Free Republic

In case of any doubt about Norway’s commitment to maintain – and expand – its production of gas and oil offshore, the energy minister, Terje Aasland, has a pithy response: “We will develop, not dismantle, activity on our continental shelf.” This week, to the alarm of environmental campaigners, he announced that three gasfields off the country’s southern coast would reopen by the end of 2028 – nearly three decades after they closed – to meet a shortfall caused by the impact of the war in Ukraine and disruption to supplies from the Middle East. The decision will help keep gas...

The Norwegian government has been heavily criticised for approving plans to reopen three North Sea gasfields nearly three decades after they were closed to help fill the gap in energy supplies created by the Middle East war. Amid sharp price rises in oil and gas since the US and Israel’s attack on Iran in February, Oslo has also given its approval for oil and gas companies to explore in 70 new locations in the North Sea, Barents Sea and Norwegian Sea. The decision by the Labour-run government goes against the advice of the country’s environment agency and has infuriated left-leaning...

The European Commission has drafted plans to give more free emissions permits to industries ​over the next few years, a move that ‌could save companies 4 billion euros ($4.68 billion) in CO2 costs, an internal EU document seen by Reuters showed on Monday. The EU's ​carbon market is the bloc's main tool for ​addressing CO2 emissions, which it does by forcing ⁠industries to buy CO2 emissions permits when they pollute. The ​scheme has come under growing political pressure from member states ​worried about Europe's faltering economic competitiveness, while some heavy industries have urged Brussels to give them more free CO2...

The government is in negotiations with French Engie to take over the seven nuclear plants the company manages in Belgium. Doel Nuclear Plant in Doel, East Flanders, Belgium. In a significant policy shift, Belgium is moving to bring its nuclear power plants under state control. The government says it plans to buy the country’s entire nuclear fleet from French energy company Engie, calling it a key step to secure long-term energy supplies. Prime Minister Bart De Wever said the move is about stability at a time when Europe is dealing with shaky energy markets and geopolitical tensions. “This government is...

Asian economies are dramatically increasing imports of discounted Russian crude amid global supply disruptions. A temporary U.S. sanctions waiver is enabling more Russian oil to flow into global markets. The shift risks boosting Moscow’s war revenues while exposing the limits of Western energy sanctions. Following the Russian invasion of Ukraine in 2022, several major world powers introduced strict sanctions on trade with Moscow. .. However, some countries, such as India and China, have used these sanctions as an excuse to buy discounted crude and gas from Russia, in a bid to reduce costs and boost energy security. Imports of Russian...

Interesting concept of solar panel system plugged directly into a household outlet for a do it yourself supplemental power supply. According to the video (and other sources) it's newly legal in Utah and several other states. It's also in wide spread use in Europe. I know there are several Freepers who have solar power of different types, I've always been interested in the subject but have never gone past solar battery charging for boats or cars or cameras.

Here is the unvarnished truth that has been kept secret by the choices of important people. At present population levels, there may be more than enough energy in the world for the next 100,000 years (maybe for millions of years) that is relatively easy to obtain, clean, and safe, and that would be productive of peace among men, because there would be fewer fights over resources. The fuel of the future is thorium, and it is being withheld from the world because too few people know about it to demand it—and there’s no reason for this ignorance. Why the secrecy?...

Prime Minister Mark Carney says Canada will not use energy or critical minerals as “leverage” in upcoming trade talks with U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration. Carney said on Friday that Canada is not talking about halting any such trade with the U.S. and ruled out the notion entirely, adding Canadians honour their contracts and agreements. But the prime minister also suggested further integration with the United States in those sectors — highly coveted by the Trump administration — remains in question.

US Oil & Gas Association@US_OGA·7hWe see where the Regime has trolled the SecDef. Admirable. But let's show them how it's done...."If you have to export 1.5 million barrels oil in 5-gallon buckets instead of tankers, because a US Naval blockade has choked off your export capacity, that's 12.6 million Home Depot buckets per day.To assist you in your efforts, here is the link to Home Depot where you can find those buckets for $3.98. There are 17,644 currently available.P.S. For the mullahs: 1 barrel = 42 gallons."ransomnote: The post above is in response to the following post.

Venezuela’s oil exports rose to 1.23 million barrels per day (bpd) in April, the highest level since 2018, as shipments to the United States, India, and Europe accelerated. Exports climbed 14% from March levels, according to shipping data and PDVSA documents, with 66 cargoes leaving Venezuelan ports during the month. That compares with 61 vessels in March carrying about 1.08 million bpd. Since the January capture of Nicolas Maduro and the installation of an interim government, Washington has eased sanctions and taken control of Venezuelan oil sales. That shift has reopened access for trading houses and joint-venture partners, including Chevron,...

Americans are staring at $4+ gas and asking a simple question that should have a simple answer. If the United States is the largest oil producer on Earth, why does it still feel like an oil-importing country every time prices spike? That question matters far beyond the gas station. It cuts straight into inflation, consumer behavior, Fed policy, and where capital flows next. What looks like a pricing anomaly is actually a structural reality that investors ignore at their own risk.This Was Supposed to Be the Easy PartGasoline prices have climbed to an average of roughly $4.26 per gallon, the...

President Donald Trump granted a key approval Thursday for a major new oil pipeline from Canada into the U.S. that’s been dubbed “Keystone Light” over its similarities to a contentious project blocked by the Biden administration. The three-foot-wide (1 meter) Bridger Pipeline Expansion would carry up to 550,000 barrels (87,400 cubic meters) of oil a day from Canada through Montana and Wyoming, where it would link with another pipeline. The pipeline needs additional state and federal environmental approvals before construction, which company officials expect to start next year. Environmentalists hope to stop the project over worries that the pipeline could...

Many European countries are in a pickle of their own making: they’ve allowed unfettered immigration (often by people who despise their Western values), they’ve gone all in on green energy despite the fact that it’s not ready for prime time, and they’ve embraced woke politics even more than some of the wide-eyed leftists in our own country. But the small northwestern Euro country of Belgium (population 11.8 million) is waking up to the unfortunate fact that a lot of what’s going on isn’t doing them any favors. They can do all the windmills and solar farms they want, but if...

They’ve hit the mother lode. We may no longer need to rely on foreign batteries to power our electronics. Geologists have announced that the Appalachian Mountains could be hiding a sprawling multi-billion-dollar cache of lithium that could last the US hundreds of years. “This research shows that the Appalachians contain enough lithium to help meet the nation’s growing needs,” declared US Geological Survey Director Ned Mamula in a statement. According to a map by the institution, this East Coast mountain range houses around 2.5 metric tons of this battery precursor, most of which is concentrated in the Carolinas, Maine and...

Barring regime change in Iran or a durable diplomatic resolution to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, the West is now facing its most fundamental challenge to its energy security since the Arab-Israeli wars of the 1950s, ’60s, and ’70s. To escape the Hormuz trap—a crisis in oil, gas, and petrochemicals transit that will slowly degrade the global economy over the months and years to come—the West must revisit a familiar pattern. For nearly three decades during those wars, Arab states seeking to pressure Israel and its Western backers repeatedly weaponized Middle Eastern oil transit chokepoints by blocking canals...

Russia is set to suspend oil transit from Kazakhstan to Germany through the Druzhba pipeline on May 1, 2026, amid escalating geopolitical tensions over the Ukraine conflict. Summary Industry sources report that Russia will block Kazakh oil exports destined for German refineries, specifically targeting the northern leg of the Druzhba network. This move disrupts a critical alternative supply route Germany established to reduce dependence on Russian crude. The decision follows a period of frayed political relations and represents a significant escalation in the use of energy infrastructure as a geopolitical lever. Market participants are now bracing for supply tightening at...

President Donald Trump pushed back Monday on his own energy secretary's claim that a return to $3-a-gallon gas will not come through the end of the year. "No, I think he’s wrong on that, totally wrong," Trump told The Hill on Monday, when asked about Energy Secretary's Christopher Wright's interview with CNN's "State of the Union" on Sunday. Trump remains steadfast in his conviction that gas prices in America are going to drop precipitously "as soon as this ends," referring to the oil blockade in the Strait of Hormuz... "The blockade is very powerful, very strong," Trump added to The...

Ukraine's President Volodymyr Zelensky has condemned a US decision to extend the period during which Russia is allowed to sell oil despite Western sanctions. The move means countries can purchase Russian oil and petroleum products already loaded on vessels at sea until 16 May. The US argues that the waiver is meant to ease the energy supply crunch sparked by the US-Israel war with Iran. But in his remarks on Sunday, Zelensky said "every dollar paid for Russian oil is money for the war" in Ukraine. Widespread sanctions have been in place against Russia since President Vladimir Putin launched his...

ArchivedCLIFFORD KUPCHAN is a director at Eurasia Group, a political risk consulting firm.IRAN’S KEY ALLY in the current nuclear crisis is not Russia or China. It’s oil. Tehran can easily drive up prices and is already beginning to do so to rattle the West. As the crisis escalates, Washington’s diplomatic partners will become gravely worried about their energy supplies. In the end, Iran’s petro power will probably trump Western diplomacy. Just look at what’s happening: Tehran’s bravado announcement April 11 that it had mastered key nuclear technology drew censure from world capitals. But it also drove oil prices to more...

The European Union’s energy commissioner is asking people in the bloc to drive less, work from home and implement other measures to lower the demand for oil and gas as the Iran war strains energy supplies. The EU is asking its member states to implement the International Energy Agency’s 10-point plan to reduce global oil demand, said Dan Jørgensen, the EU’s energy commissioner, during a press conference on Tuesday. “Since the beginning of the conflict in the Middle East, prices in the EU have risen by around 70 per cent for gas and by 60 per cent for oil,” he...