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China to ease one-child policy early next year

Changes to China’s strict one-child policy, which will allow more parents to have a second child, will begin to roll out early next year, state media said. The policy change is expected to go into force in some areas of China in the first quarter of 2014, Yang Wenzhuang, a director at the National Health and Family Planning Commission, told the official Xinhua news agency. Beijing said last month it would allow millions of families to have two children, the most radical relaxation of its strict one-child policy in close to three decades. The move is part of a plan to raise fertility rates and ease the financial burden on China’s rapidly ageing population. Authorities were in the process of calculating the number of eligible couples, Yang said. China’s largely rubber-stamp parliament, the National People’s Congress, is expected to formally approve the new policy later this […]

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Exclusive: China commits $6.5 billion for Pakistani nuclear project

China has committed $6.5 billion to finance the construction of a major nuclear power project in Pakistan’s port city of Karachi as it seeks to strengthen ties with its strategic partner, Pakistani officials said. Pakistani Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif broke ground on the $9.59 billion project last month but officials have provided few details of how they plan to finance it. Financing documents seen by Reuters showed China National Nuclear Cooperation (CNNC) has promised to grant a loan of at least $6.5 billion to finance the project which will have two reactors with a capacity of 1,100 megawatts each. Two members of the government’s energy team and three sources close to the deal confirmed this. CNNC was not available for comment. "China has complete confidence in Pakistan’s capacity to run a nuclear power plant with all checks in place," said Ansar Parvez, chairman of the Pakistan […]

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Wind Farms in Maine Stir a Power Struggle

This state’s tree-filled hinterlands, long known for producing forest products and potatoes, are also suited for an export that has churned up debate: wind power. The recent appetite for wind power comes largely from Massachusetts and Connecticut, where laws require use of more renewable power. The two states combined have 70% of New England’s population but little open space to build wind farms. Developers have turned to Maine, where they say land is expansive and strong winds plentiful. Maine already leads the region with more than 400 megawatts of wind power installed, according to the American Wind Energy Association, which said 1 megawatt of wind power can cover about 290 homes. Recently signed long-term contracts with utilities in Massachusetts and Connecticut could more than double that output in the next few years. Many locals welcome the development, helped by financial rewards tied to the projects, and the […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Gasoline Price Takes Off in U.S.

Gasoline futures are climbing in response to signs of unseasonably strong demand for the fuel. Prices surged 5.9% last week to a three-month high after the U.S. Energy Information Administration reported that gasoline demand was the highest in more than five years. Gasoline prices usually fall in the winter as bad weather keeps drivers off the road. However, an improving U.S. economy and appetite overseas for relatively cheaper U.S. gasoline have led to stronger-than-expected demand this year. "It’s been a huge momentum shift" as market watchers switched their focus from high gasoline production to demand growth, said Jim Ritterbusch , president of energy-advisory firm Ritterbusch & Associates. "The macroeconomic guidance has been positive for gasoline demand," Mr. Ritterbusch said, citing gains in the U.S. economy and lower unemployment. On Wednesday, the Federal Reserve said it would scale back its $85 billion in monthly bond purchases, signaling that the economy […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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EIA: U.S. Retail Gasoline Price Up 3.2 Cents in Week to $3.271/Gallon

The national average retail price of regular gasoline rose 3.2 cents to $3.271 a gallon in the week ended Monday, the Energy Information Administration said. The rise follows a drop of 5.4 cents a gallon over the previous three weeks. Prices are the highest since Dec. 2 and are 1.4 cents above a year earlier. The current price marks the first time gasoline has topped the year-earlier level since July 29, EIA data show. In early October, when prices were at the lowest level since January, they lagged the year-earlier level by 48.3 cents a gallon. The latest price gain comes as reformulated gasoline blendstock futures on the New York Mercantile Exchange climbed 5.8%, or 15.38 cents a gallon, in five straight gains last week, amid signs of improving gasoline demand. Prices ended Friday at their highest level since Sept. 9. Current gasoline prices are […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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US Should Tap the Offshore Goldmine

This opinion piece presents the opinions of the author. It does not necessarily reflect the views of Rigzone. Back in 2011, at a fundraiser in San Francisco, President Obama remarked that “We have lost our ambition, our imagination, and our willingness to do the things that built the Golden Gate Bridge.” Since his comments there has no doubt been a dramatic increase in domestic production of oil, natural gas and renewable energy. Through the combined power of state-level regulatory regimes, technologies like deepwater drilling and hydraulic fracturing, and private-land ownership the United States has become one of the world’s leading oil and natural gas producers. But we should recognize that the majority of this progress has taken place despite action or inaction from the federal government, not because of it. Many worthy, large-scale energy projects on par with the achievement of the construction of the Golden Gate Bridge […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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German biofuel consumption plunges 8.9% in year to October: BAFA

Biofuel consumption in Germany was 2.9 million mt in the calendar year to October, down 8.9% compared with the first 10 months in 2012, according to the most recent data released by the country’s federal economics agency BAFA. The drop came despite a 0.5% tick upwards in total road fuel consumption to 43.75 million mt during the same period, and blending rates were lower for all biofuel types, the data released Friday showed. One positive indicator for biofuel was a 9.5% increase in biodiesel consumption to 189,978 mt. ETBE usage also jumped 26.7% to 33,121 mt in the month of October, bringing the total for the year to 266,945 mt, a 2.6% rise. The total amount of biodiesel consumed in the year was 1.79 million mt, down 10.6%. Meanwhile, ethanol consumption in October was 90,438 mt, down 9.7%, and in the year to October, […]

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These Charts Happened: 2013 In Climate And Energy Graphs

From advances in renewable power to the clear impacts of climate change, to denying the lot of it, climate and energy issues in 2013 are sometimes best expressed through graphs. Here are eight of the best from throughout the year: Global Temperatures Keep Going Up Carbon Final The chart above shows how dramatically temperatures have spiked in recent years, largely due to greenhouse gas pollution. The blue line shows global temperature levels over the last 11,300 years, and that spike right at the end shows what “temperature is changing 50 times faster than it did during the time modern civilization and agriculture developed” actually looks like. The red line is the best estimate scientists have for what the temperature is likely to be in the near future if we continue on our current trend. The more greenhouse gases are emitted, the more they trap heat within the atmosphere before […]

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Peak Oil, Check. Peak Gas, Check. Peak Food? What?

Food may run out long before the oil does. A study by scientists at the University of Nebraska warns of " abrupt plateaus or declines " in industrial agricultural production. As much as "31% of total global rice, wheat and maize production" has experienced "yield plateaus or abrupt decreases in yield gain, including rice in eastern Asia and wheat in northwest Europe." The declines and plateaus in production have become prevalent despite increasing investment in agriculture, which could mean that maximum potential yields under the industrial model of agribusiness have already occurred. Crop yields in "major cereal-producing regions have not increased for long periods of time following an earlier period of steady linear increase." The paper makes for ominous reading. Production levels have already flattened out with "no case of a return to the previous rising yield trend" for key regions amounting to "33% of global rice and 27% […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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WTI Trades Near Two-Month High on U.S. Growth, Sudan Fued

West Texas Intermediate traded near a two-month high on signs of stronger economic growth in the U.S., the world’s largest oil consumer, while violence in South Sudan sparked concern supplies may be disrupted. Futures were little changed in New York after gaining 2.8 percent last week. The International Monetary Fund is raising its outlook for the U.S. economy, Managing Director Christine Lagarde said yesterday. South Sudan evacuated some oil employees and plans a partial shutdown of facilities amid escalating unrest. OPEC won’t need to cut output as global demand growth will absorb additional crude supply, the group’s three biggest producers said on Dec. 21. “Expectations of increased demand in the U.S.” are buoying crude, said Michael Poulsen, an analyst at Global Risk Management Ltd. in Middelfart, Denmark . “ Oil prices are supported due to the increased unrest in South Sudan,” which “seems to be on the edge of […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple