News from July 2010

Richard Heinberg on 100 days of the BP gusher

As the 100 day anniversary of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf rolled around this week, WMNF’s Kelly Benjamin spoke with Richard Heinberg, senior fellow at the Post Carbon Institute and former advisor to the National Petroleum Council on Peak Oil and the ramifications of the BP tragedy. Benjamin asked Heinberg what should [...]

EU ministers impose more sanctions on Iran

European Union foreign ministers adopted extra sanctions on Iran, in particular targeting investment in the country’s oil and gas industries, as well as curtailing its refining and natural gas capabilities. “The message to the Iranian government could not be clearer: the longer it refuses to talk…about its nuclear program, the greater the pressure and isolation [...]

BP’s ‘Kill’ Start May Be Delayed Due to Storm Debris

BP’s “static kill” procedure may be delayed by a day because the company first has to remove debris at the bottom of the relief well drilled to permanently plug the source of the largest oil spill in the U.S. history. The so-called static kill procedure, aimed at more fully sealing the damaged Gulf of Mexico [...]

European Union and six countries reach deal for fusion reactor

The European Union (EU) along with China, India, Japan, the U.S., South Korea, and Russia reached a deal on Wednesday on the financing and timetable for the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), BBC reported. The deal was reached after massive cost overruns and project delays. The cost of the project was initially estimated at $6.5 [...]

Fossil Fuel Subsidies Are 12 Times Support for Renewables

Global subsidies for fossil fuels dwarf support given to renewable energy sources such as wind and solar power and biofuels, Bloomberg New Energy Finance said. Governments last year gave $43 billion to $46 billion of support to renewable energy through tax credits, guaranteed electricity prices known as feed-in tariffs and alternative energy credits, the London-based [...]

Russian oil output yet to peak, say drillers

Russia’s top oil firm Rosneft said new drilling technologies have spurred output growth despite high levels of reserve depletion. “New wells in Samaraneftegaz and Udmurtneft have been more productive than we originally planned. We are drilling faster and the flow rates have increased,” Peter O’Brien, Rosneft’s vice president for finance, told Reuters. BP’s venture, TNK-BP, [...]

Europe’s Iran sanctions may backfire

In light of Iran’s serious need for foreign capital in its energy sector, the crippling effect of Western sanctions on its oil and gas is bound to have ripple effects in accentuating Europe’s current energy insecurity, reflected in the 27-member EU’s wariness of undue dependence on Russia and its frantic search to diversify sources of [...]

News Cycle Turns in BP’s Favor

The answer is boringly simple–BP capped the well, oil stopped flowing into the Gulf, beaches and fisheries reopened, the TV cameras moved on to the next sensation and the doom mongers that didn’t have the sense to pack up and leave too were left looking a little silly. Indeed, Matt Simmons retired as Chairman Emeritus of Simmons [...]

A Critical Examination of Matt Simmons’ Claims on the Deepwater Spill

Matt Simmons, author of Twilight in the Desert, has long been one of the most famous and influential voices on the subject of peak oil. After the release of his book, Simmons rose to fame as Saudi Arabian oil production declined and global oil prices skyrocketed. However, Simmons has lately been making hyperbolic claims related to [...]

Heinberg: Beyond the Limits to Growth

How do population, water, energy, food, and climate issues impact one another? What can we do to address one problem without making the others worse? The Post Carbon Reader features essays by some of the world’s most provocative thinkers on the key issues shaping our new century, from renewable energy and urban agriculture to social [...]