May, 2007:

Move Would Open Door
To Gazprom and Tighten
Kremlin Grip on Energy

By GREGORY L. WHITE in Moscow and GUY CHAZAN in London
June 1, 2007; Page A9

Russian regulators could move as early as today to revoke a production permit from a $20 billion BP PLC natural-gas project in Siberia, in a test case of just how far the Kremlin will go in its drive for control over the energy sector.

As the Russian government has tightened its grip over strategic oil-and-gas assets in recent years — effectively nationalizing one of the country’s biggest oil producers and forcing foreign investors to cede control of projects to Russian state companies — opportunities for international oil giants have withered. read more

Deborah Hargreaves
Friday June 1, 2007

Consumers have more clout than they realise. Certainly, many companies have converted to green causes under sustained customer pressure. And while much of what the corporate sector says about climate change can be dismissed as hot air, there are the beginnings of some very real initiatives.

Most leading companies now espouse some kind of green strategy towards reducing their carbon footprint. Of course, it is easier for those businesses with low emissions such as banks to boast about their environmental credentials. It often backfires when the big polluters in the oil and power sectors try to do the same. Shell has taken a lot of flak over its adverts showing flowers sprouting from a refinery and BP’s move to brand itself “beyond petroleum” has been met with much scepticism. read more

As Baghdad burns, destabilising the entire region and sending the price of oil soaring, Calgary booms

Naomi Klein
Friday June 1, 2007

The invasion of Iraq has set off what could be the largest oil boom in history. All the signs are there: multinationals free to gobble up national firms at will, ship unlimited profits home, enjoy leisurely “tax holidays”, and pay a laughable 1% in royalties to the government.

This isn’t the boom in Iraq sparked by the proposed new oil law – that will come later. This boom is already in full swing, and it is happening about as far away from the carnage in Baghdad as you can get, in the wilds of northern Alberta. For four years now, Alberta and Iraq have been connected to each other through a kind of invisible seesaw: as Baghdad burns, destabilising the entire region and sending oil prices soaring, Calgary booms. read more

By Russell Hotten
Last Updated: 12:12am BST 01/06/2007

BP chief executive Tony Hayward has held talks with his counterpart at Russian energy monopoly Gazprom ahead of a meeting today that could decide the fate of the UK company’s involvement in the huge Kovykta gas field in Siberia.

The agency that awards licences for exploration and development is due to decide whether to strip BP’s joint venture in Russia, TNK-BP, of the right to operate at the gas field, a project that would be a huge revenue earner for the UK company. Separately, the agency Rosnedra is also to consider revoking licences for UK firm Imperial Energy. read more

Jeffrey Jones
reuters news agency

CALGARY, Alberta–Royal Dutch Shell Plc’s Canadian unit is still committed to the idea of a $16.2 billion Arctic gas pipeline, but must be assured of better returns before going ahead, its outgoing chief executive said Thursday.

Clive Mather, who retires next week as Shell absorbs its formerly publicly traded Canadian unit, said the Mackenzie Valley Pipeline’s backers face a hard decision on making the huge investment due to surging costs and “fragile” economics. read more

Vanguard (Lagos)
1 June 2007
Hector Igbikiowubo

IN yet another twist to the unfolding scenario in the Niger Delta, Kedere youths in Ogoniland have shut the valve on the Bomu manifold located on the Trans-Niger pipeline, effectively shutting-in 150,000 barrels per day of crude oil output from the Shell Petroleum Development Company operated joint venture.

This caused oil prices to rebound slightly after falling sharply the previous day.
 
Shell announced Wednesday that 150,000 bpd of crude oil production has been locked in at its Bonny Light terminal in Nigeria after pipelines were sabotaged. read more

EXTRACT: TNK-BP’s woes appear to mirror those faced by Shell at Sakhalin-2 last year. Shell and its Japanese partners sold a majority stake to Gazprom after months of pressure by Mitvol’s agency over purported environmental violations. Shell CEO Jeroen van der Veer met with Miller 10 days before agreeing to sell to Gazprom at a Dec. 21 meeting with Putin at the Kremlin.

THE ARTICLE

Friday, June 1, 2007. Issue 3669. Page 1.
By Miriam Elder
Staff Writer

BP’s new chief Tony Hayward held talks with Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller in Moscow late Thursday, as a deal on the gas giant’s entry into BP’s flagship Kovykta project appeared imminent. read more

May 31st 2007
From The Economist print edition

The carbon market is working, but not bringing forth as much innovation as had been hoped

EVERY year the average sow and her piglets produce 9.2 tonnes of carbon-dioxide equivalent through the methane emissions from their effluent. In the past, that has been a problem both for the environment and for pig-farmers. In developing countries the pig-effluent collects in open lagoons which smell bad and get infested with flies. Sometimes it flows straight into nearby water systems. read more

May 31st 2007
From The Economist print edition

Scrubbing carbon from coal-fired power stations is possible but pricey

THERE are two remarkable things about Sleipner T, a gas rig in the middle of the North Sea owned by Norway’s state-owned oil company, Statoil. One is the working conditions. Technicians get around NKr600,000 ($100,000) a year, private rooms with televisions and ensuite bathrooms, and work two weeks out of every six. That is what you get when social democracy meets oil wealth.

The other unusual thing about Sleipner T is that the CO2 which has to be extracted before the gas can be sold does not contribute to global warming. Instead of being pumped into the atmosphere it is reinjected into the ground, 1,000 metres below the seabed. That is what you get when an innovative company meets a carbon tax. read more

May 31st 2007
From The Economist print edition

Car and fuel companies are investing in clean transport

KEN LIVINGSTONE, the mayor of London, last year caused a mild panic among drivers who cruise the city’s narrow streets in “Chelsea tractors” (SUVs to the rest of the world). He announced that he was planning to charge cars emitting more than 225g of CO2 per kilometre £25 a day to go into the centre of London rather than the standard £8. “Red Ken” has always enjoyed stirring it among the rich, so he was probably quite happy at the stink he caused. read more

EXTRACT: Last year, under duress, Royal Dutch Shell and its partners agreed to sell a majority stake in a big oil and gas project called Sakhalin II to Gazprom, the state-owned gas firm.

May 31st 2007
From The Economist print edition

The oil giant hopes to find gas in Libya, but may lose it in Russia

FOR an illustration of the roller-coaster that Western oil firms ride in their attempts to get at foreign oil and gas, look no further than BP. On May 29th the oil giant announced its return to Libya after an absence of over 30 years. read more

Thu May 31, 2007 5:32 PM BST

LAGOS, May 31 (Reuters) – A leak on a major oil export pipeline in Nigeria has forced Royal Dutch Shell (RDSa.L: Quote, Profile , Research) to shut another 77,000 barrels per day, a spokesman said on Thursday.

The pipeline leak occurred on May 25 on the Nembe pipeline in the southern state of Bayelsa and the company is trying to gain access to the site to begin repairs, he added.

© Reuters 2007. All Rights Reserved.

By Upstream staff

A protest by villagers at the Bomu oil export pipeline complex in Nigeria entered a third day today and no crude was flowing through the facility, a protest leader said.

Villagers from K-Dere occupied the pipeline hub at Bomu, which feeds the Bonny shipping terminal, on Tuesday and forced Shell to shut 150,000 barrels per day of output.

“The lines are still shut. They are not flowing. We locked up the place and slept here last night,” Teddy Penedibebari, who is leading the protest, told Reuters. read more

PERHAPS the greatest paradox in political economy is how countries endowed with the most bountiful natural resources almost invariably end up with deeply unsavoury regimes and the worst economic policies.

In many cases, especially in Africa and the Middle East, this “resources curse” means that commodity-rich countries are also among the poorest, with many of their citizens living in unnecessary squalor; in other cases, they may appear to be doing relatively well but are, in fact, failing to fulfil their true potential, preferring instead to channel their new-found wealth into an aggressive foreign policy. read more

31 May 2007 14:21 GMT  | last updated: 31 May 2007 14:36 GMT
By Upstream staff

Russian Energy Minister Viktor Khristenko went on the defensive today, saying that Russia does not discriminate against foreign explorers, in a bid to quell concern over a series of high level disputes with foreign companies.

“Our approach to foreign and domestic investors is exactly the same,” Viktor Khristenko told Reuters at an energy conference.

Some of the world’s top oil companies have emerged bruised from tussles with Moscow. Shell sold its stake in the Sakhalin 2 project to state gas monopoly Gazprom and BP is under investigation over its Kovytka gas field. read more

May 31, 2007

Shell, one of the world’s premier energy and petrochemicals companies, has recently announced that it plans to strengthen its presence in the Middle Eastern aviation industry following a successful participation at the seventh annual Airport Show, which concluded yesterday (Wednesday, May 30, 2007) in Dubai.

The move will see the company, which is one of the region’s largest suppliers of fuels, lubricants, services and bitumen for the aviation industry, look to tap into some of the new airport infrastructure projects planned for the region. read more