The Palm Oil Conundrum

People sometimes ask which biofuels are competitive head to head with crude oil. By competitive, I mean those that can actually compete favorably with oil prices on a level playing field (i.e., they don’t require […]

The U.S. Navy and Biofuels – Part III

This is the concluding installment of my recent interview with Tom Hicks, Deputy Assistant Secretary to the Navy (Energy). Part I discussed the overall goals of the Navy’s biofuel efforts, and in Part II we […]

The U.S. Navy and Biofuels – Part I

On Tuesday, October 19, 2010 I conducted an interview with Tom Hicks, who is the Deputy Assistant Secretary to the Navy (Energy). The idea for the interview originated from my recent essays on Solazyme (here […]

Tourism Resorts and Oil Exploration in the Caspian Sea

The following guest analysis was written by the staff of Global Intelligence Report. ———————- SITUATION: One indirect consequence of the Gulf of Mexico oil spill is the impact it may have on the financing of […]

Food Versus Fuel – Again

Upcoming I am off to Malaysia on Saturday for a business trip. I will actually spend some time in Bintulu, so I am looking forward to driving by and seeing Shell’s gas-to-liquids (GTL) plant there. […]

In Case You Missed It

In addition to the EPA’s decision to raise the allowed ethanol blends to 15%, there were three other energy-related stories of interest this week. Deep-Water Ban Ends The first was that the Obama administration has […]

EPA Grants E15 Waiver for Newer Vehicles

The news was just announced: EPA Grants E15 Waiver for Newer Vehicles WASHINGTON – The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) today waived a limitation on selling fuel that is more than 10 percent ethanol for […]

The Gas Cartel Idea: On the Road to Another OPEC?

The following guest analysis was written by the staff of Global Intelligence Report. ————————- As oil sees its image tarnished from the disastrous oil spills that took place off the coast of the Gulf of […]

Solazyme CEO Clarifies Costs

Prior to publishing the previous essay, U.S. Navy Pays Big Bucks for Biofuels, the editor for Consumer Energy Report asked why I didn’t go with a more descriptive title like “U.S. Navy Pays $425 per […]