AS/COA Online | UK-Argentina in Diplomatic Row over Archipelago

Buenos Aires brought its concerns about the Falkland Islands to the United Nations this week as a dispute with the United Kingdom heated up over the archipelago’s sovereignty. While Argentine President Cristina Fernández de Kirchner drew support for her country’s territorial claims from fellow Latin American leaders during the Rio Summit, a British company began drilling operations in the Falkland basin. A Spanish-Argentine partnership announced intentions to explore for oil as well, but in Argentine territory. The prospect of large oil reserves has brought a new twist on a decades-old disagreement over the Falklands—or Malvinas.

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AS/COA Online | Calderón Pulls Plug on Mexico City's Power Company

Citing inefficiencies, poor service, and bloated costs, the government of Mexican President Felipe Calderón dissolved the country's second biggest electric company on October 11. But even as the move drew cheers, it also drew protests from unions and congressional opponents.

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AS/COA Online | Interview: Petrobras CEO José Sergio Gabrielli on Brazil's Energy Outlook

"[W]e are far and ahead of almost all countries in the world in the use of renewable sources of energy right now."

In an exclusive interview, Petrobras CEO and President José Sergio Gabrielli de Azevedo talked with AS/COA Online Managing Editor Carin Zissis about Brazil as one of the world’s top oil and ethanol producers, his firm’s business plan, and global partnerships. In the last case, that includes recent energy deals forged with China and both opportunities and hurdles for the U.S.-Brazilian ethanol cooperation. “Brazil is a possible substitute for other sources that today provide oil to the United States,” said Gabrielli.

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AS/COA Online | Interview: Patrick Esteruelas on Venezuela's Oil-Based Economy

“As much as a victory would buy Chávez a new lease on life, a defeat could end up being the most costly policy mistake he’s made in over ten years in office.”

In an AS/COA interview, Patrick Esteruelas, a specialist in the Andean region with Eurasia Group’s Latin America practice, about the effects of the dropping price of oil on Venezuela’s economy.  “Venezuela can count on a sizeable cushion of reserves and foreign exchange liquid assets to help it ride the current economic down cycle,” he tells AS/COA Online's Managing Editor Carin Zissis. “But not for very long.” Esteruelas also talks about the reasons behind President Hugo Chávez's decision to hold a referendum on the elimination of presidential term limits in February.

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CFR.org | India's Energy Crunch

India’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth hit 9.2 percent for the period from July through September of this year—an increase over the already robust rate of 8.4 percent during the same period last year. But along with an ascendant economy comes a mounting hunger for energy, and New Delhi fears it cannot sustain growth in the long term without continually boosting the country’s energy supply. India’s per capita energy consumption rates remain low in comparison to those of countries like the United States and China. But India, the world’s fifth biggest energy consumer, is projected to surpass Japan and Russia to take third place by 2030. Doing so will test India’s ability to create a domestic policy for its semi-privatized energy sector, as well as its capacity to develop relationships with foreign energy exporters.

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CFR.org | Which Way Will Turkmen Gas Flow?

Peculiarities marked the career of Saparmurat Niyazov, the hard-line dictator who ruled Turkmenistan for twenty-one years until his unexpected death on December 21 (AP). Even as nearly 60 percent of this gas-rich, largely Muslim Central Asian country lived in poverty, Niyazov funded lavish projects (Guardian), including an ice palace outside the capital, Ashgabat, and a manmade lake in the middle of a desert. But the self-obsessed Niyazov, architect of one of the world’s most bizarre personality cults, failed to name a successor. This raises questions about the prospects of a reprieve for the country’s beleaguered citizens, and leaves in doubt Europe’s energy security (FT).

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CFR.org | Feeding India’s Energy Fix

The U.S. Congress has reached agreement on a bill approving a landmark deal allowing the United States to provide New Delhi with fuel and technology to expand its civilian nuclear energy program (AP). In July, President Bush and Prime Minister Manmohan Singh announced a framework for the pact, which lifts a three-decade U.S. moratorium on nuclear trade with India in exchange for its acceptance on safeguards on its civilian nuclear facilities. While both houses of Congress negotiated a compromise bill, Undersecretary of State Nicholas R. Burns headed to New Delhi to reassure India’s government (Times of India) about the U.S. version of the agreement. The deal still requires approval by India’s parliament. More difficult to secure is the necessary support of the Nuclear Suppliers Group, which oversees guidelines for sale of the nuclear materials (Asia Times).

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CFR.org | Backgrounder: Bolivia's Nationalization of Oil and Gas

On his hundredth day in office, Bolivian President Evo Morales moved to nationalize his nation's oil and gas reserves, ordering the military to occupy Bolivia's gas fields and giving foreign investors a six-month deadline to comply with demands or leave. The May 1 directive set off tensions in the region and beyond, particularly for foreign investors in Brazil, Spain, and Argentina. Morales' nationalization agenda has been described as another chapter in Latin America's turn to the left, and fears are rising that the Bolivian leader has fallen into the fold of Venezuela's Hugo Chávez and Cuba's Fidel Castro. But some experts emphasize there may be more infighting than cohesion overall in the region.

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CFR.org/NYTimes.com | Bolivia’s Nationalization of Oil and Gas

On his hundredth day in office, Bolivian President Evo Morales moved to nationalize his nation’s oil and gas reserves, ordering the military to occupy Bolivia’s gas fields and giving foreign investors a six-month deadline to comply with demands or leave. The May 1 directive set off tensions in the region and beyond, particularly for foreign investors in Brazil, Spain, and Argentina. Morales’ nationalization agenda has been described as another chapter in Latin America’s turn to the left, and fears are rising that the Bolivian leader has fallen into the fold of Venezuela’s Hugo Chávez and Cuba’s Fidel Castro. But some experts emphasize there may be more infighting than cohesion overall in the region.

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CFR.org | Chad's Oil Troubles

The oil pipeline agreement involving the World Bank, a U.S.-led oil consortium, and the government of Chad was hailed as a model to help developing nations dig their way out of poverty and avoid corruption. Under the deal, spurred by World Bank funding, most of Chad's revenues would go toward development projects. But in December, Chad's parliament voted to modify the agreement, canceling a "future generations" fund for Chad's post-oil future, and diverting funds away from poverty alleviation and toward the purchasing of arms. The World Bank responded by suspending its loans and freezing Chad's assets. A temporary agreement was reached April 27, but experts say potential civil war, cross-border troubles with Sudan, and the weakening of President Idriss Déby's regime may threaten the pipeline deal, casting further doubt on the prospects for transparency in future development projects in the region.

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