July 2nd, 2006:

From THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
By BENOÎT FAUCON
July 3, 2006

Russian state-owned oil company OAO Rosneft is courting international oil companies to join its roughly $10 billion initial public offering with the promise of better access to Russian oil and gas reserves, people familiar with the matter said.

The strategy as the July listing in Moscow and London draws near is evidence of the rising assertiveness of state-controlled companies in the Russian oil sector.

BP PLC of the U.K., Anglo-Dutch major Royal Dutch Shell PLC; India’s Oil & Natural Gas Corp., or ONGC; China Petrochemical Corp., or Sinopec; and China National Petroleum Corp. are among the companies that have been offered a large share of Rosneft’s IPO, said people involved in both sides of the talks. read more

From The Times July 03, 2006
By Gabriel Rozenberg, Economics Reporter
 
BRITAIN has topped the European league table for wealth creation, with its leading companies generating more value and doing so more efficiently than their continental rivals, a study shows today. 
 
A report from the Department of Trade and Industry reveals that European value added — defined as the money a business generates when its costs are deducted from its sales — is concentrated in the UK, France and Germany, with Britain in the lead. read more

From The Daily Telegraph
By Edmund Conway, Economics Editor (Filed: 03/07/2006)

Less than a month after Sir Philip Green was nominated for his knighthood, he has received, perhaps, a more satisfying accolade. He is – according to the latest research by the Department for Trade and Industry – the country’s most efficient retailer, with his Arcadia Group creating more value per employee than any other company on the high street.

This finding comes as part of the DTI’s annual value-added scoreboard, which shows that British companies have extended their lead over their European counterparts. read more

From The Daily Telegraph

Monday view: Man the barricades! Shareholders want ‘democratic’ rights
By Christopher Hope (Filed: 03/07/2006)

There is a long and ignoble history of private shareholders being well and truly let down by the boards of the British companies that they have supported for so long.

In recent months, private shareholders in Hilton have been saddled with a major capital- gains-tax hit after the company decided to turn itself into a chain of bookies by selling its hotels. read more

From The Financial Times:
By Joanna Chung and Rebecca Breamin London

Published: July 3 2006 03:00 | Last updated: July 3 2006 03:00

Petronas, Malaysia’s state oil company, and China National Petroleum Corp are planningto invest up to $2bn each in Rosneft as the Russian oil giant seeks support for its initial public offering.

Rosneft, which hopes to raise $10bn-$11.7bn through listings in London and Moscow at the end of next week, is understood to be in discussions with at least four oil companies about becoming strategic investors. read more

From The Financial Times
By Jeremy Grant in Washington

Published: July 3 2006 03:29 | Last updated: July 3 2006 03:29

BP, the UK energy group, has suspended three Houston-based traders at the centre of an alleged propane price manipulation scheme, as alarm rose in Washington over the need to police energy markets.

Senior US senators have warned congress that “too many trades” are occurring without regulatory oversight.

Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat, said: “More and more trading is being conducted by large oil and gas traders on electronic markets where there is no oversight. It’s time to put the cop back on the beat in these markets to make sure ordinary Americans aren’t ripped off.” read more

FROM THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
July 2, 2006 2:16 a.m.

AMMAN — Iraq is offering to sell 300,000-350,000 barrels a day of Kirkuk crude oil through term contracts as of beginning of August, head of the State Oil Marketing Organization, or SOMO, Falah Alamri said Saturday.

“We are going to put an advertisement either today or tomorrow for international companies to sell them Kirkuk crude through term contracts,” Mr. Alamri told Dow Jones Newswires by telephone from Baghdad. read more

From The Business Online
By Richard Orange
02 July 2006

TWO of the world’s most powerful national oil companies, Malaysia’s Petronas and Brazil’s Petrobras, are planning to purchase large stakes in Russian oil giant Rosneft’s imminent $10bn (£5.4bn, E7.8bn) London flotation. Their involvement will boost prospects for the success of Rosneft’s controversial initial public offering (IPO), which has already been reduced in size and is dogged by legal challenges and concerns about over-high valuations. read more

From The Sunday Business Post (Ireland)
02 July 2006 
By Laura Noonan

Sinn Fein, the Socialist Workers Party, the Workers Solidarity Movement and Eirgi, a new republican organisation, will help Shell to Sea campaigners deliver 40,000 information leaflets in Dublin this summer.

The leaflets were launched at the Dail last week, a year after five Mayomen were jailed for refusing to undertake not to obstruct a Shell E&P gas pipeline bringing gas from the Corrib field onshore.

‘‘We’re not running any candidates, and we’re not telling people how to vote,” said Tadhg McGrath of the Dublin Shell to Sea campaign. read more

From The Sunday Times
July 02, 2006

The making of this Russian oil giant has left many losers. Tracey Boles finds that avarice will have a big role in its flotation 
 
RICHARD ALLEN, a national security adviser to Ronald Reagan when he was US president, invested and lost $70,000 (£38,180) in the Russian oil giant Yukos. He is one of many litigants urging investors to snub the flotation of Rosneft, the rival Russian oil company. He said: “The average investor taking part in the float might as well invest in a crapshoot run by thugs if they are looking for cheap thrills. Or they can spend their money on a rollercoaster ride. Either way, they will lose their money.” 
 
Allen is telling potential investors: “Run — don’t walk — to the exit.” Like other holders of American Depositary Receipts (ADRs) in Yukos, Allen saw the value of his investment wiped out when Yukos’s assets were seized by the Kremlin and transferred to Rosneft via a controversial auction. He claimed: “It was grand theft on a major scale and (Russian) President (Vladimir) Putin is a grand thief.” read more

From the Washington Post

For Energy and Environmental Reasons, Ethanol Will Never Replace Gasoline

By James Jordan and James Powell
Sunday, July 2, 2006; Page B07

Biofuels such as ethanol made from corn, sugar cane, switchgrass and other crops are being touted as a “green” solution for a large part of America’s transportation problem. Auto manufacturers, Midwest corn farmers and politicians are excited about ethanol. Initially, we, too, were excited about biofuels: no net carbon dioxide emissions, reduction of oil imports. Who wouldn’t be enthusiastic? read more