There have been lots of recent headlines about how much money the governments of oil exporting nations will lose as a result of declining oil prices. But these countries will really just earn less money than they would from selling their product at a higher price. The price of oil has never been static and… Keep reading →
By Kiran Moodley The Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) trimmed its forecast for U.S. growth in 2013, warning that the ongoing budget impasse in Washington could damage the recovery. The group cut its forecast from GDP growth of 1.7 percent to a 1.6 percent expansion for this year. While there was a healthy… Keep reading →
Norway, Alaska and Alberta are broadly recognized as having managed their oil resource wealth relatively effectively, particularly in regards to having avoided the “resource curse” – a seemingly counterintuitive situation in which the economies of countries with substantial natural resource endowments fare worse than those of their non-resource-rich counterparts. Each of the three has established… Keep reading →
With all the great speakers and presentations at the USAEE /IAEE North American Conference in Anchorage this week, it’s hard to pick and choose among so many well-expressed ideas. Our USAEE updates represent just a few of our favorite quotes from the ongoing events. Alaska’s oil output has been falling steadily over the past several… Keep reading →
The World Bank has unveiled a Renewable Energy Mapping Program that seeks to provide transparent, country-by-country data on renewable energy potential. The program will provide funding – $11.6 million in its first four years – for high-resolution mapping, ground-based data collection, geospatial analysts and strategic environmental assessments to ease energy planning and policy-making. First-phase participating countries… Keep reading →
The Pentagon plans to add more than 4,000 people to its efforts to combat the growing number of cyberattacks in the country and to take the offensive against attacks from foreign countries.
Increasing the Defense Department’s Cyber Command by more than 4,000, well above today’s level of 900, will be a challenge, a New York Times article quoted defense officials as saying. The department said officials know that recruiting, training and retaining that many qualified people will be a difficult chore. Keep reading →
US President Barack Obama (L) and Senate Majority Leader Harry Reid (R) tour Photovoltaic Array at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas, Nevada, May 27, 2009 with Base Commander Colonel Howard Belote.
The US military services want to derive 3 gigawatts of electric capacity from renewables by 2025, but they don’t have the budget to pay to build it. Keep reading →
Biofuels could be a “game changer” for both military and commercial aviation, says Assistant Secretary of the Air Force Terry Yonkers, because they’re proving to have advantages over petroleum-based jet fuels that go beyond the environment.
Biofuels are produced from plant feedstocks or organic wastes. Public and private research has been focusing on production from non-food sources like algae, camelina, and jatropha, and on sustainable and economic ways to cultivate them. Keep reading →
The electric utility industry needs to replace nearly half of its skilled workforce as a generation reaches retirement age in the next few years. Keep reading →
According to researchers at the U.S. Naval Research Laboratory (NRL), one of the Marine Corps’ most significant challenges is finding a way to provide reliable electricity to soldiers in forward operating bases. Like the rest of us, the U.S. military is desperate for ways to reduce its fuel and battery consumption. It’s widely recognized that solar panels are one of the only technologies that can provide a portable, affordable source of power to those on the front lines. Keep reading →
