Dinosaurs at the Tar Pit (3): Energy’s Center of Power & Resource Nationalism Is On The Move
January 23rd, 2008
As noted in today’s Financial Times, the story of energy in the 21st century has been the relative decline of the developed world as both a producer and a consumer. We have been following this trend for some time now, keeping a close eye on The New Seven Sisters in particular. As the article reports: […]
Read more »Next Stop: Jupiter — Brazil’s ‘Huge’ Gas Field Find
January 23rd, 2008
As reported by BBC, a huge natural gas field has been found a short distance off Rio de Janeiro’s coastline, another recent find which could help turn Brazil into even more of a leading global energy supplier. According to Petrobras, the company believes the new field, Jupiter, could match the recently discovered Tupi oil field […]
Read more »Dialing for Dollars (or Dirhams?): Gulf Arab Telcos Expanding Their Area Codes
January 21st, 2008
Two recent reports on Gulf Arab telecom operators continuing their expansionist trends out of their home markets, where most have been riding a wave of economic growth spurred by a five-fold increase in oil prices since 2002. First, an article detailing Saudi Telecom’s – the largest Arab telecom firm by market value – $2.6 billion […]
Read more »Russia Moves On The Caspian; Back to Iraq As Well?
January 21st, 2008
As neatly reported by Energy Daily, Russia is moving swiftly to develop projects in its own self-defined sector of the Caspian Sea. Russia’s move offshore means it is now joining post-Soviet republics Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan and Turkmenistan in developing their claimed national sectors of the Caspian, leaving only Iran – stymied by U.S. trade sanctions barring […]
Read more »Big Oil = Dinosaurs at the Tar Pit (Part 2) / Thoughts on a Natural Gas Cartel
January 20th, 2008
In an exclusive SPIEGEL interview, OPEC Secretary-General Abdalla Salem el-Badri discussed – among other items – the failures of the multinational oil companies and the possibility of a caretel for natural gas.  His thoughts, noted below, are highly interesting: “…SPIEGEL: (Russian) President Vladimir Putin certainly has other ideas. Last year he called the idea of […]
Read more »India: A “Minnow” in Oil & Gas Exploration Potential
January 20th, 2008
An interesting look by The Financial Times at India’s auction of oil & gas exploration blocks on which the global majors have mostly shied away from bidding. As the article notes: “…India has a tough time attracting the big players. While the auction process itself is widely perceived as transparent, domestic companies tend to bid […]
Read more »Focusing primarily on The New Seven Sisters - the largely state owned petroleum companies from the emerging world that have become key players in the oil & gas industry as identified by Carola Hoyos, Chief Energy Correspondent for The Financial Times - but spanning other nascent opportunities around the globe that may hold potential in the years ahead, Wildcats & Black Sheep is a place for the adventurous to contemplate & evaluate the emerging markets of tomorrow.