Energy Blast – June 10, 2010

The UN has reportedly approved ‘necessary’ sanctions against Iran.  Iranian President Ahmadinejad has responded with a warning to Russia that ‘they must be careful not to be on the side of the enemies of the Iranian people’.  The Kremlin has cautioned the UN that if extraterritorial sanctions effecting Russian interests are introduced, Russia may have to ‘retaliate’.  The BBC reports on BP’s latest ‘Statistical Review of World Energy’, according to which oil consumption has fallen the most since 1982.  Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko has warned that Russia may delay the construction of an oil pipeline across Bulgaria and Greece if Sophia continues to tarry over its revision of the plan.  Gazprom has apparently claimed that is ready to start construction of the South Stream pipeline in 2013.  The company also says that it could adjust the envisaged capacity of the pipeline if demand is unpredictable.  The export giant has reduced its targets of 529 billion cubic meters of gas for this year on a fall in demand.  World number one LNG exporter Qatar is also responding to the slump.  The ambitions of ARMZ.