United States law prohibits exports of crude oil and condensate except under certain conditions, while exports of refined products and natural gas are far less restricted. While these laws had little impact when the country was in a position of oil and gas scarcity, the country’s newfound energy abundance has rendered some of them obsolete,… Keep reading →
The US became a net-exporter of oil products like gasoline and diesel fuel in 2011 for the first time since 1949 and oil product exports have steadily increased since that point. US refiners found a new lease on life – after several East Coast refinery closures – by purchasing Bakken crude at a discount to… Keep reading →
Classic economic theory says markets behave rationally, but the global oil market is largely an exception where emotion and politics can influence price formation as much as supply and demand. While various actors like Opec and consuming-country governments can impact prices to a certain extent, price movement in the modern oil business is bound by… Keep reading →
WASHINGTON: Budget crunch be damned, the Defense Department’s effort to get more energy-efficient is still in business, said the assistant secretary in charge. Even without the free-flowing supplemental funds and the flexibility of the “rapid equipping” initiatives that allowed for speedy spending at the height of Afghanistan and Iraq, the Pentagon is still trying to reduce its… Keep reading →
The US military’s efforts to reduce dependence on fossil fuels may help to advance emerging energy technologies by providing them with coveted assets, such as financial backing and testing opportunities. But there is no guarantee that these technologies, as applied to military-specific conditions, will be commercial successes in a civilian context. The Department of Defense holds an… Keep reading →
An oil drilling rig in the North Dakota portion of the Bakken formation.
Shale gas took America by surprise, and tight oil is about to do the same. Keep reading →
Those high-efficiency compact fluorescent lights that are supposed to replace energy-wasting incandescent bulbs have a looming problem: the materials to make them are in short supply.
So are materials vital for things like high-efficiency wind turbines and electric vehicle motors.
Assistant Energy Secretary David Sandalow said those shortages could delay adoption of clean technologies, or make them more costly, so the Department of Energy has developed a strategy to try to avert shortages that is supported by $20 million in Congressional funding. Keep reading →
New discoveries of potential “tight oil” deposits are being made around the US, and no one is sure just how much oil the nation has waiting in geological formations that can now be tapped through new technology.
But the discoveries have already created one boom area, bringing a sparsely populated region of North Dakota gushes of jobs, people and problems no one foresaw. Keep reading →
US oil imports will continue to decline as domestic production rises, and by 2040 the US could be importing crude only from Canada, according to the latest forecast from ExxonMobil.
That forecast depends on off-shore, Arctic, oil sands and unconventional resources being available for development in coming decades. Keep reading →
The energy landscape has changed so fast in the last five years that the national debate has shifted fundamentally, leaving experts struggling to figure where energy is headed.
A few new trends are clear: growing pessimism over the future of nuclear power due to cost and public acceptance after Fukushima, renewables closing in on parity with traditional fuels but still needing technology breakthroughs to become significant players, and cheap natural gas from shales transforming the landscape for everything. But questions about where the transformation is headed has revealed divisions and confusion among a number of the speakers attending the Oct. 10-12 conference of the US Association for Energy Economists in Washington DC. Keep reading →
