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World Coal Reserves Could Be a Fraction of Previous Estimates
Alexis Madrigal, Wired Science
A new calculation of the world’s coal reserves is much lower than previous estimates. If validated, the new info could have a massive impact on the fate of the planet’s climate.
That’s because coal is responsible for most of the CO2 emissions that drive climate change. If there were actually less coal available for burning, climate modelers would have to rethink their estimates of the level of emissions that humans will produce.
The new model, created by Dave Rutledge, chair of Caltech’s engineering and applied sciences division, suggests that humans will only pull up a total — including all past mining — of 662 billion tons of coal out of the Earth. The best previous estimate, from the World Energy Council, says that the world has almost 850 billion tons of coal still left to be mined.
“Every estimate of the ultimate coal resource has been larger,” said ecologist Ken Caldeira of Stanford University, who was not involved with the new study. “But if there’s much less coal than we think, that’s good news for climate.”
(17 December 2008)
Oil prices ready to recover after $100 fall
David Sheppard, Reuters
Oil’s collapse by more than $100 a barrel has made July’s all-time high above $147 seem a distant memory but many analysts now expect a rebound and say crude’s bear market may prove to have been exceptionally brief.
Oil prices could already have hit rock-bottom for 2008 when they touched lows near $40 a barrel this month, and are poised to climb despite the dire outlook for the global economy.
(16 December 2008)
Nigeria: Country to Supply 25 Percent of U.S. Oil By 2015
Constance Ikokwu, This Day
Nigeria’s crude oil export to the United States will leap to 25 per cent by 2015. The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Chief Ojo Maduekwe, made the revelation while delivering a speech at the Southern Center for International Studies, Atlanta, Georgia, entitled “Old Ties in New Times: Nigeria and the next USA Administration.”
The estimate is a progression from the current 15 per cent Nigeria exports to the country and may be an indication of US government’s shift from Middle East oil to African sources.
Nigeria has already surpassed Saudi-Arabia and Venezuela which were two main sources of oil to the US economy.
An increase to 25 per cent will make Nigeria the fifth largest exporter of the commodity to the US.
(17 December 2008)
Opec agrees deep cut in oil production
Terry Macalister, The Guardian
Opec ministers surprised the oil markets yesterday by agreeing to cut production more deeply than expected in a desperate bid to halt a free-falling oil price.
The petroleum exporting cartel, led by Saudi Arabia, promised to take 2.2m barrels a day out of the market in a move heralded by one analyst as “the end of the bear market”.
The latest cut, on top of a previously agreed reduction of 2m barrels, eliminates 4.2m barrels from production, starting in January.
The move, announced by Opec secretary-general Abdullah al-Badri after a meeting in the Algerian city of Oran, was welcomed by analysts. But traders remained sceptical that the targets would be met. They were also worried by new US oil inventory figures showing a build-up of supplies and gloomier economic data suggesting demand could fall further.
(18 December 2008)
