Petroleum

By Charles Lester | – An oil spill first reported on Oct. 2, 2021, has released thousands of gallons of crude oil into southern California coastal waters. The source is believed to be a leak in an underwater pipeline connected to an oil drilling platform 17.5 miles offshore. Oil has washed ashore in Huntington Beach […]

CO2

Ecological Disaster at Huntington Beach as Oil Spill Threatens Marine Life, Wetlands, Tourism Industry

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Drilling for oil in the ocean off California’s pristine beaches is about the stupidest and most evil human activity you can think of. Oil is leaky and gets spilled into the ocean, harming the environment. But if it gets delivered without incident to the refinery and is made into gasoline […]

Climate Crisis

Israeli Youth Protest Israel-UAE Oil Pipeline that Endangers Climate, Key Coral Reefs: The Dark Side of “Abraham Accords”

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The so-called Abraham Accords, which take the patriarch’s name in vain, were about many things, but genuine peace was not one of them. The were a series of bilateral horse trades with no implication for Israeli-Palestinian peace. Now it turns out that they were in part a plot against the […]

Climate Crisis

Why We Need Electric Cars: Climate-driven Hurricane Ida Knocked out Gulf Oil Production, 1/5 of US Refinery Capacity

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – Louisiana’s petroleum refineries are out of action in the wake of Hurricane Ida. Refineries run on electricity, and electricity has been knocked out in New Orleans and environs, perhaps for another couple of weeks. Here’s the kicker: Louisiana refineries account for nearly 1/5 of America’s refining capacity. Raw crude oil […]

Featured

Trump’s Tehran Poison Pill: US Trade Embargo provokes Iranian Attacks in Gulf, Making Return to Nuclear Deal Harder

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – The BBC reports that a bitumen tanker, the MV Asphalt Princess, was boarded by nine men on Tuesday and hijacked. It cites unnamed “analysts,” presumably MI6, to the effect that the hijacking was the work of the Iranian Revolutionary Guards Corps. The MV Asphalt Princess, owned by the United Arab […]

Climate Crisis

How food prices are affected by oil, trade agreements and climate change

The Conversation

By Wyn Morgan | – ( The Conversation) – Concerns about inflation rates have risen as the UK economy begins its much-needed recovery from the effects of the pandemic. The Consumer Prices Index, the measure most commonly used to measure inflation, rose by 2.5% in June 2021, the highest level for three years. That headline […]

Featured

Iran opens new Oil Port on Gulf of Oman to avoid narrow Straits of Hormuz and to Avoid US Sanctions

Juan Cole

Ann Arbor (Informed Comment) – According to Al Jazeera, on Thursday, Iran announced the opening of a new petroleum export terminal near the port of Jask on the Gulf of Oman, which will allow its vessels to avoid what Iranians refer to as the Persian Gulf and its narrow outlet, the Strait of Hormuz. Although […]

Iraq

Waiting for US withdrawal, is Russia eyeing Iraq’s oil?

Nikola Mikovic

Belgrade (Special to Informed Comment) – When the George W. Bush administration launched the invasion of Iraq in 2003, many believed the campaign’s main goal was to gain control of the country’s oil. Almost two decades later, most U.S. oil corporations have exited Iraq and the last major, ExxonMobil, appears to be on the way […]

Petroleum

Does the end of Bromance between Saudi’s Bin Salman and UAE’s Bin Zayed mean Breakup of OPEC?

Omar Ahmed

( Middle East Monitor ) – The disagreement between the UAE and Saudi Arabia over a proposed deal by OPEC+ to increase oil production is the latest sign that the close relations between the two Gulf states, and in particular those of their respective de facto rulers, are turning into a bitter rivalry. The Saudi-led […]