Energy Blast – September 14, 2010

Lukoil is celebrating news that it will receive much sought-after tax breaks for its North Caspian fields, of a similar nature to those enjoyed by rival companies in East Siberia.  Next spring will herald the construction of Russia’s first biofuel factory, to be constructed by Russian Technologies (meanwhile the company is also working on a computer operating system based on Linux).  Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko has announced that Russia plans to build six large petrochemical facilities over the next fifteen years, as the nation embarks upon a program to increase its share of the global petrochemical production market, which stands at a mere 2% at this point in time.   ‘This will never happen again’: Ukrainian President Viktor Yanukovych vows that a dispute with Russia will never jeopardize supplies to EU customers.  Shell’s CEO Peter Voser has apparently sung the praises of natural gas at the World Energy Congress in Montreal.