Oil drilling is set to start at a formerly disputed area of Sudan, after a successful defence of mining rights by French oil giant Total in a London court.
Ah, the French ...
Total got a judgement on the case last year and has since set up the base camp on location where they are mobilising facilities. A base camp stores drilling and disposal facilities. Its setting up ends uncertainty over the possibility of the drilling beginning before 2011 - the period covered by the peace agreement.
Actual drilling work on the 67,000 square-kilometre are, is expected to start in October.
"This is the rainy season in places like Upper Nile and Jonglei, there's the usual flooding," Southern Sudan's Energy Minister John Luk said. "Once the money is put together and the budget is complete, it will take another few months, up to October. After October, they will start moving."
Total reclaimed rights to oil block B after a three-year battle with a tiny UK based firm, White Nile. A London court in 2006 ruled in favour of the French oil firm. The French oil firm is part of an incomplete consortia that would develop the oil block. "As you are aware, there was an American company, Marathon, which pulled out," Luk said. "So what we are doing now is to complete the consortium."
Total E&P Sudan, in 1980, signed an Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement with Sudan on oil blocks in southern Sudan, including block B - the main area for Total's exploration activity - alongside American firm Marathon Petroleum (32.5 per cent), Kuwait's Kufpec Sudan Ltd (25 per cent), and State-owned Sudapet (10 per cent). The Sudan civil war, breaking out in 1983, brought work to a standstill, forcing Total to suspend work, in 1983, just as the consortium was about to drill 3 oil wells.
Total's rights to the oil were extended annually until late December 2004, when the firm signed the Revised Exploration and Production Sharing Agreement with the Sudan government to update the 1980 contract. Marathon's withdraw has led to changes in the shareholding, with Total at 32.5 per cent, and Kuwaiti firm Kufpec Sudan Ltd 27.5 per cent. The Sudan-owned Sudapet and the southern Sudan government-owned Nilepet own 10 per cent each, leaving Some 20 per cent of the stake in the oil block not apportioned.
Luk said the consortium partners are expected to draw up a budget, which would determine each firm's contribution, and what they would need from a new partner in the block."Once that is done, we will complete the consortium," Luk said.
Several companies, Chinese firms China National Petroleum Corp. and Sinopec (SHI), United Emirates firm Mubadala Development Company, and Tri-Ocean Energy, controlled by Kuwait's al-Kharafi family, have bid for the remaining 20 per cent in the consortium. "It must have the financial and technical competency to take part in the project," Luk said of what they are looking for in a partner. "Already, there's Nilepet, Sudapet, all these form part of the consortium, including the Kuwait Company."
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has described the country's election run-off as 'an exercise in mass intimidation'. Mr Tsvangirai - who boycotted the poll citing violence - said people across Zimbabwe had been forced to take part and urged the world to reject the vote. Only President Robert Mugabe stood, and turnout is said to have been low.
The European Union called the run-off a 'sham' and the US and Germany say the UN will consider sanctions. Marwick Khumalo, head of the Pan-African parliamentary observer mission, told the BBC that turnout was very low and that the mood was sombre.
Voting is said to have been slower than during the first round vote 'We saw one long queue, which we mistook for a polling station, only to find the people were queuing for bread,' he said, adding that the ingredients for a free and fair election were missing.
However Justice Minister Patrick Chinamasa told the BBC that people were aiming to preserve Zimbabwe's independence. 'They are voting to say no to the recolonisation of our country,' he said.
Earlier, as he cast his vote in Harare, Mr Mugabe, who is 84, said he was feeling 'very fit, very optimistic'.
Posted by: Fred ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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WASHINGTON, June 27 (UPI) -- President Nicolas Sarkozy wants to reverse more than 40 years of French skepticism and suspicion of U.S. defense policies and develop a more ambitious and comprehensive BMD system than any major European nation has ever dreamed of. The odds against him appear daunting, but he has a lot going for him, too.
Sarkozy has two giant allies on his side -- one still alive and one long dead: The one still alive is former Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi of Japan, who successfully carried out in his country exactly the kind of transformational and visionary high-tech missile defense program that Sarkozy wants to create for France.
France lacks the much larger industrial base Koizumi was able to use. But Sarkozy also enjoys advantages Koizumi did not. For Koizumi showed that a modern democratic nation much smaller than the United States, Russia or China could indeed have the financial and high-tech resources to create a multi-tiered, credible ballistic missile defense system. Indeed, he pushed his program through with far less executive power than Sarkozy enjoys as president of France.
For this, Sarkozy must thank his second ally, the long-dead President Charles de Gaulle: The strongly pro-American Sarkozy, who publicly praises President George W. Bush even when it is not domestically expedient to do so, is a far cry from the haughty old de Gaulle, who detested the Americans and the British deeply and who was a prophet of the glories of France.
In contrast to de Gaulle, Sarkozy, in his June 17 keynote speech on grand strategy and missile defense, indicated clearly he would like to restore France as a politically as well as operationally full partner in the U.S.-led NATO alliance for the first time since de Gaulle pulled Paris partially out more than 40 years ago. However, it was de Gaulle who made the political system of his French Fifth Republic the most centralized and powerful in Europe. Indeed, when Boris Yeltsin created his still-operative 1996 Constitution to stabilize Russia and restore power to its collapsing central institutions of state, it was de Gaulle's Fifth Republic to which he turned as his model.
Sarkozy, therefore, can draw upon far more executive power to push through his policies than Koizumi, forced to maneuver around the cautious old "gray men" of the national bureaucracy in Tokyo and of his ruling Liberal Democratic Party, had to do.
The technological challenges facing Sarkozy may, however, be more daunting than those that Koizumi faced. Japan lagged further behind in advanced military technology, especially electronics, when Koizumi took power in 2001 than France does today. But Koizumi had the resources to buy advanced, tried, tested and reliable U.S. tech off the shelf. There was no bias in Tokyo, either among industrialists or the general public, against buying advanced American technology to revitalize Japanese industry.
By contrast, Sarkozy will have to struggle with anti-American attitudes, fears of globalization, free markets and U.S. defense contractors that have been hardening for decades. Sarkozy in his June 17 speech made clear that although the inspiration for his BMD program was from Bush in the United States, he wants to use French and other major European defense corporations to develop the BMD systems themselves. That could take a lot longer and cost far more than the Japanese and Taiwanese approach of buying mature U.S. BMD systems like the Patriot Advanced Capability-3, or the sea-launched Standard Missile Interceptors.
However, at the end of the day, Sarkozy's vision is of a powerful, state-of-the-art French BMD system to guard against short-range and intermediate-range ballistic missile threats that will complement the U.S.-developed and -deployed systems. His vision is a bold one. But it is practical as well.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
The French like big elegant things. Developing a national BMD system suits them for this reason just as committing to nuclear power and building Minitel did 30 years ago. I can see this happening.
#2
A French BMD will also work to defend the UK and the US. It would be nice if they used a few of the same countries (or actual radar stations) the US did to help blunk Russian whining to the EU audience.
#3
I can see Sarkozy starting this project. I can also see his successor cancelling it to great acclaim...'we don't need defense, we should be vulnerable'
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
That's ok. The message has been sent: unless you are a powerful, well known media person, the HRC can put you on trial for hurting Muslim's feelings. You may get cleared (unlikely) but it will cost you lots of money defending yourself, and you will be silenced and forced to apologize.
A question for Canadians: why don't Christians and Jews try to put Muslims on trial for threatening to kill infidels, calling Jews apes and pigs, and other hateful things?
Posted by: Rambler in California ||
06/28/2008 0:10 Comments ||
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#2
Muslims are the only group that is above the law. I first ratted to Homeland Security on Saudi financed Virginia and DC Islamic centers, in 2002. That was a waste of time.
#3
Someone needs to stand up and ask, when did we start to listen to and and give respect to tattle-tales?
False accusations should hold a punishment of their own. They put an innocent person through the ringer and pillared them in the public and waisted taxpayer money. At the very least the members of the human rights commission should be asked to step down.
#4
I first ratted to Homeland Security on Saudi financed Virginia and DC Islamic centers, in 2002. That was a waste of time.
How do you know it was a waste, McZoid? Was your information so damning, clear and legal that immediate prosecutions of high level people were highly likely to succeed?
Is it possible you contributed to surveillance and building a case that could indeed be brought to trial later and that targeted people high up enough to disrupt operations if they were convicted?
Just wondering, because often what seems like a slam dunk to us in the blogosphere ain't so to those who have to operate within the law or military hierarchy.
#5
Canada's best bet would be to scape the whole thing and then rewrite what they really wanted from scratch forcing the 'thought control' police to expose themselves or accept guards and guarantees of English law tradition. That forces the game from point zero rather than fighting to preserve existing parts. That's a lot hard fight. Meanwhile the bureaucrats go without and the longer the game is played the longer the 'enforcers' have to find other 'meaningful' employment.
#7
Glad to hear that the Canadian HRC finally came to their senses on this one. I had a feeling they had bitten off more than they could chew when they picked Steyn as their target of choice. He would have made sure they paid a very heavy price had they taken this much further.
#9
While it's probably true that an ordinary Canuck wouldn't get the publicity that Steyn and Macleans did, this is a good sign. This was elevated to Parliamentary level. They created this pile of shit and they can remove it. And, McZ, I noticed a couple of these "academies" are getting publicity in the local fishwraps and one had protesters on the sidewalks. The Sauds tried to buy millions of $ of positve pub a coupla years ago. This is what they wanted to avoid. That all Americans view them as the actual enemy.
#10
This was the Canadian Human Rights Commission (federal) that dropped the Steyn case. The British Columbia Human Rights Commission (provincial) has yet to release their findings on their hearings in the Steyn case.
No, the federal Commission does not override the Provincial Commission.
Yes, it is a stupid system and will soon lead to physical nastiness.
They should set up a permanent defense fund for people dragged before this kangaroo court, and more than anything else, keep these HRCs in the spotlight.
Pummel them mercilessly and keep up the call for their abolition. Investigate the investigators for impropriety and scandal. Put journalistic pressure on politicians to join the cause.
Go scandal sheet on their butts. Make them outcasts and pariahs. Make their faces recognizable to the public. Even ordinary things can seem scandalous if a photographer catches them making a face.
"Here she is entering a dry cleaner's. But *whose* dry cleaning is she carrying? And here she is a few minutes later, trying to sneak away before the camera catches her in the act!"
At the same time, they can turn those taken before the courts into heroes and celebrities, making them out to be victims of people who like to kick puppies and kittens and hate Canada.
The DOJ has agreed to a multimillion-dollar settlement with former Army scientist Steven Hatfill, whom the government called a person of interest in the 2001 anthrax attacks.
In 2002, the FBI and then-Attorney General John Ashcroft described Hatfill, a former Army scientist, as a person of interest in the investigation into the post 9/11 anthrax attacks, which killed five people, sickened 17, and to this day remain unresolved. Hatfill sued the government for violating his privacy by leaking information to the press. In a statement Friday, his lawyers said: As an innocent man, and as our fellow citizen, Steven Hatfill deserved far better.
Could this be good news for Toni Locy? Back in March, Judge Reggie Walton, a D.C. district court judge, held Locy, 48, a former USA Today reporter, in contempt in this case for refusing to name her sources for a story she wrote about Hatfills possible role in the 2001 anthrax attacks. Walton issued a contempt order fining Locy $500 a day for seven days, $1,000 a day for the following seven days, and $5,000 a day for the seven days after that if she continued to refuse to cooperate. He also barred USA Today, or any other individual or news organization, from helping Locy now a West Virginia University journalism prof pay the fines. Last we heard, just hours before the fines were going to begin accruing, the D.C. Court of Appeals rang the bell, ordering that Locy didnt have to pay the fines while her lawyers fought Waltons contempt ruling.
According to the AP, on Friday Locy said: I hope this means that this ordeal is over and that I can get on with my life. She said: I am pleased that Dr. Hatfills lawyers are now saying they no longer need my testimony, but I dont know if my appeal is moot or if the contempt order against me will be lifted because I dont have anything at this point from the Court of Appeals or Judge Walton that says Im in the clear.
Posted by: Steve White ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
I don't believe in tactical smear as a law enforcement tactic, but if there was sound foundation, naming a suspect can draw in evidence from the general public. Remember: there is both inculpatory and exculpatory evidence.
Suspects are often named by media. If someone is photograped leaving an FBI building, then journalists have a right to ask why, and if they don't get answers they can speculate. Someone could bring up the Olympic hero who was labeled "The Bubba Bomber." Defamation was obvious in that case, and he was compensated. I heard he became a cop, but died in middle age. He deserved every penny he got.
Richard Jewell v. Cox Enterprises (d.b.a. Atlanta Journal-Constitution)
Jewell also sued the Atlanta Journal-Constitution newspaper, which stated Jewell was "an individual with a bizarre employment history and aberrant personality". It also said Jewell "fit the profile of a lone bomber." According to Jewell, the paper's headline, which read FBI suspects 'hero' guard may have planted bomb, "pretty much started the whirlwind".[8]
The Atlanta Journal went as far as to compare Richard Jewell's case to that of serial killer Wayne Williams.[9]
The newspaper was the only defendant that did not settle with Jewell. As of April 2005, the lawsuit remained pending, after having been considered at one time by the Supreme Court of Georgia, and had become an important part of case law regarding whether journalists could be forced to reveal their sources. It was set for trial in January 2008 at the time of Jewell's death, and his attorney said he expected to continue it on behalf of Jewell's estate.[3]
#5
D.C. Court of Appeals rang the bell, ordering that Locy didnt have to pay the fines while her lawyers fought Waltons contempt ruling.
Not at all surprising for the District, considering Hatfill's background, alleged foreign military and or national service, etc. Hope he buys a palatial home in Bishopscourt and continues his research and work. Fine job once again Bureau.
#6
I seriously don't know, but having read rather extensively about the pro's and cons of the case against Dr. Hatfill, there were just to many "coincidences" for him not to be a "person of interest" in this investigation.
Posted by: Col B. Guano (ret.) ||
06/28/2008 17:49 Comments ||
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Rep. Delahunt says he was "glad" al Qaeda could see David Addington at a hearing
Addington is Vice President Dick Cheney's chief of staff
Comment came during contentious hearing on detainee interrogation techniques
Delahunt spokesman says words "could have been better phrased"
Posted by: Fred ||
06/28/2008 00:00 ||
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#1
"Bill certainly meant no ill will towards Mr. Addington," Forest said, adding that Delahunt was trying to make a broader point about "transparency" in government and how he was glad Addington finally had to testify in the open about the administration's po
A multi-volume chronology and reference guide set detailing three years of the Mexican Drug War between 2010 and 2012.
Rantburg.com and borderlandbeat.com correspondent and author Chris Covert presents his first non-fiction work detailing
the drug and gang related violence in Mexico.
Chris gives us Mexican press dispatches of drug and gang war violence
over three years, presented in a multi volume set intended to chronicle the death, violence and mayhem which has
dominated Mexico for six years.
Rantburg was assembled from recycled algorithms in the United States of America. No
trees were destroyed in the production of this weblog. We did hurt some, though. Sorry.
Oil drilling is set to start at a formerly disputed area of Sudan, after a successful defence of mining rights by French oil giant Total in a London court.
Zimbabwean opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai has described the country's election run-off as 'an exercise in mass intimidation'. Mr Tsvangirai - who boycotted the poll citing violence - said people across Zimbabwe had been forced to take part and urged the world to reject the vote. Only President Robert Mugabe stood, and turnout is said to have been low. 
WASHINGTON, June 27 (UPI) -- President Nicolas Sarkozy wants to reverse more than 40 years of French skepticism and suspicion of U.S. defense policies and develop a more ambitious and comprehensive BMD system than any major European nation has ever dreamed of. The odds against him appear daunting, but he has a lot going for him, too.
