U.S. Oil Rig Count Rises to Highest Level Since 1993

(Bloomberg) — Crude oil rigs operating in the U.S. increased this week to the highest level in 16 years as drilling rose in Texas and the Dakotas, according to data published by Baker Hughes Inc. Oil rigs rose by seven to 444, the highest level since the week ended Dec. 17, 1993. The count has […]

Follow the Money

Standing at the pump, watching the numbers tick away, do you ever wonder where the money goes? You’re not alone: People on the other end of the pipeline are wondering too. While we feel the pinch in our pockets, citizens of oil-producing countries are often not seeing the profits. The viral video is a creative […]

Obama Orders Government To Slash GHG Emissions 28%

President Obama has ordered the government, the largest consumer of energy in the U.S., to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions 28 percent by 2020. The move follows President Obama The federal government, which occupies nearly 500,000 buildings, operates more than 600,000 vehicles, employs more than 1.8 million civilians, and purchases more than $500 billion per […]

Energy prices fall so far in 2010

NEW YORK (AP) — For the past several months, oil prices have soared on the expectation that China would soon lead a new race for natural resources. But government data released so far this year has told a different story, and oil has tumbled nearly $10 a barrel in the first month of 2010. Americans […]

Oil Shortage 'Claim' Tip of the Iceburg

Few thought it was possible, but a surefire conspiracy seems to be brewing. Energy, the heartbeat of the world, is the cusp in the coming tide. The theory of Peak Oil is running rampant. Over 75% of the human population believe that he earth will soon run out of oil. The US is producing less […]

After the Great Financial Crisis and the Great Recession, What Next?

…The so-called “War on Terrorism” is a misnomer. One can’t have war on terrorists the way one can on nation states, as if a handful of scattered groups and individuals constitute a war opponent for the most powerful military force in history. In fact, such an objective, even if we were to take it seriously, […]

In defence of abundance

Today Drawing the opposite conclusion from the existence of climate change is rarely entertained. That is, to the extent that climate change is a problem, it is best dealt with by producing more. More resources as a result of growth, more human ingenuity, more and better technology. Restraint is probably the worst way of tackling […]

Laser fusion test results raise energy hopes

A major hurdle to producing fusion energy using lasers has been swept aside, results in a new report show. The controlled fusion of atoms – creating conditions like those in our Sun – has long been touted as a possible revolutionary energy source. However, there have been doubts about the use of powerful lasers for […]

NASA Directed Toward Climate Change, But Not the Moon

There will be money lacking for NASA’s Constellation program, the program designated to return humans to the moon by 2020. The White House will instead direct NASA funding to concentrate on Earth-science projects — principally, researching and monitoring climate change, — and on a new technology research and development program that will make human exploration […]

Lester R. Brown: Mounting Stresses, Failing States

After a half-century of forming new states from former colonies and from the breakup of the Soviet Union, the international community is today focusing on the disintegration of states. The term States fail when national governments lose control of part or all of their territory and can no longer ensure the personal security of their […]

Sydney desalination plant splits opinion

One of the world’s biggest desalination plants is about to open in Australia’s most populous – and thirstiest – city, Sydney. The $1.7bn ( Critics say the plant, in the southern suburb of Kurnell, is a waste of money and have accused the authorities of panicking in the face of ecological challenges, while the project’s […]

Obama sets greenhouse gas reduction target

The federal government will reduce its greenhouse gas pollution by 28 percent by 2020, U.S. President Barack Obama said Friday. Hitting the pollution reduction target will reduce the government’s energy use by the equivalent of 646 trillion BTUs — equal to 205 million barrels of oil and taking 17 million cars off the road for […]

Is Iraq's oil strategy too ambitious?

The chief executives of two of the world’s oil giants have been waxing lyrical about helping Iraq quadruple its oil production over the next decade, but questions linger about whether it can be done. Some energy industry experts believe that given the plethora of problems that the Iraqi government of Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki is […]

Clinton: China risks isolation, energy woes if Iran gets nukes

PARIS, France She said she understood China’s reluctance to impose new penalties on Iran, its third-largest supplier of oil. But she stressed that a nuclear-armed Iran would destabilize the Persian Gulf and imperil oil shipments China gets from other Arab states in the region “As we move away from the engagement track, which has not […]

Why we

The world In the western world, car ownership boomed in the 1950s. Mass production drove prices down and cities were planned around the private motor car. As Japan emerged from the ashes of World War II, it too was planting the seeds of global car market domination. Back then, if you

Reaching Peak Oil: Something to Fear

In today’s global financial crisis, people are looking for ways to fix the mistakes that led to the current disastrous situation. Fixing the problem is always second best, however, to making sure the problem never happens in the first place. It is important not only to learn about past global economic catastrophes, but also to […]

Solutions to Climate Change: Using Trees and Grasses to Capture Carbon

A unique The team will also compare the process with that of arable food crops, such as wheat, and will test the idea that the ‘bioenergy’ crops are better at stimulating long-term retention of soil carbon. Unlike existing food crops that are harvested after just a few months, trees and grasses can spend decades growing […]

Overcoming the Ugly Factor in Building-Integrated Solar Design

The idea of integrating solar power with building materials has been an attractive concept for decades, but one of the biggest challenges, according to Anna Dyson, director of the Center for Architecture Science and Ecology, or CASE, has been aesthetics. Most applications thus far, Ms. Dyson said, While visual elegance may not seem like a […]

Natural gas supplies could be augmented with methane hydrate

WASHINGTON “DOE’s program and programs in the national and international research community provide increasing confidence from a technical standpoint that some commercial production of methane from methane hydrate could be achieved in the United States before 2025,” said Charles Paull, chair of the committee that wrote the report, and senior scientist, Monterey Bay Aquarium Research […]

The Price of Energy

The price of energy has a very strong influence on the energy choices governments and individuals make. I sometimes hear people ask “Why are we still building coal-fired power plants?” or “Why don’t we replace more petroleum with biomass?” One reason is that biomass is generally more difficult to use from a logistical point of […]

State lawmakers take aim at free parking

…There is too much of it, the legislators say, and it encourages people to drive instead of taking the bus, walking or riding a bike. All that motoring is contributing to traffic jams and pollution, according to state Sen. Alan Lowenthal (D-Long Beach), and on Thursday he won Senate approval of a proposal he hopes […]

Iran Says U.S. Sanctions Won

(Bloomberg) — U.S. legislation to impose gasoline sanctions on Iran over its disputed nuclear program won The U.S. Senate yesterday unanimously passed legislation to expand sanctions on foreign companies that invest in Iran

Plans for Fast-Charging Stations Raise Concerns Among California Utilities

Think, the Norwegian electric automaker, announced a deal this week with a California company, AeroVironment, a maker of electric vehicle charging stations, to introduce fast-charging stations that can charge its battery-powered City car to 80 percent capacity in as little as 15 minutes. A conventional charger can take eight or more hours to charge an […]

New Panel Will Study Disposal of Waste

WASHINGTON The Obama administration promised to appoint such a study group almost a year ago, after announcing that it would cease study of Yucca Mountain, a volcanic structure about 100 miles from Las Vegas that had been chosen by Congress as the leading candidate for nuclear waste disposal. The Senate majority leader, Harry Reid, Democrat […]

Massachusetts Sets Ambitious Energy Standards

Massachusetts state officials announced on Friday new energy efficiency standards for utilities that aim to be the most ambitious in the nation. The plan calls for a statewide reduction of 2.4 percent in electricity use and 1.15 percent in natural gas use annually for three years. The savings are to be achieved largely through $1.6 […]

Three Views of TEOTWAWKI

Those of us on the Doom & Gloom side vary primarily in how fast we think things are going to fall apart, how painful the bumps on the way down will be, and how long it will take to recover if we ever do. We Today I

Bin Laden blames U.S. for climate change

CAIRO – Al-Qaida leader Osama bin Laden has called for the world to boycott American goods and the U.S. dollar, blaming the United States and other industrialized countries for global warming, according to a new audiotape released Friday. In the tape, broadcast in part on Al-Jazeera television, bin Laden warned of the dangers of climate […]

Obama Said to Seek $54 Billion in Nuclear-Power Loan Guarantees

(Bloomberg) — President Barack Obama, acting on a pledge to support nuclear power, will propose tripling loan guarantees for new reactors to more than $54 billion, two people familiar with the plan said. The additional loan guarantees in Obama

Oil demand has peaked in developed world, IEA says

Oil use in rich industrialized countries will never return to 2006 and 2007 levels because of more fuel efficiency and the use of alternatives, the chief economist of the International Energy Agency said on Thursday. The bold prediction, while made previously by some analysts, is significant because the IEA advises 28 countries on energy policy […]

Davos 2010: a new peak in oil production is needed, energy leaders argue

At a meeting of oil leaders at the World Economic Forum at Davos, Tony Hayward, group chief executive of BP, said that there was a A need for a new peak in oil production will dismay environmental campaigners who hoped that the West

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