Energy, Mining & Utilities

For the U'wa, after doing a meticulous study of our origin, our history and of the flagrant violations of our great laws committed by the Colombian state and OXY, we knew this news months before. For our highest traditional authorities, Werjayas, defenders of the landmarks of the world, it's a battle that has been won, but the war continues because the U'wa territory is not only Gibraltar 1. Our territory is more extensive, covering five Colombian states (Casanare, Arauca, Boyac, Santander and North Santander) and part of the Venezuelan territory, today known as the state of Merida. Read More

Time is running out. So much to be done. Enter the International Day of Action against ExxonMobil. Pressure Point, a Seattle-based nonprofit, is coordinating a Call to Action against Bush's biggest supporter and the worst of the "Greenhouse Gangsters" --ExxonMobil. The actions/ protests are scheduled for the 11th of July. This year, we'll be declaring our independence from corporations like ExxonMobil. Read More

One of the surest indications that trouble is at hand is when diplomats start hiding behind catchy phrases and meaningless terminology. Participants and observers to the COP-6 Climate Change conference here have been told that ''breakthrough,'' ''deal,'' or ''compromise'' (take your pick) had been achieved. Read More

Three American civilian airmen providing airborne security for a U.S. oil company coordinated an anti-guerrilla raid in Colombia in 1998, marking targets and directing helicopter gunships that mistakenly killed 18 civilians, Colombian military pilots have alleged in a official inquiry. Read More

Rio Tinto could be a poster child for corporate malfeasance. The largest mining company in the world, Rio Tinto has headquarters both in Melbourne, Australia and London, England and operations on all continents except Antarctica. For years, Rio Tinto has had a reputation for being responsible for environmental and human rights violations at its mines and smelters. Read More

The world's largest private mining company, Rio Tinto, has long been criticized for gross human rights violations dating back to its support of apartheid in Southern Africa. Despite its abysmal record, Rio Tinto has recently been accepted, and even courted, by intergovernmental institutions such as the United Nations and the Asia Pacific Forum of National Human Rights Institutions (the Asia Pacific Forum). Read More

In retaliation for the investigative story about the finances of the George W. Bush campaign, Barrick Gold Mining of Canada has sued my paper, the Observer of London, for libel. The company, which hired the elder Bush after his leaving the White House, is charging the newspaper with libel for quoting an Amnesty International report. Read More

Today, the Union of Concerned Scientists released "Drilling in Detroit," an analysis conducted jointly with the Center for Auto Safety. The study finds that US automakers could produce a fleet of cars and trucks that get an average of 40 miles per gallon by 2012, and 55 mpg by 2020 (up from the current 24 mpg average), with no diminution of safety and performance. This increased fuel efficiency would save consumers billions of dollars each year, cut 273 million tons of annual GHG emissions by 2010 and 888 million tons by 2020, and create tens of thousands of new jobs in the auto industry. Read More

New evidence has surfaced in a Colombian government inquiry exposing active collaboration between security forces protecting oil operations of the Los Angeles-based Occidental Petroleum (OXY) and the notorious Colombian military in one of the country' deadliest attacks on civilians. Read More

A private intelligence firm with close links to MI6 spied on environmental campaign groups to collect information for oil companies, including Shell and BP. Read More