Energy Blast – Aug 6, 2008

Russia’s Federal Anti-Monopoly Agency is threatening legal measures against executives who fail to co-operate after several Russian oil companies refused to provide data on fuel prices. State-owned Transneft has improved its share price by raising fees for oil deliveries, saying it needs to pay interest on a loan to fund a link with Asia. Atomenergoprom, the nuclear energy company, will acquire a 51% controlling interest in Hungary’s Ganz Energetika. The global oil price has dropped below $120, causing Russia’s oil stocks to continue their drop. Analysts say they’ve not witnessed such a drop since the 2004 Yukos crash. The falling price of oil “is a symptom of worsening economic troubles in America and beyond,” says The Economist. Gazprom has apparently resolved its outstanding gas dispute with Belarus. Imperial Energy: “shareholders should cash out while they can”. Platinum producer Lonmin has attacked a $10 billion bid from mining company Xstrata as “opportunistic and unwelcome.”