Energy

SAUDI ARABIA'S NEW MIGHT: ENERGY
Fort McMurray of the Middle East
As Saudi Arabia tries to extend its oil reach, it faces the same hurdles as Alberta

DAVID EBNER

November 13, 2007

RABIGH, SAUDI ARABIA -- It's 35 C and humid on the shore of the Rea Sea north of Jeddah as a sprawling industrial facility and construction cranes emerge through the bright haze in the near distance.

For Saudi Arabia, a crude oil producer and refiner, the site is a first step into a future of doing more with the black gold that lies in vast quantities beneath the desert kingdom.

Whether we avert catastrophe with climate change may actually be decided
by Citibank and Bank of America.

by Tara Lohan

AlterNet (October 06 2007)

We're nearing the end of the window of opportunity we have to avert the
catastrophic effects predicted from the earth's changing climate. We're
either going to sink or swim. Our best hope at this time is to
drastically reduce our greenhouse gas emissions, like carbon dioxide.

Global leaders are putting their heads together to come up with
solutions. Across the world, countries and municipalities are passing

Economic View: Running on empty: peak oil production is in sight, global supplies will dwindle - and the US, for one, is ill-prepared
China's rapid growth in consumption could suck up all the extra crude pumped next year, leaving other countries to get by with less
Hamish McRae
Published: 11 November 2007

Effect of royalty rates not so painful
In recent quarterly reports, energy firms say higher rates won't pinch profits so hard
NORVAL SCOTT
With files from Reuters
November 10, 2007

CALGARY -- A swath of energy companies said this week that the impact of Alberta's increased royalty charges won't be as significant as some in the oil patch had initially feared.

Total to alter Joslyn plans

NORVAL SCOTT

November 10, 2007

CALGARY -- French energy giant Total SA is re-evaluating strategy at its Joslyn oil sands development, with a view to doing more mining of the resource than previously expected, according to the junior partner in the project.

Suncor Production Numbers-- Year to Date

CALGARY, Nov. 8 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Suncor Energy Inc. reported today that production at its oil sands facility during October averaged approximately 260,000 barrels per day (bpd). Year-to-date oil sands production at the end of October averaged approximately 233,000 bpd. Suncor is targeting average oil sands production of 240,000 to 245,000 bpd in 2007.

By RENATO GANDIA, SUN MEDIA

High levels of cancer-causing toxins are being found in areas downstream of Fort McMurray's oilsands, says a study commissioned by residents of Alberta's oldest community.

Waters in Fort Chipewyan contain high levels of arsenic, the fish are contaminated with high levels of mercury and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - another pollutant - are higher than they should be, said Kevin Timoney.

Timoney is the ecologist who studied the waters and sediments in the Peace-Athabasca Delta near Fort Chipewyan, 610 air km northeast of Edmonton.

New York Times
November 9, 2007
Rising Demand for Oil Provokes New Energy Crisis
By JAD MOUAWAD

With oil prices approaching the symbolic threshold of $100 a barrel, the world is headed toward its third energy shock in a generation. But today’s surge is fundamentally different from the previous oil crises, with broad and longer-lasting global implications.

Just as in the energy crises of the 1970s and ’80s, today’s high prices are causing anxiety and pain for consumers, and igniting wider fears about the impact on the economy.

A look at Alberta's new housing plan

Martin Lussier
Gauntlet News

November 08, 2007

Rental vacancies have been lower than 0.5 per cent in Calgary.

Premier Ed Stelmach announced the government would be undertaking a 10-year plan to address homelessness in communities across Alberta last week. This announcement couldn't come at a better time for some, as the 2006 Homeless Count of Calgary identified over 3,400 people without homes. Stelmach pledged to build 11,000 affordable homes over the next ten years, 4,000 of which are to be built in Calgary.

Alberta's tar sands to supply South Dakota's oil projects
Pipeline, refinery would tap into Canadian crude
Oct 23, 2007 04:30 AM
Dirk Lammers
ASSOCIATED PRESS

SIOUX FALLS, S.D.–As oil hovers around $90 (U.S.) a barrel, the race is on to tap more heavily into the world's second-largest oil reserve, and South Dakota – a major ethanol producer that typically sits on the alternative side of the fuel industry – is finding itself at the crossroads of two major oil projects.