Exxon Mobil

A delegation from the International Energy Agency spent two days in Baghdad speaking with high-ranking officials in preparation for an end-of-year report on the country's oil sector. By some estimates, Iraq could hold some of the largest oil reserves in the world and an international auction for oil and natural gas blocks is planned for May. Without a hydrocarbon law, and considering the fractured political system, the IEA's report may be more about political obstacles than oil potential, however.

As the global oil industry realizes record profits amid rising gas prices, European oil producer Total S.A. (NYSE: TOT) has offered as much as $1.4 billion for a 60% interest in SunPower Corporation (Nasdaq: SPWRA), the biggest solar-cell maker in the U.S.

XTO Energy, a subsidiary of Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM), is under investigation by the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP) after a 13,000 gallon hydraulic fracturing fluid spill at XTO Energy's natural gas drilling site in Penn Township, Lycoming County, PA.

Less than seven months after the Deepwater Horizon oil rig exploded and sank in the Gulf of Mexico, spewing millions of gallons of oil into the Gulf, oil companies in the United States remain reluctant to enact reforms that could help prevent another environmental disaster.

If you've never heard of Bonaire, you're not alone. The Dutch-ruled 113-square-mile island in the Netherlands Antilles—about 50 miles off the northern coast of Venezuela—is primarily known as a destination for diving and snorkeling enthusiasts (because of its protected reef system).

To anyone familiar with how modern-day politics works, it should come as no surprise to learn that big business spent big bucks to defeat the climate bills that became stalled in the U.S. Congress this past summer.

The petroleum basin off the coast of the West African nation of Ghana, one of the continent's most stable and prosperous countries, has prompted the likes of Exxon Mobil (NYSE: XOM) to pursue stakes in regional oil fields.

Australia, the world’s largest exporter of coal, relies on the inefficient and dirty resource to supply over 80% of its own electricity. But the cheap and plentiful sedimentary rock's high carbon output happens to be a major contributor to climate change, something that hasn't gone unnoticed by the government (Australia emits more greenhouse gases per capita than any other country).

In March, the Times Online ran a piece on the top 100 eco-barons and where they were investing their money.

Fossil-fuel extractors don't usually bring to mind energy alternatives, but in the past few years Royal Dutch Shell (NYSE: RDS.A), Europe's largest petroleum producer, has invested £1 billion (about $1.65 billion) in alternative energy development.