“… this book is a worthwhile read to anyone interested in the rise and fall of Enron, but distinguishes itself especially to those who have an interest in political philosophy…. [T]he book is a natural fit for economists and those interested in energy finance and market regulation.” – Travis Roach, below
It was a pleasure to read, however belatedly, Travis Roach’s review of my book Enron Ascending: The Forgotten Years, 1984–1996. (His review is reprinted below.) Roach, a professor of economics at the University of Central Oklahoma, correctly lays out the structure of the book: the stages by which bureaucrat-turned-businessman Ken Lay converted intrastate Houston Natural Gas into global Enron; how Enron became a natural gas powerhouse focused on government-enabled commodity trading; how the company came to be ruled by the asset-light visions of Jeffrey Skilling; and how finally Enron turned from profit-making to profit-modeling (financial illusionism) to rank seventh on the Fortune 500.…
Continue Reading“Nuclear fission is the most complicated, fraught, expensive way to boil water to produce steam to drive electrical turbines.”
What U.S. industry is at once the most subsidized and regulated by the federal government? The answer is commercial nuclear power. As a result, the 73-year-old “Atoms for Peace” program represents the most expensive failure (malinvestment) in US business. potholed with uncompleted projects and massive cost overruns with completed projects. Future decommissioning costs will add to this liability.
But hyperbole rules with this technology, and there is always tomorrow. Forget that competitive viability did not emerge in the 1950s or 1960s, and George W. Bush and Joe Biden both failed at their attempted “nuclear renaissance.” Expect the same to result from today’s interventionist energy policy.
A future post will outline the crash attempt by President Trump and DOE secretary Chris Wright to get new nuclear capacity on track.…
Continue ReadingThis post excerpts energy and climate material from the Media Balance Newsletter, a free fortnightly published by physicist John Droz Jr., founder of the Alliance for Wise Energy Decisions. Droz is also the author of the popular Substack Critically Thinking About Select Societal Issues.
Unreliables (General):
*** Solar and wind aren’t real power sources, they’re intermittent fuel-savers
Wind Energy — Offshore:
New York Ends Fifth Offshore Wind Solicitation Process ‘Due to Federal Actions Disrupting Market’
Trump Administration Files Appeal Against Court Ruling in Multi-State Offshore Wind Lawsuit
Fossil Fuel Energy:
*** Short video: Fossil Fuels — The Big Picture
Miscellaneous Energy News:
*** Heat Pumps: Efficient on paper, complicated in reality
Electricity Productivity Data Shows we are Falling Down the Energy Cliff
Electricity Rates & Fuel Cost
Alex Epstein’s Talking Points Roundup
The Endangerment Finding:
*** At last, with CO2 no longer a pollutant, we can all exhale
*** EPA’s elegant arguments for endangerment repeal
*** Goodbye and Good Riddance to the Endangerment Finding
The Water Vapor Problem
Congress, States Probe Attempts to Mislead Judges on Climate Change
Manmade Global Warming — Some Deceptions:
*** The Cult | A Net Zero Watch Short Film
*** Clearing up some misconceptions about the DoE climate report
*** $16 Trillion and Counting
*** 7 Lies We’re Told About Climate Change | Michael Shellenberger
Cuba Becomes the First Country to Reach Net Zero.…