Energy Investing in an Election Year
Source: Kent Moors, Money Morning  (2/6/12)
"Where are energy issues in the pecking order of the policy debate? If we can figure that out, we can better lay out our investment plans for the year, too." More >

Crude Oil Prices: Traders and Investors Turn to the Dollar and Euro
Source: Sara Nunnally, ETF Daily News  (2/4/12)
"There are a host of factors affecting crude oil prices. Lately, though, it boils down to the value of the dollar. The way things are going, that's not good news." More >

Liquids-Rich Companies Will Weather the Dry Spell: Luc Mageau
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Energy Report  (2/2/12)
With the winter warmer and drier than previous years, natural gas companies are suffering from depressed prices. However, Raymond James Analyst Luc Mageau identifies liquids-rich companies that can create profits with or without a natural gas price rally. In this exclusive interview with The Energy Report, Mageau explains how to use well payout rates to evaluate a company's longer-term cash flow. More >

New Study: Shale States Weathering Recession Better than Others
Source: JD Krohn, Energy InDepth  (2/2/12)
"Seven out of the top 10 states surveyed that saw rises in household income during the current recession were states in which oil and natural gas development is a significant contributor to that state’s economy." More >

No Bull: Low Natural Gas Prices Offer Great Opportunity
Source: James Baldwin, Oil & Energy Investor  (2/1/12)
"As the U.S. begins to export LNG to import facilities around the globe, we're going to see prices of natural gas converge around the globe. As markets open for lower-priced U.S. natural gas, demand for our lower-cost LNG will lead to the balancing of spot prices over time." More >

Iran Sees No Effect on Oil Production from EU Embargo
Source: Aresu Eqbali, Platts  (2/1/12)
"Iranian oil minister Rostam Ghasemi said EU countries would not find it easy to secure alternatives to the crude they currently buy from Iran." More >

Triple-Digit Oil Investing and a Natural Gas Price Rebound: Bill Powers
Source: George S. Mack of The Energy Report  (1/31/12)
Powers Energy Investor Editor Bill Powers doesn't shy away from microcaps; he embraces them. In this exclusive interview with The Energy Report, he explains why triple-digit oil is here to stay and how the best-positioned companies will be sitting pretty when natural gas prices rise—as will investors who time the rebound right. More >

Why Pipeline Politics in Central Asia Are a Boon for U.S. Investors
Source: Kent Moors, Money Morning  (1/30/12)
"Recent moves by Russia, Iran and especially China have just improved U.S.-based energy prospects. That's why I'm going to focus on one country many people haven't heard much about: Turkmenistan." More >

Congress' Next Bad Idea Would Destroy the Shale Boom
Source: James Baldwin, Money Morning  (1/30/12)
"Last week, six members of Congress, led by Rep. Dennis Kucinich, introduced the 'Gas Price Spike Act.' With concerns over the likelihood of higher gas prices this summer, the bill and its sponsors propose the creation of a 'Reasonable Profits Board' that would control the profits of oil and gas companies." More >

Filling an Energy Order with Chinese Takeouts
Source: Frank Holmes, US Global Investors  (1/26/12)
"China has been hungry to power its country for more than 1.3B residents, and takeouts of commodity-related companies is one way to fill its tall energy order." More >

Peering Through Exxon's Looking Glass
Source: Frank Holmes, U.S. Global Investors  (1/25/12)
"The emerging world will push global energy demand 30% higher by 2040, according to ExxonMobil's Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040. The report contains some interesting projections on what may be in store for the energy sector in the coming decades." More >

Iranian Oil Sanctions
Source: Platts  (1/25/12)
"While Tehran expressed displeasure at the EU's latest move through diplomatic channels, the Iranian oil ministry issued its own statement January 24 saying through its official spokesman the sanctions were a 'dangerous game' that the EU would not win." More >

Obama Will Open Federal Public Lands to Natural Gas Exploration
Source: Dorothy Kosich, Mineweb  (1/25/12)
"During his State of the Union Address to a joint session of Congress Tuesday, Obama noted, 'We have a supply of natural gas that can last America nearly 100 years. And my administration will take every possible action to safely develop this energy.'" More >

Will Iran Kill the Petrodollar?
Source: Marin Katusa, Casey Research  (1/25/12)
"A major portion of the U.S. dollar's valuation stems from its lock on the oil industry—if that monopoly fades, so too will the value of the dollar." More >

Will Iran Kill the Petrodollar?
Source: Marin Katusa, Casey Research  (1/25/12)
"A major portion of the dollar's valuation stems from its lock on the oil industry—if that monopoly fades, so too will the value of the dollar. There is one outcome that we foresee with certainty: Gold will rise. Uncertainty around paper money always bodes well for gold." More >

The President's Big Shout Out to Shale
Source: Energy InDepth  (1/25/12)
"A two-billion-year-long-no-mention streak finally came to an end, with President Obama devoting a significant segment of his nationally (and internationally) televised address to touting the promise and potential of developing America's enormous natural gas resources." More >

India to Buy Iranian Oil with Gold; China May Follow
Source: Jason Hamlin, GoldStockBull Investment Strategies  (1/24/12)
"India has reportedly agreed to pay Tehran in gold for the oil it buys, in a move aimed at avoiding U.S. sanctions that target countries that trade with Iran. China, the number one buyer of Iranian oil, may follow India's lead." More >

India to Buy Iranian Oil with Gold
Source: Jason Hamlin, GoldStockBull Investment Strategies  (1/24/12)
"This is only going to accelerate the decline of the dollar and its role as world reserve currency. It should also help boost the price of gold and further legitimize the movement to return to a gold standard." More >

It May Take a Dragon to Breathe Fire into Markets
Source: Frank Holmes, US Global Investors  (1/23/12)
"China's rapid growth has made a powerful case for commodities over the past several years. Once the country shifted from exporting to importing an energy commodity, there was no looking back." More >

It May Take a Dragon to Breathe Fire into Markets
Source: Frank Holmes, US Global Investors  (1/23/12)
"China's rapid growth has made a powerful case for commodities over the past several years. Once the country shifted from exporting to importing a commodity, there was no looking back." More >

Obama's Rejection of the Keystone XL Oil Pipeline Is Pure Politics
Source: David Zeiler, Money Morning  (1/19/12)
"Most experts believe the Keystone oil pipeline will eventually get built, but in the meantime, President Obama's decision gives both Republicans and Democrats raw material for 2012 campaign speeches." More >

Don't Frack Me Up
Source: Marin Katusa, Casey Research  (1/19/12)
"To many walking the planet, fracking has a seriously bad reputation. Thanks to hyperbole and misinformation, fracking opponents have convinced a lot of people that the operators who drill and then hydraulically fracture underground rock layers thumb their noses at and even hate the environment." More >

US Must Change Policies to Take Full Advantage of 'Energy Bonanza': Mulva
Source: Jim Magill, Platts  (1/18/12)
"The US must adopt new policies if it is to take full advantage of the potential 'energy bonanza' resulting from advances in unconventional oil and natural gas production, ConocoPhillips Chairman and CEO James Mulva said Wednesday." More >

2012 Natural Gas Price Forecast: Why to Avoid the 'Widow Maker'
Source: Jack Barnes, Money Morning  (1/16/12)
"Natural gas has collapsed in price instead of climbing during the peak winter cold months, but this price drop has more to do with U.S. production rising on a year-over-year basis than it does the weather." More >

Small Shale Oil Companies Make Prime Takeover Targets
Source: David Zeiler, Money Morning  (1/12/12)
"Small oil companies have become attractive takeover targets because they have something that oil majors like Exxon and Chevron want—expertise in the hydraulic fracking and horizontal drilling methods to extract oil from North America's vast shale reserves." More >