Oil
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"A New Age in the History of Energy" as China Tops the U.S. in Consumption
China, powered by years of surging economic growth, is now the world's largest energy consumer, bumping the United States from the top spot for the first time in more than a century, according to new data from the International Energy Agency (IEA).
China consumed 2.25 billion tons of oil equivalent last year, or about 4% more than the United States, which burned through 2.17 billion tons of oil equivalent. China's total energy consumption was just half that of the United States a decade ago.
"The fact that China overtook the U.S. as the world's largest energy consumer symbolizes the start of a new age in the history of energy," IEA chief economist Fatih Birol told The Wall Street Journal. The United States had been the world's biggest overall energy consumer since the early 1900s, he said.
China was expected to become the biggest energy consumer in 2015, but the economic meltdown and green energy programs in the United States accelerated the transition, Birol said.
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Breaking Down the British Giant: Who Will Buy BP's Best Assets?
There's no question that some of BP PLC (NYSE ARD: BP)'s assets are on the block.
The company said Monday that the total cost of the Gulf oil spill had already risen to $3.5 billion. And while it's too early to estimate the final costs associated with the spill, analysts have pegged the tab at $20 billion to $40 billion. Some even believe the total cost could come in near $100 billion.
BP has already paid $165 million to settle individual claims and agreed to set up a $20 billion escrow fund to absorb further damages. It's also suspended its dividend to conserve cash.
But that's not enough. With costs soaring, BP said in June that it is looking to raise at least $10 billion through asset sales in the next 12 months. With that the run on BP's assets commenced.
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The BP Relief Wells … And the Two Nightmare Scenarios to Fear
Although the global energy sector is entering its most-promising stretch in decades - with more new technologies and more investment opportunities than ever before - I just can't seem to get away from BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) and its problems.
Take last Thursday, for instance. I began the day at FOX Business News, where the interviewer wanted me to explain what will happen if the BP relief wells fail. Then I spent an hour as the guest on a radio talk show from Johannesburg, South Africa, detailing what options are available to BP. Later still, I served as a consultant to a Wall Street investment crew - via conference call - once again on the status of the BP relief wells.
The BP relief wells are right now the dominant topic on everyone's mind. But there are two potential scenarios - of "nightmare proportions" - that investors need to know about.
Let me explain...
To understand the possible nightmares that BP faces in the months to come, please read on... -
Australia Reduces Mining "Super Tax," Reviving Profitability of Resource Sector
Australian mining companies declared a huge win today (Friday) when the government announced the proposed mining "super tax" would be reduced, prompting some companies to reactivate shelved projects and reopen merger and acquisition talks.
Australia's Prime Minister Julia Gillard agreed on a compromise plan that would reduce the planned tax to 30% of profits from iron ore and coal, and 40% tax on oil and natural gas, down from the originally proposed 40% tax on all resources. The new plan, called the mineral resource rent tax, would also raise the tax's trigger level to profits that exceed a 12% rate of return instead of 6%.
"The reduction in the headline rate is an amazing concession," John Robinson, chairman of Global Mining Investments Ltd., told Bloomberg. "It's certainly better than I had expected."
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Taipan Daily: Profit from Alternative Energy ETF's in Wake of BP Oil Spill
Publisher's Note: Justice is taking a few days off for a family event. We've asked Taipan's Senior Research Director, Sara Nunnally, to step in. Justice will be back next week. But in the meantime, enjoy Sara's insightful look into the Gulf oil crisis, and what it could mean to you and your investments. How many [...]
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The 'New' Energy Sector: Windfall Profits for Investors, Energy Independence for the U.S. Economy
The BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) oil spill has been a wakeup call for energy-sector regulators.
But it's been an even bigger wakeup call for investors.
Years from now, investors will look back at this period as a turning point - the start of the greatest profit opportunity of this generation. And that's not all. The post-oil-spill period will go down in history as the period during which the United States was finally able to break its dependence on foreign oil, says Dr. Kent Moors, a career energy-sector consultant who works with governments and corporations throughout the world.
Investors who understand the energy-sector shifts that are taking place "will make more money in energy investments over the next several years than in any other sector during any other period in their lifetimes," says Dr. Moors, who is also the editor of the Oil & Energy Investor newsletter. With the changes he's currently projecting, "a large measure of energy independence for the U.S. becomes possible. And I'm not just talking about a mere economic 'recovery' here. We'd be looking at a standard of living that's 60% higher, an economy expanding at 5% to 7% a year and - most important of all - a future that we could dictate."
To understand the top trends unfolding in the new energy sector, please read on... -
Free Report: The New Global Power Broker in Oil
Uganda has found oil, and lots of it. But it lacks the ability to turn crude into needed oil products, like gasoline, diesel, jet fuel, and low-sulfur heating oil. Unless it can develop a local way to process the oil coming out of the ground, it must rely upon exporting that production as raw material [...]
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George Soros: "We Have Just Entered Act II" of the Global Financial Crisis
George Soros gained global recognition when he co-founded the Quantum Fund with Jim Rogers in 1970. That fund generated an average annual return of more than 30% while he was at the helm.
Soros hasn't quit making timely market calls since: From his $10 billion bet against the British pound sterling in 1992 to his April 2008 prediction that we had not "seen the full effect" of the recession and that the situation was "more serious than the authorities admit or recognize."
In February, Soros called the euro's viability into question, and the currency has plunged some 10% since that time.
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Oil Prices Set to Soar in the Second-Half of 2010
Oil prices hit a wall this spring. But don't be fooled. The spring retreat simply set the stage for a second-half rally. Despite lingering fears over the global economy, demand for oil isn't slowing down at all. In fact, it's rising... and oil prices will rise right along with it. Read this report to find out why oil is poised to take off in the next six months... and how you can profit.
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China's CNOOC Will Ramp Up Deepwater Oil Drilling as BP's Oil Spill Kills U.S. Exploration
China's CNOOC. Ltd. (NYSE ADR: CEO) will step up its long-term deepwater oil exploration plans with a close eye on safety measures in the wake of the BP PLC (NYSE ADR: BP) Gulf oil spill that has halted U.S. deepwater drilling. The state-controlled oil company has exclusive rights to develop China's offshore resources and has [...]
