Archive for December, 2009

Continued Rise Of National Oil Companies

Courtesy of Seeking Alpha, an interesting look at the continued rise of national oil companies: “…Iraq currently boasts the world’s third-largest proven reserves of conventional crude oil, behind Iran and Saudi Arabia. Figure 1 shows countries with the largest crude oil reserves. If Canada’s tar sands were factored in, then Iraq would be edged into […]

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Paving The New Silk Road With Oil: China’s Pipelineistan

Via The Asia Times, an in-depth look at the strategic and regional implications of the 1,833-kilometer Central Asia Pipeline from Turkmenistan to China.  As the article notes: “…For all the rhapsodies on the advent of the New Silk Road, it may have come into effect for good last week, when China and Central Asia got […]

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North Africa

Via his blog, here are Mark Mobius’ interesting thoughts on North Africa’s investment potential: “…most international sanctions against the country [Libya] were lifted in 2004, and in 2006, the U.S. removed Libya from its state-sponsored terrorism list on which Libya had stayed for 27 years. Since then, Libya has attracted a wave of interest from […]

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Total-ly Chinese

Via The Wall Street Journal, an article reporting that Total SA is looking to expand its cooperation with China’s leading oil producer on a range of fronts, including a multibillion-dollar natural-gas project in northern China and prospective overseas deals in Iran and Venezuela.  As the report notes: “…The French oil-and-gas company has been aggressive about […]

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China’s Pipeline Politics With Myanmar

Courtesy of STRATFOR (subscription required), a report on the recent visit by Chinese Vice President Xi Jinping to Myanmar aimed at strengthening Beijing’s energy security and geopolitical influence in the region.  As the article notes: “…China-Myanmar border stability is a priority, but the primary focus of Xi’s trip is to strengthen China’s position in Southeast […]

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Turkmenistan’s Pipe Dreams

Courtesy of The Economist, a detailed look at Turkmenistan: “…AS THE Karakum desert sinks into cold darkness, a faint glow lights up the horizon. Another 15 minutes’ driving through dunes reveals why: a giant red pit is belching gases and flames into the night sky. This infernal sight first appeared some 30 or 40 years […]

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WILDCATS AND BLACK SHEEP
Wildcats & Black Sheep is a personal interest blog dedicated to the identification and evaluation of maverick investment opportunities arising in frontier - and, what some may consider to be, “rogue” or “black sheep” - markets around the world.

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.