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Faucon, Benot, Summer Said, and Liam Moloney. Libya, U.S. Probe Oil-Company Deals. Wall Street Journal.

09 April 2012: B3. Print. Authorities in the U.S. and Libya are investigating oil giants such as Italys Eni SpA and Frances Total SA over their past relations with the fallen Libyan regime, potentially casting a cloud on the companies ambitions to expand their foothold in the courntry with the largest oil reserves in Africa. As oil-company operations return to normal, the probes may complicate the oil companies business in the country.

Gilbert, Daniel, and Russell Gold. Towns Fight Against Drilling. Wall Street Journal. 04 April 2012: A2. Print. States hoping to capitalize on their energy booms are running into resistance from local officials who want to be able to police the noise and industrialization that accompany oil and gas drilling. The municipalities are fighting laws that bar them from regulating drilling, enacted by state lawmakers who feared towns would stunt job=creation and a stream of tax revenue. ...an Ohio state senator introduced legislation to grant local officials more control over where companies can drill. The state has temporarily blocked companies from drilling in the Marcellus Shale while regulators weight the environmental impact.

The 117-page suit charges that Pennsylvania has overstepped its constitutional powers by foisting a uniform standard on all localities, upending existing ordinances and development plans. Americas Natural Gas Alliance, an industry group, favors state-wide rules. The tension in these states stands in contrast to Texas, where local officials have the longest experience with drilling into shale formations and have created some of the strictest rules in the U.S.. Fort Worth issued the first municipal ordinances governing gas drilling inside city limits in 2002, including a requirement that wells cant be closer than 600 feet to homes, a standard widely adopted in Texas. Ron Robertson, the mayor of Bartonville, north of Fort Worth, said modifications to the towns ordinance last October were designed to hold the fracking company responsible if something went wrong. That led Chesapeake Energy Corp. and Exxon Mobil Corp., the nations two largest naturalgas producers, to abandon plans to drill there. Last week, state Sen. Capri Cafaro, a Democrat, introduced legislation to rescind the exclusive authority of state officials to regulate oil and gas, and to require drillers to comply with local zoning rules.

Krane, Jim. The End of the Saudi Oil Reserve Margin. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: A13. Print.

Its a familiar scenario: At one time or another, the Saudis have been called upon to replace exports from Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, and most recently, Libya. The idea is to have your cake and eat it - to meet U.S. foreign policy goals without disrupting oil markets and antagonizing the American motorist. ...Saudi Arabia now consumes more oil than Germany, an industrialized country with triple the population and an economy nearly five times as large. As U.S. drivers are now learning, however, the Gulf countries have limited ability to increase production beyond current capacity, and they show even less ability to curb their domestic demand. ...Washington - and the world - will be less free to intervene in the region without raising gasoline prices at home.

Flynn, Alexis. Total Strives to Stem Gas Leak in North Sea. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: B3. Print. ...the French company still faces weeks, if not months, of challenging and expensive work to end the crisis. ...200,000 cubic meters a day of highly explosive hydrocarbons are still spraying out of the wellhead platform into the atmosphere. Nearly 240 workers were evacuated a week ago from Totals Elgin platform, 150 miles off the Scottish coast, when the gas leak was found. Initial relief drilling work is expected to begin around April 8, said Mr. Hogg.

The task now is very clear - every effort must be made to locate and stop the gas leak, said Mr. Hendry. Scottish Environment Secretary Richard Lochead also cautioned the broader situation would still need to be resolved as quickly as possible. So far, there has been a minimal impact on the environment and lets hope that situation doesnt change, he said.

Nicas, Jack. Oil Boom Sparks River Fight. Wall Street Journal 02 April 2012: A3. Print. The oil boom in North Dakota is sparking a high-stakes legal battle over land few people would think to fight for: the muddy banks of the Missouri River. As energy companies race to lock up every available oil-producing acre, the state of North Dakota has been leasing mineral rights to the land beneath and along the river. Now, landowners say they deserve a share of the tens of millions of dollars in proceeds, because the state is including shoreline areas they believe belong to them. Its messy and its complicated, said Lawrence Bender, attorney for a unit of Statoil ASA, the Norwegian oil company behind the suit. In Pennsylvania, attorneys have asked the state Supreme Court to review a case that could give ownership of shale gas to landowners, not to those who own the mineral rights. ...because new technology called horizontal drilling allows them to also drill under the surface miles away from his property. The oil is not only attracting blue-collar well workers from across the nation, but lawyers from places like Minneapolis.

I understand these people are fighting for their grandchildren, Mr. Gaebe said, But Im fighting for all the grandchildren of North Dakota.

Flynn, Alexis, and Kent, Sarah. Total Ready to Tackle Leak. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: B9. Print. Were waiting on the weather to turn in our favor, said Mr. Hogg. Total had been battling for weeks to control the well blamed for the leak when a sudden rush of pressure sent gas and mud spewing out from the drilling deck of the platform. With the risk of an immediate explosion seemingly averted, attention has turned to the operation required to stop the leak. The companys top financial executives said Monday the incident is costing it around $2.5 million a day in a combination of lost production and containment efforts.

Herron, James. Jitters Threaten Fracking in U.K.. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: B9. Print. As a gas leak from Total SAs Elgin field underlines the risks of North Sea oil and gas production , the U.K.s onshore shale-gas industry is still struggling to overcome public fears about the safety of its techniques - which could unlock a replacement for dwindling offshore reserves. But there are fears that if it cant convince a skeptical public its operations are safe, the U.K. could miss out on the economic behefit of a revival in domestic energy production.

In recent years, a technique called hydraulic fracturing...has unleashed a boom in production first of natural gas, then of oil, in the U.S. If the industry doesnt take action to persuade the public of its safety, the groundswell of opposition could ultimately block a U.S.-style increase in domestic energy production, said Fatih Hirol, chief economist of the International Energy Agency. A parliamentary committee last year found no evidence that hydraulic fracturing poses any risk to water supplies and rejected calls for a moratorium. What [locals] want to see is proof, he said, and the sensors will provide detailed images showing how the fractures - and any fluids they contain - are thousands of feet below the water table, Mr. Clarke said.

Ramsey, Mike. U.S. Auto Sales Sizzle. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: B1. Print. Gasoline prices kick up demand as buyers choose more fuel-efficient vehicles. $3.92: National average price for a gallon of regular unleaded gasoline on March 26

Pruitt, A.D.. High Prices, Rent Spark Fuel Feud. Wall Street Journal 04 April 2012: C11. Print. Gasoline prices have jumped in the past year and in some cities are hovering near record highs, boosting oil company profits. But for some real-estate companies that own gasoline stations, times are tough.

Hodge, Nathan. Obama Clears U.S. Sanctions on Iran, Deciding Markets Can Handle Them. Wall Street Journal 31 March 2012: A8. Print. The White House cleared the way for tough new sanctions on Iran on Friday, saying a cutoff of Iranian oil wouldnt significantly harm world markets. The president said in a finding there was sufficient supply of petroleum and petroleum products from countries other than Iran to cushion the impact of sanctions on oil markets. Iran is the worlds No. 3 exporter of crude oil, according to U.S. Energy Information Administration, raising the possibility that the sanctions might remove a significant amount of oil from the global market. In recent weeks, oil markets have factored in the possibility that sanctions might take a significant amount of oil off the market.

Gilbert, Daniel and Russell Gold. EPA Backpedals on Fracking. Wall Street Journal 31 March 2012: A3. Print. The Environmental Protection Agency has dropped its claim that an energy company contaminated drinking water in Texas, the third time in recent months that the agency has backtracked on high-profile local allegations linking natural-gas drilling and water pollution. Taken together, some experts say, these misfires could hurt the agencys credibility at a time when federal and state regulators seek ways to ensure that natural=gas drilling is done safely.

In Pennsylvania, state regulators fined Cabot Oil & Gas Corp., a Houston company that was found responsible for gas escaping into an aquifer in Dimock and that agreed to take remedial steps to clean up the water.

Cui, Carolyn. Once Linked, Oil and Gas Break Up. Wall Street Journal 31 March 2012: B5. Print. Customers who burn cheap U.S. natural gas as a fuel currently enjoy a competitive advantage, and buyers of other fuels have a rising incentive to try to switch. Throughout the quarter, crude-oil prices showed resilience amid escalating tensions between the West and Iran over Tehrans nuclear program. Prices had soared in February as major oilconsuming countries, such as Japan and South Korea, reduced imports from Iran ahead of a planned oil embargo.

Gold, Russell. The Battle Over Fracking. Wall Street Journal 26 March 2012: R7. Print. Natural gas, with huge supplies and low prices, keeps attracting new power producers. The presidents endorsing natural gas in his State of the Union address was an incomparable victory for the industry, because I heard the president four years ago. He wasnt speaking favorable of natural gas. But he, like all the rest of us, can really learn. And he did learn. - Edward E. Cohen

Four years ago the price of natural gas in this country was #13, and today its $2. So were providing an $800 million daily boost to the economy by what weve done with natural gas. - Aubrey K. McClendon The natural-gas industry has, to a large extent, been a loser because prices are so low. But the winner is the American people. I saw a statistic that the average American who heats with natural gas saved about $1,000 last year as against paying for oil. - Edward E. Cohen

Denning, Liam, and Peaple, Andrew. Total Recalls the Risks of the Oil Business. Wall Street Journal 27 March 2012: B4. Print. Unlike ZBPs Deepwater Horizon disaster of 2010, Totals leak mainly involves natural gas. This presents some danger but will disperse into the atmosphere rather than foul beaches. And while fixing Elgin could take six months, its overall value to Total is about $3.47 billion. As was demonstrated in recent strategy presentations, the majors are pushing further into frontier prospects like deep-water drilling and hydraulic fracturing of shale resources to underpin growth. Their ability to do this at all, let alone cost-effectively, diminishes with every foul-up, big or small. The Elgin leak matters less for Total than it does for the oil industry in totality.

Strassel, Kimberly. Natural Gas as a Game Changer. Wall Street Journal 26 March 2012: R4. Print.

Its a global game changer. Youre going to change the power of energy, away from OPEC. - T. Boone Pickens The United states has the greatest opportunity sitting on the table that we could ever imagine. - T. Boone Pickens We put in new regulations on well construction, on impoundment pits and on the total dissolved solids that could be dumped into our waterways. - Edward G. Rendell I think politics today is all about false choices: You can have a robust energy economy and a challenged environment, or a great environment and no economy. Thats a false choice. You can do both. - Edward G. Rendell But if were going to move in this country, were going to have to listen to people who disagree, try to digest what theyre saying, try to ameliorate the things that need to be ameliorated that we can do, and then weve got to move on. Because as Boone said, this is too good an opportunity to leave it on the table. - Edward G. Rendell But the largest aquifer in North American extends from Texas to the South Dakota border across eight states. Weve drilled 800,000 wells through that aquifer. And I dont know of any well that was messed up. - T. Boone Pickens And they did a study that said the whole tax credit for five years would have cost the federal treasury $6 billion. But the effect in the next 20 years on our GDP would have produced $116

billion of additional tax revenue. Now, it doesnt require a rocket scientist to understand that. If were going to take energy and produce it here, were going to get the economic benefits and the tax revenue. - Edward G. Rendell

Needleman, Sarah E.. Pain at Pump Is Hitting Gas Stations. Wall Street Journal 05 April 2012: B12. Print. U.S. gas consumption is estimated to be at an 11-year-low, at around 8.4 million barrels a day, down 4.3% from a year ago. There have been times in the past month when Ive been losing money for every gallon of gas I sell, said the 28-year-old, who co-owns four Chevron gas stations and convenience stores in Arizona, Oregon, and Washington with his father, brother, and sister. Its a very tough industry, he said. Since 2008, for instance, Exxon Mobil Corp. has sold more than 95% of the roughly 2,000 stations it owned, and it plans to sell the rest by year-end. Chevron Corp. had 491 companyowned stations at the end of 2011, down from 1,348 in 2001.

Reddy, Sudeep. U.S. Risks Missing Boom in Russia. Wall Street Journal 05 April 2012: B1. Print.

Russia is on the cusp of joining the World Trade Organization after a two-decade journey, a landmark move to integrate the emerging economy into the international trading system. As a result, U.S. companies wouldnt receive the same legal protections against Russian tariffs and other hurdles to business that companies from other countries would gain, putting the U.S. business at a competitive disadvantage, executives say. U.S. exports of goods and services to Russia could double over the next five years from $9 billion in 2010 if U.S. companies get full access to the market, according to economists at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. But unless the U.S. repeals Jackson-Vanik permanently for Russia - annual waivers arent sufficient - Moscow still could maintain high tariffs on U.S. products and keep other hurdles against U.S. companies that want access to Russias 140 million consumers. We will be seriously disadvantaged if the U.S. stands alone. President Barack Obama has called on Congress to repeal Jackson-Vanik, even though his administration has sparred with Russia recently over Syria and Iran. His Russia policies have drawn criticism from the leading Republican president contender, former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney, who last week called Russia our No. 1 geopolitical foe. Russias blatant disregard for human rights and the rule of law is every bit as relevant today as it was decades ago. - Senator Jon Kyl

Iosebashvili, Ira. Capital Flees Russia, Damping Official Hopes Over Putins Win. Wall Street Journal 05 April 2012: A8. Print.

Capital flight from Russia accelerated in March despite Vladimir Putins re-election to the presidency, which officials had hoped would allay concerns about political risk and slow the torrent of money leaving the country. Higher prices for oil - Russias chief export - in combination with the countrys less-thanfavorable investment climate, may be the chief cause of capital flight, said Yevgeny Gavrilenkov, chief economist at Troika Dialog. As long as we have a large current-account surplus, it will always be difficult to absorb extra oil money, he said. Russia has too much money coming in, and it doesnt match the quality of our institutions.

Dezember, Ryan. KKR to Acquire Natural-Gas Fields. Wall Street Journal 03 April 2012: B7. Print. KKR and Co. has agreed to buy natural-gas fields in Texas and Oklahoma for $306 million as the private-equity firm continues an energy-patch spending spree that has seen it commit billions of dollars to oil- and gas-producing properties. KKR has been among the most aggressive buyers in a surge of private-equity investment in U.S. energy production. WPX, of Tulsa, was spun out of Williams Cos., a large pipeline owner and one of several energy companies that have decided recently that the value of their poarts is more than their whole. The properties produce mostly natural gas, which recently hit a 10-year low as a glut has overwhelmed demand.

Welsch, Edward. Encana Steps Back From Natural Gas. Wall Street Journal 03 April 2012: B4. Print. Encana Corp. is seeking partners to speed the development of more profitable oil and liquidsrich gas properties in North American, its latest shift as it struggles with low natural-gas prices. The fields are in Mississippi, Louisiana, Michigan, Texas, Oklahoma, and Kansas and the Canadian province Alberta. In January, Oklahoma City-based Devon Energy Corp. disclosed a similar joint-venture effort, selling minority interests in five oil-rich fields to China Petrochemical Corp. for $2.5 billion. Natural-gas liquids like ethane and condensate are produced as a byproduct of natural-gas wells but have become more valuable than dry gas. They are used to make petrochemicals and to dilute heavy crude oil for transport through pipelines. The company said in February that cuts to natural-gas production and asset sales will help it conserve case to prepare for the end of those hedges.

Amiel, Geraldine. Leak Costs $2.5 Million a Day. Wall Street Journal 03 April 2012: B4. Print. ...natural-gas leak at its North Sea operations is currently costing the company about $2.5 million a day in a combination of lost production and effort to contain the leak.. Total Chief Financial Officer Patrick de la Chevardire said the company is spending around $1 million a day responding to the leak. The amount could climb to as much as $1.5 million if actual drilling starts. Total is also losing about $1.5 million a day - or 60,000 barrels a day of oil equivalent - in lost output from its share

of the closed Elgin-Franklin field, representing around 2% of the companys total output, said Mr. de la Chevardire. We appreciate the level of concern on the market so let me assure you that we believe we have ample resources to deal with this situation. - Patrick de la Chevardire

Fowler, Tom. Planned Pipelines To Rival Keystone. Wall Street Journal 27 March 2012: B1. Print.

Miller, John W.. Steel Finds Shale Sweet Spot. Wall Street Journal 27 March 2012: B1. Print.

Jakab, Spencer. Why Natural-Gas Prices Could Fade to Red. Wall Street Journal 29 March 2012: C1. Print. U.S. natural-gas prices are at a decade low, at about $2.20 a million British thermal units. That marks an unprecedented discount to oil. April will kick off with inventories near 2.5 trillion cubic feet, 900 billion cubic feet above the five-year average. Industrial companies such as Dow Chemical Co. and Nucor Corp. also are reacting by using more cheap gas and related products. But even if surplus production is soaked up, storage facilities may hit capacity over a month early. If so, pipeline and storage operators such as Kinder Morgan Inc. would have to turn away gas, forcing producers such as Chesapeake Energy Corp. to reduce output further after recent cutbacks.

Ordonez, Isabel; Carey, Susan, and Fowler, Tom. Crude or Refined? Deltas Fuel Gambit. Wall Street Journal 06 April 2012: B1. Print. Delta Air Lines Inc.s unconventional proposal to acquire an idled Pennsylvania refinery is a bet that words second-largest airline can slash its fuel bill at New York area airports and win discounts on fuel elsewhere in the U.S. People familiar with the situation estimate Delta could save between $20 and $25 a barrel on some of its jet-fuel costs by acquiring the refinery The estimated $100 million to $150 million price tag for the refinery is about the cost of a new, wide-bodied aircraft. Deltas plan would involve using an energy company partner that would handle day-to-day operation of the mid-sized refinery. Delta, which paid more than $11 billion for fuel last year, has ongoing cost-saving efforts and is investing heavily in more fuel-efficient planes. We are a little uncomfortable about the company going outside its core expertise, said Hunter Keay, an analyst who follows Delta for Wolfe Trahan & Co. I cant recall any other airline buying a refinery. Air Canada, for instance, now scours the globe for vessel shipments of refined jet fuel that it buys and brings to its home airports via an elaborate supply chain of fuel-storage depots, pipelines and docks, leased rail cars, trucks and barges. The refinery being auctioned by ConocoPhillips has been idled since October and produces up to 185,000 barrels a day. What Delta lost in higher running costs for its planes, it would gain in higher refining margins.

Crude-oil prices are set globally, while refined products are priced regionally. If Delta owned a refinery now, it would likely face a nasty combination of high jet-fuel costs and weak frefining margins, both caused by high oil prices over which it has no control. Delta also would need to manage the sale of all the nonjet-fuel output. For example, in the late 1970s, American Airlines parent AMR Corp. bought oil and gas fields as a hedge. It sold them in 1986, by which time oil prices had fallen by almost half in real terms. Beyond this, Delta could spend the cash to set up the best hedge of all: buying or leasing more fuel-efficient aircraft.

Lauricella, Tom and Forelle, Charles. Europes Markets Are Tested Anew. Wall Street Journal 06 April 2012: C1. Print. New strains surfaced in European markets as a slide in the euro forced Switzerlands central bank to intervene in currency markets and Spanish bond yields climbed to their highest level this year.

Spindle, Bill and Faucon, Benot. Iran Oil Slows as Price Concerns Rise. Wall Street Journal 29 March 2012: A10. Print.

Irans oil exports have dropped this month as buyers prepare for tough new sanctions, market observers say, and shipments are likely to shrink further if President Barack Obama determines by Friday, as expected, that markets can adjust to fewer barrels of Iranian oil. By the end of March, with three months until a European Union embargo on Iranian oil takes effect, Irans exports are expected to fall by about 300,000 barrels a day from last month, to 1.9 million barrels daily, a nearly 14% drop, according to Swiss oil-shipping specialist Petro-Logistics SA. More aggressive measures are in the pipeline, U.S. congressional leaders and the EU say. Sanctions intended to bring Irans nuclear program to heel could eventually leave half of Irans oil output cut off from international markets, according to analysts and officials. But Iran could hold off on any nuclear compromise, betting that sanctions will push oil prices so high that the countrys income will hold steady - while fragile Western economies wrestle with higher energy costs. The oil market has absorbed rapid supply drops before - most recently when Libyan production suddenly halted when fighting broke out last year - but rarely without seeing prices rise.

Faucon, Benot. France Discusses Tapping Oil Reserves to Lift Supply. Wall Street Journal 29 March 2012: A10. Print. France said it is in talks with the International Energy Agency about tapping emergency oil stockpiles, joining the U.S. and U.K. in pondering such a move amid concerns that tensions with Iran could tighten oil supply.

President Barack Obama and U.K. Prime Minister David Cameron earlier this month discussed tapping their own countries reserves as they seek relief for consumers saddled with rocketing gasoline prices. Mr. Obama and French President Nicolas Sarkozy - both up for re-election this year - have been spearheading sanctions against Iran that have already forced the worlds fourth-largest crude exporter to cut its shipments. Both men are under pressure to respond to motorists fuming over rising prices.

Tracy, Ryan. Offshore Drilling Receives Twin Boost. Wall Street Journal 29 March 2012: A6. Print. With higher gasoline prices holding steady, the Obama administration on Wednesday took steps that could pave the way for oil and gas exploration off the coast of Alaska and in the Atlantic Oceans it sought to combat criticism it is hostile to fossil-fuel development. The Department of Interior approved Royal Dutch Shells plan for responding to oil spills in Alaskas Beaufort Sea, new the company called another major milestone toward drilling there this summer. There is no silver bullet to high gas prices, but we must continue to reduce our reliance on foreign oil and reduce our vulnerability to the ups and downs of the international market, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar said. President Barack Obama...has been seeking to rebuff Republican criticism that his policies restrict U.S. oil production.

Mr Obama is focused on trying to talk his way out of what hes done, rather than taking real steps to boost American energy production. Mr. Hastings said a more significant move would be to revive a planned oil and gas lease sale off the Virginia coast that was canceled in May 2010. Environmental groups say the spill plan doesnt go far enough, arguing Arctic conditions would make it difficult to clean up a spill. Environmental groups oppose the testing, saying it can kill marine mammals and fish.

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