US energy security is much stronger today than just 5 years ago, but taking full advantage of this opportunity requires strategic decision making on behalf of government and the private sector. North American natural resource development can strengthen the US and Canadian economies and provide bargaining chips when dealing with foreign governments, but not… Keep reading →
By Erin Carson, Energy Solutions Forum Several New York Energy Week panels slated for June 25 will highlight the impact of the shale oil and gas revolution on economic growth and national energy security policy. Top officials from industry and government will hold multiple panels in New York to offer new insight into how the oil and gas boom could… Keep reading →
The Department of Defense is seeking ways to transition to more efficient and sustainable energy use to support operations, but a smaller pool of available funding is pitting these efforts against a range of other pressing national security interests. The nexus of energy, climate change and national security is an area that demands the US… Keep reading →
The potential for water scarcity touches several segments of the energy sector, from hydraulic fracturing to hydropower to power plant cooling to growing algae or crops for biofuels. As water needs from the sector rise, this raises the question of how water use in energy should be regulated. Commentators with expertise in various aspects of… Keep reading →
Global oil supply dynamics have been shifting in recent years, as consumption levels off in developed western economies and demand surges in rapidly developing Asian nations. At the same time, North American unconventional resource development has accelerated this supply transition to the “east of Suez” market, making the US less dependent on Middle East imports and thus softening the need to police the oil shipping lanes extending from the Persian Gulf. So what is China’s role in this shifting global oil supply/demand picture?
David Schenker, the Aufzien fellow and director of the Program on Arab Politics at The Washington Institute – a think tank – recently traveled to China and found some interesting answers to this question that he summarizes in a piece appearing in today’s Los Angeles Times. Keep reading →
In his recent State of the Union speech, President Obama proposed an Energy Security Trust that would rely on the money from increased oil and gas drilling to support research that could move cars and trucks off oil-derived fuels.
From a White House briefing document accompanying the President’s speech: Keep reading →
I recently returned from a trip to Israel, complete with scenic views, delicious local cuisine, and of course, the nagging feeling that I would be blown up at any moment. What struck me more than anything however, was the heat. Much like the hummus, it is impossible to escape, even in the “cold” winter months. From the Negev deserts to the bustling streets of Tel Aviv, the land of Israel is “burning up with heat” today as it was over a hundred years ago, as then-humble newspaper correspondent Mark Twain observed. Unlike in Twain’s time however, the rooftops of modern Israel are decorated with hundreds and thousands of solar heaters, making it the world leader in the use of solar hot water systems.
The history of solar energy in Israel began only a few years after the establishment of the state. Unlike its Middle Eastern neighbors, Israel was (until very recently) thought to possess almost no fossil fuel resources and so in the 1950’s, Israeli engineer Levi Yissar developed a solar water heater to address the energy shortage. By 1967 around one in twenty Israeli households heated their water with the sun and over 50,000 solar heaters had been purchased. Following the 1970’s oil crisis, Harry Zvi Tabor, the father of Israel’s solar industry, developed the prototype of the solar water heater now decorating 90% of Israel’s rooftops. Keep reading →
The American Petroleum Institute recently renewed its attack on the US government’s Renewable Fuels Standard after the Environmental Protection Agency said it would not waive the requirement that uses some 40 percent of the US corn crop to make ethanol.
The main oil and gas trade association said the RFS, which is designed to blend increasing amounts of ethanol with gasoline, is “increasingly unrealistic and unworkable” because it has been adopted without regard for its compatibility with some vehicles, and if fully implemented would exceed what API says is the maximum safe limit of 10 percent in gasoline. Keep reading →
The concept of the United States being energy independent has been around for decades, with the past 8 US presidents calling for it and even suggesting dates by when it might be achieved. However, the recent ramp up in domestic oil and gas production has drastically reduced oil imports and rejuvenated the discussion, with some believing the long sought-after goal could finally be around the corner.
Some have suggested that North American energy independence – including petroleum exports – is a more realistic pursuit. Others maintain energy security is what really matters and that it’s impossible and even undesirable to disconnect the US from the global oil market. Keep reading →
Domestic energy development and a wide swath of regulatory issues associated with energy production should be addressed more emphatically during the presidential campaign, officials at several industry associations believe.
“Energy hasn’t been absent from the campaign, but I think it deserves a higher profile,” Brendan Williams, vice president, advocacy, at the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers, told Breaking Energy. Keep reading →
