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MORNING ENERGY NEWS  |  10.3.2019
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The end of dusky gopher frog tyranny is near!


Daily Signal (9/30/19) reports: "Local conservation efforts, not U.S. government regulations, boosted the population of a bird species in Colorado, one lawmaker said during a roundtable discussion on Capitol Hill focused on practical reforms to the Endangered Species Act. Other House members who belong to the Congressional Western Caucus, along with 'industry stakeholders' and policy analysts, described how the federal government’s designation of 'critical habitat' often undermines conservation.  They also expressed concern about how environmental litigation violates property rights while failing to protect wildlife...In 2012, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service found that 1,500 acres in Louisiana should be designated as critical habitat for a species known as the dusky gopher frog, Bakst said, citing one example. Just one problem, he said: The frog had not been seen in Louisiana for more than 50 years. But because of the 'critical habitat' designation, the federal government sought to impose a ban on development that would deprive property owners of more than $30 million in value."

"Must-pass bills like the one that such a tax credit expansion is likely to be attached to -- likely a massive government funding bill -- are often bad enough. Including a crony EV tax credit expansion would only make the bad worse."

 

– Sarah Anderson, FreedomWorks

In case you were wondering where the marching orders came from.


New York Times (9/27/19) reports: "Climate change protesters from Extinction Rebellion snarled traffic in Washington on Monday and again on Friday. You might find yourself asking, 'Who helps pays for this activism?' The answer, in part, is the scions of some of America’s most famous families, including the Kennedys and the Gettys...Three wealthy donors formed the Climate Emergency Fund this year to support 'disruptive activists,' as Trevor Neilson, one of the founders, put it. For years, he said, they have individually given money to more traditional environmental organizations like Sierra Club and the Natural Resources Defense Council, but concluded that these groups were taking a too-gradual approach to the fight against climate change and that the crisis demanded greater urgency. 'The smartest place for philanthropists to invest is in this new generation of activists who refuse to accept the excuses of the adults whose lazy approach to climate is leading us off a cliff,' Mr. Neilson said. 'The era of gradualism in environmental activism is over.'..Ms. Getty noted that much of her family’s wealth came from businesses involved with fossil fuels, which contribute to climate change. Getty Oil was once one of the nation’s largest producers and was bought by Texaco in 1984; she said she has been moving fossil fuels out of her own portfolio in favor of sustainable investments. "

When you suggest wiping out tuberculosis instead of cooling the planet by 0.00018 degrees in 100 years.


Project Syndicate (9/26/19) column: "Over the past 25 years, nearly 1.2 billion people around the world have been lifted out of poverty, while both malnutrition and the risk of death from air pollution have decreased. Taken together, these achievements are nothing short of a miracle. But two global trends now threaten to slow the momentum in reducing poverty. The first is nationalist opposition to free trade...But there is another, arguably greater threat to progress on reducing poverty: governments’ blinkered pursuit of hugely expensive climate-mitigation policies. The German government, for example, plans to spend €40 billion ($44 billion) over four years to help the country cut its carbon dioxide emissions. Such measures will likely reduce the global rise in temperature by 0.00018°C in a hundred years – an immeasurably small gain for such a huge cost. By contrast, spending the same amount on preventing tuberculosis in developing countries could save more than ten million lives...Moreover, policies that reduce poverty are climate policies. History has shown conclusively that making people richer and less vulnerable is one of the best ways to strengthen societies’ resilience to challenges such as climate threats."

Big bet.


The Motley Fool (9/28/19) reports: "Drive around middle America and you'll see wind farms of various sizes scattered across the country. One of the most common wind turbines you'll see is a model from General Electric that's 1.5 megawatts with a 212-foot tower and 116-foot blades. In total, the wind turbine stands 328 feet, or nearly the length of a football field. But that's now being dwarfed by what GE is installing offshore. Now, GE is testing a 12 MW wind turbine that dwarfs the most common turbines we see today. And if it works as planned, the Haliade-X 12 MW will power millions of homes from miles off the coast of populated areas. Standing 853 feet tall, with blades that each extend 351 feet, the Haliade-X 12 MW promises to be not only the biggest but also one of the most efficient wind turbines in the world...The exact cost of turbines isn't being released, but GE says it can generate electricity that's competitive with other power generation sources. And given the traction the product has with developers, they expect it to be cost-effective." 

Remember when OPEC used to be a big deal?


Reuters (10/1/19) reports: "Ecuador, one of the smallest members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries, said on Tuesday it will leave the 14-nation bloc from Jan. 1 due to fiscal problems. The Andean nation is attempting to increase crude production to raise more income and has on multiple occasions broken its output quota fixed by OPEC...Ecuador had in February asked OPEC for permission to produce above its quota, but the government never confirmed whether the organization responded to the request. The country’s exit will cause barely a ripple for OPEC, the organization’s former secretary general told Reuters. 'This won’t cause any problem for OPEC,' said Rene Ortiz, who is also a former Ecuador energy minister. 'This is more a political issue.'"

Energy Markets

 
WTI Crude Oil: ↑ $52.67
Natural Gas: ↑ $2.28
Gasoline: ↑ $2.66
Diesel: ↓ $3.01
Heating Oil: ↓ $186.86
Brent Crude Oil: ↑ $57.71
US Rig Count: ↓ 877

 
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