Wednesday Morning Links, News, And Views; Oasis Has A Huge Well; Best Evidence Global Warming Is Over -- Global Beer Sales Down

Global Warming

Best evidence that global warming is history: global beer sales falling. Reuters is reporting.

Heineken NV issued a gloomy earnings report Wednesday, saying first half profit fell 17 percent because of bad weather, weak "consumer sentiment" in Europe and the United States, and slowing growth in developing countries. 

I cannot take the credit for connecting these dots: Don pointed this out. Insightful, as usual.

World News

Egyptian court orders the release of former President Hosni Mubarak.

Energy

I posted this yesterday:

With regard to RBN Energy's analysis of CBR_Canada, look at this Reuters article that Don just sent me: CBR_US pioneer "moving" to Canada. 

Instead, USD is shifting its attention away from the best-known U.S. shale oil plays toward Canada, announcing plans two weeks ago to help build what might be the biggest oil-by-rail terminal to serve the northern oil sands patch.

And although USD has now sold off 10 of the 14 terminals it built over the past decade or so, it has several other irons in the fire such as an offloading terminal in Washington state, inland facilities in Ohio or Alabama and possibly a Texas coast terminal.

I had never heard of USD until yesterday. I assume a lot of folks had not. But Goldman Sachs has. Bloomberg is reporting that Goldman Sachs has an inside track on the CBR boom:

While the role of Goldman Sachs Group Inc (GS.N) in global metals markets has fallen under a harsh regulatory spotlight this summer, the bank has also quietly enjoyed a privileged front-row seat to one of the most dynamic trading trends to emerge from the U.S. shale oil boom: shipping crude by rail.

Through a previously unreported minority investment in a small, privately held Texas-based firm called U.S. Development Group (USD) in 2007, Goldman Sachs has played a leading role in financing the expansion of nearly a dozen specialized terminals that can quickly load and unload massive, mile-long trains carrying crude oil and ethanol across the United States.

I  wonder if this might help explain the media's lack of interest in the runaway freight train story. Or maybe there just isn't that much to report.

Bakken Operations

Active rigs: 186 (trending up)

RBN Energy: update on Sunoco storage and transportation in east Texas; nearing a million bbls ofoil/day. 

Wells coming off confidential list have been posted; scroll down.  Several good wells including two nice XTO wells and a huge Oasis well. But a lot of wells are still going to DRL status; many due to operational requirements (pad drilling) but it certainly appears there are other reasons for the backlog.

WSJ Links

Only one story linked today, from the op-ed page. Remember all the articles you read about replaced the paper one dollar bill with a one-dollar coin. It is interesting to find out WHO is promoting this (a miner, surprise, surprise) and WHERE the miner is located (Iowa, surprise, surprise). From the op-ed page: 

The American people might be surprised to learn that for the past 20 years a handful of lobbyists and lawmakers—mostly from states with mining and metal-processing interests—have been pushing a proposal to take away dollar bills, and force the public to use metal coins instead.

The most recent attempt is the Currency Optimization, Innovation and National Savings (Coins) Act, sponsored by Sen. Tom Harkin (D., Iowa). This proposed law would prohibit the issuance of dollar bills after five years and replace them with dollar coins.

The otherwise obscure piece of legislation was recently catapulted into the spotlight when Coins Act co-sponsor, Sen. John McCain (R., Ariz.) made the somewhat dubious claim that switching to a dollar coin would mean higher-denomination tips for strippers.
The proposed legislation reeks of some of the most common problems with state-owned monopolies. The advocacy group promoting the Coins Act has the same address as PMX Industries, a South Korean firm located in Cedar Rapids, Iowa, that supplies the U.S. Mint with the metal used to make dollar coins.

Along with its CEO, Jin Roy Ryu, the company in 2011 donated a combined $500,000 to the Harkin Institute of Public Policy at Iowa State University (now at Drake University) named after the senator.  

The solution is very, very interesting. See the link. The solution is typical journalesque.

Miscellaneous

Permian Basin services company setting up shop in Belle Fourche, SD, to support the Bakken. The Rapid City Journal is reporting:

The Black Hills region continues to attract new employers that service the energy industries in North Dakota, Montana and Wyoming. The latest addition is a tank-making company that is coming to Belle Fourche and bringing as many as 65 new jobs.

The Governor's Office of Economic Development said Tuesday that Texas-based Permian Tank & Manufacturing will expand its above-ground steel storage tank operations in Belle Fourche in the coming months.

Confirmation of the new employer came a day after the Belle Fourche City Council approved giving two lots in the city's new Industrial Rail Park lots to the community's new development company.

The new plant will anchor the recently developed industrial park that offers both major highway and rail access. The new plant could require up to 65 new employees; hiring is scheduled to begin next spring.

It goes without saying that "we're" fortunate the Bakken oil was under northwest North Dakota, and not under the Black Hills. But the Black Hills area has the open space and manpower to provide support for the Bakken, particularly southwest North Dakota, but also possibly the Niobrara. Time to look at the map again. 

Economy

July existing house sales jump to 3-year high -- as reported by Reuters.

Catty

Remember Zimmerman? President O'Bama said he could identify with the African-American youth that was stalked and killed. Now we have bored, lazy African-Americans (2) and one bored, lazy white teenager who (are alleged to have) killed a high-achieving white Australian. The question is: who will President O'Bama identify with in this most recent killing? He has many choices. You can't have it both ways. My hunch: he won't even mention it.