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Historic freeze could break Midwest temp records

It has been decades since parts of the Midwest experienced a deep freeze like the one expected to arrive Sunday, with potential record-low temperatures heightening fears of frostbite and hypothermia even in a region where residents are accustomed to bundling up. This "polar vortex," as one meteorologist calls it, is caused by a counterclockwise-rotating pool of cold, dense air. The frigid air, piled up at the North Pole, will be pushed down to the U.S., funneling it as far south as the Gulf Coast. Ryan Maue, of Tallahassee, Fla., a meteorologist for Weather Bell, said temperature records will likely be broken during the short yet forceful deep freeze that will begin in many places on Sunday and extend into early next week. That’s thanks to a perfect combination of the jet stream, cold surface temperatures and the polar vortex. "All the ingredients […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Baker Hughes: US drilling rig count drops to 1,751

The US drilling rig count fell 6 units, all of which were land-based units, to settle at 1,751 rigs working overall during the week ended Jan. 3, Baker Hughes Inc. reported. The land rig total is now at 1,750 while the number of rigs drilling offshore and in inland waters remain unchanged from a week ago at 61 and 20 units, respectively. Oil rigs lost 4 units to 1,378 and gas rigs dropped 2 units to 372. Rigs considered unclassified were unchanged at a single unit. Both horizontal drilling and directional drilling rigs gained 2 units, setting at respective totals of 1,148 and 377. Meanwhile in Canada, the oil rig count shot up 21 units to 152, overcoming a 2-unit loss in gas rigs to 130, giving the country 282 total units. Canada has 24 more rigs compared with this week a year ago. Major states, basins The final […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ford to Show Solar-Powered Hybrid at CES

Ford Motor plans to roll out a solar-powered version of its C-Max hybrid compact car during next week’s International Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas. The car uses technology that might remind some people of childhood experiments with a magnifying glass on sunny days. The C-Max concept car uses solar cells on its roof to charge a range-extending battery instead of plugging into the electrical grid. It also uses specially designed lenses that concentrate the sun’s energy on the solar cells like a magnifying glass. As a result, the roof panel gathers much more power than solar panels mounted on some previous cars. Ford said the concept has the potential to deliver the performance of a plug-in hybrid even when no traditional electrical outlets are available. Because the show car is based on the C-Max that is already on the market, it seems more likely Ford will eventually offer […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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U.S. Crude Imports Fall to Lowest Level Since 1998

U.S. crude-oil imports fell to the lowest level in almost 16 years as domestic output rose, the Energy Information Administration reported. Shipments of foreign crude fell 1.1 percent to 7.41 million barrels a day, the fewest since January 1998, based on the four-week average through Dec. 27, according to data released today by the EIA, the Energy Department’s statistical arm. U.S. crude output surged to a 25-year high on rising production from shale formations. “Imports are falling because we can produce more oil now,” said Michael Lynch , president of Strategic Energy & Economic Research in Winchester, Massachusetts . “That can save us tons of money and is good for the economy.” Fracking and horizontal drilling have boosted shale oil output from the Bakken formation in North Dakota and the Eagle Ford in Texas . Domestic production increased to 8.12 million barrels a day last week, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Bakken Crude Found More Dangerous to Ship Than Other Oil

Safety rules will probably be tightened on crude oil shipments from North Dakota following a string of railway explosions, threatening to damp an energy boom that has boosted the region’s economy. U.S. regulators issued a safety alert after a train carrying oil crashed and caught fire earlier this week in North Dakota, where surging production has helped lead a renaissance in domestic energy and driven the state’s unemployment rate to the nation’s lowest. The type of oil pumped from the shale formations of North Dakota may be more flammable and therefore more dangerous to ship by rail than crude from other areas, the Transportation Department said in the alert. Regulators are considering imposing tougher rules on railcar construction, among other things, potentially raising the costs of moving the crude to market. Pipelines could be affected as well. “Regulators have to take heed that anything they do is going to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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UK braced for flooding as high tides peak

Severe flooding is expected in parts of the UK as high tides combine with heavy rain and strong winds later. The Environment Agency has issued 21 severe flood warnings – which mean "danger to life" – affecting south-west England, Gloucestershire and Wales. The Met Office has warned of flooding in Scotland and Northern Ireland. On Thursday, Environment Minister Owen Paterson said "exceptional weather" would hit the UK on Friday and over the weekend. Many of the severe flood warnings relate to the coasts of Devon and Cornwall, with the highest risk of flooding expected for two to four hours either side of Friday morning’s high tides. High water is expected at 05:42 GMT at Penzance, 06:54 at Plymouth, 07:05 at Barnstaple and 07:57 at Weymouth in Dorset. Waves more than […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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The Year of the Dud

General Ideas Lots of things that should have happened in 2013 did not. We were supposed to have long ago reached “peak oil” and an age of always-higher gas prices. Wind and solar power – and a reduced lifestyle – were our dismal future. But someone or something did not cooperate with gloomy government predictions. After all the failed subsidized green companies, the postponement of the Keystone Pipeline, the radical restrictions of new gas and oil leasing on federal lands, and the promises for radical climate-change legislation curtailing carbon energy use, the United States nevertheless seems awash in old energy. Gas prices have been going down. Oil and natural gas production is going up. America may soon be the largest coal exporter in the world. There is little worry over any more Middle East embargoes and cutoffs of oil. Energy-intensive industries talk of relocating from Asia and Europe to […]

Posted On : Published By : ASPO-USA
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Brent Rises After Libya-led Fall

Crude-oil futures were choppy in Asian trade Friday with Nymex crude slipping into negative territory and extending sharp overnight losses. On the New York Mercantile Exchange, light, sweet crude futures for delivery in February traded at $95.30 a barrel at 0527 GMT, down $0.14 in the Globex electronic session. February Brent crude on London’s ICE Futures exchange rose $0.14 to $107.92 a barrel. Both the U.S and European oil benchmarks started the year on a softer note, losing around $3 a barrel in overnight floor trade in line with a broader decline in U.S. stock markets. Nymex WTI crude is also under pressure as U.S. oil inventories are expected to start building again in January after a seasonal drawdown in December that had supported oil prices. U.S. crude-oil stocks for the week ended Dec. 27 are expected to decline by 2.2 million barrels, according to analysts polled by The […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Brent Crude Rises Most in Two Weeks as Libyan Ports Remain Shut

Brent crude rose the most in two weeks in London , rebounding from yesterday’s drop, as four major ports in Libya remain shut. Futures gained as much as 0.8 percent. The benchmark lost 2.7 percent yesterday after protesters at Libya’s Al Sharara oil field said they would suspend disruptions for two weeks starting Jan. 1, Muftah Lamin, a spokesman for the group, said by phone. Of the country’s six major oil-shipping ports, Es Sider , Ras Lanuf, Zuetina and Hariga remain shut. Output from Libya, holder of Africa ’s largest proven reserves, fell to 210,000 barrels a day in November, the lowest level since 2011. “In Libya, we have seen a few hopes being quashed over the past couple of months,” said Ole Hansen, the head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank A/S in Copenhagen. “It’s a bit like Jerry Maguire saying, ‘Show me the money.’ In other words, […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple
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Ethanol Advances Against Gasoline on Higher Export Consumption

Ethanol rose against gasoline on higher export demand for the biofuel. The spread, or price difference, tightened 7.26 cents to 91.93 cents a gallon at 11:47 a.m. New York time, based on February contracts for the two fuels. Foreign purchases averaged 41,000 barrels a day in October, compared to a low of 27,000 barrels a day in July, data from the Energy Information Administration show. “The export market is strong and that’s moving the prompt,” said Chris Wilson , a broker at Atten Babler Risk Management LLC in Galena, Illinois . “These ethanol plants are making a lot of money on spot gallons.” Denatured ethanol for February delivery increased 2 cents, or 1.1 percent, to $1.814 a gallon on the Chicago Board of Trade. The January contract, which expires Jan. 6, added 1.9 cents to $1.93 a gallon. Gasoline for February delivery declined 5.26 cents, or 1.9 percent, to […]

Posted On : Published By : Tom Whipple