Recent Gas News/GasBuddy Blog

LA Times -- Ford Motor Co. is expanding its production capacity to take advantage of the shift in buyer sentiment toward smaller cars and SUVs and for F-series truck sales spurred by the housing market recovery.

Ford said it will increase production by about 200,000 vehicles to 3.4 million this year. Part of that expansion will take place at the automaker's Flat Rock, Mich., assembly plant, which will be adding workers and shifts to meet strong demand in California and the West Coast.

Ford said California has become its fastest growing market for sales of its Fusion midsize sedan, which have climbed by 118% in the state through April, up to 7,000 cars.

Ford will be adding about 3,500 entry-level workers as part of the expansion.

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GasBuddy Blog -- 'Milennials' (everyone born between 1980 and 2000) are having a significant impact on transportation these days because researchers are intrigued by their attitudes toward driving and other things too.

If you listen to this group, the “driving boom is over,” or so says a new study of American attitudes towards the automobile.

After decades of adding more cars to their household fleet while moving further and further out into the suburbs, Americans are waiting longer to get licensed, driving less and increasingly turning to alternatives such as mass transit or car-sharing programs, according to a new study by the U.S. Public Research Interest Group, or PIRG.

A recent report from the Detroit Bureau says that...  (go to article)

Detroit Free Press -- It's hard to imagine a more painful mistake than accidentally pumping gasoline into the tank of a diesel car, resulting in costly engine damage. Now Volkswagen is taking steps to make sure it never happens.

The leading maker of diesel cars in the U.S. plans to retrofit 209,500 cars with barriers to make sure motorists can't mistakenly pump gas into their tanks, Automotive News reports. The service action will cover 209,500 cars in the U.S. built between 2009 and 2012. It includes the diesel versions of Jetta, Golf and Jetta SportWagen.

Automotive News obtained a memo from VW to its dealers in which its notes that more misfueling incidents have occurred as diesels have become more popular. And it tired of being in the bad-guy role since such mistakes aren't covered by warranty ...  (go to article)

cleantechnica.com -- A new study from Pacific Northwest National Laboratory (PNNL) estimates that the US could support the production of up to 25 billion gallons of algae biofuel annually. That accounts for a whopping one-twelfth of the nation’s current needs and it could prove even more significant if electric vehicles replace liquid-fuel vehicles in greater numbers, which seems likely.

As always, though, there’s a catch. Although the PNNL estimate is based on available land and water resources, the booming natural gas industry is already sucking water from critical areas at an increasing rate. If you’ve ever seen the animated short Bambi Meets Godzilla, you’ll have some idea of what the nascent algae biofuel industry is up against.

The new PNNL algae biofuel study focused primarily on the potential for gro  (go to article)

Natural News -- Practically everything you have been told by the mainstream scientific community and the media about the alleged detriments of greenhouse gases, and particularly carbon dioxide, appears to be false, according to new data compiled by NASA's Langley Research Center. As it turns out, all those atmospheric greenhouse gases that Al Gore and all the other global warming hoaxers have long claimed are overheating and destroying our planet are actually cooling it, based on the latest evidence.

As reported by Principia Scientific International (PSI), Martin Mlynczak and his colleagues over at NASA tracked infrared emissions from the earth's upper atmosphere during and following a recent solar storm that took place between March 8-10. (Cont)  (go to article)

Houston Business Journal -- Houston-based Halliburton Co. (NYSE: HAL) has deployed almost 100 light-duty compressed natural gas trucks at several of its U.S. operations.
The trucks were recently purchased as part of a pilot program, which Jim Brown, Halliburton’s western hemisphere president, said would provide a wealth of information about how to implement a broader adoption of CNG light-duty vehicles across the company.
“There is considerable focus across the industry to identify multiple ways to leverage this abundant, reliable and cleaner-burning source of energy in day-to-day operations,” Brown said in a statement. “The fleet of CNG vehicles is one more example where Halliburton is leading among oil and gas services companies regarding the use of American natural gas.”

YouTube video, “The Right Fuel for Today,  (go to article)

Environmental Leader -- Toyota, Mercedes-Benz and Nissan are members of the Energy Department’s newly launched public-private partnership focused on advancing hydrogen infrastructure to support transportation energy options including fuel cell electric vehicles.

The new partnership, H2USA, brings together automakers, government agencies, gas suppliers, and the hydrogen and fuel cell industries to coordinate research and identify cost-effective ways to deploy infrastructure that can deliver affordable hydrogen fuel in the US.

Current H2USA members include the American Gas Association, Association of Global Automakers, the California Fuel Cell Partnership, the Electric Drive Transportation Association, the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association, Hyundai Motor America, ITM Power, Massachusetts Hydrogen Coalitio  (go to article)

The Columbus Dispatch -- Natural-gas utilities want to change the law to make clear that consumers rather than shareholders can be charged cleanup costs for about 90 abandoned natural-gas plants in the state, according to an amendment that might get tucked into the state budget.

Some of the gas plants date to the 1800s, when communities used coal and other fuels to manufacture natural gas for use in lighting. The plants have all shut down, leaving polluted sites that have largely been absorbed by the state’s major utilities.

Some of those utilities, led by Duke Energy, are asking lawmakers to approve an amendment that would expand the companies’ ability to charge customers for cleaning up the sites. The proposal is one of more than a thousand items that groups are hoping to add to the budget, often with little d  (go to article)

The Washington Post -- Democratic gubernatorial candidate Terry McAuliffe now supports exploring for oil off the coast of Virginia, reversing his position on an issue that both sides of the debate consider to be crucial to the commonwealth’s long-term energy future.

When McAuliffe ran for governor in 2009 he said he would back “exploratory drilling for natural gas only“ and did “not support drilling for oil off our coast,” a fact that Republicans cite often in arguing that the Democrat is on the wrong side of the issue. But now that he’s running for governor again, facing Attorney General Ken Cuccinelli II (R) in November, McAuliffe has a different stance.  (go to article)

Edmonton Journal -- Alberta could green its image and add plenty of new turbines over the next few years with the right government incentives, the Canadian Wind Energy Association said in a report released Wednesday.  (go to article)

Business Insider -- "While this is not a free lunch, it should not be feared," they say. But the potential is staggering. Significant domestic job growth and economic expansion has begun."

No longer will a handful of energy producers be able to control markets. That's because other countries are discovering that they too possess large shale deposits.

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Rapid City Journal -- CHEYENNE, Wyo. | The newest electrical generation project in the top coal-mining state is a power plant to be fueled by natural gas.

Black Hills Corp. subsidiaries Cheyenne Light, Fuel & Power and Black Hills Power are building the Cheyenne Prairie Generating Station on the outskirts of Cheyenne. The companies held a groundbreaking ceremony for the power plant Wednesday.  (go to article)

foxbusiness.com -- Crude oil futures fell on Wednesday following an overnight slip triggered by a stronger dollar and as caution prevailed ahead of U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke's testimony to Congress.
On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in July traded at $95.73 a barrel at 0553 GMT, down $0.45 in the Globex electronic session. July Brent crude on London's ICE Futures exchange fell $0.32 to $103.59 a barrel.
Traders continued to stay on the sidelines, waiting for Bernanke's testimony, due later in the day, as they look for clues on the direction of monetary policy in the U.S., Daiichi Shohin analyst Koichi Murakami said.
There are other indicators due today including retail-sales data from the U.K. and Canada, Bank of England minutes, U.S. existing-home  (go to article)

The Home Page here under Related Articles -- OPEC is an acronym for Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. OPEC was formed in 1960 in Baghdad, Iraq with five founding member countries. Currently OPEC is a cartel composed of 11 oil producing countries. Current member countries include: Algeria, Indonesia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, and Venezuela. OPEC's stated purpose is said to serve three main functions:

Help stabilize world oil prices
Ensure oil producers achieve a reasonable rate of return on production
Ensure a stable supply of crude oil for consumer use. OPEC has a current goal of $27 US per barrel of oil.

This information should be changed!! It is from the 1960's!! HA!!  (go to article)

Fort Worth Star-Telegram -- Facing tight budgets and political pressure, the United States and many other countries are missing on a chance to invest in transportation, economists said Wednesday.

“I think of freedom as important and, to me, freedom is the capacity to move around,” Harvard University economist Amartya Sen told more than 1,000 people attending the first day of an International Transport Forum in Leipzig.

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Nasdaq -- Ford Motor Co. ( F ) said it would stop producing cars in Australia in 2016, foreshadowing hefty job losses in a setback for a government that's invested heavily in propping up the country's automobile industry.

The U.S. company said it would close down its Australian plants in October 2016 resulting in 1,200 job losses, citing unsustainably high business costs.  (go to article)

NBC News -- Electric car maker Tesla Motors has shifted into a good place: CEO Elon Musk intends to use the potential $1 billion from a new stock offering to pay off the maker’s $465 million in Department of Energy loans – and to help pay for other products that would grow the California automaker.

Musk, who uses tweets to signal his plans, has hinted that he will formally announce the payoff of the loans tomorrow. Such a move, coming nine years ahead of schedule, could save Tesla significant interest costs even as taxpayers receive as much as a $12 million profit. That would provide the Obama Administration a rare success in the highly controversial Department of Energy loan program.  (go to article)

Popular Science -- Sometime in the next few weeks, the 100,000th plug-in electric car will be sold in the U.S. But they're still mostly a mystery to the average new-car buyer, and there are a few key principles that get shared over and over again. Here they are, boiled down for easy consumption: eight things you need to know about electric cars.
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foxnews.com -- WASHINGTON – DEVELOPING: The House of Representatives has approved a measure to expedite construction of the Keystone pipeline.

Earlier version of story:

House Republicans pushed a proposal Wednesday to bypass the president to speed approval of the 1,700-mile Keystone XL pipeline, which would transport oil from Canada to Texas. Democrats criticized the plan as a blatant attempt to allow a foreign company to avoid environmental review.

As debate opened, Republicans said the measure was needed to ensure the long-delayed pipeline is built.

"This is the most studied pipeline in the history of mankind," said Rep. Lee Terry, R-Neb., the bill's sponsor.

"When is enough enough?" added Rep. Jeff Denham, R-Calif. "Five years? Six years? Ten years?"

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The Associated Press May 22, 2013 03:42:16 PM -- NEW YORK, N.Y. – The price of oil fell near US$94 a barrel Wednesday as U.S. crude oil supplies fell less than expected and demand for gasoline remained weak.

Benchmark crude for July delivery declined $1.90 to close at $94.28 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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BLOOMBERG NEWS -- Tesla Motors Inc., labeled a “loser” by Mitt Romney during the U.S. election, is giving President Barack Obama’s green-energy strategy a win after almost two years of failures pounced upon by Republicans.
The maker of the electric Model S car as early as May 22 will become the first recipient of a U.S. Energy Department vehicle loan to pay off its debt, Elon Musk, Tesla’s chief executive officer, said in a Twitter message May 20.
Tesla’s payoff may quell critics who said Obama shouldn’t have acted like a venture capitalist in picking green-energy companies to receive government loans and grants. Republican lawmakers have held up the bad bets made on plug-in carmaker Fisker Automotive Inc., its battery supplier A123 Systems Inc. and solar-panel maker Solyndra LLC as examples of rewarding un  (go to article)

Tesla -- ONLY AMERICAN CAR COMPANY TO HAVE PAID BACK GOVERNMENT

WEDNESDAY, MAY 22, 2013
PALO ALTO, Calif.-- Tesla Motors announced that it has paid off the entire loan awarded to the company by the Department of Energy in 2010. In addition to payments made in 2012 and Q1 2013, today’s wire of almost half a billion dollars ($451.8M) repays the full loan facility with interest. Following this payment, Tesla will be the only American car company to have fully repaid the government.

For the first seven years since its founding in 2003, Tesla was funded entirely with private funds, led by Elon Musk. Tesla brought its Roadster sports car to market with a 30% gross margin, designed electric powertrains for Daimler (Mercedes) and had done preliminary design of the Model S all before receiving a governmen  (go to article)

Wall Street Journal -- Prices of many commodities are down this year, but U.S. oil futures have rallied. Skeptics say the mismatch is a sign of trouble.

Oil isn't a gusher compared with stocks, such as the Dow Jones Industrial Average, which is up 16% this year. But some analysts and investors say oil's rise is remarkable because it came despite several factors that often push prices lower.

"I think the optimism is a bit misplaced. There's a significant disconnect between the physical market and the financial market for oil," says Jaya Bajpai, managing director of Applied Energy Analytics, an oil and natural-gas hedge fund in Boston. The bullish bet on oil is fueled by hopes that "we will get enough economic growth over the next six months that demand will recover," he says.

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Oil & Gas Journal -- The US EPA proposed standards to reduce vehicle emissions and sulfur content in gasoline beginning in 2017. Comments on the so-called Tier 3 requirements will be accepted until June 13, EPA said on May 21. The American Petroleum Institute immediately asked for a longer comment period.
“EPA is cramming through unnecessary new regulations for gasoline that could drive up costs without providing significant environmental benefits,” API Downstream Group Director Bob Greco said. “By limiting public comments, EPA is trying to skirt public participation and transparency in the rulemaking process.”

In its May 21 Federal Register notice, EPA said the proposed gasoline sulfur limit would make both new and existing vehicles’ emissions control systems more effective, and enable more stringent vehicle  (go to article)

GasBuddy Blog -- The Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the United States expanded by 2.5 percent in the first quarter of 2013 over the previous quarter. GDP Growth Rate in the United States is reported by the Bureau of Economic Analysis. In a case of apparent cheerleading, when they reported the latest GDP number, the Wall St. Journal said the number was an indication that the U.S. economy ‘perked up’ in the first quarter.

Additionally, WSJ explained that the GDP’s first-quarter 2.5% tick followed growth of “just 0.4% in the fourth quarter” and said “the overall performance suggests the economy continues to expand at around 2% a year on average, as it has throughout the recovery.” ‘Recovery’… yes, that was the word they used.

Strangely...  (go to article)

Open Markets -- In 2012, the Association of American Railroads said it moved a record amount of crude oil: 233,811 Class 1 carloads, up 256 percent from the 65,671 carloads moved in 2011. That’s equivalent to about 350,000 barrels a day, says Rusty Braziel, president, RBN Energy, who has extensively analyzed the growing use of rail in the energy industry.  (go to article)

World Car Fans -- Deal could reduce costs on both sides of the Atlantic

Automakers have expressed their support for a free trade deal between the United States and European Union that could significantly reduce costs on both sides of the Atlantic.

According to the Association of Global Automakers trade group, the deal can "promote economic growth, increase jobs and enhance the global competitiveness of U.S. and European producers — both in general and within the automotive sector in particular — through regulatory convergence, mutual recognition, the elimination of tariffs and other facilitation measures.”  (go to article)

Houston Business Journal -- Various energy companies — many based in Houston or with a large presence in Texas — are sending money and volunteers to aid disaster relief efforts following a massive tornado that destroyed buildings and killed dozens in Oklahoma on May 20.

Houston’s ConocoPhillips and Phillips 66 both said Tuesday they will donate $1 million each to the American Red Cross. Both companies will also match employees’ contributions.

"Our company's roots run deep in Oklahoma, and our thoughts and heartfelt prayers go out to the people affected by this disaster,” Greg Garland, chairman and CEO of Phillips 66, said in a statement. “We are extremely thankful that all of our employees in Oklahoma and their immediate families are safe. We thank the first responders and medical personnel that came to the rescue  (go to article)

By Lee-Anne Goodman, The Canadian Press | The Canadian Press – -- WASHINGTON - The American political brawl over TransCanada's proposed Keystone XL pipeline is shifting into overdrive as Republicans in the House of Representatives make yet another attempt to take the decision out of U.S. President Barack Obama's hands  (go to article)

Forbes -- Dow Chemical said Thursday it has bought solar startup NuvoSun, which developed a thin film technology that Dow will use for its solar roof.

Dow, which made equity investments in NuvoSun over a 3-year period, closed the purchase of the startup on Feb. 28, said Dow spokeswoman Kate Nigro. She declined to disclose the purchase price. Greentech Media first reported the acquisition on Wednesday.

Dow took an interest in NuvoSun’s technology because Dow had been planning to roll out shingles embedded with solar cells for many years. After some delays, Dow began selling the solar shingles in 2011, first in Colorado and later in California and Texas. I wrote about the first Dow solar shingle installation in California last summer.  (go to article)

Fox News -- Three Ohio drivers are suing Ford Motor Co., claiming the company's six-cylinder EcoBoost engine is defective.

The lawsuit says the 3.5-liter V6 EcoBoost engine can shudder, shake and then rapidly lose power while drivers are accelerating. Two of the plaintiffs, a married couple, say their 2010 Ford Taurus SHO has lost power and stalled on multiple occasions. The third says he has lost power when he was accelerating in his F-150 pickup.

The lawsuit says more than 100 drivers have complained to the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration about the V6 EcoBoost rattling or losing power. Ford hasn't recalled any vehicles for the alleged defect, and NHTSA hasn't opened an investigation, which is often the first step in the recall process.

Read more: http://www.foxnews.com/leisure/2013  (go to article)

The (Toledo) Blade --
Beginning this summer, motorists in certain parts of the state will be allowed to drive 70 mph on interstate highways, the Ohio Department of Transportation has announced.

ODOT unveiled a map Tuesday identifying the locations where motorists, starting July 1, will be able to drive 70 mph. The new limit follows legislation that was recently passed permitting speeds to increase from 65 to 70 mph on certain parts of interstate highways.

The department also plans to make 317 new signs that will be posted to alert motorists of the change, at a cost of about $8,200.  (go to article)

GasBuddy Blog -- The Energy Information Administration released its weekly report on the status of petroleum inventories in the United States today.

Here are some highlights:

CRUDE INVENTORIES:
Crude oil inventories decreased by 0.3 million barrels to a total of 394.6 million barrels. At 394.6 million barrels, inventories are 12.0 million barrels above last year (3.1%) and are well above the upper limit of the average range.

GASOLINE INVENTORIES:
Gasoline inventories increased by 3.0 million barrels to 220.7 million barrels. At 220.7 million barrels, inventories are up 19.7 million barrels, or 9.8% more than last year. Here's how individual regions and their gasoline inventory fared last week: East Coast (+0.3mb); Midwest...  (go to article)

Platts -- Not long ago, there was too much crude in Cushing, Oklahoma, the delivery point of the NYMEX sweet crude futures contract.

This had traders constantly eyeing the spread, or price difference, between US benchmark WTI and North Sea Brent, pushing WTI from its traditional premium over Brent to a discount where it has held for several years.

The flip in relationships between the two benchmark crudes was due to the lack of pipeline capacity to carry crude out of the oil hub of Cushing to refineries along the US Gulf Coast, which is home to about half the nation's refinery capacity.

But instead the spread started to narrow and one of the biggest issues for traders was trying to get back on the right side of their position.

"So many traders were convinced that the Brent premium was not going  (go to article)

AOPL -- On May 15, 2013, the Commission issued a Notice regarding the annual change in the oil pipeline rate index for the period July 1, 2013 through June 30, 2014. The rate index adjustment is positive 4.5923%. The index adjustment was calculated by adding together the annual change in the Producer Price Index for Finished Goods plus the 2.65% index adjustment factor approved by FERC in its December 16, 2010, order on the five-year review of the oil pipeline rate index.

[In other words, pipelines that don't charge market-based rates can increase their tolls by 4.5% this year.]  (go to article)

VTDIGGER.ORG -- WASHINGTON – With gasoline prices rising rapidly, Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) today proposed an amendment to make U.S. federal regulators follow the lead of Europeans and investigate oil and fuel price manipulation.

Sanders also proposed a 30-day deadline for the Commodity Futures Trading Commission to use its emergency powers to curb excessive speculation in crude oil markets.

“We must do everything that we can to make sure that oil and gasoline prices are transparent and free from fraud, manipulation, abuse and excessive speculation,” said Sanders, a member of the Senate energy committee.

Over the past five months, the national average price for a gallon of gasoline has gone up by more than 41 cents. The price hikes come at a time when U.S. oil inventories reached a three-decade hi  (go to article)

The Washington Post -- D.C. Council Chairman Phil Mendelson will ask his colleagues Wednesday to repeal the city’s 23.5 cent-a-gallon gasoline tax and replace it with an 8.3 percent tax on wholesale gas and diesel purchases.

The proposed shift, inserted into Mayor Vincent C. Gray’s 2014 budget proposal, would shift the onus of paying fuel taxes from consumers to businesses. But fuel distributors would almost certainly pass those costs on to customers.

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Autoevolution -- Toyota Financial Services has recently awarded a new Corolla model to the 2012-2013 Boys & Girls Clubs of America (BGCA) National Youth of the Year Winner, named Trei Dudley. The event took place as part of Toyota’s ‘Making Life Easier for YOUth’ initiative.

BGCA’s National Youth of the Year pays recognition for teen members that made outstanding contributions to their family, friends and community, while overcoming personal obstacles.

“Trei embodies the spirit of the Youth of the Year program,” said Al Smith, group vice president, TFS Service Operations & Corporate Planning. “She has been a mentor for other students and worked to improve her community all while overcoming obstacles and maintaining high academic standards. Toyota is proud to join with BGCA in support of such an extra  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- Canada, which depended on railroads to build the nation in the 1880s, is counting on pipelines to drive future economic growth, Enbridge Chief Executive Officer Al Monaco said.

“Pipelines are very similar to railroads,” Monaco said at the Bloomberg Canada Economic Summit in Toronto yesterday. “When you really get down to it, Canada is an export-driven resource economy. This is our foundation.”

The nation’s oil trade, which according to Statistics Canada rose 7 percent to about C$73 billion last year, is set to grow faster than the total economy. Pipelines already carry 15 percent of Canadian exports in the form of crude, mostly to U.S. markets. Enbridge and TransCanada plan to spend more than a combined C$50 billion to expand networks to the Pacific and Atlantic coasts.  (go to article)

Kansas First News -- The White House says President Barack Obama opposes a House bill that would speed approval of the proposed Keystone XL oil pipeline from Canada to Texas.

The White House said Tuesday that the bill “seeks to circumvent longstanding and proven processes” by removing a requirement for a presidential permit. The legislation also says no new environmental studies are needed.

House Republicans say the bill is needed to ensure the long-delayed pipeline is built. The project, which first was proposed in 2008, would carry oil extracted from tar sands in western Canada to refineries along the Texas Gulf Coast.

Opponents say the pipeline would carry “dirty oil” that could trigger global warming, while supporters say it would create jobs and bolster North American energy resources.

 (go to article)

Bloomberg -- West Texas Intermediate fell for a second day after industry data showed U.S. inventories rose for a fourth week, the longest run of gains since February. China’s oil stockpiles climbed for a second month.

Futures slid as much as 0.9 percent in New York after a report from the American Petroleum Institute showed crude stockpiles increased 532,000 barrels last week. Government figures today are projected to show a 1 million-barrel decline, according to a Bloomberg News survey of analysts. The API also indicated gains in gasoline and distillate-fuel supplies, including heating oil and diesel.

“The API numbers were bearish across the board,” said Carsten Fritsch, an analyst at Commerzbank AG in Frankfurt, who predicts Brent crude, the European benchmark, will average $105 a barrel thi  (go to article)

RTV Channel 6 -- INDIANAPOLIS - Hoosiers might be looking at good news at the gas pump this summer.

A Purdue professor said it isn't likely gas prices will reach $4 per gallon anytime soon.

Purdue agricultural economist Wally Tyner predicted regular gas prices won't hit the $4 mark that many have predicted, but will run between $3.50 and $3.90 a gallon, unless a major disruption occurs.

He said prices are currently at the top of his price range because of disruptions at refineries in Whiting, Ind., and Joliet, Ill, but he predicted price drops as soon as those are fixed.

Tyner said the law of supply and demand is finally working in consumers' favor, with more oil coming from sources like shale and less being burned.

"We're producing a lot more oil than we have in the past,” said  (go to article)

Bloomberg Buisness Week -- Spot gasoline in the U.S. Pacific Northwest dropped by the most against futures since February as tankers carried oil products to the region and a Royal Dutch Shell Plc (RDSA) refinery recovered from a power failure.

The oil-products tanker NCC Reem, near Seattle, was bound for BP Plc (BP/)’s Cherry Point refinery in Washington state today, according to IHS Inc. (IHS) data. The vessel was chartered by Phillips 66 (PSX) to deliver clean products to the West Coast from South Korea, ship-fixture information compiled by Bloomberg show. The Voge Dignity, off the California coast, is also headed for Vancouver.

Conventional, 84-octane gasoline in Portland, Oregon, a benchmark for the Pacific Northwest, weakened by 11.5 cents against futures traded on the New York Mercantile Exchange  (go to article)

Consumer Reports -- If you're going on a trip, these cars are great to rent.  (go to article)

MarketWatch -- U.S. crude-oil futures fell Wednesday in electronic trade following an unexpected rise in weekly oil inventories, setting investors up to look for signs about future energy demand during congressional testimony by U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.

Crude for July delivery lost 44 cents, or 0.5%, to $95.74 a barrel. The June contract fell before it expired after the close of trade Tuesday on the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Investors received an update late Tuesday that oil supplies rose in the week ended May 17. The American Petroleum Institute said crude inventories increased 532,000 barrels, and analysts polled by Platts had expected a decline of 1.2 million barrels.

Gasoline supplies rose 3 million barrels, said API, while analysts were looking for a drawdown of 200,000 ...  (go to article)

Reuters -- Europe's energy price manipulation probe has turned regulatory attention to secretive trading units at oil companies with huge turnover and millionaire staff with risk appetite higher than at Wall Street's biggest banks.

Regulators have scrutinised banks, trading houses and commodities markets more closely following the Libor benchmark rigging scandal but trading desks at oil majors have largely escaped attention.

Although banks and trading houses have expanded rapidly in energy over the past decades, oil companies still often dwarf them in size, geographical reach, profits and sometimes the magnitude of scandals surrounding their operations.

An EU investigation into the suspected manipulation of the price of crude oil, refined products and ethanol has thrown them into the spotlight.
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nola.com -- The explosive expansion of drilling of natural gas and oil wells in shale deposits in the United States and Canada using a directional drilling method dubbed “fracking” may have spawned a $30 billion per year expansion of the waste disposal business, waste and investment industry executives were told Monday.

Oil and gas fracking represents a $200 billion-a-year capital investment, and the companies doing the drilling are spending between $20 billion and $30 billion on waste disposal, said Michael Hoffman, managing director at Wunderlich Securities, during a seminar on waste management investment on the first day of the WasteExpo 2013 Conference and Exposition in New Orleans.

..Small explosions are set off to fracture the surrounding rock while a high-pressure mix of water, sand and chemi  (go to article)

Quartz -- The global solar industry may have hit the doldrums, but it could double again to a $155 billion business by 2018, according to Lux Research. The reason? As the Chinese manufacturers that supply most of the world’s solar panels struggle to avoid bankruptcy after expanding too fast, developers will use the resulting plunge in solar-panel prices to expand into new markets. That will soak up China’s excess capacity; so too will industry consolidation, as troubled manufacturers like Suntech and smaller companies go broke or are bought up.  (go to article)

WXIA Atlanta, GA -- Whether it is precious metals or gasoline, thieves are coming up with deviously creative ways to steal them. They have figured out how to get inside pumps to get the gas out free.

It is a relatively new crime but a Union City gas station is finding out about it the hard way. In the past two months thieves have stolen gas from the Mobil gas station on Flat Shoals Road four times.

The convenience store has surveillance video showing how the suspects broke into gas pumps and disconnected the meters inside. The video shows one of the suspects using a tool to pry open a door on the pump. Once inside he cuts wires to the meter that logs the purchase. Then with a swipe of a credit card, he can pump unlimited gas for free.

..11 cars pulled up to the pump and filled up for free. Over 180 gallons  (go to article)

The Washington Post -- Energy Secretary Ernest Moniz said Tuesday he will delay final decisions on about 20 applications to export liquefied natural gas until he reviews studies by the Energy Department and others on what impact the exports would have on domestic natural gas supplies and prices.

Moniz, who was sworn in Tuesday as the nation’s new energy chief, said he promised during his confirmation hearing that he would “review what’s out there” before acting on proposals to export natural gas. Among the things Moniz said he wants to review is whether the data in the studies are outdated.

A study commissioned by the Energy Department concluded last year that exporting natural gas would benefit the U.S. economy even if it led to higher domestic prices for the fuel.

Senate Energy Committee Chairman Ron Wyden,  (go to article)

Science Daily -- Duke University engineers have developed a novel method for producing clean hydrogen, which could prove essential to weaning society off of fossil fuels and their environmental implications.

While hydrogen is ubiquitous in the environment, producing and collecting molecular hydrogen for transportation and industrial uses is expensive and complicated. Just as importantly, a byproduct of most current methods of producing hydrogen is carbon monoxide, which is toxic to humans and animals.

The Duke engineers, using a new catalytic approach, have shown in the laboratory that they can reduce carbon monoxide levels to nearly zero in the presence of hydrogen and the harmless byproducts of carbon dioxide and water. They also demonstrated that they could produce hydrogen by reforming fuel at much l  (go to article)