
Saudi Arabia government overhaul sees oil minister removed - okket
http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-36237785
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wrong_variable
When I was younger - pre 2008 - I went to a seminar in the middle east.

It was about the future of global energy demand. The person giving the
presentation had this graphs - all they could see was growth in global oil and
gas demand.

During the seminar I asked one of the presenter about global warming, and how
they hope to tackle it.

At least their was no global warming denial but it was unfathomable to them
that something like solar could even compete with energy generation using
natural gas and oil.

Of-course even I knew back then that solar will not be able to compete - even
if solar could be cheapened - it wasn't like these producers had razor thin
margins.

A decade later - how things have changed.

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zipwitch
This continues a process that began over a year ago, with King Salman and his
son Prince Mohammed consolidating power around themselves and away from other
branches of the vast royal family. [http://www.platts.com/latest-
news/oil/dubai/analysis-king-sa...](http://www.platts.com/latest-
news/oil/dubai/analysis-king-salman-consolidates-family-grip-26082090)

------
x0x0
The background -- oddly not mentioned in the bbc article -- is the blowup of
the Doha meeting and SA using oil prices as an economic weapon to punish Iran
and Russia with Venezuela getting caught up as collateral damage. Plus their
interests in cutting US and Canadian investment in domestic oil production.

see eg [http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/04/18/to-punish-iran-saudis-
sc...](http://foreignpolicy.com/2016/04/18/to-punish-iran-saudis-scuttle-oil-
freeze-plan/)

