Covid-19 vs. expanding bureaucracy The ongoing COVID-19 pandemic has epitomized of how outdated all government structures are. The omnipresent ruling class of politicians and bureaucrats have demonstrated obvious incompetence in tackling the global challenges, in particular, in assessing risks, preparing for them, and mitigating their effects. All major governments (US…

How COVID-19 might delay energy transition? Energy transition has recently become a very popular topic, and everyone sees the soon end of hydrocarbon economy, including the crude oil. However, the current pandemic is likely to have a delaying impact on introduction of greener technologies and postpone reaching plateau demand for…

Crude oil markets: reality vs. expectations Back in April, when the world was immersing into the first lockdown due to overwhelming spread of COVID-19, we developed three scenarios of how the oil industry might develop in the future, given wide range of potential developments. It is now interesting to see…

Nord Stream-2: who will finally win, Russia or Europe? A view on the project’s strategic implications. Few weeks ago, a new round of fight against construction of Nord-Stream 2 pipeline intensified, as the US State Department announced potential sanctions for the European supporters and participants of the project. …