World oil to run out in 4 years

[waltky]

Fisherman ain't gonna fish...

Fishermen in Spain, Portugal and Italy Strike to Protest Fuel Prices
30 May 2008 - Thousands of fisherman from Spain, Portugal and Italy have gone on strike to join other European protests against soaring fuel prices.

Spanish fisherman say almost the entire Spanish fleet, the largest in Europe, remained in port on Friday. Trawlers and larger commercial boats also remained docked at ports across Portugal. And in Italy, about 12,000 fisherman joined the strike.

French fisherman have already been on strike for two weeks, at times blocking oil terminals and disrupting shipping traffic. In Madrid Friday, fishermen gathered outside the Environment, Agriculture and Fishing Ministry, where they handed out more than 20 tons of free fish to try to win public support.

The fisherman say rapidly rising fuel costs are threatening their livelihoods. Spanish Economy Minister Pedro Solbes told reporters Friday the government is looking into ways to help the fishermen but can not cut fuel taxes.

http://www.voanews.com/english/2008-05-30-voa50.cfm

See also:

Oil crisis grips world
Saturday 31st May, 2008 - All around the world, in a multitude of ways, the soaring price of oil is hurting rich and poor alike.

British pensioners who cannot afford to heat their homes. European hauliers and fishermen whose livelihoods are under threat. Palestinians forced to fill up their cars with olive oil. Americans asked to go down to a four-day week. For the lucky ones, it is simply a matter of changing their lifestyle. But those most vulnerable to the price of oil have been driven on to the streets in angry protests, which raise a fundamental question: what can we do to survive in a world where a barrel of oil costs $127.

The rise in the oil price could not come at a worse time for British Prime Minister Gordon Brown. After a week that has seen hauliers blocking roads and air passengers facing higher surcharges, Friday it was the impact on fuel bills that came to the fore. The Prime Minister's attempt to ease the pain felt by pensioners and low-income families from rising fuel bills was dismissed as a "sticking plaster to hold back a catastrophe". It consists mainly of advice on coping with the cost of heating rather than extra money.

The number of Britons in "fuel poverty" – 10 per cent of their income goes on energy – is thought to have reached four million. The average annual household bill for heat and light is now more than £1,000. The Government plans to reform data protection laws so that low-income families can be contacted directly by the companies and offered help. The aim is to ensure that the "social tariffs" get to the people that need them most.

More Oil crisis grips world

[waltky]

Truckers ain't gonna keep on truckin'...

Oil Prices Prompt Protest In Paris, London
June 3, 2008 - Angry Truckers, Taxi Drivers Slow Traffic In Paris; Fishermen Demonstrate In London

Truckers and taxi drivers slowed traffic around Paris' business district to a crawl Tuesday in a protest over rising fuel prices, and hundreds of fishermen demonstrated in London to demand government help. Dozens of trucks and taxis in Paris drove slowly toward and around the headquarters of oil giant Total SA in La Defense, site of the main financial district, to protest a new tax on heavily polluting vehicles.

Authorities said the operation snarled traffic on several highways. Farmers elsewhere in France blocked ports and oil terminals as part of protests started by fishermen last month demanding government aid to help compensate for high fuel costs. Fishermen from around the United Kingdom demonstrated in central London on Tuesday to demand their government's help in coping with soaring fuel prices.

Hundreds of fishermen gathered outside the London headquarters of the department responsible for food, seeking financial support for an industry they say is especially vulnerable to rising fuel costs. Barrie Deas, chief executive of the National Federation of Fishermen's Organizations, said the cost of fuel for fishing boats was making it impossible for many in the industry to keep going.

"Boats are going out to sea and fish for five days in terrible conditions and we're not getting enough to even pay our crews," he said. World oil prices have been climbing for months, and topped $135 a barrel on May 22. They have since fallen slightly but remain at near-record levels.

Oil Prices Prompt Protest In Paris, London, Angry Truckers, Taxi Drivers Slow Traffic In Paris; Fishermen Demonstrate In London - CBS News

[waltky]

139 Billion Barrels of Untapped Oil in USA...

Our Own Oil Cartel
June 04, 2008 - The U.S. government knows where it can get its hands on more untapped petroleum than exists in the proven reserves of Iran or Iraq. So why aren't we pumping it?

Contemplate this the next time you spend $60 or more filling up your tinny little car with gasoline made from imported oil: The U.S. government knows where it can get its hands on more untapped petroleum than exists in the proven reserves of Iran or Iraq, which have 136 billion barrels and 115 billion barrels, respectively. This unexploited stock of crude is greater than what the U.S. Energy Information Administration reports is in the proven reserves of Russia (60 billion barrels), Libya (41.5 billion barrels) and Nigeria (36.2 billion barrels) combined.

It is more than Hugo Chavez's Venezuela has (80 billion barrels). It is more than is now known to sit beneath the waters and sands of Kuwait (101.5 billion barrels) or the United Arab Emirates (97.6 billion barrels). So, where is all this oil? And why aren't they pumping it? What cartel is holding it off the market, to drive up prices at American gas stations and American supermarkets? What insidious power is stifling the free market for this vital commodity and thus threatening the vitality of our economy?

It is us, of course. We are the culprits. We are responsible for artificially increasing oil prices. It is our oil that sits untapped beneath our deserts, our forests, our swamps and our oceans. It is our politicians -- the ones we freely elected, and re-elected, and re-elected -- who are not allowing our oil to be drilled by us and sold to us. In 2005, Congress passed the Energy Policy Act, requiring the Department of Interior to inventory the oil resources that could be found both onshore and offshore in U.S. territory. In February 2006, Interior's Minerals Management Service (MMS) published the report on offshore oil resources on the Outer Continental Shelf (OCS). It determined there were 85.9 billion barrels of "undiscovered technically recoverable" oil sitting off our beaches.

Just this offshore portion of our undiscovered oil is more than all the proven oil in Venezuela, and more than all the proven oil in Russia, Oman, Qatar and Bahrain combined. What does the government mean when it says this oil is "undiscovered technically recoverable" oil? It means we can go get it with off-the-shelf technology, but the government makes no judgment about the profitability of doing so. This oil, the government says, is "in undiscovered accumulations analogous to those in existing fields producible with current recovery technology and efficiency, but without any consideration of economic viability."

MORE

[waltky]

Fuel protests in Asia...

Fuel Protests Erupt In India, Malaysia
Jun. 5, 2008 - Fuel Price Hikes Spark Protests In India And Malaysia That Could Undermine Governments

Protests broke out in India and Malaysia on Thursday as consumers reacted angrily to sharp fuel price hikes that could undermine governments in both countries. With global oil prices soaring, authorities in the two countries said a day earlier they were slashing fuel subsidies that were draining government coffers. In Malaysia, gasoline pump prices jumped 41 percent overnight and diesel prices surged a stunning 67 percent.

The gasoline price hike in India, the second this year, was smaller _ about 11 percent in the capital, New Delhi _ but will still weigh on consumers. India also raised prices on diesel and cooking gas. The most pronounced protests were in India's West Bengal state, where schools and businesses were closed and flights and trains canceled. Shops were also shuttered and roads emptied in the southern state of Kerala, with protests also reported in the central city of Indore. India's communist parties, which control both Kerala and West Bengal, have called for a week of protests across the country, saying import duties on oil should be further cut instead of raising retail prices.

In Malaysia, long lines of vehicles formed at gasoline stations overnight to fill up before midnight when the new pricing came into effect, and brawls broke out as some motorists tried to cut in line. On Thursday, gas stations were mostly deserted. The opposition Democratic Action Party staged a small protest in downtown Kuala Lumpur and vowed more rallies to demand the government back down from the plan. "There is a sense of public outrage ... both on the increase and the manner in which it was done," said DAP chief Lim Kit Siang. But many Malaysians appeared resigned to the cut in fuel subsidies.

More Fuel Protests Erupt In India, Malaysia, Fuel Price Hikes Spark Protests In India And Malaysia That Could Undermine Governments - CBS News

See also:

Oil barrels back in $5 surge
June 5, 2008: Oil surges more than $5; Crude responds to the dollar's drop as the European Central Bank president suggests a rate hike that would strengthen the euro.

Oil prices rose back above $128 a barrel Thursday after the dollar fell in response to comments by European Central Bank President Jean-Claude Trichet suggesting the bank could raise interest rates. At the pump, meanwhile, gas prices rose to a new record near $3.99, and appeared likely to hit $4 soon. Light, sweet crude for July delivery rose as high as $128.26 before retreating slightly to settle up $5.49 at $127.79 on the New York Mercantile Exchange (Nymex), easily regaining all ground lost earlier in the week.

Thursday's price rise marked the biggest one-day gain in dollar terms on record, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) and Nymex. In percentage terms, crude rose 4.49%, which was not a record. The largest percentage gain came on March 23, 1998, when oil prices rose 15.29% to $16.51 a barrel, according to EIA.

Dollar vs. oil: Trichet spoke after the ECB left a key interest rate unchanged amid concerns about inflation. While Trichet said a change in rates was not a certainty, he said some of the bank's governors favor an increase. "Oil, which was very weak, rallied on those comments," said Phil Flynn, an analyst at Alaron Trading Corp. in Chicago. "They're out of step with the U.S., which is weakening the dollar."

MORE

[waltky]

Nations demand more as production plateaus...

Nations Urge Oil Producers For More
Saturday, Jun. 07, 2008 — Leading energy-consuming nations urged oil producers Saturday to boost their output to counter soaring prices threatening the world economy, while they pledged to develop clean energy technologies and improve efficiency.

The five nations — the United States, China, Japan, India and South Korea — differed, however, on how urgently oil subsidies should be phased out, with Washington backing bold movement while India and China warned of political and economic instability. Cabinet ministers from the five countries, which account for more than half the world's consumption of energy, agreed that the sharp surge in oil prices was a menace to the world economy, and that more petroleum should be produced to meet rising demand.

"It's not good for producing nations to see the U.S. struggling economically. They depend on us to be a significant engine in world economic activity," U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman said. The current president of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Chakib Khelil, has said that the cartel will make no new decision on production levels until its Sept. 9 meeting in Vienna.

Oil prices made their biggest single-day surge on Friday, soaring $11 to $138.54 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, an 8 percent increase. That followed a $5.50 increase the day before, taking oil futures more than 13 percent higher in just two days. World oil production has stalled at about 85 million barrels a day since 2005, while global economic growth — boosted by spectacular surges in China and India�has pushed demand to unprecedented levels.

Analysts also have cited the decline of the U.S. dollar, fears about the long-term supply of oil and aggressive speculation as factors in rising prices. The five consumer countries, meeting before an energy conference of the Group of Eight industrialized nations and Russia on Sunday, argued that the unprecedented prices were against the interests of both producers and consumers, and imposed a "heavy burden" on developing countries.

MORE

See also:

Energy chief: Flat production behind oil prices
Sat Jun 7, `08 - Nations should fight rising oil prices by cutting subsidies and vastly increasing investment in energy, while oil-producing countries need to ramp up output and divulge more information about how much they produce, the U.S. energy secretary said Saturday.

Samuel Bodman, attending two days of meetings in northern Japan among energy chiefs from Group of Eight industrialized countries and other top economies, said the surge in world oil prices was largely a simple problem of supply and demand. Production has stalled since 2005 at 85 million barrels a day, while economic growth — particularly in China and India — has pushed demand ever higher, Bodman said before a meeting of ministers from the U.S., Japan, South Korea, India and China.

"We're in a difficult position where we have a lid on production and we have increasing demand in the world," he told a small group of reporters, dismissing the effects of speculation and unclear inventory levels and other factors on oil prices. "I would devoutly hope we ... see a reduction of the use of oil in the world on the one hand, and an increase in the supply so we can see some mitigation in the pressure on price," Bodman said.

Oil prices made their biggest single-day surge on Friday, soaring $11 to $138.54 on the New York Mercantile Exchange, an 8 percent increase. That followed a $5.50 increase the day before, taking oil futures more than 13 percent higher in just two days. While demand has increased as supply has stalled, analysts have also cited the decline of the U.S. dollar, fears about the long-term supply of oil, and aggressive speculation as factors in rising prices.

More Energy chief: Flat production behind oil prices - Yahoo! News

[waltky]

Saudi's gettin' worried, must be hurtin' their investment portfolio...

Saudis seek meeting to tackle high oil prices
Mon., June. 9, 2008 - 'There is no justification for the current rise in prices,' Saudi minister says

Saudi Arabia will call for a summit between oil producing countries and consumer states to discuss soaring energy prices, Information and Culture Minister Iyad Madani said Monday. The kingdom will also work with OPEC to “guarantee the availability of oil supplies now and in the future,” the minister said following the weekly Cabinet meeting, held in the seaport city of Jiddah. Madani said that the kingdom has informed “all oil companies it deals with as well as countries that consume oil that (the kingdom) is ready to provide them with any additional oil they need.”

“The Saudi Cabinet has instructed Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi to call for a meeting in the near future that will include representatives of oil-producing countries, consumers and companies that work in extracting, exporting and selling oil to look into the price hike, its causes and how to deal with it,” said Madani. The Saudi announcement comes just three days after the biggest single-day price leap ever, when oil surged more than $11 to surpass $139 per barrel.

Retail gas prices rose further above $4 Monday in the United States, the world’s largest oil consumer, following the unprecedented price rally. The kingdom will work to ensure there will be no “unwarranted and unnatural oil price hikes that could affect international economies, especially those of developing countries,” said Madani. “There is no justification for the current rise in prices,” he said.

More Saudis seek meeting to tackle high oil prices - Oil & energy - MSNBC.com

See also:

Malaysia critical of Islamic countries' role in oil crisis
Monday 9th June, 2008 : Malaysia Monday criticised oil-producing Islamic nations, saying they were not interested in helping people deal with the current international oil crisis and were more inclined to follow what the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) said.

Foreign Minister Rais Yatim said Malaysia would discuss the issue of escalating fuel prices at the next Organisation of Islamic Conference (OIC) meeting in Kampala, Uganda from June 18-20. He stressed that Islamic countries must address the issue immediately because oil is produced largely by them.

'... but they were more inclined to follow what the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) were saying rather than assisting the ummah (people),' The Star Online quoted the minister as saying Monday.

'Malaysia would like to suggest that countries of OIC be more concerned in offering solutions to the problem,' Yatim told reporters after delivering his welcoming remark at the third 'International Conference of the Muslim World and the West: Bridging the Gap' here.

More Malaysia critical of Islamic countries' role in oil crisis

[waltky]

Isn't it curious that gas prices go up whenever Congress tries to reign in the oil companies?

Senate Oil Tax Plan Blocked
Tuesday, Jun. 10, 2008 (WASHINGTON) — Senate Republicans have blocked a proposal to tax oil industry windfall profits.

With gasoline prices topping $4 a gallon, Senate Democrats wanted the government to grab some of the billions of dollars in profits being taken in by the major oil companies. Senators voted on whether to consider a windfall profits tax against the five largest U.S. oil companies and rescind $17 billion in tax breaks the companies expect to enjoy over the next decade.

"The oil companies need to know that there is a limit on how much profit they can take in this economy," said Sen. Richard Durbin of Illinois, the Senate's No. 2 Democrat, warning that if energy prices are not reined in "we're going to find ourselves in a deep recession."

The Democrats' oil package would have:

• Make oil and gas price gouging a federal crime, with stiff penalties of up to $5 million during a presidentially declared energy emergency.

• Authorize the Justice Department to bring charges of price fixing against countries that belong to the OPEC oil cartel.

• Require traders to put up more collateral in the energy futures markets to curb speculation.

MORE

[waltky]

Now the So. Korean truckers are on strike against high gas prices...

Truckers Strike Paralyzes South Korean Ports
June 12, 2008 - Key South Korean ports were paralyzed Thursday after truckers blocked all entries and exits to kick off their strike to protest the rising cost of petroleum that has reduced their profits.

At least 87 percent of all containers in Busan, South Korea's largest port city, were locked down Thursday. Busan's seven ports handle 76 percent of all South Korea's shipping. The strike was called by the Korea Cargo Transport Workers Union who accused the government of inadequately dealing with the rising price of crude oil. It urged all members to march the streets Friday to dramatize their discontent.

On Sunday, the government announced it will earmark at least $9.77 billion in the next two years as part of a comprehensive policy package to assist its citizens mitigate the effects of rising fuel cost. The 13,000-strong union on Monday unanimously approved launching a strike.

Union leader Kim Dal-shik was quoted by Xinhuanet as saying,"We plan to hold further negotiations with the government and cargo owners until Thursday, and if the negotiations fail, it will engage in industrial action the next day." Strikers want the government to lower the cost of diesel, increase hauling fees and introduce a standard price system for truckers.

Truckers Strike Paralyzes South Korean Ports | AHN | June 12, 2008

[waltky]

Granny says is okay, she collectin' rainwater...

'Breakthrough car runs on water'
June 13, 2008 - TIRED of petrol prices rising daily at the pump? A Japanese company has invented an electric-powered, and environmentally friendly, car that it says runs solely on water.

Genepax unveiled the car in the city of Osaka on Thursday, saying that a litre of any kind of water - rain, river or sea - was all that was needed to get the engine going for about an hour at a speed of 80 km. "The car will continue to run as long as you have a bottle of water to top up from time to time," Genepax CEO Kiyoshi Hirasawa told local broadcaster TV Tokyo.

"It does not require you to build up an infrastructure to recharge your batteries, which is usually the case for most electric cars." Once the water is poured into the tank at the back of the car, the a generator breaks it down and uses it to create electrical power, TV Tokyo said.

Whether the car makes it into showrooms remains to be seen. Genepax said it had just applied for a patent and is hoping to collaborate with Japanese auto manufacturers in the future. Most big automakers, meanwhile, are working on fuel-cell cars that run on hydrogen and emit - not consume - water.

'Breakthrough car runs on water' | NEWS.com.au

[waltky]

Speculation and supply and demand...

A World Afloat on an Ocean of Oil
June 16, 2008 - Considering how much untapped oil is known to exist, not just in the United States but worldwide, one would think that its current price was some kind of anomaly -- and it is. It is more the result of speculation than anything else.

The most fundamental fact about oil worldwide is that there is lots of it. Though frequently overlooked, the ability to refine crude oil plays an essential role in the supply and demand equation. More refining capacity is needed worldwide. Finally, there's the fact that, in general, oil is very expensive to get at and often found in the most inhospitable places on Earth. For sheer insanity, however, consider a nation that has an estimated 31 billion barrels of oil offshore of its coasts and 117 billion barrels of oil under land owned or managed by the government, plus 139 billion barrels beneath privately held land.

In just one area, a desolate place designated a wildlife refuge, there's an estimated 7.7 billion barrels untapped. The nation with this abundance of oil is, of course, the United States of America. Most of the areas where oil is known to exist have been ruled off-limits to any exploration or extraction by the government. In the areas where it is accessible, drilling for it is hugely encumbered and often denied by the National Environmental Policy Act, the Clean Water Act, the Endangered Species Act and the National Historic Preservation Act.

If, however, you connect the dots, you will have noticed by now that America's energy problems, namely the price of a gallon of gasoline or heating oil, is making everyone miserable thanks in great part to environmental legislation designed to make it impossible to access oil on both public and privately held lands. Then, just to make matters worse, the government requires that every gallon of gasoline include the additive ethanol, which reduces its mileage and increases its cost.

MORE

See also:

Fearless W gonna hunt for more oil...

Bush to urge Congress to allow offshore drilling
17 June`08 WASHINGTON - President Bush plans to make a renewed push Wednesday to get Congress to end a long-standing ban on offshore oil and gas drilling, echoing a call by GOP presidential candidate John McCain.

Congressional Democrats have opposed lifting the prohibitions on energy development on nearly all federal Outer Continental Shelf waters for more than a quarter-century, including waters along both the East and West coasts. With oil prices soaring and motorists paying $4 a gallon for gasoline, political pressures have been growing for more domestic oil and gas production.

"The president believes Congress shouldn't waste any more time," White House press secretary Dana Perino told The Associated Press on Tuesday. "He will explicitly call on Congress to ... pass legislation lifting the congressional ban on safe, environmentally friendly offshore oil drilling," Perino said. "He wants to work with states to determine where offshore drilling should occur."

Bush also will reiterate his call for development of oil in the Arctic National Wildlife Refuge in Alaska, Perino said. McCain has opposed drilling in the refuge, maintaining that the pristine areas in northeastern Alaska should be protected from energy development. On Monday, McCain made lifting the federal ban on offshore oil and gas development a key part of his energy plan. The Arizona senator said states should be allowed to pursue energy exploration in waters near their coasts and receive some of the royalty revenue.

More Bush to urge Congress to allow offshore drilling - Yahoo! News