Big Oil Goes CleanTech Earlier this month, French Oil Major TOTAL announced an agreement to tender for 60% of SunPower (SPWRA), one of the leading solar module manufacturers and distributor/project developers, at a 43% premium to the previous market close. TOT is not new to the non-hydrocarbon energy market, having acquired some thin film …
Traditionally, the gasoline inventory build ahead of the US driving season, concurrent with the “seasonal trade” for refiners, leads to a price peak within a week or two of Memorial Day. This year, while the Q1 run-up is not that unusual, it follows a dramatic rise during 2010, and, perhaps for the first time, reflects …
Integrated Renewable Power Concepts Backup Battery Storage – More economic than Electric Vehicles. It’s early, and perhaps not the first choice, but several pilot projects are using large scale batteries to store intermittent wind/solar power for later use. Grid-scale storage has several advantages over electric vehicle applications — reduced space concerns, higher …
It’s B-a-a-a-a-a-c-k ! After a horrendous 2010, primarily due to very weak US order flows, and China’s shift to predominately domestic supply, the ex-Chinese industry seems to be recovering. Orders do not yet cover annual budgets, and prices are roughly 25% below the 2008 peak, but demand, and innovation, are back. New wind-based markets include …
Subsidy Laden to Subsidy Light Each year since 2008 has brought Forecasts of Doom for Solar power fundamentals — either there’s too much capacity coming or the subsidy adjustments too aggressive. The offsets have included lower interest rates (higher project IRRs), even faster cost/price declines, and new markets. It’s worth noting that the Spanish …
First Generation Ethanol (Food for Fuel) – Headwinds Coming? Congressional Republicans are working to repeal, or refuse to renew, the tax credit on domestically produced ethanol. It has come to their attention that, in addition to the requirement that producers use minimum levels of ethanol, plus the various benefits accruing to larger growers, the …
Secular Low Nat Gas Prices – The Golden Age of Chemicals Returns to North America It’s been fascinating to watch the consequences of the dramatic dislocation of US natural gas prices with both oil and Rest of World gas prices has made the US one of the lowest cost chemical producer in the world, second …
Post Libya -We’re not Done Here! It’s been less than six weeks since the start of the Libyan uprising, two months since Egypt’s Internet Intifitadah, and distressing headlines continue from all over the region. There is no doubt that there is room for significantly more liberal human rights, but also that each country has …
Energy and Nuclear Power after Fukushima Obviously, the combined earthquake-tsunami-nuclear “event” has been the major human interest and energy story of the last month. And, while both social and business interests have focused on the desperate efforts to stabilize the reactor complex in Fukushima, the half-million displaced citizens, along with the substantially understated death …
Other Middle East updates Egypt has postponed final decision on its first nuclear powered investment, in the aftermath of its own turmoil. It is possible that outside (French, Korean, Japanese, and Russian partners), may also go slow on next steps for projects throughout the region (Kuwait, Jordan, UAE). Roughly twenty projects are in various …