Energy Newstand: Whither Oil?

Deepening fears of recession in the U.S., fueled by bearish Fed statements, are roiling oil markets. A slowdown means less demand and lower prices, reports Bloomberg, while the prospect of a rate cut is keeping oil prices buoyant, AFP notes. Further tanker attacks by Nigerian militants, meanwhile, are keeping supply-side pressure, notes the WSJ (subscription required). Not that it matters, reports Reuters: $100 oil is cheap, says oil guru Matt Simmons.

It has Brazil rubbing its hands at the prospects of joinging the big leagues, reports the NYT. The Tupi deepwater field, the world’s biggest find in almost a decade, could make Brazil a major oil player—if it doesn’t succumb to energy nationalism.

Which is a natural by-product of the quest for energy security, argues the Financial Times. Energy independence is a fallacy, and the more countries try to lock-in energy supplies, it drives a vicious circle of resource nationalism. The answer: let markets work.

Just as long as they are predictable, argue both the FT and the Economist, dissecting BritainÂ’s nuclear revival. Beyond safety fears, the biggest hurdle to more nuclear power is economic: operators need a predictable price of energy to make huge upfront investments, and that, the FT says, calls for aggressive government action to put a price tag on carbon.

There is a $26 billion price-tag on the biggest energy infrastructure project ever, the Alaskan natural gas pipeline. But ConocoPhillips wonÂ’t be part of it, the Houston Chronicle reports, paving the way for TransCanada to go ahead with the three-decade old dream of piping gas from the Klondike to Kankakee.

The dream of electric cars is growing closer to reality, the WSJ reports, with just one big hitch: “nobody yet has figured out how to make a small enough battery that will hold a big enough charge for these new cars — and not be a risk to burst into flames.”

Which is what California Sen. Barbara Boxer nearly did yesterday, still railing against the EPA denial of CaliforniaÂ’s ambitious emissions-reduction plan, reports the LA Times. SheÂ’s mulling a subpoena to see if there was White House interference in the EPA decision.

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