tagged w/ Gazprom
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The European Commission has stepped up efforts to prevent the Russian energy giant Gazprom from reaching an accord with Poland that would lock the country into long-term natural gas contracts, hindering diversification of Poland’s, and Europe’s, energy sources and making Warsaw more dependent on Russia for its gas.
If the commission is successful, it could deal a blow to Russia, which seems determined to foil any attempts by outside companies to gain access to its pipelines that stretch from Russia to its lucrative markets in Europe.
Alexander Smolar, director of the Stefan Batory Foundation, a study group in Warsaw that promotes open democratic governments, said the gas negotiations with Russia were a test case for the Union’s ability to implement a common energy policy.
“Russia is using Poland as a test case to see if it can get around E.U. legislation,” Mr. Smolar said. “It’s a question of who will blink first.”
So far, the Union has had limited success in forging a common energy policy as the big member countries — Germany, Italy and France — continue to negotiate their own bilateral contracts with Russia, with minimum transparency.The European Commission has stepped up efforts to prevent the Russian energy giant... more
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This is the fairy tale about the Gazprom Tower in beautiful St. Petersburg/Russia. About the kings and queens creating it, about their dreams and wishes, about the wonderful buildings preceding it and the kings and queens who built them. It’s about voices behind the curtain and subjects, who don’t obey.
It’s a long story cut short, but without an end. Because once you release the spirits you won’t get rid of them, or as Faust said: Spirits that I’ve cited, my commands ignore.This is the fairy tale about the Gazprom Tower in beautiful St. Petersburg/Russia.... more
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Dr. Daniel Fine of the Mining and Minerals Resources Institute at MIT addressed Fletcher students at a talk sponsored by the International Security Studies Program and offered his insights into how the development of new technology will allow the United States to tap vast, previously inaccessible, resources of natural gas that will impact everything from the price of gasoline to the ability of Chinese companies to buy equity in Russian natural gas fields.
The United States has a monopoly on “hydro-fracking” technology. The technology, short for hydraulic fracturing, releases natural gas trapped in shale deposits by injecting the deposits with high-pressure water mixed with sand and small amounts of chemical additives.
According to Dr. Fine, the “cloud over gas” used to be “do we have enough gas?” In 2003, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan declared that the United States did not have enough natural gas, and that it would be necessary to import liquid natural gas (LNG). This, said Dr. Fine, was clearly a mistake in the light of the new hydro-facing technology, not only because importing LNG poses a security risk to the United States, but because tapping natural gas from shale represents an economic “bonanza” in “the most [economically] repressed parts of the country:” western New York, western Pennsylvania and West Virginia, areas which suffer from high rates of unemployment, and are estimated to host 490 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. The thousands of jobs that could be created in these areas could stand in the way of President Obama’s pursuit of subsidies for renewable energy.
Substitution away from imported gas by the United States will impact Russia, the world’s largest exporter of natural gas, where gas production is controlled almost exclusively by government-run Gazprom. Moreover, Chevron has signed an agreement with Poland to search for and extract natural gas there, and similar arrangements have apparently been made in Romania. “When Chevron announces that they have gas [in Poland],” Dr. Fine said, “then Russia is shut out,” and will no longer be able to act as a near-monopoly supplier of gas in Eastern Europe.
Seeing the threat to Russia’s interests, Dr. Fine suggested that Putin has de facto “joined the friends of the Earth,” claiming that hydro-fracking will lead to problems with water supply. Beyond that, however, Dr. Fine pointed out that Gazprom has recently acquired the largest gas field in Russia that was not already under its control, and that the location of this field, outside of Irkutsk, near the border with China, gives a clear indication of the direction that Russian policy is headed.
“China is moving towards a gas economy rapidly” to get away from the images and problems associated of coal, said Dr. Fine. China is well aware that its reliance on coal, and the emissions associated with it, not only present an environmental and health threat to its own population, but that China is vulnerable to increasing attacks from Western environmentalist groups as climate change becomes a more prominent political issue. China does not have large gas deposits of its own, and so, Dr Fine suggested, will want to take advantage of Russia’s weaker position vis-à-vis Europe, to demand not only lower gas prices, but also the ability to purchase equity in Russian gas fields, something China has not yet been allowed to do.
Returning to address some of the environmental concerns surrounding shale gas extraction, Dr. Fine said that, in light of the jobs that will be created , and in light of the economic advantages of natural gas—which is cheaper than either coal or nuclear power, and far less expensive than any current renewable technology—it will be politically difficult for any administration to challenge shale gas unless it can be conclusively shown to have adverse environmental effects that outweigh the benefits. Shale gas wells, Dr. Fine said, are only used when an impermeable rock layer surrounds them, so that none of the estimated 5.5 million gallons of water used for extraction can seep into the groundwater. In addition, most wells can recycle their water, and ultimately, “use less water than an average golf course.”
Finally, Dr. Fine predicted that we are not, in fact, entering an era of “peak oil,” that with the new production coming from the Iraqi oilfields, and with new natural gas deposits replacing other petroleum fuels, we can expect to see a decline in world oil prices. He predicted that on April 1, 2017 in Medford, Massachusetts, gasoline will cost barely over $1/gallon at the pump. Whether that prediction proves true or not, it certainly provides something to think about.
By Elspeth Suthers for The Fletcher SchoolDr. Daniel Fine of the Mining and Minerals Resources Institute at MIT addressed... more
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Russia's energy giant Gazprom has signed a $2.5bn (£1.53bn) deal with Nigeria's state operated NNPC, to invest in a new joint venture.
The new firm, to be called Nigaz, is set to build refineries, pipelines and gas power stations in Nigeria.
Analysts say the move could further strengthen Russia's role in supplying natural gas to Europe.
The agreement comes during a four-day African tour by Russian President Dmitry Medvedev.
As well as forming Nigaz, Russia is keen on developing...
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http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/business/8118721.stmRussia's energy giant Gazprom has signed a $2.5bn (£1.53bn) deal with... more
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Ukraine's national energy company Naftogaz has for a third time refused to transit Russian gas to European consumers, Russian gas monopoly Gazprom said on Thursday.
Some 18 EU countries have been affected by the stoppage of Russian gas supplies through Ukraine, which transits some 80% of Russia's exports to Europe. An EU-brokered deal to resume supplies on Tuesday also resulted in failure after Russia's attempts to pump gas through the Ukrainian network were unsuccessful.
The prime ministers of Russia, Moldova, Slovakia and Bulgaria held talks in Moscow to try and find a resolution to the gas dispute and Ukraine's refusal to transit Russian gas to Europe, which Russian Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin said had cost Gazprom $1.2 billion in lost revenue.Ukraine's national energy company Naftogaz has for a third time refused to... more
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3 years ago
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The United States Thursday said it was "concerned" about Russia's decision to cut off gas supplies to Ukraine and its likely repercussions in Europe, and encouraged both sides to resolve their dispute in a businesslike manner.The United States Thursday said it was "concerned" about Russia's... more
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Do expect gas prices to shoot up as Gazprom has shut off supply to Ukraine after Kiev fails to reach a deal following unpaid debt.
The Russian energy giant has also calculated how much in penalties they own to Ukraine: US$600m. Here is how Russian news channel RT report the story...Do expect gas prices to shoot up as Gazprom has shut off supply to Ukraine after Kiev... more
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