Free Republic

There is an intentional tension in Washington. Our founding fathers planned that opposing views would balance each other out—a push-pull takes place. Spend. Don’t spend. This tug-of-war is seen, perhaps most obviously, in the so-called renewable energy field. After Solyndra, and the more than fifty other stimulus-funded green energy projects that have failed or are circling the drain, the public has grown weary, and wary, of any more spending on green energy. The money isn’t there to spend and the motive behind the 2009 rush to push billions of taxpayer dollars out through the Department of Energy has been tainted...

US company World Eco Energy has signed a preliminary agreement to invest $1.175 billion to generate electricity in Iran. The plan is to turn solid waste into power. In April, the US Treasury awarded American-based Boeing and GE a license to sell spare parts to Iran to help the country’s ailing aviation industry. Iran needed new plane parts, as its jets have passed their service life and need proper replacements.

Today we investigate the relationship between oil and the broad US market, using the S&P 500 index as a proxy. A common thought is that the two functions are inversely correlated, with the US market in danger whenever oil rises too high. The relationship has been a complex one over the past 11 years, but the correlation is positive most of the time. In particular, we see from 2003 until late 2007, both oil and the market rose in tandem. The only time the two records show an inverse correlation was during the windup to the financial crisis--from late 2007...

Why the Amazing Bakken Growth Story Isn't Over Yet By Callum Turcan | More Articles July 4, 2014 | Comments (0) As many energy investors know, North Dakota's oil production recently surpassed 1 million barrels a day. Does this mean that the growth story is now over and all the best locations have been drilled, or, as downspacing allows oil and gas companies to target the Three-Forks benches just below the Middle Bakken interval, is the growth story still underway? Only time will tell, but Oasis Petroleum (NYSE: OAS  ) is one E&P player trying to shake things up by targeting the deeper...

Like most of its Asian neighbors, the Philippines has been a net energy importer for decades. The country’s dependence on hydrocarbons is relatively lower as compared to South Korea or Singapore as it has alternatives such as geothermal, hydropower and other renewable sources for electricity generation. But rising energy consumption and the expected depletion of gas resource at the offshore Malampaya field – the country’s major gas development – in a decade’s time has induced the Philippines to seek alternative energy supplies. Liquefied natural gas (LNG) import, together with the accompanying gas receiving facilities, is one of the options being...

Last month, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service listed the meadow jumping mouse as an endangered species. Now, the U.S. Forest Service, which oversees the Santa Fe National Forest, is considering erecting a series of 8-foot high fences to protect the mouse’s habitat. The Luceros, members of the San Diego Cattleman’s Association and holders of grazing permits with the federal government, say the fences will lock out their cattle — as well as those of other permit holders — from ever returning to the meadow where the livestock graze for 20 days in the spring and up to 40 days...

A very interesting video, detailing what drillers can see, identify and diagnose using a downhole camera. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZzDrheWDhGw

The lines have become a part of daily life in Erbil, a relatively peaceful and prosperous city in the autonomous Kurdish region of Northern Iraq. Over the years, it’s mostly managed to avoid the problems that have plagued the rest of the country. But that's no longer the case. In recent weeks, the war between the Iraqi Army and a Sunni militant group has drawn in Kurdish security forces, sent tens of thousands of refugees fleeing the violence and disrupted the oil supply chain. “The government is afraid to release too much gas, because they don’t know what is going...

In their quest to green up America, the Obama administration has given wind farm owners dispensation to kill Bald and Golden Eagles who fly into their turbines and are chopped to pieces. “Preferred energy policy favoring wind produces double standards. Think of the rancor if oil and gas companies were allowed such a government dispensation,” said Mr. Sandoval. “Thirty years represents not only the theoretical life cycle of the turbines themselves, but an eternity in public policy. No other industry is allowed ‘takings’ permits that last an entire generation.” If a fossile fuel company were to receive a waiver that...

On Monday, June 30, the national average retail gasoline price was $3.70 per gallon. Although this is the highest average heading into the Fourth of July holiday since 2008, gasoline prices in 2014 have remained well below the spring peaks reached in each of the previous three years (see graph). Although prices are currently 20 cents per gallon higher than last year at this time, prices this year did not peak as high as in recent years because of relatively stable crude oil prices in 2014. The peak retail gasoline price this year was $3.71/gal on April 29, lower than...

Mexico's state-run oil company Pemex will launch a $6 billion investment in 2017 aimed at maintaining current levels of production at its once-supergiant Cantarell field over the next decade, a Pemex official said on Tuesday. Discovered in 1976, output from the offshore Cantarell field once supplied over 2 million barrels per day (bpd), or more than half of Mexico's total crude production. But output at the field has fallen more than 80 percent since 2004 to hover around 340,000 barrels per day (bpd). The investment will counteract the natural decline of Cantarell by squeezing out an additional 100,000 bpd per...

Statoil ASA recently announced a container system to reduce flaring in the Bakken. The company’s timing could not have been better, considering that North Dakota just approved new flaring regulations. More restrictive regulations covering flaring on existing wells were passed by the North Dakota Industrial Commission – the state’s regulating entity for oil and gas – July 1. The goal of the commission is to reduce flaring to 26 percent by the fourth quarter of 2014, 23 percent by the first quarter of 2016, and 10 percent – with the potential of 5 percent – by the fourth quarter of...

Starting in August, the Obama administration will dramatically revamp and cut back the formula it uses to send transportation funds to the states unless Congress replenishes the Highway Trust Fund The Department of Transportation (DOT) predicts that the fund, which has traditionally drawn its revenue from the federal gas tax of 18.4 cents per gallon, will be depleted by late August . The agency will use a previously-established formula to calculate the percentage of remaining funds that each state will receive, with new revenues coming in every two weeks as money from the gas tax comes into the fund.

People will be more likely to support fracking if they have a direct commercial interest in the extraction of shale oil and gas beneath their land, Mayor of London says. British households should be given ownership of the oil and gas beneath their homes so that they have a commercial interest in supporting fracking, Boris Johnson has said. The Mayor of London said that the law should be changed so that “mineral rights” belonged to the landowner, rather than the Crown. Currently, the Government grants licences to companies to explore for and produce oil and gas, while the owners of...

AFP news says: The US security firm Symantec said it identified malware targeting industrial control systems which could sabotage electric grids, power generators and pipelines This Stuxnet-like malware attack is likely to be government-sponsored, says Symantec. No word about nuclear power plants. From Security Week quoting AFP (6/30/2014; emphasis is mine): Malware Aims at US, Europe Energy Sector: Researchers WASHINGTON - Cyberattackers, probably state sponsored, have been targeting energy operations in the United States and Europe since 2011 and were capable of causing significant damage, security researchers said Monday. The US security firm Symantec said it identified malware targeting industrial...

This Independence Day weekend, drivers won't see any relief from high gas prices. Although prices retreated by a fraction of a cent at the beginning of the week, AAA predicts holiday travelers will pay the most at the pump since 2008. In its monthly gas price report released June 30, AAA said, "With Independence Day only a few days away, today's national average price of gas is $3.68 per gallon. This average is considerably more expensive than recent years for the holiday. The national average on July 4 in previous years was: $3.48 (2013); $3.34 (2012); $3.57 (2011); $2.74 (2010);...

On Monday, June 30, the national average retail gasoline price was $3.70 per gallon. Although this is the highest average heading into the Fourth of July holiday since 2008, gasoline prices in 2014 have remained well below the spring peaks reached in each of the previous three years (see graph). Although prices are currently 20 cents per gallon higher than last year at this time, prices this year did not peak as high as in recent years because of relatively stable crude oil prices in 2014. The peak retail gasoline price this year was $3.71/gal on April 29, lower than...

Making the electricity grid greener is boosting its vulnerability to computer hacking, increasing the risk that spies or criminals can cause blackouts. Adding wind farms, solar panels and smart meters to the power distribution system opens additional portals through which hackers can attack the grid, according to computer security experts advising governments and utilities. Where traditionally the grid took power from a few sources, it’s now absorbing it from thousands.

Motley Fool: The World Has 53.3 Years of Oil Left By Matt DiLallo | More Articles |  June 22, 2014 |   Photo credit: BP. BP (NYSE: BP  )  has provided an intriguing update to its global oil reserves estimate in the company's latest yearly review of energy statistics. BP raised its reserve estimate by 1.1% to 1,687.9 billion barrels, which is enough oil to last the world 53.3 years at the current production rates. However, there's likely a lot more oil left in the tank beyond what BP sees today. America's energy boom surgesA good portion of the growth in global oil reserves in BP's report comes from the...

"Crisis" may be a little hyperbolic. But shale production of oil and gas in America suddenly got a lot riskier this week. That's because of a landmark decision from one of the highest state courts in the land. Upholding the right of individual towns to regulate shale drilling, trumping state or federal regulatory regimes. The ruling came down yesterday in New York. Where the State Court of Appeals voted 5-2 to reject challenges to fracking rules imposed on the oil and gas industry by two municipalities in the state: Dryden and Middlefield. The saga started in 2011. When the two...