eWallstreeter

Germany must curb runaway retail prices for sake of green power -IEA

Fri, 24 May 2013 04:00:00 EDT

* Power price rise may hit consumer support for green energy

Petroceltic abandons Black Sea exploration well off Bulgaria

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:40:53 EDT

May 24 (Reuters) - Petroceltic International Plc said it would abandon an exploration well off the Bulgarian coast that failed to yield enough gas to justify commercial production, sending its shares down 5 percent.

UPDATE 1-Magnitude 8.2 earthquake strikes Russian Far East

Fri, 24 May 2013 03:01:45 EDT

MOSCOW, May 24 (Reuters) - A magnitude 8.2 earthquake struck off Russia's eastern coast on Friday, briefly prompting a tsunami scare but causing no casualties or substantial damage, Russian emergency authorities said.

Russia lifts tsunami warning on Russia's Sakhalin, Kurile islands

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:41:41 EDT

MOSCOW, May 24 (Reuters) - Russian emergency authorities lifted a tsunami warning on Friday several minutes after they announced one, following an earthquake in the Sea of Okhotsk off Russia's eastern coast.

UPDATE 2-Oil prices set for biggest weekly drop since mid-April

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:33:00 EDT

*Shrinking factory activity in China limits oil demand growth. SINGAPORE, May 24- Crude futures are set to post their biggest weekly loss in five weeks, with Brent edging down toward $102 per barrel on Friday, as ample supply and a slow global economic recovery fuelled worries that demand for oil would be hit.

UK Gas Supply Six Hours From Running Out in March

Fri, 24 May 2013 02:29:00 EDT

Britain came within six hours of running out of natural gas in March, highlighting the risk of supply shortages, the FT reports.

Carl Pope: The Big Lie on Natural Gas Exports

Fri, 24 May 2013 01:32:28 EDT

Last week the Department of Energy gave approval to the Freeport LNG export terminal.

UPDATE 1-Oil prices set for biggest weekly loss in five

Fri, 24 May 2013 00:41:00 EDT

Oil prices set for biggest weekly loss in five

Thu, 23 May 2013 23:45:00 EDT

UPDATE 4-Brazil to auction its biggest-ever oil find in October

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:27:22 EDT

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 23 (Reuters) - Brazil plans to sell the right to explore and develop its largest-ever oil discovery in October, auctioning an offshore petroleum prospect that is expected to produce about 12 billion barrels of oil over 35 years.

Indonesia Energy Regulator Trims 2014 Oil Target

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:13:04 EDT

Indonesia's energy regulator says the country's oil production target next year is too optimistic, and wants it scaled back between roughly 4 percent and 8 percent, domestic media reported on Thursday.

Solar Industry Capital Spending Hits Seven-Year Low in 2013

Thu, 23 May 2013 21:09:07 EDT

El Segundo CA (SPX) May 24, 2013 Although global capital spending this year in the photovoltaics (PV) supply chain is expected to fall to its lowest level since 2006, indications signal that the downturn in investment has hit bottom and that purchases of equipment may soon rebound. Capital spending among PV companies is set to drop to $2.3 billion in 2013, down 36 percent from $3.6 billion in 2012, according to the PV Man

NYMEX-Oil prices slip towards $94 on China data, Fed concerns

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:58:00 EDT

PERTH, May 24- U.S. crude futures dropped to around $94 a barrel on Friday after disappointing China data and on lingering concerns the U.S. July oil futures contract had fallen 9 cents to $94.16 a barrel by 0038 GMT.

Innovation could bring flexible solar cells, transistors, displays

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:08:26 EDT

West Lafayette IN (SPX) May 24, 2013 Researchers have created a new type of transparent electrode that might find uses in solar cells, flexible displays for computers and consumer electronics and future "optoelectronic" circuits for sensors and information processing. The electrode is made of silver nanowires covered with a material called graphene, an extremely thin layer of carbon. The hybrid material shows promise as a pos

Crude Oil shrinks on poor China data US Fed concerns

Thu, 23 May 2013 20:00:00 EDT

US durable goods data is scheduled to be released today at 06.00 PM IST today and traders may get hints for their trading from the data released. Also, a list of data releases from Germany, France and Italy are scheduled for the day. and nbsp;WTI crude oil futures on NYMEX for July delivery was seen trading down by 0.43% at $93.87 per barrel as of 10.19 AM IST on Friday.

UPDATE 2-Phillips to increase shale oil use at New Jersey refinery

Thu, 23 May 2013 19:39:00 EDT

The 238,000 barrel-per-day Bayway refinery is one of several on the East Coast emerging from years of poor margins as they have depended on higher-priced oil from Europe and Africa due to a lack of access to cheaper domestic crude.

Invest In American Manufacturing? Five Charts For Your Business Decision

Thu, 23 May 2013 19:01:12 EDT

Is manufacturing a good bet in America these days? The talk about reshoring, in which companies return to the United States those operations that they had previously located in a foreign country, is spurring renewed interest in factories here. Let’s roll through five key points about the outlook for manufacturing.

UPDATE 2-EU oil pricing probe spurs lawsuit against BP, others

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:56:00 EDT

*BP, Shell, Statoil in EU oil price probe. NEW YORK/ CHICAGO May 23- A Chicago- based commodities trading firm has filed suit against three of the world's largest oil companies, accusing them of colluding to fix oil prices after European authorities opened an investigation last week.

US Natural Gas Exports, Slowly but Surely

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:16:17 EDT

While the hints over the past weeks have favored expanded US natural gas exports, the confirmation of Energy Security Ernest Moniz has delayed a final decision on the process, with 19 export applications on hold for more in-depth review. This has somewhat dampened the momentum following the Department of Energy’s (DOE) decision last Friday to conditionally approve a Texas LNG project. Then on Tuesday, Moniz was officially sworn in and called for a further review of the proposals before making any final decisions. The review he’s waiting…Read more...

Is the Solar Energy Bubble Finally Bursting?

Thu, 23 May 2013 18:02:10 EDT

My recent post about the costs of Germany’s policy of subsidizing solar energy inspired predictable attacks by true believers in a future powered by solar energy. I was criticized for citing the German magazine Spiegel, a center-right popular magazine. Well, I cited Spiegel for certain facts, and if you don’t believe Spiegel, perhaps you will believe the reputable environmentalist writer Mark Lynas, whose sources are German government statistics. (And if you think Lynas is discredited because he supports GMOs and nuclear energy, even…Read more...

Terracide and the Terrarists - Destroying the Planet for Record Profits

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:59:37 EDT

Published with premission by TomDispatchWe have a word for the conscious slaughter of a racial or ethnic group: genocide. And one for the conscious destruction of aspects of the environment: ecocide. But we don’t have a word for the conscious act of destroying the planet we live on, the world as humanity had known it until, historically speaking, late last night. A possibility might be “terracide” from the Latin word for earth. It has the right ring, given its similarity to the commonplace danger word…Read more...

Waste Wood: Norway Taps into a Huge Source of Biomass Fuel

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:52:15 EDT

Norwegian senior scientist Øyvind Skreiberg is transforming the chopped-off branches and tops of felled spruce trees into a fine powder that is then pressed into high-energy pellets. The transformation is made using a process called torrefaction, a sort of extreme sauna for timber and vegetation.Norway possesses major unexploited energy resources of waste wood in the form of the branches and tops – known in their Norwegian acronym as GROT. There is an abundance of waste wood to see when we walk in the forest after the lumberjacks…Read more...

Tesla Motors Pay Back their Entire DoE Loan Nine Years Early

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:49:31 EDT

Tesla Motors, the US electric vehicle manufacturer, has paid of its entire Department of Energy loan.The DoE granted Tesla a loan in 2010 as part of the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing (ATVM) program; as part of the terms of the loan Tesla had to match the deal with its own capital, and meet certain milestones.Tesla repaid part of the loan in 2012, and then again at the beginning of 2013, but following a recent share offering of common stock and the sale of senior notes, which helped raise nearly $1 billion, Tesla decided to pay off the…Read more...

Chinese Military Renews Cyber-Attacks, Focusing on US Electrical Grid

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:47:30 EDT

In February the US government named and shamed Chinese hackers who had been attacking, and stealing secret data from US companies. A report compiled by Mandiant, a private security company that helps companies and government agencies defend themselves from hackers, listed the organisations that had stolen numerous government documents, and items of intellectual property over the past five years.Following the report, Unit 61398, a cyber-division of China’s People’s Liberation Army, with its white, 12 story office building on the edge…Read more...

Japanese Nuclear Reactor Lies Directly on Active Fault

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:46:37 EDT

On Wednesday, Japan’s Nuclear Regulation Authority (NRA), based on the findings of a new report, advised that one of the country’s nuclear reactors could never be restarted because it lies directly over an active tectonic fault.After a five month investigation, the NRA report found an active fault (any fault that has moved in the last 130,000 years), under one of the reactors at the Tsuraga power plant in western Japan.The NRA is currently investigating the faults in the Earth’s crust under five reactors around Japan to determine…Read more...

Saudi Arabia come to Pakistan’s Rescue with $15 Billion Energy Bailout Deal

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:46:01 EDT

As soon as Nawaz Sharif’s PML-N emerged as the winning party in Pakistan’s recent elections, the Saudi Arabian ambassador in Islamabad contacted the Foreign Ministry to enquire about the details of Pakistan’s energy requirements.Saudi Arabia, unwilling to work with the previous PPP party that ruled Pakistan who had favoured relations with Iran, is very keen to set up a relationship PML-N.A deal has already been offered that would help the indebted country with its current energy crisis. Saudi Arabia will provide 100,000 barrels…Read more...

Oil Markets at the Whim of Power Players

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:45:15 EDT

Most markets these days are manipulated to some extent, and this is nothing new if we look back through the history of financial markets. But there are some strange things happening right now in the oil market worth mentioning.Brent-WTI Spread/ScamAnother scam in the Oil market is the Brent-WTI spread this has been one of the biggest scams over the years in the Oil market. Just to provide some data to the absurdity which is this much hyped about nonsensical spread Cushing Oklahoma has 49.7 million barrels in storage, it had 45.1 million barrels…Read more...

COMMODITIES-Oil cuts loss, shadowing Wall St rebound; copper down

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:35:47 EDT

* Oil erases bulk of early loss, rebounding with US stocks

Midwest gasoline prices: some relief in sight (5/22/2013)

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:13:42 EDT

Gasoline prices throughout the Midwest, also known as Petroleum Administration for Defense District (PADD) 2, have been trending sharply higher since mid-April. Both planned and unplanned refinery maintenance have limited gasoline production, and inventories, which were robust going into turnaround season, have been significantly depleted. While resupply from the U.S. Gulf Coast (PADD 3) is available via pipeline, transit time to the upper Midwest can be as long as three weeks. ....

UPDATE 5-NYSE says AEP, NextEra trades stand after crash at open

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:09:18 EDT

(Updates with comment from NextEra CFO, details on NYSE ruling, closing prices)

Canadians Won't Pay More at the Pumps This Summer - Gasoline Prices...

Thu, 23 May 2013 17:03:26 EDT

Canadians Won't Pay More at the Pumps This Summer - Gasoline Prices Predicted To Be Similar to Last Year's Prices /CNW/ - Canadians can expect to pay about the same for gasoline this summer as last summer, while the price of natural gas could see an increase along with electricity prices, depending on where you live, said the National Energy Board ... (more)

Australia coal firms dig in for years of mine closures, job cuts

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:59:00 EDT

*Coal producers face too much supply through 2020. Prices have slumped around 30 percent since their peak two years ago as coal flooded global markets, especially from the United States where cheap gas has cut domestic demand and led to a nearly 50 percent jump in thermal coal exports last year.

UPDATE 3-Brazil to auction its biggest-ever oil find in October

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:45:00 EDT

RIO DE JANEIRO, May 23- Brazil plans to sell the right to explore and develop its largest-ever oil discovery in October, putting up for auction an offshore petroleum prospect that is expected to produce about 12 billion barrels of oil over 35 years.

UPDATE 1-Quebec to do own review of Enbridge pipeline project

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:41:00 EDT

WASHINGTON, May 23- Quebec will announce within weeks that it will launch its own public review of a proposed pipeline that would deliver crude oil from western Canada to eastern markets, its environment minister said Thursday.

Will Tesla Have To Give Up And Let Dealers Sell Its Cars?

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:09:13 EDT

A few weeks ago, I came across the Tesla Motors showroom in Fashion Square, an upscale shopping mall in Scottsdale, Arizona. That's exactly what it is: a show room, because Tesla can't sell cars in Arizona, as the polite clerk informed me.

Uniform Methods for Determining Energy Efficiency Savings and Increasing Electric Utility Confidence in Reported Savings Now Available

Thu, 23 May 2013 16:01:00 EDT

May 23, 2013Uniform Methods for Determining Energy Efficiency Savings and Increasing Electric Utility Confidence in Reported Savings Now Available The National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) has published protocols for estimating energy savings for residential and commercial energy efficiency programs and measures through the recently released “The Uniform Methods Project: Methods for Determining Energy Efficiency Savings for Specific Measures.”

Technical Review of the Energy Markets – 23rd May 2013

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:43:18 EDT

WTI Crude did continue lower to the 94.50/40 target & a buying opportunity. We bounced nicely from here but have since broken lower to hit the next target of 93.64. The outlook remains weak so look now for a test of strong support at 92.80/75. We are however starting to look oversold in the short term so watch for a bounce. If attempting longs we need stops below the 200 day moving average at 92.30 & can then look for the next support at 91.60/40.A bounce from 93.60 is possible and could reach resistance at 94.40/50. It could be worth trying…Read more...

UPDATE 9-Oil prices pare losses on U.S. equities turnaround

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:37:00 EDT

*U.S. equities recoup earlier losses, supporting oil. NEW YORK, May 23- Brent crude oil prices retraced earlier losses after falling to a three-week low on Thursday in a broader commodities selloff, riding the coattails of a late turnaround in U.S. equities to end flat.

Quebec to do own review of Enbridge pipeline project

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:18:00 EDT

Commodity Update: Open Interest Analysis for May 22nd, 2013

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:17:31 EDT

Brent crude:July Brent crude lost $1.31 on light volume of 524,069 contracts. Open interest declined by 3,132 contracts, which relative to volume is approximately 60% less than average. Brent crude remains on a short and intermediate term sell signal. Stand aside.Heating oil:July heating oil lost 5.06 cents on volume of 156,118 contracts. Total open interest increased by 2,315 contracts, which relative to volume is approximately 40% less than average. The June contract accounted for loss of 9,026 of open interest and will be expiring soon. On May…Read more...

UPDATE 1-One dead, around 10 injured in Guinea opposition protest

Thu, 23 May 2013 15:10:57 EDT

CONAKRY, May 23 (Reuters) - One person was killed and around 10 injured when security forces and supporters of Guinea's president clashed with protesters marching in the capital on Thursday against planned legislative elections.

UPDATE 8-Oil prices slip on China, Fed concerns

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:28:00 EDT

NEW YORK, May 23- Oil prices pared losses after falling to a three-week low on Thursday in a broader commodities selloff, supported as selling in U.S. equities tapered off on the back of encouraging domestic economic data.

South Sudan says war crimes court persecutes Africans

Thu, 23 May 2013 14:02:42 EDT

JUBA, May 23 (Reuters) - South Sudan's President Salva Kiir said on Thursday his country would never become a member of the International Criminal Court (ICC), saying it appeared to be preoccupied with prosecuting African leaders.

UPDATE 1-U.S. expects seven to 11 Atlantic hurricanes in 2013

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:43:21 EDT

MIAMI, May 23 (Reuters) - The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season could be "extremely active" and spawn 13 to 20 tropical storms, seven to 11 of which are expected to become hurricanes, the U.S. government's top climate agency predicted on Thursday.

EU denies breakdown in solar panel talks

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:38:53 EDT

BRUSSELS, May 23 (Reuters) - The European Commission rejected Chinese trade association statements that talks to resolve a dispute over allegations of dumping of solar panels had broken down, while Chinese comments highlighted risks the dispute could escalate.

U.S. government expects 7 to 11 Atlantic hurricanes in 2013

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:17:32 EDT

MIAMI, May 23 (Reuters) - The 2013 Atlantic hurricane season will be active and spawn 13 to 20 tropical storms, seven to 11 of which are expected to become hurricanes, the U.S. government's top climate agency predicted on Thursday.

Solar plane completes second leg of cross-country flight in Texas

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:15:27 EDT

DALLAS, May 23 (Reuters) - A solar airplane that developers hope to eventually pilot around the globe landed safely on Thursday in Texas, completing the second and longest leg of an attempt to fly across the United States powered only by the sun.

Todd Werpy, ADM to Keynote Present at Biobased Chemicals Conf. (Sept. 16-17, 2013 in San Francisco)

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:14:14 EDT

Todd Werpy, Vice President of ADM, will give a keynote presentation “Toward a New Generation of Renewable Fuels and Chemicals” at the 4th Biobased Chemicals: Commercialization & Partnering Conference on September 16-17, 2013 in San Francisco, CA.

In this presentation, Dr. Todd Werpy will offer an overview of ADM’s biofuel research partnerships, discuss some of the pilot projects under way, and describe the company’s efforts to develop both direct, drop-in replacements for commonly used chemicals as well as novel chemicals made from bio-advantaged molecules.

As one of the world's largest agricultural processors, Archer Daniels Midland Company (ADM) connects the harvest to the home to meet the vital food and energy needs of a growing global population. The same operations that enable ADM to produce hundreds of food ingredients from farmers’ crops also provide it with the scale and expertise to efficiently produce renewable fuels and chemicals. As Vice President of Research & Development at ADM, Dr. Werpy is responsible for overseeing ADM’s efforts to expand its product portfolio and strengthening research partnership with government agencies, academic institutions and corporations. Werpy developed the catalytic technology being commercialized by ADM for the conversion of glycerin and sorbitol to propylene glycol. He holds 20 patents in the area of catalysis and chemical conversion of biomass to chemicals.

The 4th Biobased Chemicals: Commercialization & Partnering Conference will look to examine new supply chain developments and business models being adopted for biobased chemicals products. Topics include novel chemical production platforms, advantageous feedstock, end user applications, consumer products and packaging applications, securing funding and strategic partnerships, trends and challenges in commercial scale up, and what’s hot in venture capital. Renewable chemical companies, biofuel companies and end market consumers will be discussing innovations in the science, technology and end-market development of biobased chemicals, polymers and plastics. Get the latest updates from investment, scientific, manufacturer and business perspectives - the highlights and the challenges to making big new things happen with special emphasis on commercialization!

Full Speaker List: www.gtcbio.com/biobasedchemicals/speakers

Program Agenda: www.gtcbio.com/biobasedchemicals/agenda

For more information, please visit www.gtcbio.com/biobasedchemicals

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The Keystone XL Pipeline Really Won't Cost $100 Billion A Year

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:06:27 EDT

There's a rather alarming claim that the Keystone XL pipeline, if it's approved and built, will end up having real costs, that is social costs and to the environment, of some $100 billion a year. This, as I say rather alarming, claim rests upon three extremely dubious contentions. Here is the claim: One of the missing pieces of information is an estimate of the damage ? translated into dollars ? that Keystone XL?s climate pollution would do to health, property, agriculture, ecosystem services, and more....

UPDATE 2-Brazil to auction biggest-ever oil find in Oct-agency

Thu, 23 May 2013 13:04:46 EDT

* Giant Libra prospect on offer has up to 42 bln barrels in place