Alan W. Dowd is a Senior Fellow with the American Security Council Foundation, where he writes on the full range of topics relating to national defense, foreign policy and international security. Dowd’s commentaries and essays have appeared in Policy Review, Parameters, Military Officer, The American Legion Magazine, The Journal of Diplomacy and International Relations, The Claremont Review of Books, World Politics Review, The Wall Street Journal Europe, The Jerusalem Post, The Financial Times Deutschland, The Washington Times, The Baltimore Sun, The Washington Examiner, The Detroit News, The Sacramento Bee, The Vancouver Sun, The National Post, The Landing Zone, Current, The World & I, The American Enterprise, Fraser Forum, American Outlook, The American and the online editions of Weekly Standard, National Review and American Interest. Beyond his work in opinion journalism, Dowd has served as an adjunct professor and university lecturer; congressional aide; and administrator, researcher and writer at leading think tanks, including the Hudson Institute, Sagamore Institute and Fraser Institute. An award-winning writer, Dowd has been interviewed by Fox News Channel, Cox News Service, The Washington Times, The National Post, the Australian Broadcasting Corporation and numerous radio programs across North America. In addition, his work has been quoted by and/or reprinted in The Guardian, CBS News, BBC News and the Council on Foreign Relations. Dowd holds degrees from Butler University and Indiana University. Follow him at twitter.com/alanwdowd.

ASCF News

Scott Tilley is a Senior Fellow at the American Security Council Foundation, where he writes the “Technical Power” column, focusing on the societal and national security implications of advanced technology in cybersecurity, space, and foreign relations.

He is an emeritus professor at the Florida Institute of Technology. Previously, he was with the University of California, Riverside, Carnegie Mellon University’s Software Engineering Institute, and IBM. His research and teaching were in the areas of computer science, software & systems engineering, educational technology, the design of communication, and business information systems.

He is president and founder of the Center for Technology & Society, president and co-founder of Big Data Florida, past president of INCOSE Space Coast, and a Space Coast Writers’ Guild Fellow.

He has authored over 150 academic papers and has published 28 books (technical and non-technical), most recently Systems Analysis & Design (Cengage, 2020), SPACE (Anthology Alliance, 2019), and Technical Justice (CTS Press, 2019). He wrote the “Technology Today” column for FLORIDA TODAY from 2010 to 2018.

He is a popular public speaker, having delivered numerous keynote presentations and “Tech Talks” for a general audience. Recent examples include the role of big data in the space program, a four-part series on machine learning, and a four-part series on fake news.

He holds a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of Victoria (1995).

Contact him at stilley@cts.today.

Oil Climbs on Tight Supply, Prospect of EU Ban on Russian Supply

Thursday, May 26, 2022

Categories: ASCF News Energy Independence

Comments: 0

Source: https://www.theepochtimes.com/oil-climbs-on-tight-supply-prospect-of-eu-ban-on-russian-supply_4492576.html

A general view shows an oil treatment plant in the Yarakta Oil Field, in Irkutsk Region, Russia, on March 10, 2019. (Vasily Fedosenko/Reuters)

LONDON—Oil prices rose on Thursday, extending a cautious rally this week on signs of tight supply while the European Union (EU) wrangles with Hungary over plans to ban imports from Russia, the world’s second-largest crude exporter, after it invaded Ukraine.

Brent crude futures gained 87 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $114.90 a barrel at 1001 GMT. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures climbed $1.02, or 0.9 percent, to $111.35 a barrel.

A bigger-than-expected drawdown in U.S. crude inventories in the week to May 20, following soaring exports, buoyed the market on Wednesday. U.S. refiners picked up the pace of activity, boosting overall capacity use to the highest levels since before the pandemic.

“The fundamental backdrop … is getting price supportive as the driving season is approaching and will turn even more bullish once the EU sanctions on Russian oil sales are endorsed by all parties involved,” PVM Oil’s Tamas Varga said.

European Council President Charles Michel on Wednesday said he is confident that an agreement can be reached before the council’s next meeting on May 30.

Germany’s economy minister Robert Habeck said the EU can still strike a deal on an oil embargo in the coming days or look to “other instruments” if no agreement is reached.

However, Hungary remains a stumbling block to the unanimous support needed for EU sanctions. Hungary is pressing for about 750 million euros ($800 million) to upgrade its refineries and expand a pipeline from Croatia to enable it to switch away from Russian oil.

Russia’s oil production is expected to decline to 480–500 million tonnes this year from 524 million tonnes in 2021, Deputy Prime Minister Alexander Novak said, state-run news agency RIA reported on Thursday.

There are also other factors that are favoring further upside to oil prices.

“Shanghai is preparing to reopen after a two-month lockdown, while the U.S. peak driving season begins with the Memorial Day weekend, which could provide a fillip to oil demand,” said Sugandha Sachdeva, vice president of commodities research at Religare Broking, referring to the U.S. holiday on Monday.

“All of the variables are pointing to further gains in oil prices going ahead.”

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