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Tectonic shifts – the energy crisis and the leap beyond - The Economic War, part 4

Tectonic shifts – the energy crisis and the leap beyond – The Economic War, part 4

Shell declares it may go back into Cambo and the oilfield’s exploration license is extended by two years. The British government pushes for renewed drilling in the UK North Sea. There is public outcry at the Chancellor’s failure to defend households from the attack on living standards driven by price inflation. The Russian government announces...
Time to kick Oil out of Football? – The Economic War, part 3

Time to kick Oil out of Football? – The Economic War, part 3

Roman Abramovich under sanctions! Chelsea up for sale! Scandal engulfs Everton FC as a key donor Alisher Usmanov is added to the UK government’s list of ‘named Oligarchs’. The Economic War has opened a new front on the pitch. Football is pulled into the Russian invasion of Ukraine just as Western corporations and the oil...
Hail to the dockworkers! A Tale of Three Tankers - The Economic War, part 2

Hail to the dockworkers! A Tale of Three Tankers – The Economic War, part 2

You can track them still on MarineTraffic.com … the MV Seacod, the MV Boris Vilkitsky and the MV Pearl. Three ghost ships of the energy system, the spirits of the Economic War. All three of these vessels broke out of the fog that normally swathes the constant trade in oil and gas. All three neared...
Ukraine & the grip of gas – caught in the machine of Crude Britannia

Ukraine & the grip of gas – caught in the machine of Crude Britannia

The newsfeeds hiss and rumble with stories of a possible Russian invasion of Ukraine. We are all of us left waiting. Is this truly going to happen, a military conflict between Russia and NATO? Or is this a fevered concoction that aids the Kremlin, the US Administration, and the UK’s flailing Prime Minister? Will the...
Russian Roulette. The impact of sanctions against Russia on international oil companies

Russian Roulette. The impact of sanctions against Russia on international oil companies

This briefing by Platform, Greenpeace UK and ShareAction outlines the main European and US sanctions that impact IOCs operating in Russia. It details the impact of these sanctions on planned joint ventures involving Exxon, Statoil, Eni and Shell. It also examines the unique consequences for BP as a holder of a 19.75% stake in Rosneft...
Gazprom polar bear ‘gift’ seeks to gloss over the reality of Arctic drilling

Gazprom polar bear ‘gift’ seeks to gloss over the reality of Arctic drilling

NB This blog post was part of an internet hoax instigated by Greenpeace and The Yes Men. You can read more about it here. Check out this ‘video news release’ from the giant Russian energy  company Gazprom, celebrating its new partnership with Shell to drill for  oil in the Arctic. The bear in the film...

Greenpeace sounds alarm on oil groups after sinking of platform, featuring our report ‘Russian Roulette’

Guy Chazan. Piece made homepage of FT website
Russian Roulette: International Oil Company Risk in the Russian Arctic

Russian Roulette: International Oil Company Risk in the Russian Arctic

International Oil Companies (IOCs) face pressure from investors to achieve a positive reserves replacement ratio. With governments around the world increasingly asserting control over natural resources in their territory, as well as conventional oil reserves dwindling, the Arctic is one of the frontier areas targeted by IOCs. In Russia, IOCs have entered a number of...
Shell and Gazprom sign more documents on Arctic tie-up

Shell and Gazprom sign more documents on Arctic tie-up

Gazprom and Shell signed a new agreement today, under the eyes of Vladimir Putin on his trade mission to Europe. The agreement has been in discussion for a few years; at one point a BP-and-Rosneft style share swap was discussed, but the two companies appear to have settled for a Joint Venture. Together they’ll extract...
Divide and fall? Total criticise Arctic oil drilling

Divide and fall? Total criticise Arctic oil drilling

As Andy Rowell wrote this morning, “this is big news”. Total are the first major oil company to publicly state that companies should not be drilling for oil in the Arctic. A divide amongst the oil majors will only increase pressure on companies, like Shell, who despite having to abandon this years drilling plans, still...
Out in the Cold: Investor Risk in Shell's Arctic Exploration

Out in the Cold: Investor Risk in Shell’s Arctic Exploration

Royal Dutch Shell’s plans for Arctic exploration are exposing investors to a ‘spectrum of risks’, this new report by Platform, Fairpensions, and Greenpeace warns. Download the report (pdf) and investor briefing or read online below. The report highlights Shell’s failure to address key concerns for investors and environmentalists: • Spill response plans are inadequate –...

Sakhalin II Impacts

Shell's Sakhalin II gas & oil project in far eastern Russia has disrupted the social and economic fabric of local communities, including indigenous communities and local fishermen. Rare and endangered species are being threatened with extinction, including the Western Pacific Gray Whale and Stellar's Sea Eagle. Shell's pipeline stretches from the northern tip of Sakhalin...