Energy Industry Archive

Fort Hills oil sands has bright future under merged Suncor and PetroCanada — Shareholders approved the merger of Suncor and PetroCanada, forming a behemoth company with 15 major projects, mostly in the oil sands. Lower costs, rising oil prices and the merger have helped the delayed Fort Hills project and outgoing CEO Ron Brenneman says it will likely move up in the priority list....

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Noise complaints about wind farms are becoming an everyday occurrence, but solar power? The Boston Herald is reporting that neighbors of the new Evergreen Solar manufacturing plant in Devens, Mass. are complaining about noise levels high enough to sicken animals: [It's] so noisy the horses have ulcers, the ducks have disappeared and a dog has started gnawing off doorknobs, angry neighbors say...

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In the midst of a sagging economy crippled by layoffs and a global credit crunch, there is a bright spot among the new green economy. People working in the climate change industry feel safe in their jobs. [Pause for ironic contemplation]. The first-ever Carbon Salary Survey, conducted by Reuters, found 68 percent of green workers polled have an increased sense of job security as governments and...

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In his never-ending pursuit of U.S. energy independence, Texas billionaire T. Boone Pickens took his message Wednesday to American Indians. His plea? Support the construction of wind turbines and solar panels on tribal land. Pickens spoke to American Indians at the annual Sovereignty Symposium in Oklahoma about his “plan” which aims to generate electricity from wind and solar power...

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Coda unveils cheaper electric car — Cheap, when it comes to electric cars, is a highly subjective label. At a price of $45,000, the Coda, an all-electric car by an eponymous company (owned by Miles Electric) with a range of about 100 miles, will be half the price of a Tesla Roadster, but still far beyond the buying power of most salaries. Still, a fully electric car is an achievement,...

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Proponents of solar power in the United States may soon have reason to be green with envy over their Chinese peers. Shi Lishan, a spokesman from China’s National Energy Administration, says that the country will soon pass a 1.09 yuan per kilowatt hour feed-in tariff for solar power, equal to about 16 cents, according to the Wall Street Journal. A feed-in tariff is often an easier way to...

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Amidst all of the hullabaloo surrounding Royal Dutch Shell’s corporate restructuring and senior management job cuts, the Hague-based oil and gas company has announced a newly created position right here in the good ol’ U.S. of A. Shell has created a new position– executive vice president of global government relations — that will be based in Washington D.C. Roxanne...

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The Republican Party, as amply noted elsewhere, has been having a tough time uniting against President Obama’s policies. The arguments they make are often as not feeble or marred by internal arguing. But GOP efforts are starting to show on one part of the Obama’s platform, his energy policies. A pattern has emerged in their opposition to the Waxman-Markey climate change bill that...

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General Motors’ business plan will be shaped in large part by one basic assumption: oil prices will rise again. GM CEO Fritz Henderson answered dozens of reporters’ questions during a Monday press conference about the company’s Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection filing. And among all of Henderson’s answers, his remarks about oil prices revealed a lot about where GM is...

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Carbon tracker start-up Hara lands Coke deal – Hara, the energy software management company formed by SAP and Oracle alumni, has struck a deal with Coke. Hara’s software, which Coke is expected to use throughout its operations, helps companies track and manage their energy and water consumption. The start-up’s early success and $6 million investment from venture capitalist...

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