POET has figured out what the rest of the corn-based ethanol industry has failed to grasp: relying on price-volatile fossil fuels to power its plants is bad for business. POET announced Wednesday it will use corn cobs – specifically the liquid waste created in the cob-to-fuel conversion process — to power its cellulosic ethanol plant in Emmetsburg, Iowa. Why is this small step...
Energy Industry Archive
June 2009
Global warming is already here, says government study — While some effects of global warming can already be seen, the future holds problems like droughts, flooding, forest death and crop diseases, according to a new report by the U.S. Global Change Research Program. Some areas are disproportionately affected; parts of the Midwest have already seen a seven Fahrenheit change. [Source: New...
If personal cars are to move from gasoline to an alternative — hydrogen, compressed natural gas, batteries or something else — they’ll need new infrastructure to match today’s gas stations. It’s the chicken-and-egg problem of the transportation industry. Without a way to refuel, why would anyone switch away from standard combustion engine vehicles? The onus is thus...
Mandatory royalty waivers — often referred to as royalty relief — would end for some offshore oil and gas production, under an amendment approved Tuesday by a Senate panel. Technically, the amendment doesn’t ban royalty relief. It simply leaves the decision up to the Interior department secretary, which would be Ken Salazar, in this case. And that worries Republicans and some...
As crude oil futures cross the $72 a barrel mark, advocates of solar energy are trumpeting an industry turnaround across the photovoltaic supply chain. But judging from comments by chief executive Tom Zarrella of GT Solar, a supplier of fabrication equipment, a rebound in customer demand is unlikely to occur prior to mid-2010. Zarrella announced last month that a slowdown in customer spending...
Sahara solar project would supply Europe with 15 percent of power needs – Germany’s largest utilities and engineering companies including Siemens, RWE and E.ON are in early-stage talks about developing solar plants in the Sahara desert to supply Europe with 15 percent of its power needs by 2050. The massive project would require high-voltage cables to move power from the Sahara...
In Iran, Mahmoud Ahmadinejad appears likely to hang onto the office of president, despite allegations of election fraud from his rivals. The result will please the country’s hardliners, but could have a negative affect on oil prices in the longer term, an idea explored yesterday at Rigzone. Right now, it’s unlikely that the election will do much to oil, today at $72 a barrel. Yet...
Sinopec’s reported bid of $7.84 billion for Addax Petroleum is more than just another example of China’s well-documented desire to acquire global energy resources. It also highlights a shift from attempted large-scale acquisitions — such as Chinalco’s failed grab for an 18 percent stake in Rio Tinto — to smaller M&A deals. Note: There is some question about...
U.S. restarts FutureGen clean coal project – The Department of Energy breathed new life into FutureGen, a coal-fired plant project that aims to capture 60 percent of its carbon dioxide emissions and store them underground. The DOE will provide $1 billion in economic stimulus funds towards the controversial project derailed by the Bush administration in late 2007. BNET blogger Chris...
ExxonMobil’s reversal from foe to friend of an Alaskan natural gas pipeline proposed by TransCanada has given the state-sponsored project some much-need momentum. And while many are cheering Exxon’s announcement, some folks are worried it will derail another pipeline project in northern Canada. Not to mention a rival Alaska gas project from BP and ConocoPhliips. Exxon has...
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- Week in Oil & Gas: Peak Oil, a Climate-Bill Interlude and Devon's Big Sale
- About Those Anti-Nuclear Arguments: They're Dishonest
- Week in Renewables: New Emissions Targets, Ausra to Sell, Tesla IPO
- The Great Climate Change Scandal of 2009
- Sour Market: With No Buyer in Sight, Valero Closes Delaware Refinery
- PG&E Smart Meter Case is Just the Beginning
- The Technologies for a Nuclear Resurgence
- Miasole Finally Begins Shipping as Next Generation Solar Gets Investment
- Chevron's Acquisition Strategy: Small Companies Need Not Apply
- Peak Oil? Not Here and Not For Decades, CERA Study Says
- Week in Oil & Gas: Punting in Copenhagen and Gulf of Mexico Leases -- Abridged
- Week in Renewables: Changes Afoot, Solar Growth, Electric Cars and Nukes
- Start Your Engines: Suncor CEO Marks Official "Restart" in Oil Sands Growth
- The Great Climate Change Scandal of 2009
- Week in Renewables: Glowing and Grim Reports, a New Bank, and Big Wind
- Sue Big Oil Over Global Warming? Court Tells Katrina Victims, Yes You Can!
- Clean Coal, a Global Failure in the Making
- The Technologies for a Nuclear Resurgence
- Boxer Rolls Political Dice, Climate Bill Moves Onto Senate Floor
- Week in Renewables: Obama vs. Public Opinion, and New Energy Bets
- Wind Power Poised For a Possible Fast Recovery
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- Clinton: Energy Efficiency Is Not Sexy, But Important Low-Hanging Fruit
- Trina Solar: Still Struggling to Bring Manufacturing Costs in Line With Falling Prices
- Boxer Rolls Political Dice, Climate Bill Moves Onto Senate Floor
- Valero to Shutter Some Refinery Operations, Cut Hundreds of Jobs
- Week in Oil & Gas: Climate Bill Hurdles and Refining Blues
- Spillover Effect: Another Pre-Salt Discovery in Brazil
- Canada Starts Doling Out Carbon Capture Dollars
- Natgas Conundrum: Calming Volatility Fears in Push for Clean Energy Alternative
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