All the news reports this morning are that a deal at Copenhagen is dead. Barack Obama has said that we had run out of time to secure a deal in December. This will please the corporate lobbyists no end. The longer they can delay action on climate the better. But now Copenhagen’s iconic mermaid is … Read More
coal to liquids
Fat Profits, But Big Oil is Shrinking
Over the next few days more oil companies will announce obscene profits. But as the headlines are taken by calls for a windfall tax, the real story is one that has been brewing for some time. Big Oil can’t find enough oil. Yesterday, despite making £93m a day, Shell did not impressed the markets. The … Read More
US Congress says no to tar sands (quietly)
Here’s one that somebody missed. Apparently Section 526 of the Energy Bill signed into law by Bush less than a month ago stated that the U.S. government would not purchase transportation fuel from nonconventional petroleum sources that have higher life-cycle greenhouse gas emissions from production and combustion than equivalent conventional fuel. That means that the … Read More
China: Coal to Oil in 2008
Stupid Idea One. China’s largest coal company Shenhua Group will produce China’s first barrel of oil fuel from coal in 2008 using technology known as direct coal liquefaction. “We have finished 95 percent of the engineering projects at the first production line in Erdos of north China’s Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region. The line will start … Read More
Exxon Proposes Burning Humanity For Fuel
This is easily one of the greatest acts of creative direct action ever perpetrated on the oil industry. Bravo Yes Men! Imposters posing as ExxonMobil and National Petroleum Council (NPC) representatives delivered an outrageous keynote speech to 300 oilmen at GO-EXPO, Canada’s largest oil conference, held at Stampede Park in Calgary, Alberta, today. The speech … Read More
China Considers Scrapping Coal to Oil Projects
China is considering halting efforts to make oil from coal due to concerns about the expense, how much energy it uses and the effect on climate change. China had been hoping to ease its rising dependence on imported oil by promoting alternative energy sources such as oil-from-coal and solar, wind, and nuclear power.
NZ Greens Unveil New Climate Policy
The New Zealand Green Party has unveiled a new climate change policy that rejects carbon taxes and emissions trading in favour of an emitter-pays approach. They argue their solution offers the best hope of carbon charges and trading while ensuring taxpayers are not left holding the estimated $600 million bill for New Zealand’s Kyoto liabilities … Read More
Devils in details: State of the Union
If you listened to, or read, President Bush’s speech last night, you might be thinking that a 20% reduction in gasoline use over the next decade sounds pretty good. That is, until you go to the White House website to read the details of the plan, in which they use a word the President conveniently … Read More