Welcome to the ODAC Newsletter, a weekly roundup from the Oil Depletion Analysis Centre, the UK registered charity dedicated to raising awareness of peak oil.

Oil prices this week continued to plummet and on Thursday reached a new low for 2008 of less than $50/barrel. As producer nations feel the impact of the price collapse, OPEC officially upgraded its 29th of November meeting of Arab Nations to a full meeting of all members. There is little consensus so far on whether OPEC will agree further production cuts.

Even if OPEC fails to cut back, oil companies around the world are already doing so, creating the conditions for another oil price spike when the economy recovers. Russian Energy Minister Sergei Shmatko said this week that Russian companies may make production cuts in the face of the changing economics. The minister went on to say that "The situation today is that many countries are on the brink of production profitability."

As commentators and analysts continued to assess the International Energy Agency’s World Energy Review 2008, debate arose this week due to the intervention of Robert Hirsch. In a memo to other peak oil activists he cautioned against challenging the IEA report loudly at a time when leaders and voters are struggling with the economic crisis. But for the recovery to be anything other than a brief respite, we will need a realistic approach to the future oil supply. So keeping mum may not be the most responsible strategy.

The continuing credit crunch is having an impact on investment decisions across the energy sector in ways that will affect future supplies. Policymakers and citizens must confront the fact that there will be no return to business as usual.

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Oil
Oil falls below $50 a barrel on plunging demand
Oil producers summoned to stop price slump
Russian oil output 'might be cut'
Peak Oil: Prominent Peaker Tells Allies to (Temporarily) Pipe Down
Oil Supertankers May Avoid Suez on Somalia Piracy
Situation 'nearing critical' as oil and gas juniors struggle to raise cash
Interior Dept sets rules for oil shale program
EU and US back Caspian call

Gas
Fossil fuels central to EU's long-term energy security vision
Iran, Turkey sign preliminary gas deal
Recession, cheap coal to cut UK winter gas demand

Nuclear
Ministers warned of legal threat to nuclear strategy

Renewables
Greenwash: BP and the myth of a world 'Beyond Petroleum'
Stranded but not sunk amid a deepening financial storm
Homes with no electric shocks from the bills

Economy
Failure to keep contracts fuels shipping crisis

UK
Protests as carbon permits auction raises £54m
'One planet' pledge for Wales
AA reveals record fall in petrol prices
Peers win concession on offset limits in climate bill
You British have so little power