From me to you about Environmental Analysts

Source: CNNMoney.com (Original Article)

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) — Want to help the country save a quick million barrels of oil a day? Drive 5% less. Slow down. Inflate your tires.

Those three steps would reduce U.S. oil consumption by 1.3 million barrels a day immediately, according to the Alliance to Save Energy, a conservation group running an efficiency campaign backed not only by environmental groups but also the auto and oil industries.

That’s nearly twice the estimated daily oil production that could come from drilling in the Alaska’s Arctic National Wildlife Refuge, according to the government’s Energy Information Administration.

According to Julius Pretterebner, a vehicles and alternative-fuels expert at Cambridge Energy Research Associates, a consultancy that does a lot of work for the oil companies, how fast people drive and how quickly they accelerate is responsible for 10% to 30% of fuel consumption.

"It’s significant, and it’s the only thing we can do in the short term," said Deron Lovaas, vehicles campaign director at the Natural Resources Defense Council, which partners with the Alliance to Save Energy on an effort to educate drivers on efficiency.

The United States consumes 20 million of barrels of oil a day, nearly 10 million of which goes to making gasoline. The world gobbles up 85 million barrels of oil in all.

Rather than focusing on reducing demand for oil, the debate over the soaring cost of energy in recent weeks has been about boosting supply and more regulation of "speculators."

To boost supply, many want OPEC to bring more crude to market and to open up more U.S. areas to drilling - off the coastlines and in Alaska.

But OPEC countries are already pumping vigorously: Last week, Saudi Arabia could come up with only an additional 200,000 barrels a day. Getting from the country’s current output of around 9 million barrels a day to over 12 million barrels a day - their target over St George Credit Cards the next few years - will …continue reading

Source: International Herald Tribune (Original Article)

MADRID, Spain: With prices skyrocketing and supply fears growing, energy ministers from the world's major producing nations and multinational oil company heads face unprecedented challenges at this year's World Petroleum Congress.

It wasn't always that way. Markets have been relatively steady most years since the congress first started meeting 19 years ago, allowing the thousands of delegates it draws annually to focus much of their attention on topics geared to catch the attention of energy insiders.

There is some of that too this year.

When the meeting opens Monday, world interest will be focused on what the more than 20 energy ministers from OPEC and elsewhere will have to say about how to quench raging market volatility, as well as on an oil market forecast to be released by the International Energy Agency on Tuesday. Still, at least some of the more than 3,000 delegates will be most drawn to the more than 600 research papers also being presented.

But as alarm grows that world economies may no longer be able to compensate for raging oil prices, this year's congress slogan says it all: “A World in Transition: Delivering Energy for Sustainable Growth.”

The equation is simple, reflected by the knee-jerk of plummeting stock markets every time crude sets a new record.

Oil prices cannot rise indefinitely without world economies suffering — and with them just about everyone using oil, gas or their derivatives whether it is to light a simple cooking fire somewhere in Africa, fill up at the pump in the United States or heat a 20-room mansion in Europe.

Environmental concerns that clash with the world's seeming readiness to pay for oil and gas at just about any price complicate the mix. Producers and refiners in the Spanish capital will be struggling to find answers not only on how to ensure stable supply, but also on doing it in mobile pix a way that leaves a relatively …continue reading

Source: Globe and Mail (Original Article)

Oil has fantastic powers: Like the genie from One Thousand and One Nights, it can grant impossible political wishes both fair and foul. This is why the U.S. oil baron John D. Rockefeller once, in a moment of reflection, called oil "the Devil’s tears," and why Sheik Ahmed Zaki Yamani, in a moment of exasperation, wished that Saudi Arabia had discovered water, and why the late Venezuelan writer Jose Ignacio Cabrujas, in a moment of subversion, wrote that oil can create "a culture of miracles" that erases memory.
Canadians, the newly minted inhabitants of "an emerging energy superpower," now stand at the gas pumps cursing the price of oil and the prospect of shortened summer vacations. Yet they forget that many of our ancestors agonized about the price of slaves only 200 years ago. We too complained bitterly about the cost of feeding indentured labour, and dismissed the ugly rhetoric of abolitionists as offensive.
A barrel of oil, as analyst Dave Hughes often reminds me, equals 8.6 years of human labour. Think about that. "A human life span could produce about three barrels of oil-equivalent energy," he adds. We often miss this Hummer-sized truth because, as the Arabs know, petroleum induces lazy thinking and even lazier economics.
In fact, the North American media take for granted how much oil undermines democracy, powers our food system, feeds our drug-addled medical industry and concentrates our cities like bovine feedlots. It has done so as assuredly as cheap labour built Rome. "Slavery," a Wall Street Journal scribe recently wrote, "was the oil business of its time - profitable, essential, permitting piracy, demanding collusion in countless ills."

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Source: Reuters (Original Article)

(Adds analyst reaction, share price)

By Paul Sandle

LONDON, June 26 (Reuters) - British engineering consultancy
Scott Wilson Group (SWG.L: Quote, Profile, Research) is targeting overseas acquisitions
after another year of revenue, profit and margin growth
bolstered its balance sheet, it said on Thursday.

“Our priority has been to get the margin up before growing
the top line,” Chairman Geoff French told Reuters in an
interview. “But we are now looking for carefully selected
companies, with an international flavour or an environmental
flavour.”

The company, which has contracts for London’s Crossrail and
2012 Olympics, more than halved net debt to 7.0 million pounds
($13.8 million) in the year to April 27, and increased its bank
facilities to 70 million pounds, he said.

Panmure Gordan analyst Mike Allen, who has a ‘buy’
recommendation on the stock, said the company had delivered a
solid set of results, with pretax profit rising 40 percent to
23.9 million pounds, just ahead of his forecast.

But the significant reduction in debt was the highlight, he
said, and caused him to nudge up his price target to 279 pence
from 274 pence.

“Given the strong balance sheet with recently increased
banking facilities of 70 million pounds (currently 10 times
current net debt), we would expect Scott Wilson to re-enter the
M&A market, which should provide further upside to our
forecasts,” he said.

Finance Director Sean Cummins told Reuters the group is
looking to add about ANZ Credit Cards 30 million pounds of revenues a year
through acquisition.  Continued…

Source: RedOrbit (Original Article)

Gulf Carriers Pile on the Pressure
Posted on: Wednesday, 25 June 2008, 03:02 CDT
By Simms, Jane The prodigious growth of airlines in the region has left their European competitors playing catch-up. By Jane Simms Middle East airlines Emirates, Etihad and Qatar Airways are among the fastest- growing in the world, fuelled by huge infrastructure development projects in the booming Gulf region. These projects include the construction of the world’s biggest airport at the Dubai World Central development, which will comprise six runways and capacity for 120m passengers a year. In addition, the Gulf airlines have marketing muscle. Dubai airline Emirates sponsors a range of sports events and teams around the world, including Arsenal FC and its stadium, while Abu Dhabi rival Etihad has just signed a deal with the Ferrari Formula One team. Moreover, the airlines’ hubs are positioned at what Etihad chief executive James Hogan describes as ‘the crossroads of the world’, the geographical centre-point between East and West, leaving them ideally placed to serve the rapidly developing economies of India and China. It is not surprising, then, that these carriers exude a confidence that makes the more established European airlines, not least British Airways, whose problems with Terminal 5 are just the latest in a catalogue of difficulties, look like rabbits frozen in the headlights. ‘The Gulf airlines have built a reputation for distinctiveness, quality and luxury. They are more aspirational than US or European carriers,’ says Richard Cope, senior travel analyst at Mintel.

Conversely, he adds, the brand identities of some Western carriers are confused. ‘What does BA mean to people now, for example?’ he asks. ‘It is perceived as vaguely traditional and upmarket, certainly for its business class and long-haul routes, but, at the same time, it gets involved in short-haul price wars. Its brand identity, which is closely associated with service St George No Annual Fee Credit Card and being wellorganised, has been severely …continue reading

Source: Seeking Alpha (Original Article)

U.S. Global Investors asserts that “infrastructure has become a topic of choice for politicians around the world because they can generally count on the support of the electorate. In the case of emerging markets, it is very encouraging that many political leaders openly acknowledge that future economic growth in their countries depends directly on infrastructure improvements.

Infrastructure expansionist fever is even catching on in the United States, Canada and other industrialized nations of the world with a mind-boggling global $41 trillion spending program between 2005 and 2030.

And, it all necessitates the unprecedented global consumption of record amounts iron ore, cement, copper, and other physical metals, no matter how bleak the U.S. economy.

In a keynote address to the Denver Gold Group Asian Pacific Forum in San Francisco Tuesday, U.S. Global Investors CEO and CIO Frank Holmes preached the gospel of global infrastructure expansion to a very attentive audience of fund managers, institutional investors, analysts, and mining executives, all attuned to its benefits to international mining.

Holmes stressed the importance of broader cycles, such as the influence of Kuznets Emerging Market Cycle, which drives commodity demands-in trying to analyze current business cycles. Kuznets, an economist who specialized in developing economies, in particular emphasized and tracked the lengthy cycles of infrastructure development.

Holmes suggested a global megatrend of globalization, urbanization and wealth creation is now generating “a global infrastructure boom on a massive, intractable scale.” And, he added, “Megatrends increase the use of commodities, especially infrastructure, which creates sustainable jobs and massive use of commodities.”

A general public, which previously could not have cared less about iron ore or copper, may suddenly relate to the need for iron ore mines to build bridges, or the need Lawyers in TAS beginning with C Page 0 for iron ore and zinc to …continue reading

Source: Globe and Mail (Original Article)

CALGARY — An unprecedented summit of world leaders and industry agreed yesterday that “a concerted effort from all parties” is needed to address the threat to global economies posed by spiralling oil prices, but offered little to bring prices down quickly despite a Saudi pledge to pump more crude.
The meeting in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia, is a strong initial step by countries to produce joint policies after decades of discord between producing and consuming nations over how oil is supplied and priced, giving new hope countries can work together to ensure future supply needs are met.
But while it appears firms will work together to bring more oil on stream, any new production is several years away. Consequently, consumers will continue to endure high oil prices, which hit a fresh record of $139.89 (U.S.) a barrel last week.
In a joint communiqué, attendees said more investment is required to develop additional oil production and refinery capacity in order to bring more supply to market.

Saudi Oil Minister Ali al-Naimi leaves after the summit ends (Hassan Ammar/AFP/Getty Images)

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In addition, they said regulation …continue reading

Source: Belleville News Democrat (Original Article)

Q. My home is in a neighborhood belonging to a country club. About eight of us have back yards that abut a pond. This pond is partially owned by the homeowner’ association, which they lease to the golf course since one of the golf holes also backs up to the pond.

Oddly enough, about 1/3 of the pond (1 acre) was deeded to the developer that developed this community more than 30 years ago. Before the developer went bankrupt, it offered to deed the remainder of the pond to the homeowners association so they could own the entire pond. The homeowners attorney told the homeowners to refuse to take that section of the pond, so they did not.

Now, years later, no one seems to “own” that portion of the pond. It has been neglected for so long that it now has a tremendous amount of weeds and algae, which the homeowners and country club refuse to spray.

They are just not willing to spend the money and use the excuse that they don’t own the entire lake.

We have written letters to the homeowners and country club, asking them to please clean up the lake since we (as neighbors in their community) are required to take care of our property. They completely ignore our requests.

What can we do? We have no legal right to manage the lake since we do not own any of it. Our property values are at stake since no one would ever buy our beautiful homes during the summer when it gets hot, the lake gets ugly and the mosquitoes become a real nuisance.

A. There is no question that all parties, the homeowner’s association residents and the golf course would benefit by maintaining the pond.

Key issues that you need to explore are: The date that lease for the portion of the pond leased to the golf course will expire and what amendments can be added to the lease to address annual water and vegetation treatment to ameliorate your concerns. This plan should be comprehensive in nature and include pond management, Business Credit Cards preventative methods as well as chemical …continue reading

Source: News & Observer (Original Article)

Amy PickleComment on this story

One year ago, as North Carolina slid into the worst drought in the state’s recorded history, 21 counties were suffering from severe or extreme drought.Now a number of community and elected leaders around the state are breathing sighs of relief for having weathered the crisis. Water restrictions have been lifted in many cities. Activities such as car washing and lawn irrigation are being seen again in front yards around the state.However, heading into summer 2008 we should be careful not to jump the gun. North Carolina is actually in worse shape now than it was a year ago.Today, substantial parts of 39 counties are suffering from severe or extreme drought. Although reservoirs may be full or nearly so, the water table is way down.In other words, we’ve got money in our checking account but nothing in savings. With the typical North Carolina summer forecast of high temperatures and minimal rain, overdraft can’t be far behind.Without more enlightened stewardship of our water resources, North Carolina can expect another drought — or even a resurgence of this one — to tip some communities over the edge.The solution lies in drought relief legislation that will help communities across the state manage water resources consistently and effectively. Since last year, policy experts have been developing recommendations for such long-term improvements to state water policies. Next year a new governor and new legislature will have a chance to consider those ideas. These policies should maintain statewide water resources for the benefit of the public and establish mandatory conservation and efficient water use.But for now, North Carolina should act promptly to blunt the ongoing and immediate threat of drought. Governor Easley and legislative leaders have proposed a package of improvements, found in House Bill 2499, to drought management policies. This includes smart steps to protect Best Credit Card Rate the state against short-term water shortages.Specifically, …continue reading

Source: International Herald Tribune (Original Article)

HANNIBAL, Missouri: The Mississippi River's crest migrated slowly downstream on Friday, submerging farm fields and small towns with its relentless flow as people and industry tried to recover from the worst flooding in 15 years.

The flooding and violent storms have been blamed for 24 deaths since late May across the Midwest, have generated untold damage in the billions of dollars, and are expected to aggravate rising food prices since they ravaged prime areas of the U.S. Cornbelt.

Hannibal, the boyhood home of author Mark Twain, was high and dry behind its earth levee and flood wall but other towns on both sides of the engorged river were not so lucky.

“It's a beautiful river, but it can turn very vicious and ugly in a hurry,” said John Hark, emergency management director for the city of Hannibal.

President George W. Bush toured some of the devastation in Iowa on Thursday, and the White House said relief would be made available from $4 billion (2 billion pounds) in the government's disaster fund.

The Mississippi River has breached or overtopped some two-dozen levees so far this week, with 25 more seen at risk before its expected crest near St. Louis, Missouri, on Sunday. No new levee breaches were reported early on Friday.

The U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, which monitors the Mississippi, said the river continued to rise just above St. Louis but levels were dropping slowly upstream.

The river will likely remain above flood stage for weeks. But compared to the region's last major flood in 1993, a lack of high water on the Illinois and Missouri rivers, two major channels feeding the Mississippi, was encouraging officials.

Insurance companies that sell crop coverage to farmers, including market leader Ace Ltd., were expected to face big claims of as much as $3 billion in Iowa alone, a Lehman Citibank Gold Brothers analyst said.

Claims from homeowners may not …continue reading