GE CEO Jeff Immelt said the company is researching technology that could use carbon dioxide instead of water for hydraulic fracturing operations. GE is reportedly putting an additional $10 billion through 2020 into its “ecoimagination” budget, which focuses on energy solutions including high efficiency natural gas turbines, “CNG In a Box,” wind turbine manufacture and oilfield services. [Reuters]

Basing an independent Scottish economy on North Sea oil reserves could be easier said than done, argues this editorial. “Energy is a sector that will require heavy investment, and one where returns will be both volatile and lower than in the past. Alex Salmond’s political career may have been built on the slogan that “it’s Scotland’s oil”. But the realities behind this romantic slogan may be more prosaic than he hopes.” [Financial Times]

The US natural gas market is exhibiting extreme volatility as traders watch weather forecasts and inventory levels. “Gas slid 11 percent, the biggest drop since Aug. 20, 2007, after reaching a five-year high in intraday trading. A midday update to the National Weather Service’s Global Forecast System model showed higher temperatures than previously forecast in the Midwest from March 6 to March 10. Tomorrow [today] is the last trading day for March options.” [Bloomberg]