Nuclear Energy Trends- Germany
Germany – It’s Not Easy Being Green
Forty-one years ago on Sesame Street, Kermit the frog sang a plaintive song, “It’s not easy being green.” In a gesture of solidarity, perhaps he should fax the lyrics to German Chancellor Angela Merkel, whose government is suddenly discovering the costs of weaning itself off nuclear energy.
In the wake of Fukushima, German Chancellor Angela Merkel announced on 30 May that Germany, the world’s fourth-largest economy and Europe’s biggest, would become the first Continue reading
Doug Casey: Glowing Prospects for Uranium
On September 22, 2011, Karen Roche and JT Long of The Energy Report interviewed renowned speculator and financial author Doug Casey on his views about uranium. Read here why Doug thinks despite the recent bad press, “yellowcake” has a bright future.
The Western world’s skittishness, skepticism and staunch opposition when in comes to nuclear energy won’t stand in the way of its production elsewhere in the world. It will be full steam ahead in China, India and other developing nations, says Casey Research Chairman Doug Casey, and the Western world is tiny in comparison. In fact, “I’d say uranium is a great place to be for at least the next generation,” he tells us in this Energy Report exclusive. With ever-advancing technology enabling economic recovery in places where it previously wasn’t possible, he’s also optimistic about natural gas and oil. Continue reading
Glow at the End of the Tunnel
By Elizabeth Manning, Casey Energy Opportunities
Nuclear energy has taken a beating since the Fukushima crisis began in March, but we believe the arguments are strong that it’s not down for the count.
There are a couple of factors that the Casey Energy Team considers bullish for the nuclear industry and market. Let’s take a closer look and back them up.
Factor #1: The pre-Fukushima price of uranium reflected not just market perception but a very real shortage of uranium that’s looming in the face of growing global demand.
The Japanese earthquake struck just as the nuclear renaissance was gaining momentum. After a decade, efforts by the industry to promote nuclear power as a safe, clean and reliable alternative to fossil fuels were finally taking hold. So was the message that nuclear power offers the “always on” type of electricity that other, more glamorous low-carbon technologies like solar and wind power could only supplement, not replace. Continue reading
Solar Energy in Uzbekistan
In a wierd twist of fate, Uzbekistan is sitting on a “Gold Mine” of scientific information about solar energy which because of cheap Siberian Oil has been totally worthless… Up until now. With the world’s interest turning to Solar once again this might be an opportunity for a forward looking company to snap up years of government funded research for a “song”. In this article John Daly tells us how this anomally came about. Tim McMahon~editor
Uzbekistan’s Untapped Solar Energy Riches
By: John C.K. Daly of OilPrice.com
The 17th century English philosopher, Francis Bacon, once observed that, “knowledge is power.
So, here’s some power knowledge that the West has overlooked, but may well contain critical information for jumpstarting Western interest in solar power. Continue reading
Natural Gas Trends
It seems that everywhere we look these days- from U.S. shale to massive Turkmenistan reserves- natural gas seems to be the energy source of the future.
Back in 2006 Turkmenistan claimed to have found a field of up to 24 Trillion Cubic Meters of natural gas. At the time BP was saying that the reserves were probably less than 1/10th the amount. Since then the Chinese have been nailing down reserves left and right and it appears that these reserves may be twice as large as originally thought. Unfortunately, the U.S. has been woefully slow to catch on to the Chinese game.
But recently Hillary Clinton got around to sending an envoy to Turkmenistan trying to catch up with the Chinese. See the full report by Dr. Daly from OilPrice.com.
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How Shale Gas Might Transform the Energy Markets
By Marin Katusa, Casey Energy Report
In the midst of roller-coaster oil prices and a global reassessment of nuclear power, in early April a key development in the natural gas arena slipped by mostly unnoticed: a report from the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) about global shale gas potential.
We all know that shale gas discoveries in America have altered the country’s gas picture dramatically – a twelvefold increase in production over the last decade has transformed the U.S. from an importer to a self-sufficient, natural-gas-loving nation, while also pushing natural gas prices way down. U.S. shale gas production increased by an average of 48% a year from 2006 to 2010, and output is expected to rise almost threefold between 2009 and 2035, according to the EIA’s latest Annual Energy Outlook.
In the face of such impressive shale success in America, many began to wonder about shale gas potential in other parts of the world. In response, the EIA commissioned a report estimating the global volume of shale gas outside of the United States, and the results are, well, a bit mind-boggling. Continue reading
Germany- a Nuclear Power Trendsetter?
By Marin Katusa, Casey Energy Opportunities
In a dramatic about-face, Chancellor Angela Merkel announced last Monday that Germany will phase out nuclear power completely by 2022, shutting down its nine operational reactors and never restarting the seven reactors that were suspended in the wake of the nuclear disaster at Japan’s Fukushima Daiichi plant.
Germany has struggled with a conflicted yet essential relationship with nuclear power from the start. West Germany built its first nuclear power plant in 1960; since then, the country has come to rely on nuclear reactors for more than 20% of its power needs. But the industry’s growth has not come without opposition. A 1975 fire at the Lubmin plant on the Baltic Coast almost caused a core meltdown. A few years later, the Green Party formed and quickly became a nationwide political force based on their “Atomkraft? Nein, Danke” (Nuclear Power? No Thanks) slogan.
For the next 20 years, the country battled with nuclear waste, first transporting it to medium-term storage facilities because of protests against building a national waste processing facility, then shipping it to facilities in France and Britain. In the early 2000s, protestors regularly blocked waste transports, creating a tension-filled period that culminated in the death of an anti-nuclear activist.
In this context, the coalition government committed to phasing out nuclear power by the mid-2020s. But six years later, in 2006, Chancellor Merkel said it would be a mistake for Germany to turn off its nuclear power plants. Four years later, she strengthened that stance with a plan to run the country’s nuclear plants for an additional 12 years, until 2033. That law passed in the country’s lower house in October 2010. Continue reading
New Energy Trend in Japan?
Trends in Energy–
In the wake of the massive nuclear tragedy in Japan the unthinkable has happened in a nation known for their efficiency of design. This is causing the entire nation and possibly the world to re-evaluate their energy choices. Is this a mega-shift in trends? Could this usher in a period of turning to safer alternatives?
Just this past week General Electric’s (GE) GE Energy division debuted its Electric Vehicle Solar Carport. This carport has solar panels built into its roof and can feed the electricity it produces into GE’s new Smart EV Charging Stations opening the door for Solar powered cars. Each EV Solar Carport Project produces enough energy to power nearly 20 homes per year. And is targeted toward parking lots so cars can be parked in the shade and get charged up as well. There are millions of acres of parking lots around the country just ripe for producing solar energy (and shading cars). I would think many people would pay for the priviledge of parking in the shade even if they didn’t want to charge up their car. The excess energy could be fed back into the grid supplying energy during peak usage times (daytime) or used to charge the cars parked in them.
Perhaps as Dr. Daly suggests in this article the key components of alternative energy are coming together not only with G.E. but throughout the world.
Tim McMahon, editor
The Fukushima debacle has finally bared the industry’s darkest secret, its inability to manage its nuclear waste. The six reactor TEPCO Daichi Fukushima stored all its waste onsite, and the spent fuel rods and their lack of cooling have been a major contributor to the high radiation levels observed around the facility. Worse for nuclear power proponents has been the reluctant admission by TECPO that three of the complex’s six reactors apparently did in fact suffer a meltdown. So, what’s next?
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