Admiral Mike Mullen, retired Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff, spoke on U.S. energy security last Wednesday in Washington DC at an event hosted by the groups Securing America’s Future Energy and the Foreign Policy Initiative. Mullen was asked whether the US can take advantage of the surge in domestic energy production as a… Keep reading →
Construction has begun on the first U.S. commercial-scale post-combustion CCS project aimed to annually capture 1.4 million metric tons of CO2. On July 15, 2014, the Department of Energy (DOE) announced that construction has begun on the Petra Nova Project, the first U.S. commercial-scale post-combustion carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) retrofit and the largest in… Keep reading →
Thank your lucky stars, Australia. Ocean Power Technologies (OPT) left town before too much damage could be done. Meanwhile, a message to U.S. wave energy fans: Don’t lose faith. Oregon, which also suffered a big OPT disappointment, seems to be bouncing back just fine. First the Australia story: OPT last week pulled the plug on… Keep reading →
Crude oil transportation in the US ballooned to 1 million barrels per day in recent years as production swelled beyond existing pipeline infrastructure capacity. A series of explosive accidents involving crude oil train cars has sparked regulators to strengthen rules and safety measures governing these pipelines on wheels. “Tens of thousands of these older tank… Keep reading →
WASHINGTON – Madelyn Creedon was confirmed by the Senate on Wednesday, July 23, 2014, as the Department of Energy’s (DOE) Principal Deputy Administrator for the National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). “Madelyn Creedon’s confirmation comes at a critical point for the National Nuclear Security Administration,” said Secretary of Energy Ernest Moniz. “She is well-prepared for her… Keep reading →
The hits keep on coming for companies invested in the North Caspian Operating Company, the consortium developing Kazakhstan’s giant Kashagan oil field. One of the world’s largest and most complex oil field development projects, Kashagan has been plagued by delays and cost overruns for years. The project briefly came on stream late last year only… Keep reading →
In June 2014, the EPA released its proposed carbon emissions rules to reduce carbon dioxide emissions from existing fossil fuel power plants. This so-called ‘Clean Power Plan’ proposed a regulatory framework that mandates US power plants reduce GHG emissions 30 per cent by 2030 relative to their 2005 baseline. Taking center stage in this proposal… Keep reading →
The energy industry – oil & gas sector in particular – is bracing itself for a massive wave of retirements over the short to medium term, which has been dubbed “The Great Shift Change.” As the industry prepares for this turnover, companies are looking to the next generation of candidates with skills ranging from finance,… Keep reading →
The changing utility business model has been a major theme in the news and industry circles this year, with many bemoaning that fact that as distributed generation and energy efficiency proliferate, utilities sell less of their product. The trend has even been dramatically called the “utility death spiral.” Scary. But while these are certainly challenges… Keep reading →
Summary Electric utilities have an opportunity to realize one of the greatest growth opportunities in history. Technology has changed the playing field and with an aggressive strategy, electric companies can take control of a huge new portion of America’s energy market. Big oil’s share of the American energy economy is at greater risk than it… Keep reading →
