Path: bloom-picayune.mit.edu!snorkelwacker.mit.edu!news.media.mit.edu!americast.com!americast.com!usa-post Newsgroups: usa-today.energy From: usa-post@AmeriCast.Com Organization: American Cybercasting Approved: usa-post@AmeriCast.com Subject: energy Mon, May 11 1992 Date: Mon, 11 May 92 05:22:18 EDT Message-ID: 05-11 0000 DECISIONLINE: Energy USA TODAY Update May 11, 1992 Source: USA TODAY:Gannett National Information Network USA'S ENERGY USE LESS EFFICIENT: The USA's overall energy efficiency worsened slightly last year, dragged down by the effects of the recession, falling oil prices and a lack of new government mandates. Adjusted for the effects of weather, the United States used 16,963 British thermal units - about 5 kilowatt-hours - to produce $1 of goods or services. That was up marginally from 1990's figure and up more than 1% from 1989. (For more, see special Efficiency package below.) CHEVRON WINS DEAL IN KAZAKHSTAN: Chevron Corp. has signed an agreement with the republic of Kazakhstan to develop what could be one of the world's largest new oilfields. Chevron said Friday that after four years of talks it had signed a deal to create a joint venture in the Tengiz area. The Tengiz oilfield is estimated to hold as much as 25 billion barrels of oil - equal to the size of Saudi Arabia's entire oil reserves. INITIAL INVESTMENT TO BE $1.5B: Chevron's deal with Kazakhstan is the most significant venture agreed between a western oil company and the authorities in the former Soviet Union and offers encouragement to many other companies currently in negotiations. Chevron says that when work begins on the project, it would involve an initial investment of $1.5 billion by the venture partners over the first three years. VALDEZ SKIPPER TO TEACH: Joseph Hazelwood, skipper of the Exxon Valdez tanker that ran aground in 1989 and spilled 10.9 million gallons of crude oil into pristine Alaskan waters, has a new job. Next week, he'll begin teaching students at New York's Maritime College how to stand watch on the bridge of a tanker, which he failed to do the day the Valdez caused the USA's worst oil spill. Hazelwood is a 1968 graduate. SIERRA TRYING TO SAVE OIL FIELD: Sierra Energy Co. of Reno, Nev., will use a $2 million federal grant to attempt to prolong the life of the Badger Basin oil field in Northwestern Wyoming. The company has proposed using a new combination of oil recovery methods to find hidden pockets of oil. MEETING ON MSR SITE SET: A conference will be held at Central Wyoming College in Riverton Tuesday to consider a proposal to temporarily store spent fuel rods from nuclear power plants at a Fremont County site - known as Monitored Retrievable Storage - for 40 years. The Heritage Foundation will sponsor the gathering. UTILITY WANTS TO HIKE RATES: Columbus Southern Power's request to increase electric rates by 28.4% - or $202.5 million - goes before the Ohio Public Utilities Commission Monday. The average customer would pay $16.21 more per month if the increase is approved. A decision on the request could be made by Tuesday or Wednesday. COMMISSION TO CHOOSE DIRECTOR: The new director of a five-state nuclear waste compact commission will be chosen in Lincoln, Neb., Monday by commission members. Gene Crump, the commission's interim director since April '91, is among the seven candidates vying for job. PRICES UP IN QUIET SESSION: Oil prices edged higher Friday in dull trading, posting a slight gain for the week. Light sweet crude oil for delivery in June settled at $20.86 a barrel, up 15 cents, at the New York Mercantile Exchange. Oil rose 1 cent for the week. Lower-grade sour crude for delivery in June settled at $18.36 per barrel, up 15 cents for the day and 16 cents for the week. REFINED PRODUCTS ADVANCE: Refined products settled higher Friday. Unleaded gasoline for delivery in June settled at 64.87 cents a gallon, up .10 cent for the day and .18 cent for the week. Home heating oil settled at 57.67 cents a gallon, up .26 cent for the day and .97 cent for the week. Natural gas prices were lower, settling at $1.475 per 1,000 cubic feet, down .9 cent for the day but up 4.4 cents for the week. SPECIAL PACKAGE ON EFFICIENCY: COAL, PETROLEUM USE DOWN: The statistics on the USA's energy efficiency, compiled and recently released by the Energy Department, are adjusted for weather by the Alliance to Save Energy, a non-profit group. "At a cursory glance, a lot of the decline is driven by the recession," said Joe Loper, an analyst at the Washington-based group. Coal and petroleum use - mainly for transportation and manufacturing - fell. NEWS IS BAD FOR GLOBAL WARMING: The figures on energy efficiency are bad news on both economic and environmental grounds. By failing to improve energy efficiency, the United States continues boosting emissions of carbon dioxide, a heat-trapping gas believed to warm Earth's climate. The world's industrialized nations, meeting at the United Nations, agreed late Friday night on a compromise to reduce global warming gases. JAPANESE MORE EFFICIENT: Economically, energy efficiency frees up money for other uses, such as higher wages, research or new equipment. Economists point out that Japanese manufacturers need about half the energy that U.S. competitors do to produce $1 of goods or services. The new figures are only slightly changed from last year and have been stagnant since 1988, Loper said. ENERGY BILL COULD HELP: Energy efficiency prospects are mixed, said Jim Wolf, executive director of the alliance. He said a big factor is the proposed national energy strategy. The House is scheduled to take up the work of eight committees this month or next, and the Senate has already passed its version. Several strong efficiency mandates in the measure could again boost the nation's efficiency, Wolf said. (End of package.) Energy Editor: William Snoddy. (1-919-855-3491) Making copies of USA TODAY Update (Copyright, 1992) for further distribution violates federal law. This article is copyright 1992 Gannett News Service. Redistribution to other sites is not permitted except by arrangement with American Cybercasting Corporation. For more information, send-email to usa@AmeriCast.COM