Clearing Out The In-Box -- September 1, 2015

Updates

Later, 10:08 p.m. Central Time: BloombergBusiness is reporting what the rest of us already know. Utilities aren't making money off wind. If it weren't for tax credits and state mandates, intermittent energy would have died years ago.

Power producers who invested billions in turbines are finding that making money off the wind can be as unpredictable as the energy source itself.

NextEra Energy Inc., NRG Yield Inc. and Duke Energy Corp. all said a lack of sufficiently windy days cut into second-quarter sales. And neither power generators nor forecasters seem to know exactly why.

“There was a definite trend with several utilities talking about weak wind resources,” said Shahriar Pourreza, a New York-based analyst for Guggenheim Partners LLC. “This isn’t something that has been major in the past so definitely a phenomena worth following to see if it’s sustainable or an anomaly.”

Weak wind resources. LOL. A lack of "sufficiently windy days." LOL.

A scam.

 

Original Post

Cleaning out my mailbox. Four unrelated stories from readers or other sources that are of interest to me. I may come back to them later.

First AARP:

• MDU: AARP looking out for the little guy, trying to save seniors a buck a month;
• ObamaCare: AARP's support of ObamaCare cost seniors thousands, millions, billions?

No love lost between AARP and me.

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I Love 'Em Both

Second: Texas edges out North Dakota in one category.

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Why Some Think The US Should Export Crude Oil

Third: Ecuador seeks light oil for its revamped refinery.

Remember: Bakken is the purest "light" oil out there. Too bad Louis Farrakhan and/or Al Sharpton aren't friends of Ecuador; if they were, the president would "okay" Bakken exports to Ecuador overnight.

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Saudi Arabia Production / Exports -- June, 2015, Data

Fourth: update on Saudi Arabia's production / export -- June, 2015, data.  (Can't recall if this has been posted before.)

Saudi oil exports recover to 7.36 million b/d in June Saudi Arabia's crude exports recovered to 7.365 million b/d in June after falling to 6.935 million b/d in May, official data released by the Riyadh-based Joint Organizations Data Initiative showed during the week ended August 28.

Apart from the dip in May, the kingdom's exports have been above the 7 million b/d level since the beginning of this year.

And, following Riyadh's refusal to cut output late last year as oil prices plunged, Saudi production has held above 10 million b/d since March, climbing to 10.564 million b/d in June.

The volume of crude processed in Saudi refineries inside the kingdom fell to 2.099 million b/d in June from 2.423 million b/d in May while the volume of crude burned directly in the kingdom's power plants rose to 894,000 b/d from 677,000 b/d.

Much more at the link.