Quote from dgabriel:
They (Western nations) all want his oil, not just Georgie Porgy and his cronies, but they are content to let others do the dirty work to grab it.
The moral issues raised and political warnings being fired off by the French, Germans, Russians are part of a unique event: the negotiations over the spoils of war before one is officially commenced.
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Energy in Germany
German has relatively insignificant domestic energy sources and is heavily import-reliant to meet its energy needs. Coal accounted for 47% of domestic energy production in 1999, nuclear power 30%, natural gas 14%, renewable sources (including hydro) 6%, and
oil 2%. However, oil accounted for 41% of consumption.
Energy policy in Germany is influenced heavily by EU regulations. The EU requires privatization and competition in member countries' energy markets, and Germany has been a leader in developing competitive energy markets.
Following reunification of the country in 1990, the major task of German energy policy was to merge successfully the radically different energy sectors of the East and West. West Germany had a diversified and mainly privately-owned system of energy supply with a high standard of energy efficiency and a commitment to environmental protection. In contrast, East Germany's energy sector was highly centralized, predominantly state-owned, and mainly dependent upon relatively "dirty" lignite (brown coal) as its primary fuel. To date, a great deal of progress has been made in conforming the former East Germany's energy sector to the standards of the West in the areas of privatization and environmental regulation.
OIL
Germany consumed about 2.8 million barrels per day (bbl/d) of oil in 2000, nearly all of which it imported, making Germany the third-largest oil importer in the world. German oil imports in 2000 came primarily from Russia (29%), Norway (18%), United Kingdom (13%), and the Libya (11%). German imports from Russia have remained unchanged in recent years. However, OPEC's share of German imports has decreased, while the share of North Sea oil from Norway and the United Kingdom has increased. For the first six months of 2001, preliminary estimates show Russian crude oil maintaining the same level as 2000, but imports from OPEC declining from 26% to 22% of total imports into Germany.
Germany produced around 64,000 bbl/d of crude oil in 2000, of which 16,000 bbl/d came from the German North Sea. Higher world oil prices in 2000 spurred a small increase in domestic crude oil production. Veba Oel is Germany's largest upstream company, with interests in 13 countries, including Germany, and production of about 160,000 barrels of oil equivalent per day.
Germany's oil consumption was essentially unchanged in 2000 as compared to 1999. With the aid of hefty federal taxes on gasoline consumption, Germany had decreased its oil consumption in recent years, with lower consumption in 1999 than in any year since unification. For instance, Germans pay about four times more for motor gasoline than Americans, despite having the most competitive retail gasoline market in Europe. German refinery throughput increased 1% in 2000, and refinery capacity utilization was at 95%.
full report at
http://www.eia.doe.gov/emeu/cabs/germany.html
Deutsche Ãlimporte nicht OPEC-abhängig
(German crude oil imports not depending on OPEC)
WIESBADEN. Der Durchschnittspreis (average price) je eingeführte (imported) Tonne Rohöl (crude oil) ist im Jahr 2001 um 9,9 Prozent gegenüber dem Vorjahr zurückgegangen. Kostete im Jahr 2000 eine Tonne importiertes Rohöl noch 227 Euro, muÃten 2001 nur noch 204 Euro bezahlt werden. Die deutschen Rohöleinfuhren (crude oil imports) gingen letztes Jahr auÃerdem um ein halbes Prozent auf 104,6 Millionen Tonnen zurück. Hauptlieferanten waren
RuÃland (29,6 Millionen Tonnen), Norwegen (20,3) und GroÃbritannien (16,2). Diese drei Länder deckten 63,2 Prozent der deutschen Rohölimporte ab.
Nur ein Fünftel (22,6 Millionen Tonnen/ 20,7 Prozent weniger als 2000) kam aus den OPEC-Ländern wie Libyen (9,8), Algerien (4,0) oder Saudi-Arabien (3,9). 7,1 Millionen Tonnen kamen aus Syrien, 4,3 aus Kasachstan und je 1,2 aus Dänemark und Aserbaidschan. Deutschland bezahlte im Jahr 2001 für Rohöllieferungen 21,4 Milliarden Euro, Frankreich 17,3 Milliarden und Italien 16,5 Milliarden.