Energy Blast – Sept 8, 2011

Bloomberg reports that a drop in Syrian oil exports due to sanctions against the Bashar al-Assad regime will not justify another release of emergency stockpiles by International Energy Agency members, as Syrian exports are not in fact as voluminous as observers might imagine.  Syria hopes that despite European and U.S. import bans in the wake of domestic turmoil, it can maintain its oil export industry though sales to Russia or China.  The Moscow Times reports that Libya’s oil minister will be the first member of the North African country’s National Transitional Council to visit Russia.  Gazprom chief Alexei Miller has announced that Russia’s gas monopoly will spend around $100 million on the geological surveys to explore hydrocarbon deposits in Kyrgyzstan.  Vallares, the cash shell of Tony Hayward and Nat Rothschild, has confirmed it will buy a Kurdish oil explorer in a £2.5 billion deal; the Telegraph has the details.  BP has appealed against last week’s office raids by the Russian authorities, saying a court’s ruling that allowed the searches ‘cannot be lawful or reasonable’.  How Russia plans to use cooperation in the energy field to solder ties with Latin America, from the FT.  Ukraine’s Energy Ministry has rebuffed claims that the launch of the Nord Stream pipeline will reduce Ukraine’s value as a transit nation.  China has signed an agreement with Kazakhstan to expand the capacity of a pipeline network delivering natural gas from Central Asia by more than 80%.