$1.4b worth of overseas energy projects approved in Oct

$1.4b worth of overseas energy projects approved in Oct China Daily In the past, the government had only encouraged energy businesses "to go out" and find ways to supplement China's energy and resources. Nowadays, though, going outside the country can also help eliminate overcapacity in some industries, in the ...http://usa.chinadaily.com.cn/business/2012-10/18/content_15829215.htm

Clinton Cites Energy in Diplomacy From Oil to Climate

Clinton Cites Energy in Diplomacy From Oil to Climate
Businessweek
U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton today promoted energy as a foreign-policy priority, citing Iran and the South China Sea as oil-rich expanses where diplomacy and economics converge. “Today, energy cuts across the entirety of U.S. foreign policy ...http://www.businessweek.com/news/2012-10-18/clinton-cites-energy-in-diplomacy-from-oil-to-climate

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• Clinton Cites Energy in Diplomacy From Oil to Climate - Bloomberg

NRC To Increase Oversight At Duke Energy's SC Nuclear Plant

NRC To Increase Oversight At Duke Energy's SC Nuclear Plant ...
The Nuclear Regulatory Commission on Friday announced it would step up oversight of Duke Energy Corp.'s Catawba nuclear power plant in South Carolina , ...
www.law360.com/.../nrc-to-increase-oversight-at-duke-energy...

Experts weigh in on San Onofre

Experts weigh in on San Onofre Power Engineering Magazine Agran also called evacuation plans in case of a nuclear emergency at the plant "totally inadequate." Earlier this month, Edison presented a plan to the Nuclear Regulatory Commission for restarting the Unit 2 reactor at San Onofre. The plant's reactors ...http://www.power-eng.com/news/2012/10/18/experts-weigh-in-on-san-onofre.html

NUKE MATTERS: American Hometown goes nuclear

NUKE MATTERS: America's Hometown goes nuclear Wicked Local Despite this, the regulatory body that oversees nuclear facility safety in the U.S., the Nuclear Regulatory Commission (NRC), has extended licenses to facilities allowing them to operate decades past their intended lifespans – including Pilgrim ...http://www.wickedlocal.com/plymouth/topstories/x1292876093/NUKE-MATTERS-America-s-Hometown-goes-nuclear#axzz29gdDwlGx

NRC Spells Out Steps for Reopening Uranium Conversion Facility

NRC Spells Out Steps for Reopening Uranium Conversion Facility
Occupational Health and Safety
The U.S. Nuclear Regulatory Commission announced it has issued a Confirmatory Order to Honeywell International, Inc. outlining actions the company must take before it can resume its uranium conversion operations at the Honeywell Metropolis Works ...http://ohsonline.com/articles/2012/10/18/nrc-spells-out-steps-for-reopening-uranium-conversion-facility.aspx?admgarea=news

UK nuclear new build faces new landscape of vendors

UK nuclear new build faces new landscape of vendors

by dyurman

Areva and Chinese partner pull out of bidding for Horizon
By Dan Yurmanhttp://ansnuclearcafe.org/2012/10/18/uk-nuclear-new-build/

Will the Real Mr. Oil Please Stand Up?

Will the Real Mr. Oil Please Stand Up?

by Ron Kotrba, Biodiesel

Ron Kotrba, Biodiesel
I have never seen two presidential candidates fight over which one of them is the Oil, Gas and Coal King as I did last night watching the second 2012 presidential debate at Hofstra University.http://www.biodieselmagazine.com/blog/article/2012/10/will-the-real-mr-oil-please-stand-up

China tacitly permits resumption of new N plants' construction

China tacitly permits resumption of new N plants' construction Economic Times BEIJING: The Chinese government has tacitly begun granting permissions for the resumption of construction of several new nuclear power plants that were halted after the Fukoshima disaster in Japan, a report in the official media here said. The Chinese ...http://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/politics/nation/china-tacitly-permits-resumption-of-new-n-plants-construction/articleshow/16866248.cms

Nuclear power - Barakah begins.

Nuclear power - Barakah begins. Power Engineering Magazine The board of the bank has authorised a $2 billion direct loan to the Barakah One Company of the United Arab Emirates to underwrite the export of American equipment and expertise for the plant, supporting about "5000 American jobs across 17 states.http://www.power-eng.com/news/2012/10/18/nuclear-power-barakah-begins.html

TEXT-Fitch rates China Guandong Nuclear at 'AA-'/'A+'

TEXT-Fitch rates China Guandong Nuclear at 'AA-'/'A+'
Reuters
Oct 18 - Fitch Ratings has assigned China Guangdong Nuclear Power Holding Co., Ltd. (CGN) a Long-Term Local Currency Issuer Default Rating (IDR) of 'AA-' with Negative Outlook and a Long-Term Foreign Currency IDR of 'A+' with Stable Outlook.http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/10/18/idUSWLA491920121018

Nuclear power plants located in tsunami risk zones

Nuclear power plants located in tsunami risk zones
Phys.Org
The study is the first to look into the location of nuclear power plants and correlate them to areas at risk of tsunamis. 'We are dealing with the first vision of the global distribution of civil nuclear power plants situated on the coast and exposed ...http://phys.org/news/2012-10-nuclear-power-tsunami-zones.html

Proposed Safety Spending in China Hints at Resumption of New Nuclear Plant Approvals

Proposed Safety Spending in China Hints at Resumption of New Nuclear Plant Approvals

by Nuclear Street News Team

The Chinese government proposed $12 billion in safety improvements at nuclear facilities Tuesday, brightening the prospect that the country is moving toward resumption of approvals for new nuclear plants.

China is far and away the world leader in nuclear construction, with more than two dozen reactors going up across the country. While work has resumed at those sites, permission for new projects has been on hold since a review of the country's nuclear safety framework was initiated following the Fukushima Daiichi accidents in Japan.http://nuclearstreet.com/nuclear_power_industry_news/b/nuclear_power_news/archive/2012/10/18/proposed-safety-spending-in-china-hints-at-resumption-of-new-nuclear-plant-approvals-101802.aspx

Oman Opts Not to Pursue Atomic Power

Oman Opts Not to Pursue Atomic Power

Oman has chosen not to purse a domestic atomic energy capability out of safety concerns, the sultanate's foreign minister revealed in a recent television interview.
Foreign Minister Youssef bin Alawi bin Abdullah said the 2011 nuclear meltdown at the Fukushima Daiichi power plant in Japan played a significant role in the government's decision to give up its earlier nuclear energy goal, the Qatar News Agency reported.http://www.nti.org/gsn/article/oman-opts-not-pursue-atomic-power/

Commentary on Coal

Coal Could Decide the Election

 

What the Frack?!

How the 2012 election could come down to one thing: coal.

from RealClearEnergy - Homepage by David Roberts, Foreign Policy

David Roberts, Foreign Policy
Mitt Romney and the U.S. coal industry are engaged in a very public love affair. In August, the Republican candidate stood on a stage in Ohio and condemned Barack Obama's "war on coal," backed by a group of beefy, safety-helmeted men who looked like they just stomped out of a coal mine. Those miners later appeared in one of Romney's two September ads focused on coal, the "way of life" that, in his telling, Obama is ruthlessly attempting to crush.http://www.foreignpolicy.com/articles/2012/10/16/what_the_frack?page=full

 

Both Romney and Obama Ignore Coal's Dark Side

from RealClearEnergy - Homepage by Editors, Bloomberg

Editors, Bloomberg
Mitt Romney and Barack Obama have traded barbs over coal in both their debates, each accusing the other of failing to champion the fuel. It’s a shame that neither U.S. presidential candidate acknowledges the difficult economic reality coal now faces, or mentions that this form of power still produces intolerable amounts of pollution and greenhouse gases." I'm going to make sure we can continue to burn clean coal" Romney, the Republican nominee, said at the first debate on Oct. 3. Obama didn't disagree. When they met again this week, they...http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-10-17/championing-coal-romney-and-obama-ignore-its-dark-side.html

 

 

Coal Is Killing Us. Why Do We Let Them?

from RealClearEnergy - Homepage by Kelly Rigg, Huffington Post

Kelly Rigg, Huffington Post
There are no technological barriers to staving off a climate crisis. So what's really holding us back? I've recently returned home after two weeks of intensive meetings, workshops and speaking engagements in the U.S., where this question was at the heart of virtually every conversation.http://www.huffingtonpost.com/kelly-rigg/killing-us-with-coal-why-_b_1965311.html

 

U.S. Energy Administration Report Released: Biofuels and Trends

U.S. Energy Administration Report Released: Biofuels and Trends

from PEN-e from Pace Law School Library by Taryn Rucinski

Recently, the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) released a report titled, Biofuels and Trends (2012). The 48-page report available here, was released on Oct. 15, 2012. Highlights for this report include the following:

• Ethanol grew from 8 percent of U.S. gasoline consumption by volume in 2009 to nearly 10 percent in 2011 and in the first eight months of 2012. With almost all gasoline in the United States already blended with 10 percent ethanol (E10), the maximum level approved for use in all cars and light trucks, significant increases in domestic consumption of ethanol face a blend wall unless higher percentage ethanol blends can achieve significant market penetration.

• While the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has approved use of a 15 percent ethanol blend (E15) for model year 2001 and newer cars and light trucks, concerns related to automobile warranties, potential liability for misfueling, and infrastructure costs are likely to limit E15 use to low volumes in the near term.

• Exports of ethanol increased substantially as producers looked abroad for new markets and Brazil experienced a poor sugar harvest during 2011-12.

• In the 2010/11 agricultural marketing year, 40 percent of the corn crop and 14 percent of soybean oil production was used to produce biofuels and other products, including distillers grains for use as animal feed.

• The federal excise tax credits for non-cellulosic ethanol and biodiesel and the ethanol import tariff expired at the end of 2011.

• A serious drought in the midwestern United States during summer 2012 lowered production estimates for corn and other crops, resulting in higher prices and a reduced forecast for biofuels production for the 2012/13 marketing year.

• Plans for a pipeline to deliver ethanol from the Midwest to the Northeast were withdrawn during 2011.

• Cellulosic biofuels production to date is far below the targets set by the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA 2007). EPA issued waivers that substantially reduced the cellulosic biofuels obligation under RFS2 for the 2010, 2011, and 2012 program years. Even that anticipated level of commercial production failed to materialize. There was no production of cellulosic biofuels or Renewable Identification Numbers (RINs) in 2010 or 2011. While a small number of cellulosic RINs may be available to be applied towards the reduced RFS2 requirements for 2012 set under EPA's waiver, production of cellulosic biofuel RINs in 2012 is likely to be well short of the reduced 2012 requirement. (footnotes omitted)

A Mathematical Model Of Shale Gas Well Production Decline

A Mathematical Model Of Shale Gas Well Production Decline

http://seekingalpha.com/instablog/121744-mark-anthony/563001-a-mathematical-model-of-shale-gas-well-production-decline

Natural Gas Around The World: Discoveries, Developments

Natural Gas Around The World: Discoveries, Developments

by Tracey Ferguson

Here is what’s going on in the natural gas industry around the world: Puerto Rico Following strong opposition from islanders and environmentalists, the government of Puerto Rico has formally withdrawn plans to build a natural gasA naturally occurring mixture of hydrocarbon and non-hydrocarbon gases beneath the earth’s surface – often in association with petroleum.http://shalestuff.com/controversy-2/natural-gas-world-discoveries-developments-3/article03846

Rolls-Royce awarded Chinese nuclear contract

by assystem admin

Rolls-Royce awarded Chinese nuclear contract

Power systems developer Rolls-Royce has been awarded a contract by China Guangdong Nuclear Power Corporation to supply its Spinline digital safety instrumentation and control (I&C) technology for the modernisation programme of the Ling Ao nuclear power plant.http://energyandnuclear.com/2012/10/18/rolls-royce-awarded-chinese-nuclear-contract/

Why Natural Gas isn’t Likely to be the World’s Energy Savior

Why Natural Gas isn’t Likely to be the World’s Energy Savior

Posted: 18 Oct 2012 05:20 AM PDT

We keep hearing about the many benefits of natural gas–how burning it releases less CO2 than oil or coal, and how it burns with few impurities, so does not have the pollution problems of coal. We also hear about the possibilities of releasing huge amounts of new natural gas supplies, through the fracking of shale gas. Reported reserves for natural gas also seem to be quite high, especially in the Middle East and the Former Soviet Union.http://theenergycollective.com/gail-tverberg/131601/why-natural-gas-isn-t-likely-be-world-s-energy-savior?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=The+Energy+Collective+%28all+posts%29