ALASKA GLACIERS LOSING 75B TONS OF ICE/YEAR .... (Charlie Rose leading his PBS show off with deflategate.) .... (And I'm listening to Joseph Prince on Daystar. And getting real with you, pards.) .... Heat wave in Mideast causing day off in Iraq .... Hidden ocean found under China's largest basin larger than US' 5 Great Lakes combined. (How deep?) .... Senate committee OK'd energy bill lifting crude export ban .... DOE settlement. To rewrite walk-in freezer energy efficiency regs .... Washington State giving beekeepers farmer status .... Rio's Olympic waters teeming with viruses .... Greens' alarm over clear-cutting Cambodia's protected forests .... UN calling on big banks to address financial risks of deforestation .... World Bank pushing rich countries to deliver on climate change finance pledges .... Mekong Delta suffering from rising salt waters .... Sudan plans to increase powergen up to 15% with new hydropower in coming year. Protests in capitol over power cuts .... Schneider El, Saft patnering on two 1Mw solar/1Mw power storage plants on Corsica .... 4.2M bl decline in US crude stockpile last week .... EIA est 151Kb/d drop in US oil production last week to 8.95Mb/d .... Kurds retaliated against Turkey attacks. Blew up NG pipeline from Iran to Turkey, oil pipe from Iraq .... Oil majors cutting 10K more jobs .... Low oil prices enabling India to end subsidies, start taxing fuels .... China NGO filed suit v. Conoco, CNOOC over oil spills 4 yrs ago. China court agreed to hear cases 1st time ever after new law this year .... Iowa wholesale E85 selling for ~$1/gal under regular unleaded gas .... NG-fueled 300Mw "peaking plant" OK'd in UK. 200M Pounds. Online in '19 .... Marubeni to supply Hanwha (HQCL) solar panels for 53Mw plant in Fukushima Japan. Online mid-'17 .... China Longyuan 300Mw offshore wind project .... Abengoa Yieldco 1H revs up 82% .... Solar City (SCTY) $155M 2Q loss. (Aren't businesses formed to make money?) .... 5 more elephants poached in Kenya .... Oil spill off Calif shore near same spot as last one. This one possibly from offshore rig .... So. What's going on? China market implosion. Iran nuke deal. ISIS war. Extreme weather. Corporate profits and losses. As we get closer to the end of this age and the second coming of Christ. Happy trails, pards. Happy trails.

Wednesday, July 29, 2015

ALL BUT 1 OF MAIN TRACKERS OF GLOBAL SURFACE TEMPS NOW PASSING OVER 1*C UP FROM START OF INDUSTRIAL AGE .... EPA may extend Clean Power Plan compliance 2 yrs to '22 .... Over $150B of FL property may be below high tides by '50: new risk report .... Seychelles abolished duties on EVs. Previously 5%. Duties on hybrids down to 5% from 15%. Financial, tech support for rooftop solar coming in '16 .... Record rainfall wiped out much of NM drought .... OR gov ordered state agencies to cut water use .... Washington gov set carbon cap .... NASA mission to measure Greenland ice melt .... Toxic algae return to L. Erie .... Brain-eating amoeba found in 2nd LA parish .... Asbestos in D.C. Metro cars "no risk": officials .... Weed-eating goats stabbed while "on duty" in Idaho .... Sinkholes abound as Dead Sea shrinks .... Buffalo snow pile from winter still melting .... Sea level in D.C. area rising faster than anywhere else on E. Coast .... Massive carbon sinks detected beneath world's deserts .... UPS to buy 46M gal of biodiesel. Wants to displace 12% of petrol fuels used in ground fleet by '17 .... Brazil arrested CEO of Electronuclear in graft case .... 2 fracking wells shutdown after Okla quakes .... Higher-risk "shallow fracking" more common than thought: study. Threatens aquifers .... NRG Energy launched community solar biz. 100Mw in pipeline. 1Mw start in Mass .... Solar City (SCTY) launched plan to bring solar to small, midsize biz .... Feds allege Xcel contractors falsified weld tests at MN nuke plant .... NV Energy, Berkshire joined other comps in American Business Act on Climate pledge .... Canadian Solar (CSIQ) got $28M loan from Rabobank to build up to 20Mw in Japan .... Iberdrola Scot unit started build of 239Mw, $468M wind plant in Scotland. Online in '17 .... Iberdrola, SCE 132Mw wind power agreement .... Terra Form (TERP) to launch $200M bond in 4Q .... Smart cities programs need more scale-up capital, not early-stage funds .... Brazil approved 35% increase in solar bidding cap .... House Rep Fattah indicted on racketeering .... 4 Northern White Rhinos remain .... Links between Turkey, ISIS now "undeniable": western official.

13 MAJOR US COMPS ANNOUNCED $140B COMMITMENT TO NEW INVESTMENT IN CLEAN ENERGY, DECREASE CARBON FOOTPRINTS. Part of White House initiative .... H. Clinton released clean energy goals if elected. Clean energy in every US home within a decade .... China allowing lawsuits v. polluters. 1st time in 25 yrs .... Weakened solar activity could speed Greenland ice melt: report .... El Nino threatens biodiversity on Galapagos: scientists .... Car-free days in European cities to tackle emissions .... EV share program launched in L.A. for low income, disadvantaged folks. State law a reason .... Iran plans $185B of oil/gas projects by '20. World's largest NG reserves, 4th largest oil reserves. $2B already done deals .... Canada NG exports down 21% '10-'14 .... Canadian Solar (CSIQ) completed 100Mw farm in Ontario .... Pemex missing 2.7M bls oil. (Whoops.) .... US oil rig count up 21 last week .... Monthly cost of storing, financing oil barrel at Cushing tripled in last 2 months .... US natgas storage up 28% v. '14 at 2.8TCF. 3% above 5-yr avg .... 5-day planned ceasefire in Yemen for humanitarian relief .... Over $16T corp debt in China. $800B to rescue stock market so far .... Russia/China NG pipeline project postponed indefinitely over slowing NG demand in China, up only 2% in 1H15 .... China's direct investment in Russia down 25% yoy in 1H15. Trade between them down 30% .... Russia inflation up 16% in 1Q15. Real wages down 14% in May. 9.4% drop in retail sales in June. IMF est. their GDP to drop 3.8% in '15. Reserve fund may be depleted by '17 at present rate. ~25% of regional govts virtually bankrupt .... Russia oil production may drop 800Kb/d by '17 .... Bechtel ground break on 700Mw combined-cycle NG power plant in OH. Online in '17 .... Sunpower (SPWR) bought 100Mw Nevada project from KOMIPO. Online in '16 .... Hydro-Quebec RFP for 6Mw wind project .... Trans Alta (Canada) to buy 71Mw clean power assets in US, including 1st solar, for $75.8M + $41.8M debt, obligations. 21Mw solar in Mass, 50Mw of wind in MN .... J-Power started building 16Mw wind project in Japan. Online in early '17. Enercon 2.3Mw turbines .... EDF deployed 150Mw solar in India .... Kodiak Island was spending $7M/yr on 2.8M gal of diesel for power. Now gets all power from wind, hydro.

Friday, July 24, 2015

GREENLAND, ANTARCTICA GLACIERS WILL MELT 10X FASTER THAN PREVIOUS ESTS: HANSEN, CO-AUTHORS. Sea level rise at least 10 ft in as little as 50 yrs .... US installed 1.6Gw wind power in 2Q. Best ever 2Q. Over 13.6Gw - over 100 projects in 24 states - wind in construction. ~2Gw installed 1H15. Now 67.8Gw wind cap in US .... Clean power, energy efficiency will drive down utility bills: report .... US' top 100 power plants cut carbon emissions 12% .... Rice paddies a chief source of methane - up to 17% of total, 25-100M metric tons/yr: study in "Nature" .... World Bank: putting price on carbon would help world economies .... Lake Michigan levels up after record lows .... Construction start on 5-turbine wind farm offshore Rhode Island .... Solar3D (SLTD) unit $10M contract for 2Mw project in Cal .... SkyPower (Canada) $2.2B deal for 1Gw solar project in Kenya. 5-yr buildout. Also to buildout 6Gw solar next 5 yrs in Egypt, Nigeria .... EcoSolifer (Swiss) plans to build solar panel plant in Brazil. ~80Mw/yr .... Georgia PSC OK'd 46Mw solar project at USMC base .... sPower broke ground on 45Mw solar project in AZ .... WGL Energy Services marketing partnership with Solar City (SCTY) for MD, DE, PA, Wash. DC .... Japan Pulp & Paper finished 20Mw solar plant .... Concord $34.7M buy of 48Mw wind farm .... EPA "methane challenge" for oil/gas industry .... DiCaprio auction raised $40M for environmental projects .... USDA to survey 24K farmers on conservation practices .... Bamboo to power power plant in Japan.

RECORD GLOBAL HIGH TEMP FOR JUNE, 1H15: US SCIENTISTS .... Global clean energy M&A activity lowest 1H level since '10 .... Record Pacific Ocean heat strengthening El Nino .... Colorado almost drought free for 1st time in 6 yrs .... Drought damaging winter wheat crop in MT, OR, WA, ID .... Natural, weather-related disasters displaced 19M worldwide in '14. China, India, Philippines worst hit .... Nigerian govt workers in SE not paid for 5 mo. Treasury "virtually empty": Buhari .... Buhari fired all top military officers over Boko Haram failure .... Venezuela diluting its heavy crude with Nigerian oil .... Silt in US waterways, ports could limit US LNG exports if not dredged: DOE official .... Cheaper to import LNG than build infra, drill wells to meet peak demand in Argentina .... Tech-recoverable Utica resources more than thought: WV University. 782TCF, 1.9B bls. USGS '12 est. 38TCF, 940M bls .... Hewlett-Packard to power TX data centers with 112Mw of wind power from SUNE (Sun Ed) farm being expanded .... Vermont new law makes any facility that makes 52 or more tons of food waste/year within 20 miles of composting facility must take it to compost, not landfill .... Fed Ex to buy renewable jet fuel .... OPEC production up 283Kb/d in June to 31.4M. May production revised up 120K .... W Europe curtailing nuke power, E Europe wants more .... Risen Energy (China) MOU for 100Mw solar in India .... Kyrgyzstan cancelled coop agreement with US .... ISIS bombs in Turkey .... UK to revive N Sea oil/gas development.

CLIMATE CHANGE GLOBE'S TOP CONCERN OUTSIDE OF N AM, EUROPE: SURVEY .... Climate change quadruples chances for some heat waves: research .... Iraq in heat wave .... Climate change threatening fish critical to Lake Erie econ: study .... Thousands of jobs created by NE US regional emissions-cutting program .... Con Ed reported 45% drop in GHG emissions over 9 yrs .... First Solar (FSLR), utilities data says big solar farms cheaper than rooftops. (Though less independent.) .... Mexico oil block auction. Majors didn't bid. Just 2 blocks went successfully .... PA oil/gas officials broke with other regulators, dropped Frac Focus website for reporting chems in fracking .... Alabama Power to boost clean/ren powergen portfolio .... Suncor to mine oil sands with radio waves .... DOI proposed rule to protect 6K miles of US streams from coal mining .... 5 nations agreed to bar commercial fishing in central Arctic Ocean .... Utilities filed challenge to EPA coal ash disposal rule .... Calif regulators OK'd sharp limits on lawn sizes .... Lack of board diversity hurts US comps: study .... Scientists created bacon-flavored seaweed .... Natgas 31% of US powgen in April. Coal 30%. 1st-ever switchover .... 65 years before el for all in Africa .... China power use up 1.8% in June .... China EV sales up in declining overall auto sales .... Rene Sola to supply 20Mw solar for Germany project .... Vestas 26Mw supply for S Korea wind project .... New Zealand, Japan MOU for geothermal coop.

Wednesday, July 15, 2015

SCIENTIST PREDICTS SOLAR ACTIVITY WILL DROP OVER 1/2 IN '30-'40. Discovered fluctuating magnetic waves in 2 layers in sun. Decreasing sunspots. 97% accurate. Cycle last occurred 1645-1715. (So. We should abate our global warming reduction efforts to glide with sun activity? Or will Jesus come back first so we don't have to figure it out?) .... Warm air, rain hastening melt of Greenland icesheet: study .... '12 Russian flood was result of climate change: study .... Delays to activate residential solar in US up 68% in '14 v. '13 .... N Am led 2Q clean power project finance with $16B .... Leo Dicaprio donated $15M to enviros .... US ethanol production reached 15B gal/yr .... E85 more than $1/gal less than wholesale gasoline in Iowa .... Iran deal would still keep US out of Iran's oil/gas biz .... Poland, CZ spending $180M to protect their power grids from German power surges. On windy days power flow to east can exceed that from 4 nuke reactors. (Germany needs to build grid to acommodate new clean power.) .... July 9 Denmark wind power generated 116% of country's power need .... Con Ed developing 95Mw wind project in S Dakota .... Scatec Solar, partners to build 33Mw in Mali. World Bank help. Total cost E52M .... Yieldcos leading consolidation of Italy, Spain solar marts .... TERP to offer $300M of new bonds .... 400 comps committed to halving food waste by '25 .... Lewis Clark Natl Forest adding 8K acres .... DOE lab $12M for carbon storage research .... LA County to ban large wind turbines .... Twin Cities 2K deaths from poor air quality in '08: study .... Boston snow pile finally melted.

Monday, July 13, 2015

TOP IEA OFFICIAL CALLING FOR GLOBAL PEAK OF GHG EMISSIONS BY '20 .... Seattle's hottest June on record .... Drought insurance plan for African countries to expand .... Beetles killing millions of drought-afflicted Cal trees .... 75% of China cities aren't meeting air quality standards .... DOE to launch $20M program to link small clean energy comps with national labs .... Alaska started cleaning up debris from Japan tsunami ('11) .... DOE suspended Recovery Act funding for Cal carbon capture project at coal power plant .... US oil production peaked in April at 9.7Mb/d: EIA. Down 50Kb/d in May. Est. avg 9.5Mb/d in '15, 9.3M in '16 .... EIA est. US NG production up 4.3BCF/d in '15, up 5.7%. Est. up 1.6BCF/d in '16. NG storage 35% above this time '14, just above 5-yr avg .... Rosneft buying 49% of India refinery, plans to increase crude oil exports to Asia to 40% of total by '19 from 33% now .... Jamaica started construction on 20Mw solar plant. $61M. Will replace use of 3M gal of oil/yr .... 21Mw solar plant started ops in Japan. Toshiba panels .... Iraq oil production hit 4.1Mb/d in June. Basra heavy crude, though, in trouble of finding market .... Libya unity govt agreement brokered by UN last week. Country reportedly producing 430Kb/d now .... Sauds issued 1st sovereign bonds since '07. Also to loan Russia $10B .... Millions of Yemenis facing famine .... Visa, Master Cards to be replaced by Russian credit card in Russia .... Atlas, partners developing 80Mw solar project in Malawi .... Kuwait, Abu Dhabi funds backing $300M wind, solar expansion plans in Jordan .... Maharashtra set 21Gw clean/ren power target .... Pipeline spilled 4.2K gal crude in IL .... 54 stingrays suffocated at Chicago zoo.

Wednesday, July 1, 2015