Energy Blast – Aug 7, 2008

Oil is currently hovering at around $119 a barrel amid concerns over low US demand. “The fall in oil prices, combined with lower production, could soften the aggressive stance of Russia towards the West.” ExxonMobil’s Sakhalin-1 project is about to be inspected for adherence to operational and environmental regulations by a Russian watchdog. Russia’s decision to allow Transneft to raise an oil shipping fee component “will increase costs of oil deliveries by pipelines by 10 to 12%.”