Crude Oil vs. Iran: Who Blinks First?
Source: ETF Daily News, EconMatters  (2/22/12)
"Crude oil fundamentals have not changed enough to warrant this spike, but the reality remains that prices get distorted whenever there's a whiff of geopolitical tension." More >

Mailbag: A Timeline for the Natural Gas Revolution
Source: James Baldwin, Money Morning  (2/22/12)
"The U.S. will likely see an increase in solar, wind, geothermal and other 'green' sources. However, these alternative sources are not enough to fully replace such an enormous amount of power. As a result, the country will turn to natural gas to fill the void." More >

Sanctions Noose Tightens Around Iran as Buyers Seek Alternative Oil
Source: Margaret McQuaile, Platts  (2/22/12)
"International sanctions aimed at slashing Iran's main economic lifeline, its oil revenues, could have an impact on the country's export volumes well beyond the 500,000 b/d of crude that a European Union ban will displace from July." More >

The Right Way to Find Growth and Value Stocks
Source: Kevin Matras, Zachs Investment Research  (2/22/12)
"While there are still plenty of them around, it's getting harder to find stocks that fit squarely into both categories." More >

Energy Investing in Saskatchewan: Tom MacNeill
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Energy Report  (2/21/12)
Tom MacNeill doesn't have to go far to find the most unique early-stage energy companies to invest in. The President and CEO of Saskatchewan-based investment firm 49 North Resources, MacNeill is bullish on his own backyard, and says of the province's resources, "You name it, we've got it." In this exclusive interview with The Energy Report, he explains why Saskatchewan resource plays trump their Alberta or Ontario counterparts. More >

EU Unfazed by Iran Oil Export Halts to UK, France
Source: Stuart Elliott, Platts  (2/20/12)
"Iran's announcement Feb. 19 that it had stopped exporting oil to France and Britain appears to be a largely symbolic move targeting the two strongest advocates of the European Union's ban on Iranian oil imports." More >

The Positive Side of the WTI–Brent Spread
Source: Kent Moors, Money Morning  (2/19/12)
"In the Midwest, refinery capacity has been strained; however, there is a glut of crude coming from Canada, which is creating a discount for these companies." More >

Oil Sands Semantics: I Say Potato, You Say Po-Tar Sands
Source: Joel Chury, VantageWire  (2/18/12)
"The key descriptor falls into two categories: oil sands or tar sands. The former is the term more commonly used among industry types. To use the term 'tar sands' is to evoke the negative, to essentially tar and feather the debate." More >

Study: 'No Evidence of Groundwater Contamination' from Fracking
Source: Shannon Brushe, Energy InDepth  (2/17/12)
"A new study from the Energy Institute at the University of Texas at Austin has found 'no evidence' of hydraulic fracturing leading to groundwater contamination, as well as a marked trend of negative, ill-researched media coverage on the topic." More >

Pandas and Pipelines: China Yields Big Deals and Bigger Promises
Source: Joel Chury, Vantage Wire  (2/15/12)
"Canada's Prime Minister Stephen Harper returns from China with two giant pandas in tow and $3B worth of signed agreements. The Northern Gateway pipeline will most likely tie China to Alberta's oil sands." More >

Oil Prices Make for Profitable ETF Trades: Roger Wiegand
Source: Brian Sylvester of The Energy Report   (2/14/12)
Today's retail investors have more options than ever before, but there is a shortage of practical information on how to manipulate different investment products, be they ETFs, options or equities. Enter Roger Wiegand, editor of Trader Tracks. In this exclusive interview with The Energy Report, Wiegand discusses his methods for energy investment and how to set tailor-made time and price windows to realize solid gains. More >

The Great Energy Reversal
Source: Kent Moors, Money Morning  (2/13/12)
"The U.S. could finally become completely self-sufficient in its energy policy. But it does require that we change the way we approach investing in the energy market." More >

OPEC Cuts Call on Crude to 30.04 MMbl/d
Source: Platts, Margaret McQuaile, Richard Swann, Jacinta Moran, Kate Dourian  (2/11/12)
"In its latest monthly oil market report, OPEC trimmed its forecast of the call on OPEC crude for 2012 as a whole to 30.04 MMb/d from the 30.15 MMb/d projected a month ago." More >

Iran Is Now a Full-Blown Crisis; Stage Set for $200 Oil
Source: Kent Moors, Money Morning  (2/8/12)
"As the brinksmanship intensifies, so will the price of crude oil. Tehran, in this dangerous game of international chicken, really only has one card to play—the Strait of Hormuz." More >

Iran Moves to Speed Up Bill Banning Oil Exports to EU
Source: Aresu Eqbali, Platts  (2/7/12)
"Members of the Iranian parliament are moving to accelerate a bill that would halt oil exports to the European Union ahead of an EU ban on oil imports from Iran that comes into force on July 1." More >

The Keystone Delay Won't Stop These Canadian Oil Sands Stocks
Source: Martin Hutchinson, Money Morning  (2/7/12)
"While the Keystone Pipeline continues to twist in the wind, investors shouldn't ignore the Canadian energy sector, especially the Athabasca tar sands." More >

Oil and Gas Stock Outlook
Source: Zacks Equity Research  (2/7/12)
"Crude oil's near-term fundamentals remain mixed, to say the least. The long-term outlook for oil, however, remains favorable given the commodity's constrained supply picture and continued strength in the major emerging economies." More >

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 >