CNN Money is running an interesting feature by David Goldman entitled "10 countries, 10 solutions" which details the particularities of the global economic crisis facing 10 key countries. In typical old-media fashion, the layout makes no sense from a user-friendliness perspective, so I'm going to take significant liberties in reposting their original content. They also have a single table layout of the 10 countries here. Time Warner lawyers, if you're watching this, get your editorial guys to put their content into a more sensible format that doesn't require constant clicking and I won't have to go such lengths to discuss it and in turn will actually drive more traffic to your site. Got that? Good. Now then, first some

...

Reuters reports that next week Vladimir Putin will hold a meeting with global oil giants on how to exploit gas reserves on the Arctic Yamal peninsula.  Natural Resources Minister Yuri Trutnev has told Reuters that Russia will consider easing laws regulating foreign participation in offshore energy projects, which had been restricted during the 2002-July 2008 boom in oil prices.  Rosneft has apparently said that it will not be able to maintain the high level of oil exports that has seen Russia overtake Saudi Arabia as the world's biggest oil producer, as the domestic market will become more alluring to oil producers.  The President of OPEC has reportedly argued that the cartel must improve cooperation with Russia in order to keep prices stable.  Bulgaria has agreed to continue preparations for the Russian-backed Belene nuclear plant, South Stream and ...

Reuters examines oil prices: with an OPEC meeting imminent, crude prices have stabilized, as analysts expect to see the group agree to maintain its 'official output target stable around $70'.  Russia is surpassing Saudi Arabia in oil exports for the first time in the wake of OPEC production cuts.  'In no uncertain terms, Russia has been the biggest beneficiary of OPEC's sacrifice', says strategist Chris Weafer.  Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi believes that the current crude prices - between $68 and $73 a barrel - are acceptable for producers and customers alike.  Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko has met with Iraqi Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki in an attempt to pursue Russia's aim of reviving Saddam Hussein era oil deals.  President Medvedev says that Russia must refuse requests for Ukraine to prepay natural gas transit fees, (with Kiev prepaying more than ...

China’s largest petroleum company, Shanghai Petrochemical Company Limited (SHI), posted net earnings of RMB 1 billion ($129 million) in the first six-months of 2009 helped by a lower cost of sales. Basic earnings were RMB 0.139 ($1.79) per share in contrast to a basic loss of RMB 0.050 ($0.65) in the first half of 2008. Crude oil is the company's major raw material and accounted for 59.32% of cost of sales in the first half. With the significant drop in average price and volumes of crude oil, total cost of crude oil processed decreased 59.33% to RMB 10.4 billion ($1.34 billion). Year-on-year, the average unit cost of processing crude oil almost halved to RMB 2,543.77 ($328) per ton. Energy and power costs decreased 15.7% to RMB 774.8 million ($99.95 million). Consequently, cost of sales decreased 48.55% to RMB 17.60 billion ($2.27 billion), accounting for 92.25% of ...

Given all the news this week of Russia and Italy's South Stream deal with Turkey in exchange for a nuclear power plant, I thought I would repost an article written by Robert Amsterdam last fall in Energy Risk on Turkey's political pipelines.

FROM OCT. 2008, ENERGY RISK:

Turkey's political pipelines

Turkey's strategic position at the crossroads of East and West has put it at the centre of a geopolitical tug of war, with energy supply a key driver. Robert Amsterdam examines the energy policies being brought to bear in the region

Turkey's role in global affairs is defined by its geostrategic importance as the bridge between Europe and the Near East. Following Russia's invasion and occupation of Georgia in August, which caused considerable energy supply jitters, Turkey was once again thrust into the spotlight as the European

...

Last year global oil reserves fell for the first time since 1998, led by declines in Russia, Norway and China.  Russia apparently has no plans to reduce oil production or oil exports in the next three years.  The New York Times reports that the Russian company building the Bushehr nuclear plant in Iran is unsure about when it will open.  Gazprom CEO Alexei Miller has said that the South Stream pipeline should be operational by the end of 2015 and will face no funding difficulties.  Germany's Defense Ministry apparently objects to the Nord Stream pipeline route because it runs through military training areas.  Russia has agreed to take three metric tons of spent fuel from a defunct Serbian nuclear plant to prevent terrorists acquiring it.  Last year Turkmenistan's proved reserves of natural gas tripled.  ...

Axial Vector Energy Corp. today announced that its PETRO AVEC Joint Venture partner, Petrosonics LLC, was awarded two Hong Kong Patents, resultant from the award of European Union patents 1 635 924 B1 and 1 668 095/04 781 388.6. The two patents protect the method by which sulfur and nitrogen bearing compounds are removed from diesel oil through the use of sonic energy and an oxidizing agent. They also protect a related process for the removal of the resultant oxidized sulfur and nitrogen contaminants.

Several oil and gas companies have based their operations in Hong Kong, including CNPC Hong Kong, China Resources Petroleum Company, Ltd., SS United Oil & Gas Company, the Hong Kong and China Gas Company and the Hong Kong Petrochemical Company. The Hong Kong Petrochemical Company plans to invest HK$40-60 billion in the construction of an oil refinery, oil tanks,

...

Highlights include Petroleo Brasileiro SA (PBR), China Petroleum & Chemical Corp. (SNP), Vale (RIO), Cosan Limited (CZZ) and Gerdau SA (GGB).China Continues to Pursue Long-Term Investments in CommoditiesYesterday, leading Japanese business newspaper Nikkei informed that China is considering a plan to use part of its US$2 trillion reserves to buy oil reserves and diversify its international investments, reducing the exposure to U.S. bonds. Currently 2/3 of the Chinese reserves are denominated in U.S. dollars.If this plan is approved, we foresee two direct consequences: (i) Oil prices should recover, leading the way to other commodity price increases, and (ii) the U.S. dollar should fall against international currencies like the Yen and the Euro, a development that would also be positive for commodities prices in general, since they are all negotiated in U.S. dollars -- thus a lower dollar would ...

Last week, Petrobras (PBR) announced it has signed two Memorandums of Understanding with Chinese institutions and an export oil contract with UNIPEC Asia Co. Ltd. -- a subsidiary of China Petrochemical Corporation, or SINOPEC (SNP) -- to export around 100 thousand barrels of oil per day. The Memorandum between China Development Bank Corporation, SINOPEC and Petrobras presents has the followings details : Credit supply to Petrobras, including the option to off-set the debt with the export of oil, as per Chinese institution option and in a volume to be defined in the future; Increase the oil export of Petrobras to China; Partnerships between Petrobras and Chinese companies to develop projects in several oil industry segments; Supply of service, material and equipment by Chinese companies to Petrobras; and Promoting contacts between Chinese and Brazilian companies for the purpose of creating joint ventures.The amount of the deal is estimated ...

Russia’s current woes can be readily summed up in just one single variable – the value of the ruble – and this value, as we all know, is falling. Almost uncontrollably so.br /br /blockquoteThe bank’s target will be “very quickly” breached without more intervention, said Gaelle Blanchard of Societe Generale SA in London. “Right now the market is convinced it wants to see the ruble lower,” Blanchard said. “As long as the central bank gives these targets, then speculators are going to have something to aim for.”br /br //blockquoteblockquote“The market is testing whether the authorities see this band as something permanent or something that will move,” said Lars Rassmussen, an emerging markets analyst at Danske Bank A/S. “Our view is that they’ll move it because it’s not worth wasting the reserves for a band that is obviously not wide enough.”/blockquoteblockquoteFirst Deputy Prime Minister Igor Shuvalov expressed regret that the general …