Latest Articles about Energy
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The Gazprom-Hungarian Gas Scam
A burst of sunshine has finally been shed on the little known story of how a once obscure Ukrainian entrepreneur, Dmytro Firtash, suspected of links to Russian organized crime, and his unknown partners in a Cypriot holding company named Mabofi Holdings, established Emfesz KFT, a... MORE
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China to Increase Gas Imports From “Economically Complementary” Turkmenistan
Chinese demand is voracious for Turkmen gas. Russia's import stoppage (see above article) can only strengthen Turkmenistan's motivation to start exports to China on schedule in early 2010. With Russia demonstrating its unreliability as a gas importer (let alone supplier to others), Beijing is using... MORE
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Turkmenistan Pressured by Gazprom’s Halt on Turkmen Gas Imports
Russia's suspension of gas deliveries via Ukraine to Europe last January was a hard lesson (not the first of this type) to consumer countries. Moscow's prolonged and continuing stoppage of gas purchases from Turkmenistan (also not for the first time) is an even harder lesson... MORE
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Gazprom Stays the Course Under Putin’s “Manual Management”
Russian energy super-giant Gazprom has taken severe blows in the still-deepening recession, and the worst setbacks have happened in its most profitable market - the European Union. Various assessments show that the volume of its export to Europe shrunk by 35-40 percent in the first... MORE
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Lukoil Acquires Major Stake in Netherlands Refinery and Marketing
Russia's Lukoil has broken into Western Europe's most lucrative oil refining and retail market by taking over Dow Chemicals' 45 percent stake in Total Raffinaderij Nederland (TRN), a choice morsel. The announcement coincided with Russian President Dmitry Medvedev's June 19-20 visit to the Netherlands.Seen in... MORE
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Russia Seeks Stronger Ties with the Arab World
The Russian government has pledged to revive its economic ties with Arab nations. However, Moscow's relations with the Arab world now hardly sound reminiscent of the Soviet-era alliance, as the Kremlin has struggled to cooperate with major Arab energy producers.The Russian first Deputy Prime Minister... MORE
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Russian Government Backing Surgut’s Move Against Hungarian MOL
The Russian government is now openly backing Surgut Neftegaz's surreptitious acquisition of a large stake in the Hungarian MOL oil and gas company. The acquisition is legally contested in Hungary. The Russian government's political intrusion nullifies Surgut's thesis that the acquisition was a regular, free-market... MORE
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Gazprom’s Miscalculation
In early 2009 a number of European countries suddenly found themselves ensnared by events over which they had little, if any control. Poland and Hungary discovered that gas supply contracts they had signed with the company RosUkrEnergo, 50 percent owned by Gazprom, would not be... MORE
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Gazprom Executive Confirms Production and Investment Woes
Briefing the press on June 16 in Moscow, Gazprom deputy chairman Aleksandr Ananenkov lifted a curtain corner on the company's investment and output prospects in the short-to-medium term (Interfax, June 17). Gazprom is set to substantially reduce capital expenditures in the next few years, starting... MORE
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Nord Stream, Matthias Warnig (codename “Arthur”) and the Gazprom Lobby
The ongoing battle over the construction of the Russian-German Nord Stream gas pipeline is reaching a critical stage. In June the German ministry of defense once again voiced its opposition to the proposed route of the pipeline, and presented their arguments to the German parliament's... MORE