Norway’s national oil company is betting $20 billion that the future of the energy business lies under the U.S. They’re not alone. Out the helicopter window, as the muddy waters dumping out […]
China Could Be Rare Earth Metals Importer by 2014
U.S. and Canadian producers of heavy rare earth metals are poised to benefit as China becomes a net importer of some of the materials as early as 2014, said Peter Cashin, chief […]
On-bill Repayment: Great Promise, but Challenges Remain
On-bill repayment has received a great deal of attention during the last few years as a potential approach to expanding the reach of energy efficiency financing in the residential and commercial sectors. […]
“Energy Independence in an Interdependent World” by Joseph S. Nye
CAMBRIDGE – When President Richard Nixon proclaimed in the early 1970’s that he wanted to secure national energy independence, the United States imported a quarter of its oil. By the decade’s end, […]
The Efficiency Tango: A Deeper Look at Geothermal Heat Pump Efficiency
A couple weeks ago, I compared the efficiency of the two most advanced geothermal heat pumps (GHPs) recently launched by Waterfurnace Renewable Energy (TSX:WFI, OTC:WFIFF) and Climatemaster, as division of LSB Industries […]
Crude oils have different quality characteristics
Many types of crude oil are produced around the world. The market value of an individual crude stream reflects its quality characteristics. Two of the most important quality characteristics are density and […]
Energy Source – How we power the world
News of a “monster” natural gas find last month in British Columbia has one again highlighted that North Americans need to make a choice. Do we want to keep the huge volumes […]
A PACE Rebirth? Sacramento and Ygrene Try to Unlock Green Homes
Property assessed clean energy, or PACE, financing — paying for home solar installations, energy efficiency retrofits and other green improvements through property taxes — was all the rage a few years ago. […]
In Europe, Coal Regains Its Crown
According to BP’s “Statistical Review of World Energy,” released last month, coal consumption in Europe went up 3.3% last year over 2010. Germany, the biggest consumer of coal in Europe, consumed 77.6 […]
Competition among fuels for power generation driven by changes in fuel prices
The mix of fuels used to generate electricity has varied over time. Several factors, especially changes in relative fossil fuel prices, have influenced the mix of energy sources used. EIA recently released […]
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