Archive for July, 2009

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State Energy Headlines for a Friday

>> Methane Drilling in Powder River Basin Halts
>> Forum Focuses on Wind Projects on State Lands
>> Wind Farm Clean-Up Cost at Issue
>> Fairgrounds “Going Green”

31Jul2009 | admin | 2 comments | Continued
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Carbon Sequestration: Implications for Wyoming

While capture and underground storage of carbon dioxide may be a viable climate change mitigation option in some states including Wyoming, its potential risks require further study. A USGS talk in Cheyenne next week will tackle this critical issue.

29Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Encore Acquisition in CO2 Supply Agreement
with Fremont County Gas Plant

Encore will purchase all of the volumes available from the Lost Cabin Gas Plant, and plans to build compression facilities adjacent to the plant and construct a 206 mile pipeline to transport the compressed CO2 to its Montana site.

29Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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State’s O&G Service Sector Could Shrink
Further If Downturn Continues

Wyoming could be impacted even further by job losses if the oil and gas services industry consolidates because of a continued depressed market.

29Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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U.S. Wind Installations Dip in Second Quarter

Troubling is that the installed capacity is a significant decrease from the installations made in the first quarter of 2009, and the industry’s future course remains unclear without a federal renewable-electricity standard, according to the AWEA.

28Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Wyoming Oil and Gas Dispatches

>> Low Prices Hammer CBM Industry
>> State Soda Ash Producers Fight Recession, Rivals
>> EnCana Profits Drop Less Than Expected
>> Laid-Off O&G Workers Add to Unemployment Rise

26Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Study Says Wyoming Coal Essential to Secure
Energy Future

In case you missed it, a study by the Wyoming Mining Association on the economics of coal in the Powder River Basin concluded, not surprisingly, that the natural resource will be an essential part of the nation’s energy future even as the country moves toward cleaner power sources,.

23Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Duke Energy Wants to Build New 200 MW
Wind Farm

Already with a significant number of renewable energy installations in the Cowboy State, the company wants to develop a 200 megawatt wind farm northeast of Glenrock. Data collected at the site show an abundant and proven wind potential.

23Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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BLM Delays Siting Process for Gateway
West Project

The agency is pushing back the completion date for its draft environmental impact statement for the Gateway West Transmission Line Project from this fall to next spring. The time will be used to identify more alternative routes with the project’s developers and local interests.

20Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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EPA Writing New Rules for Hardrock Mine Cleanups

Complying with a court order, the Federal agency will develop a rule to guarantee companies that mine everything from copper to uranium will pay for needed environmental cleanup, not taxpayers.

14Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Wind Developers Seek Review of State’s
Sage Grouse Policy

Wind industry groups Interwest Energy Alliance, American Wind Energy Association and Renewable Northwest Project sent a letter to Interior Secretary Ken Salazar requesting the Interior Department review Wyoming’s sage grouse protection policy.

14Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Tailwind Dies For Renewables

Wind is especially vulnerable to economic downturns because of the huge amount of capital and land required to launch a sizable wind farm. Bank financing often accounts for half of a project’s upfront costs. As of early this year only four major banks were capable of financing large renewable-energy projects in the U.S., down from 18 in 2008, the the Times reported.

13Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Viewpoint: How Much is Enough?

It is discouraging to hear pundits rail against minerals while they continue to support using mineral money for constructing new schools, building new facilities at the University of Wyoming, granting money for new water and sewer systems, and funding new education scholarship programs.

9Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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Studies Hightlight Potential, Peril of Oil Shale

In the last couple of weeks two new reports have emerged that take a clear-eyed look at the prospective oil-shale boom. Though they were produced by the Center of the American West, at the University of Colorado, and Headwaters Economics, two left-leaning think tanks, they are admirably objective and non-ideological.

7Jul2009 | admin | 0 comments | Continued
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