Feb. 15 at 3:07 p.m.
Filed under:
Energy
By Wailin Wong
Chicago natural gas customers could see their bills go up by more than $100 a year in 2012 under a rate hike proposal that Peoples Gas filed Tuesday with the Illinois Commerce Commission.
Peoples Gas and North Shore Gas, subsidiaries of the Integrys Energy Group, said they are asking for higher rates to offset increased delivery costs. Peoples Gas is asking for a hike that would tack on about $9 per month to a typical small residential customer’s bill, adding up to $108 a year. The increase applies only to the delivery charge, with the cost of natural gas and taxes remaining the same, the utility said in a statement.
In the case of North Shore Gas, the utility is seeking a rate adjustment that would mean a $3 monthly increase for the typical customer, or roughly $36 a year. Get the full story »
Feb. 11 at 6:17 p.m.
Filed under:
Energy,
Updated
By Julie Wernau
Attorney General Lisa Madigan said today that she is “strenuously opposed” to state legislation introduced this week that would determine utility rates by formula, joining a strong opposition group that includes AARP Illinois, Citizens Utility Board and the Natural Resources Defense Council.
Commonwealth Edison — which is behind the bill — and other state utilities would be able to lock in profit margins above 10 percent under the proposal. The legislation also proposes that rate hikes for consumers, which typically undergo an 11-month regulatory review, could be decided in as little as 45 days. Get the full story »
By Julie Wernau
Exelon CEO John Rowe saw his total compensation for 2010 rise 14 percent to $7.2 million, according to documents filed today with the Securities and Exchange Commission, an increase largely tied to a change in the theoretical value of his pension.
Rowe had the opportunity to earn stock performance awards worth $1.1 million — compensation that is directly tied to the performance of Exelon stock. But the company’s shares performed in the negative direction in 2010 and Rowe received no equity for performance.
At the same time, stock options worth $1.15 million were underwater at the end of 2010. Get the full story »
Feb. 10 at 5:57 a.m.
Filed under:
China,
Energy,
International,
Internet
By Associated Press
Hackers operating from China stole sensitive information from Western oil companies, a U.S. security firm reported Thursday, adding to complaints about pervasive Internet crime traced to the country.
The report by McAfee Inc. did not identify the companies but said the “coordinated, covert and targeted” attacks began in November 2009 and targeted computers of oil and gas companies in the United States, Taiwan, Greece and Kazakhstan. It said the attackers stole information on operations, bidding for oil fields and financing. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 1:20 p.m.
Filed under:
Energy
By Reuters
U.S. retail gasoline demand fell last week for the first time in a month after a massive snowstorm hit a large swath of the country, clogging traffic and curbing demand.
Average gasoline demand fell 3 percent to 8.73 million barrels per day in the week to Feb. 4. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 10:21 a.m.
Filed under:
Energy,
Environment,
Jobs/employment
By Reuters
Looming U.S. rules that power utilities face on air pollution could create nearly 1.5 million jobs in the next five years, according to a report.
Engineering, construction and pipefitting are some of the professions that could see a rise in jobs as Environmental Protection Agency rules push utilities to invest in new capacity and pollution controls, said the report “New Jobs — Cleaner Air,” commissioned by Ceres, a coalition of environmentalists and institutional investors. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 10:03 a.m.
Filed under:
Computers,
Energy,
Technology
By Wailin Wong
Argonne National Laboratory will be using a new IBM supercomputer that can run 10 quadrillion calculations per second. Yes, quadrillion.
By way of comparison, IBM said that if every man, woman and child in the U.S. performed one calculation each second, they would need almost one year to run as many calculations as the new “Mira” computer can do in one second. Get the full story »
Feb. 8 at 5:43 a.m.
Filed under:
Energy,
Policy
By Julie Wernau
Commonwealth Edison and other state utilities would be able to lock in profit margins above 10 percent under a bill to be introduced Tuesday in the General Assembly.
The legislation also proposes that rate hikes for consumers, which typically undergo an 11-month regulatory review, could be decided in as little as 45 days.
Feb. 4 at 3:52 p.m.
Filed under:
Beverages,
Construction,
Energy,
Food,
Updated
By Reuters
Consumer goods maker Fortune Brands posted a sharply higher quarterly profit that topped Wall Street’s expectations as an improving economy helped spur sales of premium liquor and Titleist golf clubs.
But the conglomerate said sales of its Simonton windows, up at a double-digit rate, were fueled by the expiration of a consumer tax credit for the purchase of energy-efficient home products. As a result, it expects the overall window market to fall at a mid-single-digit rate this year. Get the full story »
Feb. 3 at 1:10 p.m.
Filed under:
Airlines,
Energy
By Dow Jones Newswires
A senior Delta Air Lines Inc. executive said Thursday that more fare increases are needed to counter escalating fuel costs as the airline pares plans to boost capacity this quarter.
Ed Bastian, president of the second-largest U.S. airline, said Delta had recouped half of the rise in jet fuel costs in the last two months through higher fares. Get the full story »
Feb. 1 at 11:45 a.m.
Filed under:
Energy,
Environment
From Bloomberg News | BP expects to fetch at least $4.4 billion from selling half of its crude refining capacity in the U.S. and some retail assets as it raises cash to pay for last year’s Gulf of Mexico oil spill. The company plans to focus on refining and marketing networks in the country based around its Whiting, Indiana, and Cherry Point, Washington, refineries.
Feb. 1 at 9:50 a.m.
Filed under:
Earnings,
Energy,
Food,
Updated
By Reuters
U.S. agricultural processor and ethanol producer Archer Daniels Midland Co reported stronger-than-expected quarterly earnings on Tuesday as rising grain prices and robust global demand bolstered results, sending its shares up 6.3 percent in premarket trading.
For the fiscal second quarter ended Dec. 31, net profit was $732 million, or $1.14 per share, compared with $567 million, or 88 cents per share, a year earlier. Get the full story »
Feb. 1 at 7:05 a.m.
Filed under:
Earnings,
Energy
By Dow Jones Newswires
NiSource Inc.’s fourth-quarter earnings fell 63 percent amid early debt-extinguishment losses as the regional utility reported higher-than-expected revenue.
The Midwest and Northeast electricity and natural gas utility has benefitted from cost cutting and improving demand in some of its markets last year. Its industrial volume received a boost as the manufacturing sector rebounded last year. Get the full story »
Feb. 1 at 6:49 a.m.
Filed under:
Earnings,
Energy
By Dow Jones Newswires
BP PLC Tuesday resumed its corporate dividend and deepened strategic changes. But the company’s earnings came in below expectations, as BP signaled that short-term oil and gas volumes would continue to drop. Get the full story »
Jan. 31 at 11:29 a.m.
Filed under:
Energy
By Associated Press
Brent crude oil topped $100 for the first time since 2008, as investors kept an anxious eye on Egypt and worried about unrest there disrupting the flow of oil from the Middle East.
