Blame Oil: Nigeria Slumps into Recession, Norway Stalls

02.09.2016

rafinerija-nafta-gas — Foto-ilustracija: Pixabay

Nigeria slumped into recession and Norway’s economic growth slowed to a standstill in the second quarter. Both countries rely on oil for a big chunk of their exports and have been hit hard by the collapse in prices.

Oil has recovered from February’s low of just over $26 per barrel but the current price of about $46 is still less than half what producers were getting just two years ago.

Nigeria’s second quarter GDP fell by more than 2% compared to last year, after slipping by 0.4% in the first quarter. Two consecutive quarters of decline mean Nigeria is now officially in recession.

Low oil prices and fuel shortages have hit Nigeria’s economy hard.

Nigeria isn’t only hurting from low prices. Its oil output also fell sharply because of a series of rebel attacks on infrastructure. Other sectors suffered too, with manufacturing and retail hit by chronic power outages.

The slump in oil prices has drained Nigeria’s foreign currency reserves. To stem the outflow of cash from the country, the government introduced strict restrictions on importing goods that it said could be produced locally. But that decision has reduced the flow of raw materials to the country’s manufacturers.

“Much of the blame for this must fall on Nigeria’s government. Import restrictions have crippled the manufacturing sector, which was long seen as a potential driver of non-oil growth,” said John Ashbourne, Africa economist at Capital Economics.

Norway’s offshore oil, gas and shipping activity shrank by 1.4% in the quarter, while mainland GDP grew just 0.4%.

The government has been forced, for the first time, to tap the nation’s huge sovereign wealth fund. Norway’s central bank said the country might be forced to withdraw more than $9 billion from the $888 billion pension fund in 2016 to make up for the collapse in oil revenue.

Source: money.cnn.com

New Solar Forecasting System Could Save Industry Hundreds Of Millions

01.09.2016

A new solar forecasting system could save the solar power industry hundreds of millions of dollars and make it easier for grid operators and utilities to integrate high penetration levels of variable resources like solar into the electric grid.

The new system, called Sun4Cast, was developed by scientists at the National Center for Atmospheric Research (NCAR) in Boulder, Colorado and claims to provide significantly more accurate solar forecasts than those provided by existing solar forecasting systems.

Forecasting solar irradiance is difficult because of the number of variables that can affect it, including air quality, the locations and types of clouds, relative humidity and other atmospheric conditions. Sun4Cast leverages a combination of advanced computer models, atmospheric observations, and artificial intelligence techniques to generate 0- to 6-hour nowcasts of solar irradiance and the resulting power production for specific solar facilities at 15-minute intervals. It also provides forecasts that extend out to 72 hours, allowing utility officials to make decisions in advance for balancing solar with other sources of energy.

Sun4Cast provides more accurate predictions of cloud cover and other atmospheric conditions that influence the amount of electricity generated by solar arrays than existing forecast methodologies. According to NCAR, the new forecasting system proved to be more accurate than existing solar forecasting systems by as much as 50% based on the results of several demonstration projects.

“The use of advanced forecasting of … future solar energy system output allows grid operators and utilities to proactively manage variable output, and thus integrating solar resources into the existing grid at lower costs to society,” according to a study by the Solar Electric Power Association.

High-penetration levels of renewable energy resources on the electric grid are creating new challenges for utility companies and grid operators due to their intermittent nature.

“These results can help enable the nation’s expanding use of solar energy,” said Sue Ellen Haupt, director of NCAR’s Weather Systems and Assessment Program, who led the research team. “More accurate predictions are vital for making solar energy more reliable and cost effective.”

Source: forbes.com

Renault is Proud to Present the 50,000th ZOE

31.08.2016

Three years after launch, Renault ZOE is Europe’s best-selling electric hatchback.

A full 98% of ZOE customers are satisfied… An unrivaled figure. Every three minutes, somewhere in the world, somebody switches from an ICE vehicle to an electric vehicle…

Since 2013, Renault has been the only carmaker to have a complete all-electric vehicle range with Twizy, ZOE and Kangoo Z.E. Since then, the EV market has grown exponentially, expanding by 48% worldwide in 2015. A total 18,500 ZOE vehicles were sold last year for a market share of 20% in Europe and over 55% in France.

Charging a ZOE is also becoming easier every day, with the continuing rollout of new infrastructure. Today, more than 60,000 charge points are available to the public in Europe, and 200 fast-charge stations can be found every 80 kilometers along France’s motorways (Corri-Door project).

Source: Renault.com

Gazprom and Edison Discuss Southern Route of Russian Natural Gas Supplies to Europe

31.08.2016

A working meeting between Alexey Miller, Chairman of the Gazprom Management Committee, and Marc Benayoun, Executive Vice President of EDF and Chief Executive Officer of Edison, took place yesterday in Milan.

The meeting was focused on arranging the southern route of Russian gas supplies to Europe using the capacities of the ITGI Poseidon project within the framework of the Memorandum of Understanding and in the light of reviving the TurkStream project. The parties also discussed gas supplies to Edison.

Italy’s Edison SpA is part of EDF Group and is a leading operator in Italy’s energy sector. Edison is mainly focused on hydrocarbon exploration, production and marketing, as well as power generation and sales, including energy efficiency developments.

On February 24, 2016, Gazprom, Edison, and DEPA signed the Memorandum of Understanding on natural gas deliveries from Russia across the Black Sea and third countries to Greece and from Greece to Italy. The parties are committed to take advantage of the work done by Edison and DEPA within the ITGI Poseidon project.

Source: Gazprom.com

Adapting to a Drier World

31.08.2016

Water, which covers more than two-thirds of the planet’s surface, is fundamental to life. It is also essential to energy production.

Water is critical to pumping oil and natural gas out of the ground, thanks to hydraulic fracturing. Hydropower dams can generate power and light up cities. Water is also vital to the cooling of nuclear reactors. But fresh water is becoming less available because of various factors including population growth, intensive agriculture and of course climate change. How this will impact energy production around the world is becoming an increasingly pressing question.

The scale of water use for energy production is tremendous. About 580 billion cubic metres of freshwater a year are necessary for energy production. That’s 1.6 billion cubic meters a day – enough to fill 640,000 Olympic-sized swimming pools every day of the year.

The energy sector must adapt quickly, particularly in countries facing water scarcity. In India, water needs for energy production is expected to increase by almost 50% over the coming two decades as millions more gain access to modern energy services. This rising demand could lead to serious shortages, both of water and energy. In 2010 for instance a drought caused the 2.3 Gigawatt Chandrapur coal-fired power station to shut down, leading to power outages across the state, which is home to over 120 million people. Meanwhile in the United States, some 60% of existing coal-fired power plants are also vulnerable to water demand and supply concerns.

Many of the solutions are clear. Increasing the share of gas-fired and renewable power generation can play a significant role in cutting back on water use. Technological innovations also have a major role, for instance in exploiting non-freshwater sources, including salt water, treated wastewater, storm water, and reclaimed water from oil and gas operations. There are also economic solutions, such as assigning an appropriate price on water where it is currently underpriced or free.

In 2012, the IEA highlighted the importance of this critical water-energy nexus in its flagship publication, the World Energy Outlook (WEO), which dedicated an entire chapter to the issue. The following year, a WEO Special Report, Redrawing the Energy-Climate Map, considered energy infrastructure in the context of climate resilience. And most recently, the WEO-2015 examined the impact of the Chinese coal sector on water resources. It found, for instance, that coal-fired power plants were responsible for around 90% of total water use related to the power sector in China.

Once again, the IEA is recognizing the importance of this problem. This year, WEO-2016 will feature a chapter on the water that will assess current and future freshwater requirements for energy production. This will include a detailed analysis on how the water industry uses energy, including water supply, water distribution, wastewater treatment and desalination.

As the world celebrates Water Week, it is becoming increasingly obvious that the sustainable use of this precious commodity will become critical to ensuring reliable and affordable energy supplies in the future.

Source: www.iea.org

Ignalina Turbine Hall Dismantling Completed

31.08.2016

Work that began in October 2011 to dismantle the turbine halls of unit 1 of the Ignalina nuclear power plant – or the B9/1 project – has been completed. The dismantled equipment weighs more than 18,000 tonnes and consists mostly of turbines, generators, heat exchangers, pumps, valves and pipes.

In a statement last week, Ignalina Nuclear Power Plant said work is continuing on the initial treatment of dismantled waste, which involves “crushing, decontamination, radiological measurements and packaging”, and which is scheduled for completion in 2019.

Lithuania agreed to shut down Ignalina 1 and 2 as a condition of its accession to the European Union. The European Commission is providing substantial funding for the project, scheduled to be completed in 2038.

The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) said in April that Lithuania should plan for potential project risks in the decommissioning of the Ignalina plant. A five-day, IAEA-led expert mission to the plant reviewed project risks and uncertainties related to the decommissioning of the two RBMK-1500 light-water, graphite-moderated reactors, which were permanently shut down in 2004 and 2009, respectively.

The mission – carried out at the invitation of the Lithuanian government – said the operator has “identified risks at both the corporate and individual project level and has taken into consideration the experience of other countries in decommissioning”.

Source: world-nuclear-news.org

Audi A9 E-tron Electric Car, Tesla Model S Rival, to Launch by 2020: Report

31.08.2016

The established German luxury carmakers are now taking Tesla Motors quite seriously, and are preparing a crop of electric cars to compete directly with its Model S and Model X.

In 2018, Audi will launch an all-electric SUV based on the e-tron quattro concept unveiled at the 2015 Frankfurt Motor Show last year. It seems to be aimed squarely at the Tesla Model X. Now it appears Audi may also have a Tesla Model S rival in the works as well.

An all-electric sedan called the A9 e-tron is under development, with plans for a 2020 launch, reports British automotive magazine Autocar.

This model will likely be closely related to the planned electric SUV, and would be positioned above the current A8 sedan as Audi’s flagship.

While Audi has not officially confirmed the A9 e-tron, CEO Rupert Stadler noted in an interview with Autocar that it plans to have three electric models in its lineup by 2020.

The A9 will likely share a platform with the all-electric SUV, which may get the Q6 e-tron name when it goes into production less than two years from now.

It could also share the SUV’s powertrain, which includes three electric motors—one powering the front wheels, and two powering the rear wheels. In the e-tron quattro concept, the two rear motors enable torque vectoring, in which power is shifted side to side to improve handling.

The A9 e-tron will likely also use the same 95-kilowatt-hour battery pack as the e-tron quattro concept, with lithium-ion cells from Korean firms LG Chem and Samsung SDI.

Audi is reportedly aiming for a range of 500 kilometers (310 miles), though that figure likely uses the European NEDC test cycle, with a comparable EPA range estimate being 20 or 30 percent lower.

The A9 e-tron will reportedly be offered with wireless inductive charging, as well as an automated parking feature that allows the car to position itself over the charging plate without any involvement from the driver.

Audi reportedly expects the A9 e-tron to achieve “Level 4” autonomy, meaning it will be capable of driving itself the majority of the time.

That’s another realm in which Audi would compete directly with Tesla. Despite significant criticism in the wake of a fatal crash involving its Autopilot system, Tesla is pushing ahead with plans for fully-autonomous cars.

CEO Elon Musk believes the technology will be available soon, but that getting it approved by regulators may take a bit longer.

Source: www.greencarreports.com

UNIDO and Japan External Trade Organization to Jointly Support Developing Countries on Path of Inclusive and Sustainable Industrialization

30.08.2016

The United Nations Industrial Development Organization (UNIDO) and the Japan External Trade Organization (JETRO) will work closely to support the needs of developing countries by promoting trade and investment between Japan and the developing countries in line with the concept of inclusive and sustainable industrial development.

A memorandum of understanding on this was signed today by LI Yong, the Director General of UNIDO, and Hiroyuki Ishige, the Chairman and CEO of JETRO. They are attending the Sixth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD-VI) taking place in the capital of Kenya.

The new partnership will allow UNIDO and JETRO to develop joint cooperation projects and activities aimed at enhancing sustainable industrialization in developing countries and the economies in transition through promoting trade and investment.

Established in 1958 as an entity that would promote Japanese exports abroad, JETRO’s current focus is on encouraging foreign direct investment into Japan and helping small and medium Japanese firms maximize their global export potential.

Source: unido.org

UN Environment Chief Discusses Lagoon Clean-up, Air Pollution, Wildlife Protection, and Marine Erosion with Côte d’Ivoire Prime Minister

30.08.2016

Erik Solheim just concluded a two-day visit to Abidjan, a first for a Head of UN Environment in Côte d’Ivoire. The visit provided an opportunity to present the priorities of his mandate and discuss key environmental challenges constraining the country’s development process as it aspires to lift thousands out of poverty.

During his visit, Mr. Solheim met with Prime Minister Daniel Kablan Duncan, and Minister of Environment and Sustainable Development, Remi Allah-Kouadio. He also helped launch the Integrated Ecosystem Management Project to rehabilitate the Banco National Park within the city of Abidjan.

In 2011 as Norway’s Minister of Environment and International Development, Erik Solheim witnessed the bloody political upheaval that cost the lives of thousands of Ivorians and displaced many more. He was impressed by the progress made in the five short years since the end of the conflict.

“Many of the countries that were disrupted are still in crisis. Côte d’Ivoire is not. It’s a testament to the will and optimism of Ivorians and to the leadership of President Ouattara that they have put their country back on track. With a steady eight per cent, the country now boasts one of the strongest economic growth rates in the world, and is a West African powerhouse,” he said.

“I’ve seen Côte d’Ivoire rapidly develop in the last five years. I want to see it continue to build and improve its economy long into the future. For it to do so, economic development must not come at the expense of the environment. Any development that is unsustainable can only take the country so far. To grow the economy past the short-term, Côte d’Ivoire will need to integrate nature and development in an inclusive way,” he added.

The political crisis has generated a lot of social and environmental problems, particularly in the city of Abidjan. The conflict had a dramatic impact both on the process of urbanization and on the infrastructure of Côte d’Ivoire. The population of Abidjan is reported to have doubled between 2002 and 2006 due to large-scale migration from villages and towns.

In a post-conflict environmental assessment report produced by UN Environment in 2015, experts recommended that an alternative urban policy be developed to reduce the burden on Abidjan and its overwhelmed capacity.

Top environmental challenges for the country include the clean-up of the Abidjan Lagoon, air pollution, deforestation and wildlife conservation, marine erosion and the need to undertake an audit of the mining sector and remediation.

Most of these issues, according to Erik Solheim, can better be tackled through partnerships, bringing together different stakeholders including the UN system, the private sector and development partners under the leadership of the government.

“Côte d’Ivoire has exhibited a great recovery from the height of its difficulties. Five years ago, supporting the country in its rehabilitation was a priority for me as Minister. Today, in my new role as head of UN Environment, I look forward to helping Côte d’Ivoire build on its recent growth and success in a sustainable way,” he said.

Source: unep.org

Next Hyundai Elantra GT Hatchback to Appear at Paris Motor Show

30.08.2016

A redesigned Hyundai Elantra GT will make its public debut at the 2016 Paris Motor Show one month from now.

While the Elantra four-door sedan received a complete redesign for the 2017 model year and is now on sale, the compact hatchback model known as the Elantra GT remained unchanged.

Earlier this month, Hyundai announced that it would unveil a redesigned version of the hatchback on September 7, followed by a more traditional public debut at the Paris show.

The short press release and teaser video announcing the launch were put out by Hyundai’s European office, so the car is referred to by the i30 name it wears in markets outside the U.S.

The next Elantra GT will share a platform and many other components with the recently-redesigned sedan but—as with the current Elantra GT—it will likely get some model-specific styling features.

Hyundai’s press release describes a “cascading” grille, and the shadowy teaser images hint at headlights and other details that differ from the Elantra sedan.

The Korean carmaker hasn’t officially confirmed the new hatchback for the U.S., but it seems likely that Hyundai will use it to replace the current Elantra GT.

U.S. buyers have historically been somewhat averse to hatchbacks, but they are proving more popular in small-car segments.

The hatchback Elantra remains a low-volume model against the high-selling four-door sedan, as is the Elantra Coupe.

Still, the Elantra GT lets Hyundai compete with hatchback compacts from U.S. makers, not only the Ford Focus five-door but also the upcoming 2017 Chevrolet Cruze hatchback.

Other competitors for next Elantra GT would include the Mazda 3 and the Volkswagen Golf.

A 2017 Honda Civic hatchback is slated for a U.S. launch later this year, while the former Scion iM is now the 2017 Toyota Corolla iM as Toyota retires its “youth brand.”

The 2017 Chevrolet Cruze hatchback was unveiled at the 2016 Detroit Auto Show back in January, and it’s expected to go on sale later this fall.

Alongside the Elantra GT/i30, Hyundai sibling Kia will unveil another fuel-efficient small car at the 2016 Paris Motor Show.

It’s a redesigned version of the Rio, which will likely arrive in North America as a 2018 model in both sedan and hatchback form.

We’ll learn more about both small Korean cars during the Paris show press days, September 29-30.

Source: greencarreports.com

The World’s First Floating Wind Turbine is in Norway

29.08.2016

Norway is one of the most developed countries in the world when it comes to renewable energy sources, the use of oil resources and the profits that the state has of these resources. Serbia and Norway cooperate very actively last 15 years. A large part of the aid is realized through a close and direct cooperation between Norwegian and Serbian governments. There are several great investors such as Telenor that take care of protection of environment and social problems through foundations. Some of those companies act through programmes and innovations. Important priorities in this cooperation are energy and environmental issues, reform of security, justice and domestic sector etc. During holidays we spent few hours with ambassador of Norway in Serbia, Mr Arne Sanes Bjornstad and ask him what he thinks about Serbia and our possibilities for better using of renewable sources of energy, and responsibility of companies which operate in Serbia and have influence on environmental issues. Here is what he said for Energy Portal of Serbia.

EP: Could you please for our readers explain in what way Norway takes care of nature, renewable sources of energy and how much that is important for clean industry?

Mr Bjornstad: Climate change is widely seen as mankind’s most pressing challenge. Never before have people had such an influence on climate change as the do today. Norway has taken this issue seriously. In 2001, the Norwegian government established Enova agency in a bid to promote more efficient energy consumption and increased production of “new” renewable energy. The Agency works closely with public and private enterprises in order to reduce energy consumption and increase power generation from renewable sources. Climate change and the environment are the main focus areas of Norwegian development policy, the ministry or climate change and the environment is therefore administrating a part of the Norwegian budget for international development and is doing this through the Norwegian Agency for development Cooperation (NORAD).

As the result of thse and other moves of the Norwegian government, Norway produces about 56 per cent of its energy requirements, including energy for transport, from renewable energy sources. The world’s first floating wind turbine has been in operation ten kilometers off the Norwegian coast since 2009. However hydroelectric power dominates the power market. Norway has world’s highest per capita hydropower production and is ranked as number one in Europe and sixth largest hydropower producer in the world.

The goal set for to 2020. is to reduce emissions of greenhouses gases by 30 per cent and to increase the renewable share of total energy consumption to 67.5 per cent (the highest share in Europe)

EP: What do you think about Serbian sources of renewable energy: water, sun, wind …Could Serbia use it in better way? Can you compare Norway and Serbia in this sense, and what would be your advice for our business society and decision makers?

Mr. Bjonstard: Serbia is a country rich with renewable energy sources ranging from biomass to hydro, solar and wind. However, in spite of this high potential, the renewable energy sector in Serbia has yet to be developed. One of the first big steps towards developing the renewable energy sector in Serbia was when the Serbian government adopted in 2011 a new energy law, wich included renewable energy as a complementary part. According to SIEPA, there are a number of projects underway in the field of renewable energy in Serbia. It is estimated that over the next five to seven years, Serbia has potential to attract at least two billion euro in renewable energy facilities investment. In addition to this, we should not forget that energy and environmental protection is very important for Serbia’s EU integration, as these areas together with agriculture, make over a half of total EU standards that Serbia is due to harmonise during negotiation process, It is important that Serbia continues with harmonization process and that public authorities take into account the environmental protection when deciding on the development projects.

Furthermore, it is important that authorities spread knowledge of today’s many potentials to adopt efficient, environmentally friendly energy solutions and motivate smarter behavior.

EP: There are some educational activities that Norway Embassy in Belgrade about biomass etc. What are your plans for 2016., what will you organize in Belgrade and other cities in Serbia?

Mr. Bjornstad: Energy, environment and climate issues are one of the priority fields when it comes to Norwegian support to Serbia. So far, the Embassy supported many projects in this field across the country. These included: supporting local communities to become energy independent and self-sustainable, raising awareness on safer alternatives and substitution of most hazardous chemicals, support for wast collectors in South Serbia, preventing bark beetle population on Tara mountain, recommendations for improvement in the context of accession negotiations with the EU in this regard. We will continue supporting projects in this field.

Interview by: Vesna Vukajlovic

Balkan Countries Unite in a War on Waste

29.08.2016

Under the rubric of the Let’s Do It campaign, Albanian and Kosovar activists jointly cleared their border area and the polluted Lake Vermica last April, in a Wombles-style campaign that has involved more than 5% of Albania’s population, and 7% of Kosovo’s.

Even more impressively, almost 14% of Slovenia’s population was mobilised to clear illegal landfills in the world’s largest action of its kind four years ago. Trash activists in Romania too claim to have created the biggest national civic movement since the revolution.

Jaka Kranjc, a spokesman for Slovenia’s Ecologists Without Borders said that the symbol of waste left by past generations had a special meaning in the region.

“The best thing about this movement is that it bridges borders and breaks national barriers,” he said. “When Bosnia had a clean up, they had to talk to several regional administrations and all the minorities cooperated, even though the country had been a war zone just ten years ago.”

Bosnia is one of several Balkan countries that now has annual clean up actions. In Albania, the issue has become so fashionable that events are now organised every six months.

One of the few Balkan countries not well represented in the clean up campaign is Serbia, even though it was represented at the 2011 conference, which first brought the region’s activists together.

“Serbian volunteers started preparing their actions afterwards but then the government realised this was a good idea and hijacked it,” Kranjc said. “The activists were shut out and it turned into a one-off public programme that was never repeated.”

Since its inception in Estonia in 2008, Lets Do It claims to have mobilised over 16m people in 113 countries. Its next global clean up planned for September 2018 could exceed even those high numbers.

Sitting outside a cafe in Zagreb, Helena Traub, a Croatian waste activist, told the Guardian that the mobilisation would be “the greatest cleanup event yet”.

“Institutions are not enough.” she said. “The importance of civic movements is that they educate. When people really put their hands in the dirt, they realise what they are dealing with.”

School students made up most of the 55,000 volunteers who helped clear an estimated 37,000 tonnes of rubbish from forests, rivers, mountains and beaches in Croatia four months ago.

Recovered items from popular land cavity dump sites included sofa’s, unexploded ordnance and, in Zagreb last year, even a dead body, Traub said.

Not all waste reduction activism is so organised.

In the village of Litoric on Croatia’s forested border with Slovenia, Igor Barbara has just returned from his daily trip to scatter past-expiry date bananas, watermelon and apples for the brown bears and other animals which roam his territory.

“We put food out for the bears every day,” he said. “We have automatic feeders that dispense food every month and we also do planting and seeding and we secure peace in this area from poachers.”

The head of the local Jelenski Harak hunting club, Barbara describes himself an environmentalist and the 2m tonnes of food that he gleans from local supermarkets, are his weapons in the war against food waste.

“Annually we get around two tonnes of food for the bears, wild boars, red deer and roe deer to eat. This is just a supplement to what these animals can find in the forest, but it prevents problems between villagers and bears,” he said.

Wild boars have caused the biggest headache for local people but two young male bears also sparked alarm this summer, after raiding garbage bins left outside houses. Scared villagers reacted by calling hunters, who shot one of the animals.

“A good way to prevent the bears from coming into the villages is to leave apples out for them in the forest,” Barbara said.

Source: theguardian.com

The Top 10 Public Global Oil Producers In 2016

29.08.2016

The following list is based on average daily global oil production for all publicly traded companies during the most recent fiscal quarter. As noted in the article on natural gas producers, some of the largest producers in the world are either not publicly traded, are largely government owned, and/or they don’t regularly publish production data. Thus, some major producers are missing from this list, such as Saudi Aramco (not yet publicly traded) and Russia’s Lukoil (no production data for the most recent fiscal quarter).

With those caveats in mind, here are the Top 10 current publicly traded oil producers:

The Russian giant Rosneft leads all other producers by far at 4.1 million bpd of oil production, while the top U.S.-based company ExxonMobil was far behind at 2.1 million bpd. However, ExxonMobil is also one of the world’s largest natural gas producers, and has the highest market value of any company in this list.

In total, this Top 10 represents about 20% of global oil production. The list is geographically diverse, but China’s three companies cumulatively have the most production at 4.7 million bpd (and this accounts for nearly all of China’s production).

To put these giants in perspective, the previous list of U.S.-based pure oil and gas producers had Conoco Phillips in the top spot, but its 756,000 bpd of oil production in the most recent fiscal quarter would have landed it in 12th place on this list.

Although four of the companies on the list have generated negative free cash flow for the past year, in general the group’s financial metrics are sound. None of these companies are likely to find themselves in serious financial trouble any time soon, although BP and Shell both could stand to reduce some debt. It goes without saying that I make no investment recommendations based on this list. Financial metrics can differ for many reasons, and investments in different countries have differing levels of risk.

Source: forbes.com

Molecular Signature Shows Plants Are Adapting to Iincreasing Atmospheric CO2

29.08.2016

The research, published in the journal Global Change Biology, provides insight into the long-term impacts of rising CO2 and the implications for global food security and nature conservation.

Lead author Professor Gail Taylor, from Biological Sciences at the University of Southampton, said: “Atmospheric CO2 is rising — emissions grew faster in the 2000s than the 1990s and the concentration of CO2 reached 400 ppm for the first time in recorded history in 2013.

“On the one hand, more CO2 is known to be good for plants, at least in the short-term because this drives up photosynthesis and plant growth including crop growth and food production. Indeed recent decades have seen the planet becoming greener as vegetation growth is stimulated as CO2 rises.

“Until now, few reports had given us any insight into the long-term impacts of rising CO2 over multiple generations and none have been undertaken on the molecular signature underpinning such adaptation. One reason for this is that’s it’s a difficult problem to crack – to find plants that have been exposed to conditions of the future, but are available today.”

To address this problem, the researchers used a unique resource – naturally high CO2 springs where plants have been subjected to more CO2 over many hundreds of years and multiple plant generations. Taking plantago lanceolata plants from a ‘spring’ site in Bossoleto, Italy and comparing the molecular signature with the same plants from a nearby ‘control’ site (at today’s CO2) revealed striking differences in the total gene expression (the process by which specific genes are activated to produce a required protein).

Professor Taylor said: “The study shows that when we take plants from these two places that represent the atmosphere of today with that of the future (out to 2100), and place them together in the same environment, the plants from spring sites were bigger and had a better rate of photosynthesis. Most importantly, plants from the spring sites had differences in the expression of hundreds of genes.

“In particular, we predict from these gene expression data that planetary greening will continue — it won’t switch off or become acclimated as CO2 continues to rise, but some of the extra carbon in future plants is likely to go into secondary chemicals for plant defence. This is associated with more gene expression underpinning plant respiration.”

One of the most interesting findings was that stomatal pores on the surface of the leaf (small holes that control the uptake of CO2 for photosynthesis and the loss of water vapour) increase in number after multi-generation exposure to future CO2. The team predicted that pore number would decline, in line with past research over geological timescales using fossil plants.

Professor Taylor added: “This is a counter-intuitive finding but strongly suggests that stomatal pore numbers increase, since we have identified several key regulators of stomatal number that are sensitive to future high CO2. One of those is SCREAM (SCRM2), which is a member of the basic helix-loop-helix (bHLH) protein family that acts to regulate plant developmental transitions.

“We don’t understand the full consequences of this developmental change but it shows that plants will adapt in unpredictable ways to future CO2 over multiple generations. This question is pressing — we need to know how food crops may evolve over future generations in response to the changing climate, whether planetary greening is likely to continue and the impacts of this for global nature conservation.”

Source: Sciencedaily.com

Number Of CCS Combo Chargers In Europe Now Exceed 2,400

26.08.2016

More than 600 CCS Combo chargers have been installed in Europe so far this year according to data from the CCS Charge Map. The total number of stations now stand at 2,418 and includes 2,186 that are open to the public 24/7, and 218 (either not 24/7, or at least not confirmed as open 24/7).

The average installation pace since Spring seems to be hovering around ~100 a month.

A significant characteristic of CCS Combo locations are that they are also multi-standard chargers, with both CHAdeMO and/or 3-phase AC type 2 along for the ride. Typical power output is between 20 to 50 kW.

The UK still has the most CCS compatible chargers at 580; but as you can see below, Germany (mostly thanks to its new incentive programs) is starting to chase down the lead this Summer, adding 55 units over the past 7 weeks, and now stands at 425 charging stations overall.

Norway (254) takes third, but its advantage over France (223) has been cut down drastically in 2016 so far. A surprisingly high number of CCS chargers can also be found in Sweden (186) in 5th.

Source: insideevs.com

Commission Refers the Czech Republic to Court over a Shipment of Toxic Waste to Poland

26.08.2016

The European Commission is referring the Czech Republic to the Court of Justice of the EU for its failure to take back 20,000 tonnes of hazardous waste, which was shipped to Katowice, Poland, by a Czech operator in late 2010 and in early 2011.

The case forms part of a dispute involving two Member States, Poland and the Czech Republic, on the classification of a waste shipment. The Polish authorities refused to accept the shipment on the grounds that it was shipped in breach of the Waste Shipments Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1013/2006). The waste shipped should have been subject to the procedure of prior written notification and consent. As it had taken place without this notification, the shipment in question is considered to be an ‘illegal shipment’, and the Czech authorities should take the necessary measures to repatriate the shipment. The Czech Republic would have breached EU rules by not taking the required measures.

The Czech authorities, however, refused to take the shipment back by arguing that the material in question – a mixture of acid tar from petroleum refining, coal dust and calcium oxide – was not waste but a product registered in accordance with the REACH Regulation (Regulation (EC) No 1907/2006).

Following a complaint, the Commission has stepped in to resolve the dispute between the two Member States. A reasoned opinion was sent to the Czech Republic in November 2015, rejecting the Czech arguments for classifying the shipment as a product and urging it to take it back. As the Czech authorities still refuse to take the waste back, the Commission has now referred the case to the Court of Justice of the EU.

Source: europa.eu

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