ABC - Indonesia's poor crippled by soaring fuel prices

Millions of Indonesians are struggling to get by on less than $2 a day as fuel prices soar. Earlier this week the Indonesian Government announced that petrol prices would have to rise by around 30 per cent.

The price rise will have a huge impact on the many Indonesians who rely on motorised transport to make a living. In one east Jakarta boarding house dozens of drivers and their families live together, renting both the roof over their heads and the vehicles that they drive. "We used to make $2.50 a day, but now we sometimes don't even make enough to pay for the bajajs (three-wheeled taxi)," says one driver.

NZ Herald - Nuclear power popular again as energy prices soar

Slammed by the surging cost of energy imported from volatile regions and befuddled about how to meet their pledges for tackling global warming, European countries are reviving nuclear's role in their energy strategies.

Scoop.co.nz - Smaller and Smarter Wind Energy

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Mr Henderson's presentation showed that large energy projects such as the 360 megawatt Taranaki Combined Cycle plant caused electricity prices to drop initially, then long gaps between new large lumps of generation caused a "feast and famine" cycle which cause price instability.

This lumpy investment problem is being repeated in the wind industry based on a false economic argument for “bigger is better”. This is a myth, he said, with smaller turbines actually being cheaper than larger turbines on an installed megawatt basis.

Adelaide Now - Peak oil protest in the city

PEAK-HOUR traffic was faced with the looming reality of "peak oil" this morning.

About 15 concerned demonstrators marched at the intersection of King William St and North Tce between 8am and 9am to raise awareness that petrol will eventually run out.

ABC - Fuel theft warning for farmers

Farmers are being told to watch out for fuel thieves, with recent price rises leading to a jump in crime.

Queensland Police say there is now a greater temptation to steal fuel because it's so expensive, especially in rural and remote areas.

Scoop.co.nz - Toll NZ’s Environment Day Transport Initiative

Statistics Minister and Otaki MP Darren Hughes has today congratulated Toll NZ Ltd for the positive initiatives it has adopted for World Environment Day to encourage more people to use public transport on behalf of the Environment Minister Trevor Mallard.

As part of the World Environment Day celebrations, Toll NZ Ltd will be branding 10 per cent of their electric fleet with an environmental image and message, and will also have discounted off-peak fares on 5 June – World Environment Day.

Stuff.co.nz - Blackouts 'likely without savings'

Blackouts are "very possible" in the North Island and probable in the South Island if huge power savings are not made now, according to a business group.

With a winter power shortage looming, storage is down to 56 per cent of average, the worst since the 1992 power crisis.

SMH - Tui oil field reserves estimates raised

New Zealand Oil and Gas was hosing down expectations after a report by The Australian that reserves in the Tui oilfield would be raised again next month.

The newspaper's website reported on Friday that the oilfield's operator, Australian Worldwide Exploration (AWE), was gearing up to boost reserves at the Taranaki field to over 50 million barrels.

ABC - 'Commuters stranded' in transport surge

The New South Wales Opposition says the State Government has failed to prepare for an increase in the use of public transport due to rising fuel costs.

Patronage on some train lines, including Sydney's western line, has increased by 6 per cent in the last year - double the projected growth.

Opposition transport spokeswoman Gladys Berejiklian says a shortage of services has left commuters stranded at rail platforms and bus stops.

Scoop.co.nz - Govt funding for Kaipara harbour tidal energy

Govt funding for Kaipara harbour tidal energy devices

A project to generate electricity from the tides in Kaipara Harbour is to receive a grant of $1.85 million from the Marine Energy Deployment Fund.

Energy Minister David Parker announced the grant to Crest Energy Ltd in a speech to the Aotearoa Wave and Tidal Energy Association, AWATEA, today.

SMH - Renewable energy just got hotter

The world is watching a hot rocks plant with massive potential in South Australia. It is clean, renewable and quiet, writes Phil Cornford.

By the end of the year, the diesel-fuelled generators in Innamincka will fall silent when Australia's first power plant fuelled by hot rocks, four kilometres below the Earth's surface, supplies electricity to the sun-scorched Cooper Basin outpost 1100 kilometres north-west of Adelaide.

ABC - Air New Zealand to trial new bio-fuel

Air New Zealand will trial a new bio-fuel later this year, because of the soaring global cost of fuel.

The airline says it aims to convert at least part of its domestic fleet to bio-fuel use, within five years.

Air New Zealand's research to date shows the greener fuel source, costs half the price of normal airline fuel and produces only 50 percent of the environmental emissions.

Have you ever wondered what the headline would look like when the newspapers announced Peak Oil? Here it is. "Peak Oil Lite" in a Nutshell:
News.com.au - Oil exporters unable to match demand

THE world's top oil producers are proving unable to put more barrels on thirsty world markets despite sky-high prices, a shift that defies traditional market logic and looks set to continue.

Fresh data from the US Department of Energy shows the amount of petroleum products shipped by the world's top oil exporters fell 2.5 per cent last year, despite a 57 per cent increase in prices, a trend that appears to be holding true this year as well.

There are several reasons behind the net export decline. Soaring profits from high-price crude have fuelled a boom in oil demand in Saudi Arabia and across the Middle East, leaving less oil for export. At the same time, ageing fields and sluggish investments have caused exports to drop significantly in Mexico, Norway and Russia.

The Age - What am I bid for this emissions permit, still in wrapper?

AS ENERGY-INTENSIVE industries scramble over each other to convince Climate Change Minister Penny Wong that they deserve compensation for the impact of the establishment of an emissions trading scheme (ETS), consumers are asking, "What would such compensation mean for us?" If the European Union experience is anything to go by, it would mean a big increase in the cost of electricity services with no reduction in carbon emissions.

In his discussion paper on an Australian ETS, Professor Ross Garnaut suggested that permits to emit carbon should not be given away freely, but auctioned. He also suggested that any compensation provided to the energy sector should be limited to "trade-exposed, energy-intensive industries" (TEEIIs) such as aluminium and steel producers.

ABC - Rising fuel prices hurting transport workers' health

A support group for transport drivers describes the suicide rate in the transport industry as "phenomenal" and says rising fuel prices will make things worse.