One beauty of British mystery writers like Conan Doyle and early Le Carre is their use of deductive reasoning to relate odd facts and explain reality.  Matt Simmons used the same powers to help us understand why major oil companies deny Peak Oil and why they finance groups like Cambridge Energy Research Associates that go around sowing doubt in the public’s mind about Peak Oil (although, as recently reported, their scheme has failed). 

The reason, as Matt told us in Twilight in the Desert, is that the production sharing agreements …

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This story continues the theme I recently discussed that it is costing more to bring oil to the market, resulting in lower oil flows.  Peak oil is all about lower oil flows.  Or is it about rising costs of producing oil, since the results of that are lower oil flows?   Here’s the report from Reuters: Top oil firms spend more but get less crude Thu Feb 14, 2008 11:24am EST By Alex Lawler - Analysis LONDON (Reuters) - The world’s three …

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  The President of Royal Dutch Shell has published a white paper on the company’s web site which is bold in its candor and its vision.  In addition to advocating actions against human caused global warming, Mr. van der Veer says that crude oil production will peak in 2015, that supplemental sources of oil will be needed and that conservation efforts need to be increased.  His vision is remarkably close to the one I have described on this site.    Reading between the lines, one …

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A broad review of the decline of International Oil Companies’ ability to control oil supplies as host countries take over.   click here.

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This piece explains a major reason why the International Oil Companies (IOC’s) like to see stable oil prices, not rising prices.   With higher prices their production deals call for less oil to go to them, more to stay in country.  click here.

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Another in a continuing series of production disappointments. click here.

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