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July 31, 2007
Rudy Giuliani's recent statement on energy independence
July 26, 2007
Leading America Toward Energy Independence
We should have started to move toward energy independence back in the 1970s,
when oil prices spiked and there were the long lines at gas stations.
Presidents Nixon and Carter talked about energy independence, but not a lot got
done. The next President of the
I will move
Ethanol and other bio-fuels are already helping
Just like
We also must increase our use of solar power, wind power and hydro-power. We can reduce energy costs and reduce pollution through conservation. And if we can figure out how to change our electrical grid to a digital grid we'll be able to use our energy on a much more efficient and consistent basis.
The government needs to help business establish competitive, cost-effective technologies in the short-run. That doesn't necessarily mean larger subsidies. But it does require government helping those developing industries and technologies. In the case of increasing the number of oil refineries and nuclear power plants, it means breaking down some of the bureaucratic burdens.
In the long-run, energy independence can become a great industry for
The government has to approach energy independence the way we put a man on
the moon. When the Soviets put a man in space, President Eisenhower was
embarrassed and angry. President Eisenhower said we're going to get to the moon
first and he started the space program. President Kennedy took it over and
expanded it. President Johnson continued the job and President Nixon got it
done. That's two Republican presidents and two Democratic presidents - not
thinking about partisan interests, but thinking about the national interest.
That is the way
The bottom line is that there is no one answer: Ethanol and bio-fuels can't do it all, conservation can't do it all, coal, nuclear, wind, solar, hybrid vehicles - none of these are silver bullet solutions. But if we increase our use of each one of them to a higher level, we can achieve energy independence in the future while creating a new engine for the American economy.
Rudy Giuliani is the former Mayor of New York City and a Republican candidate for President.
Posted by Martin at 10:17 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Oil hits year high
Thanks Aron for this note from AG Edwards
Crude oil surges above $78 a barrel
Crude oil rose to a one-year high in New York on speculation demand will
outpace supply as refiners increase fuel production in preparation for the
winter months. An Energy Department report tomorrow may show that U.S. crude
oil supplies fell for a fourth week, according to a Bloomberg News survey of
analysts. AGE energy analyst Eric Wittenauer said: “We’re waiting for the
market to break decisively through the $77.50 level. With the index and fund
money that’s poured into the market there will continue to be upward pressure
on prices.” Crude oil for September delivery was up 1.15 at 77.98 a barrel at
12:56 p.m. in New York. Earlier crude traded at 78.15 a barrel, the highest
intraday price for a contract closest to expiration since July 14, 2006. Prices
are up 28% this year.
Posted by Martin at 8:19 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 24, 2007
Denali Denail
My new art piece from Chris Jordan. Amazing.
Depicts 24,000 logos from the GMC Yukon Denali, equal to six weeks of sales of that model SUV in 2004
detail:
Posted by Martin at 10:43 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Be warry of your biofuel supplier
Look what could happen if you choose the wrong one who is not a credit worthy co-party.
Shares plunge in Renewable Power and Light
FO Licht's World Ethanol & Biofuels ReportTuesday July 17 2007
Shares in Renewable Power and Light Plc have lost more than half their value because it expects to make a loss in 2007 instead of a $25 mln pre-tax profit predicted by the house broker, the firm said on July 13. The company blamed the turnaround on the loss of its supply of palm oil which it planned to use to generate electricity in two power plants it is converting to run on biodiesel.
Renewable Power is suing its supplier, Safari Group Inc, in the United States for breach of contract for failing to deliver the palm oil for an earlier agreed price. Its oil palms are grown in West Africa. Palm oil prices doubled since the start of 2006, before recently falling back. They are still up over 70% for the period, driven by demand for biofuel. Renewable Power now faces difficulty buying palm oil at a price to make its operations profitable unless it can secure the supply from Safari at the agreed tariff.
It has obtained a temporary restraining order preventing Safari from transferring the palm oil to anyone else. Renewable Power is considering its strategy, including using other feedstock crops, buying feedstock firms, or growing its own palm oil, while it sues Safari, a spokesman said on Friday.
Posted by Martin at 10:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
AGE adds facts to a cry for relief from oil crisis
Thanks Aron for this note from AG Edwards Chief Global Investment Strategist.
You a numbers guy?
Believe in them? Where here are the bare facts in barrels per person and nominal population growth rates. This does not factor in any accelleration in China or India due to increased standards of living (increased average oil usage) over the period.
ouch
AGE Chart-Looming Crisis In Crude Oil.pdf
This chart shows that each person in the world consumes an average of 4.7 barrels of oil per person per year. In the United States, we consume 25.2 barrels per person per year. The world currently consumes 83.7 million barrels per day; if the world continues to consume 4.7 barrels per person per year, assuming U.S. Census Bureau estimates of population, by 2020 the world will consume 98 million barrels per day, which would far exceed current OPEC excess capacity. This is the looming crisis in crude oil: the bulk of the worlds reserves (86%) resides in OPEC and the former Soviet Union. Without a global reduction in demand, it will take a massive level of investment in these rather hostile nations to meet trend consumption.
Posted by Martin at 9:55 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Big oil crys uncle
A picture says a thousand words. The US simply has been sucking down more oil than it can produce for many many years and the trend is only up and to the right for demand and down and to the right for supply. Finally the oil industry mouthpiece the National Petroleum Council is starting to "leak" a report it started working on in 2005 which admits the facts that the rest of us know. Oops, there is not enough oil and we have to develop alternatives. Here is part of the leak from the WSJ:
"World oil and gas supplies from conventional sources are unlikely to keep up with rising global demand over the next 25 years, the U.S. petroleum industry says in a draft report of a study commissioned by the government.
In the draft report, oil-industry leaders acknowledge the world will need to develop all the supplemental sources of energy it can -- ranging from biofuels to nuclear power to oil extracted by unconventional means from the oil sands of Canada -- to meet soaring demand. The surge in demand is expected to arise from rapid economic growth in such fast-developing countries as China and India, as well as mounting consumption in the U.S., the world's biggest energy market.
Tight Times: World oil and natural-gas supplies are unlikely to keep up with rising demand over the next 25 years, the U.S. petroleum industry says in a draft report.
Needed Alternatives: The world will need supplemental sources like biofuels and nuclear power to meet demand, the report says.
Price Pressure: The findings suggest high energy prices are likely for decades to come.
The findings suggest that, far from being temporary, high energy prices are likely for decades to come.
"It is a hard truth that the global supply of oil and natural gas from the conventional sources relied upon historically is unlikely to meet projected 50% to 60% growth in demand over the next 25 years," says the draft report, titled "Facing the Hard Truths About Energy."
"In geoeconomic terms, the biggest impact will come from increasing demand for oil and natural gas from developing countries," said the draft report, a copy of which was reviewed by The Wall Street Journal. "This demand may outpace timely development of new supply sources, thereby pressuring prices to rise."
The study, which was requested by U.S. Energy Secretary Samuel Bodman in October 2005, was conducted by the National Petroleum Council, an industry group that advises the secretary.
The conclusions appear to be the first explicit concession by the petroleum industry that it alone can't meet burgeoning global demand for oil, which may rise to as much as 120 million barrels a day by 2030 from about 84 million barrels a day currently, according to some projections. (U.S. gasoline prices are on the rise. See related article1.)
These conclusions follow hard on the heels of a medium-term outlook by the Paris-based International Energy Agency this month, which suggested a supply squeeze will hit by 2012. The fact that the American petroleum industry is warning of a crunch could have an even greater impact on the debate over energy policy."
Uh, DUH!
Posted by Martin at 9:30 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
European biodiesel consumption up 78%
Green Car Congress: European Transportation Biofuel Consumption Up 78% from 2005 to 2006. That about says it all. They are way ahead. Interestingly enough I bet more than 20% of that production came from the US as US producers chased higher margins in Europe where the demand is growing faster than the US.
Posted by Martin at 9:15 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
All Consuming oops
I have been posting all my book review to this site through Allconsuming.net for the last two years mainly because they automagically put in the Amazon link and so on. I like the write once, post many. Unfortunately I just figured out that AllConsuming.net does not post a category with the blog entry. Therefore all reviews from AllConsuming are not under my BookReview category. I am going to go into mass change in Movable Type and fix that now, but it is a pain. I am going to have to find another way to post book reviews.
Posted by Martin at 8:26 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
A story about "Sea Change (Jesse Stone)"
Bought on the plane ride home from Hawaii. Finished when landed. Good plane book. 3 of 5 stars.
Posted by Martin at 8:16 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Starting out with Control4
OK, so I am a bit of a gadget geek and I would like to get back to those roots here on the blog. I have consumed a large number of gadgets lately and will be writing a few more reviews. The most top of mind is my recent installation of Zigbee based Control4 system at home. I have a VERY light and very large room upstairs. the IR based universal remote I had before had a hard time with the interference and would not work most of the time. Downstairs, in the bedroom, the IR receiver was mounted just below the 60 inch Runco flatpanel that was pumping out so much interference that the remote only worked half the time as well. I am going to put those old suckers on e-bay. I picked Control4 because it is Zigbee (no light interference) and because it came standard with a web interface.
The good:
1. It worked right out of the custom installers hands. All the integration with my existing AV system and the blinds worked. The blinds were not on the previous system.
2. No interference, works every push of the button.
3. integration of the blinds was quick and easy
The Bad:
1. Control4 couldn't get onto my Wifi network so we had to create a new one just for it. The installer used the same SSID name as my existing one, thinking to be cute, but didn't connect the new WAP correctly to request DHCP addresses from my SonicWall, so when my laptop connects to this new newtork, it doesn't get an IP address. I had to rename that network to not confuse my laptop.
2. My system is still not visable to the outside world, probably due to configuration of the SonicWall. We have configured them to use only the SonicWall VPN client for increased security at work. Control4 servers in the cloud only speak OpenVPN, so I suspect it is going to be a challenge getting my system connected to the Mycontrol4 in the cloud.
3. I thought I could connect to my home system directly. NO way. Every individual system is configured as a node on the Control4 master network, requiring access thorugh their ($149/yr) server. They say it is for security, but I really know it is just to gouge us for more fees. I wonder if someone has hacked the local device to allow direct connection to the IP address rather than going through the Control4 cloud proxy.
4. Their media software doesn't come standard and I had to install myself. They have a hardware limit of 256mb in the local server device limiting them to 12,000 albums. I have 52,000 tracks and counting. My music won't fit. The solution, a hardware upgrade to a $5K server from Control 4 of course.
5. Thier music software can't deal with more than one master director of music. I have five. Ok, so I should organize better, but I do. They should deal.
6. Their software can't deal with AAC files produced by Itunes, only MP3 files. Stupid.
7. Their ComposerME music management software is not registered with Vista and has problems running. Stupid.
8. The system has thermostats which should be able to "auto connect" but I got them and they don't. I have to have the installer come out.
The UGLY.
1. The hand held standard TV style remotes are fine, but do not have all the keys I need to emulate the DVR functions and cable remote functions. They are missing a page up and down key for example.
2. The touch screen remotes are basically complete touch screen computers 10 inches wide costing $3,500. ouch! I sent them back.
3. IT still doesn't really work and is NOT an install your self system.
Basically $10K later my system is half working, and I am hopeful, but this is still the bleeding edge. If you have a light room and lots of IR interference, this is the only way to go though.
Posted by Martin at 8:11 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 20, 2007
Want to know what is REALLY going on at GreenFuels?
GreenFuel in Boston, MA is one of the first companies to attack growing algae on a commercial scale for carbon sequestration and possibly biofuels. You may have read on CNET and other places rumors of change. Read the actual CEO letter to the team here: Xconomy � Blog Archive � The GreenFuel Letter
Posted by Martin at 1:13 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Why is Saudi Arabia cutting oil production while prices are high?
Because they can and we have no alternative.
As the US Senate contemplates a withdrawal of forces from Iraq and as oil prices approach record highs, Saudi Arabias oil cuts continue to keep markets tight. Riyadhs defiance may be linked to internal politics and its post-US occupation Iraq strategy.
Read the Lehman report here: THE_LOGIC_BEHIND_SAUDI_OI_100986137_424505.pdf
Posted by Martin at 11:25 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
some new art I just bought
From Argentinean artist Karina El Azem
Posted by Martin at 10:37 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 19, 2007
Support clean energy in the Farm Bill
Go here to support bioenergy funding in the farm bill: Farm Energy
Posted by Martin at 1:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 13, 2007
The party keeps rock'n for big oil
Oil rises to 11-month high as production drops
. Crude oil rose to an 11-month high in New York and London after a pipeline shutdown and maintenance work reduced North Sea Brent oil production. Chevron Corp. and ConocoPhillips said they lost output from North Sea fields that produce oil and gas after BP Plc closed the pipeline. BG Group Plc said its Armada oil field in the North Sea has been shut for maintenance since June. The International Energy Agency said in a report today that global oil demand will rise 2.5% next year. Crude oil for August delivery rose $1.37 to $73.87 a barrel at 2:24 p.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Futures reached $73.89, the highest intraday price since Aug. 15. Oil is up 1.3% this week.
Posted by Martin at 2:57 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
More rockers jump on biofuels/renewable energy
Bob Geldof praises potential of biofuels for Africa
FO Licht's World Ethanol & Biofuels ReportThursday July 12 2007
Irish rock star and political activist Bob Geldof has thrown his weight behind a new project aimed at producing electricity from plant seeds in Africa. Geldof has joined Britain's Helius Energy Plc as a special adviser to support the company's bioenergy projects across the continent, which is seeing demand for power surge and which feels the impact of high oil prices more than any other region, reports Reuters.
Helius, listed on London's Alternative Investment Market (AIM), is currently in discussion with South Africa's Eskom to supply the power utility with renewable energy, generated from biomass crops such as jatropha curcas, the seeds of which are a biodiesel feedstock.
Speaking at a press conference in Johannesburg, Geldof said that bioenergy could simulate the economic growth required to lift Africa from poverty. "I do not use the word life-changing lightly," Geldof said, adding that jatropha curcas was the first solution that he had seen in his 23 years of involvement with African causes that offered Africans jobs, cash crops and economic power.
He pointed out that the failure of the Doha Development Round the World Trade Organisation negotiations that aimed to lower trade barriers around the world, permitting free trade between countries of varying prosperity and the unlikelihood of a standalone trade agreement for Africa, made it all the more important to find a solution for Africa's farmers. Biofuels offer such a solution, he said.
Geldof spoke to the media after returning from a trip to Swaziland where he visited jatropha curcas plantations planted by biodiesel producer D1 Oils. Pointing to a jatropha curcas seedling on the table, Geldof said that "the potential effect of this little fellow is enormous".
Geldof said that he was impressed by the "life-changing" potential that the cultivation of jatropha curcas trees could have on poverty-stricken African communities. The oil expelled from the tree's seeds can be processed into biofuels and the remaining plant material can be used to fire biomass energy-generation plants.
Geldof was accompanied by Helius Energy chairperson Alex Worrall and Helius Energy co-founder and D1 Oils Africa CEO Demetri Pappadopoulos. Pappadopoulos said that every hectare of jatropha curcas would produce 2.7 tonnes of oil and 4.4 tonnes of biomass.
D1 Oils Africa has obtained rights to plant more than 40,000 ha of jatropha curcas in Africa, including Swaziland and Zambia. However, the South African Department of Agriculture is yet to publish its policy on Jatropha curcas, which is currently viewed as an invasive tree.
Pappadopoulos said that the first power from jatropha curcas biomass could be produced in the next three years when D1 Oils Africa expects to harvest the first commercial crops in Swaziland and Zambia. The company has just signed a joint venture with global oil giant BP.
Posted by Martin at 2:39 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
July 11, 2007
OPEC says pound sand
Wow, if you had any lingering doubts that our "friends" in the mid east are just in it for a buck, here is more from their own mouths. In light of recent IEA reports and others pointing out a severe tightening in the oil markets, the OPEC comments can only be heard one way. "We like short supply because it means higher prices for us". Hold onto your hats.
OPEC: No need to increase oil production
OPEC secretary general Abdalla El-Badri issued a statement today saying the cartel sees no need to increase crude oil output and that refineries cant process more crude. He said crude oil inventories are above the 5-year average and the oil market is well supplied. Meanwhile Qatars Energy Minister said OPEC can do nothing about the high price of oil because factors other than crude supply have sent the market to record levels.
Posted by Martin at 12:14 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
More on Hot Fuel
Oil Watchdog has some updates on the Hot Fuel scandal: Oil Watchdog: Articles Hot Fuel. apparently there is a meeting today of the National Council of Weights and Measures to vote on if America will start selling fuel with a temperature adjustment. And then the revelation that Tesoro knows there is liability and is trying to get out in front of the issue by putting warnings labels on their gas stations. That is a sure sign the industry is bracing for a fall. Look for other oil companies to flow suit.
Posted by Martin at 12:00 PM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
No bears at IEA, some evidence that oil peaked in 2005
from 6/18 thanks Aron
No bears at the IEA Reading this week's International Energy Agency report would give little comfort to any market bears. There is virtually nothing in there that would lead one to believe that oil prices are going down soon. A few observations:
--Although the data on countries making up the OECD -- the main western economies, plus such countries as Japan, South Korea and Australia -- show that demand in those nations remains flat, high prices are not having the same impact in non-OECD countries, which are reporting revised, higher demand projections for 2006 and 2007. Now, one of the reasons for that is that old data is coming in showing 2005 demand was more than the IEA had thought, so the base is now higher. But year-on-year figures 2007 to 2006 still show solid growth.
--For several years in the recent past, what the IEA refers to as the call for OPEC crude -- which is basically projected demand minus non-OPEC production minus OPEC NGL production -- was generally below OPEC production. Not anymore. Platts reported May production for all 12 OPEC members, including Angola, was just under 30.3 million b/d, the highest it had been in many months. But the average call for the third quarter is 31.5, and for the fourth quarter 32.3. The world also drew stocks in the first quarter after building in the corresponding quarter of the two prior years. Further, stocks built only a bit in April, which is the first month of the traditionally weakest demand quarter when stocks shold be built for the stronger third and fourth quarters. The end result of all this is that the IEA sees big stock draws in the third and fourth quarters from a base that has not built this year.
--Some peak oil theorists say world crude production peaked in May 2005. And you can read parts of the report as confirming that. In the second quarter of 2005, total non-OPEC supply -- that's everything, crude, NGL, biofuels, etc. -- was 50.6 million b/d. OPEC crude output was 29.7 million b/d, for total supply of 80.3, a figure that does not include OPEC NGLs. In the second quarter of this year, even with a growth in biofuels of 300,000 b/d, non-OPEC supply is projected to be 50 million b/d, a drop of 600,000 b/d in two years, which reveals a significant drop in non-OPEC crude output given the rise in biofuels. If OPEC crude supply in the second quarter holds at its first quarter figure of 30.2 million b/d, that's total world supply, without OPEC NGLs, of 80.2 million b/d, less than the figure of the second quarter of 2005. And it's that quarter that includes May, which the peak oil theorists point to as a high-water mark.
The Barrel was on a panel on CNBC this week to debate the question: which comes first, $50 or $70? There was no debate. It was 4-0, for $70. And of course, the discussion focused on WTI, which is artificially depressed at present. By contrast, Brent already has been there.
Posted by Martin at 12:42 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
NW energy Angels network making deals
The energy angel network I founded is making deals happen..
Angel Investments are Fueling Pacific Northwest Energy Sector
The Northwest Energy AngelsTM accelerates energy investment in the region with six deals funded in first half of 2007.
SEATTLE, WA - June 18, 2007 - The Northwest Energy AngelsTM group has completed six energy-sector investment deals in the first half of 2007, tying the total number of investments the group made in 2006.
The Northwest Energy Angels invested $180,000 in six deals during the period January through April, 2007. In comparison, the group completed six investments with a total value of $368,000 during calendar year 2006. Twenty-eight companies have presented to the group since its inception in January 2006.
These investments are crucial to companies from the time they bring their innovations out of the lab until they find a utility and local government to work with, says Jeff Morris, Director of the Northwest Energy Technology Collaborative which facilitates the investment group.
Morris notes that the Northwest Energy Angels is unique in that it is the first angel investment group in North America to focus only on the energy industry, including alternative sources of energy. The group has 40 members covering Oregon, Washington and British Columbia.
Kirk Washington of British Columbias Yaletown Venture Partners believes that the entrepreneurs and the regional focus on sustainability create unique clean technology investment opportunities.
We are strong believers that the Pacific Northwest, from Portland, Oregon to Vancouver, British Columbia, with Seattle as the centerpiece, will become an important new energy economy hub, says Washington, whose Yaletown Venture Partners focuses on early-stage clean technology and information technology investments.
Companies receiving investments from the Northwest Energy Angels since 2006 include: ADI Thermal Technologies, Delaware Power Systems, Novinium, Propel Biofuels, Ridgeline Energy and Sieber Energy.
With three additional investment meetings scheduled in 2007, the Northwest Energy Angels group is supporting the regions surging development in energy alternatives.
Posted by Martin at 12:34 AM | Comments (0) | TrackBack
Fox news to use B20 to cover the All-Star Game
NEWSFOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE