Best estimate of the new Swiss nuclear dawn is decades away
Energy experts and politicians warned that bringing new nuclear power plants online in Switzerland would take decades because of the many political and financial obstacles. This comes after the Swiss government announced its plans to lift an existing ban on new nuclear plants. The Federal Council reversed its decision from 2017 to abandon nuclear power in order to achieve climate goals…
Mexico's new president appoints an energy expert to lead Pemex
On Monday, Mexico's new president nominated Victor Rodriguez as the next executive director of the heavily indebted oil company Pemex. This was one of the last nominations to the politically and financially volatile energy sector. At a press event, Rodriguez stated that working with the Finance Ministry would be crucial in stabilizing his company, the most indebted of all oil companies in the world.
LNG to Benefit Philippines, Says ADB Energy Expert
The Philippines stands to benefit from introducing liquefied natural gas (LNG) to support power generation and making it part of its energy mix, the government's Philippine News Agency reported quoting an energy sector expert for the Asian Development Bank (ADB). “Right now and the foreseeable future, natural gas and LNG is much cheaper today compared to two to three years ago…
Total, Siemens Hope to Sign Cuban LNG Deal Soon
French energy firm Total SA and German industrial giant Siemens AG hope to sign a deal soon with Cuba to build a 600 megawatt gas-fired power plant on the island, according to diplomats and businessmen with knowledge of the talks.The two are leading a consortium that has been in negotiations with Communist-run Cuba since last year when they won a tender for the project…
Dutch Plan to Build Giant Offshore Solar Power Farm
An offshore seaweed farm in the North Sea will be turned into a large solar power farm that aims to pipe energy to the Dutch mainland in roughly three years. The project comes at a critical time for the Netherlands, which is struggling to curb fossil fuel use and meet greenhouse gas emission targets after years of underinvestment in renewable energy sources.
China to Penalize Refineries for Crude Reselling, Unauthorized Expansion
Chinese refineries newly allowed to import crude oil will be penalized for reselling crude oil or expanding capacities without approvals, according to a policy document issued by the National Development & Reform Commission (NDRC) on Monday. Qualifications will be stripped and trade permits revoked for the refineries that recently…
LNG Price Gains Face Ceiling as New Supply Emerges
Asian spot liquefied natural gas (LNG) prices rose this week on the back of rallying gas benchmarks in Europe and a production outage in Angola. The price of LNG for December delivery was $7.20 per million British thermal units (mmBtu), up around 25 cents from a week earlier, buoyed by gains in British month-ahead gas prices. UK December gas rose as much as 10 percent this week.
Saudis Regain Top China Crude Supply Ranking
Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, regained its position as China's top crude supplier in June, after losing out to Russia over the previous three months, customs data showed on Thursday. China imported 4.569 million tonnes of crude from Saudi Arabia in June, or 1.112 million barrels per day (bpd), down 14.2 percent on the year but beating 961,000 bpd in May.
New IEA Boss Faces Fluid Energy Landscape
Career economist replaces politician; insiders complain of low morale. The new head of the International Energy Agency faces dilemmas that challenge the purpose of the body set up to protect the interests of the West against the power of OPEC in the 1970s. Fatih Birol of Turkey -- the IEA's respected chief economist -- takes over on Tuesday…
U.S. Motorists Splurge on Low Cost Premium Gas
U.S. motorists' habit of filling up with costlier "premium" gasoline when pump prices drop is delivering extra profits to refiners, such as Royal Dutch Shell and traders like Noble Group. For the second time in the past decade, a sharp fall in pump prices has triggered a spike in demand for the higher-octane fuel that has far outpaced the overall rise in consumption.
Whirlpool Windmill Produces Power Without Blades
A 1940 clip of the Tacoma Narrows suspension bridge in the United States stretching like chewing gum in a gale captured the imagination of a Spanish engineering student who became obsessed with how he could turn that chaos into power. Twelve years later, David Yanez is part of a team inspired by the motion that collapsed the…
How Russia Was Warned Against Oil Output Cut as Prices Dived
As Russia prepares to meet OPEC next week, a briefing paper from a Moscow think tank has shed light on how the government was warned against cutting oil output late last year even though global prices were plummeting. Speculation was rife that Russia and the oil exporters' cartel might strike a production deal to arrest the…
Britain's New Government to Kick-Start Shale
Britain's new Conservative government could take control of planning decisions to speed up the development of shale gas and prevent investor money from drying up, lawyers say. Britain is estimated to have enough shale gas trapped below its surface to meet its gas needs for decades. But deployment of the controversial fracking…
Low Oil "Double-Edged Sword" for Egypt
Egypt expects to save $4.2 bln due to cheap oil in 2014/15. The fall in global oil prices will cut Egypt's fuel subsidy bill but could hit the finances of oil-exporting Gulf allies who have showered it with billions of dollars in aid. Oil has dropped dramatically over the past six months, with Brent crude trading at $60.87 a barrel on Tuesday…
Pressure Grows on Austria's OMV
With its ambitious expansion plans in doubt and top management in flux, oil and gas group OMV is struggling to persuade investors that Austria's biggest company can master increasingly difficult markets. Chief Executive Gerhard Roiss is leaving nearly two years ahead of schedule in June 2015, followed by Chairman Rudolf Kemler in October.
NDRC: China Provinces Will Meet 2015 Energy Targets
Most of China's provinces are ahead of schedule or on track to meet 2015 energy savings targets, the government said on Friday, with Beijing and Shanghai among the frontrunners as the world's No.2 economy seeks to reduce its impact on the environment. China has pledged to reduce its energy intensity - the amount of energy it…
