During a Cleveland steel plant tour, President Obama highlighted US energy as a success story. “We [have] invested in new American technologies to reverse our addiction to foreign oil, double wind power, double solar power, produce more oil, produce more natural gas, and do it all in a way that is actually bringing down some… Keep reading →
You may not know this, but the United States is already the largest natural gas producer in the world, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, and is estimated to produce more oil than Russia and Saudi Arabia in 2013. The U.S. greatly reduced its dependence on foreign energy imports in a very short time.… Keep reading →
The EIA’s latest Short-Term Energy and Winter Fuels Outlook finds US households heated with natural gas, propane and electricity face higher heating bills this winter. Projected changes in residential expenditures from last winter are: 13% higher for homes that heat primarily with natural gas 9% higher for propane 2% higher for electricity 2% lower for… Keep reading →
Argentina is estimated to hold the world’s 3rd largest shale gas reserves and during a recent visit there, Pope Francis was photographed holding anti-fracking T-shirts. The Pope is reportedly working on an encyclical letter to all Catholic Bishops that will address environmental issues, and perhaps controversial shale gas development technology. The short piece in Grist… Keep reading →
SolarCity and Vivint Solar vie for personnel, funding, technology and customers in residential solar. We spoke with Brendon Merkley, the COO of Vivint Solar just last month. Vivint is the second largest solar installer in the U.S. behind SolarCity (SCTY). GTM has learned from sources close to the company that Merkley has resigned to join… Keep reading →
Continuing this week’s coverage of the ethanol blending battle raging in Washington, we’re bringing attention to a letter the American Fuel & Petrochemical Manufacturers recently penned to President Obama in support of the US EPA’s indication that it may partially waive the 2014 Renewable Fuel Standard over blending requirement concerns. The letter serves as one… Keep reading →
The CME Group, which holds a dominant position facilitating US futures trading in everything from interest rates to energy, recently increased its transaction fees for the first time in 4 years. The CME Group says the fee increases are necessary to fund additional resources and technology driven by electronic trading growth, but some claim the company… Keep reading →
Quick Take: Bioenergy entrepreneur S. Michael Holly has posted on Energy Trends Insider to claim that special interests including electric power utilities and the wind industry are “misrepresenting wind power costs.” As a result, he claims, they are wrongfully rejecting renewables such as hydropower, geothermal and bioenergy that are actually lower in costs. – By… Keep reading →
Just as the debate over mandated ethanol blending in the US was heating up, the Associated Press published an investigative report focused on the US ethanol industry’s negative environmental impacts. Ethanol supporters are up in arms, claiming the piece is inaccurate, lazy journalism that uses “disproven myths, skewed data, and outright fabrications.” Not surprisingly, US… Keep reading →
Solar securitization, which we’ve recently covered, appears to be moving forward with an announcement last week that SolarCity plans to sell $54 million in asset-backed securities. The concept is similar to now-famous mortgage-backed securities that precipitated the global financial crisis, but proponents claim they are less risky. [The Atlantic] California cities are getting into biogas,… Keep reading →
