European policymakers have been busy these last few months looking for alternative energy sources to Russian gas, but at the end of the day, the continent is and will remain heavily dependent on Putin’s hydrocarbons.

Plunging crude prices are affecting producers’ ability to profitably drill, and there’s a growing concern that the bear market could affect U.S. fracking. But continued innovation has firms producing more oil with lower costs, which suggests that the shale revolution may be more resilient than many think.

Yesterday, it looked as if Russia and Ukraine were going to sign an interim deal to supply Kiev with barely enough gas to get it through this winter, but at the last minute, Putin required assurances from the West that Poroshenko would pay his bills.

North Dakota is setting all kinds of oil and gas drilling records, and is showing signs of continued improvement. In fact, drillers in the state are already working on cutting down on the flaring of excess gas—a win for both industry and the environment.

Gas utilities are pleased as punch to see an oversupply of shale gas depressing domestic prices, as they’ve struggled to refill storage capacities in the wake of last year’s historically cold winter.

Kiev and Moscow have reportedly reached an interim deal to supply Ukraine with Russian gas this winter. But the quantities involved won’t cover demand if this winter turns out to be a cold one, and the West will likely have to step in to help cover the costs.

Poland leads a group of central and eastern European countries highly skeptical of a raft of new EU green policy proposals. Green dreams are running headlong into harsh economic realities in Brussels next week.

Earlier this year, Keystone was the hottest energy policy debate in town. Why has attention to the pipeline project faded in the run-up to November’s midterm elections?

Industry is doing its part to address humanity’s role in climate change: a Texas plant aims to capture carbon being emitted from cement production and produce industrial chemicals.

OPEC has chosen not to cut production to help stabilize falling oil prices, and in fact Saudi Arabia has started offering price discounts to customers in Europe and Asia in an attempt to gain market share. The Saudis are testing the chops of the American shale boom. Is fracking up to the challenge?