We should be paying attention - why?
Russia for instance, holds an economic stranglehold on natural gas sales to Europe. Cutthroat prices designed to keep the European union in-check, "or else"..
France has been told it seems to stop "fracking" which would lead to an energy surplus of Natural Gas. They have been told Fracking is so dangerous, when in fact the danger comes from deep injection wells disposing of waste water products (some products derived from recovered spent fracking water - the environmentalists heard "fracking" and thought the fracking of wells was causing earthquakes when the full story is Disposal Wells being over-pressured with fracking water, and associated oil well water separated out from production is the cause...)
Reading it as a conspiracy, Russia needs to have high energy prices to keep their war machine running without depleting their stored coffers...
Here is the data in multiple posts to cover the topics as to Why is it Important that Iran now is coming on line with ENERGY (oil and gas).
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The west seeks to destroy Russian stranglehold on energy (i.e. sales to Europe at inflated prices)..
Iran coming on line with not just oil but natural gas puts a crimp in Russian economy. Oil being artificially lowered in sales prices puts a major crimp in the discretionary income Russia has to pay for waging war.
Another forum's member said this to me:
Who is buying is interesting, who is wanting to establish economic contract relationships is important. It seems that what their interests are in doing that when they themselves have good energy reserves is especially interesting.So there are countries willing to buy Iranian oil. So what ?
Times - UK " Britain is to lead an international effort to stop Russia from using its vast natural energy supplies to hold the world to ransom.
"As President Putin continues to stoke fears of civil war in Ukraine, energy ministers are preparing to weaken his power by reducing reliance on Russian gas.
"Speaking before a summit for G7 countries next month, Ed Davey, the energy secretary, warned that Putin had the west in a stranglehold.."
Iran's energy sales offer solutions to Europe besides buying from Russia.
(Sources - multiple 1)
Why is Putin trying to get Natural Gas from other sellers?
Supposedly Shale Gas is so bad, that it has to be stopped worldwide. Shale Gas recovery requires very deep (formation protected hydraulic fracturing operations - 'fracking') drilling, it is expensive, but it yields high values from productive fields.
To sabotage those economically attempting to recover shale gas, a campaign would have to be created to discredit, and put fear into the minds of lay people, eventually to get local governments to "ban fracking", using all sorts of excuses (bypassing and hiding the damage that disposal injection wells, the real culprit)... Russia then maintains its economic stranglehold in Europe's gas buyers who rely on it for instance for industry and heating homes.
GET THE GAS, cut deals with those to keep Russia the Supplier for Europe -
The tension between Israel and Iran ratchets up.. an interesting sub-text has developed over the role of Iran’s traditional backer, Russia. While many Western observers continue to raise the spectre of a ‘wider Middle East conflagration’ (an argument we have consistently refuted), and one that could drag in Russia, a whole new, higher value, game chip is now in play: Moscow’s interest in Israeli energy.
Israel and its neighbouring potential partner, Cyprus, of course must be quite aware that Gazprom, Russia’s battering ram, can easily prove to be a Trojan Horse in any major future natural gas development. Certainly, they will try to affect a project that could lessen their energy stranglehold over Europe. 20 million metric tons of liquid natural gas (LNG) exported each year from the eastern Mediterranean into Europe would amount to about one third of current Russian exports.
Whatever we may think of Vladimir Putin’s politics, one thing is clear, he is a shrewd, often ruthless, operator on the global stage. But Putin’s Kremlin is clearly rattled by the threat of decline for that which underpins Russia’s entire economy: its energy hegemony.
Putin is only too aware of the triple whammy of falling domestic energy productivity, surging global shale development in the wake of the transforming US shale revolution, and a new threat posed to a European market still dependent on Russian gas imports – the significant potential of Israeli and Cypriot gas exports.
Getting involved with Israel's attempts for energy independence, Gazprom is potentially that snake in the garden.
Why is Iran Energy production coming on line important ? Pretty obvious.According to reports, while publicly playing down the impact that shale gas and oil is likely to have, Putin is privately urging Russia’s energy majors to learn all they can about hydraulic fracturing techniques. Meanwhile, in a bid to retain a key stake in its European export market – Russia supplies a quarter of all Europe’s (rising) natural gas demand – Moscow is set on doing all in its power to protect its ‘captive’ market.
To date, Europe’s anti-shale gas policies have played into Russian hands
Why is Putin trying to get Natural Gas from other sellers?
Supposedly Shale Gas is so bad, that it has to be stopped worldwide. Shale Gas recovery requires very deep (formation protected hydraulic fracturing operations - 'fracking') drilling, it is expensive, but it yields high values from productive fields.
To sabotage those economically attempting to recover shale gas, a campaign would have to be created to discredit, and put fear into the minds of lay people, eventually to get local governments to "ban fracking", using all sorts of excuses (bypassing and hiding the damage that disposal injection wells, the real culprit)... Russia then maintains its economic stranglehold in Europe's gas buyers who rely on it for instance for industry and heating homes.
GET THE GAS, cut deals with those to keep Russia the Supplier for Europe -
The tension between Israel and Iran ratchets up.. an interesting sub-text has developed over the role of Iran’s traditional backer, Russia. While many Western observers continue to raise the spectre of a ‘wider Middle East conflagration’ (an argument we have consistently refuted), and one that could drag in Russia, a whole new, higher value, game chip is now in play: Moscow’s interest in Israeli energy.
Israel and its neighbouring potential partner, Cyprus, of course must be quite aware that Gazprom, Russia’s battering ram, can easily prove to be a Trojan Horse in any major future natural gas development. Certainly, they will try to affect a project that could lessen their energy stranglehold over Europe. 20 million metric tons of liquid natural gas (LNG) exported each year from the eastern Mediterranean into Europe would amount to about one third of current Russian exports.
Whatever we may think of Vladimir Putin’s politics, one thing is clear, he is a shrewd, often ruthless, operator on the global stage. But Putin’s Kremlin is clearly rattled by the threat of decline for that which underpins Russia’s entire economy: its energy hegemony.
Putin is only too aware of the triple whammy of falling domestic energy productivity, surging global shale development in the wake of the transforming US shale revolution, and a new threat posed to a European market still dependent on Russian gas imports – the significant potential of Israeli and Cypriot gas exports.
Getting involved with Israel's attempts for energy independence, Gazprom is potentially that snake in the garden.
Why is Iran Energy production coming on line important ? Pretty obvious.According to reports, while publicly playing down the impact that shale gas and oil is likely to have, Putin is privately urging Russia’s energy majors to learn all they can about hydraulic fracturing techniques. Meanwhile, in a bid to retain a key stake in its European export market – Russia supplies a quarter of all Europe’s (rising) natural gas demand – Moscow is set on doing all in its power to protect its ‘captive’ market.
To date, Europe’s anti-shale gas policies have played into Russian hands
What else does Iran have in the way of Energy Products?
Natural Gas - (good quality)
UK especially needs Natural Gas and has been buying from Russia (GazProm) who has had a stranglehold on natural gas prices.. (think economic leverage and posturing)
The Kish GasField on the Iranian side is large. Qatar also has claims to that field (their side of the Gulf).
Here is one of the production maps (red is gas, green demarks oil).
The field also holds at least 1 billion barrels (160,000,000 m3) of condensate (oil equivalent) of which at least 331 million barrels (52,600,000 m3) are recoverable.
In February 2010, an Iranian consortium headed by Bank Mellat signed a $10-billion agreement with the National Iranian Oil Company (NIOC) to develop the Kish gas field. The gas field will produce 85 million cubic meters of natural gas per day.
However - South Pars / North Dome Gas-Condensate field. It is the world's largest gas field, shared between Iran and Qatar.
According to the International Energy Agency (IEA), the field holds an estimated 1,800 trillion cubic feet (51 trillion cubic metres) of in-situ natural gas and some 50 billion barrels (7.9 billion cubic metres) of natural gas condensates.
Looking at the world's largest gas field, dwarf's Russia..
It seems that Russia no doubt would love to get its hands on that field, and stranglehold the rest of the world's natural gas consumers. Possibly that is why they are buying small amounts of oil from Iran from the sanctions relief action, to get a toe hold, then possibly by the throat if they can put Iran into a compromising political situation.
From Reuters - "Russia's seizure of the Crimea and its threat to cut off gas to Ukraine, a transit route to the rest of Europe, have revived calls to reduce the EU's reliance on Moscow for energy, but the blocs options are limited and costly."
Russia today is Europe's biggest supplier of oil, coal and natural gas, meeting around a third of demand for all those fuels, according to Eurostat data, and receiving in return a thumping $250 billion (151 billion pounds) a year.
"European leaders said on Friday that the stand-off with Moscow over Crimea made them more determined than ever to end decades of dependence on Russian gas."
Possibly a motivating factor to let Iran off from sanctions, Europe needs the ENERGY, and Russia is not cooperating..
(Source - multiple - 1)
Putin's Energy Stranglehold on Europe - http://euanmearns.com/putins-energy-stranglehold-on-europe/
"Zbigniew Brzezinski the former US National Security adviser to Jimmy Carter: His theory basically claims that firstly the USSR, then the Russian Federation is using its energy resources to bring Europe to heel through energy dependence.
"Russia needs Ukraine for its energy dominance, as a “pipeline corridor country” so the West and Russia have totally opposing goals in Ukraine and Crimea. This could mean war."
From Zero Hedge - http://www.zerohedge.com/contributed/2012-08-31/russia%E2%80%99s-gazprom-tightens-its-stranglehold-europe-france-falls-natural-gas-wa -
"Why would France suddenly prohibit shale gas exploration? Sure, there are environmental issues with horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing, the methods used to extract gas from porous shale deep underground: flammable drinking water, earth quakes, cows that die, radioactive sludge in sewage treatment plants.... But French governments have had, let’s say, an uneasy relationship with environmentalists. Its spy service DGSE, for example, sank Greenpeace’s flagship, the Rainbow Warrior, in the port of Auckland, New Zealand, killing one person."
Price Fixing through threats of Economic Terrorism
"Gazprom’s “underhanded tactics” and “scaremongering about a new technology” have Moscow’s nod of approval and are designed to dissuade governments from developing their own shale-gas reserves, according to a report by Platts, a global provider of information on energy, petrochemicals, and metals. Efforts include all manner of operations, online and through encouraging demonstrations, but also paying public relation firms to spread “myths and misconceptions,” said Aviezer Tucker, assistant director of the Energy Institute at the University of Texas. A “European Union-wide ban” on shale-gas production, he said, would be the “holy grail.”
"With France already knocked off, Sergei Komlev of Gazprom Export has been bouncing around the world in his fight against European shale gas."