Following is the text of a statement on global oil markets from the Group of Eight leaders gathered at the presidential retreat in Camp David, Maryland. The text was issued by the White House.

There have been increasing disruptions in the supply of oil to the global market over the past several months, which pose a substantial risk to global economic growth...

Shortly before Thanksgiving in 2010, the leaders of the commission President Obama had appointed to investigate the Deepwater Horizon oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico sat down in the Oval Office to brief him.

After listening to their findings about the BP accident and the safety of deepwater drilling, the president abruptly changed the subject.

"Where are you coming out on the offshore Arctic?" he asked...

Oil rebounded after closing below $90 a barrel for the first time in seven months amid speculation the drop was exaggerated and signs China will accelerate efforts to spur economic growth.

Futures rose as much as 1 percent in New York after reaching long-term technical support. China, the world's second- biggest oil consumer, will intensify "fine-tuning" of policies, according to the second government statement in four days signaling a commitment to growth as domestic demand slows. Talks with Iran aimed at averting military action against OPEC's second-biggest crude producer were scheduled to resume today...

The Government has rejected shale gas technology as a solution to Britain's energy crisis, conceding it will do little to cut bills or keep the lights on.

Supporters of the fracking technology—which blasts water, sand and chemicals at extreme pressures to release gas trapped deep in rock—argue it could be the single greatest factor in transforming Britain's energy market, reducing our reliance on foreign imports and dramatically reducing costs...

The extraction of shale gas through controversial hydraulic fracturing, or "fracking", presents "huge opportunities" but also "some big challenges", a Government minister has said.

Energy and Climate Change Minister Gregory Barker told MPs during a Westminster Hall debate on fracking that the Government's position remained "cautious but balanced"...

A top-10 investor in BP and Shell calls for end to emissions of the greenhouse gas in production of shale hydrocarbons...

Large-scale crop plantations are expanding at a rapid pace across southeast Asia, with multinational firms often benefiting the most at the expense of local communities and the environment, two U.N. rights experts warned on Wednesday.

Demand for agrofuels, such as those derived from sugar cane and palm oil, has boomed thanks in part to the United States, Europe and other rich economies seeking alternative ways to fuel their cars and homes in order to reduce their carbon emissions...

The biggest reforms to the UK energy sector in two decades were set out on Tuesday, prompting warnings from consumer groups and green campaigners that they would raise bills and penalise renewable energy while boosting nuclear power.

The sweeping reforms, detailed in the draft energy bill, grant the government powers to intervene in the market on a scale not seen since the industry was privatised...

Link to draft bill

Britain's ageing nuclear reactors, which were due to close in the next decade, are set to be kept open under a plan approved by the industry's regulator.

In a move that could have far-reaching implications for the government's energy policy, the Office for Nuclear Regulation has told the Guardian it is working with the country's dominant nuclear operator, the French-owned company EDF, to extend the life of its eight nuclear power stations in the UK, and that it is "content for the plants to continue to operate", as long as they pass regular safety tests...

The draft energy Bill, intended to attract £110bn investment in new power generation, may actually deter investors, a leading analyst has warned.

Peter Atherton, Citigroup's head of European utility sector research, said he was "surprised" the Government had published Tuesday's draft Bill when it still appeared to be very uncertain as to how key proposals would work...

Britain will delay a planned cut to subsidies for solar power projects until August 1, a month later than initially planned, after low demand for panels in March and April, Energy Minister Greg Barker said on Thursday.

"Following detailed consultation with industry and consumers, the government is introducing a range of changes to the FITs (feed-in tariff) scheme with effect from 1 August to provide better value for money and allow businesses and householders to plan with confidence," Barker said...

A team led by Atlantis Resources has won a government-backed contract worth up to £13.2m to investigate ways of driving down the cost of tidal power, as part of plans that could see the fledgling industry supply up to 27GW of capacity in the UK by 2050.

The Energy Technologies Institute (ETI) officially launched its Tidal Energy Converter System Demonstrator project yesterday, after signing a deal with a consortium on Monday consisting of Atlantis Resources, Black & Veatch, and Lockheed Martin...

U.K. efforts to switch to low-carbon power sources may lessen the negative impact of an oil-price shock, a study found before the government publishes its plans to attract investors in clean-energy generation.

The country's proposed climate policies would reduce the effect of jumps in energy prices on disposable household income by half by 2050, research group Oxford Economics said today in a government-commissioned report. They'd also mitigate the impact on business investment, inflation and unemployment, it said...

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German Chancellor Angela Merkel is tightening her grip on the biggest energy overhaul in the country's history, assigning a party enforcer to speed the transition amid signs her 12-month-old policy shift has stalled.

Peter Altmaier, the chief whip and deputy floor leader of Merkel's Christian Democratic Union, tomorrow is set to take the environment minister post. The following day he'll begin negotiating with leaders of Germany's states at a meeting with Merkel after they rejected a government bill in the upper house that would have cut solar-power subsidies by a record this year...

With the UK taking another step towards supporting new nuclear power on Tuesday—at either no extra cost to the consumer if you believe ministers, or substantial cost if you believe most others—it's worth taking a look at what actually happens when you phase out nuclear power in a large, industrial nation.

That is what Germany chose to do after the Fukushima nuclear disaster, closing eight plants immediately—7GW—and another nine by 2022. The shrillest critics predicted blackouts, which was always daft and did not happen...

Business secretary Vince Cable, responsible for the UK's Green investment bank (GIB), visits the German development bank KfW today, a day after the law establishing the GIB was published. It will be an interesting visit.

When I met Leon Macioszek, director of KfW in Berlin on Tuesday, I pointed out that the GIB can't actually borrow. This rendered him speechless as his mind wrestled hopelessly with the contradiction...

Because wind and solar energy are inconsistent, energy managers are looking for ways to fill in the gaps when it is dark outside and the air is still. A Norwegian company wants to turn hydroelectric power stations in the north into Europe's battery packs.

For Christian Rynning-Tønnesen, a feeling of amazement came first, and then came the shudder. Like the head of the Norwegian energy company Statkraft, anyone who takes the tiny red funicular from the research base at Ny-Ålesund to the nearby Zeppelin Mountain has a breathtaking view of the Spitsbergen island in the northernmost part of Norway. Everything is white. Between the snow-covered peaks glaciers are visible in the Kongs Fjord. The research centers lying far below look like children's toys...

Tough negotiations between Iran and world powers over Tehran's nuclear programme have ended with a plan to meet next month for another round of talks but agreement on little else.

The open channels between Iran and the six-nation bloc - the five permanent Security Council members plus Germany - are seen as the most hopeful chances of outreach between Washington and Tehran in years. They also could push back threats of military action that have shaken oil markets and brought worries of triggering a wider Middle East conflict...

China spurred a jump in global carbon dioxide (CO2) emissions to their highest ever recorded level in 2011, offsetting falls in the United States and Europe, the International Energy Agency (IEA) said on Thursday.

CO2 emissions rose by 3.2 percent last year to 31.6 billion tonnes, preliminary estimates from the Paris-based IEA showed...

What's the budget-conscious way to travel in the US?

If you buy in advance, flying is still reasonably priced, but increased security and wait times mean that it's quicker to drive for shorter trips...