For months we’ve been pointing out the brokenness of the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS), the federal law requiring ever-increasing use of ethanol in the nation’s fuel supply. We’ve written about the impending “blend wall,” the point where the RFS would require blending more ethanol into gasoline than could be safely used as E10, potentially putting motorists at risk… Keep reading →
A couple of data points to remember with EPA poised to propose new, lower ground-level ozone standards, perhaps as soon as next month: Air quality is and has been improving under the current, 75 parts per billion (ppb) standards, which are still being implemented across the country. EPA reports national average ozone levels have fallen… Keep reading →
North America’s Energy Revolution Will Have a Ripple Effect Around the Pacific The Economist: To find out how much energy security has mattered in the Pacific’s recent history, ask the Japanese. At the museum of the Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo, which honours the country’s war dead (sometimes controversially), an exhibit suggests, with a jarring note… Keep reading →
A good deal of the buzz generated by America’s ongoing energy revolution has centered on the way surging domestic production is changing the crude oil imports picture. No question, it’s a pretty one, with net imports as a share of consumption falling to levels not seen in nearly three decades. That’s great news for job creation,… Keep reading →
Benefits of the U.S. Oil and Natural Gas Boom are Permanent, Says Citi. Forbes: The return of the U.S. as an energy superpower will not be a short-term event with the economic benefits likely to last “at least two generations”, according to the latest research from Citi. That is one of the key findings in a… Keep reading →
Keystone Pipeline, Carbon Emission Rules, Natural-Gas Exports Expected to Receive Attention in GOP-Controlled Senate. Wall Street Journal: Next year’s GOP-controlled Senate is expected to come out strongly against President Barack Obama ’s most consequential energy and environment policies, with the likely majority leader, Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, vowing to hold votes on the Keystone XL pipeline and legislation to pare… Keep reading →
Energy Wins The Hill (Jack Gerard): With zero precincts reporting, we can confidently project American energy is a landslide winner in the 2014 midterm elections. In many races, both Republican and Democratic candidates have gone out of their way this year to embrace pro-energy policies – to the point that it’s been almost impossible to tell… Keep reading →
Ever heard of the broken window fallacy? In economic circles, it’s a common parable used to dismiss arguments that damage – like the breaking of a window – has a silver lining: spending to fix the window boosts the window repairman, which boosts the folks who make panes of glass and so forth. In this video below,… Keep reading →
U.S. Energy Exports to Top Imports by 2025, WoodMac Says Bloomberg: U.S. companies will export more energy than they import by 2025 as shale oil and gas production keeps climbing and the transportation sector becomes more efficient, Wood Mackenzie Ltd. said in a note today. Horizontal drilling and hydraulic fracturing in hydrocarbon-rich layers of shale rock… Keep reading →
Interesting Reuters piece last week on the Renewable Fuel Standard (RFS) and very tardy 2014 ethanol-use requirements, now more than 10 months overdue from EPA. Reuters reports: The Obama administration is trying to balance its support for renewable fuels with awareness of infrastructure constraints at gas stations as it finalizes targets for 2014 biofuel use, agency officials said… Keep reading →
