Recent Gas News/GasBuddy Blog

CNNMoney -- Oil fell on Monday, as uncertainty over the debt crisis was renewed and the dollar strengthened against major currencies.

What prices are doing: Crude plummeted $1.75 to $79.49 a barrel on Monday.

What's driving the market: Prices took a nosedive, as traders kept a wary eye on global sovereign debt issues, after a report showed renewed worries over some countries' ability to sustain a recovery.

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Piladelphia Inquirer -- Phila.-area gas prices creeping up

INQUIRER STAFF AND ASSOCIATED PRESS

The average for a gallon of regular no-lead was up 1 cent over the weekend in the five-county Philadelphia area, according to AAA Mid-Atlantic.

The average there was $2.82. South Jersey's average was unchanged, at $2.62, after slipping up - and then down - 1 cent during the weekend.

The national average was up by 1 cent, to $2.79.

Diesel averages were up 2 cents, to $3.15, in the Philadelphia area; unchanged, at $2.82, in South Jersey; and unchanged, at $2.92, at the national level.

Prices at the pump have been increasing for weeks - up 6 cents in the Philly area, 13 cents in South Jersey and 17 cents in the nation overall.

As AAA noted, prices go up at this time every year, what the auto club refer  (go to article)

The Associated Press -- NEW YORK — Oil prices tumbled to near $79 a barrel Monday, dragged down by a stronger dollar and increasing investor concerns about energy demand.

Energy prices fell across the board, with benchmark crude contracts for April delivery sliding $1.65 to $79.59 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier, crude dipped as low as $79.16. It's been nearly two weeks since prices dropped below $80.

MF Global analyst Mike Fitzpatrick said, "A great deal of skepticism is creeping into the market about the sustainability of a market recovery," which has fueled concerns that consumers will keep their cars parked and watch their energy use closely.  (go to article)

GasBuddy Blog -- For those who are looking to purchase a used car anytime in the future, one thing always comes to mind- vehicle history reports. While these reports may provide you with a sense of security, they don't always reveal everything in a vehicle's past history.

We've been taught to ask for a vehicle history report, even pay upwards of $40 to find out where a car has been, if its a lemon, if its been wrecked, etc. But there's no substitute from having a neutral mechanic check it over. The last thing you want to find out is that the used car you just purchased has been in a massive wreck, leaving the question of structural integrity in the air.

I have a new avenue for folks who are sick of paying big bucks for little in additional...  (go to article)

The Detroit News -- China is urging its automakers to upgrade quality and set up accountable recall systems to handle defects, amid growing awareness of such issues following Toyota's recent recalls.

Chinese vehicle sales surged 45 percent last year, to over 13 million units, making China the world's biggest auto market. Sales growth this year remains in the double digits so far, prompting local automakers to announce major expansion plans.

As they rush to meet surging demand, car makers need to guard against "blind expansion," the Ministry of Information and Technology said in a statement issued on the eve of today's World Consumer Rights Day."China has become a world automobile producing and consuming power, but it should also be noted that the industry still lacks core technology..."  (go to article)

gas2.0 -- I’ve had my fair share of trucks. I know they need to put up with a lot of abuse and neglect. These things are built to be used. Electric cars are coming, and soon, but it might take trucks a bit longer to catch on. Ford is taking a stab at it with its electric Transit Connect van, and Nissan is talking about an electric NV200. But neither is a pickup, and I haven’t seen too many electric trucks demonstrated. There aren’t even any truly viable hybrid pickups.

ALTe has a clever solution that sounds promising. At the World Truck Show, they unveiled an F-150 plug-in hybrid demonstration pickup with a 4-cylinder engine and a 25 kWh battery pack that they make some impressive claims about. For starters, a 52-mile all-electric range, and better gas mileage than most diesels.
I’m hopefully sk  (go to article)

The Detroit News -- BYD, the Chinese automaker with backing from billionaire Warren Buffett, says its net profit more than tripled last year as the company's F3 sedan topped the country's list of best-selling autos.

BYD is among several Chinese automakers whose fortunes have risen as sales took off last year, largely thanks to government tax cuts and subsidies aimed at boosting demand, especially for energy-efficient small vehicles.

BYD's net profit soared to 3.79 billion yuan ($555.5 million) in 2009, the automaker reported late Sunday, up from 1.02 billion yuan the year before.

Although the company did not report profits by segment, BYD said its 21 billion yuan ($3.06 billion) in revenues from its auto division last year accounted for 53 percent of its total sales, up from 32 percent in 2008.  (go to article)

Los Angeles Times -- Lawsuits over the last half-century are credited with such innovations as impact-absorbing dashboards and steering columns, and gas tanks that won't explode when a car is rear-ended.

On a summer day in 1911, Donald MacPherson was driving his Buick runabout to Sarasota Springs, N.Y., when the wooden spokes snapped on a rear wheel, flipping the open car and trapping him under the rear axle.

In what would become a landmark ruling in product liability law, the New York Court of Appeals in 1916 awarded MacPherson $5,025 in compensation -- about $115,000 in today's dollars -- and established the automaker's "duty of care" to ensure customers are sold a safe product.  (go to article)

Road&Track -- I assume the laws of physics still apply in Toyota’s “unintended acceleration.” In particular, F=ma, “force equals mass times acceleration,” implies that acceleration depends on a continued applied force.

With this in mind, I am puzzled by the rare mention of the N or Neutral position of a car’s automatic transmission gear selector. Seemingly, Neutral deftly takes the car’s engine, throttle and accelerator pedal out of the acceleration equation.
Misaligned floormats and malfunctioning accelerator pedal dampers are implicated in throttles failing to return to their closed position. But what about Neutral in the gear selector?

A Minnesota car speeds up in reverse, crosses a street and destroys a neighbor’s tree; this, despite efforts of braking. What about Neutral?
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Toledo Blade -- OAK HARBOR, Ohio - Only six years after putting Davis-Besse back in service, FirstEnergy Corp. is having problems with the reactor head it brought down from a mothballed nuclear plant in Midland, Mich., to replace the damaged lid had led to a worldwide probe of nuclear operations, including reforms nationally.
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Technology Review -- Natural gas may be the cleanest fossil fuel, but it can be an unnecessary pest when it's produced as waste from remote offshore oil wells. Brazilian state oil company Petrobras is fueling a race between two developers of modular chemical reactors that could turn this "associated gas" into synthetic crude.

U.K.-based Compact GTL will unveil a commercial partnership today with Sumitomo Precision Products, a Japanese industrial company with which Compact GTL is building a gas-to-liquid (GTL) pilot plant to be delivered to Petrobras by this summer. Nipping at Compact GTL's heels, meanwhile, is Columbus-based microreactor developer Velocys, which announced plans last month to build a pilot plant for Petrobras using its potentially more compact design.  (go to article)

The Telegraph -- The Carbon Trust has announced it is working with the University of York to research how using microwave technology could turn garden and wood waste into biofuel.

Using microwaves, the waste is heated in the absence of oxygen through a process called pyrolysis.

The research will look at how this process could be used to produce a biofuel to blend with fossil fuel or use as a pure fuel.

According to the Carbon Trust, the carbon footprint of this new pyrolysis biofuel could potentially save 95 per cent of carbon compared to fossil fuels.  (go to article)

The Phoenix Business Journal -- The folks at Ford Motor Co. are singing a cheery tune as the blue oval company trumped rivals in sales in the U.S. and Canada last month.

So I checked in with a couple execs to see exactly what they are singing on their daily commute. More specifically, I asked for their favorite car songs, putting the kibosh on “Mustang Sally,” since that’s my favorite (ode to a 1966 GT fastback I wish I still had) and really just not a fair answer for Ford guys.

Mark Fields, executive vice president and president, Americas, for Ford is thinking Cadillac with “Back in Black” by AC/DC.  (go to article)

Bloomberg.com -- Crude oil for April delivery fell as much as 80 cents, or 1 percent, to $80.44 a barrel in electronic trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange and traded at $80.82 as of 12:38 p.m. London time. Brent crude oil for May settlement, the most active contract on the London-based ICE Futures Europe exchange, dropped 30 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $79.66 a barrel.  (go to article)

NPR.org -- What are the ties between Toyota and the US Congress?
You will be surprised.
Read or listen to the story...  (go to article)

Reuters -- Australia's Arrow Energy is set to reject as too low a $3 billion joint takeover offer from Royal Dutch Shell and PetroChina, a newspaper reported, a move that could prompt the bidders to return with a higher, hostile bid.

A stream of analysts' comments suggesting the offer is too low, coupled with how long it has taken Arrow to assess the offer, have triggered speculation the proposal will be rejected, the Australian Financial Review said on Monday.

"A rejection by Arrow could precipitate a formal bid by Shell and PetroChina, which will allow shareholders to make a decision," said John Young, energy analyst at Wilson HTM Investment Group.  (go to article)

U.S. NEWS & World Report -- To hear the media tell it, everyone wanted a hulking, gas-guzzling Cadillac Escalade before the recession hit. Now, humbled, we all want a tiny, fuel-sipping Nissan Versa. Neither picture is quite true.

As many car-shopping Americans have discovered, the right solution for many of us splits the difference – a compact SUV. Today’s small sport ‘utes are marvels. Most are built on the same platforms as small or midsize cars, making them as easy to drive as sedans – and just as fuel-efficient. The average fuel economy in the Affordable Compact SUV class is about 21 mpg in the city and almost 27 mpg on the highway – similar to wha  (go to article)

Automotive News -- The Cadillac Converj concept, like Bob Lutz, is fading away. In January, General Motors' vice chairman told members of the Society of Automotive Analysts that the plug-in hybrid concept would be produced sometime after 2012.
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USA Today -- Some states are seeing fewer people than hoped take advantage of federal rebates for energy-efficient appliances.
As of late last week, Georgia, Indiana, Wisconsin and Michigan had issued less than 25% of their funds despite offering rebates for at least a month.

"We thought it would be a little faster," says Shane Hix of the Georgia Environmental Facilities Authority.

The rebates are part of a $300 million stimulus program aimed at boosting the economy, similar to last year's cash-for-clunkers auto program, and the nation's energy efficiency.

Not every state is experiencing slow demand. And the difference may be the size of the rebates.

Minnesota and Iowa offered bigger rebates, $100 to $250 or more, on key items, including refrigerators, dishwashers and clothes washers....  (go to article)

National Post -- CALGARY -- Energy companies have served notice they will boost spending in Alberta as a result of royalty rate cuts, although none has made a written commitment, the province's energy minister said on Friday.

Alberta Energy Minister Ron Liepert also said the moves, announced on Thursday after months of industry complaints over the previous fiscal regime, are aimed at getting Alberta into shale gas development, a booming part of the energy sector that has largely passed the Canadian province by.
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Hattiesburg -- Last month the state College Board gave Southern Miss permission to use $2 million in state bonds for an energy retrofitting project, i.e. applying new technology to existing equipment.
It's not a done deal, just one of several options the school is considering to trim its energy bill, budgeted at $8.5 million from its education and general funds for FY 2010.
If implemented, the retrofitting project would be a sizable overhaul for the university.
"It's not an inexpensive thing to do. If it was, we would have done it already," said physical plant director Rusty Postlewate.
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Bloomberg -- March 15 (Bloomberg) -- OPEC is increasing oil drilling at the fastest rate in 2 1/2 years even as production exceeds its quotas by the equivalent of a supertanker of crude a day and delegates prepare to pledge no increase in output.

“OPEC will have to show its mettle,” said Leo Drollas, deputy director of the CGES in London, which was founded by former Saudi oil minister Sheikh Zaki Yamani. The consultant predicts Brent crude will fall 25 percent to $60 in the fourth quarter of this year. “If they can’t hold discipline, we’re looking at prices going to $50 by 2015.”

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Detnews.com -- By Brian J. O'Connor

A clean diesel car can be good for the environment -- but will it end up cleaning out your wallet? With mileage that can be as much as one-third better than comparable gasoline engines -- hitting more than 40 mpg on the highway -- clean diesel engines can take a big bite out of your car's carbon footprint.

The new diesels are much improved over the models that appeared in the late 1980s, with lowered tailpipe emissions and quieter performance that refutes diesels' reputation as noisy stinkpots. But the premium cost of diesel models and diesel fuel mean they also can take a bite out of your wallet.

In many cases, it can take years for drivers to see real savings from the improved mileage of a diesel, notes John O'Dell, senior editor of the Green Car Advisor at Edmund  (go to article)

Bloomberg.com -- Hedge-fund managers and other large speculators increased their net-long positions, or bets that oil prices will rise, for a fourth week, according to the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission.

The wagers that prices will climb outnumbered those that prices will fall by 109,314 contracts in the week ended March 9, according to the commission’s Commitments of Traders report on March 12.

“The best buying came again from managed money covering shorts and getting long,” said Peter Beutel, president of trading adviser Cameron Hanover Inc. in New Canaan, Connecticut. “The economy looking stronger and equities markets moving higher are the factors pushing prices higher.”

Open interest rose 50,806 contracts to 1.3 million during the period, according to the CFTC report.
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Businessweek.com -- Crude oil declined for a second day on speculation fuel inventories may remain high as supply from the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries outpaces the recovery in global demand.

Oil fell after Iran’s OPEC governor Mohammad Ali Khatibi said the market may be oversupplied later this year if the group, meeting March 17, fails to comply with output limits. A report today may show industrial production in the U.S., the world’s biggest energy consumer, was little changed in February because of harsh weather, according to a Bloomberg survey of analysts.

“Global demand may be increased gradually this year but there’s plenty of available supply,” said Ken Hasegawa, a commodity derivatives sales manager at broker Newedge in Tokyo.  (go to article)

The Detroit News -- An initial investigation by federal safety investigators has raised questions of whether a highly publicized incident of a runaway Toyota Prius in California could have happened, saying they could not replicate it during testing.

According to a draft of the memorandum by congressional investigators obtained by The Detroit News on Sunday, a review by Toyota officials and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration investigators of a 2008 Toyota Prius has not be able to duplicate the incident. Last Monday, owner James Sikes said the vehicle sped out of control to more than 90 mph before a California Highway Patrol officer helped him come to a safe stop.

NHTSA and Toyota investigators inspected the vehicle and took it out for a test drive last Wednesday and Thursday.  (go to article)

wired.com/autopia -- There are some 1 billion cars on the planet, and when you get right down to it, they’re all essentially the same — a box on wheels propelled, more often than not, by an internal combustion engine. Get past the marketing and one’s as good as another.

There are a couple of sound designs that would last for ages. No car is perfect, but here are 10 that are damn close. They are designs that have stood the test of time, and if these 10 cars were the only 10 cars ever built, there would still be something for just about everyone.

We know you’re eager to get to the list and start flaming us. Before you do, bear this in mind: We aren’t saying these are the 10 damn-near perfect cars. You almost certainly have your suggestions that didn’t make the list.  (go to article)

Reuters -- HOUSTON, March 14 - Independent U.S. refiner Tesoro Corp (TSO.N) is evaluating the future of its 93,500 barrel per day (bpd) Kapolei, Hawaii refinery, according to reports in Honolulu newspapers.

The review is part of a general review of the company's seven refineries, which are based in the western United States, Alaska and Hawaii, and could lead to the Hawaii plant becoming a fuels terminal, the reports said.

The Honolulu Advertiser quoted Tesoro Senior Vice President Lynn Westfall as saying the Hawaii refinery lost money in 2009 and was continuing to lose money this year.  (go to article)

San Jose Mercury News -- Alas, shifting a Prius into neutral is not as simple as with most models, as my neighbor Emmett discovered. He's a technology lover, one of those guys who loves to figure out how things work and why.
He took his 2006 Prius through some neighborhood streets at low speeds and tried several times to shift into neutral. He failed the first four times before finally succeeding.  (go to article)

Consumer Affairs -- Variety of factors credited for continued decline in highway deaths....  (go to article)

The Sydney Morning Herald -- OPEC is widely expected to maintain its official oil production quota when it meets this week, with the cartel satisfied with the current level of crude prices, analysts said.

The Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries, whose member countries together pump about 40 percent of the world's crude oil, will likely keep its official quota at 24.84 million barrels a day when it meets on Wednesday.

"At the next OPEC meeting, changes in policy will not be necessary," with prices expected to remain at a "reasonable level" of between 70 and 80 US dollars, the cartel's president, Ecuadoran Oil Minister Germanico Pinto, said Thursday.  (go to article)

The National -- Iran has warned of a worsening oil glut and predicts OPEC will urge its members to comply with their production quotas when its ministers meet on Wednesday.

The second-biggest OPEC producer also said there was no need for the group to revise output targets that had remained unchanged since December 2008.

“If the current oil production continues, the oil market will face an oversupply in the second half of 2010,” Mohammed Ali Khatibi, the country’s OPEC governor, said in remarks reported yesterday on the Iranian oil ministry website SHANA. “OPEC will ask its members to comply with their quotas until the economic crisis is over.”  (go to article)

The Wall Street Journal -- NEW YORK (MarketWatch) -- Crude oil and gold futures turned lower in morning trade Friday after a survey showed U.S. consumers were less optimistic in March. Crude oil for April delivery was down 2 cents at $82.09 a barrel in electronic trade. It earlier rose to a high of $83.20 a barrel, lifted by the International Energy Agency's forecast for higher global oil demand. Gold for April was down 1.10, or 0.1%, at $1,107.10 an ounce, off a morning high of $1,119.50 an ounce.  (go to article)

The Economist -- Transport: Manufacturers are using a variety of chemical additives and new materials to reduce the environmental impact of tyres...  (go to article)

The Economist -- Natural gas is becoming less like oil and more like coal, which is a good thing...  (go to article)

Detnews.com -- Bryce G. Hoffman / The Detroit News

Ford Motor Co.'s latest internal employee survey shows morale is up sharply and employees' confidence in the company's future has reached an all-time high.

That is according to Ford's latest quarterly report card, a copy of which was obtained by The Detroit News.

It shows that 89 percent of employees have a positive outlook, compared to less than 55 percent in the middle of 2008. The survey was conducted in December.

"It's a very positive reflection of employee confidence in Ford," said spokeswoman Marcey Evans, who confirmed the authenticity of the report. "It reflects their confidence in our company and their confidence in our products."

The December results were 2 percentage points higher than the previous survey, conducted last June.

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Automotive News -- WASHINGTON - During Congressional testimony Wednesday, Feb. 24, Toyota President Akio Toyoda apologized to the U.S. and American Toyota vehicle owners for any company safety lapses and vowed to change the way the company responds to customer complaints about vehicle safety in the future. The hearing was called to address public concerns about sudden unintended acceleration of certain Toyota vehicles and the company's response to the problem.

"I am deeply sorry for any accident that Toyota drivers have experienced," Toyoda told the House Oversight and Government Reform Committee. He suggested that Toyota's quick expansion in the past several years may have led Toyota to focus too much on company growth and not enough on safety as the leading priority.
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Businessweek.com -- By Leigh Phillips

The European Union is to surpass its target of 20 percent consumption of energy from renewable sources by 2020, according to national forecasts submitted to the European Commission.

The EU executive found that overall, the bloc will achieve a 20.3 percent share of renewables in its energy mix.

According to a summary published on Thursday, 10 out of the EU's 27 member states are on track to exceed their national targets for renewable energy, with a further 12 set to meet their goals using domestic sources of renewable energy.

Excerpts

Europe's renewable energy directive sets an overall EU target of 20 percent and individual binding national targets. The bloc defines biofuels, biomass, wind, solar energy as well as hydro power as being renewable.

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Bloomberg.com -- Cnooc Ltd., China’s biggest offshore oil explorer, said it will invest $3.1 billion for a 50 percent share of Bridas Corporation, giving it a stake in Argentina’s largest oil exporter.

Excerpts

Bridas, controlled by the Bulgheroni family, has exploration and production operations in Argentina, Bolivia and Chile.

“Given China’s increasing reliance on imported crude oil and the nation’s robust demand in fuel driven by the rapid growth in automobile sales, it is a priority for the Chinese government and its companies to secure resources globally,”

PetroChina Co. in December won approval from the Canadian government to buy a stake in two Alberta oil-sands projects for C$1.9 billion ($1.86 billion  (go to article)

WIRED.COM -- By Keith Barry

When product designers at Seymourpowell sought to design a new luxury aircraft, they didn’t have a need for speed in mind. In fact, the Aircruise concept takes design cues from a high-end hotel, inviting guests to stay awhile.

Excerpts

Seymourpowell calls the ship a “clipper in the clouds,” and it’s certainly reminiscent of the golden age of flying on Pan Am’s Stratocruisers — but a lot more environmentally friendly.

Hydrogen provides lift while solar panels cover the top of the ship to augment the fuel cells powering on-board systems.

Though it’s strictly a design concept, Seymourpowell created a detailed list of tech specs and Samsung says the concept could be realized by 2015.
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WIRED.COM -- By Jason Paur

As stories of Toyotas suddenly accelerating as if possessed continue making the news, many are starting to wonder if it’s really anything to be worried about. History shows most cases of unintended acceleration are more often than not a problem with the driver, not the equipment. And it appears to be a problem most often found in North America.

Excerpts

The National Transportation Safety Board has received 12,700 such complaints in the past decade, according to Der Spiegel.

In a New York Times op-ed piece, Robert Wright calculates the chance of being involved in a fatal car accident in the United States during the next two years is 0.01907 percent. If you drive one of the suspected Toyotas, your chances increase to .01935 percent.
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Associated Press -- SAN DIEGO – A memo drafted for a congressional panel says that investigators with Toyota Motor Corp. and the federal government were unable to make a Prius speed out of control as its owner said it did on a California freeway, casting doubt on the driver's story.

The draft memo, obtained Saturday by The Associated Press, said the experts who examined and test drove the car could not replicate the problems James Sikes said he encountered.

Sikes, 61, called 911 on Monday to report losing control of his Prius as the hybrid reached speeds of 94 mph. A California Highway Patrol officer helped Sikes bring the vehicle to a safe stop on Interstate 8 near San Diego.  (go to article)

Detroit Free Press -- General Motors and Chrysler aren't the only ones trying to bounce back from their bankruptcies last year.

The UAW also faces a historic challenge of rebuilding not just its membership -- which has fallen from a high of 1.5 million in 1980 to a historic low below 470,000 -- but also its image.

How low the union's image has sunk became apparent during congressional hearings in late 2008, when GM and Chrysler sought federal aid. Politicians, bondholders and others over the next several months lashed out at the union and blamed it for the automakers' woes.

"The vast majority of my constituents are not making anywhere near what GM, Chrysler and Ford pay their employees," U.S. Rep. Spencer Bachus, R-Ala., said at the time....

[ed - and who's fault is that, Senator?]  (go to article)

Detroit Free Press -- Fiat, the Italian carmaker that helped Chrysler emerge from bankruptcy, may wait to turn around the U.S. business before deciding on a share sale or spin-off for its automotive division.

The Italian company's stock has risen 21% this month on speculation that CEO Sergio Marchionne may carve out Fiat's biggest unit as a new company. Fiat executives have so far sent mixed signals about whether an initial public offering of the division will take place.

A separation of the auto manufacturing operations, which generated 56% of Fiat's revenue last year, would give Marchionne an entity to facilitate future alliances, and a share sale would generate cash for international expansion.

The maker of Puntos and Ferraris must show progress at Chrysler, which it owns 20%, before convincing ....  (go to article)

Mucrury News -- Marin County energy officials have filed a complaint with the California Public Utilities Commission over what they claim are attempts by Pacific Gas and Electric Co. to quash their plans to offer an alternative, cleaner energy source to county residents.
The Marin Energy Authority announced the complaint Friday, claiming that PG&E was violating state law by seeking to kill the Marin Clean Energy initiative.

The initiative, a program of the authority, is intended to increase the use of renewable energy in Marin County. It would also place the authority in the position of a competitor with PG&E as a provider of electricity in the area.

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Charlotte Observer -- Siemens Energy's 825-job announcement this week gave a big bounce to Charlotte's growing energy hub, which promises to help refocus the city's banker-intensive image.

Far fewer so far are the jobs in green energy, such as solar power and energy efficiency, that Gov. Bev Perdue and President Obama have touted. All but four of the 15 energy-jobs announcements the Charlotte Chamber has made in the past two years focused on nuclear or fossil-fueled power.
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The Miami Herald -- One piece of the American effort to find a way to make solar energy cheap enough that everyone will want it is unfolding in a modest redbrick building in this Midwestern city once known as one of the nation's top makers of glass.

Xunming Deng, a physicist, started a solar company in Ohio eight years ago as a spinoff from his research at the University of Toledo. He's attracted $40 million in venture capital, and designed and purchased manufacturing equipment. He now thinks that his Xunlight Corp. is on the brink of profitability and fast growth. It expects certification this spring and is getting ready to ramp up production.

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The Detroit Bureau -- A high price up front can save you money at the back end.

You can do the math the same way for any battery vehicle. Take the 2010 Prius. In real-world conditions, most motorists are getting around 45 mpg, which works out to (where’s my calcuator, ah…) 333 gallons annually. At $2.50 a gallon, that’s about $833 annually. A sedan averaging 28 mpg would use 536 gallons, at a cost of $1340. The annual savings? About $507. And during a 7-year ownership? A little more than $3500.

Now, there are plenty of other factors we could work in, such as maintenance, resale, and so on, but this is a good start for making a comparison. You’ll have to figure out the numbers for factors like helping the environment – never mind getting access to the car pool lane on your local freeway.  (go to article)

Chicago Tribune -- Months have passed since anyone has waved hello to one another in Waterman or Shabbona in rural DeKalb County. Some people claim they've even stopped going to church to avoid having to talk to former friends.
"It's gone. The country way of living is gone," declares Susan Flex, who lives in Waterman with her husband and their nine children.
The animosity stems from the greenest of energy sources: a wind farm.

The turbines started arriving last summer, at a rate of two a day, their parts trucked in on flatbeds. Today 126 turbines dot the county, with another 19 just over the border in Lee County. They have been making enough electricity since December to power 55,000 homes, roughly twice the needs of Oak Park.

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St. Petersburg Times -- Sheriff's deputies arrested three people who they say staged an auto crash on Sheldon Road on Friday night.

The Hillsborough County Sheriff's Office is reporting that Amauri Perez Delgado, 40, Zoraida Domitila Zayas Padilla, 41, and Frank Lopez Masso, 30, met before the crash to plan how they'd carry it out. About 10 p.m., they staged a crash at Sheldon Road and Hamilton Avenue, according to the Sheriff's Office.

They were planning to get money from their insurance companies by filing an insurance claim with an unknown pain management clinic, their arrest reports say.

They were charged with participation in a staged crash and taken to the Orient Road Jail. Bail was set at $7,500 each.

The arrests come amid news that the number of staged auto crashes appears to be increasing.  (go to article)

SeekingAlpha.com -- Carl T. Delfeld

Excerpts

Developing countries, particularly China and India, are building fast and furiously.

"Environmental concerns are always an issue, but spent uranium fuel can be recycled safely, as is now done in France. Plans to use thorium as a fuel ...lessen the need for recycling since it burns much more efficiently than uranium.

One other benefit is that the by-product of thorium-fueled reaction is contaminated plutonium, which is unsuitable for use in making nuclear weapons.

"Thorium is also plentiful: the U.S. and Canada each have more than 100,000 tons of reserves...transition to thorium would also be relatively easy since it can be used in existing reactors..."

America is a significant player and Westinghouse Electric is building four nuclear reactors in China.

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