Energetics Cliff Notes - Tuesday Edition

• The New Republic reports on a new study showing that solar energy has become cheaper than nuclear - will the market it take it from here?
• Governor Brad Henry of Oklahoma has signed into law the Energy Security Act, an RES of 15% by 2015.
• Tera-Gen Power just received $1.2 billion in financing to expand their Kern County wind farm to 3000MW, making it the biggest wind farm in the country.
• Here we go again - another oil leak is spewing oil 20 feet into the air in the Gulf.
• Chevy announced the pricing plans for its anticipated Volt: $41,000 before tax breaks, or $350/month lease.
• Daily Kos points out that BP hasn't put any of its $20 billion in Gulf reparations in escrow yet.
• Paul Krugman weighs in on the death of the climate bill, lending his considerable column to the blame game.
• Remember how bringing a comprehensive climate/energy bill to Copenhagen was supposed to show the world how serious the US is about fighting climate change? Well, after missing that deadline, Michael Levi at CFR discusses how the latest failure will affect US climate diplomacy.
• Here are some key recommendations from the report Powering America's Economy: Energy Innovation at the Crossroads of National Security Challenges.

Energetics Cliff Notes: Friday Edition

The week that was: offshore drilling, CAFE standards, mountaintop removal. Looks like I started this blog just in time...

• In retrospect, this is the best political analysis of the administration's decision to lift the ban on offshore drilling [via the Daily Dish].
• Over at the Energy Collective, blogger Dave Rochlin explains why units matter, the magnitude of the CAFE standards decision, and the potential principal-agent complications of decreasing the cost of driving.
• Policy implications of the EPA's decision to scale back (NOT eliminate) MTR [.pdf].
• Climate skepticism is high and the shift to renewable energy is slow in the Arab world.
• A potential breakthrough in battery technology?
• Greenpeace's report on Koch Industries' funding of climate denial [.pdf].
• In the continuing saga of speculation on what the KGL bill will include, Grist breaks the story that tax revenues from a gasoline tax may "go towards tax credits and incentives for the budding US tar sands industry."
• Here's why Californians don't have to care about offshore drilling.
• The White House will buy the first 100 Chevy Volts to come off the line.
• Scientific American asks "what is the right price for carbon?"
• Finally, the energy implications of cloud computing (cool stuff).