Energy

David Maxwell says the Sole gas project is among the most competitive sources of supply of gas for the south-eastern states and offers returns "well into double digits".

Oil slump seen as no threat to Cooper's $1bn gas project

Angela Macdonald-Smith 11:56 AM   The collapse in oil prices is helping rather than hindering Cooper Energy's ambitions to develop a $1 billion gas project off Victoria's coast.

Petrol companies aren't passing on falling prices: ACCC

Falls in petrol prices aren't being passed onto motorists.

Marc Moncrief 9:53 PM   Petrol is not as cheap as it should be, and the government's consumer watchdog is worried that customers are being gouged.

OPEC crisis meeting looms after crude falls to $US35

OPEC ministers will meet on December 4 in Vienna to review their current policy.

Ambrose Evans-Pritchard   The OPEC oil cartel will be forced to call an emergency meeting within weeks to stabilise the market if crude prices fail to rebound after crashing to eight-year lows.

US oil rebounds after falling through $US35 a barrel

OPEC, which set aside its output quota at a December 4 meeting, is displaying hardened resolve to maintain sales.

Mark Shenk and Grant Smith   Oil rebounded after prices dipped below $US35 a barrel for the first time since 2009, prompting traders to buy back some of their record bearish bets.

Fresh oil price weakness points to more cutbacks

The not so good oil: producers are feeling the pinch of low prices.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   A further slide in oil prices to near seven-year lows is putting extra strain on local producers' capex budgets and cost targets for 2016, while asset write-downs appear to have become a near certainty for some.

Energy leaders warn Paris climate goals 'not easy'

The climate goals agreed in Paris will require significant economic changes in Australia, industry leaders say.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Australia's commitment to the climate accord signed in Paris has exposed the absence of policy measures to shift the electricity supply system away from fossil fuels, and the absence of a viable economic alternative to coal for baseload power, industry executives say.

AGL loses new-energy head England to NZ's Genesis

AGL Energy's Marc England has been appointed as CEO of Genesis Energy.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   AGL Energy has lost the head of its new growth business housing battery storage and smart meters, Marc England, who has been appointed to head New Zealand supplier Genesis Energy.

CSR seals Tesla deal to sell Powerwall

CSR Bradford expects to charge less than $10,000 to supply and install a seven-kilowatt-hour Powerwall.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   CSR has expanded into home batteries, sealing an alliance with the world's best-known battery maker, Tesla Energy, to sell the Powerwall system.

Climate denial is some people's religion

Michael Pascoe

Michael Pascoe   With divine licence to subdue the earth and do what you like with every living thing, climate change couldn't be a human problem, right?

Climate deal's $23 trillion price tag

An activist holds up a poster during a demonstration.

Alex Morales and Ewa Krukowska   The agreement struck in Paris requires a huge investment in cleaning up the Earth's atmosphere.

Oil plunges on persistent global glut

Brent for January settlement slid 4.5 per cent on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange on Friday, and contributing to a 12 per cent drop on the week.

Mark Shenk   Oil declined to the lowest level since 2008 in London amid estimates that OPEC's decision to scrap production limits will keep the market oversupplied.

Origin starts up APLNG in Queensland

It's taken seven years, but production has commenced at Origin Energy's Australia Pacific LNG project in Queensland.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Origin Energy has begun production at its Australia Pacific LNG project in Queensland after more than seven years of planning and construction.

Woodside venture signs off on $US2b gas development

NORTHWEST SHELF 001106 PIC MICHELE MOSSOP GENERIC LIQUID GAS NORTH WEST SHELF WOODSIDE RESOURCES

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Woodside Petroleum and its North West Shelf venture partners have given the green light for a $US2 billion investment to enable more gas to be extracted for its LNG and domestic gas business in WA.

Crude slips as OPEC output at three-year high

Futures have fallen more than 10 per cent in New York since OPEC's December 4 decision to effectively abandon its output target.

Mark Shenk   Oil traded near the lowest close in more than six years as speculation that OPEC will keep markets oversupplied outweighed a drop in US crude stockpiles.

Shell reviews NZ assets for possible sale

Shell has flagged some $US30 billion of asset sales over the next three years.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Royal Dutch Shell is mulling a complete exit from New Zealand, putting all its oil and gas assets in the country under review for a possible sale that would probably fetch billions of dollars.

Origin Energy to sell Tesla batteries

Origin Energy will be the first local supplier of the Tesla Powerwall battery.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Origin Energy has sealed a deal to become the first local supplier of Tesla's much-hyped Powerwall home storage system.

US oil records lowest close since February 2009

Crude supplies at Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point for WTI futures and the nation's biggest oil-storage hub, rose 423,000 barrels to 59.5 million, the highest since May.

Mark Shenk   Oil dropped to the lowest in more than six years as investors discounted a decline in US crude inventories.

Freeport suspends dividend, may sell assets

Freeport's actions are "a necessary evil in the current environment", Cowen and Co analyst Anthony Rizzuto said in a note to clients.

Freeport-McMoRan has become the latest miner to suspend its dividend, cut capital spending and production amid the rout in commodity prices.

Gas to replace coal as power stations axed - forecast

The biggest change in gas consumption over the next two decades is expected to come from increased use in electricity generation.

Brian Robins   Gas is set to replace coal in electricity generation over the next two decades.

Oil stocks stabilise after heavy sell-off

OPEC's refusal to place a check on output is hurting local oil stocks.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Local oil stocks stabilised on Wednesday after a horror run on the sharemarket despite the Brent crude oil benchmark dipping under $US40 a barrel for the first time in almost seven years.

Metgasco investors revolt over $25m NSW settlement deal

The Supreme Court has overturned a moratorium on drilling in the Northern Rivers region in favour of Metgasco.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   Metgasco shareholders who are set to vote against a $25 million settlement deal with the NSW government next week are putting the gas explorer's future at risk, according to chairman Len Gill.

US oil settles at February 2009 low

Oil has slumped about 40 per cent since Saudi Arabia led OPEC's decision a year ago to maintain output and defend market share.

David Marino   Oil dropped to the lowest level in almost seven years following OPEC's decision to abandon the group's production limits.

Oil sinks on fears of intensifying global glut

The global oversupply is being compounded by OPEC's failure last week to agree a production ceiling.

Oil prices resumed their slide, with US crude falling below $US37 per barrel and Brent below $US40 for the first time since early 2009.

Oil, iron ore hammer global resource producers

China's slowing trade has intensified concern over the scope of the nation's slowdown.

Kelly Gilblom and Jeremy Herron   Resource producers led a global rout in equities and the currencies of commodity-producing nations plunged, amid fresh signs of a slowdown in China.

Woodside ends Oil Search pursuit

Citi expects that the timing of Woodside Petroleum's Browse floating LNG project in Western Australia will have to be put back.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   The decision by Woodside Petroleum to call off its $11.6 billion proposal to buy Oil Search has fired up expectations that the Perth-based player will rapidly redirect its acquisition ambitions to other targets

Santos hammered as oil prices roil energy stocks

Santos executive chairman Peter Coates faces an uphill task to restore shareholder value.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   The latest dive in crude oil prices has sent Santos shares plummeting to their lowest for more than 11 years and left investors that took up shares in the recent $2.5 billion rights offer already nursing a hefty loss.

No OPEC oil cap preserves Saudi power base

Saudi Arabian Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi says OPEC will "continue its pivotal role in production and investment no matter how much prices fall".

Perry Williams   One of Saudi Arabia's most influential oil men has defended the push to abandon OPEC output targets, saying the country's power base might erode by placing a cap on supply.

Oil slumps after OPEC fails to act

Ali Bin Ibrahim al-Naimi, Saudi Arabia's petroleum and mineral resources minister, speaks to journalists in Vienna, Austria.

​Crude oil futures tumbled to their lowest in nearly seven years after OPEC failed to address the growing global supply glut.

Clover Moore tells Paris that government needs to get out of the way

Sydney lord mayor Clover Moore at the Paris climate summit this week.

Peter Hannam   While the prognosis can be apocalyptic for some, cities such as Sydney say they are making inroads on cutting emissions - and could do more given more leeway.

LNG in 'far worse' state than oil

Australia's wave of new LNG projects are all starting production within the next couple of years.

Angela Macdonald-Smith   The crude oil market is seen as being in dire straits, but liquefied natural gas is much worse, according to experts.