Boston.com -- State may require reviews of impact before construction

Days after state environmental officials found unacceptable noise levels from wind turbines in Falmouth, they are considering new regulations that would require the state to review potential noise issues before wind turbines are built in Massachusetts.

The state might also conduct sound studies in other communities, such as Fairhaven and Kingston, where residents, as in Falmouth, have complained about newly installed turbines, officials said.  (read more)

gainsvilleTimes -- If there was ever a sign to take a vacation, this might be it — gas prices have fallen just in time for the holiday weekend.

“I would expect that the slow decline we’ve seen in the last few weeks will continue through Memorial Day and perhaps longer,” said Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com. “I would think that for much of the summer average gas prices in Georgia would be between $3.25 and $3.75.”

National gas prices have been dropping since a $3.93 peak in early April, according to AAA’s Historical Fuel Gauge Report.

Average prices in Georgia are 7 cents lower than a week ago and 38 cents lower than the same time last year.

The well-timed drop in prices could mean more people will be hitting the road this weekend.  (read more)

Bloomburg -- Discoveries of unconventional oil and gas reserves in the western hemisphere will not only reduce price and supply volatility, but will also bring the end of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, Roger Altman wrote in the Financial Times.

Technology has revolutionized energy supply with the result that the U.S. now has a 100-year supply of natural gas, and oil production is projected to rise sharply, meaning that within 20 years, production could match consumption in the western world for the first time since 1952, Altman, chairman of Evercore Partners (EVR) and a former U.S. deputy Treasury secretary wrote.
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The daily Ticker -- Prices at the pump have fallen 6.19 cents per gallon in the past two weeks and are down more than 12 cents from the year-to-date high in early April according to the latest Lundberg Survey that tracks 2,500 stations across the country. The decline in gasoline prices mirrors the slump in U.S. oil prices, which are off 12.5 percent since May 1.

Oil broke its six-day losing streak on Monday, gaining half a percent after China vowed it would do more to boost domestic economic growth and Goldman Sachs released a report that said oil supplies are "increasingly constrained" because Iranian exports have fallen.

Energy prices climbed in late 2011 and early 2012 as tensions between the West and Iran flared over Iran's nuclear energy program and talks of a military strike against Iran's facilitie  (read more)

Boston Globe -- William I. Koch, the Osterville summer resident and fossil fuel magnate who helped bankroll the opposition to the Cape Wind energy project, has emerged as a key backer of Mitt Romney’s presidential campaign, donating $2 million to Restore Our Future, the super PAC supporting Romney’s drive for the White House.

The donations rank Koch’s privately held Oxbow Corp. third among companies that have donated the most to Restore Our Future, behind Perry Homes, the Texas home-building company, and Bain Capital, the Boston private equity firm that Romney cofounded in 1984.

Brad Goldstein, Koch’s spokesman, said Koch is supporting Romney because of a personal relationship that dates to the early 1980s, when Romney was running Bain Capital and Koch was living full time in Massachusetts, and also bec  (read more)

Marketwatch -- Nearly six in ten Americans (59%) have cut back on non-essential spending since the beginning of 2012 due to high gasoline prices, according to new research released today by Bankrate.com

"Despite the fact that oil prices are currently near six-month lows, consumers are still clearly feeling the impact of elevated gas prices in an environment of stagnant wages," said Greg McBride, CFA, Bankrate.com's senior financial analyst.

As of April 30th (just before the data was collected), the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.83. In May 2011, when the national average price for a gallon of regular gasoline was $3.96, Bankrate.com found that 63% of American households were cutting their non-essential spending due to high gas prices.

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Power Engineering -- Atomic energy is unavoidable if humanity wants to rid of CO2 emissions and ensure sustainable energy supply. Hydropower and biofuel may supplement atomic energy, while solar and wind power can hardly be an option, Global Energy Award Committee member, President of the Science Council for Global Initiatives Tom Blees said.

Germany and Denmark have spent more than 100 billion euros on solar and wind energy projects, which have catastrophic results from the economic point of view, he said. The experiment displayed that solar and wind energy were unable as yet to provide humanity with power, but it would take time to convince Germany and Denmark of that, he added.

Blees noted that the German intention to close down nuclear power plants and to build gas and coal plants instead would increase  (read more)

NBC12 -- RICHMOND, VA (WWBT) -

Maybe you've gotten one of those car warranty expiration offers in the mail. Consumer advocates say many of them are traps, attempts to get you to sign up for something you may not need or you could end up with little coverage. We found out how the offers end up in your mailbox and how to determine a real, versus a deceptive offer.

If you have car, there's a good chance one of these offers has popped-up in your mail. They grab your attention with phrases like, request for immediate action or time sensitive material enclosed. The pitch, your car warranty is about to expire and they can provide coverage. Michael Allen, with Virginia Auto Dealers Association says be suspicious. He says, "If you see and envelope and you can't tell who it is from, that should send up a  (read more)

TBN Weekly -- Back in January and February, analysts were predicting that gas prices would be $4 a gallon by Memorial Day. They were wrong.

As of May 20, the U.S. average price for a gallon of regular unleaded was $3.69, which is 20 cents lower than the same time last year. According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, this is the first time since June 2011 that gas prices have decreased for six or more consecutive weeks.

Floridians are paying an average of $3.55 – 30 cents less than the same date last year. Local prices are down to an average of $3.47, a savings of 34 cents a gallon from 2011.

Still, Americans are likely to stay closer to home this Memorial Day holiday. AAA is projecting only a 1.2 percent increase in people traveling more than 50 miles from home over last year.

“The  (read more)

GasBuddy Blog -- In a move aimed at saving lives, the U.S. Department of Transportation recently proposed a new federal standard that would require electronic stability control (ESC) on large commercial trucks, motorcoaches, and other large buses.

According to the agency, the technology, once implemented, could prevent up to 56% of rollover crashes each year, and 14% of loss of control crashes.

"The Department and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration have long recognized the potential impact of stability control technology in reducing deaths and serious injuries that result from rollover crashes," said Transportation Secretary Ray LaHood. "Today's proposal is a major step forward to improving the safety of large commercial...  (read more)

CFACT News -- Federal appeals court judges recently heard a challenge to the Obama EPA’s approval of E15, a blend of 85 percent gasoline and 15 percent ethanol, to be sold in cars from the model year 2001 and newer. EPA claims it has the power under the Clean Air Act (CAA) to grant waivers allowing the sale of the new blend in certain vehicles. Currently, ethanol is not allowed to comprise more than 10 percent of the fuel when it is blended with gasoline sold at the pump.  (read more)

Green Car Reports -- Hybrid vehicles cost more upfront than comparable gasoline models, but get better fuel economy.

So will you save money in the long run?

To make the comparisons easier and more accurate, the FuelEconomy.gov site has launched a new comparison tool that provides a "Years to Payback" number based on the manufacturer's quoted base prices and the EPA gas-mileage ratings for comparable hybrids and non-hybrids.

The new comparison tool can be found by clicking on the "Hybrids Can Save You Money" menu option.  (read more)

The Baltimore Sun -- A theft this month of 311 gallons of gasoline from a station in Baltimore is one in a series of similar incidents, according to the station's owner, who says people have been disabling pumps and allowing friends and relatives to fill their tanks for free

Mehdi Rezakhan, who owns BP stations in Remington and East Baltimore, said each businesses has been hit once, and stations owned by friends have been taken several times, one for 1,800 gallons of gasoline.

On Saturday, city police could confirm only one theft at Rezakhan's BP station in Remington, which occurred either May 6 or May 7. Police reported no suspects and said they had no idea how the thieves stole such large amounts of gasoline.

But Rezakhan, 35, said he suspected someone with knowledge of pumps was using a hammer ...  (read more)

TribLive -- If you're lucky enough to live in some parts of the United States, you may see gas pump prices fall to about $3.25 a gallon or less in the next week or two. Even West Coast drivers should get some relief from prices that are still above $4 a gallon.

Retail gasoline prices dropped by a penny to a national average of $3.71 per gallon on Friday. That's 22 cents less than the high of $3.94 per gallon reached in early April. Lower oil prices are the main reason. Weaker demand is also helping reduce prices, as consumers watch their spending in the sluggish economic recovery.

Motorists on the West Coast, in Illinois and New York pay the most for gas -- from $3.83 per gallon to $4.54 per gallon -- according to AAA, Wright Express and the Oil Price Information Service. The lowest prices, ...  (read more)

NPR -- For years, Cushing, Okla., has been on the receiving end of a 500-mile pipeline funneling oil from the Gulf of Mexico to the American heartland.

Starting this weekend, that pipeline will start moving crude in the other direction. That flow reversal could soon have implications at gas pumps around the country.

"For 40 years, crude oil flowed north," says Philip Verleger, a visiting fellow at the Peterson Institute for International Economics. "Today, oil flows south. It's as if we turned the world upside down."

Until recently, it was assumed the days of oil-drilling booms in the middle of North America were over. But controversial practices, like mining the oil sands of Alberta and hydraulic fracturing, are changing that.  (read more)

The Washington Post -- Eds: Edits fourth paragraph to clarify Memorial Day weekend prices expected to be $3.60 a gallon or a little bit higher.

If you’re lucky enough to live in some parts of the United States, you may see gas pump prices fall to around $3.25 a gallon or less in the next week or two. Even West Coast drivers should get some relief from prices that are still above $4 a gallon.

Retail gasoline prices dropped by a penny to a national average of $3.71 per gallon on Friday. That’s 22 cents less than the high of $3.94 per gallon reached in early April. Lower oil prices are the main reason. Weaker demand is also helping to push down prices, as consumers watch their spending in the sluggish economic recovery.

Motorists on the West Coast, in Illinois and New York are paying the most for gas — from  (read more)

How stuff works --
The average American car today gets about 20 miles per gallon (mpg) of gasoline. Eighty years ago, Henry Ford's Model T got 25 to 30 mpg and that car could run on gas or ethanol. What happened? In the decades since the Model T, car technology, speed, safety and comfort have improved tremendously. But in terms of fuel economy, we're still decades behind. With concerns about gas prices, global warming and air pollution, fuel efficiency has already become a point of concern for car buyers. Let's explore the question that a lot of people are asking: Can a car get 100 miles on a single gallon of gas?

We're not the only ones asking the question. Google -- yes, the search engine Google -- is trying to find out.
On June 20, 2007, Google announced that its founders' philanthropic organization, Go  (read more)

Forbes -- A long overdue power breakfast with Loews chairman, CEO Jim Tisch placed a mighty sharp focus on all the positive ramifications of the explosion in natural gas discoveries in the US. For a solid hour Tisch sang the praises of the “disruptive technology” that will result from the finding and exploitation across the US of an abundance of natural gas.

First, no one realizes the extent of potential usage of natural gas, opines Tisch, who owns quite a bit in Loews and is looking for more, thank you very much. Gas has become crucial in the delivery of electric power in the US– and will in the future make all forms of transportation more efficient, such as trucks that now use expensive diesel oil.

Second, the US can find and produce unlimited amounts of natural gas once the market  (read more)

Time -- The conventional thinking had it that rising gas prices would stifle the sales of SUVs. Lane-clogging Suburbans and Explorers would slowly disappear with loads of drivers turning to smaller, fuel-efficient cars. And yet, even as gas prices remain relatively high, SUV sales have never been better. What gives?

If you had to name a heyday for the American sports utility vehicle, most people would point to the ’90s, when gigantic SUVS such as the Hummer, Lincoln Navigator, and Ford Excursion were first sold to the public. According to CNN Money, 1 in 5 new cars sold in the late ’90s and early ’00s was an SUV. That sounds like a lot of cars—until you find out that nearly 1 in 3 vehicles sold today is an SUV.

High gas prices were expected to hammer SUV sales. In March, when gas prices ...  (read more)

Hydorcarbon Processing -- Compared with typical gasoline, issues include damaged valves and valve seats, misfires, lower performance, engine damage, poor fuel economy and increased emissions.

Auto repair costs for consumers could rise due to adverse effects of fuel containing 15% ethanol blends (E15), according to new results from a two-year study on engine durability.

The study was conducted by FEV, a longtime consultant to the US Environmental Protection Agency, on behalf of the Coordinating Research Council (CRC).

The CRC study released Wednesday showed adverse results from E15 use in certain popular, high-volume models of cars, its authors said.

Problems included damaged valves and valve seats, which can lead to loss of compression and power, diminished vehicle performance, misfires, engine damage, as well  (read more)

ABC News -- After a drumbeat of complaints from energy companies that the Obama administration is blocking domestic oil and gas production, the Interior department released a report claiming that U.S. oil and gas producers are sitting on millions of acres of idle government land leases.

Secretary of the Interior Ken Salazar says that if producers were sincere about wanting to increase energy production, they would activate millions of acres of public land already leased to them. What should they be doing on that land? Drilling.

In a statement issued Tuesday, Salazar says the administration wants companies "to develop the tens of millions of acres they've already leased but have left sitting idle."

A report released by the Department of the Interior claims that of 36 million government acres ...  (read more)

Bloomberg Businessweek -- U.S. automakers have until 2025 to raise the fuel economy on their cars and trucks to 54.5 miles per gallon—double the current standard—or face government fines. The industry has spent years pouring billions of dollars into research and development to comply with the mandate. Now it may get a boost from an unexpected source: the Pentagon.

Government researchers at a new $60 million laboratory are road-testing dozens of alternative fuel technologies for fighting vehicles, from converting body heat into electricity to perfecting fuel cells that transform hydrogen into power—and they plan to share them with U.S. carmakers. “The military operates in very extreme environments,” says.....  (read more)

Detroit News -- It found that the new formula, 85 percent gasoline and 15 percent ethanol, damaged two of the eight vehicles used as guinea pigs in the high-mileage test.

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LA TImes -- Analysts said that a crude-oil glut from increasing domestic production and imports from Canada helped drive U.S. oil prices below $100. They added that a change in the flow of a key U.S. oil pipeline that begins this week could help reduce retail gasoline prices.

The U.S. Energy Department says that crude oil inventories at a storage hub in Cushing, Okla., reached a record 45.1 million barrels on May 11, breaking the old record of 41.9 million barrels set in early April 2011.

The Energy Department also said that last year the supplies at Cushing peaked in April and "generally declined slowly for the rest of the year." That's not happening this year, the Energy Department said, as the amount of crude at Cushing has continued to build.

 (read more)

GasBuddy Blog -- Many many times I receive questions from readers "why if crude oil prices have fallen to $XX are gasoline prices still high?" This is a top question I receive, and while the answer is somewhat complex, I'll try to make it as simple to understand as I can.

You see one, or maybe two types of crude oil and their price listed. Many times, the types are West Texas Intermediate crude oil, and Brent crude oil. The problem with this is that there are many different types of crude oil, each with their own price. Depending on a refinery's location, they may use an oil that many don't know about or follow the price. So while the price of one or two types of oil drops, one might drop more than the other. Bottom line is that every type of dozens...  (read more)