August 2015

American crude oil stocks decrease 4.2 million barrels

Crude oil production drops 145,000 b/d PLATTS – The U.S. commercial crude oil stocks decreased 4.2 million barrels to 459.7 million barrels in the week that ended July 24, Energy Information Administration (EIA) data showed last week. Analysts surveyed Monday by Platts had expected a 700,000-barrel decline. The weekly decline was driven by crude oil production, […]

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Clean Power Plan winners and losers

Clean Power Plan relies heavily on renewable energy sources WASHINGTON – President Barack Obama is mandating even steeper greenhouse gas cuts from U.S. power plants than previously expected, while granting states more time and broader options to comply. The tweaks to Obama’s unprecedented emissions limits on power plants, to be unveiled at the White House on Monday, aim to address

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Coal producer Alpha Natural Resources files for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection

Utilities switching away from coal to natural gas Alpha Natural Resources is filing for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection, the fourth big coal producer to do so within the last two years. The company operates about 60 coal mines throughout Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Kentucky, and Wyoming. Coal prices have plunged in recent years as utilities

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Hydropower – Northeast desperately needs energy, eco-activists try to block Canadian imports

New Englanders will pay a tops-in-the-nation 20.2 cents per kilowatt-hour in Q3 of this year. Canadian hydropower could lower rates. As President Obama prepares to close coal power plants across the country with the Clean Power Plan, New England environmentalists oppose importing more Canadian clean hydropower. Plenty of raw electricity sloshes around in Quebec’s rivers and reservoirs,

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HitchBOT the hitch hiking robot dies on the mean streets of Philadelphia

HitchBOT, a hitchhiking robot that captured the hearts of fans worldwide, met its demise in the U.S. The Canadian researchers who created HitchBOT as a social experiment told The Associated Press that someone in Philadelphia damaged the robot beyond repair early Saturday, ending its first American tour after about two weeks. “Sadly, sadly it’s come to

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Clean Power Plan: Mandated carbon cuts to be steeper than expected

EPA will unveil Clean Power Plan Monday, year after President Obama proposed steep GHG cuts President Barack Obama and his Clean Power Plan will impose even steeper cuts on greenhouse gas emissions from U.S. power plants than previously expected, senior administration officials said Sunday. The President called the Clean Power Plan the most significant step

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Exxon Mobil posts 2Q profit of $4.19 billion, result misses forecasts

Oil prices drop takes toll on Exxon Mobil financial performance Exxon Mobil Corp. (XOM) on Friday reported second-quarter profit of $4.19 billion. On a per-share basis, the Irving, Texas-based company said it had net income of $1. The results fell short of Wall Street expectations, but Exxon does not adjust its reported results based on one-time

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