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The US is Energy Independent Right Now

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With a mix of nuclear, coal, natural gas, hydro and other renewable energy sources, the US electrical grid is energy independent, Chairman, President and CEO of Duke Energy Jim Rogers told the audience at the recent New York Times Energy for Tomorrow Conference.

Going back to the 1970’s US energy crisis, the idea of energy independence has been discussed, debated, shot down and resurrected countless times. When a panel of energy and environment experts gave the concept a fresh look, technology and natural gas were two key themes. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 12, 2012 at 2:30 PM

Nichols Brushes Aside Doubts About California’s Cap and Trade System

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The chair of the California Air Resources Board, yesterday brushed away concerns that the state’s cap and trade program had failed to give the energy industry enough market certainty.

Mary Nichols told delegates at the Navigating the American Carbon World conference in San Francisco yesterday said she saw no problem with traders in the US power markets adopting a “wait and see mode” on whether the pioneering scheme would begin next year. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 12, 2012 at 10:30 AM

Former Big Oil Executive Expects Importance of Oil to Decline (And That’s Not All)

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China’s growing thirst for oil will leave the rest of the world scrambling for supply, oil could soon face a competitor it never expected and the US has no free market for energy. These are just a few of the provocative ideas former Shell Oil President John Hofmeister shared at a recent New York Energy Forum meeting.

Upon retiring from Shell Oil – the US subsidiary of Royal Dutch Shell – in 2008, Hofmeister founded the non-profit nationwide membership association Citizens for Affordable Energy. The group is dedicated to promoting sound US energy security solutions that include a range of affordable energy supplies, efficiency improvements, essential infrastructure, sustainable environmental policies and public energy issue education. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 11, 2012 at 9:00 AM

Testing The Waters at a Global Energy Gathering

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The upcoming World Energy Leadership Summit in Istanbul will be a good forum to “test the waters” on how global markets view competition in the energy sector, according to CME Group Chief Economist Blu Putnam.

Turkey is a good crossroads to discuss the future of cheaper, cleaner and more efficient energy development in the developing world even as growth challenges and policy limit the expansion of energy infrastructure in many developed countries, Putnam said in a recent interview with Breaking Energy. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 10, 2012 at 11:00 AM

Industry Leaders Work to Strengthen Power Grid

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Ontario’s largest power distributor – Hydro One – is looking to transform the province’s aging electrical system into a state of the art power delivery network. The utility recently selected IBM and Telvent to lead the charge toward a more energy efficient and reliable 21st century power grid.

Built in the 1950’s, Ontario’s electric grid took a centralized approach to power delivery, but the changing nature of electricity generation and transmission, with distributed sources becoming more prevalent, requires a more versatile grid design. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 10, 2012 at 9:00 AM

Natural Gas Prices Threaten State Renewable Portfolio Standards

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State Renewable Portfolio Standards may come under increasing pressure amid low natural gas prices, excess power generation capacity and the cost of compliance, leading energy analyst says.

“The world for renewables today is quite different from the renewables world we faced over the last several years,” Ron Norman, renewable energy specialist at PA Consulting Group, told a symposium held in San Francisco last week. “Before 2009, we had extraordinarily high gas prices and pending C02 legislation, low growth throughout the US and since that time we’ve had a crash in natural gas prices.” Keep reading →

 /  Published April 9, 2012 at 9:00 AM

How The Power Grid Is Blocking EV Adoption (And What To Do About It)

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The charging cord for the Tesla Model S electric car

There is a hidden barrier to electric vehicles (EV) adoption – our electric grid. EVs could significantly increase peak demand and thus impact grid reliability. AMI and demand response technologies are often promoted as the solution for this uptick in peak demand. But we also need to look at other, grid-based solutions to enable broader adoption of EVs. Here are a few reasons why: Keep reading →

 /  Published April 6, 2012 at 1:00 PM

Energy Access In The Developing World: Biggest Opportunity Ever?

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A Moroccan engineer cycles past the solar panels of the solar power station of Ain Beni Mathar near Oujda on May 31, 2011. The station provides 13% of the Moroccan energy needs it is claimed.

When an energy industry opportunity sums up most of the current trends in global business and is ready for investment, how do you convince companies to take advantage of it? Keep reading →

 /  Published April 6, 2012 at 9:00 AM

Cleantech Risks Losses To Electronics In Energy Storage Quest

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Consumer electronics could be the winners in the quest for energy storage – cleantech’s holy grail – rather than electric vehicles or the integration of renewables.

Dan Adler, president of the influential California Clean Energy Fund (CalCEF), told last week’s Cleantech Forum in San Francisco: “It is the holy grail and that’s why we continue to focus on this notion that there’s some piece missing.” Keep reading →

 /  Published April 5, 2012 at 11:30 AM

Getting to Market: Detours on the Road to Oil Abundance

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North America’s emerging oil shale abundance can fundamentally alter the US’s energy landscape, but experts say the road ahead may have a lot of detours.

The issues start with how much new supply can get to market. Keep reading →

 /  Published April 5, 2012 at 9:00 AM
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