High oil prices may hurt poorest Americans most

Sep 27, 2023
Tight global supply raises costs for industry and motorists, but for now, the pain is milder than it was during price spikes decades earlier.
Gasoline prices in Burbank, California, last week.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

How the 1973 oil embargo changed the way the U.S. thinks about energy

Sep 21, 2023
Fifty years ago this fall, Arab members of OPEC cut off their oil exports to the United States.
Above, an oil pumpjack in California. Then-President Richard Nixon, in a 1973 speech addressing the oil embargo, expressed the need for U.S. energy independence.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Fossil fuels built Houston into an energy capital. Can it lead the clean energy transition?

Sep 13, 2023
With the aid of workers, technology and cash from the oil and gas industry, new companies offer a glimpse of a post-fossil fuels future.
An oil refinery in operation with the Houston skyline in the background. Fossil fuels continue to enrich the Texas economy, but some see the need to respond to the climate crisis.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

Solar a bright spot in slow progress toward U.S. renewable energy goals

Aug 30, 2023
Shipments of solar panels reached a record high last year, though most were imported. They're also getting cheaper.
Solar is projected to grow even more in the next couple of years, largely because of the Inflation Reduction Act.
Mario Tama/Getty Images

Heat strains Texas power grid as population keeps growing

Aug 28, 2023
The state is home to many of the fastest-growing cities in the U.S. Add record temperatures, and it's no surprise that the grid is stressed.
This summer, peak demand for the Texas grid is 11,000 megawatts more than it was two years ago.
Brandon Bell/Getty Images

How the prickly pear cactus inspired a scientist seeking alternatives to fossil fuels

Aug 16, 2023
Engineers at the University of Texas at El Paso have discovered a low-cost, "biomimetic" way of generating hydrogen gas.
Materials engineer Navid Attarzadeh with a prickly pear cactus. The form of the plant inspired a new design for hydrogen gas generation.
Zoe Kurland/Marfa Public Radio

Why are China and India still burning so much coal?

Jul 31, 2023
A new report from the International Energy Agency shows global demand for coal reached a record level in 2022 — and it’s not likely to go down any time soon.
Countries like India and China rely on coal for two big reasons: It’s usually cheap and available, said Sanya Carley, a professor of energy policy at the University of Pennsylvania.
Money Sharma/AFP via Getty Images

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New tax incentives ease home improvements to beat the heat

Jul 19, 2023
Expanded tax credits in the Inflation Reduction Act help pay for weatherizing homes and installing heat pumps.
Heat pumps are among the energy-conserving tools that new tax credits will partially cover.
John Keeble/Getty Images

U.S. crude is playing a bigger role in pricing global oil

Jul 12, 2023
The addition of American crude oil to the Brent benchmark had an immediate impact on global oil prices.
Adding plentiful American crude to the Brent benchmark means the price is now influenced by a more stable source, said Eli Tesfaye of RJO Futures.
Frederic J. Brown/AFP via Getty Images

Buffett's Berkshire Hathaway ramps up investment in liquefied natural gas

Jul 11, 2023
The U.S. has become a leading exporter of LNG, which is often used to ease energy shortages around the world. That stokes price volatility.
A tanker on its way to deliver LNG to France. The U.S. has become a top exporter of the resource.
Clement Mahoudeau/AFP via Getty Images