Caspian Energy in 2008: “The Best of Times, The Worst of Times”
December 30th, 2008
Via Energy Daily, a summary of 2008 for the five petro-states ringing the Caspian. As the article notes “…Three of these are the former Soviet republics of Russia, Azerbaijan and Kazakhstan. Iran, subject to nearly three decades of U.S.-led sanctions, has longstanding problems as a result that have stymied foreign investment there, while Turkmenistan’s fiscal […]
Read more »Fishing For Investment Returns In The Caspian
November 19th, 2008
Via The Silk Road Intelligencer, an interesting look at The Sturgeon Fund, launched in December 2006, to target the “Turkestan” region, comprising Central Asia and the Caucasus. As the article notes: “…The fund gives exposure to markets that on the one hand are not explored by mainstream funds, and on the other that, with the […]
Read more »Gazprom’s Move Into Kyrgyzstan
October 10th, 2008
As reported by Reuters, Gazprom recently signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with Kyrgyzstan which will help it buy a stake in Kyrgyz state-owned gas company Kyrgyzgaz, the state gas export monopoly. As the article notes “…the memorandum was signed in Bishkek as part of Russia’s President Dmitry Medvedev’s visit to Kyrgyzstan and allowed the […]
Read more »Eurasia’s Investment Potential
October 6th, 2008
From Bloomberg, an optimistic look at Central Asia’s investment potential. As the article notes: “…Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, Mongolia, Tajikistan, Turkmenistan and Uzbekistan don’t tend to come to mind when searching for safety. Nor do Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia in the Caucasus region. Yet there’s increasing merit to taking the road less traveled, literally and figuratively. “Amid […]
Read more »Gazprom & Kyrgyzstan: An Energy Side of “The Great Game”
October 3rd, 2008
Via Energy Daily, interesting analysis of Gazprom’s strategy of offering former Soviet republics in the Caucasus and Central Asia near-market prices for its future natural gas production, undercutting the West’s major trump card in negotiations. As the article notes: “…Among the most vulnerable to Gazprom’s policies is Kyrgyzstan, which is largely bereft of hydrocarbon resources, […]
Read more »China’s Growing Economic Influence in Central Asia
October 1st, 2008
From The Foreign Policy Association, a nice summary of China’s growing influence in the Central Asian states. As the article notes, recent projects include: “-A 960-kilometer oil pipeline from Western Kazakhstan to Western China has partially started operations and should be carrying 20 millions tons of the black gold annually in only a few years […]
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.