Energy
Obama admits Senate may need to drop carbon trading
US President Barack Obama has acknowledged the potential need to strip cap and trade out of US energy legislation currently being re-drafted in the US Senate in order to pass the bill.
More legislation threatens EPA regulation of GHGs
The chairman of the US House Agriculture Committee has introduced bipartisan legislation designed to prevent the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) from regulating greenhouse gas emissions under the Clean Air Act.
Copenhagen or bust
Carbon trading volumes boomed in 2009, but price declines meant the total value of trades was down modestly. Following the disappointing Copenhagen summit, what hope is there for new life in the carbon markets? Peter Madigan reports
Markets shaken by emissions trading certificate hackers
Market participants are worried they could be holding fraudulent European Union carbon allowances (EUA), after computer hackers launched an alleged phishing attack on the German Emissions Trading Authority (DEHSt).
Smart grid: Diverging demands
Rachel Morison concludes her two-part series by looking at the impact of smart grids on supply and demand fundamentals and possible changes to the traded markets
Will Russia leave Europe out in the cold?
After numerous disputes with its neighbours, Russia is looking beyond Europe for more reliable gas consumers. But with worldwide production on the up, Europe also has other options. Lianna Brinded asks whether Russia can afford to turn its back on the…
Dry freight and regulation: Tides of change
The dry freight FFA market has undergone significant changes in the past two years, with a marked increase in clearing and financial players. Participants are now looking at how potentially tighter OTC regulation may impact trading. By Pauline McCallion
Interview: Mexico's hedging plans: in crude health
Pauline McCallion speaks to Gerardo Rodriguez, deputy undersecretary for public debt at Mexico’s Ministry of Finance & Public Credit, about the government’s highly successful oil price hedging strategy
N2EX trades £12.7 million in three weeks
N2EX, the recently launched marketplace for physical UK power contracts, has traded £12.7 million’s worth of day-ahead and prompt contracts combined in the first three weeks since its opening.
European power: Nord Pool Q&A
Eric Thrane is chief executive of Nord Pool, Europe’s largest marketplace for physical and financial power contracts
European power: Can the Nordic market be replicated?
In the second of a series of in-depth features looking at power markets in Europe, Rachel Morison examines the strengths of the Nordic market as a model for the rest of Europe and finds out what lessons can be learnt
Oil price volatility still concerns the market
After oil prices started to stabilise in the last quarter of 2009, all eyes turned to the market outlook for the year ahead. But as we enter a new decade, oil still remains at the top of the risk agenda and price forecasts differ vastly. Lianna Brinded…
Singapore Exchange to trade fuel oil futures in February
SGX has announced details of a new fuel oil contract scheduled for launch on Monday, February 22.
Lukoil-led consortium seals Iraq deal
A consortium led by Russian private oil company Lukoil is the latest in a line of energy giants sealing deals in Iraq, in a move set to develop one of the country’s largest oil fields.
Markey: Climate bill by end of 2010
President Barack Obama will have a new clean energy bill to sign by the end of the year, according to US congressman Edward Markey.
BP CEO: Oil industry faces supply challenge
The oil industry will continue to face supply challenges in the long term, following China’s burgeoning demand for imports, said BP’s chief executive at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
Element buys stake in Canadian carbon aggregator
Element Markets has invested an undisclosed amount in Agri-Trend Aggregation (ATAI), a member of the Agri-Trend Group of Companies based in Alberta, Canada.
Surplus of Bulgarian EUAs could flood market
A surplus of European Union Emission Allowances (EUAs) sales from Bulgarian companies triggered by a pending European Commission decision could put downward pressure on carbon prices, say experts.
Russia and Belarus sign deal and end dispute
Russia and Belarus have ended a dispute over oil supply by signing a deal on Russian oil deliveries for one-third of Belarus’s import needs, confirms Russian deputy prime minister Igor Sechin on the country’s government website.
Russia looks to China for gas contracts
Russia is forging stronger ties with China to diversify its gas buyer base, following payment disputes with countries such as Ukraine and to compete with the growing US liquefied natural gas (LNG) market, say analysts. Meanwhile, Europe is looking to…
Transmission holds US wind power back despite 2009 record
Wind power is now the joint leading source of new electricity generation in the US, tying with natural gas, due to record levels of new capacity last year, according to the American Wind Energy Association (AWEA).
Mexico sees return to normality for oil hedging
Banks’ ability to act as a counterparty is “back to a very normal situation” after the credit crunch, according to one of the designers of Mexico’s oil price hedging programme.
Ferc proposes credit reforms
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (Ferc) has outlined credit reform proposals aimed at balancing the need for market liquidity with appropriate risk management while ensuring reasonable rates.