In This Issue:

- Plans to build the first coal gasification plant in Britain

- Letters of credit, on-demand bonds, and the "fraud exception"

- Argentina amends its hydrocarbons law to boost exploration and production of conventional and unconventional hydrocarbons

- EPA Issues Proposal for More Stringent Ozone Standard … Get Your Project Applications in ASAP

- Excerpt from Plans to build the first coal gasification plant in Britain:

AIM-listed Cluff Natural Resources has announced plans to build the first plant in Britain that would use a controversial process to extract gas from "stranded" deep sea coal seams. The plans were announced following an independent survey that estimated that there are up to 335m tonnes of coal beneath the Firth of Forth in Fife, Scotland.

If underground coal gasification (UCG) overcomes safety concerns (it has a chequered history in the US), planning and environmental hurdles and can be made commercially viable, then supporters believe it could form part of the UK's future plans to provide diversity of supply, energy security and cleaner energy. The issue of the UK's depleting energy resources is well documented and have led to an increased profile of shale gas.