New Ventures

China has an innovation in the jet-fuel industry – waste kitchen oil from restaurants will be used to mass- produce jet fuel. While this technology may seem like something out of The Jetsons, it is one step closer to reality. Next year, a major state-owned refiner will begin construction on a production plant for these… Keep reading →

A breakthrough in the renewable energy industry may hold the solution to eliminating carbon emissions, while also creating new sources of clean energy. The potential revelation comes from scientists working in China and the United States in the form of a system that recaptures carbon-dioxide pollution for use in a storage system. Energy storage has… Keep reading →

There seems to be a clear trend brewing in the United States about a transition to clean energy, and it is starting in the towns we live in.  The ongoing quest to reach 100% renewable energy is slowly accumulating support. This past week, the first cities in Wisconsin and Louisiana have committed to transitioning to… Keep reading →

Lithium-ion batteries have held the largest market share of batteries since 2010 making it increasingly difficult for new battery developments to take root.  Advancements in battery technology have paved the way for new power developments such as flow batteries. Flow batteries are currently facing great difficulties in trying to secure a larger market share in… Keep reading →

Primus

Alternative fuel company Primus Green Energy has just opened a gas-to-liquids demonstration plant in New Jersey. With natural gas prices trading well below oil prices, and US gas reserves abundant, Primus’ product could provide a cost-competitive alternative to petroleum-based fuels for the domestic market. Here are some of the quick takeaways from a recent plant tour, which Breaking… Keep reading →

The Memorial Tournament - Pro-Am

Aubrey McClendon, Chesapeake Energy’s delightfully shady former CEO who was forced out by shareholders who found him more shady than delightful, is the sort of person about whom I might say “never change, Aubrey,” if that seemed necessary. It does not: Aubrey McClendon, the controversial former chief executive of Chesapeake Energy, is attempting to stage… Keep reading →


Some companies see gas-to-liquids (GTL) as a promising means of converting the US’ massive gas resources into vehicle fuel, but Chevron has little interest in GTL projects in the US.

Chevron is a large player in GTL. The company is a partner in the Escravos GTL plant in Nigeria, which will convert 325 million cubic feet of natural gas per day into 33,000 barrels of liquids, mostly synthetic diesel, and is scheduled to come onstream later this year. Commissioning is underway, but “it’s a complex plant and the commissioning activity will really go on for the bulk of this year,” said Chief Financial Office Pat Yarrington during the company’s first-quarter 2013 earnings call on Friday. Keep reading →


The US federal government has set aside more than a quarter of a billion dollars to fund the demonstration of a small modular (SMR) nuclear reactor in the US, with potential total funding rising to close to half a billion dollars. With smaller-scale nuclear technology widely discussed as the future of the troubled sector, a whos-who of companies are expected to participate in the project and apply for the funds.

Westinghouse Electric Company, based in Pittsburgh but part of Japan’s Toshiba, has submitted a letter of intent saying it will compete for the SMR nuclear deployment acceleration grant. The company is showcasing a 225 MW-equivalent integral pressurized water reactor that leverages technology from its already-licensed AP1000 nuclear power plant design. Keep reading →


Hundreds of millions of dollars in a new venture fund, with one-quarter aimed at “future energy” technologies.

Royal Dutch Shell has won both criticism and praise for its green investment habits — but when it comes to venture capital, it’s pretty tightly focused on serving its own oil and gas business needs first. Keep reading →


Oil products are needed to fuel the development of, well more oil. Booming oil production in the Bakken formation primarily located in North Dakota and Montana has driven up local demand for diesel fuel used to run the hundreds of rigs and thousands of trucks and locomotives that undergird the industrial supply chain.

“Much of the increase in demand has been fueled by the boom in crude oil production from the new wells in the Bakken Formation in North Dakota’s northwest corner. The demand for these middle distillates rose 80% in North Dakota from 2009 to 2012, providing the incentive to invest in local refineries,” said the EIA in its “Today in Energy” update. Keep reading →

Page 2 of 28123456...28