Generally the impression in the US media is that international energy companies have been largely unaffected by the global economic crisis. This article in Thursday’s Financial Times outlines challenges facing Russian energy giant Gazprom.

Coming off the victory of passing health care reform, the Obama administration is now taking on energy challenges, including a decision to begin some exploratory drilling in the Atlantic ocean.  Due to the inherently high costs of drilling in North America (compared to the MENA region) it remains to be seen whether this will be profitable or simply overshadowed by alternative energy becoming more commonplace.