The U.S. shale gas revolution will go global over the next two decades, with production expanding rapidly in China, Argentina and Canada as natural gas eats into oil’s share of global energy demand to become the fastest-growing fossil fuel, BP says. --
Fuel Fix, 11 February 2016
A new report by the oil giant BP shows CO2 emissions significantly growing, despite huge gains in energy efficiency and countries forcing more green energy onto the grid. It looks like economic growth in developing countries, like China and India, will overshadow global warming regulations in rich countries. “Despite the slowdown in emissions growth, the level of carbon emissions continues to grow, increasing by 20% between 2014 and 2035,” BP reported in its latest energy outlook. --Michael Bastasch,
Daily Caller News Foundation, 11 February 2016
If even the broad shape of BP’s predictions is correct, the resilience of US shale production carries huge implications both for geopolitics and for global markets. Recoverable reserves of oil are increasing more quickly than they are being consumed. There is no longer a strong reason to expect the price of oil to increase over time. Opec can act to maintain its market share, but it cannot fight this structural shift. If BP’s forecasts appear to paint a relatively benign future, however, there is a sting in the tail. Even though the report assumes a substantial shift towards cleaner fuel and less energy intensive economic growth, reflecting the commitments made at the Paris climate change summit, carbon emissions continue to grow. --Financial Times, 11 February 2016
The thousands of attendees seeking reasons for optimism didn’t find them at the annual International Petroleum Week. Instead they were greeted by a cacophony of voices from some of the largest oil producers, refiners and traders delivering the same message: There are few reasons for optimism. The world is awash with oil. BP Plc boss Bob Dudley described himself as “very bearish” and joked that the surplus is so extreme that people will soon be filling swimming pools with crude. --Andy Hoffman and Grant Smith,
Bloomberg, 12 February 2016
The UK government’s chief scientific adviser has urged politicians to embrace fracking as part of a mixed energy policy, alongside renewables technology, conventional gas and nuclear power. --Mike Wade,
The Times, 10 February 2016
Venezuelan Oil Minister Eulogio del Pino returned home empty-handed after concluding on Feb. 7 a week of visits to major oil-exporting countries. His aim was to organize an emergency meeting between OPEC members and non-OPEC states. The topic they would have discussed, had del Pino been successful, would have been how to coordinate a cut in global oil production. But his failure shows that a bloc of OPEC's key Gulf members — namely Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Qatar and the United Arab Emirates — is resisting the pleas of other producers to intervene in the market on their behalf. --Matthew Bay,
Stratfor, 9 February 2016
The Paris climate agreement was already a watered-down compromise, and the fact that the United States is now stumbling in its attempt to meet the climate commitments it made is a bad omen. Moreover, if the Clean Power Plan ends up a bust, the U.S. won’t face any international consequences for its failure to keep its emissions reduction promises. It took all of a month and a half to see why the Paris deal’s lack of an enforcement mechanism is so problematic. --
The American Interest, 11 February 2016
