Elon Musk would rather wait to put out an eagerly awaited product than push one out that’s not awesome. That was apparent from the language used in Tesla’s Q3 newsletter, published Tuesday (emphasis ours): We recently decided to build in significantly more validation testing time to achieve the best Model X possible. This will also […]
Since the oil plunge began in June, speculation has been rampant that the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries might act to cut production to keep prices from falling further. The 12-member OPEC cartel is due to meet Nov. 27 for a regularly scheduled meeting. But some officials with the group, meeting informally this week […]
Chevron spent more than $3 million to back three candidates for city council in Richmond, Calif. But voters rejected all three, in favor of candidates who have been critical of the oil giant, which is the largest taxpayer and employer in the Northern California city. Richmond, north of Berkely, is about 45 minutes’ drive from San […]
The CEO of Oklahoma City-based petroleum producer Continental Resources is so certain oil prices will rise again that the company announced it has eliminated its oil hedges for all of 2015 and 2016. Harold G. Hamm, whose company is the biggest oil producer in North Dakota’s Bakken oil-shale play, is “basically betting the company on the […]
The Wall Street Journal reports today that U.S. oil drillers are scaling back on plans to drill new wells, amid the plunge in global prices. Nymex crude dropped 77 cents a barrel to $77.91 Thursday. Crude is down more than 25 percent since June, making it much less profitable to drill for oil in shale-rock plays. As […]
A study at Columbia University indicates that children who were exposed to high levels of air pollution from vehicles while they were in the womb were five times more likely to develop symptoms associated with attention-deficit disorder later in life. As Scientific American reports: The study adds to earlier evidence that mothers’ exposures to polycyclic […]
Politico gathered some of the nation’s most influential players in the energy and national-security realms to discuss what we should do next about the sudden drop in global oil prices the past four months. Among the heavy hitters are Amy Myers Jaffe, executive director of energy and sustainability at UC Davis (and a star of PUMP, […]
San Benito and Mendocino counties voted Tuesday to ban fracking in their counties, but an important third measure on the ballot — in Santa Barbara County — failed. As Huffington Post points out, the state Senate earlier this year narrowly voted down a measure that would have placed a moratorium on the oil-extraction practice in […]
Denton, Texas, became the first city in the United States to ban hydraulic fracturing. The measure in the north Texas town was approved by 58.64 percent of voters Tuesday, at last count. But the measure already is being challenged: As The Dallas Morning News reported, the Texas Oil and Gas Association filed for an injunction in state […]
A Renewable Fuels Association analysis of model year (MY) 2015 warranty statements and owner’s manuals reveals that auto manufacturers explicitly approve the use of E15 (15 percent ethanol, 85 percent gasoline) in approximately two-thirds of new vehicles. E15 is approved by U.S. EPA for all 2001 and newer vehicles — accounting for roughly 80 percent […]
