Big oil to sharpen focus on costs after $200bn of cuts

Big oil to sharpen focus on costs after $200bn of cuts

Jul 27th, 2015 

by John Donovan. 

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Europe’s biggest oil companies have to find deeper cuts as oil prices expected to weigh on earnings

By Andrew Critchlow, Commodities editor: 27 July 2015

Three of Europe’s biggest oil companies will report weaker earnings this week and the City is looking for guidance on how to mitigate a sustained slump in Brent crude prices beyond the cost cuts already in motion.

In a market defined by oil prices 60pc lower than they were a year ago, energy giants are running out of options to protect their bottom line and all-important progressive dividends.

The brakes have already been put on 45 oil and gas development projects worth $200bn (£129bn) since prices started to fall towards the end of last year, according to a new report from Edinburgh-based consultancy Wood Mackenzie. Combined, these projects account for around 20bn barrels of reserves. The danger is that international oil companies will reveal this week that even deeper cuts are planned, tipping the industry into a form of atrophy.

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Posted in: Alaska, Arctic, BG Group, BP, Chukchi Sea, Daily Telegraph, Environment,Gas, Gulf of Mexico, Oil, Oil Company Profits, Oil Prices, Royal Dutch Shell Plc, Shell,Total.
Tagged: Alaska · Arctic Ocean · BG Group · BP · Gas · LNG · Oil Prices · Royal Dutch Shell Plc · Total

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British energy giants set to axe costs in a bid to cope with falling gas and oil prices

British energy giants set to axe costs in a bid to cope with falling gas and oil prices

Jul 27th, 2015 

by John Donovan. 

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BG could reveal a 75 per cent fall in profit to £200million

By LAURA CHESTERS FOR THE DAILY MAIL: 26 July 2015

The falling price of oil and gas continues to take its toll on energy firms as British Gas-owner Centrica, BP and Royal Dutch Shell are set to reveal increased cost cutting to cope.

The weak oil price has led to £130billion worth of oil and gas projects to be shelved globally, according to consultancy Wood Mackenzie.

In the UK this week Centrica chief executive Iain Conn is expected to reveal the details of a comprehensive strategic review that has been under way since he joined in January.

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Posted in: BG Group, BP, Daily Mail, Gas, Oil Prices, Royal Dutch Shell Plc.
Tagged: BG Group · BP · Gas · Oil Prices · Royal Dutch Shell Plc

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Israel Sees Nazism in a Mirror It Mistakes for Window

Israel Sees Nazism in a Mirror It Mistakes for Window David Swanson: Israel is trying to expel the population of a village for the crime of not being Jewish, the same crime for which Israel bombs the people of Gaza for a month or so every few years and blockades them in between these bursts of violence.  READ MORE shared from

MONDAY, 27 JULY 2015 Israel Sees Nazism in a Mirror It Mistakes for Window David Swanson: Israel is trying to expel the population of a village for the crime of not being Jewish, the same crime for which Israel bombs the people of Gaza for a month or so every few years and blockades them in between these bursts of violence. READ MORE Friend on Facebook Follow on Twitter Forward to a Friend LA's Top Cops Show Their True Colors and It's Not Pretty Peter Laarman: LA’s cop culture remains what it’s always been—tribal and brutal—whether it’s Bratton and Baca or Beck and McDonnell running our largest police agencies. READ HERE Sandra Bland: Toeing the Thin Blue Line Jon Zerolnick: Sandra Bland was in fact a model person and citizen. She knew the law and asserted her rights. Without her, Waller County, Texas, and the U.S. are a little worse off. READ HERE Hillary's Email: All Smoke? Marcy Wheeler: Clinton deserves a good deal of criticism for using personal email that has made it more difficult to access via FOIAs. But retroactively classified information still should not be used to prosecute her. READ MORE “What’s It Gonna Take?” Asks a Victim’s Family Larry Wines: What is it about the nutjobs coming after everyone else in this sick society who are awash in bullshit that says gun ownership is THE only right that matters? READ HERE

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Lobo rejoices for cancellation of mining resolution -ATM

[Press Release] Lobo rejoices for cancellation of mining resolution -ATM shared from Human Rights Online Philippines / 4 days ago Lobo rejoices for cancellation of mining resolution File photo by Jonal Javier/ATM Citizens of Lobo, Batangas are currently in celebration after a municipal resolution has been passed cancelling an earlier resolution endorsing the mining project of MRL-Egerthon. The resolution by Lobo Councilor Rey Nelson Amparo aiming to cancel the endorsement of the mining project was approved through a unanimous decision in an official council session held on July 20, 2015 in Lobo Municipal Hall. 250 rallyists supported the call for the cancellation of the mining project’s endorsement outside the municipal hall as the dialogue between the citizens of Lobo and MRL-Egerthon was held. Lobo Vice mayor Renato Perez facilitated the dialogue which was attended by the people of Lobo, Religious organization Archdiocesan Ministry on Environment (AMEn), national anti-mining coalition Alyansa Tigil Mina (ATM) and Bantay Kalikasan Chairman Gina Lopez. “It is really a victory for the people of Lobo.” Said Fr. Dakila Ramos of Archdiocesan Ministry on Environment (AMEn). “They passed a resolution without undergoing the proper process and without any consultation. In a way, this shows betrayal to the people of Lobo and our environment. “We do not want mining to destroy Lobo, and we will never agree to it ever. It is about time that the abusive use of power stops. It is about time that the mining companies realize that they cannot pay their way into ravaging our lands because the people of Lobo will never let it happen.” he added. Among the issues raised by the groups opposing the MRL-Egerthon’s mining project were the lack of social acceptability of the earlier resolution passed by the municipal council endorsing the mining operation, the destruction in livelihood the operation will bring Lobo, destruction of their environment most especially the Verde Island passage which is the center of the center of the marine biodiversity in the world, and the unsafe containment of the mining operation’s waste if the mining project pushes through. In the event of approval, MRL-Egerthon would have a permit to commercially mine gold in 1,174 hectares in Lobo, Batangas. In the same dialogue, MRL -Egerthon answered the issues raised regarding livelihood and the containment of mine waste. According to the mining company, the project can give 640 Million worth of revenue to Lobo for the whole mine life. With regard to the waste containment, MRL-Egerthon admitted that they will use cyanide but proper disposal system and equipment are in place along with the project plan. National anti-mining coalition Alyansa Tigil Mina shot down MRL-Egerthon’s claims declaring these claims as worthless compared to the destruction the mining operation will bring to Lobo. “Lobo houses an estimate of 40,000 citizens and Mount Banoi, a watershed that provides potable water for Batangas. MRL-Egerthon’s mining operation will surely produce adverse effects not just to the people but to the environment.” said Jaybee Garganera, ATM National Coordinator. “Even the people of Lobo know this that is why they are doing everything in their power to culminate the plans of mining in their area. “Social acceptability is one of the fundamental elements for a mining operation to start and since MRL-Egerthon failed to secure this, it is time the mining company faces defeat and leave Lobo alone.” Garganera concluded. —– AlyansaTigil Mina is an alliance of mining-affected communities and their support groups of POs and and other civil society organizations who oppose the aggressive promotion of large-scale mining in the Philippines. The alliance is currently pushing for a moratorium on mining, revocation of EO 270-A, repeal of the Mining Act of 1995, and passage of the AMMB. For more information: JaybeeGarganera, ATM National Coordinator (0917) 549.82.18 alyansatigilmina.net> Jonal Javier, ATM Luzon Site of Struggle Officer, (0917) 591.54.72 alyansatigilmina.net> Fr. Dakila Ramos, AMEn, 09158750810 Check Zabala, ATM Media and Communications Officer (0927) 623.50.66 gmail.com All submissions are republished and redistributed in the same way that it was originally published online and sent to us. We may edit submission in a way that does not alter or change the original material. Human Rights Online Philippines does not hold copyright over these materials. Author/s and original source/s of information are retained including the URL contained within the tagline and byline of the articles, news information, photos etc.

The TRUTH will set you FREE.

This country belongs to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires.

In the meantime, let me be very blunt and tell you why I am running.

This country faces more serious problems today than at any time in modern history, and establishment politics will not successfully resolve them.

Corporate greed is rampant, and the very rich keep growing richer while everyone else grows poorer. Despite an explosion in technology and a huge increase in productivity, the middle class continues to disappear, most Americans work longer hours for lower wages, and 45 million live in poverty.

The skyrocketing level of income and wealth inequality is not only grotesque and immoral, it is economically unsustainable. It is unconscionable that 99% of all new income goes to the top 1%. It is absurd that the top one-tenth of 1% own almost as much wealth as the bottom 90%, and that one family (the Waltons of Walmart) has more wealth than the bottom 130 million Americans.

As a result of the disastrous Supreme Court ruling on Citizens United, the billionaire class is spending huge amounts of money to buy candidates and elections. We are now witnessing the undermining of American democracy and the rapid movement toward oligarchy where a handful of very wealthy families and their Super PACs will control our government.

The scientific community is virtually unanimous in telling us that climate change is real, is caused by human activity, and is already bringing catastrophic damage to our planet. Yet, the Republican Party is prepared to reject science in order to gain campaign contributions from the Koch brothers, Big Energy companies and others who make billions on fossil fuels. If we do not act boldly on climate change, the planet we leave to our grandchildren may be uninhabitable.

The United States once led the world in terms of the percentage of our young people who had college degrees. Today, in a highly competitive global economy, we are now in 12th place. Hundreds of thousands of bright young people have given up on the dream of higher education, while millions of others leave school with oppressive debt.

Our infrastructure -- roads, bridges, rail, airports, water systems, wastewater plants, levees, dams -- is crumbling, and Congress refuses to appropriate anywhere near the necessary funds to rebuild it. If we do not invest substantially in infrastructure, a bad situation will only become much worse.

Despite substantial gains, we still have a long way to go to achieve equality for minorities. Instead of investing in opportunities, we are locking people up at an incredible rate. We now have the highest incarceration rate in the entire world with over 2 million in prison and millions more on probation or parole. We have a broken immigration system that divides families and keeps millions of hard-working people in the shadows.

Most of the major Wall Street financial institutions that we bailed out because they were "too big to fail," are now bigger than they used to be. The six largest financial institutions now have assets equivalent to nearly 60% of our GDP, issue 35% of the mortgages, and oversee 65% of credit cards.

Our tax system is wildly unfair - rigged to benefit the very rich. Major corporations that earn billions in profits stash their money in tax havens and pay nothing in federal income taxes, while billionaire hedge fund managers pay a lower effective tax rate than nurses or teachers.

Despite growing poverty among seniors, almost all Republicans, and some Democrats, want to cut Social Security and benefits for disabled veterans. They want more austerity for the elderly, the children, the sick and the poor, and more tax breaks for the rich.

The wars in Iraq and Afghanistan have cost us thousands of lives and trillions of dollars. The United States spends more on the military than the next nine biggest-spending countries combined. Today, there are massive cost over-runs with defense contractors and the Pentagon cannot even pass an independent audit.

We are at a moment of truth. We need to face up to the reality of where we are as a nation, and we need a mass movement of people to change that reality.

Let's be clear. This campaign is not about Bernie Sanders. It's about a grassroots movement of Americans standing up and saying: "Enough is enough. This country and our government belong to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires."

I have discussed some of the major crises that we face. Let me give you the outline of an agenda which addresses these problems.

Jobs, Jobs, Jobs: The truth is that real unemployment in our country is not the "official" and widely-reported 5.4 percent. Counting those who are underemployed and those who have given up looking for work, real unemployment is almost 11 percent. Even more disturbingly, real unemployment for white and Hispanic youth is over 30 percent, while African-American youth unemployment is over 50 percent.

We need a major federal jobs program. The most effective way to do that is to rebuild our crumbling infrastructure. To do that, I have introduced legislation which would invest $1 trillion over 5 years to modernize our country's physical infrastructure. This would create and maintain at least 13 million good-paying jobs. It would also make our country more productive, efficient and safe.

As a member of Congress who voted against NAFTA, CAFTA, Permanent Normal Trade Relations with China (PNTR) and is helping to lead the opposition against the TPP, I will continue my opposition to trade policies which have cost us millions of decent paying jobs as corporate America shuts down plants here and moves them to low-wage countries.

Raising Wages: Today, millions of Americans are working for starvation wages and median family income has declined by almost $5,000 since 1999. The current federal minimum wage of $7.25 an hour is totally inadequate. We need to raise the minimum wage to a living wage - $15 an hour over the next few years. Our goal must be that no full-time worker in this country lives in poverty. We must also bring about pay equity for women. There is no rational reason why women should be earning 78 cents on the dollar compared to men who perform the same work.

Further, we need to implement "family values" for American working families. It is unacceptable that the United States is the only major country on earth that does not guarantee family and medical leave, sick time and paid vacations.

Wealth and Income Inequality: Today, the richest 400 Americans own over $2.2 trillion in wealth, more than the bottom 150 million Americans combined. Meanwhile, nearly half of all Americans have less than $10,000 in savings and have no idea how they will be able to retire with dignity.

In order to reverse the massive transfer of wealth and income from the middle class to the very rich that we have seen in recent years, we need real tax reform which makes the wealthy and profitable corporations begin to pay their fair share of taxes. It is fiscally irresponsible that the U.S. Treasury loses about $100 billion a year because corporations and the rich stash their profits in the Cayman Islands, Bermuda and other tax havens.

We need a tax system which is fair and progressive. Children should not go hungry in this country while profitable corporations and the wealthy avoid their tax responsibilities.

Reforming Wall Street: I have introduced legislation which would break up the largest financial institutions in the country. In my view, if a bank is too big to fail, it is too big to exist. Wall Street cannot continue to be an island unto itself investing trillions in risky financial instruments. We need banks that invest in the job-creating productive economy. We do not need more speculation and gambling in casino-type activities.

Campaign Finance Reform: We need to return to a one-person, one-vote democracy. It is not acceptable that the Koch brothers and other billionaires are spending endless sums of money to buy elections. I have introduced legislation which would overturn the horrendous Citizens United decision and will only appoint Supreme Court justices who are prepared to do that. We must also demand disclosure of all large campaign contributions. Long term, we need to move to public funding of elections.

Fighting Climate Change: The United States must lead the world in reversing climate change and make certain that this planet is habitable for our children and grandchildren. We must transform our energy system away from fossil fuels and into energy efficiency and sustainable energies. Millions of homes and buildings need to be weatherized, our transportation system needs to be energy efficient and we need to greatly accelerate the progress we are already seeing in wind, solar, geothermal and other forms of sustainable energy. Transforming our energy system will not only protect the environment, it will create good-paying jobs.

Health Care for All: The United States remains the only major country on earth that does not guarantee health care for all as a right. Despite the modest gains of the Affordable Care Act, 35 million Americans continue to lack health insurance and many more are under-insured. Yet, we continue paying far more per capita for health care than any other nation. The United States must move toward a Medicare-for-All single-payer system.

Protecting Our Most Vulnerable: Today, the United States has more people living in poverty than at almost any time in the modern history of our country. We have the highest rate of childhood poverty of any major nation, and millions of seniors and people with disabilities struggle to put food on the table because of insufficient Social Security benefits.

In my view, we have a moral responsibility to make certain that no American goes hungry or sleeps on the street. We must also make certain that seniors and people with disabilities can live in dignity. Not only must we vigorously oppose Republican attacks on the social safety net, we must expand benefits for those most in need. That is why I have recently introduced legislation which would extend the solvency of Social Security until 2065, while increasing benefits for those most in need.

Expanding Opportunity and Equality: We need to stop using prisons as a response to poverty. Our criminal justice system needs to be reformed so that we do not continue to house non-violent offenders at huge expense when that money could be used to rebuild communities and create opportunity. We need federal leadership to reform policing in America, to end racial profiling, and to fight the illegal activities of hate groups. We need comprehensive immigration reform that protects families and leads to a responsible and realistic path to citizenship.

Dismantling Structural Racism: Throughout much of our history, the elite in America has divided people along racial lines in an effort to consolidate wealth and power. We need to simultaneously address the structural and institutional racism which exists in this country while at the same time vigorously attacking the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality which is making the very rich much richer, and everyone else - especially the African-American community - much poorer. Meanwhile, too many people of color in this country find themselves subjected to a system that treats citizens who have not committed crimes like criminals. We have more people locked up in jail than any other country on earth. We need to invest in jobs and education, not jails and incarceration. Finally, no person should have to worry that a routine interaction with law enforcement will end in violence and death. Black lives matter: we must reform our criminal justice system, move away from the militarization of police forces, and invest in community policing.

College for All: The United States must join Germany and many other countries in understanding that investing in our young people's education is investing in the future of our nation. I have introduced legislation to make tuition in public colleges and universities free, as well as substantially lowering interest rates on student loans.

War and Peace: I voted against the war in Iraq, and that was the right vote. We must be vigorous in combatting terrorism, but we can't do it alone. We must be part of an international coalition that includes Muslim nations which not only defeats ISIS but which works hard to create conditions for lasting peace. I will vigorously oppose an endless war in the Middle East.

My approach to campaigning is pretty simple and straight-forward. We hold a lot of public meetings in towns that are big and small. People ask questions and make comments. We discuss the important issues facing our country. And that's it. Nothing very fancy. It's called democracy and I like that approach very much. It's something I've done my whole political life.

I hope very much that you will join me at one of our meetings. I hope that you will become part of our campaign team. And I hope that you will watch our video and make a contribution to our campaign:

https://go.berniesanders.com/sneak-peek

Let us never forget: This country belongs to all of us, not just a handful of billionaires.

Sincerely,

Senator Bernie Sanders

The TRUTH will set you FREE.

5 household items to have on hand in case of an earthquake

5 household items to have on hand in case of an earthquake shared from Maybe you don't text while driving. But if you even pick up your phone, you want to watch this. He calls himself Big Cat Derek, and he makes some of the Internet's most addictive Vines. 5 household items to have on hand in case of an earthquake

The TRUTH will set you FREE.