Oil


Canada doesn’t cheer when the US economy fails, Alberta’s Energy Minister Ron Liepert told a small gathering a the Canadian consulate in New York City on Tuesday.

The Canadian economy is largely dependent on the success of the American one, he said, and this is particularly true when it comes to energy. As heated debate continues to surround the recently-State-Department-approved TransCanada XL Pipeline, Liepert emphasized that for Alberta, the long-winded American regulatory process was holding up a much needed boost to the province’s economy. Keep reading →


American oil company ExxonMobil has signed a huge deal with Russian company Rosneft to begin exploring the Russian-controlled parts of the Arctic for oil, reports the New York Times. Exxon’s deal looks likely to have destroyed hopes by BP to be the first into the region. BP had a deal with Rosneft but that deal expired earlier this year, reports the BBC.


The price of US oil has dropped nearly 25% since hitting its highs this spring, yet gasoline is down just 10%. So a big drop should be coming, right?

Sorta. Drivers can expect a bit of relief at the pump over the next few months, but they shouldn’t look for too big a discount. Keep reading →


The State Department on Friday released its final environmental assessment of the Keystone XL, removing a major barrier to the construction of the 1,700 mile oil pipeline, which would stretch from Alberta, Canada, to the Gulf Coast.

In a report consistent with the agency’s earlier findings, the final Environmental Impact Statement found the proposed pipeline would have “no significant impact” to the vast majority of resources along the pipeline corridor, and suggested moving forward on the project with limited modifications. Keep reading →


Biocrude producers are moving closer to providing a cost-competitive substitute for petroleum, but obstacles remain in building scale.

Biocrude is derived from renewable sources like wood waste and algae, but can be converted into near-perfect substitutes for petroleum products, known as “drop-in” fuels. Drop-in fuels “can serve as direct replacements or supplements to existing gasoline, diesel and jet fuels, without any changes to existing fuel distribution networks or engines”, according to the Department of Energy (DOE). Keep reading →


Fresh hopes for a resumption in Libyan oil supplies may drive world crude oil prices lower in coming months but that won’t begin to happen until the country’s leader Muammar Gadaffi is finally driven from power, analysts said.

Prices for the US benchmark West Texas Intermediate crude oil contract edged higher Tuesday morning after the reappearance of Gadaffi’s son Seif El-Islam before western journalists–despite rebel claims that the dictator’s heir apparent had been captured–indicating that rebels still did not control the capital Tripoli. Keep reading →


Developing biofuels for the military will help prompt uptake of advanced fuels for commercial use and promote rural investment, the White House said in announcing a new spending plan today.


President Obama announced today that the US Department of Agriculture, the Department of Energy and the Navy will partner with the private sector in a joint plan to invest up to $510 million in biofuels that could power military and commercial transportation.

The plan aims to increase the production of advanced biofuels in efforts to help increase both energy and national security by decreasing dependence on foreign oil.

For an example of one company that claims to manufacture drop-in biofuels, see a profile of Wall Street favorite KiOR. Keep reading →


Companies often seem like mitochondria; coming together and tearing apart. Each individual action can seem random, but overall, the activity makes for an ecosystem moving in concert.

The trend in firms today is to divide, to move away from the conglomerate model and the much-vaunted synergies that can be gained by owning a share of every piece of an industry. Oil companies are under pressure to split their upstream exploration and production work from their downstream refining and marketing efforts, and companies across multiple sectors are besought by investors to specialize and focus on their areas of expertise. Keep reading →


As the next stage of the US recession and financial crisis emerges, energy markets are taking a hit.

Data from the July 2011 US Energy Information Administration Monthly Energy Report shows that total energy imports– including oil, gas and electricity–were down this year from previous years along with production and consumption of energy. Although data from the most recent months is not yet available, market trends from March and April show a downward turn. Keep reading →

WH announces new #oil savings standards for heavy duty trucks & buses – saves $50B in #fuel costs, 500M barrels of oil: http://1.usa.gov/pe74YA @whitehouse

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