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The Ukraine Crisis: The Neglected Gas Factor / Morena Skalamera. Orbis 59, no. 3 (Summer 2015), pp. 398-410.http://belfercenter.ksg.harvard.edu/publication/25522/ukraine_crisis.htmlAbstract : The current Ukraine crisis is often portrayed as a contest between Ukraine's desire to adopt West European standards of living and its historical pull towards Russia's sphere of influence. This ostensibly has made Ukraine unable to tilt successfully either toward the European Union or Russia. Yet, this narrative has neglected that Ukraine is significant precisely because of its geographical position and its role as a transit country for Russian gas en route to Europe.Go East, Young Oilman : How Asia Is Shaping the Future of  Global Energy / Michael Levi, Foreign Affairs, July/Aug. 2015.https://www.foreignaffairs.com/articles/asia/2015-06-16/go-east-young-oilmanMost observers agree that the United States, propelled by its boom in oil and gas production, is becoming increasingly central to global energy. As oil prices have plummeted, American oil producers have taken credit. As U.S. imports have fallen, foreign policy thinkers have suggested that Washington could rely far less on the Middle East. As U.S. firms have prepared to export liquefied natural gas (LNG), market watchers have braced for a transformation of global natural gas markets and, as a result, geopolitics...Effective Regional Energy Policy Cooperation in South East Europe: A Proposal / Christian Egenhofer, Anna Dimitrova &#38; Julian Popov. CEPS, 2 July 2015, 8 p. (Background Briefing Paper)http://www.ceps.eu/publications/effective-regional-energy-policy-cooperation-south-east-europe-proposalThe implementation of regional energy policy cooperation initiatives is a priority of both the Energy Union and the so-called 2030 Energy and Climate Framework. The Energy Union proposal has singled out south east Europe as one area in which to act. This report identifies the seven key elements that need to be addressed to bring existing and planned regional energy policy cooperation initiatives in south east Europe to life: i) a sound geographical definition, ii) a governance structure, iii) voluntary participation, iv) exchange of information and best practice, v) the development of an external dimension, vi) regional infrastructure planning and development and vii) streamlining the financing instruments across the region...Designing a new EU-Turkey strategic gas partnership / Simone Tagliapietra and Georg Zachmann. Bruegel, July 2015, 13 p.http://www.bruegel.org/publications/publication-detail/publication/887-designing-a-new-eu-turkey-strategic-gas-partnership/The European Commission’s February 2015 Energy Union Communication calls for intensified work on the Southern Gas Corridor (SGC) and the establishment of a new strategic energy partnership with Turkey. The presence of the European Union and Turkey in the region is complementary in a number of ways. Building on this could unlock the region’s gas export potential and make gas supplies to the EU and Turkey more secure...Oil Prices and the U.S. Economy: Where Is the Boom? / Vipin Arora. Kiel Institute for the World Economy, 2015, 15 p. (Economics Discussion Papers, No 2015-48)http://www.economics-ejournal.org/economics/discussionpapers/2015-48Abstract: The author argues that the economic benefits of low gasoline prices for the U.S. economy have fallen substantially since the reemergence of America as a major oil producer. The old rule-of-thumb that a 10% fall in the oil price raises inflation-adjusted U.S. GDP by 0.2% is too large - the impact on economic activity should be closer to zero, and may even be negative if consumption grows slowly. The reasons for this change are straightforward, if underappreciated: (i) the value of oil production accounts for a larger share of the U.S. economy; and (ii) consumers are not spending the windfall like they used to because of higher debt levels, limited access to credit, slow wage growth, and an older populationThe End of Coal: Ontario’s coal phase-out / Melissa Harris, Marisa Beck &#38; Ivetta Gerasimchuk. IISD, June 2015, 32 p.http://www.iisd.org/publications/end-of-coal-ontario-coal-phase-outOntario has successfully implemented its policy to put an end to coal use in 2014. This energy transition has become “the single largest GHG reduction measure in North America”: since 2007, when coal accounted for about 25 per cent of its electricity generation, Ontario has reduced its greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 34 Mt or 17 per cent.What lessons can be learned from Ontario’s coal phase-out experience? How can its success be replicated in other parts of the globe? This paper explores this question for all those around the world who may draw inspiration and lessons learned from Ontario: policy-makers, campaigners, entrepreneurs and others interested in transitioning to a low-carbon future...Oil Prices, Low-Carbon Energy, and Climate Policy : insights from a CFR workshop. 6/07/2015, 8 p.http://www.cfr.org/energy-and-environment/oil-prices-low-carbon-energy-climate-policy/p36744For decades, oil prices have influenced the outlook for alternatives to oil and policies that support those alternatives. Expensive oil makes substitutes more appealing; cheap oil makes the economic case for alternatives that much more difficult. High prices in the 1970s kick-started clean energy, including the first modern electric vehicles, while the oil slump beginning in the 1980s pummeled sources like wind and solar power and undermined the push for more fuel-efficient cars...