on pollution in Brazil

(Reuters) – Royal Dutch Shell and German chemicals maker BASF plan to appeal a first instance Brazilian court ruling on health injuries related to pollution at a former pesticide plant.

Refinery workers want details on closing

YORK — Employees at the Yorktown refinery are growing frustrated at a lack of information coming down from parent company Western Refining about the refinery’s impending closure.

China closes factories as green deadline looms

An iron and steel mill lies idle after it was ordered to shut down for polluting the Xiangjiang river basin in Loudi, central China’s Hunan province. China has ordered thousands of companies to close high-polluting plants, in what analysts say is a last-ditch effort by Beijing to meet environmental targets by year’s end or risk embarrassment.

China, facing the risk of embarrassment if it misses a looming environmental deadline, has ordered thousands of companies to close high-polluting plants as its leadership vies to retool economic growth.

Searching for a way from the Great Recession to the ‘Great Reset’

In his book, Florida compares the fallout from the financial meltdown in 2008 with the Long Depression of the 1870s and the wrenching social changes that occurred during the Great Depression of the 1930s.

We’re not going back to the heyday of only a few years back, with booming house sales rising up our mountain ridges and people using the equity loans in their homes like piggybanks, to splurge on everything from SUVs to flat-screen TVs to cosmetic surgery.

In other words, there’s a “new normal’’ emerging, with people saving more of their hard-earned money, and civic leaders having to ask what’s going to be the best investment of tax money in our sidewalks, bridges, and highways as well as what can encourage small businesses to take root here and nurture new jobs.

Technology Leads More Park Visitors Into Trouble

Last fall, two men with teenage sons pressed the help button on a device they were carrying as they hiked the challenging backcountry of Grand Canyon National Park. Search and rescue sent a helicopter, but the men declined to board, saying they had activated the device because they were short on water.

The group’s leader had hiked the Grand Canyon once before, but the other man had little backpacking experience. Rangers reported that the leader told them that without the device, “we would have never attempted this hike.”

Is the Ice in the Arctic Ocean Getting Thinner?

ScienceDaily — The extent of the sea ice in the Arctic will reach its annual minimum in September. Forecasts indicate that it will not be as low as in 2007, the year of the smallest area covered by sea ice since satellites started recording such data. Nevertheless, sea ice physicists at the Alfred Wegener Institute are concerned about the long-term equilibrium in the Arctic Ocean.

They have indications that the mass of sea ice is dwindling because its thickness is declining. To substantiate this, they are currently measuring the ice thickness north and east of Greenland using the research aircraft Polar 5. The objective of the roughly one-week campaign is to determine the export of sea ice from the Arctic. Around a third to half of the freshwater export from the Arctic Ocean takes place in this way — a major drive factor in the global ocean current system.