Thursday 3 March 2011

Putin´s dream of controlling Europe´s energy future is over

We have said it before, but it´s worth repeating; the shale gas revolution is a game changer: Putin´s dream of controlling Europe´s energy future is over. Russia will never more be able to use the energy weapon against Ukraine, Poland and other countries. The much touted Russian-German Nord Stream project will be of minor - if any -interest in the years to come. Altkanzler Schröder might as well take early retirement from the wellpaid job his friend Putin gave him.

Australia and Argentina are countries with massive potential new reserves ....

If you don´t believe it, read the article by Jack Barnes in Oilprice.com:

The natural gas cartel, a dream of Russia’s just a few years ago, is dead. It died when a natural gas revolution broke out and Gazprom lost.  Energy importing nations around the world are evaluating their own geology, currently, to see if they have shale reserves that can be tapped.  Nations like Argentina, Germany, Poland, France, and Sweden are looking into their national shale reserves.
The shale gas revolution is changing the world we live in, and the power structures of the past.  It is also quickly changing the politics of future energy relationships.  Nations that had to be nice to an exporter, due to energy supplies, will be freed of their need for discretion.
Shale gas is quite simply changing the whole energy paradigm in real time.  The unlocking of source rock, has altered the future history of mankind.  The world has discovered and unlocked its newest true world changing source of stored energy.
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The world has shale fields spread around the globe in locations famous for oil production, and some not so famous.  The new technology will change the basic political power structures that exist today.  The era of Russia controlling Europe’s natural gas future is drawing to a close.
“The size of reserves is mind boggling,” he said. “It makes a huge argument for a gas economy going forward.”Annop Poddar, Partner, Energy Ventures.
If the shale fields in Poland and Germany can be brought online at the same level of production seen in the US, Europe on shore will be energy independent via their own production.  France has shale oil and shale gas locations.
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The US is now growing its overall hydrocarbon production profile again.  This is after many years of “experts” pontificating that the US was always going to be an importer of energy.  The US was supposed to be trapped importing larger levels of energy from abroad forever.  No one expected the US to quickly become the largest producer of natural gas in the world.
Currently, companies like LNG are looking to spend billions of dollars converting LNG import plants into export plants.  The US could, once again, become a major exporter of hydrocarbons.  This is not a joke.  The era of the US being dependent on Middle East oil, is also ending.
Exxon is quietly buying up shale rights in Germany, as is Shell in Poland.  Australia and Argentina both have massive potential new reserves.  In short, there appears to be the equivalent of new Saudi Arabia’s in BTU totals now popping up in western nations.  The US natural gas reserves are thought to be equal to 2x new Saudi Arabia’s.  It will take decades to unlock this gas, and make it commercially viable in the market place.

Read the entire article here.

PS
There is a huge added bonus connected to the shale gas revolution; it will hasten the demise of the present corrupted leadership in Russia. Sooner, rather than later, Putin will join Mubarak and other criminal and corrupted leaders forced out of office.

There will then be billions to freeze on bank accounts in Switzerland ...


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