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China Requires 30% of State Cars Use Alternative Energy

China is mandating that electric cars make up at least 30 percent of government vehicle purchases by 2016, the latest measure to fight pollution and cut energy use after exempting the autos from a purchase tax. Central government ministries and agencies will take the lead on purchases of new-energy vehicles, a term that China uses to refer to electric vehicles , plug-in hybrids and fuel-cell autos, according to a statement on the central government’s website yesterday. The ratio will be raised beyond 2016, when local provinces are required to meet the target. China is stepping up support for electric vehicles as demand lags behind its target because of consumer concerns over price, reliability and convenience. The government has identified EVs as a strategic industry to help it gain global leadership, reduce energy dependence and cut smog that often reaches hazardous levels in Beijing and other cities. “This is a […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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U.S. Gasoline Falls to $3.6699 a Gallon in Survey

Gasoline prices are cooling just as summer heats up, dropping for the first time in 10 weeks. The average for regular gasoline at U.S. pumps fell 3.99 cents in the three weeks ended July 11 to $3.6699 a gallon, according to Lundberg Survey Inc. The survey is based on information obtained at about 2,500 filling stations by the Camarillo, California-based company. The average, which is 7.91 cents below a year earlier, may fall another four cents to six cents in the next several days, Trilby Lundberg , president of Lundberg Survey, said in a telephone interview today. “The wholesale price cuts are continuing now as refiners pass along the lower prices they’re paying for crude oil,” Lundberg said. “If we can assume that crude oil prices don’t shoot right back up, we may see further declines at the pump.” The highest price for gasoline in the lower 48 states […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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America's Oil Consumption Is Rising, Not Falling, Outpacing China's

In 2013, the nation’s demand for gasoline rose for the first time since 2007, and the trend is continuing in 2014, dampening hopes that the world’s largest oil guzzler is reining in its appetite for crude. Credit: Charles Minshew/KOMU U.S. oil demand reversed course in dramatic fashion in 2013, as the nation’s growth in crude consumption outpaced perennial leader China for the first time since 1999, according to oil company BP’s annual compendium of world energy statistics . The U.S. increase follows two years of declines, and dampens hopes that the world’s largest oil guzzler was permanently reining in its appetite for crude. The nation’s oil use rose by 400,000 barrels per day to a daily draw of 18.9 million barrels; China’s oil consumption grew by 390,000 barrels a day, to 10.8 million barrels a day, according to the BP figures released last month. "Are these data points a […]

Posted On : Published By : ASPO-USA
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America’s Oil Consumption Is Rising, Not Falling, Outpacing China’s

In 2013, the nation’s demand for gasoline rose for the first time since 2007, and the trend is continuing in 2014, dampening hopes that the world’s largest oil guzzler is reining in its appetite for crude. Credit: Charles Minshew/KOMU U.S. oil demand reversed course in dramatic fashion in 2013, as the nation’s growth in crude consumption outpaced perennial leader China for the first time since 1999, according to oil company BP’s annual compendium of world energy statistics . The U.S. increase follows two years of declines, and dampens hopes that the world’s largest oil guzzler was permanently reining in its appetite for crude. The nation’s oil use rose by 400,000 barrels per day to a daily draw of 18.9 million barrels; China’s oil consumption grew by 390,000 barrels a day, to 10.8 million barrels a day, according to the BP figures released last month. "Are these data points a […]

Posted On : Published By : ASPO-USA
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North Dakota oil groups strike $6bn deal

Whiting Petroleum , one of the largest oil producers in the booming Bakken formation of North Dakota, is acquiring Kodiak Oil and Gas, another leading company in the region, in an all-stock deal worth about $6bn including debt. The agreed deal is worth slightly less than Kodiak’s valuation at the end of last week, which gave it a market capitalisation of $3.78bn. It amounts to $13.90 per share, based on Whiting’s closing price of $78.54 on Friday, against Kodiak’s price of $14.23 at the end of the week. More On this topic IN Oil & Gas It also represents a premium of just 5 per cent to Kodiak’s average share price over the preceding 60 days. Under the terms, Kodiak shareholders will receive 0.177 of a Whiting share for every one they own in Kodiak, meaning that they will hold 29 per cent of the merged company. Whiting will […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Whiting to Unseat Bakken King Hamm With Kodiak Purchase

Whiting Petroleum Corp. (WLL) ’s $3.8 billion purchase of Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. (KOG) will create the dominant crude-oil producer in the richest U.S. shale region as energy explorers seek access to future drilling opportunities. Kodiak stockholders will receive 0.177 of a Whiting share for each Kodiak share they own, which is the equivalent of $13.90 based on the acquirer’s July 11 price , the Denver-based companies said in a statement yesterday. Including $2.2 billion in debt, the total transaction is valued at about $6 billion. The agreement will vault Whiting ahead of Oklahoma billionaire Harold Hamm ’s Continental Resources Inc. as the premier oil supplier in the Bakken shale formation in the northern Great Plains. Whiting is buying a company that more than doubled production last year while Whiting’s own output growth slowed as costs to bring new wells online surged. Competition for Bakken assets is fierce […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Whiting Petroleum to Buy Kodiak Oil & Gas

Whiting Petroleum Corp. said it would buy Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. for $3.8 billion in stock plus the assumption of $2.2 billion in debt, creating a new top producer in the Bakken Shale and Three Forks formations. The two companies together produced 107,000 barrels a day of oil equivalent in North Dakota and Montana in the first quarter. That compares with Continental Resources Inc. ‘s output of around 97,500 barrels of oil equivalent a day in the region. The combined company enterprise value would be $17.8 billion, with reserves of 606 million barrels of oil equivalent, including Whiting’s Colorado prospects, Whiting Chief Executive James Volker said Sunday. The Bakken is one of North America’s most prolific shale fields. In April its output surpassed one million barrels of oil a day for the first time. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Whiting Petroleum to Buy Kodiak Oil & Gas

Whiting Petroleum Corp. said it would buy Kodiak Oil & Gas Corp. for $3.8 billion in stock plus the assumption of $2.2 billion in debt, creating a new top producer in the Bakken Shale and Three Forks formations. The two companies together produced 107,000 barrels a day of oil equivalent in North Dakota and Montana in the first quarter. That compares with Continental Resources Inc. ‘s output of around 97,500 barrels of oil equivalent a day in the region. The combined company enterprise value would be $17.8 billion, with reserves of 606 million barrels of oil equivalent, including Whiting’s Colorado prospects, Whiting Chief Executive James Volker said Sunday. The Bakken is one of North America’s most prolific shale fields. In April its output surpassed one million barrels of oil a day for the first time. […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Peak Oil in Russia

General Ideas This week no energy relevant developments came out of Iraq. The Islamic State seems to be still consolidating its territories, facing scant opposition from the Baghdad government. But the spectacular advances seem to be done with, at least for now. Few western media outlets are able to properly report the situation, with gory news now focusing on Israel and Gaza. The news meat-grinder has recently been profuse in news regarding the breakaway of the BRICS from the IMF and other OECD controlled institutions. This was a setting trend but that has been accelerated by the backlash of the US spying programme and, more importantly, by the intervention of NATO in Ukraine. In the midst of all this comes almost unnoticed what is probably the most important energy news of 2014: Petroleum extraction in Russia has definitely peaked. Russian authorities are openly bracing for the ensuing decline in […]

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Russia warns Ukraine of ‘irreversible consequences’ after cross-border shelling

Russia is warning Ukraine of “irreversible consequences” after cross-border shelling from the battle-worn east struck Russian territory Sunday, reportedly killing one Russian citizen and injuring two others. “This incident highlights the extremely dangerous escalation of tensions in the Russian-Ukrainian border and may have irreversible consequences, the responsibility for which lies on the Ukrainian side,” Russia’s Foreign Ministry said in a statement Sunday, calling the incident an “aggressive action.” Russian officials summoned the Ukrainian charge d’affaires to the foreign ministry in Moscow to protest the civilian’s death, which they say occurred when the Ukrainian army shot mine shells from the Donetsk area into Russia’s Rostov region on the other side of the border, hitting a residential building. Ukrainian officials vehemently deny they have fired on Russian territory, and are questioning whether Russia is making up details surrounding the incident simply to build a case against Ukraine’s military. “Forces of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple