Posted on November 3, 2014 at 6:42 am by Matt Smith in
Crude oil |
One of my favorite songs of this year is ‘I Forget Where We Were‘ by Ben Howard. The song’s title has been resonating with me recently as I get a wee bit reflective as we approach the twilight of an eventful year. So much has happened across currency markets, it is easy to forget where […]
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Posted on October 22, 2014 at 10:45 am by Matt Smith in
Solar,
Technology
Schneider Electric’s CMO, Chris Hummel, pondered whether the IEA’s claim that solar energy could be the leading source of electricity by 2050 was achievable. Matt Smith’s initial reaction was hum-dee-dum…not a chance! Then he thought about it and grabbed his research shovel and started digging.
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Posted on October 3, 2014 at 11:55 am by Matt Smith in
Coal,
Crude oil,
Electricity,
Europe,
Gasoline
The above phrase is from the translation of ’plus ça change, plus c’est la même chose‘ by the French novelist Jean-Baptiste Alphonse Karr. Regardless, not only is it great, but also highly applicable to a veritable selection of shenanigans going on across energyland™. First up – or actually first and second up, are two examples […]
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Posted on September 26, 2014 at 9:16 am by Matt Smith in
Africa,
Electricity
This visual voyage through some cartographic capers plots a course across US energy consumption, global emissions, and the second largest continent on earth. So grab your coat, and let’s start charting… First up we are mapping US energy consumption, and specifically, what is wasted. An awesome burrito reader pondered […]
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Posted on September 12, 2014 at 10:18 am by Matt Smith in
Crude oil,
Gasoline
Not meaning to be villainous – like my British counterparts in the Jaguar commercial - but it would seem that sometimes ‘it’s good to be bad‘. And here are some immediate examples across commodityland™. The first topic we are going to look at in dastardly detail is retail gasoline prices. Prices generally peak in the first half […]
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…I would have no squabble in doing one of her hits, but we would have to work in some commodity themes into the lyrics. So here are some ideas I am working on pitching her. Roar - We could definitely belt this one out. Not only does roaring louder, louder than a lion sound like fun, […]
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China is in a pickle. It is a pickle it is well aware of – and trying to fix – but a pickle nonetheless, as it tries to wean itself off coal and ramp up its natural gas consumption. So here are some of the trials and tribulations faced by the world’s largest energy consumer […]
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Posted on August 25, 2014 at 11:45 am by Matt Smith in
Gasoline,
Refining
There is an interesting set of twists and turns at play between US unemployment data, vehicle sales, and gasoline demand.
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Posted on August 16, 2014 at 9:42 am by Matt Smith in
Coal,
General
While I’ve been digging into a bunch of different commodities recently, there have been a number of interesting bits and bobs relating to coal that I’ve been squirreling away. Hence, here are ten tidbits that I wanted to share: 1) Coal is currently used to meet 30% of global primary energy needs, which is the highest level since […]
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Posted on August 1, 2014 at 6:39 am by Matt Smith in
Crude oil,
Natural gas
If this tortoise could talk, I’m pretty sure he would say ‘preposterous’ in response to what you are about to read. For the wild and wacky world of energy has revealed some preposterous notions in the last week or so. Here are but a few of them. –First up we are talking trash, for only 1% […]
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Posted on July 23, 2014 at 6:32 am by Matt Smith in
General,
Hydraulic fracturing
Russell Gold is absolutely marvelous. Not only has he spent over a decade as an intrepid energy reporter at the Wall Street Journal, but he has written a book, ‘The Boom‘, which is the quintessential history of the US fracking revolution. The book provides a fair and balanced view on how hydraulic fracturing has kick-started […]
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I didn’t intentionally seek out these nuggets on the US energy boom – especially so quickly after my recent involvement with Miley and Mr Bieber - but they were just conveniently there. Fast food if you like. As crude oil production hits a new 28-year high and natural gas continues to achieve higher and higher record levels of […]
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