US’s Iraq oil grab is a done deal

On Monday, Prime Minister Nuri al-Maliki’s cabinet in Baghdad approved the draft of the new Iraqi oil law. The government regards it as “a major national project”. The key point of the law is that Iraq’s immense oil wealth (115 billion barrels of proven reserves, third in the world after Saudi Arabia and Iran) will […]

Academic wins prize for CO2 research

Prof Freeman’s research focused on phenolics, chemicals produced by peat bogs that prevent dead plants decomposing. This locks in the CO2 contained in the plants, instead of releasing it. icnetwork

Researchers Use Ultrasonic Processing for Fast Biodiesel Production

Researchers at Mississippi State University report that ultrasonic processing used in biodiesel production delivers a biodiesel yield in excess of 99% in five minutes or less, compared to one hour or more using conventional batch reactor systems. The work is described in the current issue of the journal Energy & Fuels. greencarcongress

Western governors target global warming; others seek clean energy

But out West, increasingly common droughts and bad fire seasons added urgency. The governors of Arizona, California, New Mexico, Oregon and Washington state agreed to develop a regional target to lower greenhouse gases and create a market-based program aimed at helping businesses reach the still-undecided goals. huffingtonpost

U.S. Automotive Materials Partnership Recommends Increased Nondestructive Evalua

USAMP was established in 1993 as part of the broader R&D portfolio of USCAR, and is focused on developing materials and processes that enable the high-volume production of vehicles that are lighter, more recyclable, of equal or better quality and durability, and just as affordable as today eere

Quantum Awarded Contract to Expand Hydrogen Hybrid Vehicle for U.S. Army

Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide, Inc. (Nasdaq: QTWW – News) today announced that it was awarded a contract to expand and enhance its hydrogen vehicle and Mobile Hydrogen Infrastructure (MHI) programs for the U.S. Army’s Tank Automotive Research, Development and Engineering Center (TARDEC). The contract will be administered by Aerospace Engineering Spectrum (AES), based in […]

Top scientist seeks halt on coal plants

WASHINGTON – One of the world’s top scientists on global warming called for the United States to stop building coal-fired power plants and eventually bulldoze older generators that don’t capture and bury greenhouse gases. But 159 coal-fired power plants are scheduled to be built in the next decade or so, generating enough power for about […]

Iraqis agree oil deal to spread the wealth

BAGHDAD, Iraq (CNN) — Iraq’s government has agreed on a plan to divide the country’s oil wealth and open the industry to international investment, a move seen as necessary to a political settlement of the nearly four-year-old war, ministers announced Monday. “This law will guarantee for Iraqis — not just now, but for future generations, […]

How Disney Changed Orlando

The Theme-Parking, Megachurching, Franchising, Exurbing, McMansioning of America. When you wish upon a star Makes no difference who you are Anything your heart desires Will come to you. Everything happening to America today is happening here, and it’s far removed from the cookie-cutter suburbanization of life a generation ago. The Orlando region has become Exhibit […]

Plant scientists develop new tool to protect crops from modified genes

In a development of major importance for the future of the biobased economy, plant biologists at the University of Connecticut have created a tool that may help alleviate public concerns surrounding genetically-modified plants. Controlling the flow of transgenic genes into the wild via pollen and seeds has been a huge concern to the public and […]

One million in China face water shortage

BEIJING (AFP) – A severe drought in southwestern China is threatening the water supplies of one million people and crippling navigation on the depleted Yangtze River, state media reported on Monday. One of Chongqing’s largest drinking water suppliers said the water level had fallen below most of the pipes the company uses to draw water […]

An Open Letter To Cindy Sheehan

…We do not have the luxury anymore for shortsighted policies which benefit the few. Our reliance on cheap oil, our subsidization of corporate agribusiness, and our death-kiss to family farms have made us incredibly vulnerable to famine. Our unchecked consumption, our devotion to technology, and our car-dominated sprawling lifestyles have been ravaging the planet. Global […]

A Conservative Conservationist?

Why the Right Needs to Get Invested in the Search for Climate Change Solutions When George W. Bush, The Post and the insurance giant Lloyd’s of London agree on something, it’s obvious a new wind is blowing. The climate change debate is here to stay, and as America warms to the idea of environmental conservation […]

Baltic gas pipeline sparks fears in Nordic countries

STOCKHOLM (AFP) – A gas pipeline project linking Russia to Germany under the Baltic Sea that has already prompted an outcry in Poland is also raising environmental and national security concerns in the Nordic countries. The project proposes the construction of a 1,200-kilometer (740-mile) pipeline off Finland’s southern coast, passing to the east of the […]

Global warming worries to boost renewables

OSLO (Reuters) – Three decades after former U.S. President Jimmy Carter experimented with solar panels on the White House roof, grim U.N. warnings about climate change may kick-start wider global use of renewable energy. “The political willingness to act is now significantly higher,” Achim Steiner, head of the U.N. Environment Program (UNEP), told Reuters. Governments […]

Saudi royal says U.S. oil independence a myth

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (Reuters) – The Bush administration’s talk of breaking its dependency on foreign oil is a political myth, Saudi Arabia’s former envoy to Washington and royal family member said on Sunday. “It has become very fashionable for (U.S.) politicians to use the word ‘energy independence’ or ‘independence from foreign oil’, and that is […]

Quick comparison of renewable energy and fossil fuel prices

The following table is a comparison of 2005 and projected medium-term (2010-2020) costs per energy source, in U.S. cents per kilowatt hour, created by Imperial College London, as quoted by Reuters. …Some notes have to be added to this projection. …With ‘Peak Oil & Gas’ being taken more and more seriously, prices may well rise […]

The Oil Drum: Peak Oil Update – February 2007: Production Forecasts and EIA Data

An update on the last production numbers from the EIA along with different oil production forecasts, as well as Khebab’s latest charts and graphs!Much more after the jump to The Oil Drum.

Mexico Oil Barrel Costs near Double

Mexico (Prensa Latina) – Petroleos Mexicanos (PEMEX) is currently facing an oil-extraction cost increase, from $2.20 to $4.20, per oil barrel, which means a 91-percent increase, according to statistics of the company. This increase adds to a decrease in production, volatility of prices and an important drop in success of drilling prospect wells, going from […]

Michael T Klare: Three US reasons to attack Iran

Some time this spring or summer, barring an unexpected turnaround by Tehran, US President George W Bush is likely to go on national television and announce that he has ordered US ships and aircraft to strike at military targets inside Iran. We must still sit through several months of soap opera at the United Nations […]

States beat Washington to renewable energy

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – In Texas, home to some of the world’s biggest oil companies, you might think the case for renewable energy would be tough to make. As it happened it was tough, but not impossible. It was simply a case of showing that technologies like massive wind turbines and solar roof shingles would do […]

Oil Glut Hidden by Rig Dearth Makes Drillers Good Bet

The professionals most familiar with the so-called oil shortage know there’s an estimated 3 trillion barrels under land and sea. That’s why they’re making their biggest bets in drilling rigs where the scarcity is no illusion. Oil drillers “are the most attractive way to go,” said Don Hodges, who holds about 160,000 shares of Transocean […]

Who Sucks Energy: Conventional or Organic Farming?

The London Telegraph dutifully reported the results of a study by the Manchester Business School, comparing energy use in organic and conventional farming systems. In a life cycle assessment – farm to fork – it found that many organic crops use more energy. The energy needed to grow organic tomatoes is 1.9 times that of […]

Norsk Hydro makes significant new oil and gas find in Barents Sea

STAVANGER (AFX) – Norsk Hydro ASA has made a significant new oil and gas find in the Barents Sea which could dwarf the mammoth Goliath field nearby, according to Norwegian paper Dagens Naeringsliv. The paper, which quotes oil industry sources, says geological tests have show that the Nucula well could contain 300-500 mln barrels of […]

Gas Rationing Begins At Some Stations As Fuel Shortage Worsens

You know by now that more than 100 Esso outlets province-wide have run out of gas and that the problem has started to afflict some Petro-Canada facilities, as well. But now a new wrinkle has been added to this tussle of the tanks – gas rationing. A few Petro-Can stations that are running low on […]

Gas prices up almost 13 cents nationwide

CAMARILLO, Calif. – Gasoline prices soared nearly 13 cents a gallon on average nationwide in the past two weeks as the price of crude oil rose. The national average for self-serve regular was $2.35 per gallon, up 12.8 cents since Feb. 9, industry analyst Trilby Lundberg said Sunday.The average for midgrade was $2.46 per gallon, […]

Uganda: $160 Million Palm Oil Project Stalls As Bidco Waits for Promised Land

One year down the line, Bidco Uganda Ltd is still waiting to get land for the Bugala nucleus palm oil project.Among the reasons are absentee landlords whom the government had anticipated would readily sell their land but have since refused to do so. Another is reluctance by the government to allocate part of the Kalangala […]

‘End of Oil’ author to speak at Embry-Riddle

“Every 24 hours,” journalist Paul Roberts writes, “we burn 81 million barrels of crude.” For oil producers, it’s getting more difficult to locate the large fields where oil can be cheaply pumped. So high prices will likely continue, ultimately leading to change — be it the rise of alternative fuels or a scaling back of […]

Climate draft allows spike in oil-sands emissions

Greenhouse-gas emissions from Alberta’s oil sands would be allowed to rise dramatically under a draft version of the government’s long-anticipated climate-change plan obtained by The Globe and Mail. The internal documents appear to underestimate significantly future oil-sands development as a way of producing more positive figures, said two environmentalists who analyzed the documents for The […]

Will Cellulosic Ethanol Take Off?

Cellulosic ethanol, a fuel produced from the stalks and stems of plants (rather than only from sugars and starches, as with corn ethanol), is starting to take root in the United States. This month, Celunol, based in Cambridge, MA, broke ground on an ethanol plant in Louisiana that will be able to produce 1.4 million […]

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