Oil, Natural Gas and Coal Resources

Under All That Ice, Maybe Oil

Analysis of ice core samples taken from an undersea ridge in the Arctic Ocean suggest that oil and gas may lie under a seabed once thought to be bereft of mineral deposits. In addition to holding out the possibility of oil extraction, the ice core studies have revealed a rich and heretofore largely unknown natural history of the undersea Arctic seabed. The New York Times (free registration) (11/30)

China Emerging as U.S. Rival for Canada's Oil

Chinese energy companies are on the verge of striking deals in Canada in efforts to win access to some of the most prized oil reserves in North America.

Drilling Plan OKd for Rare Desert Land

Overriding objections by New Mexico's governor, the Interior Department announced a final plan Monday for expanding oil and gas drilling on Otero Mesa, a rare desert grassland and one of a handful of places in the western U.S. where opposition to drilling had united ranchers, property rights advocates, hunters and conservationists.

Methane - A Greenhouse Gas Becomes Star of the Market

The international market for capturing methane, one of the industrial gases thought to be contributing to global warming, is expanding rapidly. Brazil has signed a deal to rein in the gas, and now other Latin American countries are likely to follow suit. Inter Press Service News Agency (12/23)

Amazon Gas Heralds Changes in Brazil Rain Forest

Brazil's state-owned oil firm Petrobras, overcoming years of opposition from environmentalists and native tribes, on Jan. 2 plans to begin laying down a 240-mile natural gas pipeline in the Amazon. The move is part of Brazil's plan to become self-sufficient in energy. Environmental News Network/Reuters (12/21)

Call of the Mild

In the world of Arctic energy exploration in the 21st century, we have learned how to get access to oil and gas reserves while protecting the tundra's ecosystems and wildlife.

Past Catches Up With Mexico's Oil Monopoly

River Contamination That Sickened 800 Draws Scrutiny of Lax Maintenance by Pemex (The Washington Post)

Big Oil's Burden of Too Much Cash

The world's giant oil companies, flush with cash, find themselves in a paradoxical position - they are making more money than they can comfortably spend.

New coal plants bury 'Kyoto'

Three countries not part of the Kyoto treaty -- the U.S., China and India -- are planning to build a total of 850 new coal-fired power plants in the next several years. The plants would emit nearly five times as many greenhouse gases as the environmental treaty is trying to reduce. The Christian Science Monitor (12/23)

Citgo's Status Is Giving Houston the Jitters

Few places are as jittery as Houston when it comes to the future of Citgo Petroleum, the oil refining giant owned by the government of Venezuela.

The $6.66-a-Gallon Solution

No other major oil exporter has reeled in its fuel consumption with as much zeal as Norway, where pump prices of $6.66 a gallon are taken in stride.

OPEC Weighing Oil Production Increases

Bowing to pressure from consuming nations, the president of OPEC said that the oil exporting group was considering an increase in its production ceiling.

More Energy Follies

Opening the coastal plain of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling is not the comprehensive, long-term energy strategy we need.

Predictions Vary for Refuge as Drilling Plan Develops

One crucial question is whether there is enough oil scattered underneath the coastal plain section of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to be commercially viable.

BTC Oil Pipeline Comes to Life

The Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan pipeline, which opened yesterday, will carry oil from the Caspian Sea to the Mediterranean Sea and create a formal link between the counties of Georgia, Azerbaijan and Turkey. Turkey's President Ahmet Necdet Sezer called the pipeline project "the Silk Road of the 21st century" and it is also being hailed by energy leaders worldwide. Zaman Daily Newspaper (Turkey) (5/26)

What Happens Once the Oil Runs Out?

The controversy over the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge is a side issue. The problem we need to face is the impending world oil shortage.

Senate Votes to Allow Drilling in Arctic Reserve

The Senate voted to include President Bush's plan to open the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling in its budget.

Me and My Hybrid

Americans could save 50 billion gallons of gas a year by switching to hybrid vehicles.

Arctic Refuge Oil Drilling Is Near Fact, Backers Say

Backers of drilling for oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska said that they were closer than ever now that Congress had adopted a budget.

When It Comes to Replacing Oil Imports, Nuclear Is No Easy Option, Experts Say

President Bush has proposed reducing oil imports by increasing the use of nuclear power, but reactors make electricity, not oil.

A Pipeline to Peace

A natural gas pipeline from the Persian Gulf to India would benefit all parties involved. All the United States has to do is stay out of the way.

Coal in a Nice Shade of Green

The combination of gasified coal plants and geologic storage can be our bridge to the clean energy of the 22nd century and beyond.

Many Oil Experts Unconcerned Over China Unocal Bid

The Chinese are coming -- for a U.S. oil company. So should Americans worry, or shrug?

Facing Sanctions, Iran Uses Oil to Seek Allies

Iran is arranging energy sales with influential countries, including China and India, as a way to win stronger friendships.

Chinese Oil Giant in Takeover Bid for U.S. Corporation

CNOOC's bid for Unocal signals the first big takeover battle by a Chinese company for an American corporation.

Energy-Rich Nations Are Raising Price of Foreign Admittance

Bolivia is just the latest of several oil-and-gas-rich countries in Latin America and beyond that are squeezing energy companies like never before.

Nature at Bay

President Bush's policies on the environment suggest that he not only has failed to learn from past mistakes, but is determined to repeat them on a more destructive scale.

Imported Gas Cited In Rash Of Leaks

A study finds that subtle molecular differences in the imported liquefied natural Washington Gas began using in August 2003 were corroding pipe couplings. (By Ray Rivera, The Washington Post)

U.S. Energy Chief Wants Global Push for 'Clean Coal'

The International Energy Agency, a global energy watchdog, should be "more proactive" in promoting the use of so-called clean coal as an alternative energy source worldwide, U.S. Energy Secretary Sam Bodman said at an IEA meeting of energy ministers in Paris. Bodman also defended the U.S. against suggestions it is not doing enough to boost its own energy efficiency and fight climate change. Environmental News Network/Associated Press (5/4)

Demand for Natural Gas Brings Big Import Plans, and Objections

Energy companies are aggressively championing the creation of a global market for natural gas, but it will not happen easily.

In Seeking Unocal, Chevron Ruffles an Asian Partner

China National Offshore Oil Corporation's bid for Unocal has forced Chevron into a takeover battle against its largest trading partner in China.

A Deft Balance in Orchestrating China's Oil Offer

The chairman of the oil company bidding to buy Unocal must prove loyalty to Chinese leaders while persuading the U.S. that the deal is only about commerce.

China Stakes Claim for Global Oil Access

As China's economy swells, so does it quest for access to oil from around the world. As it looks for crude in places like Africa, Saudi Arabia and Venezuela, China is sometimes flexing its military strength, sometimes "cozying up" to controversial regimes such as in Sudan, and at times playing on countries' discontent with the U.S. -- all in a wide and aggressive effort to secure energy for its soaring demand, the Los Angeles Times reports. Los Angeles Times (free registration) (7/17)

Rumors Put Oil Traders on Edge

Oil prices surged to a record of more than $58 a barrel, spurred by a hint of a terrorist threat in Nigeria and worries about a lack of refining capacity.

Oil and Security

THE BID by a Chinese state-owned firm for Unocal, a California-based oil and gas company, has triggered understandable concern. Oil is a strategic commodity; China has a dictatorial government. Last week an overwhelming majority of the House of Representatives voted for a measure that would impede... (The Washington Post)

China Tells Congress To Back Off Businesses

SHANGHAI, July 4 -- The Chinese government on Monday sharply criticized the United States for threatening to erect barriers aimed at preventing the attempted takeover of the American oil company Unocal by one of China's three largest energy firms, CNOOC Ltd. (By Peter S. Goodman, The Washington Post)

Another Methane Move

The White House's energy policy is based entirely on expansion, extraction and consumption, with little thought for the environment.

Provisions to Curb Oil Use Fall Out of Energy Bill

House members rejected an effort to incorporate a plan to require utilities to use more renewable energy like wind and solar power to generate electricity.

Wasted Energy

The United States won't enhance its security by threatening to obstruct China's Unocal purchase.

Engage Iran, support pipeline

As Washington prepares for a visit from Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh, the U.S. should reconsider its opposition to the proposed gas pipeline from Iran, through Pakistan and into India, write Anatol Lieven and Rajan Menon of the New America Foundation. By supporting the project, the U.S. could help to bolster India's relations with neighboring Pakistan while engaging with one of its most challenging adversaries, Iran, a move that would represent a more constructive policy toward the Islamic regime in Tehran, the writers argue. The Christian Science Monitor (7/18)

Republicans Ask Oil Industry for Help With Fuel Prices

House Republican leaders called on Tuesday for oil companies to build new refineries and take other steps to increase fuel supply and lower gas prices.

A New Push to Mix Oil and Water

Two recent storms have raised questions about the wisdom of placing so many energy bets in the high-risk Gulf Coast region.

Study Links 700 Deaths Yearly to Md. Plants

Pollution from Maryland's six largest coal-burning power plants contribute to 700 deaths each year, including 100 deaths in Maryland, according to a Harvard University study released yesterday. (By Elizabeth Williamson, The Washington Post)

Big Oil's Big Windfall

An oil industry already rolling in record profits does not need more tax breaks.

Heat Costs Expected to Surge

Natural gas prices set a record yesterday, pointing to sharply higher heating bills for a majority of Americans this winter.

A Tangle in Caracas for Exxon

Venezuela's government is taking steps to put more than two dozen coveted petroleum ventures under government control.

Light Trucks' Mileage Rules Toughen

Environmentalists Say Fuel Efficiency Goals for SUVs, Minivans Are Too Low

Oil in Alaska Refuge Seen Raising $111 Billion for U.S.

Allowing energy companies to drill for oil in Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge would raise about $111 billion over 30 years in corporate income taxes and royalty fees, based on current prices, a congressional research report said Tuesday.

Delusional Thinking in the Senate

The Senate approved a bill Tuesday that would do nothing to cure America's oil addiction and could actually make it worse.

A Better Diesel

The answer to the very immediate problems of auto emissions and fuel efficiency is going to lie in a mix of vehicles - hybrid cars, more efficient gasoline engines, and highly improved diesels.

A Bet on Ethanol, With a Convert at the Helm

 

Voter Anger May Free Up Energy Bills

 

Mounting Costs Slow the Push for Clean Coal

Despite support, plans to take the carbon dioxide that spews from coal-burning power plants and pump it back into the ground have hit roadblocks.

Oil Prices Raise Cost of Making Range of Goods

Companies that make hard goods using raw materials derived from oil are seeing their costs skyrocket and are pondering difficult choices.

Surging Oil and Food Prices Threaten the World Economy, Finance Ministers Warn

Finance ministers from the Group of 8 industrialized nations wrapped up a two-day meeting in Japan that was dominated by talk of rising petroleum prices.

Parties Split on How to Expand Offshore Drilling

Republicans want to end the ban on offshore drilling, while Democrats want to force companies to speed up exploration in certain offshore areas that they already control.