The rush to invest in Canada's oil sands is on (see yesterday's post on Shell). Marathon Oil, the largest oil refiner in the U.S. Midwest, is set to become the latest international energy player to grab a stake in Alberta's...
Nicolas Sarkozy has begun his first visit to Algeria on his maiden tour outside Europe since his May election. The French President arrived in Algiers yesterday seeking to boost energy and military ties. He had a working lunch with Abdelaziz...
Nigerian troops have killed eight suspected militants near an Italian-operated oil field in the Niger Delta. The killings happened in Bayelsa state on Tuesday just after militant groups released 19 hostages as part of a nascent peace initiative between the...
The US Congress has voted to brand OPEC’s efforts to control world oil prices illegal. And with support of the legislation strong in the Senate as well, President Bush could soon be thrust into the unenviable position of siding with...
A protest by Ogoni villagers at a major oil export pipeline complex in Nigeria has entered its fourth day. Villagers from K-Dere occupied the pipeline hub at Bomu, which feeds the Bonny shipping terminal, and forced Shell to shut 150...
The violence in the Niger Delta is escalating. Fighters from the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) today claimed to have destroyed three major oil pipelines in the region. MEND said the Italian oil firm Agip's Brass...
Further to Steve’s blog on Saturday – more on the New York Times story. Between 100,000 and 300,000 barrels a day of Iraq’s declared oil production over the past four years is unaccounted for and could have been siphoned off...
The United States is stepping up its involvement in the Nigeria to counter growing violence in the Niger Delta. Theresa Whelan, Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense, told a conference sponsored by the Center for Strategic and International Studies that the...
Gulf governments are planning to build oil pipelines that will bypass the world’s most vulnerable energy choke point, the Strait of Hormuz, aiming to avoid possible Iranian threats to global oil shipments. Around two-fifths of the world’s traded oil is...
Chinese President Hu Jintao arrives in Moscow today, offering trade deal in return for Russian oil and gas. Hu's three-day state visit to Russia will be his third as president, showing how seriously Beijing is courting President Putin. "At present,...
