All the world’s extra oil supply is likely to come from expensive and environmentally damaging unconventional sources within 15 years, according to a detailed study by oil consultants, Wood Mackenzie.
They have calculated that the world holds 3,600bn barrels of unconventional oil and gas reserves in Canadian oil sands and Venezuela’s Orinoco tar belt that needs […]

Ok – so not to be outdone by Exxon that hired Bush advisor Philip Cooney, the former chief of staff of the White House Council on Environmental Quality, Shell has now appointed Gale Norton, a former interior secretary for the Bush administration, as a senior legal advisor.
Gale Norton supports opening up the Arctic National Wildlife […]

Independent investment analysts “Investment U” are promoting Alberta’s oil sands as a “win-win” investment opportunity. They say: “the oil sands will soon be the single-largest source of foreign oil for the U.S. – even bigger than Saudi Arabia”. Oil producers can explore Alberta’s oil sands virtually “risk-free… and for a tremendous profit”.

Oil giant Shell has underlined a huge commitment to developing Canada’s highly polluting oil-sands with a C$7.7billion offer to buy out minority investors in a Shell company involved in the controversial fuel. The Shell group already owns 78 per cent of its Canadian subsidiary and is now trying to buy the remaining 22 per cent.

Hidden incentives to oil companies to develop oil shale reserves in the US could amount to billions of dollars, according to a report in the LA Times. According to the paper: “Tucked into a massive energy bill that would open the outer continental shelf to oil drilling are provisions that would slash future royalties owed […]