Recent Gas News/GasBuddy Blog

NMPolitics.net -- Shuckins! At my gas station this week was the dreaded note on the pump: “This gasoline now contains ethanol.” I have changed stations several times this last year to keep from buying E10, gasoline laced with 10 percent ethanol. This move to ethanol laced gasoline is political in nature. I have three major objections to being forced to use E10.

First, the BTU (energy) content of E10 is not as high as regular gasoline, so I surrender gas mileage. I already drive carefully and under the speed limit to boost gas mileage so this will not “break the bank” in my life. However, I do not want to spend money foolishly fuelish.

Further, my 1998 Mercury Grand Marquis reacts to E10 with a warning to “Check Engine” which means the oxygen sensors in my car puke with E10.  (go to article)

USA Today -- When the Nissan Leaf and Chevrolet Volt go on sale in December, they should give a spark of recognition to their forebears -- cars like this 1931 Detroit Electric Model 97 Brougham.

Old Sparky is going on the auction block this weekend in Auburn, Ind.

By 1931, it was pretty clear that gasoline was going to kill electric power. But Detroit Electric would live on for eight more years:

Detroit Electric produced its first electric car in 1907, a time when it was entirely unclear whether electricity or gasoline -- or both -- would become the fuel of choice for a fast-growing motoring America. Well, we all know how that turned out. One huge advantage for electric power: It was clean and there was no crank starter like on gas models.  (go to article)

Bloomberg BusinessWeek -- Ford says its Focus Electric compact car, which comes out late next year, will use cooled and heated liquid instead of air to regulate the temperature of its lithium-ion battery.

It's the same liquid-based technology that General Motors is using for the battery in its Chevrolet Volt electric car, which is scheduled to go on sale in November. Compact Power Inc., a subsidiary of Korean battery maker LG Chem, is making the batteries for both automakers.

The Nissan Leaf, an electric car set to debut in December, uses an air-cooled lithium-ion battery.

Ford says liquid systems are more effective than air ones at regulating battery temperatures. But the Leaf has matched the Volt's eight-year, 100,000-mile battery warranty.  (go to article)

Miami Herald --
Senate dawdles while Gulf mishaps continue
Foot-dragging and partisan politics are likely to replace common sense this fall in the U.S. Senate.

The Deepwater Horizon exploded four months ago, apparently long enough to fog lawmakers' memories and dampen the political will required to reform a poorly regulated industry.

Among the many proposals before the Senate is one that would lift the liability cap for companies responsible for damaging spills. This is a no-brainer.

In 1990, lawmakers capped liability at $75 million, a preposterously low sum compared to Deepwater damage claims.

Even BP knew the sum was too low and quickly agreed to a $20 billion compensation fund. But oil industry lobbyists are pushing hard against lifting the cap, and lawmakers are listening with open wa  (go to article)

Reuters -- (Reuters) - Oil eased on Friday as the market joined in the wait for monthly data from leading energy consumer the United States and Hurricane Earl posed a potential threat to the nation's east coast refineries.

U.S. crude for October dropped 38 cents to $74.64 a barrel by 0920 GMT, on track for its third weekly drop in four weeks, while ICE Brent declined 42 cents to $76.51.

U.S. inventory data on Wednesday showed fuel stocks had reached their highest since weekly records began in 1990.

Still the market managed to settle above $75 for the first time this week on Thursday after positive weekly U.S. jobs data drove expectations a double-dip recession could be avoided.

The link between the economy and demand for fuel has helped to keep oil prices closely tuned to other asset clas  (go to article)

USA Today -- White House Chief of Staff Rahm Emmanuel drops f-bombs when talking about the United Auto Workers union. Fiat CEO Sergio Marchionne -- even though Italian is his first language -- drops f-bombs when accusing Chrysler execs of talking down to him. And President Obama stays away from salty language but wonders aloud why the U.S. automakers couldn't they just "make a Corolla," an apparent referece to the popular Toyota sedan's reputation for reliability at the time.

It is all reportedly part of the new tell-all book from Steven Rattner, who served on the White House task force aimed at nursing General Motors and Chrysler through bankruptcy and back on the road to recovery last year, the Huffington Post says. He portrays Obama as fairly even handed,  (go to article)

http://www.npr.org/blogs/money/2010/09/02/129608251/cash-for-clunkers -- The government's "cash for clunkers" program boosted auto sales by 360,000 during the two months it was in place, according to a new study.

But in the seven months that followed, sales were down by 360,000 compared to what they would have been without the program, the study found.

The implication: The program didn't bring new buyers into the market. But it encouraged people who would have bought a car anyway to make their purchase a few months sooner.


Under the program, the government paid people about $4,000 to trade in old cars for newer, more fuel efficient ones. The idea was to both stimulate the economy by driving up auto purchases, and improve the efficiency of all cars on the road.  (go to article)

Detroit Free Press --
Ford will add a four-door crew cab version of its F-150 SVT Raptor off-road performance pickup for the 2011 model year.

In addition to the new four-door model Ford will make the previously optional 411-horsepower 6.2-liter V8 standard equipment on 2011 Raptors.
The Raptor is seven inches wider than a standard F-150 to make room for a seriously upgraded suspension for high-speed off road racing. The Raptor rides on 35-inch Goodrich all-terrain tires. The crew cab Raptor should reach dealers late this year. Picture received Sept. 2,2010 from Ford Motor Company  (go to article)

Journal News -- Those finding themselves with an empty gas tank this holiday weekend will pay a heftier price to refuel, according to web sites that gauge gas prices across Ohio.

The price of a gallon of regular gasoline will rise by 25 to 30 cents Friday, Sept. 3, along the Cincinnati-Dayton corridor, as motorists hit the road for Labor Day weekend, according to CincinnatiGasPrices.com.

Patrick DeHaan, senior petroleum analyst for GasBuddy.com in Grand Rapids, Mich., another gas-pricing website, said many stations in the area of Butler and Warren counties raised gas prices to $2.75 a gallon Thursday.

 (go to article)

The New York Times (MSNBC) -- BP is warning Congress that if lawmakers pass legislation that bars the company from getting new offshore drilling permits, it may not have the money to pay for all the damages caused by its oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

The company says a ban would also imperil the ambitious Gulf Coast restoration efforts that officials want the company to voluntarily support.
 (go to article)

MSN Auto -- Surprisingly, hybrid propulsion technology and luxury cars seem to go together like peas and carrots. Unlike their paltry-priced cousins that offer impressive fuel efficiency and give their owners that warm, fuzzy feeling that comes from driving a more eco-conscious conveyance, luxury hybrids offer something more: performance and amenities equal to or better than their gas-powered cousins. Well, in theory, anyway. Some do a better job than others. From the stately Lincoln MKZ Hybrid to the BMW X6 ActiveHybrid, we present five of the latest luxury fuel-sippers worthy of your hard-earned cash, and five that don't live up to the hype.  (go to article)

inhabitat.com -- By Timon Singh

"Hyundai has announced that they will sell hydrogen fuel cell cars starting in 2012 – three years before Toyota, Honda..."

"Seeing that renewable energy is becoming decidedly cheaper... Hyundai has said that will deliver the world’s first series production fuel cell vehicle in 2012, with 500 hydrogen vehicles rolling off the line that year and more afterwards."

"Hyundai plans to increase production of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles up to 10,000 units by 2015, the year when most other automakers will be just getting started on their FCVs. (FUEL CELL VEHICLES)

"With hydrogen refueling stations becoming more commonplace and the cost of hydrogen fuel cells dropping, customer demand is very likely to increase,...Hyundai plans to beat Toyota’s price tag of $50,000."  (go to article)

Detnews.com -- By Christina Rogers

Detroit -- About 4,600 electric vehicle charging stations will be installed throughout the country -- including 280 in Michigan -- under a federally funded program, ChargePoint America, designed to build a fueling network for electric cars, industry and state officials said Thursday.

Detroit's alternative energy incubator, NextEnergy, in the New Center got the state's first charger under the program but more are expected to go up in Dearborn, Flint, Ann Arbor and other parts of Detroit. Homeowners, businesses and communities are eligible to apply for a charging station. Those chosen get the station for FREE.

The $37 million program, partially funded by a $15 million federal stimulus grant, aims to help communities prepare for a possible influx of electric vehicles  (go to article)

Fox News\ AP -- Engineers removed a temporary cap Thursday that stopped oil from gushing into the Gulf of Mexico from BP's blown-out well in mid-July. No more oil was expected to leak into the sea, but crews were standing by with collection vessels just in case.

The cap was removed as a prelude to raising the massive piece of equipment underneath that failed to prevent the worst offshore oil spill in U.S. history.  (go to article)

AP -- Here are some differences between the Deepwater Horizon rig disaster April 20 and the oil production platform explosion Thursday in the Gulf of Mexico:

TYPES OF STRUCTURES

, Deepwater Horizon, owned by Transocean Ltd. and leased to BP PLC, was a semi-submersible drilling rig, exploring for oil and natural gas.

, The structure that exploded Thursday, owned by Mariner Energy Inc., was a stationary platform, producing 58,800 gallons of oil and 900,000 cubic feet of gas per day from a proven reservoir using several wells.

SITE OF OPERATIONS

, Deepwater Horizon was drilling in 5,000 feet of water in a deepwater region of the Gulf.

, The platform was operating in 340 feet of water in a shallow area of the Gulf known as a major source of gas.

CREWS

, The Deepwater Horizon  (go to article)

MSN Autos -- Fuel efficiency is more of a hot topic during the hot months, when gasoline tends to be more expensive, which makes it fitting that the Environmental Protection Agency and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration today released images of two new versions of window stickers for vehicles starting with the 2012 model year.  (go to article)

Jalopnik -- Craig Henderson drove from Blaine, Washington to the Mexican border — a distance of 1,478 miles — without stopping to refuel. He burned 12.4 gallons for a record-breaking 119.1 mpg in a car he originally designed in 1984.  (go to article)

Your Maritime Lawyer -- “Once again we see tragedy unfolding in the Gulf of Mexico, and it is our sincere hope that all maritime workers escape the oil rig unharmed,” says Jason Itkin, a partner in the Houston-based law firm, which represents maritime workers throughout Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Alabama.

“This latest explosion shows drilling companies are still not doing enough to ensure the safety of the maritime workers and our sensitive coastal environment,” Itkin says.

Thirteen oil workers were stranded, including one with injuries, news reports say. No deaths have been reported. The United States Coast Guard responded.

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Yes, this article is from a site promoting lawyers, who have an agenda to run. Just submitting it for info - Interesting how quickly it was jumped on!  (go to article)

New York Post -- If this keeps up, no one's going to trust any scientists.
The global-warming establishment took a body blow this week, as the UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change received a stunning rebuke from a top-notch independent investigation.
For two decades, the IPCC has spearheaded efforts to convince the world's governments that man-made carbon emissions pose a threat to the global temperature equilibrium -- and to civilization itself. IPCC reports, collated from the work of hundreds of climate scientists and bureaucrats, are widely cited as evidence for the urgent need for drastic action to "save the planet."

But the prestigious InterAcademy Council, an independent association of "the best scientists and engineers worldwide" (as the group's own Web site puts it) formed in 2000 to give  (go to article)

By CBC News, cbc.ca, Updated: September 2, 2010 4:49 PM --
A fuel tanker carrying 9½ million litres of diesel fuel has run aground in the Northwest Passage, the Canadian Coast Guard confirmed Thursday.

Coast guard officials say the merchant tanker Nanny, which is owned by Woodward's Oil Ltd., ran aground on a sandbar Wednesday in Simpson Strait, about 50 kilometres southwest of the community of Gjoa Haven in western Nunavut.
"The coast guard ship Henry Larsen has just entered the area. I believe it's at anchor just off of Gjoa Haven as we speak," Larry Trigatti, an environmental response official with the coast guard, told CBC News on Thursday afternoon.
"It's monitoring the situation by helicopter. As you can imagine, there are some shoals in the area, so we want to be very careful in going into that zone."

Woodward's is a major oil  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- Crude oil is set for a drop to near $60 a barrel, extending a descent started in May, according to a technical analysis by independent analyst Jim Stellakis.

“Last month’s breakdown in crude oil is continuing the longer-term bearish pattern which was started by the May decline,” Stellakis said. The bear flag pattern is signaled after a break occurs below a rising trading range.

Crude oil for October delivery fell 27 cents, or 0.4 percent, to $73.64 a barrel at 10:07 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange. Prices for October dropped 9.4 percent in August, pushing futures below the support level. The contract lost $14.05, or 15 percent, in May.

The price target, expected over the next couple months, was derived by taking the length of the initial decline in May and projecting it lower f  (go to article)

GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) -- Allegedly used undocumented workers from Texas
Updated: Thursday, 02 Sep 2010, 1:55 PM EDT
Published : Thursday, 02 Sep 2010, 2:03 PM EDT

By Anne Schieber
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. (WOOD) - A contractor for a subcontractor hired by Enbridge allegedly hired undocumented workers to help clean up Michigan's oil spill.

On Wednesday in Winnie, Texas, 42 undocumented workers were arrested along the Gulf of Mexico. A local television station reported the workers said they'd been hired to clean up the nearly 1 million gallons of crude that spilled when the Enbridge-owned pipeline broke.

They worked for Hallmark Industrial, believed to be based in Texas.

US Rep. Mark Schauer, who has been critical of Enbridge for not hiring more Michigan workers, wants an investigation by the Michigan Atto  (go to article)

CNN -- Havana, Cuba (CNN) -- While the Gulf of Mexico oil spill has sparked debate in America on the merits of deepwater drilling, 90 miles away Cuba's offshore plans are quietly taking shape.

The country aims to drill seven exploration wells in its share of the Gulf of Mexico by 2014, according to American oil experts who recently met with Cuba's state oil monopoly Cupet and regulatory officials.

"Cuba's a sovereign nation and they're going to drill on their shelf waters and in their economic zone," Lee Hunt, the president of the International Association of Drilling Contractors, told CNN.

Spain's largest oil company, Repsol, has ordered a Chinese rig to start exploring in Cuban waters.

"They expect the arrival of the Scarabeo 9 rig sometime around the end of the first quarter next y  (go to article)

GasBuddy Blog -- 2pm UPDATE: Louisiana Gov: A sheen has been reported, but Mariner energy reports all 7 wells are shut in permanently- something that hasn't been confirmed. They believe that storage of oil on board was burning. Mariner says the fire is nearly burned out and contained. STAY TUNED.

Breaking news this noon from the Gulf of Mexico off the Louisiana Coast. The best news- all workers are accounted for.

More from CNN:

U.S. Coast Guard Petty Officer Bill Colclough tells CNN that 12 people from the rig are in the water immersion suits as they await rescue.

Colclough told CNN there are reports the rig is still on fire.

"We don't know what caused the rig to catch on fire," he told CNN, noting the...  (go to article)

wwltv.com -- The Coast Guard is responding to a reported rig incident south of Vermillion Bay.

A Coast Guard spokesman said that 13 people were on the rig and that 12 have been accounted for at this time.

Rescue choppers from New Orleans and Houston responded to the scene.
 (go to article)

The Globe and Mail -- Rome — The Associated Press
Published on Thursday, Sep. 02, 2010 7:45AM EDT

Last updated on Thursday, Sep. 02, 2010 9:44AM EDT
Ferrari says it is recalling 1,248 of its supercar, the 458 Italia, after reports of fires breaking out in five of the luxury vehicles in several countries.

The Italian car maker said Thursday it wants to replace an adhesive that in some circumstances can melt due to overheating and possibly ignite.

Fires in the car that sells for $253,000 (U.S.) have been reported in California, Switzerland, China and France.

Ferrari spokesman Stefano Lai says the company will be asking the owners of 1,248 cars produced before July, 2010, to bring them in to have the glue replaced with mechanical fasteners.

 (go to article)

The Windsor Star -- By Grace Macaluso September 2, 2010

Sales of Windsor-built minivans declined in August

WINDSOR, Ont. — Chrysler Canada joined Ford in announcing positive sales results Wednesday when the automaker reported demand for its vehicles rose by 12 per cent in August compared to the same period last year.Marking its ninth consecutive month of sales growth, Chrysler said it sold 16,144 units, which also surpassed the 2008 pre-economic downturn level, with growth of four per cent compared with August 2008. Sales at the retail level surged 20 per cent due to continued strong consumer demand, Chrysler said.“We are extremely pleased with our progress so far this year,” said Reid Bigland, president and CEO of Chrysler Canada. “Most of our 16 all-new or significantly refreshed ve  (go to article)

USA Today -- Ford Motor, unique among car companies, has been cautioning would-be plug-in car owners that such machines will be a major power drain when hooked up at home for recharging.

Ford remains a backer of plug-in hybrids and electrics, with plans to have five on the market in the U.S. and Europe by 2013, but doesn't want folks to forget that the electric vehicles will have a serious appetite for kilowatts when you hook up the charging cord.

Recharging a battery car or plug-in hybrid "is like running a small house," says Jim Buczkowski, Ford's global director of electrical and electronics. "It's fine if your neighbor isn't doing it, too. If you have a whole neighborhood (recharging), the transformer on the pole isn't going to take it," he says.  (go to article)

Wall Street Journal -- General Motors Corp. has asked the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office for permission to trademark the term “range anxiety,” a phrase company executives first started using after their experiences with the EV-1 electric car of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

It refers to a driver’s fear of using the electric car for longer trips because there is no quick way to recharge if the battery runs down.

The move, reported first by Jalopnik.com, is presumably meant to allow GM to use the term in marketing for the Chevrolet Volt, which is an electric car that has a gas-engine that can generate electricity and extend the range. GM may also use the trademark to keep other companies from using the term.  (go to article)

Daily Finance -- Just when many families have opted for "staycations" instead of traveling for the Labor Day weekend because of the lousy economy, they're finally catching a break on gasoline prices. Fuel is at its second-lowest level in five years, and some economists predict that it could drop much further in the months ahead.

The U.S. Energy Department said Wednesday that the average price of gas in the country was $2.68 a gallon, the least of this summer driving season. Only last year's $2.59 a gallon was lower in the last five years, the department said.

 (go to article)

Automotive News -- Any way you look at it, August U.S. auto sales disappointed. Compared with “clunker August” a year ago, sales fell 21 percent. Compared with the month before, volume dropped 5 percent. Even seasonally-adjusted, it was the worst month since February.

U.S. sales totaled 997,574 sales in August, down from 1,050,110 in July. A year ago, driven by federal cash incentives of $3,500 to $4,500, August sales hit 1.26 million.

The seasonally adjusted annual selling rate calculated by the Automotive News Data Center was 10.8 million, the first month since January and February to fall below 11.1 million.  (go to article)

Fox News -- The first thing I noticed driving the Chevrolet Volt is that it’s a real car. GM did not kick out the kind of street-legal version of a golf cart like we have seen with previous attempts at making an electric car. The Volt is sturdy and it has horsepower. I had it up to 80 MPH on the test track and given how quiet gasoline powered cars are today, I was hard pressed to notice a difference between the Volt and my last airport rental.

Well one difference is that the Volt is decked out with the latest electronic everything. You can even download an I-phone app to remote start your car and cool it down before you climb in. But given the price, it had better come with groovy electronic doo-dads.  (go to article)

CNN Money -- Automakers are operating in terra incognita as they prepare for the biggest change in the way cars are powered in a century. As they begin to add battery-powered cars to their lineups, they will have to solve some fundamental problems about how the cars are built and sold.

For engineers, the questions include:

Should automakers be technology leaders or fast followers?
Should they develop their own batteries or leave that to specialists?
Should they focus on one technology or hedge their bets with several?  (go to article)

circleofblue.org -- Developers have presented the federal Bureau of Land Management (BLM), which oversees almost all of the Mojave, with 75 applications to build solar facilities in the desert

BLM is reviewing 33 other solar power plant applications in Arizona

Solar photovoltaic power, which generates energy directly from sunlight, uses virtually no water..

The U.S. wind energy industry, which generated 35,000 megawatts last year, and has been growing by more than 35 percent annually over the last five years, uses no water..

..energy generated from wave power that does not use fresh water..

..Cholla Power Plant in northeastern Arizona near Holbrook, withdraws and uses nearly 43 million gallons of water a day..

In 2009 and 2010, utilities added 25 new coal-fired plants that have a generating  (go to article)

REUTERS -- * Stocks rally globally on better-than-expected U.S. data

* Oil hits $74 a barrel as U.S. manufacturing data shines

* Government debt prices fall on signs of global growth

* China data also revives appetite for riskier assets (Updates with close of U.S. markets)

By Herbert Lash

NEW YORK, Sept 1 (Reuters) - Global stocks posted their biggest percentage gain this summer on Wednesday after U.S. and Chinese manufacturing data eased worries about the world's flagging economy and helped spur a rally in commodities.

The U.S. dollar and Japanese yen fell broadly after the release of the manufacturing data and on news that Australia's economy grew in the second quarter at its fastest pace in three years. For details see: [ID:nN01127275]

Oil rose more than 3 percent to above $74 a barrel and  (go to article)

circleofblue.org -- Farmers do without water while oil producers use what they want.

Curtis Creel is keen on saving water. He is the water resource manager for the Kern Water Agency, one of 29 agencies that hold water contracts with the California Department of Water Resources, the agency responsible for delivering water across California...

..In spite of the dwindling production from its aging oilfields, Kern County still accounts for 10 percent of the U.S.’s domestic oil production..

..producing a single barrel of Kern County crude oil (..getting it out of the ground) requires 320 gallons of water..

..refining a single barrel of oil – which yields over 40 gallons of various petroleum products – requires 1,850 gallons of water..

Tens-of-thousands of acres of farmland lie bone dry and fallow  (go to article)

Gas 2.0 -- I know we have a lot of readers from Southern California. Sure the weather is great, and the people are generally friendly, but for me it is just too crowded and congested to ever call home. Plus, for such a progressive place, there is a surprising lack of good public transportation. Then again, California has been making big strides towards electric and hybrid vehicles, whether en masse or one municipality at a time. Give credit where credit is due, I always say.

Much credit is due the Foothill Transit authority, which serves Pomona and San Gabriel. They have, at great expense, purchased two all-electric buses and charging stations from Proterra, an electric vehicle startup.
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again; electric vehicles make the most sense for cities. Most of these vehicle  (go to article)

CNN Monney -- By Chris Isidore, CNNMoney.comSeptember 1, 2010:

NEW YORK (CNNMoney.com) -- The nation's top automakers reported disappointing sales Wednesday, resulting in the worst August for industrywide auto sales in 27 years.

According to sales tracker Autodata, U.S. new vehicle sales fell just short of 1 million vehicles, a drop of 21% from a year ago, which included Cash for Clunkers. That federal program created a sugar rush of sales by dangling an incentive of up to $4,500 in cash for buyers who traded in older gas guzzlers for more efficient models.

Industry sales also fell 5% from July levels. August sales typically outpace July, as deals become available on older models ahead of the fall introduction of new model year cars. August sales would equate to an annual sales pace of about 11  (go to article)

MarketWatch -- By Laura Mandaro and Nick Godt, MarketWatch

SAN FRANCISCO (MarketWatch) -- Crude-oil futures posted their biggest one-day gain in nearly a month Wednesday, after U.S. and Chinese manufacturing surveys sweetened the outlook for global oil demand after petroleum's sharp tumble last month.

Crude oil for October delivery ended floor trading up $1.99, or 2.8%, to $73.91 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange, the biggest one-day rise for the most actively traded contract since August 2, according to FactSet Research.

"Inventories were generally bearish. The fact that the market was able to rally behind it suggests there was some optimism from the economic data this morning," said Mike Fitzpatrick, a vice president in energy at MF Global.
 (go to article)

CNBC -- Published: Wednesday, 1 Sep 2010 | 12:31 PM ET - By: Stephen Schork - Editor, The Schork Report

According to the latest monthly update from the DOE, the build in commercial crude oil stocks in the U.S. was much stronger than we expected.

The numbers for June show inventories of crude oil at the highest level in over a generation. According to the preliminary weekly numbers we had expected supplies to top out over 355 MMbbls. Instead, supplies actually finished the month over 360 MMbbls, the first such occurrence since 1990. In fact, June’s figure of 362.7 MMbbls rank it the 04th highest June since 1980 and the 13th highest June since the government started tracking supply in 1920!
 (go to article)

USAToday.com -- BP spent over $93 million on advertising between April and July—more than three times the amount the company spent on advertising during the same period in 2009, U.S. lawmakers said Wednesday.  (go to article)

MSNBC -- ROACH DRY LAKE, Nev. — Not a light bulb's worth of solar electricity has been produced on the millions of acres of public desert set aside for it. Not one project to build glimmering solar farms has even broken ground.

Instead, five years after federal land managers opened up stretches of the Southwest to developers, vast tracts still sit idle.

An Associated Press examination of U.S. Bureau of Land Management records and interviews with agency officials shows that the BLM operated a first-come, first-served leasing system that quickly overwhelmed its small staff and enabled companies, regardless of solar industry experience, to squat on land without any real plans to develop it.  (go to article)

Toledo Blade --
SOUTHFIELD, Mich. - Auto sales in August probably were the slowest for the month in 28 years as model-year closeout deals failed to entice buyers.

Industrywide deliveries, to be released Wednesday, may have reached an annualized rate of 11.6 million vehicles last month, the average of eight analysts' estimates compiled by Bloomberg. That would be the slowest since 1982, according to researcher Ward's AutoInfoBank.

The rate would be 18 percent below last year's annual rate of 14.2 million, when the government was offering "Cash for Clunkers."  (go to article)

Bloomberg -- Toyota Motor Corp., General Motors Co. and Ford Motor Co., the world’s three largest automakers, reported bigger sales declines than analysts projected as the U.S. auto industry headed for its worst August in 28 years.

GM said deliveries fell 25 percent to 185,176 from 246,479 last August, when the U.S. government’s “cash for clunkers” incentive program boosted sales. The biggest U.S. automaker was expected to report a 19 percent decrease, including an adjustment for the number of selling days in August, the average estimate of four analysts surveyed by Bloomberg. On that basis, sales fell 22 percent, Detroit-based GM said in a statement.

U.S. auto sales last month probably were the slowest for August in 28 years as model-year closeout deals failed to entice consumers concerned about the  (go to article)

Yahoo! Finance -- DETROIT (AP) -- Auto sales, once a bright spot in the economic recovery, grew fainter last month.

The pain was widespread. Big car companies General Motors, Ford and Toyota all saw sales slip. Smaller automakers like Subaru suffered too, as did companies that appeal to the budget minded, such as Kia and Hyundai.

Buyers are nervous about the economy's health and stayed away from showrooms, a worrisome sign since August is typically a strong month. Total industry sales could fall below 1 million new vehicles once automakers finish reporting sales on Wednesday, making it the worst August in 27 years.

"There hasn't been enough horsepower behind the recovery to motivate consumers to regain their confidence and purchase vehicles at a higher rate," says Jeff Schuster, executive director of glo  (go to article)

CLICKONDETROIT -- SUV Was Parked In Private Lot On East Jefferson Avenue

DETROIT -- Someone swiped the tires off one of Detroit Mayor Dave Bing's vehicles overnight Tuesday while it was parked outside his condo on the city's east side.

The GMC Yukon Denali was parked in a gated private lot at the Shoreline East Condominiums on East Jefferson Avenue.

The SUV was propped up on blocks until a tow truck removed it Wednesday morning.

A representative for the mayor called the SUV Bing's secondary vehicle, and that it is assigned to a district police chief but is also used by the Bing family when needed.

Detroit police are investigating.

No other vehicles had their tires stolen.  (go to article)

NY Times -- General Motors said Wednesday that its sales in the United States fell 25 percent last month from August 2009, when the government’s “cash for clunkers” program caused a surge in demand.
Other automakers are also expected to report decreases in sales on Wednesday, marking the worst August in recent memory. Analysts have projected that overall sales fell slightly from July, which renewed concerns about the strength of the recovery.
G.M.’s sales decline was exacerbated by its shutdown of Saturn, Pontiac and Hummer in the last year and its sale of Saab. Sales by G.M.’s remaining four brands fell 11 percent from a year ago, but Buick sales were up 66 percent and Cadillac sales rose 83 percent. Chevrolet was the only active brand for which sales decreased.
Compared to July, G.M.’s sales were  (go to article)

Science Codex -- The era of personalized energy systems — in which individual homes and small businesses produce their own energy for heating, cooling and powering cars — took another step toward reality today as scientists reported discovery of a powerful new catalyst, nickel borate, that would be a key element in such a system. They described the advance, which could help free homes and businesses from dependence on the electric company and the corner gasoline station, at a meeting of the American Chemical Society.

Our goal is to make each home its own power station," said study leader Daniel Nocera, Ph.D. "We're working toward development of 'personalized' energy units that can be manufactured, distributed and installed inexpensively.  (go to article)

Denver Post -- Was there ever any doubt the Governor's Energy Office would recommend that you and I pay for Xcel's SmartGridCity in Boulder, even after costs tripled from the original estimate to $44 million?

Was there any doubt, for that matter, that staff at the Public Utilities Commission would reach the same conclusion rather than suggest that maybe, just maybe, research and development should be assigned to investors, not ratepayers?

To answer these questions, you only need to know that the smart grid is a concept beloved by green energy visionaries — and that their agenda has the same effect on state officials as a ringing bell had on Pavlov's dogs. They drool on cue. They can't help themselves.  (go to article)

The Kids Science Zone -- Like most technologies, work on solar devices has proceeded in generational waves. First came bulk silicon-based solar cells built with techniques that borrowed heavily from those used to make computer chips. Next came work on thin films of materials specifically tailored to harvest the sun's energy, but still more or less borrowed from the realm of microelectronics manufacturing. Then came the third generation, described by one researcher and blogger as "the wild west," which among other objectives aims to build inexpensive next-generation solar cells by relying on decidedly low-tech wet chemistry.
 (go to article)

Yahoo -- With scientific data piling up showing that the world has reached its hottest-ever point in recorded history, global-warming skeptics are facing a high-profile defection from their ranks. Bjorn Lomborg, author of the influential tract "The Skeptical Environmentalist," has reversed course on the urgency of global warming, and is now calling for action on "a challenge humanity must confront."  (go to article)