Energy Blast – June 24, 2010

Conflicting news on the Russia-Belarus gas spat: despite initial reports that the gas war had ended, with Belarus having paid its debt, and supplies resuming, Reuters reports that Alexei Miller has told Vladimir Putin that new talks need to be held, as Minsk is still demanding its gas transit payment.  ‘Belarus has threatened to cut transit of Russian gas Thursday if Moscow doesn’t pay up’, says the AP.  EU officials are apparently placing the blame for the dispute squarely on Belarus: Günther Oettinger, the European Commissioner for Energy, called it an ‘attack against the whole European Union’.  Lithuania has claimed that its gas supplies, which are transported through Belarus, have been cut by 30%.  Bob Dudley, the BP executive known as the ‘man who survived Russia’, has taken over from Tony Hayward in overseeing the Gulf of Mexico clean up operation.  The Telegraph reports that shale gas drilling is having some dangerous side effects in the US.  The Czech Republic is apparently fearful of an increase in Russian spying activity in its energy sector.  See a video from Bloomberg in which Canada’s Uranium One Inc. CEO allays investor concerns about the company’s acquisition by ARMZ.