Energy

Budget Battles

  • usFILE PHOTO: A bulldozer moves coal at the Murray Energy Corporation port facility in Powhatan Point, Ohio

    Trump's Coal Job Push Stumbles in Most States

    By Valerie Volcovici, Reuters

    WASHINGTON (Reuters) - President Donald Trump's effort to put coal miners back to work stumbled in most coal producing states last year, even as overall employment in the downtrodden sector grew...

  • The massive Big John dragline works to reshape the rocky landscape in some of the last sections to be mined for coal at the Hobet site in Boone County

    Why US Coal Producers Are Having a Very Good Year

    By Tom DiChristopher, CNBC

    U.S. coal exports are rising this year, giving the fossil-fuel friendly Trump administration reason to cheer, but analysts believe the good times won't last. The surge in exports doesn't herald a...

  • Venezuela's President Nicolas Maduro waves during a pro-government rally with workers of state-run oil company PDVSA, in Barcelona

    The Crisis in Venezuela Could Send Oil Prices Soaring

    By Nick Cunningham, Oilprice.com

    Venezuela’s deteriorating crisis is “going to be the biggest geopolitical story to watch in the oil markets," according to Helima Croft of RBC Capital Markets. The economic, political and security...

  • FILE PHOTO: A sign is painted on a parking space for electric cars inside a car park in Hong Kong

    The Battery Problem That Could Slow the Electric Car Revolution

    By Zandi Shabalala, Reuters

    Producers of processed lithium - an essential element for batteries used in electric cars - are agreeing long-term contracts with their customers to fund the investments needed to address a looming...

  • A prototype of the Tesla Model 3 is on display in front of the factory during a media tour of the Tesla Gigafactory which will produce batteries for the electric carmaker in Sparks, Nevada, U.S. July 26, 2016. REUTERS/James Glover II

    The Great Battery Battle: Tesla Sparks an Arms Race in Energy Storage

    By Ryan Browne, CNBC

    Elon Musk's car company Tesla appears to be leading the "arms race" for lithium-ion batteries — for now. Musk recently announced plans to build the world's biggest lithium-ion battery storage project...

  • Mideast Protests Drive up Oil, Threaten Recovery

    By Bruce Stokes, The Fiscal Times

    With protests toppling governments throughout the Middle East, oil prices are rising at dangerously high levels, threatening economic recovery in the U.S. and Europe.

  • Two Agencies to Oversee Offshore Drilling

    By DARRYL FEARS, The Washington Post

    The Obama administration continued to shake up the agency that oversees oil and natural gas drilling, announcing a plan Wednesday to create separate offices to promote energy development and enforce...

  • Detroit’s Electric Recovery

    By Adam Aston, The Fiscal Times

    After two years of teetering near bankruptcy, U.S. automakers showed their improved health with a bevy of electric cars at the Detroit auto show.

  • Capitalism Paves the Way for Germany’s Strong Recovery

    By Dan Morgan, The Fiscal Times

    A return visit to Germany shows that much has changed in 20 years and despite some problems, the country seems to have found the path to economic success.

  • Housing Crisis Stalls Energy Efficient Home Loans

    By Adam Aston, The Fiscal Times

    An innovative program to encourage homeowners to improve the energy efficiency of their homes has run into trouble because of a federal agency’s concerns about the credit risks involved.