Needing Russian Gas, Italy Puts On EU’s Kid Gloves
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS – Italy, which recently assumed the rotating six-month Presidency of the European Union, will try to restore a partnership approach with Russia given that the latter is an...
View ArticlePutin to Ukraine: I’ll see you in court
by Kostis GeropoulosRussian President Vladimir Putin has said he cannot deal with a natural gas dispute between Moscow and Kiev because of pending court issues.The Ukrainian government filed a case in...
View ArticleFormer US Senators Lobby For Gazprom
by Kostis GeropoulosIt has never been the case that business and politics are separate, especially when it comes to Russia.Gazprombank, which is owned in part by Russian gas monopoly Gazprom, has hired...
View ArticleLifting US Oil Export Ban to Hurt Putin
by Kostis GeropoulosThe United States can squeeze Russia’s oil profits, increasing pressure on the Kremlin and Russian President Vladimir Putin’s policies in Ukraine while, at the same time, supply...
View ArticleSerbia Says Bets Off For South Stream
ATHENS - Serbia is concerned with the future of the Gazprom-driven South Stream gas pipeline following the deterioration of relations between Russia and the European Union with the latter warning it...
View ArticleEU’s Cold War With Russia Worries German Business
by Kostis GeropoulosRHODES, Greece – German business, including some major energy companies, are frustrated that “the political war” between EU and Russia has become an “economic war that we’re going...
View ArticleUS, EU Sanctions Push Iran Toward Russia, China
by Kostis GeropoulosRHODES, Greece – US and EU sanctions against Tehran are hurting the economic interests of Europe and Iran, leading the latter to forge closer relations with Russia and China, a...
View ArticleGazprom Neft Well-Prepared For US-EU Sanctions
by Kostis GeropoulosGazprom Neft has been well prepared to face Western sanctions, a source close to the company told New Europe on October 10. The oil arm of Russian gas monopoly Gazprom expected that...
View ArticlePutin Pushes South Stream In Belgrade, Milan
by Kostis GeropoulosRussian President Vladimir Putin’s visits to Belgrade and Milan allowed the Kremlin leader to push the planned South Stream gas pipeline that would allow Gazprom to transport its...
View ArticleGazprom Sees Bigger Role in Austria
by Kostis GeropoulosBADEN, Austria– The first thing you notice when riding on the train after landing at Vienna International Airport is the extensive facilities of Austrian oil and gas group OMV.Even...
View ArticleEU Subsidy Keeps Russian Gas Coming to Ukraine
by Kostis GeropoulosVouliagmeni, Greece– The morning sun was shining at a seaside resort south of Athens where a geopolitical conference was taking place on October 31, focusing on energy security....
View ArticleHungarian Dance: Playing Russia’s Energy Tune Worries US
by Kostis GeropoulosMuch like US Senator John McCain’s visit to Bulgaria last summer to try and halt the Russian-backed South Stream pipeline, the US dispatched State Department official responsible...
View ArticleEU Energy Union Chief To Tackle South Stream
by Kostis GeropoulosBRATISLAVA – European Commission Vice-President for Energy Union Maros Sefcovic from Slovakia said the European Union plans to discuss with member states the controversial issues...
View ArticleIsrael, Greece, Cyprus see a role in EU energy security
by Kostis GeropoulosJERUSALEM, Israel– Shifting geopolitical alliances have reinforced ties between Israel, Greece and Cyprus, strengthening Europe’s energy security.“We have improved over the last...
View ArticleOPEC Keeps Pumping, Vexing Putin, Iran
by Kostis GeropoulosDespite the steep fall in oil prices in recent months, the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) oil producers on November 27 decided not to cut petroleum...
View ArticlePrecipitous Oil Price Drop Corrals Putin
by Kostis GeropoulosThe more than 30% drop in oil price, which is one of Russia’s main exports, placed immense pressure on the ruble, which is also suffering from the Western sanctions against Moscow,...
View ArticleGazing into the energy crystal ball for 2015
by Kostis GeropoulosGreece | Athens : When I wrote that a weaker crude oil price was in the cards for the second half of 2014 and into 2015 a year ago, I did not expect the nearly 50% plunge in prices...
View ArticleLatvia’s EU Presidency Says South Stream Loss Could Drive Energy Union
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS– The scrapping of the Russian-planned South Stream gas pipeline can be on the positive side a stimulus for more active work on the Energy Union, Ambassador of Latvia to...
View Article‘After South Stream,’ ITGI to connect East Med to EU
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS - Following the scrapping of the Russian-backed South Stream gas pipeline and Gazprom’s recent announcement that natural gas exports to Europe will bypass Ukraine entirely...
View ArticleAs Elections Loom, Greece Wants To Be EU’s Energy Catalyst
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS - As Greece prepares for crucial vote on January 25 which could put radical leftwing Syriza into power, the Mediterranean country is pursuing a number of energy projects that...
View ArticleOil Slump, Weak Ruble, Ukraine, Make Gazprom Reassess Plans
by Kostis GeropoulosHit by falling energy prices, a weaker ruble and a pricing dispute with Ukraine, Russian gas monopoly Gazprom said on January 29 that third-quarter net income dropped to 106 billion...
View ArticleTsipras Sees Red (Pipeline), Accepts Putin Invite
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS - The new Greek government’s improved relations with Russia may help the implementation of Gazprom’s planned Turkish Stream pipeline to Europe.On February 5, as debt...
View ArticleTurkey Wants It Both Ways: Russian Gas, EU Pipe
by Kostis GeropoulosTurkish Energy Minister Taner Yildiz said in Baku on February 12 that Ankara plans to go ahead with the Southern Gas Corridor projects, including the Trans-Anatolian natural gas...
View ArticlePutin Willing to Exhume South Stream for EU
by Kostis GeropoulosFor the European Commission it is paramount to have a dialogue with the EU Member States from Central East and Southeast Europe, a Commission spokesperson told New Europe on...
View ArticleGreece wants to be EU link to Eurasia
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS– Cash-strapped Greece advanced its cooperation with the Eurasian Economic Union (EAEU) on February 26, aiming to act as an economic bridge between the EU and the new union of...
View ArticleThe Lazarus Pipeline: Borisov hopes to bring Nabucco back to life
by Kostis GeropoulosBulgarian Prime Minister Boyko Borisov said the Balkan country will ask the European Commission to revive the Nabucco-West gas pipeline project on its territory. Borisov considers...
View ArticleIran to supply EU with oil if sanctions lifted
by Kostis GeropoulosATHENS– If Western sanctions against Tehran are lifted, Iran could once again become a major oil exporter to Europe, Mahmood Khaghani, a petroleum development strategy advisor and a...
View ArticleBilling Them Softly, Exxon asks Russia’s Sakhalin taxes back
by Kostis GeropoulosUS energy giant ExxonMobil has reportedly asked the Russian government to reimburse taxes worth several billion roubles it says it overpaid on the Sakhalin I project. The move comes...
View ArticleSaudi strike in Yemen roils oil prices, escalation fears
by Kostis GeropoulosSaudi Arabian jets struck Houthi positions in Yemen on March 26, which Iran called a “dangerous step,” adding a layer of risk to global oil markets, pushing crude prices up.Riyadh...
View ArticlePutin offers Greece link to Turkish Stream pipeline for EU
by Kostis GeropoulosOne day after foreign ministers from Hungary, Serbia, FYROM, Greece and Turkey signed a declaration in Budapest, paving the way for the five countries to participate in the...
View Article