Energy Blast – May 8, 2009

Shady dealings in the east: a firm run by Ukrainian businessman Dmitry Firtash has said it is struggling to regain control of Emfesz, a large Hungarian gas distributor, after it appeared that its interest in the company had been ‘fraudulently’ transferred to a mysterious firm called RosGas, that has been linked to Gazprom.  A pair of American brothers employed at TNK-BP have been found guilty of spying on Gazprom by a Moscow court.  A ‘LNG supply tsunami’ is reportedly improbable.  Reuters looks at the new greenhouse goals and has a factbox on the world’s top oil trading houses.  It seems unlikely that OPEC will announce a further cut in oil output as prices become more stable.  Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez has approved the nationalization of a group of oil service companies.  The Finnish President has advocated the diversification of oil supplies in Europe to reduce reliance upon Russia.  Could a rapprochement between Turkey and Armenia endanger gas supplies to Europe?  A dispute has apparently emerged between Italy’s Eni Spa and Russia’s Gazprom over the former’s role in the South Stream pipeline.