Category Archives: Energy

Asking the poor to foot the bill…

Posted on September 22, 2009 by mcblogger

A few well meaning people have a problem with Austin Energy’s plan to implement a climate change plan because it will increase prices for low income customers. Rep. Rodriguez has a very well written (and well thought out) smackdown. What … Continue reading →

Posted in Austin, Energy | 2 Comments

Why is gas still so high?

Posted on July 30, 2009 by mcblogger

It’s the speculation, stupid. Gasoline futures on Nymex have risen every day since July 13 and prices have jumped 28 cents in less than two weeks. “There’s just a crowd behavior, and it’s forcing prices above what it should be,” … Continue reading →

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Green Exxon?

Posted on July 15, 2009 by mcblogger

Not really, but it’s a start… ExxonMobil and biotech firm Synthetic Genomics (SGI) announced on Tuesday a new alliance to rproduce alternative fuel made from photosynthetic algae. ExxonMobil expects to spend more than $600 million on the project–$300 million internally … Continue reading →

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My new favorite ad…

Posted on February 27, 2009 by mcblogger

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Deregulation FAIL

Posted on February 10, 2009 by mcblogger

In 1999, Texas deregulated the retail electricity market. Austin kept it’s municipal power company and remained regulated. Since 1999, rates have increased by 25% in Austin. In the deregulated parts of Texas, rates have gone up 64%. The industry wants … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Energy, Texas | Comments Off

The first step…

Posted on December 30, 2008 by mcblogger

…toward practical fusion. In the spring, a team will begin attempts to ignite a tiny man-made star inside a laboratory and trigger a thermonuclear reaction. Its goal is to generate temperatures of more than 100 million degrees Celsius and pressures … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy, Science4Dumbies | 1 Comment

Oil : How low do we go…

Posted on December 5, 2008 by mcblogger

This is one of the best pieces written on the oil market and the current position. The reality is that speculation was driving up prices (we talked about this) in concert with the weak dollar. I wrote that piece in … Continue reading →

Posted in Economy, Energy | Comments Off

It’s official… Energy Deregulation failed

Posted on November 26, 2008 by mcblogger

Coby and Vince have more on the reports out recently detailing the absolute failure of electricity deregulation in Texas. Which comes as a huge shock to us. So why make a big deal out of it anymore? Texans in deregulation … Continue reading →

Posted in Energy, Texas | Comments Off

Manipulating the market

Posted on November 2, 2008 by mcblogger

(I lost track of this post which was originally written at the beginning of September. Thought it was kinda interesting in light of the current price of oil) Would it surprise you to know, that refining capacity utilization has dropped … Continue reading →

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FINALLY…

Posted on October 29, 2008 by mcblogger

High efficiency solar… Solar panels generate electricity when photons in sunlight knock loose electrons in silicon or another semiconductor. Other concentrated photovoltaic makers magnify sunlight about 500 times. SUNRGI says it can multiply that by four because it has a … Continue reading →

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