Maridive has begun work on the the EPC contract with Aramco Saudi Arabia to develop the Manifa oil fields (a US$400 million deal). Although the Egyptian economic environment is not great and oil price weak, the company claims the offshore support market is still healthy and that demand of offshore support services is supported by short supply. Indeed, the 3 new AHTS support vessels it bought were instantly hired to new clients at daily charter rates! br /br /One to watch when oil prices recover...

Swings in commodity prices are often exaggerated in both directions, says Eric Roseman. And that’s exactly what we have seen with crude oil prices this year. But Eric says most of the destruction in demand is now priced in. But long-term supply will still be tight. That’s why we should be near the bottom of the oil cycle, with potentially massive gains for investors that by now.

This from Sovereign Society:

The “Elastic Rubber Band” theory is a popular investment term to describe wide price swings in asset markets. Market moves are usually exaggerated on both sides of the trade and this year’s volatility in oil prices is a testament to that swing.

In a bull market, trends tend to rise far above anyone’s boldest predictions while the same is true when a major reversal lends to big price declines. Could anyone have possibly predicted crude oil would be

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The global credit bubble imploded in 2008. And now we are seeing extraordinary efforts to re-inflate it. But Byron King says we can’t go back to the old system now. Investors today need to protect their wealth with gold and cash. But long-term investors should base their strategy on the future scarcity of energy and mineral resources.

This from Whiskey & Gunpowder:

Lately I’ve been discussing concept of scarcity in the energy and natural resource sectors. In one recent note, I discussed how the idea of scarcity has transformed from a “geological” basis to an “above ground” basis. In another note I discussed how the financial system of the world has broken down. This breakdown has damaged many a portfolio. But I still believe that an investment focus that is based on future scarcity of energy and mineral resources is basically correct.

In the future there will still be profound restraints on

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Stuck for Christmas gift ideas? Why not try a barrel of oil? You can get one for around US$40 these days. That’s 54% lower than this time last year and 72% below the price on July 14th ($145.16).

True, a big barrel of West Texas Intermediate crude oil might be hard to fit under a Christmas tree. And it’s probably a fire hazard. But it also makes an excellent end table or lectern. However, we would wait for the post-Christmas sale, or maybe even until 2009, for a lower price.

Speaking of Christmas, just a reminder that our third annual Doomer’s Ball is tomorrow night. The location is BLVD Bar, located at 6 Queensbridge Square on Southbank in Melbourne, from 6:30 p.m. until later. There will signs directing to the right room and even be a red carpet, we hear. If you’ve RSVPd, there will be a check in desk where you

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We are in a transition between the old profligate energy economy and the new economy of relative scarcity, says James Howard Kunstler. He is not convinced the President-elect Obama is fully aware of the dramatic changes that lie ahead for America. Even if he were, says James, he’d probably be crucified for daring to talk about it.

This from Whisky & Gunpowder:

A lot of readers are twanging on me for refraining to castigate President-elect Obama for deeds yet undone. They’re discouraged by the advisors and cabinet secretaries he’s picked, ostensibly because the crew coming in are Washington “insiders,” meaning they can’t possibly see or do things differently.

My own starting point for this is the belief that in the years just ahead any sociopolitical entity organized at the giant scale will flounder — this includes everything from the federal government to global corporations to factory farms to centralized

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In the end, value wins out says Chris Mayer. Nearly every asset class has been taken down by this credit crisis. But the wide gaps between stock prices and tangible business value will close. That’s why Chris says investors should get ready for a major rally in resource stocks.

This from Penny Sleuth:

Question: Where is the price of petroleum going? Eric Sprott: Long term, up… I can see it hitting $200 or $300 or $400 a barrel. — Barron’s, Aug. 18, 2008

Eric Sprott runs the Sprott Offshore Fund, a fund that’s delivered sizzling returns of 32% per year since 2002. Certainly, timing is important, as 2002 was the last great bottom. Even so, it’s not so easy. Lots of people have done a lot worse than average 32% since 2002. Sprott, a 63-year-old billionaire, has been on the money when it comes to calling the resource markets. That’s his

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Bald Eagle Energy Inc. (BEEI.OB), based out of Houston, is an oil and gas exploration company specifically formed to address America’s independence on foreign resources. While domestic energy companies produce 5.1 million barrels of oil per day (MMBOPD), US consumers use 20.7 MMBOPD. The current 15.6 million barrel shortfall is the gap that Bald Eagle is committed to reducing by tapping into the energy resources found in Alaska.

The North Slope Basin is known for its abundance of hydrocarbon with an estimated 27 billion barrels of discovered recoverable oil (BBO) and 52 trillion cubic feet of recoverable natural gas (TCFG). Compared to other parts of the US, the region has a low exploration-drilling density and is under-explored.

Bald Eagle entered into an agreement on April 18, 2008 to acquire a 100% working interest in six separate leases located on the Alaska North Slope.

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The Fed’s first credit crisis lawsuit… who’s suing and why, AmEx, Fannie Mae unload more financial follies… government “fixes” problem with more taxpayer dollars, Chris Mayer with a credit crisis byproduct (and opportunity) that could affect the entire world, China announces big stimulus plan… so why did commodities fall? A hefty chink in Dubai’s armor, Plus, Dan Amoss with a once-favored investment theme due to be back in the spotlight soon

Here’s a curious development that may be worth watching: Bloomberg is suing the Federal Reserve.

Last week, we took a look at the Fed’s bulging $2 trillion balance sheet. And if you’re a long-suffering 5 Min. reader, you know our futile recounting of the weekly Fed lending programs… all the abbreviations and acronyms: TAF, TSLF, PDCF, CPFF, TARP, etc.

Well, the folks at

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Energy investors may find themselves at odds in weighing whether to put their money into fossil fuels or green alternatives. Two separate articles in today’s Wall Street Journal provide a good backdrop for the current dilemma. Ultimately, we’re of the opinion that it’s still too early for alternative energy to make a convincing business case.

In one story, the Journal covers a recently released annual report from the International Energy Agency. According to the Journal, the IAE paints a gloomy picture of energy shortages and escalating costs of discovery and recovery.

The IAE says that current low oil prices are an anomaly linked to the economic crisis embracing the world. Eventually, when the economy regains its health, oil prices will continue to climb over the coming years to hit $200 a barrel by 2030.

One problem with energy prices remains a dilapidated infrastructure. In turn, energy companies would have to invest more than

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We pause now, in what has lately been a laundry list of fiscal and monetary folly, to bring you alarming news about energy.

Oh yeah, energy.  That thing where we had a near-crisis earlier this year, but now we don’t because we’re experiencing deflation.  (Note to irony-challenged inflationists: I’m being facetious.)

I’d been aware the International Energy Agency was doing an audit of all the world’s major oil fields and its report was due soon.  Now the Financial Times has gotten its hands on an advance copy.  The numbers are freaking dire, although the FT puts its usual sober gloss on things.

Output from the world’s oilfields is declining faster than previously thought, the first authoritative public study of the biggest fields shows.

Without extra investment to raise production, the natural annual rate of output decline is 9.1 per cent, the International Energy Agency says in its annual report, the World Energy

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