Heartson's 9/11 Timeline Part 8

defrauded investors by deliberately withholding or falsifying crucial financial information. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has been investigating Enron since October 2001. A number of civil suits have already been filed against Enron, which declared bankruptcy in December 2001. (DJ)

Jan 10, 2002: Bush's first big lie about Enrongate. ("Dallas Morning News: Lay gave more to Bush --President had said Enron chief was Richards supporter",http://www.dallasnews.com/texas_southwest
/1Atxenron_12tex.ART0.d1e8.html ) AUSTIN – In

distancing himself from Enron, President Bush said that CEO Kenneth Lay "was a supporter" of Democrat Ann Richards in his first race for Texas governor in 1994. But records and interviews with people involved in the Richards campaign show that he was a far bigger Bush supporter.

Jan. 10, 2002 - In a call from a speaker phone in open court, attorneys for Mike Vreeland call the Pentagon's switchboard operator, who confirms that Vreeland is indeed a naval lieutenant on active duty. She provides an office number and a direct dial phone extension to his office in the Pentagon. [Source: Attorney Rocco Galati; Toronto Superior Court records]

On Sept. 14, 2001 Canadian jailers open the sealed envelope from Mike Vreeland in Toronto and see that is describes attacks against the WTC and Pentagon. The U.S. Navy subsequently states that Vreeland was discharged as a seaman in 1986 for unsatisfactory performance and has never worked in intelligence. [Source: The Toronto Star, Oct. 23, 2001; Toronto Superior Court records]

Jan. 10, 2002 - Attorney General John Ashcroft recuses himself from the Enron investigation because Enron had been a major campaign donor in his 2000 Senate race. He fails to recuse himself from involvement in two sitting federal grand juries investigating bribery and corruption charges against ExxonMobil and BP Amoco, which have massive oil interests in Central Asia. Both were major Ashcroft donors in 2000. [Source: CNN, Jan. 10, 2002; FTW, "The Elephant in the Living Room, Part I," April 4, 2002,
http://www.fromthewilderness.com/free/ww3/04_04_02_elephant.html]

January 10 The U.S. Department of Energy recommends construction of the Yucca Mountain nuclear waste storage facility in Nevada. The project is expected to cost $40 to $50 billion and be able to store 77,000 tons of radioactive waste. The final decision still requires President Bush’s approval and, if vetoed by the governor of Nevada, Congressional approval. (WP, NYT)

January 10 Kuwait creates a new company, Kuwait Gulf Oil Company, to handle the country’s interests in the Neutral Zone, a border area shared with Saudi Arabia. The new company will take over when Japan's Arabian Oil Company’s 40-year concession in the Neutral Zone expires in January 2003. Oil production from the Neutral Zone (by Saudi Arabia and Kuwait combined) was about 640,000 barrels per day in 2001. (Reuters)

Jan 10, 2002: (Sniper) Malvo's preliminary hearing begins as Virginia tries to show why he should be tried as an adult. The judge allows the hearing to be open to the public, despite arguments future jury pools could be tainted. [CBC News]

Jan. 13, 2002: Bush appears in public with bruises on his face. The official story is that a pretzel stimulated his vagus nerve, causing him to lose consciousness. (ref) or maybe that’s not salt on those pretzles

January 14 According to preliminary data reported today by the U.S. Energy Information Administration, Mexico was the leading source for U.S. crude oil imports in November 2001 for the second consecutive month, having displaced Saudi Arabia from the top spot in October. Saudi Arabia had been the leading supplier since February 2000. (OD)

Jan. 14, 2002 almost two months after microbiologist, Don Wileys disappearance and mysterious death, Shelby County Medical Examiner O.C. Smith announced that his department had ruled Wiley s death to be "accidental;" the result of massive injuries suffered in a fall from the Hernando de Soto Bridge. Smith said there were paint marks on Wiley's rental car similar to the paint used on construction signs on the bridge, and that the car's right front hubcap was missing. There has been no report as to which construction signs Wiley hit. There is also no explanation as to why this evidence did not move the Memphis police to consider possibilities other than a "missing person."

Jan 15, 2002 it was announced that Surgeon General David Satcher is also resigning

Jan 17, 2002: The White House again refuses to turn over documents demanded by Congress as part of an inquiry into workings of the administration's energy task force, including records of a meeting that Vice President Dick Cheney had with Ken Lay. ("Congress Rebuffed on Energy Documents", http://www.nytimes.com/2002/01/18/business/18BUSH.html )

January 20, 2002: Evidence comes to light that a scientist named Lt. Col. Philip Zack had a history of suspicious behavior in the nation's most classified anthrax research center, USAMRIID. Zack was fired for unprofessional behavior centering on numerous hateful attacks on his colleague Dr. Assaad (Zack is Jewish and Assaad is Muslim, which may explain the enmity). Security cameras show Zack came into the lab at night on occasion without permission, after being fired. [Hartford Courant, 1/20/02] There is also a history of missing viruses, including anthrax and Ebola, that seem connected to these incidents. [New York Times, 7/19/02, note that the Times story mentions Hatfill (as "Dr. Z") in the article and not Zack, even though Hatfill didn't join USAMRIID until years after these incidents] Dr. Assaad received a letter just prior to the anthrax attacks in October that appear to frame him. [Hartford Courant, 12/9/01] Zack seems a very likely suspect, but has not been arrested (and wasn't even questioned for months after the attacks).

Jan 21. 2002: It was announced Jan. 21 that the director of the CDC, Jeffrey Koplan, is resigning effective March 31.

And there is currently no director for the National Institutes of Health -- NIH is being run by an acting director. The recent resignations leave the three most significant medical positions in the federal government simultaneously vacant.

January 21 Gaz de France signs a 20-year deal with BG Group, Edison International, the Egyptian General Petroleum Corporation, and the Egyptian Natural Gas Holding Company to import 3.6 million metric tons of liquefied natural gas (LNG) per year for 20 years starting in 2005. This is Egypt’s second major LNG export deal. As part of the deal, a $900 million liquefaction plant will be constructed at Idku, near Alexandria. (Reuters)

January 22, 2002: ex-CIA director Woolsey participated in a CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Project run as a war-game simulation at its Manhattan headquarters. For the simulation, the CFR enlisted 75 people, including bankers, former Treasury Secretaries, and former State Department officials.

January 22, 2002 Four senior Senators urged GAO to continue investigating the energy task force, saying that "Americans have the right to know how the Administration's energy policy was developed." The letter was signed by Governmental Affairs Committee Chairman Joseph I. Lieberman, Commerce Committee Chairman Ernest F. Hollings, Armed Services Committee Chairman Carl M. Levin, who is also chairman of the Governmental Affairs investigations subcommittee, and Byron L. Dorgan, chairman of the Commerce Committee's consumer affairs subcommittee

January 22 The U.S. Department of Energy opens the bidding process for oil companies to deliver 22 million barrels of crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve instead of making cash royalty payments. The royalty-in-kind oil is the first phase of the Bush administration's plan, announced last November, to fill the Strategic Petroleum Reserve to its capacity of 700 million barrels. (Reuters)

January 23, 2002 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Meeting
"India-Pakistan: Crisis Averted or Just Postponed?"
Speaker: Akbar Ahmed Ibn Khaldun Chair of Islamic Studies, American University's School of International Service
Speaker: Dennis Kux Senior Scholar, Asia Program, The Woodrow Wilson Center
Presider: Teresita Sch affer Director, South Asia Program, Center for Strategic and International and Studies

[www.cfr.org]

January 23, 2002: recent meetings between U.S. Ambassador to Pakistan Wendy Chamberlain and that country's oil minister Usman Aminuddin indicate the pipeline project is international Project Number One for the Bush administration. Chamberlain, who maintains close ties to the Saudi ambassador to Pakistan (a one-time chief money conduit for the Taliban), has been pushing Pakistan to begin work on its Arabian Sea oil terminus for the pipeline… U.S. troops will remain in Afghanistan….guarding pipeline construction … Karzai's ties with UNOCAL and the Bush administration are..why the CIA pushed him for Afghan leader over rival Abdul Haq, the assassinated former mujaheddin leader from Jalalabad, and the leadership of the Northern Alliance, seen by Langley as being too close to the Russians and Iranians. Haq had no apparent close ties to the U.S. oil industry and, as both a Pushtun and a northern Afghani, was popular with a wide cross-section of the Afghan people, including the Northern Alliance. Those credentials likely sealed his fate. (Centre for Research on Globalisation (CRG) http://globalresearch.ca/articles/MAD201A.html

January 23, 2002 Reps. Waxman and Dingell sent a letter urging GAO to proceed with a lawsuit as a result of the Administration's continued refusal to cooperate with its investigation. Ken Lay resigns as Enron chairman and CEO of Enron. He remains on the Board of Directors.

January 23 An U.S. official states that the United States and Libya have held "positive" negotiations that could lead to the lifting of United Nations sanctions against Libya. The official stated that "If the Libyans comply with the U.N. Security Council resolutions, then the U.N. Security Council will look at lifting the U.N. sanctions on Libya." In August, President Bush signed a five-year extension of the Iran Libya Sanctions Act (ILSA). ILSA sanctions foreign companies that provide new investments of over $40 million for the development of petroleum resources in Iran or Libya, or that violate existing United Nations prohibitions against trade with Libya. (Reuters)

January 25, 2002: Enron Vice Chairman John Clifford Baxter (dead) body is found on 25 January 2002.

January 25, 2002—Former Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) Chairman Curtis Hebert, Jr.--says Ken Lay, CEO of Enron—the largest contributor to George Walker Bush—made improper demands. Lay threatened that--Bush would fire Hebert unless he obeyed, Hebert refused. Bush fired Hebert in August 2001. Hebert says Bush also let Lay interview him and other candidates for FERC chairman in the first place! In a nutshell: Enron gave Bush millions to sponsor his rise from a losing candidate for the US House to the "leader of the free world." In return, Bush gave Enron "hire and fire" authority over the FERC, and performed other favors in return for money. This directly and personally ties Bush to the Enrongate scandal in all its illegality--Enron and accountants at Anderson have been destroying evidence by the box load. We must know what Bush did, and why he did it. Other top GOP officials like VP Dick Cheney, White House advisor Karl Rove, House Leader Dick Armey and Sen. Phil Gramm also helped Enron plunder and evade regulation. They helped Enron rip off consumers, investors and employees. www.apfn.org/enron/smoking_gun.htm Smoking Gun in Enrongate - Let the impeachment begin?

January 26, 2002: Salon exposes details about the FBI's anthrax investigation. The FBI is casting a wide net, approaching all 40,000 members of the American Society of Microbiologists, (posting) flyers asking for information all over New Jersey. Yet all evidence suggests the anthrax strain could only be made in USAMRIID in Maryland or US Army's Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. Meanwhile, the FBI has not yet subpoenaed employee records of the few labs that used the strain of anthrax used in the attacks. Numerous anthrax experts express puzzlement. Barbara Hatch Rosenberg, a biological arms control expert, believes the FBI is dragging its heels for political reasons. She is convinced the FBI knows who mailed the anthrax letters, but isn't arresting him, because he has been involved in secret biological weapons research that the US does not want revealed. "This guy knows too much, and knows things the US isn't very anxious to publicize. Therefore, they don't want to get too close." [Salon, 1/26/02]

Jan. 27, 2002: Cheney again refuses to release records of meetings with company executives to discuss energy policy.

Jan. 29, 2002 CNN reported: "President Bush personally asked Senate Majority Leader Tom Daschle Tuesday to limit the congressional investigation into the events of 9/11/01. Democrats privately question why the White House fears a broader investigation to determine culpability. (Daschle was also one of the few Anthax letter targets)

January 29 U.S. President George Bush delivers his State of the Union address. In his speech he identifies Iraq, Iran, and North Korea as part of an "axis of evil" that supports terrorism. President Bush also states, "The United States of America will not permit the world’s most dangerous regimes to threaten us with the world’s most destructive weapons." (NYT)

January 30, 2002 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Meeting
"A Meeting with Hamid Karzai"
Speaker: Hamid Karzai Chairman, Afghan Interim Authority
Introductory Speaker: Robert E. Rubin U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
Introductory Speaker: Peter G. Peterson The Blackstone Group
Moderator: Nancy E. Soderberg Vice-President for Multilateral Affairs, International Crisis Group-New York

(Hamid) Karzai, the leader of the southern Afghan Pashtun Durrani tribe, was a member of the mujaheddin that fought the Soviets during the 1980s. He was a top contact for the CIA and maintained close relations with CIA Director William Casey, Vice President George Bush, and their Pakistani Inter Service Intelligence (ISID) Service interlocutors. Later, Karzai and a number of his brothers moved to the United States under the auspices of the CIA. Karzai continued to serve the agency's interests, as well as those of the Bush Family and their oil friends in negotiating the CentGas deal, according to Middle East and South Asian sources. . [The Blacklisted Journalist 4/1/02]

January 30. 2002 GAO announced it would sue the Administration to obtain access to records of the energy task force. GAO reiterated that "Congress has a right to the information we are seeking" and warned that "failure to pursue this matter could lead to a pattern of records access denials that would significantly undercut GAO's ability to assist Congress in exercising its legislative and oversight authorities." That same day, in a 10-page letter to the Vice President, Reps. Waxman and Dingell detailed the extensive precedent for GAO's requests for the records. The letter cited "12 recent precedents where exactly the kind of information about the White House energy task force being sought by GAO was provided to Congress."

January 30 Data released by the U.S. Energy Information Administration today shows that U.S. refinery capacity utilization has decreased by 5.4 percentage points in the past two weeks, dropping to just 86.8% in the week ended January 25. This is a result of poor petroleum product demand, low refinery profit margins, and more than adequate product supply. (Reuters)

January 30 The state oil companies of Kuwait and Qatar and ExxonMobil Middle East Gas Marketing sign an agreement for natural gas to be transported by pipeline from Qatar to Kuwait for use in power plants. First shipments are expected to arrive in 2005, and total value of the deal is expected to be about $2 billion. Details of the deal are expected to be finalized by mid-2002. (OD, Reuters)

January 30 Petro-Canada states that it has agreed to buy the international oil and natural gas operations of Veba Oil & Gas from Veba Oel AG and its parent company BP, for about $2.0 billion. Petro-Canada will acquire production and exploration interests mainly in the North Sea, North Africa, and northern Latin America, expanding the company beyond its current interests, which are almost exclusively in Canada and the United States. The deal is expected to close between May and September 2002. The combined firm would have production of 400,000 barrels per day of oil equivalent. (DJ)

January 31 Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov signs a resolution that reduces the export duty on fuel oil in order to ease a glut on Russia’s domestic market following Russia’s December decision to cooperate with OPEC by trimming exports. (Reuters)

January 31 In response to President Bush’s State of the Union address two days earlier, former Iranian President Rafsanjani calls on Muslim oil-exporting countries to boycott the United States. Iran currently does not export oil to the United States because of sanctions. (WMRC)

Jan 31 - Feb 4, 2002, WEF (World Economic Forum) meeting in NYC The World Economic Forum is a private member organization comprising representatives from 1,000 of the world's largest corporations including Boeing, Goldman-Sachs, Enron (until recently), Ayala Land, The New York Stock Exchange, Pfizer, and Chevron-Texaco. The exclusive meeting is open to members, who pay upwards of $30,000 in annual dues, as well as selected politicians, journalists and academics. George W. Bush and Philippine President Gloria Arroyo are expected to be in attendance. While the WEF helps set global economic and trade agendas that affect the entire world, the group predominantly includes European and American businesses.

February 2002, CIA Director Tenet claims the 9/11 plot was "in the heads of three or four people" and even most of the hijackers didn't know the targets or that it would be a suicide attack until just before the attack.

Feb 1, 2002: U.S. District Judge Emmet Sullivan orders Cheney's energy task force to explain why handing over information about its meetings to Judicial Watch would violate the Constitution. ("Court Orders Cheney to Explain Constitutional Claim",

http://dailynews.yahoo.com/h/nm/20020201/pl/enron_energy_cheney_dc_1.html ) Directly contradicting a statement by Ken Lay, Cheney claims he never saw the memo Lay says he used to brief Cheney on 17 April 2001. Mary Matalin, counsel to Cheney, labels as "ridiculous" Sen. Barbara Boxer's (D-CA) statement that the memo provides the "smoking gun" linking Lay to White House energy policy. In a telephone interview, Matalin describes as "absurd" a statement by Sen. Dianne Feinstein, (D-CA), that Lay had been able to discuss energy policy

February 1 An explosion and fire occur at an oil-gathering center near Kuwait's northern Rawdatain oil field, killing four workers and injuring seventeen. As a result, about 600,000 barrels per day of crude oil production go offline. However, Kuwait's Oil Minister, Adel al-Subaih, declares that the use of oil from stockpiles and increased production from other fields will mean that exports will be unaffected in the next two weeks. Some production in the area gradually returns throughout the month as repairs proceed. The Kuwait Petroleum Corporation declares force majeure on liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) exports because of damage to the LPG booster station. Oil Minister al-Subaih resigns later in the month, taking responsibility for the incident, though reportedly also in protest of cost cutting and political interference in Kuwait's oil industry. (WSJ, DJ)

February 4 PetroChina, China's largest oil and natural gas producer, announces that it has reached an agreement with a consortium led by Royal Dutch/Shell, and including Gazprom and Hong Kong & China Gas, to build a 2,600-mile natural gas pipeline from the natural gas-producing Tarim basin in western China to Shanghai on the coast, with deliveries to start in 2004. The cost of the pipeline is expected to be about $18 billion. Chinese authorities also give Shell the right to discuss investment opportunities in the natural gas pipeline project with ExxonMobil. (Reuters, OD)

Feb. 5, 2002: Whistleblower Robin Hosea, an accountant with Enron's employee benefits department from August 2000 until she was laid off in December, tells a press conference that she discovered items that were outside her department's scope and without its approval being paid from the benefits accounts, items that were suspicious monthly payments to outside consultants. When

she questioned her superiors about it, she was told, "that it was a payment to friends of executives, and to leave it." She personally saw four of these checks, one totaling $20,000. Hosea saw thousands of such entries in the accounting system that totaled about $15 million at the end of 2000. She says now she is receiving regular telephone threats. "I believe the wording has become 'This is Robin's daily warning'."[ www.cbsnews.com AP news]

February 6 Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Abdullah states that Saudi Arabia is facing a "suffocating" economic downturn and that government spending must be cut. The Saudi American Bank (SAMBA) forecasts a 2% decline in gross domestic product (GDP) in Saudi Arabia in 2002, due in large part to low world oil prices. (Reuters)

Feb. 8, 2002: Afghanistan's interim leader Hamid Karzai says he and Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf have agreed to revive a plan for a trans-Afghan gas pipeline from Turkmenistan to Pakistan. A consortium led by Unocal had originally aimed to build the $1.9 billion, 1,400-km (875-mile) pipeline to run from gas-rich Turkmenistan via northern Afghanistan. But in August 1998 Unocal halted development of the project after U.S. forces fired missiles at guerrilla camps in Afghanistan in the wake of bomb attacks on two U.S. embassies in Africa. ("Pakistan, Afghan leaders agree to revive pipeline",

http://www.afgha.com/article.php?sid=12243&mode=thread&order=0 )

February 8 The U.S. Minerals Management Service announces that it has awarded the first four contracts to deliver royalty-in-kind crude oil to the Strategic Petroleum Reserve. The contracts were awarded to ChevronTexaco, Williams, Equiva, and ExxonMobil for some 60,000 barrels per day of royalty oil from federal properties in the Gulf of Mexico. (OD)

Feb. 8, 2002: Vladimir Korshunov, 56, was found dead on a Moscow street. Victor Korshunov head of the microbiology sub-faculty at the Russian State Medical University and an expert in intestinal bacteria. Pravda.ru reported that Victor Korshunov had been killed. At the time, Korshunov was head of the microbiology sub-facility at the Russian State Medical University. He was found dead in the entrance to his home with a cranial injury. Pravda reports that Korshunov had probably invented either a vaccine to protect against biological weapons, or a weapon itself.

February 8, 2002: Rockefeller Scientist Discovers Molecular Messengers That Rescue Cells from Death

Cells on the Verge of Suicide http:// www.rockefeller.edu/pubinfo/news_notes/nn020702.pdf

February 9, 2002: Pakistani President Musharraf and Afghan leader Hamid Karzai announce agreement to "cooperate in all spheres of activity" including the proposed Central Asian (remember the US Unocal, CIA, Enron) pipeline, which they call "in the interest of both countries." [Irish Times, 2/9/02] FTW Hamid Karzai, the leader of the southern Afghan Pashtun Durrani tribe, was a member of the mujaheddin that fought the Soviets during the 1980s. He was a top contact for the CIA and maintained close relations with CIA Director William Casey, (then Vice President) George Bush (Sr), and their Pakistani Inter Service Intelligence (ISID) Service interlocutors. Later, Karzai and a number of his brothers moved to the United States under the auspices of the CIA. Karzai continued to serve the agency's interests, as well as those of the Bush Family and their oil friends in negotiating the CentGas deal, according to Middle East and South Asian sources. . [The Blacklisted Journalist 4/1/02]

Feb. 9, 2002: "I also find it to be 'extraordinary circumstances' when a top (Enron) executive commits suicide,voluminous documents are shredded and witness after witness takes the Fifth Amendment. And in my 35 years in the Senate, I have never witnessed a corporation so extraordinarily committed to buying government." In a New York Times editorial, Senator Ernest Hollings (D-SC), calls for a special counsel to be appointed to investigate Enron. ("Time for a Special Counsel", nytimes.com)

February 9 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez replaces General Guaicaipuro Lameda with central bank Vice President Gaston Parra as the head of the state-owned Petroleos de Venezuela, S.A. (PdVSA), South America's largest oil company. General Lameda's replacement comes amidst public expression of discontent by several military officers with President Chavez's leftist government. On February 20, the Ministry of Energy and Mines announces the replacement of five of the seven members of the board of directors of PdVSA with new board members more closely aligned with President Chavez. This move sparks daily protests by PdVSA employees. (Reuters, DJ, OD)

February 9, 2002 (B): Dead microbiologist: Victor Korshunov, 56, is bashed over the head and killed at the entrance of his home in Moscow, Russia. He was the head of the microbiology sub-faculty at the Russian State Medical University and an expert in intestinal bacteria. [Pravda, 2/9/02, Globe and Mail, 5/4/02]

February 10, 2002: Katherine Smith is killed a day before appearing in court on charges she helped five Muslim terrorists get illegal drivers licenses. Her car supposedly hit a tree and then caught on fire. The FBI later determined that gasoline was poured on her clothing before she died in an arson fire. A suicide note was found, but prosecutors say they are looking for murder suspects. One of the five Muslims, Sakhera Hammad, was found with a visitor's pass for the WTC, dated September 5, 2001, in his wallet. Hammad claims he was a plumber and worked on the WTC's sprinkler system. Smith was being investigated by the FBI; the five later plead guilty of fraud. [AP, 2/13/02, Reuters, 2/15/02, Go Memphis, 2/12/02, Memphis Commercial Appeal, 2/21/02]

February 11, 2002: Dead microbiologist: Dr. Ian Langford, 40, is found dead, partially naked and wedged under a chair in his home in Norwich, England. When found, his house was described as "blood-spattered and apparently ransacked." He was an expert in environmental risks and disease and a senior Fellow at the University of East Anglia's Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment. One of his colleagues states: "Ian was without doubt one of Europe's leading experts on environmental risk, specializing in links between human health and environmental risk... He was one of the most brilliant colleagues I have ever had." [London Times, 2/13/02, Globe and Mail, 5/4/02] on Feb. 12, 2002 Ian Langford expert in environmental risks and disease and a senior Fellow at the University of East Anglia's Centre for Social and Economic Research on the Global Environment. One of his colleagues states: "Ian was without doubt one of Europe's leading experts on environmental risk, specializing in links between human health and environmental risk... He was one of the most brilliant colleagues I have ever had. Feb. 12, 2002 a newspaper in Norwich, England reported the previous day's death of Ian Langford, a senior researcher at the University of East Anglia. The story went on to say that police "were not treating the death as suspicious." The next day, Britain's The Times reported that Langford was found wedged under a chair "at his blood-spattered and apparently ransacked home."

February 11 Oil prices rise to a one-month high as rumors of a very large purchase of Brent crude by Royal Dutch/Shell trading subsidiary Equiva for the U.S. Department of Energy's Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) stoke fears that there could be a supply shortage for Brent crude oil in March. Brent crude oil for March delivery settles $1.63 per barrel higher, at $21.35 per barrel. However, oil prices ease somewhat the next day, with Brent falling 32 cents per barrel. As Equiva has the option to deliver the 18.6 million barrels of sweet crude oil to the SPR between April 1, 2002 and May 1, 2003, it is not clear that the company will meet its commitment by taking most of the Brent-for-March-delivery market, though a Shell executive states that the company sees "potential demand for all the Brents in March." (Reuters, OD)

February 12 A spokesman for Marathon Oil announces that the U.S. State Department has given Marathon, as well as Conoco and Amerada Hess, permission to begin renegotiating dormant oil field contracts with Libya. The approval was issued January 22, 2002. In September 2001, Libya's Foreign Minister announced that U.S. companies would be given one year to resume oil operations in the country before Libya decides whether their licenses should be revoked and given to other firms. Current U.S. sanctions forbid U.S. companies from operating in Libya. (LAT, Reuters)

February 13 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez decides to let the Venezuelan bolivar float against the U.S. dollar. The bolivar loses 19% of its value on its first day of trading under the new system. The decision comes as part of a package of fiscal and monetary reforms that are aimed at closing a projected government budget deficit. Low world oil prices have reduced projected government revenues for 2002. Oil revenues account for about half of government revenues and about one third of Venezuela's gross domestic product (GDP). (DJ)

February 13 Iraq says that it will not allow United Nations (U.N.) arms inspectors to return to Iraq. Iraqi Vice President Taha Yassin Ramadan states, "There is no need for the spies of the [U.N.] inspection teams to return to Iraq since Iraq is free of weapons of mass destruction." The United States has hinted that actions may be taken against the Iraqi government if U.N. arms inspectors are not allowed to return. (Reuters)

February 13 The government of Argentina announces a 20% tax on energy exports. Argentina exports over 300,000 barrels per day of oil, as well as some natural gas, worth about $2.4 billion and $637 million, respectively, in 2001. The companies most affected include Repsol-YPF, ChevronTexaco, Perez Companc, and U.S. Pan American Energy. (WSJ, OD)

February 13 El Paso Energy announces that it will build a $450 million, 380-mile, 500,000-barrel-per-day oil pipeline from the western Gulf of Mexico to Port Arthur and Texas City, Texas. The pipeline is expected to begin functioning in the third quarter of 2004. (OD)

February 13 The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) agrees to launch a probe into whether Enron and other energy traders deliberately inflated electricity prices during the California power crisis. FERC has come under pressure from Democratic legislators from the West Coast to undertake such a probe. (OD)

February 14, 2002: The Israeli newspaper Ma'ariv astutely notes: "If one looks at the map of the big American bases created [in the Afghan war], one is struck by the fact that they are completely identical to the route of the projected oil pipeline to the Indian Ocean." Ma'ariv also states, "Osama bin Laden did not comprehend that his actions serve American interests... If I were a believer in conspiracy theory, I would think that bin Laden is an American agent. Not being one I can only wonder at the coincidence." [Chicago Tribune, 3/18/02] FTW

February 14 The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announces that it is increasing security at U.S. nuclear facilities, including 104 reactors. The new measures are the result of a review by the Nuclear Regulatory Commission of nuclear plant security that was undertaken in response to the September 11 terrorist attacks. (DJ)

February 14 U.S. President George Bush announces a plan that addresses the issue of "greenhouse gas" emissions, linked by many scientists to global warming. The plan proposes spending on research and new technology, plus tax incentives to promote voluntary (as opposed to mandatory) reductions. The plan links reductions in carbon emissions to U.S. economic output, focusing on emissions intensity per unit of GDP rather than on fixed targets. (WP)

February 15 U.S. President George Bush authorizes the construction a large, centralized site for the storage of nuclear waste at Yucca Mountain, Nevada, after the Department of Energy recommends its construction. In his letter notifying the U.S. Congress of his decision, Bush states, "Proceeding with the repository program [at Yucca Mountain] is necessary to protect public safety, health, and the nation's security." Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn has indicated that he will oppose the project, so Yucca Mountain will require congressional approval to go forward. The site's selection is also being challenged in court. (WP)

February 18 ExxonMobil signs an agreement with the government of Papua New Guinea for the construction of a $3.5 billion sub-sea natural gas pipeline from that country to Queensland, Australia. The other partners in the project include: ChevronTexaco, Oil Search, Orogen Minerals, and Japan PNG Developments, as well as Mineral Resources Development Company, which represents the interests of local landholders. The 1,988-mile pipeline would transport natural gas from the Hides and Kutubu gas fields in the Central Highlands of Papua New Guinea, to a coastal processing facility and then via a section of sub-sea pipeline to northern Australia. The pipeline would supply Australia with around 6 trillion cubic feet of natural gas over a thirty-year period. (WMRC)

Feb. 18, 2002 - The Financial Times reports that the estimated opium harvest in Afghanistan in the late-spring 2002 will reach a world record 4,500 metric tons.

February 19, 2002: News organizations report that the Defense Department’s new "Office of Strategic Influence," created to try influence public opinion abroad, plans to plant disinformation in foreign and U.S. media. (Mar 2002: Homefront Confidential:

How the War on Terrorism Affects Access to Information and the Public ’s Right to KnowThe Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press)

February 20, 2002 The United States Supreme Court declines to consider an appeal by five major oil companies against Unocal's patent on production of cleaner "reformulated" gasoline sold in California, allowing a lower court ruling in favor of Unocal to stand. The ruling may eventually have effects beyond the California market, as tighter environmental standards for fuels take effect across much of the country. (DJ, WSJ) "Unocal patents…provide no… benefit to the industry or consumers. The huge royalties…are far in excess of the cost of even the reformulated gasoline program…may..cost consumers over $200 million per year….reduce supply and eliminate all incentive for overcompliance with environmental regulations….The patent will make it even harder to use ethanol in gasoline where ozone problems during summer months" (Bush-Cheney energy Task Force notes)

(Some people call this a dirty patent, is it to help Unocal recover moneys spent the trans-Afghan pipeline that went sour?)

February 20, 2002: Rumsfeld announces..the Office of Strategic Influence will not lie to the public or plant disinformation in the foreign or U.S. media. (Everything I say is a lie. I will not lie)

February 20 Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh asserts that Iran will proceed with oil and natural gas projects in the Caspian Sea, despite a lack of demarcation of sectors among the five littoral states. Zanganeh adds, "[We] will prevent the activities of others in the parts we consider to be ours." (OD)

February 20 Colombian President Andres Pastrana breaks off peace talks with the Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC) guerrillas and orders the Colombian army to re-enter FARC's demilitarized area. President Pastrana takes the action after FARC guerrillas hijack an aircraft carrying 34 people and kidnap Senator Jorge Gechem, president of a Senate peace talks committee. The following day, the Colombian air force bombs FARC targets in the former demilitarized zone, marking an intensification in the conflict in Colombia. (Reuters)

February 21 Moody's Investors Service puts the long-term debt of AES Corporation on review for a possible downgrade as the energy company's shares drop 11%. AES, once the 17th-largest publicly-traded energy company in the world in terms of market value, with 181 electricity generating facilities and 19 million customers, has lost over 90% of its stock value in the past 52 weeks, including 36% on February 15. On February 6, AES announced plans to sell up to $1 billion in assets in order to raise cash. Credit analysts are concerned that AES has insufficient cash flow to pay its debt of $22.3 billion. (WP, DJ)

February 21 The California Public Utilities Commission reaches an accord with the California Department of Water Resources that allows California to sell up to $11.1 billion in bonds to repay the State's considerable debt from purchasing power during the State's power crisis. The electricity rate agreement assures a revenue flow to the state agency, but requires the agency to attempt to renegotiate long-term contracts that were locked in when rates were higher than they now are. On February 24, State officials announce their intention to ask the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) to void over $40 billion in long-term contracts signed when, according to these officials, the market was being manipulated by sellers. (LAT, WSJ)

February 22, 2002: GAO filed suit in the U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., to obtain access to information about the task force's contacts with outside parties. This is the first time that GAO has filed suit against a federal official in order to obtain access to records. In a statement released the same day, GAO said that it took this step "reluctantly" but added that "given GAO's responsibility to Congress and the American people, we have no other choice."

February 22 Angolan rebel leader Jonas Savimbi is killed by government troops, possibly presaging an end to a 30-year conflict that has displaced 4 million people in the country. With most of Angola's 900,000-barrel-per-day oil production located offshore, the fighting had little effect on the petroleum industry, but proceeds from the oil have been diverted to fight the civil war rather than being used for economic development. (DJ)

February 25 Venezuela declares force majeure on some crude oil loadings in order to comply with the OPEC quota cuts begun on January 1. Venezuela had agreed to reduce its quota by 170,000 barrels per day. (Reuters)

February 26, 2002: Rumsfeld closes the Office of Strategic Influence

March 2002 The first known (September 11th) warning was FBI agent Robert Wright. He tried to warn his superiors three months before September 11th that Americans were in danger of terrorist attacks at home. No one listened to Wright and he finally blew the whistle… but didn't make much news coverage.

March 1, 2002 For unknown reasons, Barry Mawn retired at the FBI http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel00/mawn.htm

He said, he was "saddened and angered by the charges" Before Mawn was one of the favourites to replace FBI interior director Tom Pickard and assistant director Neil Gallagher. (the other favourites: FBIHQ-Assistant Director Reuben Garcia and Bruce Gephardt, the special agent in charge in San Francisco)

March 1, 2002: Some even think ..ex-CIA director Woolsey.. is also member of the so-called shadow government, "to ensure survival of federal rule after catastrophic attack", the existence of which was confirmed by Bush on March 1st, 2002.
http://www.msnbc.com/news/717680.asp?cp1=1 Woolsey is a master strategist. It is well known that he wanted a war against the Taliban for years, but was even more interested in a war against Iraq. The Iraqi National Congress, the exiled group that opposes Saddam Hussein, said in October 2001 that it held meetings in London with Mr Woolsey. Administration sources have said his trip was funded and approved by Paul Wolfowitz, the deputy Defense secretary. But Woolsey made no comment about the exact nature of his brief. He told The Telegraph: "I was in London and that's it." http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=%2Fnews%2F2001%2F10%2F26%2Fwirq26.xml

Early March 2002 (B): William Patrick (see February 1999) is interviewed by the FBI in relation to the anthrax attacks. He is surprised that the FBI didn't interview him earlier. [BBC, 3/14/02] After passing a lie detector test, the FBI invites him to join the inner circle of technical advisers to the anthrax investigation. [Baltimore Sun, 6/27/02] It is later noted that "many of the experts the FBI has turned to for help are also, almost by definition, potential suspects. That has put FBI agents in the uncomfortable position of having to subject their scientist-consultants to polygraph tests, and then, afterward, ask those same experts to help analyze evidence." [Hartford Courant, 9/7/02]

March 4 Strikes and demonstrations over Ecuador's 450,000-barrel-per-day heavy crude oil (OCP) pipeline that is currently under construction, largely from environmental and indigenous groups, come to an end as the government and the pipeline builder agree to provide millions of dollars in local development assistance. The area had lost about 40,000 barrels per day of oil production out of a total of 190,000 barrels per day over a 54-day period from already completed projects that were also blocked, and the pipeline builder lost about $2 million because of delays. (OD)

March 5 The United Nations announces that Iraqi oil exports for the previous week rose 1 million barrels per day to 2.49 million barrels per day, taking the four-week average to 1.9 million
 

barrels per day. This is the highest level since November 2001. (Reuters)

March 5 The Energy Ministry of the United Kingdom sets new rules for investment in the country's North Sea oil and natural gas sector. The rules, which are intended to slow declining output, set new investment deadlines on existing licenses, make trading licenses between companies more transparent, and set shorter investment deadlines in new concessions. (Reuters)

March 5, 2002: A second federal judge orders seven federal agencies, including the Department of Energy, to release records from Cheny’s Energy Task Force March 5 The United Nations announces that Iraqi oil exports for the previous week rose 1 million barrels per day to 2.49 million barrels per day, taking the four-week average to 1.9 million barrels per day. This is the highest level since November 2001. (Reuters)

March 6 At a joint news conference, oil ministers of major non-OPEC oil exporters Mexico and Norway announce that they plan to maintain their respective export and production cuts through the end of the second quarter of 2002. This same day, non-OPEC Persian Gulf exporter Oman announces that it is willing to maintain its relatively small production cut through the end of the year. (Reuters)

March 7 Light, sweet crude oil for April delivery on the NYMEX closes at $23.71, the highest price since September 21, 2001, when oil prices had temporarily spiked because of the September 11 terrorist attack. Oil prices have been on the rise because of OPEC and non-OPEC production cuts, an improving U.S. economy, and concern over U.S. intentions toward Iraq. (OD)

March 8 Administrative workers of Venezuela's state oil company PdVSA, who have been holding protests for a week, stage a four-hour work stoppage. The stoppage does not affect exports, but signals rising tensions between PdVSA employees and the government of President Hugo Chavez, who replaced PdVSA's board of directors in February, a move unpopular with employees. (Reuters)

March 8 A team of scientists reports in the journal Science that small-scale nuclear fusion has been achieved using a new technique. However, only a miniscule amount of energy is produced and the technique's prospects as a means or step towards using fusion as a practical energy source are still unclear. (NYT)

March 11 The U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) releases the results of its weekly survey of gasoline prices, showing that the average price nationwide rose 7.9 cents per gallon in the previous week. This is the second-highest one-week increase in the past 10 years. Gasoline prices continue rising for the remainder of the month. (LAT)

March 11 Employees at Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA stage a work slowdown, including a halt to overtime work. It is unclear how long the work slowdown will continue. (Reuters)

March 12 Shareholders of Conoco and Phillips Petroleum approve a proposed $15.6-billion merger of the two major oil companies. The new company would be the third-largest oil company in the United States and the sixth-largest investor-owned oil company in the world. The company would also be the largest oil refiner in the United States. Joint reserves of the two companies are about 8.7 billion barrels of oil equivalent. (AP)

March 13 The U.S. Senate rejects a bill that would have raised the Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) standards from the current 24 miles per gallon to 36 miles per gallon by 2016. Congress last increased fuel economy standards in 1975. (NYT)

March 13, 2002: A bomb and two smaller explosive-type devices are found and defused in the stairwell outside of the Shelby County Regional Forensic Center, Memphis, Tennessee, where county medical examiner Dr. O. C. Smith works. Smith states, "We have done several high-profile cases from (missing Harvard researcher) Dr. (Don) Wiley to Katherine Smith but there has been no indication that we offended anyone... We just don't know if we were the intended target or not.'' The police state, "It potentially could have been a large blast if exploded." The mystery gets deeper: in June, Dr. Smith is attacked, bound with barbed wire and left with a bomb tied to his body (see June 1, 2002). [Memphis Commercial Appeal, 3/14/02]

March 13, 2002

The most important thing is for us to find Osama bin Laden. It is our : number one priority and we will not rest until we find him. : ~ George Bush Jr. Sept 13, 2001 : "I don't know where he is. I have no idea and I really don't care. It's : not that important. It's not our priority" : ~ George Bush Jr. March 13, 2002

March 15 OPEC oil ministers meeting in Vienna decide to maintain their quota restrictions, established January 1, 2002, through the end of the second quarter of the year. On January 1, 2002, OPEC cut its crude oil production quotas by an aggregate 1.5 million barrels per day. (NYT)

March 15 Syrian Oil Minister Ibrahim Haddad confirms that Syria is receiving Iraqi oil through a pipeline between the two countries. However, the minister states that the pipeline is only being tested and is functioning irregularly due to damage. According to Syria, the pipeline is pumping less than 100,000 barrels per day when at maximum. However, data on Syrian exports loadings for March show an increase of about 115,000 barrels per day. (Reuters)

March 15 California Governor Gray Davis issues an executive order delaying the implementation of a statewide ban on methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) in gasoline for one year. MTBE was to have been banned as of January 1, 2003 because of leakage of the chemical, a possible carcinogen, into the groundwater from underground storage tanks. MTBE is added to gasoline in order to make it burn cleaner in areas susceptible to smog. The alternative to MTBE, ethanol, was viewed by the governor as problematic because suppliers would not be able to adequately replace MTBE with ethanol, creating supply problems and leading to price increases. (OD, WSJ)

March 17 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez threatens to have the military take over operations of state oil company PdVSA if the company's operations are halted by a strike. Spokesmen for groups representing employees assert that such a military takeover of the company's operations would not be possible. White-collar PdVSA employees do stage a voluntary one-day strike on March 21, but the company's operations are not seriously affected. (Reuters)

March 18 NYMEX crude futures settle above $25 per barrel for the first time since September 26, 2001, with crude oil for April delivery settling at $25.11 per barrel. Crude oil prices have been rising during the month of March and continue to post six-month highs later in the month. (Reuters)

March 19 Bulgaria's government announces that it has reached an agreement with Greece for an equal stake with Greece and Russia in a joint company to be set up to manage a planned oil pipeline from the Black Sea to the Aegean Sea. This resolves what had been a key sticking point in negotiations for over six years. The project envisages carrying 700,000 barrels per day of crude oil from the Russian port of Novorossisk by tanker to the Bulgarian Black Sea port of Bourgas, from where the underground pipeline would transfer the oil to the port of Alexandropoulis in northeastern Greece. This would enable crude oil to reach the Mediterranean without having to pass through the congested Bosporus Strait. (Reuters)

March 20 Central Gulf Lease Sale 182 takes place, with over 70 companies bidding for oil and natural gas leases in the Gulf of Mexico offshore Louisiana, Mississippi, and Alabama. About $363 million in high bids are received by the U.S. Minerals Management Service, which managed the sale. The Gulf of Mexico currently accounts for about one-fourth of U.S. oil and natural gas production. (OD)

March 20 Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov announces that Russia will extend its voluntary crude oil export cuts of 150,000 barrels per day through the end of the second quarter of 2002. Russia, the biggest non-OPEC oil exporter, had agreed to implement the cuts beginning on January 1, 2002 as a cooperative move with OPEC. Many analysts question whether Russia has complied at all with its pledged cuts, and some data actually points to Russian exports rising since the beginning of January. (NYT)

March 21 OPEC announces that its members, excluding Iraq, produced 779,000 barrels of crude oil per day above the agreed production quota of 21.7 million barrels per day during the month of February. This is a 65,000-barrel-per-day decline from January's output. (Reuters)

March 21 United Nations (U.N.) Security Council permanent member Russia blocks attempts by other members of the U.N. Sanctions Committee to either set out a stricter pricing mechanism or eliminate middlemen from Iraq's oil trade. The U.N. suspects that many middlemen pay surcharges to the Iraqi government, in violation of U.N. rules. Russian companies have been the largest lifters of Iraqi crude oil since the start of the U.N. "oil-for-food" program. (OD)

March 22 The U.S. Senate passes a bill that will require utilities to produce 10% of their power from renewable energy sources such as wind, solar, and geothermal by 2020. On March 14, the U.S. Senate had rejected a bill that would have required 20% of U.S. electricity to be produced from renewable sources by 2020. There are 14 states that already require a percentage of their state's energy to be from renewable sources. (LAT)

March 22 Germany's largest utility, RWE, announces that British power company Innogy has accepted its $4.42-billion takeover bid. The purchase of Innogy will be RWE's first foothold in a major electricity market outside of Germany. (DJ)

March 22, 2002 (B): US officials claim to have found an al-Qaeda biological weapons lab near Kandahar, Afghanistan. But the lab was incomplete, and "there is still no indication that al-Qaeda ever succeeded in producing biological agents." [New York Times, 3/22/02]

March 24, 2002 (C): Dead microbiologist: David Wynn-Williams, 55, is hit by a car while jogging near his home in Cambridge, England. He was an astrobiologist with the Antarctic Astrobiology Project and the NASA Ames Research Center. He was studying the capability of microbes to adapt to environmental extremes, including the bombardment of ultraviolet rays and global warming. [London Times, 3/27/02, Globe and Mail, 5/4/02]

March 25, 2002: Dead microbiologist: Steven Mostow, 63, dies when the airplane he was piloting crashes near Denver, Colorado. He worked at the Colorado Health Sciences Centre and was known as "Dr. Flu" for his expertise in treating influenza, and expertise on bioterrorism. Mostow was "one of the country's leading infectious disease experts" and was associate dean at the University of Colorado Health Sciences Center. Three others died in the crash. Mostow's death bring the total number of leading microbiologists killed in a six-month period to at least 15. [KUSA TV, 3/26/02, Globe and Mail, 5/4/02]

March 25, 2002 Kroll Inc. and the law firm of Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P. today announced the formation of a joint venture to provide clients with a new interactive legal, risk management and regulatory compliance product. The product - Business Intelligence Access - provides a secure, password-protected Internet platform that enables users to gain access to a wide range of investigative, compliance and legal services from a desktop or laptop computer, anywhere in the world, 24 hours a day. Steven Rucker, executive managing director in Kroll's New York office, said, "Business Intelligence Access provides clients with their first line of compliance and corporate security, delivering legal, investigative and risk consulting services through a single medium." Mark MacDougall, a partner in Akin Gump's Washington, D.C., office, added, "Along with Kroll, we developed Business Intelligence Access to be easy to use and fully interactive, providing a critical tool for compliance directors, in-house counsel and managers at every level." Business Intelligence Access, a retainer-based product located at www.krollakin.com, permits clients to engage a full range of legal and risk management functions on-line, including:

Background Checks - on customers, employees, contractors and business partners.

Identity Searches - of suspected terrorists, narcotics traffickers, sanctioned organizations, and others designated by the United States government and international law enforcement agencies.

Travel Watch - safety and security reports on 300 cities worldwide.

Visa Advisor - providing interactive clearance of INS status.

Corporate Compliance - on-line compliance programs ranging from anti-money laundering to the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Public Policy Advisor - instant access to legislative and regulatory developments from antiterrorism to INS reform and campaign finance.

Founded in 1972, Kroll is the world's leading independent risk consulting firm, with more than 55 offices on six continents. Its 1,600 employees and consultants have extensive professional backgrounds in business intelligence and investigations, security consulting, computer forensics, forensic accounting, business valuation, financial due diligence, and asset tracing and recovery.

Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, L.L.P., founded in 1945, is a leading international law firm with more than 1,050 lawyers in offices in the United States and Europe. The firm supports more than 50 practice groups representing regional, national and international clients.

March 25 Mexican state oil company PEMEX reports that Mexican crude oil exports in February were at 1.575 million barrels per day, well below non-OPEC Mexico's export cap of 1.66 million barrels per day agreed to with OPEC and implemented on January1, 2002. This is also lower than January's crude oil exports, which were 1.591 million barrels per day, according to PEMEX. (Reuters)

March 25 Oil exports resume at the Turkish port of Ceyhan, following a two-week stoppage that resulted from declining Iraqi exports since the beginning of the month. Iraqi oil exports have been increasingly irregular since after-the-fact pricing was implemented in early 2001. This makes the payment of surcharges to Iraq's government more difficult, but many purchasers now wait until the last few days of the month to load their cargos. (OD)

March 25 Sudanese rebel leader John Garang states that rebels of the Sudan People's Liberation Movement and Army (SPLM/SPLA) will continue to attack oil installations in the center of the country despite an agreement to protect civilians and civilian targets. Sudan produces about 210,000 barrels of oil per day, and exports about 175,000 barrels per day. (Reuters)

March 26, 2002 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Meeting
"Commanding Heights: the Battle for the World Economy"
Speaker: Frederick W. Smith Chairman & CEO, FDX Corporation
Speaker: Lawrence B. Lindsey Assistant to the President for Economic Policy
Speaker: Daniel H. Yergin Author, Commanding Heights
Summary: Based on the book by Daniel Yergin and Joseph Stanislaw, this new series explores the great debate over the impact of globalization. Filmed on five continents, it offers a compelling, in-depth narrative of the powerful forces shaping the economy and society in the 21st century.
[www.cfr.org]

March 26 Angola and Congo (Brazzaville) sign an agreement delineating the countries' maritime border. This allows U.S. major ChevronTexaco to pursue exploration in the formerly disputed border area offshore. The two countries are among Africa's largest oil exporters, with most of that production coming from offshore areas. (OD)

March 27 At an Arab summit meeting in Beirut, Iraq pledges "non-interference" in Kuwait's internal affairs and recognition of Kuwait's borders. Iraqi Foreign Minister Naji Sabri states, "We are for the prosperity and independence of the state of Kuwait and also for the normalization of ties, diplomatic, economic, political." On March 28, delegates at the meeting endorse a peace plan for Israel/Palestine put forward by the Saudi delegation. (Reuters)

March 27 Royal Dutch/Shell confirms that it will build a $500 million liquefied natural gas (LNG) regasification terminal in Baja California with a send-out capacity of 1.3 billion cubic feet per day. Shell intends to source LNG for the project from the Asia-Pacific region, and sell it to power plants and other Mexican and Californian consumers. Completion is expected in 2006. (OD)

March 28 A U.S. District Court ruling restricts underground coal mining beneath national parks, inhabited residences, and other protected areas. The court rules in favor of the Citizens Coal Council, an environmental advocacy group, in its suit challenging the way the U.S. Department of the Interior has allowed permitting of underground coal mining that may cause ground subsidence in specified protected areas. The National Mining Association and the U.S. Department of the Interior pledge to appeal the ruling.

March 28 The Russian Foreign Ministry reports that it has reached a basic agreement with the United States on revisions of the United Nation's (U.N.) "oil-for-food" program. The draft documents will now be sent forward to the U.N. Security Council for consideration. Of particular importance is that Russia and the United States appear to have reached an agreement concerning a "goods review list" of supplies that cannot be exported to Iraq without approval by the Security Council. (Reuters)

March 29 A U.S. Geological Survey study concludes that opening Alaska's Arctic National Wildlife Refuge to oil drilling could harm caribou and other wildlife. The U.S. Senate will take up debate in April on whether to open the refuge to drilling. (Reuters)

April 1 Iraq calls for an oil embargo by Arab oil exporters to punish the United States and other countries for their support of Israel. This, along with intensification of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, contributes to oil prices reaching new six-month highs. (Reuters)

April 1 India liberalizes its oil and natural gas sector by putting in place a series of market reforms, including: the end of government-fixed prices for gasoline and diesel; the end of subsidized cooking gas and kerosene prices; market competition for state-run downstream companies; and assigning the Oil Ministry the role of energy watchdog. (Reuters)

April 2 Royal Dutch/Shell agrees to buy Enterprise Oil for $5 billion in cash. This will increase Royal Dutch/Shell's production in the North Sea by 30% and overall production by 6%, according to the company. The acquisition will also add 1.5 billion barrels of oil to Royal Dutch/Shell's reserves. The company is also assuming $1.15 billion in Enterprise's debt. (NYT)

April 3 Venezuela sends out its first commercial shipment of 550,000 barrels of synthetic crude to a U.S. Gulf Coast refinery. Venezuela's Sincor heavy crude upgrade plant, which was inaugurated last month, refines ultra-heavy crude oil into 32 degree API syncrude. (Reuters)

April 4, 2002: Dr. David Franz, a former commander of USAMRIID, says of the anthrax attacks: "I think a lot of good has come from it. From a biological or a medical standpoint, we've now five people who have died, but we've put about $6 billion in our budget into defending against bioterrorism." Plentiful evidence suggests that the anthrax came from USAMRIID, but investigators say they have no suspects at all. They also say they have come up "against some closely held military secrets" which are slowing down the investigation. [ABC News, 4/4/02] Did the anthrax attacker(s) use similar logic as Franz, reasoning that the attacks would serve as a wake up call to protect the US against bioterror attacks?

April 4 The Angolan army signs a ceasefire accord with rebels of the National Union for the Total Independence of Angola (Unita). The agreement includes amnesty for former Unita soldiers and their demobilization and reintegration into society. The civil war, which began in 1975, has killed thousands of Angolans and taken much of the government's revenues from Angola's substantial oil production and exports. (NYT)

April 5 Thousands of workers at Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA stay home, close gates of facilities, and engage in protests. This is the largest disruption of PdVSA's operations in 2002, though it is not a full-blown strike by all PdVSA workers. Oil production and refining slows, and two of Venezuela's five main oil export terminals are unable to operate. The government of President Hugo Chavez threatens to militarize PdVSA's operations. (AP)

April 5 Nigeria's Supreme Court rules that the federal government, not state or regional authorities, has control over offshore oil and natural gas. Six southern states had threatened to take control of natural resources in their territories, which could have meant rules changes for operators in the areas and a concentration in hydrocarbon revenues in those states. (Reuters)

April 5 Iran's supreme leader, Ayatollah Khamenei, joins Iraq in calling for an oil embargo against countries supporting Israel. However, other Iranian government officials indicate that Iran will not go ahead with any embargo without support from all Muslim major oil exporters. On April 7, the Libyan government also calls for an embargo, but with the provision that such an embargo would have to include all Muslim oil exporters. Saudi Arabia and Kuwait reject these proposals. (WP, Reuters)

April 6 A BP pipeline near Little Lake, Louisiana ruptures, spilling 90,000 gallons of oil into marshland and coastal waters. Clean-up crews are sent to the area and some of the oil is recovered the following day. (WSJ)

April 7 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez announces that he has fired seven executives of state oil company Petroleos de Venezuela (PdVSA) and sent 12 others into early retirement. This action comes in response to the executives leading protests and work stoppages that have intensified since April 5. These protests began after President Chavez installed new PdVSA board members on February 20, 2002. (LAT)

April 8 Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn vetoes the use of the Yucca Mountain facility as a repository for high-level nuclear waste. Under a 1982 federal law on nuclear waste policy, a governor can file a "notice of disapproval" to reject a president's selection of a site in his state. This gives the U.S. Congress 90 legislative days to debate and vote on the issue. Simple majorities in both chambers can override the veto. (LAT)

April 8 Iraq announces that it will halt its "oil-for-food" exports for 30 days as a "gesture of support" for the Palestinians' struggle with Israel. Iraq also requests that other OPEC countries do not raise production to make up for lost Iraqi exports. Iraqi "oil-for-food" exports had averaged about 1.7 million barrels per day to date in 2002. Major Arab OPEC exporters Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Qatar have expressed unwillingness to join in any embargo. (WSJ)

April 9 A general strike begins in Venezuela, shutting down many stores and factories and nearly halting oil production, refining, and export terminals. Strike organizers decide to extend the strike through April 10. (WP)

April 9 California Attorney General Bill Lockyer files suit against four power companies, charging them with profiteering during the power crisis of 2000-2001. The attorney general claims that companies could face penalties of as much as $1 billion. (WSJ)

April 9, 2002 Barry Mawn (now ex-FBI) is one of the favourites for Massport as a security chief for $250,000 a year.

http://www.bostonherald.com/news/local_regional/port04092002.htm

April 11 2002 GAO filed a motion seeking an expedited decision from the judge hearing its lawsuit against the Vice President. GAO's motion for summary judgment argued that, since there are no factual disagreements, the suit should be decided on its legal merits in favor of GAO.

April 12 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez is ousted by the country's military after three consecutive days of general strikes during which oil production, refining, and exports-the mainstays of the Venezuelan economy-were seriously affected. After at least a dozen protesters are killed, high-ranking military officers, including the army commander general, request President Chavez to step down. (WSJ)

April 12 Pedro Carmona is named interim President of Venezuela by the military high command. He dissolves the National Assembly and Supreme Court. PdVSA operations that had been halted start up again, but rioting begins again the following day. (Reuters)

April 14 Interim President Pedro Carmona announces that he has resigned following large, and sometimes violent, pro-Chavez protests and a lack of support among many military officers. Carmona also loses support of Venezuela's largest labor group. Several hours later, Hugo Chavez returns to power in Caracas and claims that he never resigned the presidency. Chavez announces that PdVSA's Board of Directors had submitted its resignation on April 11. (AP)