April 15 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez attempts some rapprochement with the employees of PdVSA as oil exports return to normal. PdVSA executives support continued normalization of the company's operations. Minister of Energy and Mines Alvaro Silva asserts that Venezuela will continue to abide by its OPEC quotas, but the government also asserts that it will be a reliable oil supplier to the United States and will not participate in any oil embargo. (Reuters)
mid-April, 2002 - World Bank chief James Wolfensohn, at the opening of the World Bank's
offices in Kabul, states he has held talks about financing the
Trans-Afghanistan gas pipeline. He confirms $100 million in new grants for the
interim Afghani government. Wolfensohn also states that a number of companies
have already expressed interest in the project. [Source: Alexander's Gas and
oil Connections, citing an Agence France-Presse story]
April 18 El Paso Energy agrees to build, install, own, and operate a production
hub platform for the Falcon natural gas field in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico. The
field is owned by Pioneer Natural Resources and Mariner Energy. The platform
will have an initial capacity of 300 million cubic feet per day, and as a hub
eventually will service an additional nine blocks in the area. A 20-mile
natural gas pipeline will link the development to an offshore natural gas
gathering system. (OD)
April 19 A Venezuelan government spokesman announces that OPEC Secretary General
Ali Rodriguez will quit this position in order to become the new president of
PdVSA. It is not clear who will succeed Mr. Rodriguez as OPEC Secretary General
at this time. (DJ)
April 22 National Grid Group, which runs Britain's power transmission network,
announces that it plans to merge with Lattice Group in a stock deal worth $9.7
billion. Lattice is a natural gas pipeline operator that was spun off from
British Gas. National Grid will also assume $10 billion of Lattice's debt under
the plan. This creates one firm with significant power over Britain's natural
gas and electricity networks. The new company will be the UK's largest utility.
(DJ)
April 22 California State officials announce that California has renegotiated
$15 billion in power contracts with five of 12 companies with which the State
has contracts. As a result of the restructuring, the State will lower costs by
about $3.5 billion over the decade. These long-term contracts were signed
during the height of the power crisis of 2000-2001, locking in what many State
officials now consider higher-than-market rates for electricity. The companies
that have renegotiated extricate themselves from possible legal action on the
part of California in the future. (LAT)
April 22 The government of Venezuela and executives of PdVSA agree on a new
board of directors for the state oil company. Recent protests and strikes by
PdVSA managers and employees that led up to President Chavez's temporary ouster
on April 12 began in response to a board of directors appointed by President
Chavez on February 20. (Reuters)
April 22 Russian Finance Minister Alexei Kudrin announces that Russia will not
extend the 150,000-barrel-per-day crude oil export cut it has promised OPEC
beyond the end of June 2002. Data from several sources, including Russia
itself, appear to cast doubt on whether Russian exports were ever reduced since
the cuts were supposed to become effective January 1, 2002. (Reuters)
April 22 Russia's largest oil producer, OAO Lukoil, unveils a restructuring plan
that aims to double the company's output by 2010. In addition to investments in
new fields, the company also plans to increase output by outsourcing its
drilling and well-management to oil services companies. The company plans to
increase production 20% this year alone, to 1.4 million barrels per day. (WSJ)
April 24 A summit of the leaders of the five littoral states of the Caspian Sea
ends without an agreement on how to divide the Caspian's resources between the
five countries. (Reuters)
April 25 The U.S. Senate passes an energy bill that differs substantially from
the version passed by the U.S. House of Representatives in August 2001. The
Senate version, for instance, has no provision for oil exploration in the
Arctic National Wildlife Refuge. Another provision of the bill would require
that companies gradually increase the percentage of electricity that they
generate from renewable sources. The bill now goes to conference. (NYT,
Reuters)
April 25 President George W. Bush and Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah meet in
Crawford, Texas. The main topic of discussion is how to arrive at a resolution
of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. Also today, Saudi officials deny fresh
reports that they will reduce oil exports to express displeasure with U.S.
policy toward the Middle East. Oil prices rise substantially on the rumor, but
fall after denials by U.S. and Saudi officials. (WP)
April 29 An investigating panel of the Senate Governmental Affairs Committee
issues a report on gasoline price and the degree of market concentration of
refiners and retailers. The report states that, "In a number of instances,
refiners have sought to increase prices by reducing supply." The American
Petroleum Institute and several oil refiners and retailers have contested the
report's conclusions. (DJ)
May 2002, Jerome Hauer became director of the federal Office of Public Health
Preparedness (OPHP), succeeding Dr. D. A. Henderson from Johns Hopkins
Institute.
May 1 The Canadian province of Ontario opens its electricity market to
competition, including suppliers from the United States. Under the new rules,
suppliers other than the current monopoly supplier, Ontario Power Generation,
are able to sell electricity under long-term contracts or on the spot market.
Initially, large industrial consumers, local utilities, and new electricity retailers
will be able to choose amongst suppliers. The U.S. Federal Energy Regulatory
Commission (FERC) has licensed Ontario Power Generation to sell electricity in
the United States. (NYT)
May 1 Oman approves plans to add a third production train at its liquefied
natural gas (LNG) plant at Qalhat. The new train will add 3.3 million metric
tons per year to the plant's current 6.6-million-metric-tons-per-year capacity
in two existing trains. In January, Oman signed a financial agreement to borrow
$1.3 billion from a consortium of 12 international banks in order to be able to
finance the expansion. (WMRC)
May 2, 2002: After extensive testing, the DNA sequence of the anthrax sent through
the US mail in 2001 is deciphered, and it confirms suspicions that the bacteria
originally came from USAMRIID. Furthermore, analysis of genetic drift
determines that the attacker's anthrax was not separated from the source
anthrax at USAMRIID for many generations. It suggests that USAMRIID or USAMRIID
samples given to Dugway Proving Grounds in Utah and/or Porton Downs in Britain
are the most likely sources of the anthrax used in the attacks. [New Scientist, 5/2/02]
May 3 The Environmental Protection Agency approves rules that will allow
coal-mining companies to dump waste and dirt from mountaintop mining into
rivers and streams. The mining industry greets the decision with approval,
while several environmental groups are critical of the decision. (NYT)
May 3 A two-day G8 (the world's seven largest economies plus Russia) energy
summit in Detroit concludes. The energy ministers focus their discussions on
ensuring adequate, safe, supplies as demand increases, as well as on new
technologies that have efficiency and environmental benefits. U.S. Secretary of
Energy Spencer Abraham states that, "We [energy ministers] agreed on the
importance of providing adequate protection for our energy facilities as well
as the importance of having multiple links between suppliers and consumers to
reduce our vulnerability to disruption of energy supplies." (AP, Reuters)
May 3 Iraq and the United Nations (U.N.) end three days of talks on
disarmament programs and weapons inspectors without any plan for the return of
weapons inspectors to Iraq. U.N. weapons inspectors were expelled from Iraq in
1998. (Reuters)
May 3 A U.S. Appeals Court upholds the Environmental Protection Agency's
(EPA) diesel fuel sulfur content regulation in ruling on a lawsuit filed by the
National Petrochemical and Refiner's Association that challenged the
regulations. The rule requires that refiners reduce the sulfur content in
diesel from the current 500 parts-per-million requirement to 15 parts per
million in 2007. (OD)
May 6 The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) releases documents
showing that Enron used a number of deceptive trading strategies to manipulate
California's power market during the 2000-2001 state energy crisis. On May 8,
the FERC orders all power sellers operating in California to preserve their
records from 2000 and 2001, particularly in regard to trading strategies
employed. On May 21, the FERC orders firms to report any "round-trip"
electricity trading in sworn statements. Several firms alleged to have participated
in these schemes lose over 50% of their market values in May. Such trades are
thought to have inflated companies' revenue statements. This is all part of a
FERC probe into the causes of electricity price volatility in California in
2000-2001. (DJ, LAT)
May 7 A $125 million study commissioned by ExxonMobil, BP, and Phillips, that
examined two proposed routes for a natural gas pipeline from Alaska's North
Slope to the lower 48 states, finds that neither route is economically
feasible. The pipeline would transport 4.5 billion cubic feet per day of
natural gas. Company spokespeople indicate that the project will be delayed
until market conditions support the project. (OD)
May 8 The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announces that it has selected
Occidental Petroleum to take over Enron's 24.5% stake in the $3.5 billion
Dolphin natural gas project. Enron had sold back its stake to UAE state
investment company UOG before Enron's bankruptcy in December 2001. (Reuters)
May 8 Iraq starts pumping crude oil to its export terminals, following the
country's announcement on May 5 that it would end its oil export embargo after
one month, i.e., May 8. Iraq also submits price proposals for May crude oil
loadings to the United Nations for approval. (Reuters)
May 8 The United Arab Emirates (UAE) announces that it has selected
Occidental Petroleum to take over Enron's 24.5% stake in the $3.5 billion
Dolphin natural gas project. Enron had sold back its stake to UAE state
investment company UOG before Enron's bankruptcy in December 2001. (Reuters)
May 9 The U.S. House of Representatives votes to approve the use of the Yucca
Mountain facility as a repository for high-level nuclear waste, the first step
in overriding the Nevada governor's veto of the site's selection by the U.S. Department
of Energy. The U.S. Senate must also approve the site's use for the governor's
veto to be overridden and for the project to proceed. (KR)
May 10 Scientists at the University of Munich's Nanoscience Center in Germany
succeed in harnessing the power of light to produce mechanical energy for the
first time in history. In the experiment, the scientists shine a selected
frequency of light on a single molecule of the plastic azobenzene, causing the
molecule to crimp and pull down a board to which it is attached. (WP)
May 10 Thailand announces that it will go ahead with the construction of a
natural gas pipeline from the Thai-Malaysian Joint Development Area (JDA)
natural gas project in the Gulf of Thailand to the southern Thai province of
Songkhla, and then on to Kedah state in northern Malaysia. The pipeline's
approval had been delayed over environmental concerns, and the pipeline route
will be adjusted slightly because of these concerns. Malaysia had previously
stated that it might re-route its share of the natural gas from the Gulf of
Thailand if the Thai government failed to make a decision on the pipeline.
(Reuters)
May 13, 2002: The BBC reports that Afghanistan is about to close a deal for
construction of the $2 billion gas pipeline to run from Turkmenistan to
Pakistan and India. "Work on the project will start after an agreement is
expected to be struck" at a summit scheduled for the end of the month.
Afghan leader Hamid Karzai (who formerly worked for Unocal) calls Unocal the "lead
company" in building the pipeline. [BBC, 5/13/02] FTW The Los Angeles Times comments, "To some
here, it looked like the fix was in for Unocal when President Bush named a
former Unocal consultant, Zalmay Khalilzad, as his special envoy to Afghanistan
late last year." [Los Angeles Times, 5/30/02]
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]
May 13 Russia and Kazakhstan sign an accord defining ownership rights in the
northern part of the hydrocarbon-rich Caspian Sea. A summit last month of the
five littoral nations of the Caspian Sea failed to arrive at a comprehensive
agreement between all five countries. (AP)
May 14 Near-month WTI crude oil on the New York Mercantile Exchange (NYMEX)
settles above $29 per barrel for the first time since the temporary price spike
on September 14, 2001 when the NYMEX first opened after being closed in the
wake of the events of September 11. Tensions in the Middle East, the effect of
OPEC production cuts and the lingering effects of Iraq's one-month embargo, as
well as low U.S. crude oil stock levels, are seen as factors influencing oil
prices. (Reuters)
May 14 The United Nations (U.N.) Security Council approves an overhaul of the
"oil-for-food" program for Iraq that makes use of an extensive list
of "dual-use" goods (goods that could have a military as well as
civilian use). Iraq will be able to use its oil revenues, which go into a U.N.
escrow account out of which suppliers exporting products to Baghdad are paid,
in order to purchase items not on the list. The resolution renews the U.N.
program until November 25, 2002. On May 16, official Iraqi news agency INA
announces that it will comply with the new six-month tranche of the
"oil-for-food" program voted by the U.N. Security Council on May 14,
despite condemning the Security Council resolution in the same statement. Iraq
officially accepts the U.N. proposal on May 29. (Reuters)
May 15 Private Iranian energy company Petro Iran finalizes a $585-million
buy-back deal to renovate the offshore Foroozan-Esfyandar oilfields. Petro Iran
is expected to acquire a foreign partner in order to give the company the
financial resources necessary to fund the project. Commenting on the deal,
Iranian Oil Minister Bijan Zanganeh states, "With the investments already
made and those about to be secured...Iran's crude oil production capacity and
its quota in OPEC will not decrease." (Reuters)
May 15 Russian customs data released today show that Russia's crude oil
exports rose to 3.49 million barrels per day in the first quarter of 2002, an
all-time high, despite Russia's agreement with OPEC to reduce crude oil exports
by 150,000 barrels per day during the same period. (Reuters)
May 16, 2002 - White House Press Secretary Ari Fleischer states unequivocally that
while President Bush had been warned of possible hijackings, "The
president did not -- not -- receive information about the use of airplanes as
missiles by suicide bombers." [Source: CBS News, May 15, 2002]
May 16 The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) announces that the mean estimate of
technically recoverable resources in Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve is 9.3
billion barrels. The USGS pegs natural gas reserves in the National Petroleum
Reserve at between 39.1 and 83.2 trillion cubic feet. The Reserve's eastern
border is about 100 miles west of the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge (ANWR).
The USGS also declares that at current prices, more oil could be pumped from
ANWR than from the National Petroleum Reserve. The Reserve is still
undeveloped, and the recovery of natural gas would necessitate the construction
of a pipeline. (Reuters, OD)
May 17 Russian Prime Minister Mikhail Kasyanov announces that Russia will not
extend its 150,000-barrel-per-day crude oil export cut, agreed to with OPEC,
into the third quarter of 2002 and furthermore, that Russia will gradually
phase out the export cut in the remainder of the second quarter of 2002. Russia
is the world's second-largest oil exporter. (WMRC)
May 17 The Norwegian parliament approves a $5.24 billion investment in the
Snoehvit liquefied natural gas (LNG) project on the Barents Sea. The project is
expected to produce 5.7 billion cubic meters of LNG per year after it comes on
line in 2006. (WMRC)
May 17 The comments of the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) on the Bureau
of Land Management's (BLM) Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) on
coalbed methane production in Wyoming's Powder River Basin give the BLM's
environmental plan the EPA's lowest rating. This will make it difficult for
increased production from the Powder River Basin to take place without the
EPA's concerns being addressed. The DEIS assesses the impact of development of
over 60,000 coalbed methane wells in Wyoming and Montana. (OD)
May 19, 2002 - Former FBI Agent Tyrone Powers, now a professor at Anne Arundel
Community College states on radio station KISS 98.7 that he has credible
evidence suggesting that the Bush Administration did in fact allow the Sept. 11
attacks to further a hidden agenda. [Source: http://www.indymedia.org - May 20, 2002]
May 20 Representatives of East Timor and Australia sign an accord giving East
Timor 90% of the revenues from the Bayu-Undan natural gas and condensate field
and 20% of the revenues from the Greater Sunrise field. The division of the
remaining 80% of the Greater Sunrise's revenues is still under discussion. The
Greater Sunrise field, about twice the size of the Bayu-Undan field, contains
an estimated 9.5 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. (OD)
May 23 The U.S. Department of Energy changes a rule concerning increased
efficiency of air conditioners and heat pumps, such that manufacturers will be
required to make them 20% more energy efficient by 2004 instead of 30%, as had
been proposed by the Department under the previous administration. (Reuters)
May 23 Chinese officials claim to have discovered the country's largest
natural gas field. The field, in the Ih Ju Meng area of the region of Inner
Mongolia, is estimated to contain 21 trillion cubic feet of natural gas. (OD)
May 21-24, 2002: A New York Times editorial says it's time to "light a fire under
the FBI in its investigation of the anthrax case. Experts in the bioterror
field are already buzzing about a handful of individuals who had the ability,
access and motive to send the anthrax." [New York Times, 5/24/02] Similarly, the Guardian
suggests that the FBI investigation is moving deliberately slow because the
federal authorities have something to hide, stating "there is surely a
point after which incompetence becomes an insufficient explanation for
failure." [Guardian, 5/21/02]
May 24, 2002: Agent: FBI Rewrote Moussaoui Request, John J. Lumpkin, Associated Press,
"An
FBI whistle-blower alleges FBI headquarters rewrote Minnesota agents' pre-Sept.
11 request for surveillance and search warrants for terrorism defendant
Zacarias Moussaoui and removed important information before rejecting them,
government officials said Friday. "Agent Coleen Rowley wrote that the
Minnesota agents became so frustrated by roadblocks erected by terrorism
supervisors in Washington that they began to joke that FBI headquarters was
becoming an ‘unwitting accomplice’ to Osama bin Laden's efforts to attack the
United States, the officials said."
May 24 U.S. President George Bush and Russian President Vladimir Putin agree
to a major new energy partnership that will entail more investment from the
United States in Russia's oil and natural gas sector. The leaders also agree to
joint efforts to improve ports, pipelines, and refineries in order to expedite
export flow. This could mean more Russian hydrocarbon exports to North America.
(NYT)
May 25 Alvaro Uribe Velez is elected president of Colombia. He has promised to
try to end Colombia's conflict with two guerrilla groups, and to provide
greater security for energy infrastructure so as to attract more foreign
investment. He also has indicated his support for a bill that would replace
Colombia's fixed 20% royalty payment on all upstream ventures with a sliding
scale of royalty payments. (OD)
May26th, 2002, a letter by Lt. Col. Steve Butler (DLI, Monterey) is released in the
Herald Tribune, where he accuses President Bush, that he let the attack happen
on purpose: "Of course Bush knew about the impending attacks on America.
He did nothing to warn the American people because he needed this war on
terrorism. His daddy had Saddam and he needed Osama" The full letter is at
http://www.democrats.com/view.cfm?id=7735 Butler gets fired. The story appears
on BBC:
http://news.bbc.co.uk/hi/english/world/americas/newsid_2025000/2025939.stm>
May 28 A law firm representing the government of Libya announces that Libya
will pay $2.7 billion to the families of those who lost their lives in the Pan
Am flight 103 bombing if U.S. and United Nations sanctions are first lifted.
Some Libyan government officials deny that any deal has been proposed, but the
lawyers employed by the Libyan government continue to affirm that a deal is
possible. On May 29, U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell comments, "Just
reading press accounts of what has been said about the offer, it certainly is a
step in the right direction, but I don't think it resolves ... all the
outstanding issues that have to be dealt with, with respect to Libya and Pan Am
103." (Reuters)
May 28 Canadian oil company Sheer Energy signs a contract that makes the
company the first Western company to commit finances to Iran since U.S.
President George Bush's assertion that Iran forms part of an "axis of
evil." (Reuters)
May 28 India announces that it has a 60-day reserve of all petroleum products
ready should current tensions with Pakistan erupt into war. Pakistan responds
on May 30 by stating that it has a 45-day reserve of all petroleum products
ready to use if war occurs. Pakistan and India dispute areas of Kashmir, and
several militant groups operate in the area. (Reuters)
May 28 The U.S. government decides to buy back leases for oil and natural gas
drilling on the Florida coast and in the Everglades for $235 million because of
environmental concerns. Skip Horvath, president of the Natural Gas Supply
Association states, "The natural gas fields taken off the table today
represent enough natural gas to supply a million U.S. families for over 30
years." However, Secretary of the Interior Gale Norton has asserted that
there are only 40 million barrels of oil equivalent in the area to be
protected, about two days' worth of U.S. consumption. (OD)
May 30, 2002: FBI agent Wright spoke out again at a press conference in Washington,
D.C. in May. He accused the FBI of intentionally thwarting investigations of
known terrorists. But instead of making national news, Wright’s story was
downplayed in the media. More disturbingly the FBI tried to block his new book,
"Fatal Betrayals of the Intelligence Mission". Why? Wright also said,
in tears, live on C-Span, that he was threatened by John Ashcroft for months to
shut up his mouth.
http://biz.yahoo.com/prnews/020529/dcw021_1.html
Wright said throughout his six-year posting in counter-terrorism, he was
involved in probes of Hamas and Hezbollah. His most successful 'get' netted
$1.4 million in terrorist money in 1998, money that he said today was linked to
Saudi businessman and financier Yassin Kadi, who was identified late last year
as a close associate of Usama Bin Laden www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,54070,00.html+FBI+%22Robert+Wright%22&hl=de&ie=UTF-8
companies
were expected to join the consortium in a bid to block entry of Argentinean
Bridas or Russian Gazprom in the mega oil and gas pipeline projects. Pakistan,
Turkmenistan and Afghanistan had constituted a working group in 1998 for
quarterly expert meetings to pursue the pipeline project but these meetings
were discontinued in late 2000 due to widening gap between Taliban and US
authorities. Energy experts have been indicating US eyes on Caspian Sea
reserves of $ 5 t with companies owned by Bush senior and vice president Dick
Chenny showing keen interest. The United States is also expecting investment
from US-based energy firms through Overseas Private Investment Corporation
(OPIC) to reactivate over $ 2 bn Turkmenistan to Pakistan gas pipeline.
Informed sources in the energy sector said that the two sides have started initial
consultations to materialize benefits arising out of the removal of economic
sanctions on Pakistan in the post Sept. 11 situation that allowed OPIC and US
Ex-Im Bank to finance private sector projects. The Turkmen-Pakistan pipeline
will be around 1,464 km long from Daulatabad gas field in Turkmenistan to
Multan in Pakistan. It is extendible to India with additional cost of around $
600 mm. Pakistan is estimated to face gas shortfall of around 500 mm cfpd from
the next 5-6 years. The shortfall was imminent in view of the fact that the
mega import pipeline project will take at least two years to complete if
construction has been started. Pakistan has been pursuing four-import projects
from Iran, Qatar, Turkmenistan and UAE. Though Iran-Pak-India Trans gas
pipeline project has now become the front runner, the supply is primarily meant
for India. So far none of the parties have been able to muster sufficient
support from the financial sector to construct $ 2 bn worth of each project
mainly because of American factor, sources said. Source: The DAWN Group of Newspapers
May 2002, the Ford Foundation Board of Trustees welcomed a new member, Afsaneh
M. Beschloss, former World Bank investment officer and CEO / President of
Carlyle Asset Management Group, which is a division of the Carlyle Group, the
defence-related international investment firm which enjoys all-star revolving
door influence in the Bush White House and is enjoying a post-9/11 profit
bonanza. Beschloss first joined Carlyle Asset Management Group in 2001 as a
managing director. She also happens to be married to George W. Bush's official
presidential historian, Michael Beschloss. It would appear that the Ford
Foundation Board of Trustees is within the Bush administration's sphere of
cronyism. Is this who should be entrusted to decide how grant money gets doled
out to "alternative" media organizations? Is the CEO of Carlyle Asset
Management Group and wife of a current presidential historian likely to smile
upon funding alternative media organizations which are eager to go beyond
offering the usual cut-and-paste complaints about Carlyle Group influence in
the White House, and ask more probing questions about this company's role the
"War on Terrorism", such as its alleged investment in anthrax vaccine
maker Bioport or its past business ties with the
not-quite-completely-estranged-from-their-errant-son bin Laden family?
[found in
a hidden post on the internet]
http://www.sf.indymedia.org/news/2003/01/1558867.php
May 30 The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) rejects the State of
California's demand to expand an existing lawsuit seeking refunds from
companies for alleged over-charges from October 2000 to June 2001, to instead
start in May 2000. This would have had the potential to increase refunds by $2.8
billion. (LAT)
May 30 Elections are held in Algeria, but turnout is very low. The ruling
National Liberation Front (FLN) appears to have won the election. (Reuters)
May 31 Japan releases statistics that show that crude oil imports for April
2002 were down 9.4% year-on-year with April 2001, at 4.69 million barrels per
day. Japan's gross domestic product (GDP) fell by 0.4% in 2001, and it is
projected to fall by 1.1% in 2002. Japan is the world's second-largest oil
importer and consumer. (Reuters)
May 31, 2002 - FBI Agent Robert Wright delivers a tearful press conference at the
National Press Club describing his lawsuit against the FBI for deliberately
curtailing investigations that might have prevented the 9-11 attacks. He uses
words like "prevented," "thwarted," "obstructed,"
"threatened," "intimidated," and "retaliation" to
describe the actions of his superiors in blocking his attempts to shut off
money flows to Al Qaeda and other terrorist groups. These are not words of
negligence. They are words describing deliberate and malicious actions.
[Source: C-SPAN website]
June 1, 2002: Memphis, Tennessee, medical examiner O.C. Smith is attacked with
chemical spray, bound with barbed wire, and left lying in a nearby parking lot
with a bomb tied to his body. He is rescued several hours later. In recent
months, Smith has been working on two interesting cases. One is the death of
Harvard University microbiologist Don Wiley, who supposedly fell from a Memphis
bridge in December (see November 16, 2001).
He also helped identify the body of Katherine Smith, a state driver's license
examiner who was found burned beyond recognition in February 2002, a day before
a hearing on federal charges of helping five Middle Eastern men obtain fake
driver's licenses (see February 10, 2002). Adding to the mystery,
Smith had received a series of death threat letters early in 2001. [AP, 6/4/02] Perhaps it's all coincidence, but the
events around O.C. Smith, Katherine Smith and Don Wiley seem to tie 9/11 and
the rash of microbiologist deaths together in some inexplicable way. If someone
wanted O.C. Smith dead, why didn't they just kill him instead of attacking him
in such a strange way and then leaving him to live? Was this, and the earlier
bomb attack against his office (see March 13, 2002),
meant as a warning?
QUESTION:
With 15 top microbiologists in the world murdered, dying mysteriously WHY is
this guy NOT murdered.
ANSWER:
Maybe he is part of the a coverup, and this was staged to take attention OFF of
him
June 2 Occidental Petroleum acquires the 24.5% stake in Dolphin Energy
previously held by Enron for $310 million. The Dolphin project will transfer
natural gas from Qatar to Abu Dhabi and Dubai, with deliveries expected to
begin in 2005. (DJ)
June 3 The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency sends the "U.S. Climate
Action Report" to the United Nations. The report asserts that human
activities, in particular the burning of fossil fuels, are the principal cause
of global warming. (NYT)
June 3 The U.S. Bureau of Land Management conducts an oil and natural gas
lease sale for Alaska's National Petroleum Reserve. Companies submit high bids
of $63.76 million for 60 tracts. The lease sale, covering an area of 3 million
acres, offers tracts that had not received bids during the last sale in 1999.
(Reuters)
June 4 The European Court of Justice rules that France's current golden share
in oil major TotalFinaElf is illegal, as France's shareholding goes
"…beyond what is necessary in order to obtain the objective
indicated," i.e., ensuring "supplies of petroleum in times of
crisis." A golden share is usually defined as a situation in which a
government owns less than 50% of the shares of the corporation but retains a
veto right on decisions in respect to the management of the enterprise. (DJ)
June 4, 2002 - Air Force Lt. Col. Steve Butler, who had called President Bush a joke
and accused him of allowing the Sept. 11 attacks to happen, is suspended from
his post at the Defense Language School in Monterey, Calif. and could face a
court martial. [Source: Associated Press, June 4, 2002]
June 2002, FBI Director Mueller claims: "To this day we have found no one in
the United States except the actual hijackers who knew of the plot..."
June 6, 2002 Judicial Watch has filed lawsuits against several Bush administration
agencies for failure to produce documents concerning the terrorist anthrax
attacks of last October.
The
agencies named include: the FBI, the Department of Health and Human Services,
the Centers for Disease Control, the U.S. Army Medical Research Institute of
Infectious Diseases and the U.S. Postal Service. The documents were requested
under the provisions of the Freedom of Information Act, or FOIA.
http://www.worldnetdaily.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=27888
June 6 Papua New Guinea signs an agreement on a major natural gas pipeline
from the producing area in its southern highlands to the Australian State of
Queensland on the other side of the Torres Strait. It is estimated that there
are six trillion cubic feet (Tcf) of natural gas in the southern highlands area
of Papua New Guinea. (OD)
June 7 Russia and Kazakhstan sign an agreement that permits annual shipments
of no less than 127 million barrels of Kazakh oil through Russia per year over
the next 15 years. This agreement covers Kazakhstan crude shipments through two
pipelines connected to Russian state pipeline monopoly Transneft's system. The
agreement also sets up a joint venture between Gazprom of Russia and
KazMunaiGaz of Kazakhstan that will transport 124 billion cubic feet of natural
gas per year through Russian pipelines in the first few years of the agreement.
(Reuters, DJ)
June 7 U.S. Secretary of the Interior Gail Norton rejects California Governor
Gray Davis' request that the State of California be able to buy back offshore
drilling rights. Secretary Norton writes in her response to the governor that,
"[A] major difference between Florida and California is that Florida opposes
coastal drilling and California does not." Currently, 36 undeveloped oil
and/or natural gas drilling tracts remain in place off the coast of California.
(LAT)
June 10 The U.S. Department of the Interior's Minerals Management Service
issues a report showing crude oil production in the U.S. Gulf of Mexico growing
by an additional 500,000 barrels per day, to 970,000 barrels per day, by 2006.
Natural gas production is forecast to rise to 16.39 billion cubic feet (Bcf)
per day in 2006 in the high scenario from about 13.9 Bcf per day in 2001, but
the low scenario shows a decline to 10.97 billion Bcf per day. (Reuters)
June 14, 2002 - Common Dreams website publishes an account from a former member of
the 1/118th Infantry Battalion of the South Carolina National Guard: "My
unit reported for drill in July 2001 and we were suddenly and unexpectedly
informed that all activities planned for the next two months would be suspended
in order to prepare for a mobilization exercise to be held on Sept. 14, 2001.
We worked diligently for two weekends and even came in on an unscheduled day in
August to prepare for the exercise. By the end of August all we needed was a
phone call, which we were to expect, and we could hop into a fully prepared
convoy with our bags and equipment packed." [Source: Common Dreams, http://www.commondreams.org/views02/0614-02.htm]
June 17, 2002 - Reuters reports that Butler's case, has been resolved without the
necessity of a court martial. (I guess so. There's enough material here to
prove him right. -- MCR) [Reuters, June 17, 2002] (Air Force Lt. Col. Steve had
called President Bush a joke and accused him of allowing the Sept. 11 attacks
to happen)
June 17, 2002 CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) Meeting
"Speaking to our Silent Allies (China): the Role of Public Diplomacy in U.S. Foreign Policy"
Speaker: Henry Hyde Member, U.S. House of Representatives (R-IL); Chairman, House International Relations Committee
Presider: James Sasser Former Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China; U.S. Senator (D-TN)
[www.cfr.org]
"Speaking to our Silent Allies (China): the Role of Public Diplomacy in U.S. Foreign Policy"
Speaker: Henry Hyde Member, U.S. House of Representatives (R-IL); Chairman, House International Relations Committee
Presider: James Sasser Former Ambassador to the People’s Republic of China; U.S. Senator (D-TN)
[www.cfr.org]
Why is the
US media blacking out documentary on war crimes in Afghanistan? Massacre in
Mazar, a documentary by Irish director Jamie Doran, was screened last week
before select audiences in Europe. The film documents events following the
November 21, 2001 fall of Konduz, the Taliban’s last stronghold in northern
Afghanistan. [See: "Afghan war documentary charges US with mass
killings"] The film, which has prompted demands for an international
commission of inquiry on war crimes in Afghanistan, received widespread
coverage in the European press, with major stories in the Guardian, Le Monde,
Suddeutsche Zeitung, Die Welt and other papers. This major story, however, has
received virtually no coverage in US newspapers or on network or cable
television. Aside from stories on some alternative Internet publications, and a
June 16 article on Salon.com, the story has been essentially blacked out in the
US. The film footage is so damning that both the Pentagon and the US State
Department were compelled within days to issued statements denying the
allegations of US complicity in the torture and murder of POWs, which are powerfully
pointed to by the film. If the US government is so concerned over the
implications of what the documentary exposes, why has the US media chosen not
to report on it?
Since
September 11, this same print and broadcast media has consistently toed the
Bush administration’s propaganda line; and there has been no shortage of
coverage on the Afghan war. The government’s flouting of international law and
the Geneva Conventions in the treatment of Afghan war prisoners at the
Guantanamo Bay naval base in Cuba and proposals for secret military tribunals
have gone virtually unchallenged. Assaults on the democratic rights of both
immigrants and citizens—including secret detentions and suppression of
protests—have been reported as legitimate aspects of the government’s "war
on terrorism."
June 18 A report released by the General Accounting Office (GAO) states that
the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) "…is not adequately
performing the oversight that is needed to ensure that the prices produced by
these [electricity] markets are just and reasonable, and therefore, it is not
fulfilling its regulatory mandate." FERC Chairman Patrick H. Wood III
responds that, "The commission [FERC] had not previously focused its
efforts clearly enough to succeed…that has now changed." (LAT)
June 18 American Electric Power (AEP) announces that it will sell its United
Kingdom Seeboard unit to London Electricity Group for $975 million in cash.
London Electricity will also assume $1.05 billion of Seeboard's debt. Seeboard sells
electricity and natural gas to 1.9 million customers in the United Kingdom.
(DJ)
June 20 OPEC releases a report showing that its ten members subject to
production quotas (i.e. excluding Iraq) produced 23.1 million barrels per day
in May, 1.4 million barrels per day above the ten members' combined quota of
21.7 million barrels per day. This is an increase over April's production of
220,000 barrels per day. (Reuters)
June 20 Norway's Oil and Energy Ministry states that, "The Norwegian
government has decided not to extend the restriction on oil production into the
second half of 2002." Norway had agreed with OPEC to reduce its crude oil
production by 150,000 barrels per day for the first two quarters of 2002.
(Reuters)
June 21 Russia's largest natural gas company, Gazprom, and Ukraine's state oil
and natural gas monopoly, Naftogaz, sign an agreement to transport natural gas
across Ukraine, resolving a decade-long dispute on natural gas exports. Russia
now has the right to transit 3.9 trillion cubic feet of natural gas through
Ukraine every year from 2003 until 2013, ending Kiev's denial of foreign access
to its pipeline system. On June 10, the leaders of Germany, Russia and Ukraine
signed a statement on cooperation in the use of the Ukrainian gas pipeline
network, as well as the creation of a consortium to manage the system.
(Reuters, WMRC)
June 24 ExxonMobil signs an agreement with state oil and natural gas company
Qatar Petroleum for the development of two liquefied natural gas (LNG) trains
to be used for export to the United Kingdom. ExxonMobil states that the two
trains will be "the largest ever built" by the industry. (OD)
June 24 Centrica of the United Kingdom signs the second of two ten-year natural
gas contracts, this time with Gasunie of the Netherlands, that will provide 10%
of total natural gas demand in the United Kingdom. On June 9, Centrica had
signed a ten-year deal with Norway's Statoil. The combined deals involve about
459 billion cubic feet per year. (WMRC)
June 25 Russia formally announces that it will raise its crude oil exports by
150,000 barrels per day in the third quarter of 2002 and thereby, end its
agreement with OPEC to limit crude oil exports by 150,000 barrels per day for
the first and second quarter of 2002. Many analysts believe that Russia has
already been exporting near capacity for some months. (Reuters)
June 25, 2002: The FBI search home of anthrax researcher who worked at USAMRIID. [AP, 6/25/02] He remains anonymous in most
stories, but some name him as Steven Hatfill. In the wake of all these stories,
one microbiologist states, "Their intent was clearly to put [Hatfill's]
name in the public eye. The only question is why." The FBI announces that
the search found nothing and Hatfill is not a suspect. [Hartford Courant, 6/27/02] The FBI also announces
voluntary lie detector tests at USAMRIID and Dugway Proving Ground in Utah. [New York Times, 7/2/02] Numerous experts have
pointed out for months that these two facilities are the only likely places the
anthrax used in the attacks could have been made, and that there are only
several dozen possible scientists who could have made it. Why is the FBI only
now even beginning to look into this? The New York Times had been running a
series of articles about "Mr. Z" [New York Times, 5/24/02, New York Times, 7/2/02, New York Times, 7/12/02], who is eventually
revealed as Hatfill. [New York Times, 8/13/02]
June 26 OPEC ministers meeting in Vienna decide to leave their combined output
quota, excluding Iraq, unchanged at 21.7 million barrels per day for the third
quarter of 2002. It is estimated that OPEC-10 countries (i.e. excluding Iraq)
are producing between 1 million and 1.5 million barrels per day above the quota
agreement. OPEC members also agree to appoint Venezuelan Oil Minister Alvaro
Silva as the cartel's new secretary general, replacing Ali Rodriguez, who will
now head Venezuelan state oil company PdVSA. At the meeting, Algeria requests a
larger share of OPEC's total quota, but the issue will not be taken up until
the OPEC Board of Governors meeting in August. (NYT, DJ)
June 26 BP announces that the cost of developing the Shah Deniz oil and natural
gas field in Azerbaijan will be an estimated $3.2 billion. BP expects the field
to eventually account for 7% of the company's total hydrocarbon production.
(WMRC)
June 27 Mexico announces that it will continue its agreement with OPEC to limit
crude oil exports to 1.66 million barrels per day into the third quarter of
2002. A statement from the Energy Ministry said that the decision was
"based on national interests and conditioned upon the future conduct of
the world oil market." Mexico is among the five largest oil exporters to
the United States. (Reuters)
June 28 Angola fines U.S. major ChevronTexaco $2 million for environmental
damage. This is the first time an African country has levied a fine against a
foreign oil company operating in its waters. Angola held ChevronTexaco liable
for failing to replace obsolete pipes, which caused several oil spills. (OD)
June 29 An official at Oman's Oil and Gas Ministry announces that the non-OPEC
country will continue its 40,000-barrel-per-day production cut into the third
quarter of 2002. Oman had agreed with OPEC to cut production 40,000 barrels in
the first and second quarters of 2002. (Reuters)
June 29 Egypt's Electricity and Energy Minister Hassan Ahmad Younes confirms
media reports that Egypt will construct a nuclear power plant, the country's
first, on the northwest coast of the country near Alexandria. (WMRC)
July 2002, British Prime Minister Tony Blair states: "To be truthful about
it, there was no way we could have got the public consent to have suddenly
launched a campaign on Afghanistan but for what happened on September 11."
[Cooperativeresearch.org]
July 1 The California State Legislature passes a bill that limits vehicle
emissions of carbon dioxide, the first such bill to pass a state legislature.
The specific regulations, to be developed by 2005, would take effect on 2009
model-year vehicles. The limits, enacted because of carbon dioxide's putative
effect on global climate change, are likely to have significant repercussions
beyond California because the State represents some 10% of the U.S. automobile
market. Governor Gray Davis signs the bill into law on July 22. (LAT)
July 2 The World Bank suspends consideration of $370 million in loans and
guarantees for AES's $550 million Bujagali Dam hydroelectric power project on
the Nile River in Uganda. The decision, taken because of allegations that AES's
main construction contractor bribed a Ugandan government official, effectively
halts progress on the dam, the largest single private investment in East
Africa's history. (WSJ)
July 2, 2002 - Motions from Zacarias Moussaoui are unsealed in federal court,
indicating that Moussaoui wants to testify before both a grand jury and
Congress about the Sept. 11 attacks. Moussaoui claims to have information
showing that the U.S. government wanted the attacks to happen. [Source: The
Washington Post, July 3, 2002]
July 3 The first-ever shipment of Russian oil. The supertanker Astro Lupus
arrives offshore of the Port of Houston, carrying the first direct shipment of
Russian crude oil to the United States. The oil, about 2 million barrels of
Urals Blend, was exported by Yukos, Russia's second-largest producer and
destined for two ExxonMobil refineries in Texas. Yukos hopes to make six such
shipments this year. (NYT, WMRC, OD)
July 3 It is revealed publicly that several large energy companies were fined
a total of $122 million by the California Independent Systems Operator, the
state agency that control's California's power grid for failing to deliver
electricity during emergencies in the midst of California's power crisis. The
largest fines were assessed against Dynegy ($44.8 million), the Williams
Companies ($25.5 million), and Reliant Energy ($25.1 million). On July 26,
Williams reaches a global settlement with the State of California and other power
partners, including refunds for Williams' activities during the California
power crisis. (NYT, OD)
July 4 Eight large energy companies conclude a framework joint-venture
agreement for the development of a natural gas field in western China and a
2,500-mile "West-to-East" pipeline to transport the natural gas to
eastern China. The pipeline will be designed to carry about $2 billion worth of
natural gas per year. PetroChina, with a 50% stake in the project, put the
pipeline and initial field development cost at $8.5 billion. Royal Dutch/Shell,
ExxonMobil, and Gazprom each have a 15% stake in the venture. (NYT)
July 5 Energy merchant Reliant Resources, in a filing with the U.S. Securities
and Exchange Commission, admits that the company overstated its profits for
1999, 2000, and 2001 by a cumulative $7.8 billion, of which $6.4 billion came
from phantom energy trades. Phantom trading entails selling and then
immediately buying back power, thereby increasing revenues, but without actual
power changing hands. (OD)
July 5 The German Economics Ministry approves the takeover of Ruhrgas,
Germany's largest natural gas distributor, by E. On, the world's largest
non-oil energy company, also based in Germany. The approval contains a list of
additional conditions that must be satisfied in order to go through with the
takeover. This conditional approval overrides a previous ruling by the German
cartel office, which had disallowed the takeover. The cartel office had feared
that a takeover of Ruhrgas by E. On would undermine attempts to liberalize the
German energy market, as the takeover will give E. On control of 60% of
Germany's natural gas imports. (WMRC, NYT)
July 6, 2002 - Afghan Vice President Hajji Abdul Qadir is assassinated by Afghan
warlords. The New York Times reports that Qadir may have been assassinated by
opium warlords upset by Qadir's efforts to reduce the rampant opium farming and
processing that has taken place since the U.S. occupation. Qadir had been
overseeing a Western-backed eradication program, according to the Times.
However, the opium warlords of the region are same ones sponsored, protected,
and in some cases released from prison by the CIA and who have been protected
by President Bush's special envoy, Zalmay Khalilzad. It is reported that the
raw opium is being refined near U.S. bases at Kandahar. [Sources: The New York
Times, July 8, 2002; Far Eastern Economic Review, April 18, 2002]
July 10 Pricing agency Platts begins to include two additional North Sea
crudes, Oseberg and Forties, in its valuation of Brent. This is an attempt to
increase volumes, and hence liquidity in order to avoid market squeezes that
can occur when large amounts of crude are bought by a single trading company in
the context of a small overall volume. BP supports the move, but Shell opposes
it. Brent serves as a benchmark price for global crude oil trade of about $150
billion per year. (Reuters)
Fourth U.S.-China Oil & Gas Industry Forum
July 16, 2002 HOUSTON, - Natural gas cost and regulation between the United States and
China will top the agenda of nearly 150 energy leaders at the Fourth U.S.-China
Oil & Gas Industry Forum presented by the U.S. Department of Energy and
U.S. Department of Commerce. The event will be hosted by the Institute for
Energy, Law & Enterprise (IELE) at the University of Houston Law Center.
The agenda for the annual meeting will focus on three themes: 1) Chinese
participants' summary of Alaskan technical site visits; 2) natural gas
marketization; and 3) natural gas in China. "The Forum will enable China
and the U.S. to meet common oil and gas industry goals, including assisting
China in its efforts to secure reliable and economical sources while
facilitating investment by U.S. industry," said Michelle Michot Foss,
executive director of the UH IELE. The Oil and Gas Industry Forum is
facilitated by the U.S. and Chinese governments. On the U.S. side,
implementation is led by the DOE in conjunction with the DOC, while China's
effort is coordinated by the State Development Planning Commission. The
conference draws participants from the government and industry of both
countries and meets to address issues of common interest. Agendas and
proceedings from forum meetings are available at
http://www.fe.doe.gov/oil_gas/china_forum/. · Projections of national and
global petroleum demand and supply, · Governmental policies that relate to the
oil and gas industry, · Organization and conduct of the Forum,
· Means of increasing U.S. industry participation in Chinese oil and gas development and markets, · Means of increasing the use of U.S. oil and gas technology in China.
· Means of increasing U.S. industry participation in Chinese oil and gas development and markets, · Means of increasing the use of U.S. oil and gas technology in China.
Forum
participants include UH Honorary Degree recipient Daniel Yergin. Yergin is a Pulitzer Prize winner, and he received
the 1997 United States Energy Award for "lifelong achievements in energy
and the promotion of international understanding." He is president of Cambridge Energy Research Associates
and vice chairman of the Global
Decisions Group.
The U.S.-China Oil & Gas Industry Forum is a public-private partnership involving government and companies from the U.S. and China. As of June 14, 2002, the sponsoring U.S. companies include: Burlington , ChevronTexaco, ExxonMobil, McDermott, Phillips and Unocal.
July 17 Indonesian President Megawati Sukarnoputri approves the formation of a
new "Implementing Body" to monitor activities of oil companies
operating in Indonesia. This body, whose effective date is still unclear, will
replace in this role state oil company Pertamina, which had its monopoly
revoked last year. Production sharing contracts will be between the new body
and foreign companies, instead of between Pertamina and the foreign company.
(Reuters)
July 17 The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) decides to raise the
electricity price cap in California from $91.87 per megawatthour to $250 per
megawatthour, effective October 1, 2002. The FERC proposes a computer system
that will analyze bids above $91.87 per megawatthour to determine whether price
gouging is occurring. Also today, the FERC announces that the current board of
the California Independent System Operator (ISO), appointed by Governor Gray
Davis, is not truly independent, and that a new board appointed in consultation
with a number of entities involved in the energy industry must be put in place
by January 2003. (LAT)
July 17 The U.S. House of Representatives votes to cut off federal funds
necessary to permit new oil drilling off the coast of California. The funds
would have gone toward helping oil companies act on outstanding drilling leases
in federal waters. (LAT)
July 17 Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez appoints Rafael Ramirez as the
country's new oil minister, replacing Alvaro Silva, who was chosen in June to
be OPEC's new Secretary General. Ramirez is currently head of Venezuela's state
natural gas regulator, Enagas. (OD, Reuters)
July 19 Japan's Parliament passes a bill that mandates the liquidation of the
heavily indebted Japan National Oil Company (JNOC), beginning in March 2004.
(Reuters)
July 19 British Energy Minister Brian Wilson awards 25 new offshore oil and
natural gas licenses to companies under new terms that require companies to
develop fields quickly or relinquish their claims. The British government is
attempting to slow production declines in the British North Sea by encouraging
the use of new technologies and the involvement of small companies for whom the
development of smaller fields is economic. (WMRC)
July 19 British Gas, Edison International, and Shell are given final permission
by the Egyptian government to develop the Rosetta and West Delta Deep Marine
offshore gas concessions for domestic consumption and export. The exported
natural gas will be liquefied at a new plant under construction at Idku, near
Alexandria. The liquefied natural gas (LNG) will be exported to France, where
it is expected to eventually supply 10% of consumption. (WMRC)
July 21, 2002: In an article titled, "Anthrax: the Noose Widens," Time
magazine reports, "Despite recent claims by some in the bioterrorism
community that the investigation should be homing in on one particular American
bioweapons expert, the FBI appears to be moving in the opposite direction. US
government officials say the investigation is still ranging far and wide and
that the FBI has not ruled out a foreign connection." [Time, 7/21/02]
July 22 Brazilian state oil company Petrobras announces that it has a
preliminary accord to take over 58.6% of Perez Companc, Argentina's
second-largest oil company, for $754.6 million in cash and $370.5 million in
bonds. The deal would expand Petrobras' total production capacity by about 12%.
(DJ, NYT)
July 23 President George Bush signs a bill into law that makes the Yucca
Mountain site in Nevada the United States' central depository for nuclear
waste. Use of the Yucca Mountain site required federal legislative approval
because Nevada Governor Kenny Guinn had objected to the site. The U.S. House of
Representatives voted for use of the site on May 9, and the U.S. Senate voted
for use of the site on July 9. (AP, WP)
July 24 A report from the Saudi American Bank projects that Saudi Arabia's
budget deficit will be about $5.1 billion for 2002, a reduction of the
kingdom's earlier official forecast of a $12 billion deficit. The report
attributes the lower projection to higher-than-expected oil prices. (Reuters)
July 25 Israel cancels a natural gas pipeline tender after Paz Oil and Africa
Israel Investments run out of time to build a viable consortium. Israel intends
to build a significant natural gas production/importation capacity, but this
will be impossible without a natural gas pipeline network. The failure to
attract a major international partner after Tractebel of Belgium pulled out in
April 2002 and BG pulled out of any deal earlier this month is seen as the
reason for the cancellation. (WMRC)
July 25, 2002, Business Week Olympian Hurdles
for China's Pipelines
With much Western help, Beijing wants at least one of the huge natural-gas conduits done by the 2008 Games, despite the deals' daunting details. With the Fourth U.S.-China Oil & Gas Industry Forum in Houston on July 19. Senior government officials with close ties to industry and trade on both sides of the divide exchanged compliments, ducked the tougher questions, and generally did business. But through it all, not a single foot was trod on, at least not in view of the public. China sent its strongest signals yet that it's ready to reel in some of the vast capital in the U.S. to jump-start the buildup of its energy infrastructure. The country, say senior government officials, is determined to complete work on at least one of two new major gas pipelines to supply Beijing and Shanghai in time for the 2008 Olympics.
With much Western help, Beijing wants at least one of the huge natural-gas conduits done by the 2008 Games, despite the deals' daunting details. With the Fourth U.S.-China Oil & Gas Industry Forum in Houston on July 19. Senior government officials with close ties to industry and trade on both sides of the divide exchanged compliments, ducked the tougher questions, and generally did business. But through it all, not a single foot was trod on, at least not in view of the public. China sent its strongest signals yet that it's ready to reel in some of the vast capital in the U.S. to jump-start the buildup of its energy infrastructure. The country, say senior government officials, is determined to complete work on at least one of two new major gas pipelines to supply Beijing and Shanghai in time for the 2008 Olympics.
July 26 Russia releases plans to build five more nuclear reactors in Iran as
part of a ten-year plan for enhancing political, economic, and scientific ties
with Iran. Russia is currently constructing a 1,000-megawatt light water
reactor for Iran at Bushehr. (WP)
July 26 The U.S. Department of Energy announces that it intends to increase the
rate at which the Strategic Petroleum Reserve (SPR) is filled by increasing the
"royalty-in-kind" exchange program by 40,000 barrels per day. Under
the "royalty-in-kind" program, oil companies deposit oil that is
produced on federal leases in the SPR as a form of payment for those leases.
(OD)
July 26, 2002 - White House security prevented the legal watch-group Judicial Watch
from serving Vice President Cheney with a lawsuit filed on behalf of Halliburton
shareholders. Before becoming vice president Cheney was CEO of Halliburton,
which has filed for bankruptcy. [Source: Cybercast News Service, cnsnews.com]
June 26-29 2002 When the year 2002 comes to a close, Russia could be replacing Saudi
Arabia as the world’s leading crude oil producer, if Russia expands production
along the lines indicated so far this year.
(Robert E.
Ebel Director, Energy Program Center for Strategic and International Studies
Washington, D.C. 25 th Annual IAEE International Conference Aberdeen, Scotland)
July 29 Dynegy agrees to sell its Northern Natural Gas pipeline unit to
Berkshire Hathaway's MidAmerican Energy Holdings for $928 million. In addition,
MidAmerican will assume $950 million in outstanding debt. Dynegy is raising its
cash reserves in order to carry out a restructuring plan. (DJ)
July 29 President George Bush announces that he has submitted legislation to
Congress as part of his "Clear Skies" initiative that he claims will
reduce power plant emissions 70% by 2018 using market incentives. (NYT)
July 29 Russia announces that it has granted state-owned medium-sized oil firms
Rosneft and Zarubejneft the right to develop jointly with Kazakhstan a large
oil structure known as Kurmangazy in the Kazakh sector of the Caspian Sea. Some
analysts believe that Kurmangazy may be as large as Kazakhstan's Kashagan
field, which is the largest oil discovery of the past thirty years. (Reuters)
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