Recent Gas News/GasBuddy Blog

Market Watch -- Natural-gas futures, wrapping up their worst month in more than two years, are entering the historically weak month of September dogged by confusion over production.

Prices for the most active contract have lost nearly 23% in August, as investors sold off the futures on estimates of abundant gas output.

Natural gas for October delivery was up less than a penny to settle at $3.82 per million British thermal units after flirting with losses in morning trading.  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- Aug. 25 (Bloomberg) -- Bloomberg's Julie Hyman reports on an anonymous classic car collector's purchase of a 1936 Bugatti Type 57SC Atlantic for $30 million. Collectors are pumping money into the classic-car market like never before, driving up prices for the world’s most famous models of Bugattis, Ferraris, Mercedes-Benzes and Rolls-Royces. (Source: Bloomberg)
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Dallas Morning News -- A Dallas man pleaded guilty in connection with one of North Texas' largest oil and gas investment schemes and also admitted guilt in an oil and gas scam in Michigan.

He faces 20 years in prison on each of the counts;

In July 2009, the Securities & Exchange Commission filed suit against Provident Royalties, alleging that the company had bankrolled $485 million from investors purportedly to invest in oil and gas partnerships.

7,700 investors were invested in the partnerships, while the company's leaders diverted funds to pay back earlier investors in a Ponzi scheme.

Blimline admitted that in 2006 he and others at Provident failed to tell investors about the nature of the Ponzi scheme, Blimline's previous troubles with securities regulators & other material issues.  (go to article)

THE NEW YORK TIMES --
The biggest change in three decades for the window stickers on new vehicles. The Obama administration proposed on Monday two alternatives to the window stickers in new vehicles, including one that would assign letter grades for fuel economy and greenhouse gas emissions.
The letter grades — from A+ to D — were immediately denounced by some industry groups, which said the government should not be making value judgments for consumers about vehicles.

[Click here to check auto rates in your area.]

If the grading system were applied now, many 2010 vehicles could get fairly low grades because the ratings favor fuel-  (go to article)

Sacramento Bee -- Throughout its 156-year history, the Van Vleck Ranch in east Sacramento County has been used for gold mining, cattle ranching and even paintball battling. Now owner Stan Van Vleck hopes to tap into a new profit center: solar power.

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MarketWatch -- Oil for October delivery ended down 3.7% at $71.92 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange Tuesday, with declines accelerating toward the close of the session.

Oil also finished the month of August with a loss, down 8.9%, its first monthly decline since May.  (go to article)

Sympatico -- Porsche is going electric. Yes, yes, for purists it was startling enough to see Porsche sell an SUV like the Cayenne. But now Porsche is on a path to electrify its sports and race cars, as well.
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On the production side, Porsche says it will go ahead with the 918 Spyder supercar – a mid-engine, gas-electric, plug-in hybrid with a combined output of around 718 horsepower (500 hp gas and 218 hp electric). Performance: 0-100 km/hour in around three seconds and fuel economy in the 3.0 litres/100 km range (78 miles per gallon). The power pack on board is a liquid-cooled lithium-ion battery. But there’s more. The energy-storage device on board is not a battery but a compact flywheel accumulator spinning at a maximum 40,000 rpm.
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Boston Globe -- WESTON — The two former granite quarries filled with water could have posed a major obstacle for the real estate company seeking a tenant for the 74-acre commercial property near Interstate 95 and Route 20. At about 400 feet deep, each quarry pond is large enough to hold 500 million gallons — not exactly what businesses desire in a site for a new headquarters.  (go to article)

Boston Herald -- A real estate investor is trying to jump-start the electric-car industry by opening Boston’s first public “charging station.”  (go to article)

AP -- ATLANTA – Power utilities are trying to buy the next wave of nuclear reactors much like a consumer buys a light bulb: right off the shelf.

Of the nation's 104 commercial reactors, no two are exactly the same, a fact that experts blame for causing construction and regulatory delays and leading to bigger bills for power customers. The longer it took to approve and build a reactor a generation ago, the more electric customers ended up paying in the end.

"That system just wasn't workable," said Richard Lester, head of the nuclear science and engineering department at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

As the nation moves closer to breaking ground on its first nuclear plant in decades, industry executives want to avoid the problems of the past by getting the government to desig  (go to article)

CLICKONDETROIT -- WASHINGTON -- The government has opened an investigation into possible steering problems in the 2011 Hyundai Sonata.

The National Highway Traffic Safety Administration said Tuesday it had received field reports alleging the separation of a joint that led to a complete loss of steering in the sedan or a loosening of a joint connection in the steering.

The government said the vehicles cited in the reports were manufactured during the same month and had fewer than 600 miles on them at the time.

The investigation involves an estimated 16,300 Sonatas.

Hyundai spokesman Jim Trainor says the company received two reports citing steering problems and the two vehicles were repaired.

He said there have been no injuries or crashes reported and Hyundai is cooperating with the investigati  (go to article)

Daily and Sunday Express, UK News -- THE world’s leading climate change body has been accused of losing credibility after a damning report into its research practices.

A high-level inquiry into the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change found there was “little evidence” for its claims about global warming.
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Associated Press - State Journal Register, IL -- MOLINE — Deere & Co. will sell its wind energy business to a subsidiary of Exelon for $900 million, the company said Tuesday, potentially signaling an active merger and acquisition period ahead for the power industry.  (go to article)

GasBuddy Blog -- With massive Hurricane Earl heading towards the Carolinas, motorists should be aware that while any increase in prices shouldn't be shocking, prices may increase.

I'll be keeping a close eye on how close Earl gets to massive refinery operations in East PA, New York, and New Jersey. Currently, Earl is a strong hurricane packing peak winds of 135mph, enough to disrupt power at refineries and other oil factilies responsible for getting products to pumps in those areas.

The further east Earl moves, the better. Currently it appears that the storm will only brush the concerned areas, but of course weather forecasts are subject to change.

Keep a close eye on the storm and prepare to fill your vehicles before the storm...  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- By Keith Naughton and Tim Higgins - Aug 31, 2010

U.S. auto sales in August probably were the slowest for the month in 28 years as model-year closeout deals failed to entice consumers concerned the economy is worsening and they may lose their jobs.

Industrywide deliveries, to be released tomorrow, may have reached an annualized rate of 11.6 million vehicles this month, the average of eight analysts’ estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That would be the slowest August since 1982, according to researcher Ward’s AutoInfoBank. The rate would be 18 percent below last year’s 14.2 million pace, when the U.S. government’s “cash for clunkers” incentive program boosted sales.

“Home sales are way down, the stock market is way down, the unemployment report is very disappointing and consumer co  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- “These inventory numbers are getting too big to ignore, particularly because this is the case across the board,” said John Kilduff, a partner at Again Capital LLC, a New York-based hedge fund that focuses on energy. “At the very least they will present the market with a strong headwind.”

Prices may drop as stockpiles approach the 2010 high of 365 million reached on May 21. Demand is set to decline during the next two months as refineries idle units to perform seasonal maintenance. Operating rates touched their annual low in September for three of the past six years
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My Fox Phoenix -- Heavy rain caused at least three collisions on Interstate 10 westbound that resulted in a 69-car pileup in the vicinity of 7th Street near downtown Phoenix.

I-10 westbound was closed Saturday night at 16th Street to the Deck Park Tunnel as well as the ramps from SR 202 and SR 51 to I-10.
Westbound I-10 has also been closed at Washington Street.  (go to article)

Boston Globe -- There is good news at the gas pumps as Americans get ready to fill the tanks of their cars, RVs, and boats for the Labor Day weekend.

The national average price for gasoline has been falling steadily this month, reaching about $2.68 for a gallon of unleaded yesterday, according to AAA and others. That’s about 6 cents a gallon less than a month ago and 7 cents less than it was on the Friday before the July Fourth weekend.

In its weekly report, the US Energy Information Administration said the national average for a gallon of unleaded was $2.68, down about 2 cents from a week ago.

Prices in major cities ranged from $2.62 a gallon in Denver to $3.08 in Los Angeles and $3.12 in San Francisco.

Most analysts believe retail prices will continue to retreat in September.  (go to article)

Bankrate.com -- Driving a car that has been in a car recall without getting the problem fixed can result in serious safety issues as well as lead to unnecessary costs. There were 1.4 million cars for sale with unfixed problems from car recalls last year, according to a new study by CarFax, the vehicle history information provider.

The vast majority of car recalls are considered safety issues and while they range from minor to very serious, all can result in unnecessary out-of-pocket expenses.  (go to article)

USA Today -- When August auto sales come out Wednesday, it isn't going to be pretty.

The year-over-year sales decline for the month will look terrible — down an estimated 30% — because the comparison will be with the buying frenzy fueled last August by the government's cash-for-clunkers program.

The program gave as much as $4,500 to buyers who traded an older car or truck for a new car with higher fuel economy. Its aim was a shot in the arm for auto sales at a time when consumers were not buying because of growing job losses, bank failures, automaker bankruptcies and tight credit. Without that government boost, supporters say, the auto industry — and the U.S. jobs dependent on both domestic and foreign makers — would have imploded and dug the economy into an even deeper hole.

Did it work?  (go to article)

U.S. News Rankings & Reviews -- One of the big selling points of electric vehicles is that, while they cost more upfront, over time you can save money, since you’re not buying gas. New analysis is questioning that math.

The BBC writes that “over three years, electric cars could be more expensive to run than their petrol equivalents.” What’s surprising is where the figures come from: Mitsubishi, which is getting ready to launch its own electric car, the Mitsubishi i-MiEV. According to the BBC, “The high purchase price, and the rapid depreciation, are what may make electric cars uncompetitive financially."  (go to article)

Reuters -- Gasoline demand in California, the nation's largest gasoline market, fell 0.1 percent in May compared with the same month in the previous year, according to the California State Board of Equalization.

May diesel demand fell 2.1 percent in May 2010 compared with May 2009, the board said in a statement.  (go to article)

London Free Press -- Dealer incentives are enticing Canadians to buy bigger, more costly vehicles and recent new-vehicle sales are the highest in three years.
Hit hard by the economic meltdown two years ago, the North American auto industry quickly became a poster child for the recession.

But in Canada, at least, which unlike the U.S. is avoiding slippery slope of another recession, new vehicle sales in the last two months have been the highest in three years, clipping along now at a projected annual rate of 1.62 million.

At that rate, projected car sales this year would match pre-recession levels.  (go to article)

CNN -- (CNN) -- Thad Allen, the government's point man on the BP oil disaster, and Plaquemines Parish President Billy Nungesser will meet Tuesday before briefing the public on the cleanup effort.

The effort to permanently kill the ruptured oil well deep in the Gulf of Mexico has stalled because of turbulent seas.

Officials had planned to detach a device called a blowout preventer from the well and replace it with a new one, a procedure aimed at paving the way for a permanent fix for the well.

BP annouced the postponement of the procedure on its Twitter page Monday.

"Operations will commence as soon as sea states reach acceptable levels," the company said.
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inhabitat.com -- By Timon Singh

Clean energy company Acta has unveiled plans to install a network of solar-powered hydrogen fueling stations throughout Italy. The new fuel pumps will harness solar energy to produce hydrogen fuel from water through electrolysis.

"...they offer an alternative to the standard gas-guzzling automobile."

Hydrogen technology has certain advantages over batteries — it doesn’t necessitate emission-creating production lines and it doesn’t require long recharge times. The tech has proved that it can work in conjunction with batteries and that it can also become a fully-fledged alternative fuel.

"...completed more than 170 installations during 2009,...paving the way for a more sustainable fueling network."

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Bloomberg -- The Prius hybrid has spearheaded sales growth for Toyota Motor Corp. in Japan for more than a year, helped by government subsidies. The model will likely bear the brunt of plunging demand as the support ends.

“A collapse in sales is unavoidable,” said Hiromi Inoue, the new-car sales chief for Tokyo Toyopet Motor Sales Co. “The daily pace of orders for the Prius is already dropping. We are bracing ourselves for the coming crisis.”

The number of customers signing up to buy a Prius at Tokyo Toyopet’s 66 showrooms has dropped to about eight a day from 20 in June, Inoue said. Industrywide, car sales in Japan are expected to plunge 23 percent in the six months beginning in October from a year earlier, according to the Japan Automobile Dealers Association.  (go to article)

CNET -- he Environmental Protection Agency and Department of Transportation on Monday proposed a fuel economy label overhaul to reflect how electric and alternative fuel vehicles stack up against gasoline passenger vehicles.

The federal agencies released two new labels that officials expect to be finalized early next year and used in 2012 model year cars. The published labels will be available for public comment for 60 days.

The changed label, mandated by the 2007 energy law, includes the same information on city and highway miles per gallon and estimated driving costs based on 15,000 miles a year now available.

But the new labels add more comparative information, rating cars on mileage, greenhouse gas contribution, and other air pollutants from tailpipe emissions.  (go to article)

plugincars.com -- We are quickly approaching the launch dates of the Nissan LEAF and Chevrolet Volt—the first two globally-distributed and mass-market plug-in cars the world has ever seen. As the public's attention shifts to the battery-powered drive-train and its perceived shortcomings, the question of how long it will take to charge the battery has rightly taken center stage.

To this point, much of the conversation regarding plug-in car charging times has revolved around what kind of charging station you use. In the US, as many of us know, there are essentially three types of charging:

1. A standard 3-prong household outlet, also known as "Level 1 charging"
2. A specialized home charging station, also known as "Level 2 charging"
3. A commercial quick charging station, known alternately as both  (go to article)

Gas 2.0 -- In general, once you’ve bought something new, its value tends to sink the moment you take it out of the box. For a new car, the value plummets as soon as you drive it off the dealership lot. It’s called depreciation, and with cars it is especially brutal. That shiny new car you just bought for $30,000 might be worth less than $25,000 after just a week of ownership. With very few exceptions (like vintage muscle cars), most cars suffer a steep drop in value almost immediately.

This may go doubly true for electric cars it seems—at least in Europe. Mitsubishi has put out a chart to the BBC which suggests that the higher up-front costs of an electric car, plus the increased depreciation, mean in the long haul it could cost a lot more than a petrol powered car. Now why would they do that?  (go to article)

Flixxy.com -- In an efficient and safe effort to save us from the ill-effects of plastic waste, Akinori Ito has developed a machine which converts plastic back into oil..
watch the video.....  (go to article)

Telegraph.co.uk -- If Barack Obama were to marshal America’s vast scientific and strategic resources behind a new Manhattan Project, he might reasonably hope to reinvent the global energy landscape and sketch an end to our dependence on fossil fuels within three to five years.  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- The U.S. East Coast has three days to get ready for a possible strike by Hurricane Earl, which has delayed flights in the Caribbean and halted ship loading at a refinery in the U.S. Virgin Islands.

Earl strengthened today to a Category 3 hurricane on the five-step Saffir-Simpson scale with winds of 125 miles (200 kilometers) per hour about 120 miles east-northeast of San Juan, Puerto Rico, at 3 p.m. New York time, according to a National Hurricane Center advisory. Earl is the season’s second major hurricane.

Earl’s projected track runs parallel to the East Coast. The storm may strike land anywhere from North Carolina northward, said Rick Knabb, hurricane expert for the Weather Channel in Atlanta.  (go to article)

The New York Times -- TEXAS CITY, Tex. — While the world was focused on the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico, a BP refinery here released huge amounts of toxic chemicals into the air that went unnoticed by residents until many saw their children come down with respiratory problems.

For 40 days after a piece of equipment critical to the refinery’s operation broke down, a total of 538,000 pounds of toxic chemicals, including the carcinogen benzene, poured out of the refinery.

Rather than taking the costly step of shutting down the refinery to make repairs, the engineers at the plant diverted gases to a smokestack and tried to burn them off, but hundreds of thousands of pounds still escaped into the air, according to state environmental officials.  (go to article)

CNBC -- The price of a barrel of oil would be closer to $10 if the commodity wasn't traded as an investment instrument, given the record-high levels of U.S. oil inventories, Peter Beutel, president of Cameron Hanover, told CNBC Monday.
"I honestly think that if there were no investors using oil as an asset that the price of oil right now would be $10 or $15 or $18, but it wouldn't be anywhere near where it is," Beutel said.

"We have so much oil right now, more than we've had in 27 years. Why is it 27 years? Because that's how far our records go back. It's probably the most in 50 or 100 years," he added.

Part of the reason the price of oil is currently above $74 (BIS: US@CL.1) a barrel is because of a belief in the economic recovery, Beutel said.

Comments by Federal Reserve Chai  (go to article)

Science Daily -- Now, for the first time, a team of Empa scientists have made a detailed life cycle assessment (LCA) or ecobalance of lithium-ion (Li-ion) batteries, in particular the chemically improved (i.e. more environmentally friendly) version of the ones most frequently used in electric vehicles.

The study shows that the electric car's Li-ion battery drive is in fact only a moderate environmental burden. At most only 15 per cent of the total burden can be ascribed to the battery. The production of the lithium, is responsible for only 2.3 per cent of the total. Lithium-ion rechargeable batteries are not as bad as previously assumed. How the battery is recharged has a greater impact on the environment than the production of the battery.  (go to article)

Reuters -- WASHINGTON | Mon Aug 30, 2010

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - The United States will propose on Monday new labels for passenger vehicles detailing for the first time their greenhouse gas emissions, while also changing measurements of fuel economy.

The labeling proposed by the Environmental Protection Agency and the Department of Transportation would allow consumers to compare cars in terms of emissions blamed for warming the planet and to see how far they could drive on new technologies and traditional gasoline engines.

"New fuel economy labels will keep pace with the new generation of fuel efficient cars and trucks rolling off the line, and provide simple, straightforward updates to inform consumers about their choices in a rapidly changing market," EPA Administrator Lisa Jackson said  (go to article)

Market Watch -- SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. has lowered its price target for crude-oil futures, saying the recent bounce is likely temporary and forecasting prices around $65 a barrel by October.

The firm has tweaked its third-quarter price forecast to $75 a barrel, from $77 a barrel.

Investors should view the recovery in prices in the coming week as "a selling opportunity," analysts at Morgan wrote in a note to clients.

Prices are likely to "move into the mid $60s before (the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries) meets in October," they said.  (go to article)

Associated Press -- There is good news at the gas pump, as Americans get ready to fill their cars, RVs and boats for the Labor Day weekend.

The national average price for gasoline has been falling steadily this month, reaching $2.678 for a gallon of unleaded on Monday, according to AAA, Wright Express and Oil Price Information Service. That's about 6 cents a gallon less than a month ago and 7 cents less than it was on the Friday before the July Fourth weekend.

West Coast drivers pay the most for gas -- between $2.792 a gallon and $3.539 a gallon. The cheapest gas is in Texas, the Gulf Coast states and parts of the Midwest, where prices range from $2.431 to $2.523 a gallon.

A plunge in wholesale gasoline prices earlier this month is pushing down prices at the pump, PFGBest analyst Phil Flynn said.

 (go to article)

Downstream Today -- Life Technologies Corp., a provider of innovative life science solutions and SG Biofuels, Inc., a bioenergy crop company, on Tuesday announced they have completed sequencing the Jatropha curcas genome to 100x coverage, using the SOLiD 4.0 System by Life Technologies. The sequence significantly accelerates the identification of key traits for the oilseed-producing crop and advances its development as a high yielding, low-cost source for next generation biofuel.  (go to article)

Sympatico -- Gtrblog.com has leaked images and information on the 2012 Nissan GT-R.
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The revised GT-R will reportedly feature LED accent lights and newly shaped bumpers. The new styling make the car more aerodynamic. Two new colours, Aurora Flare Blue Pearl and Nebular Opal Black, will also available.
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The 2012's models new wheels will cut 12 kg off the car's weight and will be offered in two colours, Hyper Blue Black and Hyper Titanium.
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The 2011 GT-R features a 3.8-litre engine making 485 horsepower and 434 lb-ft of torque, a six-speed dual-clutch transmission, three driver-selectable modes and lightweight aluminium-forged wheels.
 (go to article)

Reuters -- (Reuters) - Biofuel demand is driving a new "land grab" in Africa, with at least 5 million hectares (19,300 sq miles) acquired by foreign firms to grow crops in 11 countries, a study by an environmental group said on Monday.

The contracts by European and Asian companies for land to grow sugar cane, jatropha and palm oil to be turned into fuel will involve clearing forests and vegetation, taking land that could be used for food and creating conflicts with local communities, Friends of the Earth said in the study.

Proponents of biofuels argue they are renewable and can help fight climate change because the growing plants ingest as much carbon dioxide from the air as the fuels made from them emit when burned.

Critics say there is a risk of the crops infringing on land that could be u  (go to article)

CNN -- U.S. gasoline prices have decreased a little more than 7 cents per gallon in the past two weeks, and lower demand in September is expected to keep prices steady, according to a new nationwide survey.

The latest Lundberg Survey, conducted on August 27, found the average price of self-serve regular at $2.70 per gallon -- down 7.54 cents since the last survey, conducted two weeks before.

Survey publisher Trilby Lundberg said gas prices were catching up to a decrease in crude prices.

"Absent any upset in the price of crude, (gasoline) prices should see little change or even a small drop," Lundberg told CNN.

There is a plentiful supply of gas, and September marks the beginning of a traditional period of lower gas consumption that should keep prices steady,  (go to article)

USA Today -- Volvo has long been known for Swedish quality and class-leading safety. So now that it's owned by China's Geely Holding Group, will the brand still be considered premium if Volvos are made in China?

Geely is considering converting a new plant in southwest China to make Volvos, the Wall Street Journal reports. It also may construct another Volvo plant, possibly near Shanghai. That didn't take long. Geely recently closed the deal to buy Volvo from Ford Motor.

Geely management has made it clear that it has to find ways to slash Volvo's costs. And it unclear whether any of a Chinese plant's output would make their way to the U.S., much less out of China.  (go to article)

Financial Times (FT.com) -- Vladimir Putin, the Russian prime minister, on Sunday opened a new pipeline to export east Siberian oil to China that will help Russia reorientate its oil trade towards the east.

The pipeline, running 67km from Skovorodino in east Siberia to China’s north-eastern frontier, is an offshoot of a new oil export route Russia is building to the Pacific Ocean, providing a strategic window on the fast-growing energy markets of Asia.  (go to article)

London Free Press -- The door has opened a crack on a stay of execution for workers at Ford of Canada’s St. Thomas assembly plant.

While workers have received a layoff notice effective Aug. 31, 2011 — when the plant on Hwy. 4 south of Hwy. 401 is poised to close — included in the letter was a statement from Ford saying that if demand continues for the plant’s vehicles, the deadline could be extended.

“I will take whatever they give us,” said Scott Smith, chairperson of CAW Local 1520, representing Ford workers. “They had to give us one-year notice and they have now done that, but let’s hope there is more than that.”

As for whether there will be more time on the job for the 1,200 unionized workers, it all depends on what happens the next 12 months, he said.

The plant is still on pace to assemble abo  (go to article)

ALL247NEWS.COM -- In August 28, MSNBC ran a feature on fuel cells. It had a thing or two to say about the Bloom Box and Bloom Energy. The product, it said, has generated "excitement" among experts of the energy industry. MSNBC reported, "It's generated electricity as well, in pilot projects at places ranging from eBay to Safeway.  (go to article)

CNN -- An historic journey is happening now...and no surprise, it's to feed China's appetite for energy.

The SCF Baltica is a large tanker that has just made it safely through the Arctic Circle to deliver 70,000 tons of gas condensate (a natural gas extract) from Russia to China. This is the first time a tanker of this size has been able to make the journey through the Northern Sea Route. It's now headed for its final port destination just south of Shanghai.

There are two interesting angles to this story:

1) This route through the Arctic cuts down the distance traveled by almost a half. The route from Murmansk, Russia to Ningbo, China covers 7,000 nautical miles. This is down from the 12,000 nautical miles it takes on the traditional route through the Suez Canal.

Sergey Frank, CEO o  (go to article)

CNN -- (CNN) -- More than three weeks after plugging its ruptured oil well with cement and mud from above, BP plans to start a procedure Monday that will pave the way for a permanent fix for the well.

Crews will start work Monday removing the capping stack that began trapping oil in the well last month, retired Adm. Thad Allen told reporters.

That will allow them to detach the blowout preventer and replace it with a new one -- key steps before engineers use a relief well to permanently kill the well 18,000 feet below the Gulf's surface.

"We will attempt to pull it free, and we are prepared to apply up to 80,000 [pounds] of force in addition to the weight of the blowout preventer to lift it," said Allen, the man charged with the government response to the oil disaster. "We call this the g  (go to article)

autoblog.com -- One of the regular questions relating to the Chevrolet Volt is: what happens to the fuel in the tank if it's not used for extended periods of time and the car is only run on plug power? General Motors officials have said that the engine might periodically run just for the purpose of using up some gas as well as circulating the oil and making sure that all the systems are working properly.

While perusing the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office application database, we stumbled across a filing from General Motors for a system to automatically deliver additives to the fuel tank of a plug-in hybrid vehicle. While the application mentions engines with a variety of fuels and several possible additives, this clearly seems like something applicable to the Volt. The system would have a controller  (go to article)

physorg.com -- Stanford engineers have figured out how to simultaneously use the light and heat of the sun to generate electricity in a way that could make solar power production more than twice as efficient as existing methods and potentially cheap enough to compete with oil.

Unlike photovoltaic technology currently used in solar panels - which becomes less efficient as the temperature rises - the new process excels at higher temperatures.

Called 'photon enhanced thermionic emission,' or PETE, the process promises to surpass the efficiency of existing photovoltaic and thermal conversion technologies.

...a new energy conversion process..

And the materials needed to build a device to make the process work are cheap and easily available, meaning the power that comes from it will be affordable.  (go to article)

New York Times -- In a remote reach of the Gulf of Mexico, nearly 200 miles from shore, a floating oil platform thrusts its tentacles deep into the ocean like a giant steel octopus.

The $3 billion rig, called Perdido, can pump oil from dozens of wells nearly two miles under the sea while simultaneously drilling new ones. It is part of a wave of ultra-deep platforms — all far more sophisticated than the rig that was used to drill the ill-fated BP well that blew up in April. These platforms have sprung up far from shore and have pushed the frontiers of technology in the gulf, a region that now accounts for a quarter of the nation’s oil output.

Major offshore accidents are not common. But whether through equipment failure or human error, the risks increase as the rigs get larger and more complicated.
 (go to article)

IndustryWeek -- Toyota Motor Corp. said Aug. 23 it will continue hiring for positions at its Blue Springs, Miss., plant after delaying its plan to start production at the facility amid weak market conditions.

Toyota Motor Manufacturing Mississippi, Inc. (TMMMS) is hiring for hourly production and skilled maintenance positions through the Mississippi Department of Employment Security and the Workforce Investment Network Job Centers.

Toyota plans to eventually hire 2,000 employees at the plant.

Individuals interested in employment opportunities at Toyota's Blue Springs plant may apply online at www.mdes.ms.gov.
 (go to article)