Energy Blast – Aug 3, 2010

Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin is not amused at a journalist’s attempt to highlight energy security issues by entering a hydropower plant without security clearance, calling it a ‘provocation‘.  Latest estimates by federal science and engineering teams in the US show that the BP spill is the world’s largest oil spill of all time – the previous record was held by a 1979 spill by Mexican rig Ixtoc.  It is looking unlikely that a new energy proposal that would prevent BP from winning future drilling permits in the US will be passed.  A senior US lawmaker wants her country to impose sanctions on Russia and China to punish their investments in Iran’s energy sector because they ‘effectively bankroll‘ its nuclear weapons program.  As predicted, Ukraine’s National Energy Regulation Commission has raised its consumer prices by 9.8%.  China Investment Corp is considering investing up to $25 billion in Indonesia, with preliminary plans focusing on coal mining and electricity, says Reuters.