Content

EnergySource

Jun 20, 2019

Power sector transformation and emissions pathways: US and Europe in 2018

By Robert F. Ichord

With the changes in the United States Congress in 2019 and the intensifying presidential primary election campaign, we have seen, in stark contrast to Trump Administration views, considerable attention placed by the Democrats on climate change and the ambitious vision of the Green New Deal. In Europe, the European Union (EU) Parliament has approved more […]

Energy Markets & Governance Energy Transitions

EnergySource

Jun 13, 2019

Nord Stream 2: From EU law to US sanctions law

By Alan Riley

Rainer Seele, the chief executive officer of Austrian energy company OMV and corporate ally of Gazprom, recently called on Europe to defend itself from the proposed US sanctions aimed to stop Nord Stream 2. It is far from clear to which ‘Europe’ Seele is referring. In December 2018, the European Parliament voted 433 to 105 […]

Energy & Environment Energy Markets & Governance

EnergySource

May 30, 2019

Energy governance and China’s bid for global grid integration

By Phillip Cornell

Energy projects have always been a major part of China’s Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) infrastructure mega-plan for Eurasia. The enormity of that plan was on display at the BRI Forum last month, where an official report was released estimating that energy investments in BRI countries would add up to $27 trillion by 2050, with […]

China Energy Markets & Governance

EnergySource

Apr 23, 2019

Saudi Aramco bond offering: What does it say about the kingdom and oil markets?

By Phillip Cornell

At the start of the month, in preparation for its first bond offering, Saudi Aramco released a 469-page prospectus that provided the first real public look into the oil company’s books. The media was astounded by the $111 billion profit figure for 2018, and a bond market hungry for returns oversubscribed to the offering by […]

Energy Markets & Governance Oil and Gas

EnergySource

Apr 18, 2019

Gas Directive: Overly burdensome regulation of the EU gas market?

By Danila Bochkarev

On 15 April, the Council of the European Union (EU) backed a controversial revision of the EU Gas Directive, which was already adopted at a plenary session of the European Parliament in Brussels on 4 April. This adoption by the Council is the last step in the legislative initiative. However, the story began in November […]

Energy Markets & Governance European Union

EnergySource

Apr 11, 2019

Why the massive floating bomb in the Red Sea needs urgent attention

By Dr. Ian Ralby, Dr. David Soud, and Rohini Ralby

A floating storage and offloading (FSO) terminal less than five miles off the coast of Yemen has turned into a massive bomb—capable of explosion due to its contents and lack of maintenance. The risk of explosion increases by the day, and if that were to happen, not only would it damage or sink any ships […]

Middle East Oil and Gas

EnergySource

Mar 29, 2019

Black Sea natural gas games: A fork in the road for the BRUA Pipeline project

By Nolan Theisen and John Szabo

Hopes were riding high on the discovery of Romania’s Black Sea natural gas deposits in 2012, which were expected to provide a cheap and local source of the fuel for Central and South Eastern Europe (CSEE). ExxonMobil and OMV Petrom would carry out the offshore production, and the Bulgaria-Romania-Hungary-Austria (BRUA) pipeline project, formally conceived in […]

Central Europe Eastern Europe

EnergySource

Mar 15, 2019

A European view: Europe, Nord Stream 2, and diversification

By Friedbert Pflüger

Preface During his 2019 State of the Union speech, President Donald Trump claimed credit for getting European NATO members to pay an additional $100 billion in military outlays to the alliance by the end of 2020. Similarly, instead of raising the specter of further sanctions on Russia that would impact European allies, the United States […]

Central Europe Eastern Europe

EnergySource

Feb 19, 2019

Gas and conflict in the Eastern Mediterranean

By Nael M. Shama

In January, Egypt, Israel, Cyprus, Greece, Italy, Jordan, and the Palestinian Authority established the East Mediterranean Gas Forum (EMGF) in an effort to coordinate energy policies and establish a regional gas market. The group will attempt to develop and organize the region’s rising gas market, allowing its members to tap their vast natural gas resources, […]

Geopolitics & Energy Security North Africa

EnergySource

Feb 6, 2019

Energy geopolitics and the four transitions

By Robert F. Ichord

At the Atlantic Council’s recent Global Energy Forum in Abu Dhabi, the global energy transformation and diversification in energy and power markets were recurring themes. A new report from the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), A New World: The Geopolitics of the Energy Transformation, helped to frame the discussion of these themes. The report argues that […]

Energy Transitions Geopolitics & Energy Security