Oil

A prominent physicist warns in a new book that the world is running out of oil and we’re not doing anything to stave off the coming crisis

Oil platforms drill for what’s left of the oil off the coast of Santa Barbara, Calif

Feb. 17 - Remember 1973? If you do, there are plenty of reasons to wish you didn’t. Chief among them (right after leisure suits) would be the oil crisis that began in October. The Middle Eastern OPEC nations stopped exports to the United States and other Western nations just as stateside oil production was peaking. The artificial shortage that followed had devastating effects: The price of gas quadrupled in the United States, climbing from 25 cents to more than a dollar, in a matter of months. The American Automobile Association reported that in one isolated week up to 20 percent of the country’s gas stations had no fuel; in some places motorists were forced to wait in line for two to three hours to gas up. The number of homes built with gas heat dropped.

But that was the 1970s and this is now, right? Not according to David Goodstein. Saudi princes and SUV drivers may do well to read his new book, “Out of Gas: The End of the Age of Oil” (W.W. Norton), in which Goodstein argues that our oil-dependent civilization is in for a crude awakening when the world’s oil supply really begins to run out—possibly within a few decades. “As we learned in 1973, the effects of an oil shortage can be immediate and drastic, while it may take years, perhaps decades, to replace the vast infrastructure that supports the manufacture, distribution, and consumption of the products of the 20 million barrels of oil we Americans alone gobble up each day,” he writes.

Goodstein’s book is not a happy read, but an important one. In layman’s terms, he explains the science behind his prediction and why other fossil fuels might not do the trick when the wells run dry. Goodstein, a physicist and vice-provost at the California Institute of Technology, recently spoke with NEWSWEEK’s Brian Braiker about the fundamental principles of oil supply and demand, and whether civilization can survive without fossil fuels. Excerpts:

NEWSWEEK: This is scary stuff. You’re saying that oil production will soon peak.

more…
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/4287300/

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FTW: IN YOUR FACE (Peak-Oil)

posted by admin on Sunday February 01, @08:18PM

from the fromthewilderness.com dept.

- Connections between Dick Cheney's Energy Task Force, 9/11 and Peak Oil “On the Table”

- July '04 Supreme Court Ruling on Secrecy, Task Force Documents Obtained through FOIA Suit on Collision Course as Cheney “Duck Hunts” with Scalia

- The Reason Why Activists of All Stripes are Ineffective

Michael C. Ruppert

“The Cheney report is very guarded about the amount of foreign oil that will be required. The only clue provided by the [public] report is a chart of net US oil consumption and production over time. According to this illustration, domestic oil field production will decline from about 8.5 million barrels per day (mbd) in 2002 to 7.0 mbd in 2020, while consumption will jump from 19.5 mbd to 25.5 mbd. That suggests imports or other sources of petroleum… will have to rise from 11 mbd to 18.5 mbd. Most of the recommendations of the NEP [National Energy Policy, May 2001] are aimed at procuring this 7.5 mbd increment, equivalent to the total oil consumed by China and India .

-- Professor Michael Klare
“Bush-Cheney Energy Strategy: Procuring the Rest of the World's Oil”
Foreign Policy in Focus, January 2004

Pipelineistan revisited

posted by ewing2001 on Friday January 02, @07:37AM

from the Atimes/Pepe-Escobar dept.

Asia Times -December 25, 2003

AKU, Azerbaijan - At an Eurasian economic summit in Almaty, Kazakhstan, Gian Maria Gros-Pietro, chairman of Italy's ENI, said that the Caspian held 7.8 billion barrels of oil. Estimates from other sources run from 13 billion tons to 22 billion tons to even 50 billion tons. For Kazakhstan, officially they stand at 27.5 billion tons: "If the forecasts are proved, in the nearest future the oil of the Caspian region could make one fifth of the world oil reserves and balance with the reserves of Iraq and Kuwait together,"Gros-Pietro said.

Kazakhs estimate that the Caspian already yields 4.7 million barrels of oil a day. Saudi Arabia recovers 8.1 million barrels a day and Russia 6.3 million. So the Caspian would already be positioned in third place, ahead of Iran at 3.4 million barrels and China at 2.8 million barrels. New Azeri President Ilham Alyev, a former oil executive, thinks that the Caspian could soon be in second place, due to the combined reserves of Azerbaijan, Turkmenistan and Kazakhstan .

Problems with Iraq's underground oil reservoirs

posted by ewing2001 on Saturday November 29, @06:31AM

from the NY-TImes dept.

Oil Experts See Long-Term Risks to Iraq Reserves

NY Times -November 29

As the Bush administration spends hundreds of millions of dollars to repair the pipes and pumps above ground that carry Iraq's oil, it has not addressed serious problems with Iraq's underground oil reservoirs, which American and Iraqi experts say could severely limit the amount of oil those fields produce.

In northern Iraq, the large but aging Kirkuk field suffers from too much water seeping into its oil deposits, the experts say, and similar problems are evident in the sprawling oil fields in southern Iraq.

Cancelled Iraq Oil contracts for Russia?

posted by ewing2001 on Saturday November 22, @09:47AM

from the Gateway-Russia dept.

Russian companies might lose Iraq contracts

Gateway Russia -20 November 2003

Iraq might reconsider Russian oil giant Lukoil's $3.7bn deal to develop the huge West Qurna-2 field, scrapped by ousted President Saddam Hussein's government. Iraqi Oil Minister Ibrahim Bahr al-Uloum said earlier this week that all contracts signed under Saddam Husseinâ–“s rule would be reconsidered, including the contract with LUKoil.

"Pertaining to the contracts signed during the bygone era, especially under the economic embargo, we clearly stated that these contracts will be reconsidered based on three essential tenets: their legality, competitiveness and where is the interest of the Iraqi people," Mr. Bahr al-Uloum was quoted as saying by Reuters. The minister said he had been invited by his Russian counterpart Igor Yusufov to visit Moscow, but he said no date had been set for the visit.

The contract for the development of West Qurna-2 was signed in March 1997 and approved by the Iraqi Oil Ministry. A consortium of Russian companies, including LUKoil (68.5 percent), Zarubezhneft and Mashinimport (3.25 percent each), was expected to develop the field and use the extracted oil on production sharing terms, up to 2020.

Bush nominates Oil Buddy as Saudi Arabia ambassador

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday November 19, @06:40PM

from the AP/DFW/AFP dept.

Bush nominates Dallas native as Saudi Arabia ambassador

AP/Dfw.com -November 17

DALLAS - An executive with Hunt Oil Co. has been appointed U.S. ambassador to Saudi Arabia by President Bush. Jim Oberwetter will replace Bob Jordan.

"This post is critically important to our diplomatic, trade and security efforts in the volatile Middle East," said U.S. Sen. John Cornyn, R-Texas. "I've known Jim for years and can say without reservations that President Bush has chosen an excellent nominee to lead our efforts in Saudi Arabia."

Oberwetter is senior vice president of governmental and public affairs for Hunt Oil. He managed former President Bush's Texas campaigns in 1988 and 1992 and was his press secretary when he was a Texas congressman.

Oil corruption case in France gets bigger

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday November 12, @04:11PM

from the Guardian dept.

Gigantic sleaze scandal winds up as former Elf oil chiefs are jailed

The Guardian -Thursday November 13, 2003

France's mammoth Elf corruption case, probably the biggest political and corporate sleaze scandal to hit a western democracy since the second world war, drew to a close yesterday as three key former executives of the oil giant were jailed for up to five years.

...The three were among 37 defendants on trial for illegally siphoning off an extraordinary €350m of the then state-owned company's funds, from 1989 to 1993, while Le Floch was chairman. The never-ending stream of cash was used to buy political favours at home and abroad, and to fund some extravagant lifestyles.

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Arrested Russian Oilmen had Carlyle Ties

posted by ewing2001 on Monday November 10, @04:57AM

from the WP dept.

Other ties with Rothschild-Family

Arrested Russian Businessman Is Carlyle Group Adviser

Update: Kukos, new head of Yukos, confirmed Khodorkovsky's Merger Talks with Exxon (BBC -11/12)
Update: Big Bush's September Visit in Russia (09/12)
Update: The Battle for Russia's Fossil Fuels Continues (Analysis by Charles Fama)

WP -Monday, November 10, 2003; Page E04

The arrest of two of Russia's top businessmen in recent months was more than a distant headline for Washington's well-connected private equity firm, Carlyle Group.

Carlyle, known for the glittering roster of former statesmen among its partners and advisers, has ties to both Mikhail Khodorkovsky and Platon Lebedev, the jailed Russian tycoons.

Khodorkovsky, 40, Russia's richest man and former chief executive of Yukos Oil Co., serves as an adviser to Carlyle's Energy Group.

Jordan to Import Oil From Iraq Again

posted by ewing2001 on Tuesday October 28, @01:36AM

from the AP/ABC dept.

Jordan to Import Oil From Iraq Again; First Shipment Expected Within Two Weeks

AP/ABC

AMMAN, Jordan Oct. 28 — Jordan will import oil from Iraq for the first time since the U.S.-led war began, but the quantity will be half what it used to be, the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources said Tuesday.

An agreement covering the import of 2.6 million barrels of Iraqi crude oil annually was concluded recently, the ministry's secretary-general, Khaldoun Kteishat, told The Associated Press. He declined to provide details on where and when the deal was brokered.

Iraq was Jordan's only supplier of oil before the war broke out on March 20.

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Russia Detains Head of Largest Oil Company

posted by admin on Friday October 24, @08:16PM

from the AP dept.

Update: Yukos Oil Names U.S.. Citizens as New Chief Executive (11/04)

By DEBORAH SEWARD, Associated Press Writer

AP -October 25

MOSCOW - Mikhail Khodorkovsky, the head of Russia's largest oil producer, Yukos, was detained early Saturday by security forces at an airport in Siberia, the Interfax news agency reported, citing Yukos company officials.

Special forces in camouflage and black uniform boarded the plane, reportedly shouting "FSB, put your weapons down or we'll shoot." The FSB is the acronym for the Federal Security Service, a successor of the Soviet-era KGB. A representative of the security forces then told Khodorkovsky to accompany them and he agreed.

For months, the Russian prosecutor's office has been investigating Yukos company officials and Yukos shareholders seeking evidence of tax evasion and theft of state property.

When the plane landed in Novosibirsk shortly before dawn, two buses full of men in camouflage drove up the plane. Khodorovsky was taken away from the airport. "At present, the oil company Yukos is unaware of the whereabouts of M. Khodorkovsky," Interfax quoted Shadrin as saying.

Iran's offers Oil swap with Iraq

posted by ewing2001 on Friday October 24, @03:41AM

from the Forbes dept.

Iran offers 350,000 bpd oil swap with Iraq

Forbes -Reuters, 10.24.03

MADRID, Oct 24 (Reuters) - Iran offered on Friday to help Iraqi reconstruction efforts by allowing former enemy Iraq to export oil through Iranian terminals or to enter into an oil swap arrangement of up to 350,000 barrels a day.

Iran also promised a facility of up to $300 million in buyers' and suppliers' credits and offered to supply electricity and gas to Iraq.

"We stand ready to supply our electricity and gas to Iraq and to facilitate its oil exports through our oil terminals or enter into a swap arrangement that can amount to 350,000 barrels per day," Foreign Minister Kamal Kharrazi said in the text of a speech he will deliver to a donors' conference on Iraq.

Bolivia may be just the start

posted by ewing2001 on Tuesday October 21, @12:43AM

from the NationalPost-Canada dept.

Bolivia may be just the start

Much of Central and South America ripe for leftist revolutions

National Post Canada -Tuesday, October 21, 2003

...After decades of being left out of the country's power structure, Bolivia's native peoples took the lead in weeks of violent protest that left dozens dead and the country paralyzed before former president Gonzalo Sanchez de Lozada finally resigned on Friday and fled to Miami.

The trigger for the massive street protests was a government plan to sell Bolivia's natural gas to the United States and Mexico by exporting it to Bolivia's archrival Chile. But the proposed pipeline project was a symbol for something much more troublesome -- the government's inability to improve the economy or to transform a long entrenched culture of social exclusion that has effectively shut out the Indian majority.

Russian Plan: Trade in Oil -from Dollars to Euros

posted by ewing2001 on Friday October 10, @10:25PM

from the MoscowTimes dept.

Putin: Why Not Price Oil in Euros?

Moscow Times -Friday, Oct. 10, 2003. Page 1

President Vladimir Putin said Thursday Russia could switch its trade in oil from dollars to euros, a move that could have far-reaching repercussions for the global balance of power -- potentially hurting the U.S. dollar and economy and providing a massive boost to the euro zone.

"We do not rule out that it is possible. That would be interesting for our European partners," Putin said at a joint news conference with German Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder in the Urals town of Yekaterinburg, where the two leaders conducted two-day talks.

"But this does not depend solely on us. We do not want to hurt prices on the market," he said.

"Putin's putting a big card on the table," said Youssef Ibrahim, managing director of the Strategic Energy Investment Group in Dubai and a member of the U.S. Council on Foreign Relations, an influential body of leading world thinkers thought to help set the United States' foreign policy agenda.

Iraq: "Sexing up" Oil Figures

posted by ewing2001 on Saturday October 04, @02:35PM

from the Robert-Fisk dept.

U.S. can't hide concern for Iraq's oil

khilafah.com/Seattle Pi -03 Oct2003

By ROBERT FISK

BAGHDAD -- Oil is slippery stuff but not as slippery as the figures being peddled by Iraq's U.S. occupiers. Up around Kirkuk, the authorities are keeping the sabotage figures secret -- because they can't stop their pipelines to Turkey from blowing up.

Down in Baghdad, where the men who produce Iraq's oil production figures are beginning to look like the occupants of Plato's cave -- drawing conclusions from shadows on their wall -- the statistics are being cooked.

L. Paul Bremer, the U.S. administrator here, is "sexing up" the figures to a point where even the oilmen are shaking their heads. Take Kirkuk. Only when the television cameras capture a blown pipe, flames billowing from its wounds, do the occupation powers report sabotage.

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Russia in new deals with U.S. : Lukoil and Iraq

posted by ewing2001 on Friday September 26, @05:56PM

from the NY-Times dept.

Russia Sends Message to U.S. About Iraqi Oil Contracts

NY Times -September 27, 2003

The moment was a small but sweet victory for the Russian oil baron Vagit Y. Alekperov: the Getty gas station he bought in Manhattan three years ago was renamed yesterday after his own huge oil company, Lukoil, and President Vladimir V. Putin of Russia was on hand to ring in the change, coffee cup in one hand and Krispy Kreme doughnut in the other.

Mr. Alekperov wanted American consumers to understand that they need Russian oil and that companies like his are ready to provide it. For the last two years, oil has become an increasingly powerful bond between the United States, the world's largest consumer, and Russia, among the largest producers.

Iraq: Special Force To Protect Oil

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday September 24, @04:59PM

from the Reuters dept.

US Plans Special Force To Protect Iraqi Oil

Reuters -September 24

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The Bush administration plans to create a special force to protect Iraq's oil industry and to deploy a rapid-reaction team to repair pipelines after terrorist attacks.

The administration, according to documents obtained by Reuters on Wednesday, also plans to provide "continuous personal security" to Iraq's minister of oil and his director-generals.

"The life of one of the director-generals was threatened as recently as late August," the administration said in explaining the urgency of the $8 million request.

These and other oil-related initiatives were included in the White House's $20.3 billion reconstruction request for Iraq, which must still be approved by the U.S. Congress.

Iraq: No Oil for "Foreign Investors"

posted by ewing2001 on Saturday September 20, @11:55PM

from the Reuters dept.

Iraq to Allow Foreign Owners Outside Oil

Reuters -Sun September 21, 2003 03:34 AM ET

DUBAI (Reuters) - Iraq was set to unveil on Sunday sweeping economic reforms that include giving foreign investors full access to all sectors of the economy except oil after three decades of almost total state control.

A statement by U.S.-backed Finance Minister Kamel al-Keylani scheduled for release in Dubai later on Sunday said the reforms "will be implemented in the near future."

New Oil Crisis between Venezuela and U.S. ?

posted by ewing2001 on Saturday September 20, @03:47PM

from the Vheadline dept.

Venezuelan supplies of crude oil to USA may be in jeopardy after corruption-convicted former President flees Dominican Republic bolt hole for safe haven in New York

Update: Claim, CIA planned to bring down Chavez Frias' airplane

Vheadline Venezuela - September 19, 2003

Fugitive ex-President Carlos Andres Perez (CAP has fled his Dominican Republic bolt-hole to New York in a move that could adventure Venezuelan supplies of crude oil to the United States).

The corruption-convicted ex-President's escape to the Big Apple came after Venezuela's Energy & Mines (MEM) Minister Rafael Ramirez ordered a halt preferential oil supplies to the Dominican Republic after the Caribbean island refused to extradite CAP on a series of criminal conspiracy charges and planning to overthrow the legitimate government of Venezuela by violent and extra-Constitutional means.

Peak Oil Blues

posted by ewing2001 on Monday September 15, @10:15PM

from the GNN/FTW dept.

FTW- Interview with Bush Energy Advisor Matthew Simmons

Behind the Blackout

An Energy Investment Banker and Bush Energy Advisor Gives Unexpected Answers on the Northeast Power Grid, Peak Oil and Gas, and Much More

GNN -September 15, 2003

By Mike Ruppert

Matthew Simmons is the CEO of the world's largest Energy Investment Bank, Simmons & Company International. Its clients include Halliburton; Baker, Botts, LLP; Dynegy; Kerr-McGee; and the World Bank. Since 1993, it has underwritten or financed 18 transactions valued at more than $350 million. Of those, six were valued at more than $1 billion. Simmons is a member of the Council on Foreign Relations and serves on the National Petroleum Council's Natural Gas Task Force. He has a lot to say about the Northeast power grid blackout, its causes, and what they imply for the future. He also has a lot to say about Peak Oil and Gas.

Before and now- The Iraqi Oil Deals

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday September 03, @03:11PM

from the Bday.co.za dept.

Business Day

The removal of President Saddam Hussein from power will most likely reshuffle foreign participation in Iraq's oil sector which has been so far off limit to US companies.

Iraq's oil production costs are amongst the lowest in the world, making it a highly attractive oil prospect for foreign investment. Following is the current state of oil contracts involving foreign participation, compiled from past announcements and specialised publications.

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Russia and Saudi Arabia signed 5 year Oil Agreement

posted by ewing2001 on Tuesday September 02, @10:36AM

from the AP dept.

Russia, Saudi Arabia Sign Oil Agreements

Guardian -Tuesday September 2, 2003

MOSCOW (AP) - Russia and Saudi Arabia - the world's largest oil exporters - signed oil industry cooperation agreements Tuesday during a landmark visit to Moscow by the Arab kingdom's ruler.

The two sides also were expected to take up the sensitive question of whether rebels in the secessionist republic of Chechnya receive funding from Saudi charities.

Crown Prince Abdullah, who met with President Vladimir Putin, is the first Saudi head of state to visit post-Soviet Russia. A Saudi crown prince last visited in 1932.

Sour relations between Turkish BOTAS and Russian Gazprom

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday August 27, @08:44AM

from the Zaman dept.

Natural Gas Talks With Russia Resumed

Zaman Ankara, TURKEY, August 27, 2003

Sour relations because of a price disagreement between BOTAS, the state-owned Turkish petroleum pipeline, and Russian company Gazexport have softened recently after a basis for agreement was reached last week. Discussions over technical details took place today between BOTAS representatives and the group coming from Russia.

U.S. wants 11.500 to guard Iraqi Oil Pipeline

posted by ewing2001 on Wednesday August 20, @12:21PM

from the World-Tribune dept.

U.S. to hire 11,500 to guard Iraqi oil pipeline

World Tribune -Wednesday, August 20, 2003

The United States has launched a new effort to protect Iraq's oil sector from sabotage.

U.S. officials said the Coalition Provisional Authority plans to deploy 11,500 guards to protect the Iraqi oil pipeline to Turkey. The 1,000-kilometer Kirkuk-Ceyhan pipeline has been repeatedly sabotaged by forces loyal to deposed President Saddam Hussein.

Camp Exxon

posted by ewing2001 on Tuesday August 19, @05:27PM

from the Greenleft.org.au/hackworth.com dept.

IRAQ: Washington's oil grab

Greenleft.org.au -August 13

BY STEVE KRETZMANN & JIM VALLETTE

Photo: Members of 2nd Battalion 187th Abn Inf at Camp Exxon

In early April, during the initial assault on Baghdad, soldiers set up forward bases named Camp Shell and Camp Exxon, until Pentagon PR realised that that did not look very good and ordered them renamed. Those soldiers knew the score. Several months and dozens of lives later, Bechtel, Halliburton and a host of oil companies are ensuring that the fledgling “free market” in Iraq will be particularly free for US corporations.

Exxon or Shell might buy YukosSibNeft

posted by ewing2001 on Tuesday August 19, @11:19AM

from the Pravda dept.

Pravda/NewsfromRussia.com - 2003-08-19

Analysts say 25% stake in YukosSibneft might be sold to foreign companies Key shareholders of YukosSibneft have started preliminary (unofficial) consultations on selling a 25-percent stake in YukosSibneft to foreign companies, NIKoil's senior analyst told RBC.