Saturday, February 15, 2014

TRAIN DERAILS WITH CRUDE OIL ABOARD!!

A Norfolk Southern train carrying crude oil derails in Vandergrift, Pennsylvania.

A 120-car Norfolk Southern train carrying heavy Canadian crude oil derailed and spilled in western Pennsylvania on Thursday, adding to a string of recent accidents that have prompted calls for stronger safety standards.

There were no reports of injury or fire after 21 tank cars came off the track at a bend by the Kiskiminetas River in the town of Vandergrift, according to town and company officials.

Nineteen of the derailed cars were carrying oil and two held liquefied petroleum gas, Norfolk Southern said. Three of the crude tank cars spilled after the incident, though the leaks have since been plugged. The company did not say how much oil spilled.

The train was heading from Conway to Morrisville, Pennsylvania. Some of the crude on board was destined for an asphalt plant in Paulsboro, New Jersey, owned by NuStar, a NuStar spokeswoman said.

Source: Valley News Dispatch
Derailed Norfolk Southern train in western Pennsylvania, Thursday morning, February 13, 2014

Energy at home!!


The truth about us oil!!


TESLA MOTORS CARS NOT SAFE??

Tesla fires a big deal?PLAY VIDEO
There are still too many unknown details surrounding the latest Tesla fire in Toronto to say determine the cause. The investigation into Tesla fires continues, says CNBC's Phil LeBeau.

With shares of Tesla hitting an all-time high and the company approaching several milestones, another fire involving the Model S is coming to light.

The fire, during which nobody was hurt, happened Feb. 1 in Toronto, Canada, Toronto Fire Services confirmed. TFS said the origin of the fire was in the engine area, but the actual source of the fire is unclear.

Tesla confirmed the fire while downplaying the incident. Spokeswoman Liz Jarvis-Shean said in a statement, "We don't yet know the precise cause, but have definitively determined that it did not originate in the battery, the charging system, the adapter or the electrical receptacle, as these components were untouched by the fire."

Getty Images
Tesla Model S cars are displayed at a Tesla showroom in Palo Alto, Calif.

Will solar power last??!!

Solar risks, solar rewardsPLAY VIDEO
The debate over solar energy continues -- CNBC's Silicon Valley Bureau Chief Mark Berniker breaks down the ongoing risks and rewards facing the industry.

The Ivanpah solar power plant stretches over more than five square miles of the Mojave Desert. Almost 350,000 mirrors the size of garage doors tilt toward the sun with an ability to energize 140,000 homes. The plant, which took almost four years and thousands of workers assembling millions of parts to complete, officially opened on Thursday, the first electric generator of its kind.

It could also be the last.

Since the project began, the price of rival technologies has plummeted, incentives have begun to disappear and the appetite among investors for mammoth solar farms has waned. Although several large, new projects have been coming online in recent months — many in the last quarter of 2013 — experts say fewer are beginning construction and not all of those under development will be completed.

(Read moreRenewable energy)

"I don't think that we're going to see large-scale solar thermal plants popping up, five at a time, every year in the U.S. in the long-term — it's just not the way it's going to work," said Matthew Feinstein, a senior analyst at Lux Research.

"Companies that are supplying these systems have questionable futures. There's other prospects for renewables and for solar that look a lot better than this particular solution," he said, including rooftop solar systems that are being installed one by one on businesses and homes.

Executives involved in Ivanpah — a venture among BrightSource Energy, NRG Energy and Google — say that once the facility proves that the technology can work, it will become easier to finance others, especially as repetition brings the cost down.

Should atomic power do a come back??


The North Anna Power Station, operated by Dominion Energy, in Mineral, Va.

Atomic power is gaining currency in the global energy market, former New Jersey Gov. Christine Todd Whitman told CNBC this week, arguing that nuclear should be considered part of the arsenal in the fight against global warming.

"It's not a silver bullet that will solve our energy problems … but if you care about clean air and heavy dependence on fossil fuels … nuclear should be part of the overall consideration," said the two-term governor, who now co-chairs the Clean and Safe Energy Coalition (CASEnergy), an advocacy group funded by the Nuclear Energy Institute. 

Nearly three years after a tsunami triggered a nuclear disaster at Japan's Fukushima Daiichi station, nuclear's proponents are trying to exorcise the demons that have haunted the sector. With the U.S. ramping up oil and gas production, though, nuclear energy has dropped off the radar.

OIL PRICES SLUGGIH!!!

Oil prices dipped Friday as disappointing U.S. manufacturing and retail sales data suggested a sluggish economic start to 2014, outweighing supply disruptions in Libya and Angola.

U.S. crude ended the session down 5 cents at $100.30. The contract ended the week almost flat after a four-week rally, fueled by signs of diminishing stockpiles in the U.S. Midwest, that drove prices above $101 a barrel for the first time since October.

On Friday the focus shifted to the U.S. economy after data showed manufacturing output fell in January by the largest margin in more than 4-1/2 years due to severely cold weather. That data overshadowed better than expected consumer sentiment.


Coupled with retail sales that unexpectedly dropped in January and a spike in jobless claims reported Thursday, the new data raised doubts over growth in the world's biggest economy and dulled expectations for higher growth in demand.

Brent crude was boosted by forecasts for tightened supply due to interruptions in Libya and Angola. The contract traded up 50 cents above $109 a barrel.