Over the last couple of months, I’ve noticed (1) a huge hike in my electric bill, (2) a huge jump in email and mail offering better rates for power than ComEd, the local (expensive) utility, and (3) a huge number of storms and heat waves - leading to power outages from damage or lack of power available from the grid to your house. So what do you do ( Read more... )

Due to the demand for coal dropping due to the worldwide recession,  Ukrainian coal mines are shutting down or not paying their workers, with a large glut of unsold coal.

After the Russian company Gazprom decided to play politics with its natural gas supply to the rest of Europe, the Europeans have been connecting up with other suppliers and ( Read more... )

The EU is beginning to realize that being so dependant on Russian natural gas is a really bad idea, and are willing to chip in seriously on an alternate NON-Russian pipeline and sourcing from former Soviet states in the Caucasus and Central Asia.  Good on them!

In Alaskan politics, you have to remember that the main support of the state revenue system is the tax-on-oil-stuff coming out of the north slope…and that all Alaskans get a cut back from the state of around $1700 a year in ‘reverse taxes’.  So EVERYONE supports drilling in ANWR in Alaskan politics.  Otherwise, they’d have to pay for the state ( Read more... )

I’d pay attention to the Georgia / Russia if I were you guys.   There’s more than you think at stake.
( Read the rest of this entry » )

NY Times story that reviews the oil and gas drilling situation in the USA West, and finds that oil is very much secondary to drilling for natural gas. The reason is simple; that’s what is more plentiful.  And the oil production in the USA is dropping because things are getting pumped out.

Dusty Horwitt, a senior analyst for public lands at the ( Read more... )