Seeking New Energy, an English Town Digs Deep
October 7, 2019 | NY Times | Mark Ellwood
In the county of Cornwall located in southwestern England, locals are anticipating the development of a new geothermal plant that will hopefully bring both electricity and economic stimulus to the area. Beneath Cornwall lies a large granite deposit from which useful energy can be extracted by pumping water into the ground; the water is heated by radioactive compounds in the granite and converted to steam, which can then power steam turbines or be used for heating. The soonest upcoming project is estimated to begin construction in March and produce enough electricity to power 3,000 homes. Although the region is more closely associated with the Cornish steam engine and the Industrial Revolution, these recent developments indicate a promising transition to renewable energy sources. -PH
Climate and Energy Experts Debate How to Respond to a Warming World
October 7, 2019 | New York Times | James O’Brien
The New York Times interviewed various energy executives about the clean energy transition, with interviewees spanning groups like Chevron and the Environmental Defense Fund. Representatives from fossil fuel companies advocated for their respective energy sources, sharing the view that completely phasing out fossil fuels is neither realistic nor necessary. They also all explicitly stated that climate change is real and requires immediate action. BP said that they are doing their part to be “consistent with the Paris goal” by spending, “$750 million on low-carbon activities,” less than 10% of their yearly revenue. This captures another New York Times article released earlier in the week that says oil companies have moved away from denying climate change and towards advertising their own contribution towards climate mitigation, but that these contributions aren’t reflected in their financial activity. So, the fossil fuel industry is making steps in the direction of climate action, but there is still a long way to go. -AA
Saudi Aramco Still Not Worth $2 Trillion, No Matter How Much Crown Prince Wants It To Be
October 11, 2019 | DealBreaker | Jon Shazar
In an unfortunate turn of events for Saudi Aramco, it was announced on Friday that investment bankers valued the nationally held firm at $1.3-1.5 trillion, well below the $2 trillion valuation that Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman was hoping for. Aramco has experienced similar outcomes before, with their previous IPO attempt two years ago fetching a valuation of $400 billion to $1 trillion, almost half what the Crown Prince had hoped for. At that time, Aramco, and ostensibly the Saudi Royal Family, refused to move ahead with the IPO, due to the substantial differentiation in valuation. Two years later, it has yet to be seen if they will see the significant increase in valuation as a green light to go public. With oil prices surging from their historic lows in the 2014-2016 period and a cloudy future for the industry moving forward, this may present a perfect opportunity for the Saudis to cash in on what would be the largest IPO ever, creating the liquidity needed to diversify the oil-dependent Saudi economy.
-CVA