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Tom Baxter

Senior Lecturer in Chemical Engineering, University of Aberdeen

Tom Baxter graduated from Strathclyde University in 1975 with a B.Sc. in Chemical Engineering (first class honours). He is a Fellow of the IChemE. He started his career with ICI Petrochemicals, moved to fine chemicals with the Swiss company Ciba-Geigy before taking a position as a Process Engineer in 1980 with BNOC (British National Oil Corporation).

Through privatisation and acquisitions BNOC became Britoil then BP. Here he worked as an Operations Engineer, Development Engineer and Research Manager. In 1991 he left BP and joined Altra Consultants as Technical Manager. In 1998 he accepted a position as Technical Director with Genesis Oil and Gas Consultants and became the Aberdeen Business Unit Director in 2006.

He returned to his role as Technical Director on 2010 together with a position as Senior Fellow in the Chemical Engineering Department at Aberdeen University which he helped establish. He was appointed Visiting Professor of Chemical Engineering at Strathclyde University in 2003 and Aberdeen in 2009. He has co-authored numerous papers on the use of Full Cost Accounting to measure sustainable performance.

Oil in Global Economy Series

Electrifying offshore platforms targets a tiny fraction of the oil industry's emissions

Oct 27, 2023 14:54 pm UTC| Business

We are all familiar with the greenhouse gas emissions that come from burning fossil fuels in car engines, central heating systems and power stations. Little discussed is the climate footprint of producing oil and gas in...

Hydrogen: UK government sees future in low-carbon fuel – but what's the reality?

Aug 22, 2021 01:27 am UTC| Business Economy

The UKs long-awaited hydrogen strategy has set out the governments plans for a world-leading hydrogen economy that it says would generate 900 million (US$1.2 million) and create over 9,000 jobs by 2030, potentially rising...

Why hydrogen energy has seduced a generation of politicians

Apr 04, 2021 10:20 am UTC| Politics

Hydrogen is often touted in the scientific and general media as a silver bullet for reaching net zero emissions. Such articles might include the following claims: Its the most common element on Earth. It can be...

Hydrogen: where is low-carbon fuel most useful for decarbonisation?

Nov 10, 2020 05:50 am UTC| Science

Is hydrogen the lifeblood of a low-carbon future, or an overhyped distraction from real solutions? One thing is certain the coal, oil and natural gas which currently power much of daily life must be phased out within...

Why we should leave old oil rigs in the sea – and why we don't

Oct 05, 2020 14:09 pm UTC| Business

Decommissioning the UKs offshore oil and gas infrastructure will cost the taxpayer 24 billion, according to estimates from HMRC. So why cant we leave man-made structures in the sea and thereby save the cost of removal and...

Electric Vehicle Series

Hydrogen cars won't overtake electric vehicles because they're hampered by the laws of science

Jun 03, 2020 14:35 pm UTC| Science

Hydrogen has long been touted as the future for passenger cars. The hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle (FCEV), which simply runs on pressurised hydrogen from a fuelling station, produces zero carbon emissions from its...

Oil in Global Economy Series

Five myths about dismantling North Sea oil rigs

Apr 14, 2017 03:14 am UTC| Insights & Views Business

Oil giant Royal Dutch Shell is under fire from environmental groups over its proposal to decommission the Brent oilfield in the North Sea. The plans submitted to the government relate to four concrete and steel platforms...

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Economy

India Slashes Fuel Taxes: A Ten-Rupee Relief Amid Global Energy Turmoil

Effective March 26, 2026, the Indian government made a decisive fiscal action by significantly lowering the Special Additional Excise Duty (SAED) on motor fuels. This change in policy lowers the tax on gasoline from INR 13...

France's 2025 Budget Deficit Shrinks More Than Expected, Easing Fiscal Pressure

France made stronger-than-expected progress on its public finances in 2025, with the national budget deficit falling to 5.1% of GDP a notable improvement from 5.8% recorded in 2024 and well ahead of the governments own...

Oil Prices Slip as Trump Extends Iran Ceasefire Deadline Amid Ongoing War Fears

Global oil prices were on course for a weekly loss on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump granted Iran a 10-day extension before threatening to strike its energy infrastructure, offering markets a brief reprieve ...

Asian Stocks Rebound as Trump Delays Iran Strike Deadline

Asian equity markets staged a partial recovery on Friday after U.S. President Donald Trump postponed a planned military strike on Iranian energy infrastructure, extending the deadline by over ten days while signaling...

Google's TurboQuant Sends South Korean Chip Stocks Tumbling Amid AI Memory Demand Fears

South Korean equities took a sharp hit Friday as mounting concerns over reduced artificial intelligence memory demand dragged the KOSPI index to its lowest point in more than two weeks. The benchmark fell nearly 3% to...

Politics

Lavrov Claims U.S. Seeks Control Over Damaged Nord Stream Pipelines

Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov has accused the United States of pursuing dominance over the Nord Stream gas pipelines in the Baltic Sea, which were severely damaged by underwater explosions in September 2022. The...

Chinese Universities with PLA Ties Found Purchasing Restricted U.S. AI Chips Through Super Micro Servers

Procurement records reveal that four Chinese universities, two of which have direct ties to the Peoples Liberation Army, acquired Super Micro Computer servers loaded with restricted Nvidia AI chips over the past year. The...

U.S. Praises Kurdistan's Role in Oil Markets Amid Iran War Fallout

U.S. Secretary of State Marco Rubio held a significant diplomatic call Thursday with Kurdistan Regional Government Prime Minister Masrour Barzani, signaling Washingtons commitment to regional energy stability as conflict...

Russia Accused of Helping Iran Target U.S. Forces, European Powers Tell G7

European nations have formally accused Russia of providing military intelligence and drone technology to Iran to help target American forces in the Middle East, raising the issue directly with U.S. Secretary of State Marco...

Trump Signs Executive Order to Pay TSA Workers Amid Airport Security Crisis

President Donald Trump announced Thursday that he will sign an executive order directing Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin to ensure Transportation Security Administration (TSA) employees receive their pay,...

Science

SpaceX Pivots Toward Moon City as Musk Reframes Long-Term Space Vision

SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has revealed a significant shift in the companys near-term space exploration strategy, announcing that SpaceX is now prioritizing the development of a self-growing city on the Moon rather than focusing...

SpaceX Prioritizes Moon Mission Before Mars as Starship Development Accelerates

Elon Musks SpaceX is shifting its near-term space exploration strategy, choosing to prioritize a return to the Moon before pursuing missions to Mars, according to a recent Wall Street Journal report citing sources familiar...

NASA and SpaceX Target Crew-11 Undocking From ISS Amid Medical Concern

NASA has confirmed that the agency, in coordination with SpaceX, is targeting no earlier than 5 p.m. Eastern Time (2200 GMT) on Wednesday, January 14, for the undocking of the SpaceX Crew-11 mission from the International...

Neuralink Plans High-Volume Brain Implant Production and Fully Automated Surgery by 2026

Elon Musks brain-computer interface company Neuralink is preparing for a major expansion, announcing plans to begin high-volume production of its brain implant devices and transition to a fully automated surgical procedure...

Jared Isaacman Confirmed as NASA Administrator, Becomes 15th Leader of U.S. Space Agency

The U.S. Senate has officially confirmed billionaire private astronaut Jared Isaacman as the new NASA administrator, making him the 15th leader in the agencys history. The confirmation, which took place on Wednesday, marks...

Technology

Federal Judge Blocks Pentagon's Blacklisting of AI Company Anthropic

A federal judge has temporarily prevented the Pentagon from enforcing its designation of Anthropic as a national security supply-chain risk, dealing an early blow to the Trump administration in a growing dispute over...

SMIC Allegedly Supplies Chipmaking Tools to Iran's Military, U.S. Officials Warn

Chinas top semiconductor manufacturer, SMIC (Semiconductor Manufacturing International Corporation), has reportedly been transferring chipmaking equipment to Irans military industrial complex, according to two senior Trump...

Google's TurboQuant Algorithm Sends Memory Chip Stocks Tumbling

Major memory chipmakers took a significant hit on Thursday after Google researchers introduced a groundbreaking compression algorithm that threatens to reduce artificial intelligence demand for memory chips. Samsung...

Reflection AI Eyes $25 Billion Valuation in Massive $2.5 Billion Funding Round

Nvidia-backed artificial intelligence startup Reflection AI is in advanced discussions to secure $2.5 billion in fresh funding, with negotiations pointing to a staggering pre-money valuation of $25 billion, according to a...

Nanya Technology Shares Surge 10% After $2.5 Billion Private Placement from Sandisk and Cisco

Shares of Taiwan-based memory chip manufacturer Nanya Technology soared to their daily limit of 10% on Thursday morning following the companys announcement of a major $2.5 billion private placement deal backed by prominent...