International


Rwanda: Imena Speaks Out on Gatumba Concession, Conflict Minerals

Jul 27, 2014 | Ivan Mugisha, AllAfrica

Mining companies will soon receive long term licenses, thanks to the new mining law, Evode Imena, the Minister of State in charge of Minerals has…


Iraq: ISIS Grabs Oil and Gas Fields in Syria and Iraq, but Challenges Remain

Jul 26, 2014 | Mazin Sidahmed, The Daily Star

BEIRUT: As militants from ISIS establish themselves as the dominant force in the fight for oil and gas resources among rebel factions within Syria and…


Iran/Iraq: Gas Exports to Iraq Will Start in 2015

Jul 26, 2014 | Zawya

"After the completion of infrastructure, pipe testing and the installation of measurement systems, Iran's gas will be exported to Iraq early next (Iranian) year," Deputy…


China/Vietnam: China's Oil Rig No.981 Sets Sail Again

Jul 26, 2014 | China News

Chinese maritime authorities announced that the offshore oil drilling vessel 981 is back in operation off the coast of Hainan island.

The resumption of the operation…


Iraq: Iraqi Kurdish oil nears Texas port for likely offloading

Jul 26, 2014 | Terry Wade and Erwin Seba, Reuters

(Reuters) - A tanker carrying crude oil from Iraqi Kurdistan is hours away from the Port of Galveston in Texas, according to Reuters ship tracking…


DRC: It’s Raining Copper in the DRC’s Katanga Province

Jul 25, 2014 | Allesandro Bruno, Investor Intel

El Nino Ventures Inc. (‘ELN’, TSXV: ELN) has a copper exploration project in the Democratic Republic of Congo and two zinc-lead-silver (copper) exploration and development…


Liberia: Oil Company of Liberia Holds Secret Session With Legislature

Jul 25, 2014 | Henry Karmo, AllAfrica

Monrovia — Days after protesters stormed the Capitol Building against alleged plans by government to sell new oil blocks in Liberia, officials of the National…


China/Vietnam: Controversial Chinese Deep-Water Rig Drifts Into Calmer Seas

Jul 25, 2014 | The Wall Street Journal

A Chinese deep-water oil rig at the center of one of the tensest maritime standoffs between China and Vietnam in recent memory has finally moved…


Iraq: UN: Iraq Likely to Face Severe Food Shortage Because of Conflict

Jul 24, 2014 | Lisa Schlein, Voice of America

GENEVA — A senior U.N. official warns millions of people in Iraq are likely to face severe food shortages because of fighting in the north.…


Iraq/Kurdistan: Iraqi Kurdish Oil Nears US Port Despite Concern in Washington

Jul 24, 2014 | David Sheppard, Ahmed Rasheed and Timothy Gardner, Reuters

LONDON/BAGHDAD/WASHINGTON, July 24 (Reuters) - A tanker carrying crude oil from Iraqi Kurdistan is just two days away from arriving at a U.S. port, according…


Iraq: Iraq's South Oil Exports Rise to Near-Record, Avoid Northern Conflict

Jul 23, 2014 | Alex Lawler, Reuters

LONDON, July 23 (Reuters) - Iraq's oil exports from its southern terminals in July rose to a near-record rate, according to loading data and industry…


Iraq: Oil Smuggling Finances Islamic State's New Caliphate

Jul 23, 2014 | Ahmed Rasheed, Reuters

(Reuters) - Islamic State militants seized four small oilfields when they swept through north Iraq last month and are now selling crude oil and gasoline…


Liberia: Concern Mounts Over U.S.$8.5 Million Escrow Account

Jul 23, 2014 | AllAfrica

Civil society groups are mounting concern over the status of the US$8.5 million placed in the escrow account at the Central Bank of Liberia (CBL).…


Liberia: 'Don't Sell Our Oil Blocks' - Citizens Mount Pressure On Lawmakers

Jul 23, 2014 | AllAfrica

Monrovia — With information that there are ongoing discussions for the 53rd National Legislature to hastily ratify agreements for the sale of additional oil blocks…


China/Vietnam: After HYSY-981: A US-Vietnam Alliance?

Jul 22, 2014 | Ankit Panda, The Diplomat

Carl Thayer, Flashpoints‘ resident South China Sea expert, took a look at the reasons China might have preemptively withdrawn its oil rig from South China Sea…


Iraq: Baiji Refinery Still Under Siege

Jul 22, 2014 | Iraq Oil Report

Elite Iraqi soldiers at Iraq's largest oil refinery are still fending off regular attacks by militants led by the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham…


Liberia: In Japanese Oil Deal - What Happened to $8.5 Million Earmarked for Development Projects?

Jul 22, 2014 | Augustus D.R. Bortue, AllAfrica

There is public concern regarding the status of a US$8.5 million, which was reportedly deposited in an Escrow Account at the Central Bank of Liberia…


India: Armed Bandits Demand Water in Dry Northern India

Jul 21, 2014 | Associated Press

Armed bandits in drought-stricken northern India are threatening to kill hundreds of villagers unless they deliver 35 buckets of water each day to the outlaws…


Liberia: Liberia Clan Fights Palm Oil Land Grab, Accused of Harassing Investors

Jul 21, 2014 | AFK Insider

Liberia’s Jogbahn Clan is at the forefront of efforts to resist the grab of Indigenous Peoples’ land and forests for palm oil plantations. But according…


Conflict Minerals: Cal Poly Adopts Student's Resolution on Conflict Minerals

Jul 21, 2014 | The Tribune

Cal Poly’s president has signed off on a resolution pledging the university will purchase products using conflict-free minerals whenever available.

Minerals such as tin, gold, tantalum…


Iraq: ISIS Militants Use Water as Weapon of War in Iraq

Jul 21, 2014 | Albawaba

Militants from ISIS now control or threaten key facilities on the Euphrates and Tigris rivers, generating fears that the Al-Qaeda splinter group could turn off the taps to the…


Iraq/Syria: Jihadists Sell Syrian Oil to Iraqi Businessmen

Jul 21, 2014 | Global Post

The jihadist Islamic State is selling oil and liquid gas products extracted from fields under its control in Syria to Iraqi businessmen across the border,…


Afghanistan: U.S. troops in Afghanistan Sent Waste to Open Burn Pits, Report Finds

Jul 21, 2014 | David Zucchino, LA Times

Although the U.S. has spent millions to build incinerators in Afghanistan to avoid exposing anyone to toxic smoke from open burning, American troops sent waste…


Iraq: Iraqi Oil Sector Faces Prospect of Independent Kurdistan

Jul 21, 2014 | Walid Khoudouri, Al-Monitor

Iraq has been suffering a continuous series of political crises since the 1980s — the most recent of which include the possible secession of the Kurds to…


South Sudan: Oil Company Donates Agricultural Equipment to Upper Nile Farmers

Jul 20, 2014 | Radio Tamazuj

The Dar Petroleum Operating Company (DPOC) donated twelve pieces of agricultural machinery this month to local authorities of four counties in South Sudan’s oil producing…


Iraq: Kurdish Peshmerga Force Secures Kirkuk, Its Oil

Jul 20, 2014 | Jeffrey Young, Voice of America

KIRKUK, IRAQI KURDISTAN — The Kurdistan regional government has sent its Peshmerga troops into the adjacent province of Kirkuk to drive out insurgents, and to…


Iraq: Farm Project May Switch from Mosul to Kurdistan

Jul 19, 2014 | Kira Walker, Rudaw

Part of a foreign-funded project to improve agriculture in Iraq may be switched from Mosul to the Kurdistan Region after the country’s second-largest city fell…


South Sudan: South Sudanese Rebels Slam China’s Conflicting Roles in South Sudan

Jul 18, 2014 | Sudan Tribune

July 18, 2014 (ADDIS ABABA) – South Sudanese armed opposition faction of the Sudan Peoples’ Liberation Movement (SPLM) under the leadership of the former vice-president,…


Liberia: Liberia, Sime Darby Ink $10m Palm Oil Factory Project

Jul 18, 2014 | Star Africa

The Malaysian palm oil company, Sime Darby, has broken grounds for the construction of a $10 million palm oil factory in Liberia, the management told…


Myanmar: Sagaing Court Imprisons 18 Farmers for Actions in Land Dispute

Jul 17, 2014 | Zarni Mann, The Irrawaddy

MANDALAY — A Sagaing Division court sentenced 18 farmers to prison terms varying from three months to three years on Thursday on charges of trespassing…