Crescent Dunes concentrating solar plant begins producing electricity lweb.es/f842
Crescent Dunes Solar Energy, a 110 megawatt (MW) concentrating solar power (CSP) electricity plant, began full operation in February. Crescent Dunes uses an energy storage system that developers expect will be able to store enough thermal energy to generate electricity for up to 10 hours after sunset or on cloudy days when direct sunlight is unavailable. Unlike most other CSP plants that use synthetic oil as the intermediary fluid, Crescent Dunes uses molten salt, which has more advantageous thermal properties.
OEF REVIEW:Although countries saying they’ll freeze oil production account for 25% of global supply, conditions of their Feb. 16 agreement and history offer little reason to expect much change in an oversupplied market. Of four countries agreeing not to raise production beyond January levels, Saudi Arabia, Russia, Qatar, and Venezuela, only one has enough spare capacity to do so meaningfully. Saudi Arabia produced at an average rate of 10.19 million barrels a day in January, according to the International Energy Agency. 
OEF REVIEW:“2016 State of American Energy report details the economic, job creation, energy security and global leadership opportunities created by our nation’s 21st century energy revolution and the policy challenges we must overcome to ensure that these benefits extend for generations to come. To give a sense of the reach and scope of the industry, each chapter of this report examines the distinctive policy challenges and opportunities through highlights of these issues in seven regions that include all 50 states. The report makes clear that the economic benefits and opportunities provided by the oil and natural gas industry aren’t confined to energy producing states and that the industry could do more with the right energy policies based on market principles and sound science.” Jack N. Gerard, President and CEO, API
OEF REVIEW:Ministers from Saudi Arabia and Russia met in Doha along with their counterparts from Venezuela and Qatar. Saudi Arabian oil minister Ali al-Naimi said: “Freezing now at the January level is adequate for the market. We don’t want significant gyrations in prices, we want to meet demand. We want a stable oil price.”
OEF REVIEW:The world’s two most powerful oil producers have reached a tentative agreement to freeze oil production at its current levels, dashing hopes of a supply cut for the world’s glutted market. Meeting in Doha, Russian, Venezuelan, Qatari and Saudi Arabian oil ministers reached a deal to not exceed production from their January levels, but only if it was followed suit by other producers such as Iran and Iraq. Forward prices for Bent crude plunged by as much as 3 percent on the news to $33.68 a barrel, reversing days of gains.
OEF REVIEW:Tight oil production in the United States increased from 2007 through April 2015, based on estimates in Energy Information Agency’s (EIA) Drilling Productivity Report, and accounted for more than half of total U.S. oil production in 2015. Tight oil growth has been driven by increasing initial production rates from tight wells in regions analyzed in the report. As drilling techniques and technology improve, producers are able to extract more oil during the initial months of production from new wells.
OEF REVIEW:The United Arab Emirates’ energy minister has said that OPEC was willing to cooperate on an output cut. Many traders were skeptical noting that Venezuela and Russia had tried in vain to stir Saudi Arabia and other major producers into agreeing to cuts, but after a price slump that has taken crude prices to more than 12-year lows, many of these traders were inclined to believe that a rebound was due sooner or later. “We expect declining U.S. oil production, in particular, to drive the oil price back up to $50 per barrel by the end of the year,” Frankfurt-based Commerzbank said in a note.
OEF REVIEW:The 2016 edition of the BP Energy Outlook outlines the ‘most likely’ path for energy demand by fuel based on assumptions and judgements about future changes in policy, technology and the economy, and develops a number of alternative cases to explore key uncertainties. 
OEF REVIEW:The February 2016 OPEC Monthly Oil Market Report indicates the following, on page 17, with regard to “Recent Interactions Between the Oil Market and the Global Economy”: It seems that the overall negative effect from the sharp decline in oil prices since mid-2014 has outweighed benefits in the short-term and there seems to be a ‘contagious’ effect taking place across many aspects of the global economy…more
OEF REVIEW:The head of Russian state-run oil company Rosneft on Wednesday floated the idea of a coordinated output cut by major oil-producing countries to prop up sagging prices but fell short of saying whether Moscow would contribute to such a plan. Rosneft Chief Executive Igor Sechin, in a speech at the International Petroleum Week conference in London, attributed oversupply in the market to overproduction by members of the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries. He suggested major oil producers each cut production by 1 million barrels per day.
OEF REVIEW:According to latest figures from the International Hydropower Association (IHA), the 1,036 GW of hydropower capacity generated over 16 percent of global electricity production in 2014. Looking to the year ahead, IHA identified several trends driving hydropower build-out. Prominent on the list is hydropower’s ability to function as a grid management asset: delivering base- and peak-load energy, frequency response and black-start capabilities. These solutions are recognized as critical to facilitate a successful transition to renewable energy. A second trend fostering steady investment is modernization, uprating, and conversion of existing plants in efforts to secure more efficient and sustainable operations. A third driver motivating fresh momentum for hydropower stems from ancillary hydropower functions that can assist nations in adapting to climate change: providing freshwater for irrigation, drought management and flood protection solutions. 
OEF REVIEW:A handful of shale patches in the state, which would be the world’s sixth-largest oil producer if it were a country, are profitable with crude below $30 a barrel, according to an analysis by Bloomberg Intelligence. In the Eagle Ford’s DeWitt County, which produced more than 100,000 barrels of oil per day in November, the average well can be profitable with U.S. benchmark crude at $22.52 a barrel, $4 below the lowest level this year. Drive 200 miles southwest to Dimmit County, and drillers need $58 oil. The wide range of break-evens illustrates one reason why shale production from exploration and production companies has been more resilient than expected, filling storage tanks in the U.S. to levels not seen in 85 years.
OEF REVIEW:Several factors have played a part in pushing U.S. crude oil prices below $30 per barrel, including high inventory levels of crude oil, uncertainty about global economic growth, volatility in equity and non-energy commodity markets, and the potential for additional crude oil supply to enter the market. Crude oil and petroleum product inventories, both domestically and internationally, have been growing since mid-2014 and are above five-year averages for this date.
OEF REVIEW:The impact of sharply lower oil prices is being felt around the globe. Oil-dependent countries are trying to mend busted budgets. Oil companies are cutting production and workers. While consumers in some countries enjoy lower gas prices, elsewhere consumers are paying higher food prices due to declines in the local currency. This article gives some facts and figures from the USA, Canada, Saudi Arabia, Iraq, Iran, Europe/Russia, Asia, Africa, and Latin America.