E-Mail Address: Password:
Forgot password? [login]
Home Articles Stocks Faq About Us Contact Us RSS Feeds May 15, 2008
SEARCH:
Featured Stories
Guest Opinions
Americas
Europe
Russia
Middle East
China
Australasia
India
Africa
Nuclear
Commentary
Other Issues|Subscribe
Enlarge current cover
 
The Next U.S. Preside...
The Electricity Gap
The Sloppy Science of...
Wanted: Evil Minions ...
Russia: A Critical Ev...
Looking Back at Offsh...
Seward’s Folly…Not!
Welcome to Energy Tribune.

Our motto is “Leading the debate. Beating the Street.” We print a monthly magazine (subscriptions are just $75 per year) and publish on the Web to help you understand the key issues in the energy sector and to help you make money in the energy business. We believe our news and analysis, combined with our various stock lists and indices, will allow you to do just that.

We publish this magazine because we have strongly held beliefs about energy. Here are a few of them:

  • Energy is the world’s most important commodity. Period. Without energy, there is no transportation. And without transportation, there is no commerce. Energy supply, energy consumption, and energy politics are driving the global political, economic, and social debate and will continue to do so for decades to come.
  • Peak oil and global warming are among the key debates of our time. Our editors have strong disagreements about these issues, particularly the latter one. We publish pieces that question the science about global warming and others that do not. The world’s policymakers appear to be in agreement that man-made carbon dioxide is bad and that efforts like the Kyoto Protocol are the solution. Maybe they are. But then what? It’s the “then what?” that’s getting ignored. Mandating drastic cuts in energy use and/or large-scale carbon capture and sequestration efforts will cost billions, perhaps trillions, of dollars. It may also mean huge job losses. And no matter what anybody says, renewable energy simply cannot replace fossil fuels in the modern economy. The point is this: the global warming debate is too important to be left to “group-think” while accepting the spurious claim that “the debate is settled.” We aim to keep the debate going.
  • Corn ethanol is the biggest scam to hit America since the days of Charles Ponzi. Making subsidized motor fuel out of the most subsidized crop in America borders on fiscal insanity. No matter how you slice it, corn ethanol cannot provide enough fuel to displace imported oil. In 2005, U.S. farmers produced about 11.1 billion bushels of corn. If the U.S. turned all of its corn into ethanol, it would only supply about 6 percent of America’s total annual oil needs.
  • We love Willie Nelson, but biodiesel won’t get us there, either. If all 3.2 billion bushels of soybeans produced by American farmers in 2006 were converted into biodiesel, they would only yield about 4.8 billion gallons of diesel fuel, or about 1.5 percent of America’s total annual oil needs.
  • Energy independence is an even bigger hoax than corn ethanol.
  • Energy independence is a fraud perpetrated on the American people by ambitious politicians and war-mongering neoconservatives. The global reality is ever-increasing energy interdependence.
  • The idea that America can build a “wall of energy independence” around itself – a concept advocated by New York Times columnist Thomas Friedman – ignores the realities of the modern energy business. Oil prices are set globally. Sure, the U.S. is a big energy importer. And yes, that creates risks. But life is filled with risks. Plenty of other countries are more dependent on imported oil than the U.S.
  • We see the balance of power in the oil and gas industry shifting away from the supermajors and toward OPEC, the service companies, and the national oil companies. This will radically alter the energy landscape.
  • We are committed to thorough coverage of China and Russia. The reasons are obvious: China has a voracious energy appetite and few resources. Russia has vast resources. While China still clings to its top-down, centrally controlled Communist system, it is gradually becoming more open and tolerant. Russia, meanwhile, is becoming more repressive, more belligerent and more, well, Soviet. And the two countries are doing big energy deals with each other.
  • We are deeply interested in the technology and politics of nuclear power. Right now, nuclear sources provide about seven percent of the world's primary energy. (Carbon-based fuels provide nearly 90 percent.) And although some forecasters believe the nuclear market share in energy supply will decline in the coming years, nuclear may be the only extant source with enough momentum and enough capital to provide sizable increments of new electricity capacity that is low-carbon or no-carbon.
  • We're hopeful, but very cautious, about emerging energy technologies and renewables. Wind and solar are getting loads of hype, but they are not going to displace serious amounts of fossil fuels, not in our lifetimes, and probably not in our children’s lifetimes.
  • Transparency throughout the entire energy supply chain is critical, and the trend toward greater transparency will continue. Whether the issue is accurate crude production numbers by members of OPEC, reliable reserves estimates from Shell, or the total amount Exxon Mobil pays the government of Equatorial Guinea, there's a global push to release more information of all kinds to investors, consumers, and host governments. We support transparency and believe it can help reduce some of the corruption that has plagued the petrostates.
Thanks for reading Energy Tribune. We look forward to becoming an indispensable source of information for you.
Back to Top

 

THE EDITORS
Michael J. Economides, Editor-in-Chief, is among America's leading energy analysts. Back in 1999, Economides warned that oil prices, then at $11 a barrel, were about to surge. Within a year or so, the price was over $30. A consultant, educator, and PhD petroleum engineer, Economides has done technical and managerial work in more than 70 countries. A professor at the Cullen College of Engineering, University of Houston, Economides has written or co-written about 200 articles and peer-reviewed papers and 11 textbooks. He is also the co-author, with Ron Oligney, of the industry primer, The Color of Oil: The History, the Money and the Politics of the World's Biggest Business, which was published in 2000 and has since been translated into five languages. He appears regularly on national TV and radio programs.
Robert Bryce, Managing Editor, has been writing about the energy business for nearly two decades. His articles on energy and other subjects have appeared in numerous publications ranging from The Atlantic Monthly to The Guardian and The Nation to The American Conservative. His first book, Pipe Dreams: Greed, Ego, and the Death of Enron, was named one of the best non-fiction books of 2002 by Publishers Weekly. His second book, Cronies: Oil, the Bushes, and the Rise of Texas, America’s Superstate, was published in 2004. Bryce has appeared on numerous TV and radio programs ranging from the BBC and CNN to PBS and NPR. His latest book is Gusher of Lies: The Dangerous Delusions of “Energy Independence.”
Lisa Zeng Sommer, China Correspondent, knows China's energy business inside and out. She has taught economics at the Managerial Institute of the Ministry of Energy in Beijing and has represented energy companies entering the Chinese market. She travels regularly to China to do additional reporting on the Chinese energy sector.
Energy Tribune has other correspondents in Austin, Houston, Moscow and Caracas.
Back to Top
Looking Back at Offshore for 2007
By Matt Pickard 
May. 12 2008, 12:25 EST
Seward’s Folly…Not!
By John W. Reeder 
May. 12 2008, 12:15 EST
The Electricity Gap
By Robert Bryce 
Apr. 22 2008, 12:39 EST
E.U. Facing Business Backlash
By Peter Glover 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:13 EST
Pakistan’s Ongoing Electricity Shortage
By Muhammad Abd al-Hameed 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:06 EST
The Next U.S. President Will Be the Chau...
By Michael J. Economides 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:31 EST
Malaysia: Correlating Electricity and Ec...
By Neil A. Hickey 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:17 EST
Nigeria: A Case Study in Power Shortages
By Leonard Lawal 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:36 EST
The Super Battery Prize
By Robert Bryce 
Apr. 9 2008, 12:08 EST
Overblown: The Real Cost of Wind Power
By Peter Glover and Michael Economides  
Apr. 2 2008, 11:43 EST
It’s About Time, Time
By Michael J. Economides 
Apr. 1 2008, 4:46 EST
Coalbed Methane Wells are Cheap, but Per...
By Ian Palmer 
Mar. 19 2008, 12:04 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Wanted: Evil Minions for Long Hours, Rou...
By Mac Johnson 
May. 12 2008, 12:32 EST
A Breath of Fresh Air at a Climate Chang...
By Joseph D’Aleo 
May. 2 2008, 11:47 EST
Energy Tribune Speaks with Robert Hart
By Robert Bryce 
Apr. 24 2008, 12:47 EST
Argentina’s Natural Gas Shortage
By Gerardo Jimenez 
Apr. 22 2008, 12:53 EST
Reliable Gas? Not for Iran, Turkey, Euro...
By David Wood 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:29 EST
Carbon Capper Capers: Taxation Without M...
By Christopher C. Horner 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:30 EST
Profiles in Energy Independence
By Mac Johnson 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:55 EST
Chavez v. Exxon: Who Will Prevail?
By Francisco Rodriguez 
Mar. 28 2008, 11:35 EST
The Sloppy Science of Global Warming
By Roy W. Spencer 
Mar. 20 2008, 10:22 EST
Global Warming: the Climate of Fear
By Alexander Cockburn 
Mar. 18 2008, 11:04 EST
Man-Blubber: A Biofuels Bonanza!
By Mac Johnson 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:28 EST
Energy Tribune Speaks with Tim Searching...
By Robert Bryce 
Mar. 2 2008, 11:40 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Indigenous Rights Take Center Stage in L...
By Randy Woods 
May. 12 2008, 12:39 EST
Brazil’s Booming Private Power Producers
By Randy Woods 
Apr. 22 2008, 12:57 EST
Cuba’s Oil: So Close and Yet So Far
By Randy Woods 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:33 EST
Peru Mulls New Natural Gas Markets
By Randy Woods 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:36 EST
Trinidad & Tobago Looks to Stem Rese...
By Randy Woods 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:38 EST
An Ecuadorean Environmental Ultimatum
By Randy Woods 
Mar. 28 2008, 11:39 EST
Mexico’s Surging LNG Trade
By Randy Woods 
Mar. 25 2008, 11:44 EST
Diesel, Natural Gas Demand Soaring in So...
By Randy Woods 
Mar. 20 2008, 10:26 EST
Brazil’s Offshore Gas: Will CNG Bring it...
By Randy Woods 
Mar. 18 2008, 11:11 EST
Venezuela’s Refining Woes
By Randy Woods 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:31 EST
LatAm NOCs Unveil 2008 Investment Plans
By Randy Woods 
Feb. 25 2008, 12:47 EST
Mexican Energy Reforms on Horizon
By Randy Woods 
Feb. 21 2008, 11:14 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Europe’s Diesel Hunger
By Andres Cala 
May. 12 2008, 12:50 EST
EdF Lurks Around Iberdrola, M&A Acti...
By Andres Cala 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:37 EST
Solar Power Boom Continues in Europe
By Andres Cala 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:43 EST
E.U. Chasing Energy Efficiency
By Andres Cala 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:41 EST
Europe Looks to LNG
By Andres Cala 
Mar. 20 2008, 10:30 EST
Repsol Shedding YPF
By Andres Cala 
Mar. 18 2008, 11:16 EST
Norway Lowering Output to Gas-thirsty Eu...
By Andres Cala 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:37 EST
Spain and Italy to Spend $10B on Carbon ...
By Andres Cala 
Feb. 12 2008, 12:07 EST
Germany’s Green Image Gets Coal-Dusted
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 24 2008, 10:39 EST
Coal’s Still King in Europe
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 21 2008, 12:49 EST
Europe's CO2 Capture Conundrum
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 17 2008, 12:46 EST
Coals From Newcastle
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 15 2008, 12:42 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Rosneft Passes Lukoil On Output, Not Pro...
By Pavel Romanov 
May. 12 2008, 12:55 EST
Sakhalin-1 Output Drops
By Pavel Romanov 
Apr. 24 2008, 12:49 EST
Gazprom Investing in the Ethanol Scam
By Pavel Romanov 
Apr. 22 2008, 12:59 EST
U.E.S. Sells Assets to Finns for $3 Bill...
By Pavel Romanov 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:39 EST
Unprofitable East-Siberian Pipeline
By Pavel Romanov 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:49 EST
Russia’s Electric Sector Going Private?
By Pavel Romanov 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:44 EST
COSL Gets Denied by Russian Government
By Pavel Romanov 
Mar. 25 2008, 11:46 EST
Baltic LNG and the Kremlin Cronies
By Pavel Romanov 
Mar. 20 2008, 10:35 EST
GdF, Gazprom, May Link on South Stream
By Pavel Romanov 
Mar. 18 2008, 11:19 EST
Russia Competing in Pipelines
By Pavel Romanov 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:40 EST
Russian Elections Update: Why Medveded's...
By Pavel Romanov 
Feb. 29 2008, 12:30 EST
Gazprom Tightens German Ties
By Pavel Romanov 
Feb. 15 2008, 12:34 EST
CLOSE
MORE
U.S. Monitoring CNOOC-Iran Deal
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 16 2008, 11:50 EST
Europe Needs Iranian Gas
By Andres Cala 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:48 EST
Guangdong’s Middle East Link
By Lee Geng 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:45 EST
Aramco Chief Debunks Peak Oil
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 17 2008, 11:05 EST
Energy Companies Defy Iran Sanctions
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 15 2008, 12:48 EST
The Middle East's Struggle for Electrica...
By Peter Glover 
Dec. 18 2007, 1:23 EST
ADNOC Slashes Oil Output
By Peter Glover 
Nov. 19 2007, 12:46 EST
A Persian Gulf Free-Trade Zone?
By Peter Glover 
Nov. 16 2007, 12:52 EST
IEA Sees No Twilight for Saudi Oil
By Peter Glover 
Nov. 14 2007, 1:20 EST
Kuwaitis, Saudis Continue Downstream Exp...
By Peter Glover 
Nov. 12 2007, 1:06 EST
Iran/Nabucco Boosts Turkey’s Energy Brid...
By Peter Glover 
Oct. 23 2007, 12:56 EST
Japan Pushing For Access to Middle East ...
By Peter Glover 
Oct. 18 2007, 12:45 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Would You Buy PetroChina’s Shares?
By Lee Geng 
May. 12 2008, 12:59 EST
Subsidizing Power in Guangdong
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 22 2008, 1:03 EST
Beijing Clearing Air Ahead of Olympics
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 18 2008, 12:41 EST
LNG Deals Speed Terminal Projects
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 16 2008, 10:43 EST
Promising More Renewables in China
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:52 EST
Sinopec Buys Into Tianfa
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 7 2008, 3:33 EST
China Cuts Emission, Energy Intensity
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 7 2008, 3:31 EST
China's New Energy Overseers
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 3 2008, 4:21 EST
G.U.P.C. Falls Alongside Gong
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 1 2008, 12:48 EST
China Embarks on Carbon Capture
By Lee Geng 
Mar. 28 2008, 11:41 EST
CNOOC Building Downstream Muscle
By Lee Geng 
Mar. 25 2008, 11:51 EST
China's Energy Ministry Likely to Reopen
By Lee Geng 
Mar. 20 2008, 10:38 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Thailand Building More Gas-Fired Power P...
By Neil Hickey 
May. 12 2008, 1:02 EST
Chevron Facing Environmental concerns in...
By Muhammad Abdul Hameed 
May. 2 2008, 1:08 EST
Thailand Says Burma Open for Business
By Neil Hickey 
May. 1 2008, 12:10 EST
Energy Consumption in Pakistan
By Robert Bryce 
Feb. 15 2008, 12:39 EST
Dam Pakistan
By M. A. Hameed 
Feb. 13 2008, 11:31 EST
The Pakistan Fuel Connection
By Robert Bryce 
Feb. 12 2008, 11:52 EST
Southeast Asia’s Exploration and Product...
By Sarah Belfield 
Jan. 17 2008, 1:14 EST
Indonesia: No Longer an Oil Exporter
By Sarah Belfield 
Jan. 15 2008, 12:53 EST
Australia's Gorgon Forging Ahead – Witho...
By Sarah Belfield 
Dec. 21 2007, 1:24 EST
Bottlenecks Slow Australian Coal
By Sarah Belfield 
Dec. 19 2007, 12:13 EST
Metallurgical Coal Stays Hot in Australi...
By Sarah Belfield 
Dec. 18 2007, 1:27 EST
PT Lapindo Brantas Makes Things Clear as...
By Bret Mattes 
Oct. 18 2007, 1:00 EST
CLOSE
MORE
India: Catching More Rays
ET Staff 
Aug. 23 2007, 11:05 EST
Indian Coal on Upswing
By ET Staff 
Aug. 21 2007, 2:28 EST
India's Gas Reserves Deflate
By ET Staff 
Aug. 17 2007, 12:23 EST
Indian Coal Bed Methane Production Begin...
By ET Staff 
Aug. 16 2007, 12:25 EST
Indian Energy Firms Lay Out Big Plans
By Siddharth Srivastava 
Jul. 23 2007, 12:39 EST
Natural Gas Deals Pull India Closer to T...
By Siddharth Srivastava 
Jul. 18 2007, 10:57 EST
India's Carbon Credit Trading Expands
By Siddharth Srivastava 
Jul. 16 2007, 12:38 EST
Chevron-Reliance Partnership on a Roll
ET Staff 
Jun. 18 2007, 11:44 EST
ONGC-Mittal Partnership on the Rocks
ET Staff 
Jun. 14 2007, 12:45 EST
Myanmar Natural Gas Going to China
ET Staff 
Jun. 12 2007, 11:57 EST
ONGC: Change is in the Air
ET Staff 
May. 16 2007, 11:36 EST
Reliance Focusing on Retail Exports
ET Staff 
May. 14 2007, 1:01 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Darfur and Beijing Olympics
By Lee Geng 
Mar. 13 2008, 11:53 EST
Why Europe Loves Qaddafi
Andres Cala 
Feb. 12 2008, 11:59 EST
CNOOC Eyes Caspian, Africa, Not Russia
By Lee Geng 
Jan. 15 2008, 12:57 EST
Pushing for African Oil to China
By Lee Geng 
Jul. 16 2007, 12:41 EST
African Crude Exports to U.S. Jump
ET Staff 
Apr. 18 2007, 10:31 EST
Violence Threatens Nigerian LNG Projects
ET Staff 
Apr. 16 2007, 10:42 EST
São Tomé: Still Waiting for Oil
ET Staff 
Apr. 12 2007, 11:23 EST
Eni Boosts Congo Presence
ET Staff 
Apr. 10 2007, 11:44 EST
Zambia Opts For Biofuel
ET Staff 
Apr. 6 2007, 11:48 EST
Africom: Terrorism? Or Oil?
ET Staff 
Mar. 22 2007, 11:47 EST
Russians in Angola for Oil & Gas
ET Staff 
Mar. 19 2007, 9:36 EST
Devon Pulling Out of Africa
ET Staff 
Mar. 14 2007, 12:02 EST
CLOSE
MORE
British Energy Takeover and the Case for...
By Andres Cala 
May. 12 2008, 12:46 EST
Latin America on Verge of New Nuclear Ag...
By Randy Woods 
Apr. 16 2008, 12:03 EST
China's Nuclear Sector Beats Forecast
By Lee Geng 
Apr. 10 2008, 12:58 EST
Spain Poised to Embrace Nuclear
By Andres Cala 
Feb. 12 2008, 12:02 EST
Iran Offered A Nuclear Compromise
By Peter Glover 
Jan. 21 2008, 12:59 EST
Thailand’s Booming Energy Demand
By Sarah Belfield 
Jan. 17 2008, 1:13 EST
Iran and Russia: Nuclear Pals
By Pavel Romanov 
Nov. 14 2007, 1:26 EST
Europe's Fusion Hype Going HIPER
By Peter Glover 
Nov. 12 2007, 1:11 EST
An Islamic Nuclear Race?
By Peter Glover 
Oct. 18 2007, 1:03 EST
Europe’s New Nuclear Age?
By Peter Glover 
Sep. 17 2007, 12:49 EST
Iran's Radioactive Russian Invoices
By Pavel Romanov 
Jul. 16 2007, 12:44 EST
Russia's $10 Billion Nuclear Deal with I...
ET Staff 
Mar. 6 2007, 10:53 EST
CLOSE
MORE
Dow Jones +0.00 -100.00 0.00
S&P 500 +5.62 +0.40 1,408.66
NASDAQ +1.58 +0.06 2,496.70
As of 05/14/2008 04:00 PM  
Energy Tribune -0.61 -0.40 151.55
Integrated +0.46 +0.25 182.60
Operations -3.40 -1.85 180.63
Services & Equipment -2.47 -1.74 139.51
Coal -4.85 -1.86 255.92
As of 05/14/2008 04:00 PM  
WH Clean Energy +2.30 +2.34 100.68
WH Progressive Energy -0.16 -0.17 93.96
As of 05/14/2008 04:00 PM  
Venezuela, China to Create Joint Ven...
May. 13 2008, 12:03 EST
[Read More]
PdVSA To Have 49% Shares In Refineri...
May. 13 2008, 12:00 EST
[Read More]
Brazil's Petrobras quarterly profit ...
May. 13 2008, 11:59 EST
[Read More]
Congress divided on energy plan
May. 12 2008, 11:18 EST
[Read More]
McCain speaks on global warming
May. 12 2008, 11:13 EST
[Read More]
Natural Gas Advances as Crude Hovers...
May. 9 2008, 10:37 EST
[Read More]
North Sea Brent Daily Shipments to F...
May. 9 2008, 10:36 EST
[Read More]
Nuclear missiles parade across Red S...
May. 9 2008, 10:34 EST
[Read More]
Global LNG Trade Rose 7.3% in 2007 o...
May. 7 2008, 3:43 EST
[Read More]
Home | Subscribe | Articles | Commentary | Stocks | Faq | About Us | Contact Us | Subscribers Only | RSS | All News
Advertise With Us