BioSolar, Inc, a developer of energy storage technology, yesterday announced its plans to develop a breakthrough technology to significantly increase the capacity and extend the life of lithium-ion batteries. “Based on the company’s internal analysis, a super battery built using its technology can double the range of a Tesla automobile, costs 4 times less, has… Keep reading →
Why the US should strive for a Holistic Regional Framework on Sustainable Offshore Natural Resource Development Over the weekend, the US assumed the two-year rotating chairmanship of the Arctic Council, an intergovernmental forum, at the conclusion of the 2015 ministerial meeting in Iqaluit (Canada). The US has outlined a policy agenda with a focus on… Keep reading →
At the next Arctic Council Ministerial Meeting held in Iqaluit, Nunavut (Canada) on 24-25 April 2015, the US will take over chairmanship of the Arctic Council from Canada for the next two years until May 2017. This comes at a time of unprecedented geopolitical volatility and tension – at least since the end of the Cold… Keep reading →
Green groups are contemplating the next battle after the fight over the Keystone XL pipeline is over. While no one knows what the ultimate fate of the pipeline will be, the decision will come soon and activists will need to move on to other issues. Green groups including the Sierra Club, Natural Resources Defense Council,… Keep reading →
Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge regained national attention over the weekend when the Obama administration announced plans to prevent oil and gas drilling along the coastal plain, which is expected to contain considerable hydrocarbon resources. Senator Lisa Murkowski and state officials vehemently oppose the action and are digging in for a fight. Murkowski, Gov. Bill… Keep reading →
News coverage of the Arctic has been steadily growing in tandem with the rising importance of the region in recent years. The focus of international politics often tends to revolve around energy security within the context of a global scramble for resources to keep individual countries’ economic growth engines humming. In view of the possibilities… Keep reading →
Future oil and natural gas production as well as exploration is expected to take place in some of the most remote and inaccessible places in the world. Reservoirs with the highest commercial potential are seen to be located offshore in deep waters or in the Arctic. Both “frontier” areas have challenges in common such as… Keep reading →
The development of Arctic energy resources poses the potential for an energy security competition between the Great Powers and Arctic stakeholders that will alter the geopolitical climate. The hydrocarbon reserves – 25% of world deposits- available under the melting ice caps, and undiscovered oil and gas will see states shifting their economic and foreign policy… Keep reading →
The Arctic – a cohesive region located north of the Arctic Circle – falls under the separate jurisdiction of eight countries with a population of about 4.2 million people and an annual economy of about US$230 billion. Interestingly, the World Economic Forum’s Global Agenda Council on the Arctic draws a nice comparison to “emerging markets”… Keep reading →
Shell spent billions of dollars and significant political capital to obtain the licenses and approvals required to explore for oil and gas off the coast of Alaska. A US appeals court recently ruled the original lease sale flawed, which threw new obstacles in the company’s path toward offshore Alaskan oil and gas development. The recent… Keep reading →
