Energy Report

Tuesday, January 30, 2007

Gazprom on the offensive

Gazprom on the offensive

By Marc Champion

The Wall Street Journal Europe

29 Jan 2007



DAVOS, Switzerland—Two things make Alexander Medvedev, the man in charge of Russian energy giant OAO Gazprom’s exports, mad. One is being told the company isn’t doing enough to develop its natural-gas reserves. The other: that he has been shutting off... read more...

Thursday, January 25, 2007

Big Oil’s profit gusher goes dry

Big Oil’s profit gusher goes dry

By Russell Gold

The Wall Street Journal Europe

25 Jan 2007



AFTER A REMARKABLY long and successful run of earnings growth, Big Oil is finally stumbling. The major Western integrated oil companies are expected to post year-over-year declines in income for the final quarter of last year. ConocoPhillips reported... read more...

Monday, January 22, 2007

How BP’s golden Turtle emerged from his shell

How BP’s golden Turtle emerged from his shell

Profile by Ian Watson Editor-at-Large

The Business

20 Jan 2007



YOU don’t have to be a Turtle to succeed at BP, but it certainly helps, Tony Hayward, now BP’s chief executive elect, told the Wall Street Journal some years back. That was when the young geologist was working as BP’s treasury secretary. He had just... read more...

Friday, January 19, 2007

Rich nations burn less oil

Rich nations burn less oil

By Bhushan Bahree

The Wall Street Journal Europe

19 Jan 2007



Mild winter weather has something to do with it. So does heavy selling by financial funds. But a largely overlooked factor in the recent plunge in oil prices may portend an end to the multiyear rise in crude: For the first time in years, the developed... read more...

Germans’ writ clouds BNG privatisation


Germans’ writ clouds BNG privatisation

Terry Macalister and Paul Brown

The Guardian

19 Jan 2007



British Nuclear Group is being taken to the high court by angry customers who believe they are being made to pay a 500,000 fine incurred by the operator for criminal negligence at its Sellafield plant. The German utility E.ONand others are also... read more...

Thursday, January 18, 2007

British Gas leaks customers as rising prices push 4 million to switch

British Gas leaks customers as rising prices push 4 million to switch

Miles Brignall

The Guardian

17 Jan 2007



More than four million people switched their energy supplier last year, cutting their bills by about 150 each, according to figures published today. The number of people changing their gas and electricity company was at least 750,000 higher than... read more...

Friday, January 12, 2007

Russia risks losing EU contracts for energy supply

Russia risks losing EU contracts for energy supply

David Gow Brussels

The Guardian

12 Jan 2007



The European Union yesterday warned Russia that it must guarantee the reliability of all future oil and gas supplies to Europe or risk the loss of energy contracts and a scaling-down of political contacts. “We have told them [Moscow] that the... read more...

Monday, January 08, 2007

Energy, mining firms take hit

Energy, mining firms take hit

By Bhushan Bahree, Paul Glader and Ann Davis

The Wall Street Journal Europe

08 Jan 2007



Energy and copper prices continued their tumble last week, punishing shares of companies from oil giant Exxon Mobil Corp. to mining magnate Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. There is no one factor behind the sharp declines in some major commodities.... read more...

U.S. Congress targets oil-drilling subsidy, cites bungled royalties

U.S. Congress targets oil-drilling subsidy, cites bungled royalties

By John J. Fialka

The Wall Street Journal Europe

08 Jan 2007



WASHINGTON—With Democrats controlling Congress, the oil industry is in for a rough ride. But so is the agency that collects royalties for oil and gas drilling on federal lands. Democrats and some Republicans have complained for months that the... read more...

Thursday, January 04, 2007

NuclearMadness

NuclearMadness



The Wall Street Journal Europe

04 Jan 2007



Nuclear weapons today present tremendous dangers, but also an historic opportunity. U.S. leadership will be required to take the world to the next stage—to a solid consensus for reversing reliance on nuclear weapons globally as a vital contribution to... read more...