Jan 2010

The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) last month introduced updated guidelines for its system for oil and gas reserves-evaluation, the most commonly used accounting standard

All being well, 2010 should be a year of relative comfort for consumers of energy, although there may be touches of pain for producers

THE EU's competition commissioner has made unannounced inspections at the premises of CEZ, the Czech Republic's biggest utility

Global oil supply in November rose by 200,000 b/d, according to the IEA. Opec production increased by 135,000 b/d to 29.1m b/d, its highest level in a year, the agency says. Other suppliers are also pumping more than expected

A new book tells the story of the oil industry's boom-bust cycle through the personalities of its main protagonists. It isn't always a flattering portrait, writes Derek Brower

The recession has not damaged Colombia's petroleum industry, says the country's upstream regulator.

Mexico's ambitious Chicontepec oil project risks turning into a multi-billion dollar boondoggle, but executives and regulators still think the project can be salvaged

Forget Copenhagen. The climate-change decisions that will affect Canada's oil and gas industries will come from another capital – and it isn't Ottawa, writes Derek Brower

If the US oil refining industry is a roller-coaster ride, it is on a dizzying downward plunge as demand drops and prices rise, writes Anne Feltus

Alaska could hold impressive offshore oil reserves

The US and China have embarked on unprecedented co-operation in clean-energy technologies, writes Anne Feltus

Recession, new import infrastructure and a global gas-supply glut have changed the fundamentals of the European natural gas sector

The Nigerian gas sector remains short on investment and direction, but IOCs remain committed to the country and now Russia's Gazprom is securing its position, writes Ian Lewis

China and Russia have entered a new phase of strategic energy co-operation, re-orientating Russia's Euro-centric oil and gas trade towards the east

Sustaining oil and gas output depends on investment in offshore operation and maintenance

The worldwide independent oil-storage business emerges from a testing year in better shape than many had forecast, Martin Quinlan writes

Singapore's independent oil-storage market has not exactly shrugged off the effects of a sharp increase in capacity, at a time of troubled economies worldwide – but its resilience has surprised many, Martin Quinlan writes

Some sectors of the independent oil-storage business at the big ARA ports have felt the effects of the world's economic troubles, but structural changes have helped to maintain utilisation rates, Martin Quinlan writes

With the oil market in contango, traders have a strong incentive to put crude and refined products into storage, which is good news for tank-farm operators, writes Anne Feltus

Despite falling profits, ExxonMobil's long-term, global approach to the oil and gas industry ensures the company remains highly valued by large institutional investors, writes NJ Watson

The growth of the German and Spanish solar industries is tailing off, but other countries are taking up the slack, writes Ian Lewis

Wave power has still to be proved as a viable renewable energy source on a large scale. But its promise is growing, writes Ian Lewis

Eni makes bid to purchase Heritage

A price on carbon is the "missing link" in the world's quest to increase energy efficiency, reduce emissions and develop alternatives to hydrocarbons, accoridng to BP's chief executive

GÜNTHER Oettinger has been nominated to become the new energy commissioner of the EU, as part of a reshuffle of the bloc's senior posts following the adoption of the Lisbon Treaty

The US government has authorised itself to regulate greenhouse-gas emissions, with potentially costly consequences for the oil and power sectors, writes Anne Feltus

EU oil consumers should not worry about Russia's latest energy dispute – with Belarus. The country is steadily building the necessary oil and gas export infrastructure to by-pass its troublesome neighbours

Oil prices have reached their highest levels since prices began to collapse in October 2008

The LNG business has changed drastically in the past two years, from fears of a production shortfall, to a supply glut

Shell, the company most affected by the years of violence in the Niger delta and the other difficulties of working in Nigeria, has finally had enough

Companies have been selected to develop the UK's offshore wind-power sector, but meeting demanding government targets will be tough

Studies suggest the US has significantly larger recoverable natural gas reserves than previously estimated. The future for the industry looks bright, write Rick Smead and Gordon Pickering

Natural gas will play an essential role as the transition fuel while the Netherlands converts its energy-supply matrix to one dominated by non-fossil sources, writes Hans Overdiep