Latest Articles about Energy

The Bloom Comes off the Arctic Rose
For about a decade, the Arctic has been a showpiece of Russian policy. And with the Vladimir Putin regime’s displayed proclivity for engaging in vast “mega-projects” like the Sochi Olympics, the Arctic had been in a class of its own as a multi-year economic and... MORE

Russo-Sino-Mongolian Transit and Infrastructure Cooperation and Mongolia’s New President
On July 10, Mongolia swore in its new president, Khaltmaa Battulga—a former professional judo wrestler, wealthy businessman, former Democratic Party (DP) parliamentarian, and former minister of transportation and construction (2008–2012). It was widely expected that the Mongolian People’s Party (MPP) candidate, Parliamentary Speaker Miyeegombo Enkhbold,... MORE

Ukraine Moves to Integrate Its Power Grid With European Network
The Ukrainian state operator of power transmission lines, Ukrenergo, signed an agreement on June 28 with the European Network of Transmission System Operators for Electricity (ENTSO-E) to integrate Ukraine’s power grid with the European one. Neighboring Moldova is also about to sign a similar agreement... MORE

China-Qatar Relations in Perspective
On June 5, Saudi Arabia announced it was cutting diplomatic ties with Qatar and closing its land border in response to Qatar “supporting terrorism.” Bahrain, Egypt and the United Arab Emirates quickly joined, and all denied airspace overflight rights to Qatari airlines. Saudi Arabia and... MORE

Armenian Government Must Choose Between Energy Diversification and Loyalty to Russia
In mid-June, the CEO of Russia’s gas monopolist Gazprom, Alexei Miller, paid a spontaneous visit to Yerevan, where he met with Armenia’s Prime Minister Karen Karapetyan. Official information about the meeting is rather scarce. Besides mutually exchanged compliments, reports mention plans for the exploitation of... MORE

Naftohaz Ukrainy Hopes for Final Victory Over Gazprom in International Court
The Arbitration Institute of the Stockholm Chamber of Commerce has preliminarily ruled in favor of the Ukrainian state-owned oil and gas firm Naftohaz Ukrainy over Russian Gazprom’s claims regarding its natural gas supply. The same court is yet to rule on another contract between Naftohaz... MORE

Azerbaijan-Turkey-Georgia: A Geopolitical Axis or an Accidental Alliance?
The Georgian coastal city of Batumi hosted, on May 23, a trilateral meeting of the defense ministers of Azerbaijan, Turkey and Georgia (Azertac, May 23). This trilateral cooperation format was inaugurated in 2012, during a ministerial meeting in Trabzon, Turkey. As expected, a new military... MORE

Ukraine Survives Without Coal From Russia-Controlled Donbas
In spite of a blockade on shipments of anthracite coal from occupied Donbas to Ukrainian thermal power plants (TPPs) since this past winter, the country has thus far avoided blackouts. Moreover, Ukraine has managed to increase power generation by 2.1 percent year over year in... MORE

Are the Littoral States Close to Signing an Agreement on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea?
Moscow’s chief negotiator on the legal status of the Caspian Sea, Igor Bratchikov, stated, on April 14, at the international “Caspian Dialogue” forum in Moscow, that “the Convention on the Legal Status of the Caspian Sea is almost ready, and the absolute majority of provisions have... MORE

Propaganda Against Trans-Adriatic Pipeline Continues Under ‘Environmental Concerns’
On April 6, Italy’s Lazio Regional Administrative Court (LRAC) suspended the environmental impact permit for the Trans-Adriatic Pipeline (TAP), which would have allowed for the relocation of olive trees that obstruct the planned path of the pipeline in the Puglia region town of Melendugno (Italianinsider.it,... MORE