''Iran’s Pars gas field pipeline''

From onlineopinion.au

''The U.S, U.K, Turkey, and the European Union are determined to save the ailing Petro-dollar by preventing the completion of Iran’s Pars gas field pipeline, through Iraq and Syria to the Mediterranean. Should the Pars pipeline go online and remain under Russian, Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian control, then Russia would control approximately 40 per cent of Europe’s gas consumption, and with a Russian allied Syria, Russia would also be able to take part in the development of major gas fields in the eastern Mediterranean Levantine Basin.

Neither Russia nor China will accept a repetition of NATO’s abuse of UNSC Resolution 1973 – 2011 on Libya, but neither will NATO compromise with Russia on Syria. NATO and the GCC are determined to install an anti-Iran/Russia government in Syria that will only provide gas from the GCC to Europe instead of Iranian gas. While the likelihood of the present conflict in Syria ending with a pro-GCC/NATO government ruling a docile Syrian population is negligible, there is a chance that if the Muslim Brotherhood gained control of a significant part of Syria then Western aims could be achieved. Even a chaotic Syria prevents Russian, Iranian, Iraqi and Syrian control of the gas lines to Europe and increases feasibility for the proposed U.S. backed Turkey–Austria Nabucco pipeline projectfor natural gas from Iraq, Azerbaijan and Turkmenistan.''

read more 

''The Folly of Energy Independence''

From The American Interest
By Gal Luft & Anne Korin

''The United States stands on the cusp of a global strategic advantage of huge significance. It is now within our grasp to cut the Gordian knot of energy policy, transforming our economic prospects in a fairly short period. Seizing this advantage does not require or depend on an esoteric technological breakthrough. It does not require allied assistance. It does not require a great deal of citizen sacrifice, discipline or patience. It does not require new taxes or convoluted cap-and-trade schemes. It merely requires that the Administration and the U.S. Congress get their collective head straight for once about a policy area in which politically ecumenical futility has been the norm for nearly forty years.''

read more 

''Powering up Asia's super-grid''

From Asia Times
By John A Mathews

''The integration of East Asia is a topic of perennial interest - whether it be monetary integration (much discussed in the wake of the 1997 financial crisis), trade integration (promoted via ever-expanding FTA areas) or even political integration. But what is not widely discussed (as yet) is actually the best hope for effective integration - and that is energy integration, via an Asian super grid linking the enhanced electric power systems of China, Japan, Korea, Mongolia and perhaps Russia.''

read more 

Max Keiser: ''US energy policy with Gregor Macdonald''

From PressTV....................''In this edition of the show Max interviews Gregor Macdonald from Gregor.us. He talks about the IEA's report which expects the US to be the world's largest energy producer by 2020. Gregor Macdonald is an oil markets observer, journalist, and data analyst, who writes on the challenge of energy transition.''

''The people of the pipeline''

Book Review From RedPepper

''The Oil Road brings to life the story of how crude oil moves from the Caspian to northern Europe. The authors follow the route of the Baku-Tbilisi-Ceyhan (BTC) pipeline from Azerbaijan to Turkey. But their journey does not end there as they cross the Alps, following the Transalpine Pipeline that brings Caspian oil into the heart of Europe’s refineries and cities.''

read more 

''A Critical Look at the IEA Outlook for American Energy Independence, Oil and Natural gas''

From RT.com........................''Today Brent crude rose to $111 a barrel due to concerns over fighting between Israel and Gaza, according to Fox Business. However Reuters later reported that economic fears outweighed the Middle East violence, sending oil lower. These news-making events may impact the day to day price swings in oil, but what about the bigger picture of supply and demand? We talk to Marin Katusa, Chief Energy Investment Strategist at Casey Research, about longer-term developments in oil and gas as game changers in the energy outlook.''

''Arctic might help Russia to restore status of Great Power''

From Barents Observer

''Russia slowly and insistently increases presence in the Arctic, builds new and restores old infrastructure demonstrating strong commitment to national sovereignty in the strategic area. Development of Arctic gradually becomes one of the most popular topics in the Russian big policy. The word “Arctic” represents a unique password that opens doors to the very sacred corridors of power, provides huge federal investments, launches scale research expeditions and establishes incredible business alliances.''

read more 

''Arctic Oil and Gas: A Regional or Global Concern?''

From The Arctic Institute
By Andreas Osthagen

''The debate on which framework is best suited for Arctic oil and gas cooperation prompts the question of how to define the key actors in Arctic petroleum development. This also prompts the question of how to define relevant participants in an Arctic regulatory debate. The Arctic littoral states have kept emphasising that the Arctic is a regional concern where they have sovereignty and jurisdiction. In contrast to Antarctica, the Arctic is populated and developed, with clearly defined national boundaries and agreements governing its usage. Non-Arctic actors, on the other hand, like China and the European Union, portray the Arctic as a global concern, in need of broader international collaboration. Both points of view are to some extent valid, as the Arctic comprises both national sovereign territories and international waters.''

read more 

''The New Great Game: The Arctic Ocean''

From The Diplomat

''The Naval Diplomat turned coat again last week, with a Foreign Policy essay exploring the strategic implications of a navigable Arctic Ocean. A former chief climatologist of the U.S. Navy forecasts that the northern ocean, in effect an inland sea, will be ice-free for around a month annually within a few decades. If so, that will open up new vistas for commerce and geopolitical competition—for part of each year, at any rate. Climate change could partially liberate Russia from its eternal quest for year-round access to the sea, granting the Russian Navy new strategic mobility. The downside from Moscow’s standpoint: Russia’s northern frontier would be exposed a new to power projection from the sea.''

read more 

''Gazprom turns its attention eastwards''

From Russia & India Report

''Gazprom is planning to invest more than $38 billion to build new production capacity in order to enter the fast-growing Asia-Pacific market. The company also plans to build a liquefied natural gas (LNG) plant in Vladivostok.

The state-owned gas monopoly is keen on this substantial investment to gain a share in the burgeoning premium market of the Asia-Pacific Region, Gazprom CEO Alexey Miller said during a meeting with President Vladimir Putin this week.''

read more 

''Melting Arctic may lure investors but is development economically viable?''

From Alaska Dispatch

''As the Arctic Ocean becomes increasingly ice-free, many countries are eager to tap into previously inaccessible northern resources. Energy companies seek drilling permits for oil and natural gas, and shipping companies hope to ply newly opened sea routes. Given the unpredictable nature of Arctic sea ice, some wonder if operating in the already inhospitable north will be an economically viable effort.''

read more 

''Russia planning massive Siberian gas pipeline to Pacific tidewater''

From Alaska Dispatch

''Gazprom, Russia's state-owned gas company, is moving ahead with plans to ship much of its abundant natural gas to countries in Asia, creating more competition for the latest of Alaska's long-running dreams of exporting its own gas supply.''

read more 

''Top secret nuclear sub used to prove North Pole claim''

From Barents Observer

''The submarine took part in the “Arctic-2012” expedition this autumn aimed at proving Russian ownership of the Mendeleyev ridge stretching across the East Siberia Sea towards the North Pole. Russia will use the data collected in its application to the UN Law of the Sea, that within the next few years will divide the continental shelf among the Arctic costal states, including the North Pole itself.''

read more 

''China expands S. America energy footprint''

From UPI via Phantom Report

''China is expanding its energy footprint in Latin America in a two-pronged strategy to secure its economy’s fuel needs and create a niche for future trade in the southern region.

China’s latest foray into equity investment is a 10 percent share of offshore Brazilian oil and gas reserves awaiting development as part of a multibillion-dollar program.

Brazil has been choosing equity partners with an eye on deeper collaboration that opens business opportunities for its own commodities and manufactures and China offers fits the bill perfectly — for now.''

read more 

''The Eskimo & The Oil Man''

From AlaskaPublic.org

''Iñupiat Eskimos cannot live without the land or the sea. We are the Arctic,” Edward Itta declared at the Arctic Imperative Summit. Former Mayor of the North Slope Borough, Itta is one of the main characters in a new book by Bob Reiss,  The Eskimo and The Oil Man: The Battle at the Top of the World for America’s Future. Listen Edward Itta and Bob Reiss’ on-stage conversation on The Eskimo and the Oil Man recorded at the Arctic Imperative Summit.''

see the video 

''Saudi Arabia reveals plans to be powered entirely by renewable energy''

From The Guardian
 

''Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil producer, has plans to become 100% powered by renewable and low-carbon forms of energy, according to an influential member of the royal family.

But the process is likely to take decades, and some observers are sceptical as to whether it is any more than window-dressing.

Prince Turki Al Faisal Al Saud, founder of the King Faisal Foundation and one of the state's top spokesmen, told the Global Economic Symposium in Brazil that he hoped the kingdom might be powered entirely by low-carbon energy within his lifetime – he is 67 – but that he thought it was likely to take longer.''

read more 

Tajikistan: ''Potential Energy Boom Could be Geopolitical Game-Changer''

From EurasiaNet

''There’s a potentially huge story developing in Tajikistan: Central Asia’s poor cousin may be sitting atop a vast pool of oil and natural gas. Yet, no one in Dushanbe – neither government officials, nor energy company executives – seems eager to discuss the prospect of an energy boom.''

read more 

Jim Hightower: ''Fracking Liars''

From Jim Hightower

''As they drill for quick corporate profits deep inside our Earth, such natural gas frackers as ExxonMobil and Halliburton are not only causing enormous harm to people's health, the environment, and local economies all across the country – but they're also fracking something essential to a properly-functioning democratic society: truth.''

read more 

''Stephen Leeb on the Missing Presidential Debate on Trickle Up Economics & the Energy War''

From RT.com

''Chris Martenson on what Job Numbers, the Fed, and a Drop in Oil Prices are Hiding!''

From RT.com...........''Welcome to Capital Account. The ECB plans to use its unlimited bond buying program, known as OMT, to buy sovereign bonds for one or two months and then suspend purchases during an assessment period, according to Reuters. Attempts to reflate the global credit supply have truly reached new levels. The central bank has gone from traditional monetary policy of setting interest rates, to buying US treasuries and government agency debt, to then buying mortgage backed securities to bolster the housing market. All this is done under the guise of the Fed's "dual mandate" of promoting full employment and price stability. And yet, the only thing central bankers have managed to achieve as they break the laws of physics is to inverted time and space and suck whatever duration is left out of the bond market. To help us contemplate life after the death of interest rates and the credit system, we talk to Chris Martenson, author of "The Crash Course." Among other things, we ask Dr. Martenson how he thinks the issue of credit expansion is compounded by global energy resource depletion and population growth.''